Chapter 35: An Old Ox Pulling a Broken Cart
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Chapter Thirty-Five: An Old Ox Pulling a Broken Cart
The old driver raised his whip and urged the ox cart toward the highest peak of the Western Ridge.
Panlong Mountain.
Creak, creak.
The ox cart swayed from side to side, attracting attention from afar.
“Haha, look! An old ox is pulling a broken cart over there.”
A young man pointed at Mo Fan and the others as they lurched toward Panlong Mountain, a mocking smile spreading across his face.
He had grown up in a poor household, so under normal circumstances, he would have seen such things often.
Yet at this moment, the sight before him seemed utterly ridiculous.
He looked down on the burly men following behind. They had no ambition whatsoever.
What he found most contemptible, however, were Mo Fan and Duan Liuxiang, sitting on the ox cart with expressions of carefree amusement.
Their behavior disgusted him from the bottom of his heart.
Everyone present turned their eyes toward the approaching cart. It had already crossed the final ridge of Panlong Mountain and appeared at the foot of the mountain, where the crowd had stopped to wait for the stairway to descend.
“Big Brother, isn’t that the ox cart we encountered on the road? How did that boy end up with them? And who is that beautiful girl?”
In a corner at the foot of Panlong Mountain, the three brothers Dou Jian, Dou Ren, and Dou De rose to their feet.
On their way to Panlong Mountain, they had encountered Duan Liuxiang and the others in the ox cart. At that time, however, the only person riding in the cart had been Duan Liuxiang, dressed entirely in black, and Mo Fan had not yet joined them.
“Don’t act rashly. The Panlong Stairway is about to appear. We must preserve our strength.”
As the eldest brother, Dou Ren had the keenest judgment and immediately stopped his two younger brothers.
“Heh heh, you have finally arrived. Duan Liuxiang, I wonder how many steps you will climb this time.”
In the shadows, Ghost Young Master Xie Mei of Ghost-Sees-Sorrow stared intently at Duan Liuxiang atop the cart. His eyes were filled with desire.
His expression did not escape Yaohua’s notice.
Following his gaze, Yaohua looked toward Duan Liuxiang on the ox cart, a strange murderous intent rising within her.
Ever since she had begun following the young master, he had never looked at another woman with such intense longing—not until Duan Liuxiang appeared.
The young master belonged to her. No one could ever take him away.
Not even that beauty on the ox cart.
“Heh heh, how interesting. Who would have thought that this shabby old ox cart was hiding peerless experts?”
Mu Qingfeng had appeared again at some unknown point. Gazing at the old cart that was about to stop, he smiled faintly, folded his fan, and fell into thought.
Like him, Qiu Yehong and the others were also staring at the cart, their eyes fixed upon it.
Two powerful waves of vital energy emanated from there, making their hearts tremble.
The old man driving the cart was especially unsettling. Although he displayed not the slightest fluctuation of power, he gave people the feeling of facing an endless sea—its depths impossible to fathom.
“Mo Fan?”
Near the closest position to Panlong Mountain, a young man stood up. His eyes widened in shock as he watched Mo Fan leap from the ox cart and exchange laughter and conversation with the group of burly men.
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“You’re still alive? Then don’t blame me. We have unfinished business over what happened at Little Mountain in God-Tomb Village.”
The young man stormed forward. He crossed several rocks in a few strides, clenched his hand into a fist, and launched a murderous punch at Mo Fan without bothering to distinguish right from wrong.
“Young Master Dong!”
Several burly men behind him hurried after him, attempting to stop him.
Before coming here, the elders had issued their instructions. Chen Dong was the sole future heir of the Chen family of Gancheng Prefecture. His grandfather had kept him at his side all this time to temper him.
No one had expected that the tempering would prove insufficient—and that Mo Fan would nearly kill him.
To prevent Chen Dong from suffering any further harm, the Chen family’s ancestor had personally sent a letter summoning him home.
But once this young master returned to his family, his status only made him more arrogant and tyrannical.
At home, he either cursed at the servants or indulged in every kind of debauchery. The maids and servants feared him to the point of terror.
Now that his temper had flared, he had completely forgotten his grandfather’s parting warning: one must endure small grievances to accomplish great things.
Boom!
An icy fist struck the spot where Mo Fan and the others stood, freezing the entire area in an instant.
Chen Dong had already mastered the Wasteland Domain he had awakened, and his body tempering had achieved a certain degree of success. He had become a true Body-Tempering cultivator.
He also possessed considerable understanding of the Wasteland Domain.
“Chen Dong!”
Mo Fan called out in surprise upon recognizing the young man standing not far away.
“Mo Fan, so you haven’t died after all.”
Chen Dong gave him an evil smile and pointed at him mockingly.
Mo Fan instantly grew furious.
But the several burly men who had followed Chen Dong surrounded him tightly, cutting off any possibility of escape and interrupting Mo Fan’s intention to strike.
Mo Fan would have had no difficulty dealing with Chen Dong, but the men surrounding him were clearly no ordinary figures.
He could not see through their cultivation levels.
“Young Master Dong, don’t forget the ancestor’s instructions.”
One of the burly men reminded Chen Dong.
Chen Dong withdrew his Wasteland Domain, the killing intent fading from his eyes. With a pair of sinister, slanted eyes, he pointed arrogantly at Mo Fan.
“Trash, I heard that you fought the Myriad Manifestations Realm on Dead Spirit Peak and even killed an Initial Insight expert. I’d really like to see whether that’s true. But for now, climbing the stairway is more important. Whatever business we have, we’ll settle it on the steps.”
“Mo Fan?”
The moment Chen Dong left those words behind, he shocked everyone present.
His deeds had already spread far and wide. On Dead Spirit Peak, no one knew what method he had used to effortlessly seize the Fire Spirit Grass and successfully cure the poison sickness. With a mysterious style of boxing, he had defeated every Body-Tempering cultivator who challenged him, then fought an Initial Insight expert without falling behind in the slightest.
Most astonishing of all was the battle at the foot of Dead Spirit Peak. He had summoned thousands of vicious blood-eyed demon wolves and wiped out the three great clans in one fell swoop.
“Young man, you’ve certainly kept your abilities well hidden. You deceived all of us thoroughly.”
The old driver scolded Mo Fan, his eyes shifting toward Duan Liuxiang. His expression made the meaning clear enough.
A dozen voices rose behind them, murmuring in discussion.
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“So he’s that ruthless young man, Mo Fan, who single-handedly destroyed the three great clans of Dongyang Commandery. No wonder the Asura Martial Academy intends to recruit him.”
Qiu Yehong looked at Mo Fan, who remained calm and unruffled, and could not help showing a trace of approval.
“Hmph!”
Youyou gave a cold snort. She had no favorable impression of someone like Mo Fan.
“Nothing but a useless fool who got lucky after eating dog excrement,” she said coldly. “Yet he’s been praised to the heavens. I truly don’t know whether these people have water in their heads.”
The fire-tending maid Xiao Yimo felt this most deeply. She, too, was someone others looked down upon. Although she had awakened a Wasteland Domain, her strength had remained at the ordinary Body-Tempering stage, never advancing by even the slightest degree.
And that young man in the distance?
He had not even awakened a Wasteland Domain, yet he had already become famous throughout the world. Even people like them, living far away in the Outer Regions, had heard of his reputation.
On the other side, Mu Qingfeng sighed softly.
“Alas, what a pity. I thought he might be a worthy opponent, but now it seems he’s probably nothing more than an inept wastrel.”
Like him, Gui Ying of the Ghost Domain was equally regretful.
Neither of them thought highly of Mo Fan. In their eyes, he did not belong on the same level as them.
The three great clans of Dongyang Commandery had arrived long ago, but their performances had been utterly ordinary.
The eldest daughter of the Shangguan family, Shangguan Yue, gazed at Mo Fan standing beside the ox cart, a strange expression flickering in her eyes.
By all rights, after he had summoned vicious beasts on Dead Spirit Peak and killed her cousin, she should have drawn her sword and charged at him the moment she saw him, cutting him down.
Yet whenever she saw that face again, she could never bring herself to draw the curved blade in her hand.
Ning Hongluan of the Ning family was in even greater distress. Before leaving, her elder brother Ning Wuyu had warned her, “Do not make an enemy of Mo Fan. You must also invite him to join the family. He has his own arrangements.”
Ning Huangyan’s eyes were as cold and empty as an icy cavern, without the slightest ripple of emotion.
He, too, felt resentment—but not because his elder brother was still confined to bed. He resented Mo Fan because of the trap he himself had laid at Dead Spirit Peak. He had never expected Mo Fan to have a backup plan and nearly wipe out the three great clans.
The incident had filled his heart with hatred for Mo Fan.
Buzz, buzz! Buzz, buzz!
A series of deep rumbles came from the skies above Panlong Mountain in the Western Ridge. A bolt of violet lightning descended from the heavens.
The old ox pulling the broken cart drew everyone’s attention.
It also brought good news to Panlong Mountain.
A stream of violet energy stretched across the mountaintop, forming a violet rainbow bridge.
Violet energy had come from the east.
The Panlong Stairway was about to descend, welcoming the distinguished guests who had journeyed from every direction.
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