Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“But we’re the top four families in Jiangnan… How can they do this…” stammered a young-looking Qian family member.
“We could just decline the challenge. It’s just a written challenge, anyway,” suggested someone else.
“Yeah, we don’t have to accept it.” said another family member, letting out a sigh of relief. Thank god for loopholes.
It wasn’t a question of whether they could beat Gao Peng in combat or not. It just so happened that Gao Peng had an influential grandfather behind him. Even if they were able to win the duel, they weren’t at all sure they could survive his grandfather’s wrath.
Some of the Qian family members had the same idea.
“We can’t decline the challenge,” said the Qian family mistress, Qian Qingyuan, with a sigh. She was also against accepting Gao Peng’s challenge. However, sometimes, bad things tended to happen in life for no reason at all.
She was puzzled over how they had even managed to offend Gao Peng in the first place.
Could it be that he’s targeting the family fortune? Qian Qingyuan mulled over this for a few seconds, then dismissed it. The Southern Sky Group was a highly successful enterprise. They already had more than enough money in their pockets.
“All right. That’s enough, just accept his challenge. Hmph. I, Qian Wuliang, fear no man or monster. If you really want to avoid any retaliation from his grandfather, I’ll just beat his familiars into submission without outright killing them!” shouted Qian Wuliang while slamming his hand on the table.
Qian Wuliang was a tall, gangly man with a wispy mustache on his upper lip and a goatee on his chin. He was wearing a gray Chinese tunic suit, making him look like a middle-aged scholar from the last century.
His personality and sense of fashion were equally old-fashioned.
In truth, he didn’t think much of Gao Peng, the main reason being the latter’s relatively young age.
You can’t trust a boy to do a man’s work, he thought. To him, young people were a reckless sort who gave into their own impulses.
Hmph, the Undead Catastrophe… Young people are all talk and no show. Even the name is pretentious as hell, thought Qian Wuliang, stroking his goatee absently.
There’s no way a brat like him could beat me in a fight!
Qian Wuliang held a high-ranking position in the Qian family. The only person higher than him was his own sister, Qian Qingyuan. Even so, he didn’t think she was someone worth listening to.
“Spread the word. I, Qian Wuliang, have accepted Gao Peng’s challenge. However, the place of our duel will not be in the northern outskirts of the city. It will be in the west! If he’s going to challenge me, he should at least let me decide the place of our duel,” said Qian Wuliang. He then flicked his sleeves to his sides and left the room. Everyone simply stared after him, mouths slightly agape.
There were a total of two Lord-tier trainers in the Qian family. One of them was Qian Wuliang. The other was Qian Qingyuan’s eldest son, Qian Shaoyu.
Despite both being Lord-tier trainers, Qian Wuliang also tended not to take Qian Shaoyu seriously, on grounds of the latter being younger than himself.
Qian Qingyuan’s brows furrowed. She picked up the tea-filled porcelain cup in front of her and drained it. “Since he’s already made his decision, the only thing we can do now is see this through with him.”
As soon as everyone else left the room, Qian Qingyuan glanced meaningfully at Qian Shaoyu, beckoning for him to come over. They walked along a corridor from their penthouse to a quiet backyard.
The sky had darkened considerably. Dragonflies danced about the lotus leaves floating on the pond’s surface.
“Your uncle has always been an arrogant man. He listened only to your grandfather when he was still alive. However, ever since he passed away, there’s just no one left to keep your uncle in check. He doesn’t even listen to me sometimes,” said Qian Qingyuan with a sigh. “I fear he might do something stupid.”
Qian Shaoyu quietly walked after his mother. Upon hearing what she said, he said, “If you’re worried that uncle might hurt Gao Peng, I assure you, that won’t happen. Gao Peng is much stronger than him.”
While his uncle, a stickler for the old ways, was quick to dismiss Gao Peng’s reputation, Qian Shaoyu, who usually took his monster hunting group out on annual hunting trips, knew better than most that one’s reputation was carved out from his or her accomplishments. He had done a background check on Gao Peng. The latter’s Lord-tier familiar was most definitely Perfect-grade. There was no way it had only just entered Lord-tier. Also, Gao Peng didn’t have only one Lord-tier familiar. His potential was not to be underestimated.
If they were to fight it out, his uncle would definitely lose.
Of course, Qian Shaoyu hadn’t told anyone about his findings. He was a man of few words, after all.
“I’m not worried that your uncle will hurt Gao Peng. I’m worried that he might not take the loss well,” said Qian Qingyuan quietly. “Shaoyu, I want you to watch over your uncle’s duel. Make sure he doesn’t do anything rash.”
“If worst comes to worst, just drag your uncle out of there,” she continued. “Don’t engage Gao Peng. Shaoyu, you’ve always been a good boy. You’re the only one I can trust with this matter.”
“I understand,” said Qian Shaoyu, bowing slightly.
…
Qian Wuliang stepped out of the Qian family manor’s side door. There was a slight frown on his face.
He might have been old-fashioned, but he was no fool.
In truth, he was aware of the rumors surrounding Gao Peng’s deeds. While his grandfather had been the main reason behind his fame, Gao Peng had also accomplished much with his own two hands to make a name for himself.
Qian Wuliang suddenly recalled the time he had seen Ji Hanwu’s white dragon descending from the heavens in the Swamp of the Crocodile Spirit.
It had been a terrifying scene to behold.
It was also thanks to Ji Hanwu that he had been able to sign a Blood Contract with the Red-Eyed Crocodile King. Back then, it had fought a fierce battle with a Lord-tier Fire-type crane. The latter had died on the spot, whereas the Red-Eyed Crocodile King had sustained severe injuries and was somewhat unnerved by the white dragon’s presence. This had made it easy for him to sign a Blood Contract with it.
And now, Ji Hanwu had sent his grandson to collect what was his.
“Is Ji Hanwu trying to take back the Red-Eyed Crocodile King?” muttered Qian Wuliang, his heart racing.
He drove to the Swamp of the Crocodile Spirit on the western outskirts of the city.
Weeds grew thick and lush in the swamp. The monster trees that had taken root in the water slowly let their branches droop over the water’s surface. A moss-covered wooden plank suddenly floated up from the depths of the water before him…
Qian Wuliang stepped on it, and the wooden plank carried him across the water all the way to the center of the swamp.
There, a massive creature was basking in the sun on what looked like an island in the middle of the swamp.
It was at least 120 feet long, its dark green leather skin crisscrossed with scars. Its massive feet were stained with gray mud. The crocodile before Qian Wuliang was lazily lounging in the sun.
It lay motionless on the ground like a solemn statue, letting the sun warm its body.
It didn’t even move a muscle to acknowledge Qian Wuliang’s arrival.
“Someone wants to challenge you,” said Qian Wuliang.
The Red-Eyed Crocodile King remained motionless on the ground. Qian Wuliang’s words simply didn’t interest it as much as the comfort the sun seemed to bring it.
Qian Wuliang frowned in annoyance. On the surface, he acted as if everything was beneath him. However, he had tried to hide the fact that his own familiar didn’t even respect him as a trainer…
