Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The Soothing Lake wasn’t small at all. It was actually huge.
There was no mud or sand at the bottom of the lake, nor were there any water plants. Instead, the bottom was a wide and flat stone surface.
When Jiang Chen arrived, he found people practicing. They were so still that he had thought they were stone statues.
He had tried to be as quiet as possible so that no one would be disturbed.
Not until he had swum to an empty area did it occur to him that he had forgotten to ask Ying Wushuang about the effects of underwater practice, but through observation, he found that although others weren’t moving, they were actually manipulating the halos of heaven in their Qihai.
The water around them vibrated and rippled with each manipulation.
The amount of ripples differed by person.
The less ripples one caused, the stronger energy one had.
Jiang Chen tried to manipulate his halo of heaven. The first time, no ripples had emerged. Only some waves tumbled out. He was embarrassed.
Halos of heaven was the key point of the Reaching Heaven State. It was the key to manipulate one’s energy.
Their practice aimed to manipulate halos of heaven more effectively.
In the Soothing Lake, the Reaching Heaven States were able to manipulate their halos of heaven as they wished.
What’s wrong?
When Jiang Chen had been about to start, a group of fish approached him from far away and stayed beside him with no intention to leave.
Jiang Chen was in a daze when he realized these fish were there to disturb him.
He wasn’t so sure, since they were only fish.
Other people opened their eyes. They were almost surprised to see the fish beside Jiang Chen. They looked towards him with pity.
“Who is he? Why has he been targeted?”
Wherever Jiang Chen went, these strange fish followed him. They weren’t powerful enough to attack him. They were only disturbing his practice.
Jiang Chen drew out his sword and thrust it towards them. However, it not only didn’t work, but the dead fish attracted a more terrifying creature.
It was a tremendous fish king. It swam towards Jiang Chen at high speed. With only a few swings, it had reached him.
Since he was underwater, he didn’t want to be engaged in a fight. He swam up and went back to the lakeside.
Ying Wushui was expecting him where he had jumped into the lake. She wasn’t surprised to see him come back. She looked serious.
Jiang Chen found there were another group of men standing nearby. They were smiling in a weird way and looking at him unconcernedly.
One of them was throwing some crumbs into the water, which caught Jiang Chen’s attention.
“Congratulations. Welcome to my team,” Ying Wushuang scorned herself.
“They’re from the Sword Association?”
Jiang Chen vaguely sensed something. He noticed those people were looking at them.
“Yep. They can control the fish in the Soothing Lake to disturb the practitioners down there.”
“With the permission of the Hero Palace?”
“The Soothing Lake is supposed to soothe you. Those fish are a disturbance, but they’re kind of an exercise, too.”
The smile on Ying Wushuang’s face grew, but also became bitter. “That’s what Grand Elder Shui Yuan said.”
“Grand Elder Shui Yuan? Why is he everywhere?”
Jiang Chen gnashed his teeth. Nan Gong had emphasized several times that he shouldn’t cause more trouble and should complete the task in half a year when he left.
However, even though he had swallowed this, the reality was still so annoying.
They think it’s a mercy for me since I haven’t been given any real punishment?
Whitty and I were separated from each other because of them. Or should I call it luck since Whitty wasn’t killed?
The fire of anger that had been suppressed was rising again.
He had killed Zhao Yajun in public and put the Hero Palace in a difficult position. He knew that, and he had accepted his current situation, but it didn’t mean he had forgiven Grand Elder Shui Yuan, who had intended to kill Whitty and even him.
It didn’t mean he had forgiven what the Sword Association had done.
Zhao Yajun and other five had attacked Whitty not only due to how nutritious Whitty’s meat was, but also to revenge Murong Xing.
They might even have been sent by his sister or brother-in-law.
He hadn’t mentioned a word about it, since he didn’t have any proof, but what those of the Sword Association were doing that day was obviously under someone’s orders.
Under Ying Wushuang’s uneasy gaze, Jiang Chen walked towards them.
They were surprised, but not nervous. Instead, they had frivolous smiles on their faces.
“You spent so much time practicing to achieve the Reaching Heaven State just to help others feed fish?” scorned Jiang Chen.
“What did you say?!”
One of them was irritated, but their leader stopped him immediately.
“You want to provoke us so that we’ll attack you first, don’t you?” said he.
“So you’re not stupid.”
“Listen to me. We don’t have to attack you to defeat you. We won’t allow you to enjoy any benefits of the Hero Palace for the next half year.”
“Zhao Yajun was a member of the Sword Association, too. Don’t forget what happened to him,” Jiang Chen said coldly.
They turned pale at the mention of his name.
Jiang Chen had killed Zhao Yajun in public only to revenge a monster. In their eyes, it was stupid. But at the same time, they had come to know how crazy he could be.
So many grand elders had been there. If they were him, they wouldn’t have dared breathe too hard, let alone kill someone.
“I don’t believe you have the nerve to kill us for nothing.”
“I’ll leave you as bedridden as Murong Xing.”
Jiang Chen was going crazy again, grasping the handle of his knife.
Those from the Sword Association swallowed their saliva.
They were at the same level as Zhao Yajun. The latter had been killed by one sword attack. Of course, they wouldn’t be a match for Jiang Chen, either.
“Stop! What are you doing?!”
Jiang Chen was about to draw his knife out, but someone had come to stop him.
It was a youngster, maybe only a few years older than him. He was good-looking., his skin fairer and smoother than a woman’s. His lips were full and red. In short, he was a handsome man.
“Apprentice Brother Shui.”
Those from the Sword Associating greeted him with respect, although they were much older than him.
“This is Shui Chun, Elder Shui Yuan’s son. He’s in charge of the Soothing Lake.”
Ying Wushuang used her holy awareness to tell Jiang Chen the guy’s background so that he could tell whether the guy was a friend or enemy.
In fact, she didn’t have to, since the way Shui Chun was looking at Jiang Chen explained everything.
There was hatred in his eyes!
Unreserved hatred!
“Scum of the Hero Palace, are you picking another fight at the Soothing Lake?” Shui Chun hated Jiang Chen because the latter had embarrassed his father around so many people. He hated Whitty more, since Whitty had injured his father and people were gossiping that his father couldn’t even stop a monster.
“You’re in charge of the Soothing Lake. You should know who’s picking a fight and who’s violating the rules,” said Jiang Chen.
“Yeah? I only saw scum being aggressive, about to kill his sibling disciples,” Shui Chuan smiled coldly.
“Who’s the scum calling out?!”
“The scum is calling out you!”
“Good, you know you’re scum,” smiled Jiang Chen.
Shui Chen flew into a rage when he had realized he had been made a fool, but he also had disdain for such a childish trick.
“Let me teach you a lesson to help you remember what trash you’re!”
He hadn’t expected Jiang Chen’s next move. The latter slapped him across the face.
The slap left a red handprint, which was especially noticeable on such a fair and pretty face.
Everything had happened very fast. Even Ying Wushuang didn’t expect Jiang Chen to launch an attack so fast, along with those from the Sword Association.
“I’ll collect your father’s debt from you first!”
It wasn’t over. Jiang Chen had drawn out his knife.
