Invincible Soul Emperor

Chapter 437 437 Clear the Field

Although the Shop Assistant's tone was somewhat apologetic, his words carried an indisputable weight. He wasn't discussing the matter with Ye Qingchen; he was simply notifying him.

Ye Qingchen furrowed his brows. Nobody would be pleased about being woken from their sleep, let alone being evicted right after. One could only imagine the mood he was in.

"How many days' worth of Spirit Stones did I pay for?" Ye Qingchen asked irritably.

The Shop Assistant seemed prepared for this and said to Ye Qingchen in a hushed voice, "Young Master, you paid for three days' worth of Spirit Stones. However, you may not know this, but the person who has booked the entire Ruiyun Residence is a young master from the Wang Family. Our inn is willing to compensate you threefold. Please, don't make things difficult for us servants."

"A young master from the Wang Family? Never heard of him. Since I've paid with Spirit Stones, I'm staying here."

After speaking, Ye Qingchen slammed his door shut. He ignored the Shop Assistant's knocking and refused to open it again.

Once it was quiet outside again, Ye Qingchen lay down, preparing to go back to sleep. As for the young master from the Wang Family the Shop Assistant mentioned, Ye Qingchen had never heard of him. Even if he had, he certainly wouldn't be afraid.

"What's going on? Can't you handle a small matter like this? Young Master Wang will be here any moment! It seems Ruiyun Residence doesn't want to stay in business anymore!"

A harsh voice boomed, causing the Shop Assistant at Ye Qingchen's door to tremble. He quickly explained, "Captain Wang, please calm down. The young master inside refuses to leave, no matter what I say. There's nothing I can do."

"Useless! Didn't you tell him Young Master Wang is coming?"

Captain Wang grew even angrier. If Young Master Wang arrived and saw the place wasn't tidied up, he would probably be stripped of his captain title!

The Shop Assistant's face was etched with pain as he pleaded, "Captain Wang, you know it's the recruitment period for the Central Celestial Academy. These people come from all over the place and probably don't know how powerful the Wang Family is. I told him Young Master Wang was coming, but he said he doesn't know any Young Master Wang."

Captain Wang snorted coldly. "More of these country bumpkins. Since he doesn't know the Wang Family, we'll just have to teach him how powerful we are today!"

With that, Captain Wang kicked Ye Qingchen's door open. Seeing the startled Ye Qingchen, he said, "I'll give you two choices. First, kneel, kowtow in apology, and then get lost! Second, I break all your limbs and throw you out of here!"

Ye Qingchen had just been dreaming of reuniting with Qin Yue and Xiao Xiao when he was jolted awake again. His beautiful dream had been shattered, and his anger reached its peak. Captain Wang's contemptuous words were the last straw. His rage boiled over as he stood up to face the captain. "I'll give you two choices as well. First, kneel, kowtow in apology, and then crawl out of here. The second choice is this: if you don't get out on your own, you can leave your life behind!"

"How arrogant! You're just a country bumpkin from some backwater place. You probably don't know the might of the Central Region's Wang Family. You must be tired of living to dare speak to me like that!"

Instead of getting angry, Captain Wang just laughed. He was at the fifth level of the Martial King Realm, a level of strength that allowed him to act high and mighty in front of ordinary people. However, it amounted to little when facing the chosen geniuses who had passed the Central Celestial Academy's test. That was why he had to use the Wang Family's name to try and intimidate his opponent first.

Ye Qingchen snorted coldly and said, "Whether I'm a country bumpkin or not is unimportant. But is this Wang Family of yours so famous? Sorry, but I've never heard of them. And let me tell you, even if the Wang Family is powerful, it doesn't scare me!"

Ye Qingchen's words gave Captain Wang pause. Did I just stumble upon a tough nut to crack? He had heard that some hermit families, with strength rivaling the great families of the Central Region, chose to live quiet, low-profile lives in the Outer Region.

Could this young man be a disciple from one of those hidden families?

Seeing Ye Qingchen's refined bearing as he stood there, tall and dignified, utterly unfazed by a fifth-level Martial King Realm expert like himself despite his youth, made it seem entirely possible. For a moment, Captain Wang was unsure what to do. If he acted on his own initiative and brought trouble upon the Wang Family by offending a powerful figure, he would be the one to take the blame in the end.

After a moment's hesitation, Captain Wang's tone was no longer so icy. He said to Ye Qingchen in a placating voice, "Seeing as you're a disciple of the Central Celestial Academy, I won't make things difficult for you today. However, our young master will be here soon. You'd best not wander about. If you happen to offend him, you won't be able to bear the consequences!"

"Whether I move around is my business. It's not your place to tell me what to do!"

Ye Qingchen gave him tit for tat, showing no intention of backing down.

Captain Wang snorted coldly and turned to leave.

Seeing Captain Wang leave, the Shop Assistant was completely bewildered. Why did the overbearing Captain Wang suddenly back down? Could the young master in the room have some powerful background?

With this in mind, the Shop Assistant quickly apologized to Ye Qingchen again before closing the door.

It wasn't that Captain Wang was afraid of Ye Qingchen. Clearing the miscellaneous guests out of Ruiyun Residence was his own initiative, done solely to curry favor with the young master. So, if he encountered a genuinely tough opponent, Captain Wang wouldn't dare offend them carelessly. His strategy was to use the Wang Family's name to intimidate them. If the bluff worked, great. If not, he would just wait for the young master to arrive and make the decision himself. This was the key lesson Captain Wang had learned from his many years of survival at the bottom rung of society: never act on his own authority!

「About an hour later.」

A young man dressed in brocade, escorted by a dozen elderly men in black, entered Ruiyun Residence. Setting aside the young man's own imposing presence, the dozen or so elderly men in black who flanked him—every single one a high-level Martial King Realm expert—were enough to make anyone look twice.

This young man was none other than the Young Master Wang they had been talking about—Wang Teng!

The Wang Family had originally been a minor family in the Central Region. However, ever since Wang Teng's uncle, Wang Tong, entered the Central Celestial Academy and eventually became the Vice-Director of its Duanjin Academy, the Wang Family's status had soared, allowing them to carve out a place for themselves in the region.

Wang Teng was the prized sole heir of his generation, deeply adored by his elders. Moreover, he was exceedingly promising. From a young age, he had displayed unparalleled talent in cultivation and was even discovered to possess a nine-star Meteor Martial Spirit.

Now that he was of age, his uncle Wang Tong had arranged for him to take the Central Celestial Academy's entrance test. He had cut a swath through all challengers, successfully passed, and arrived here in Zhongtian Town.

The reason Captain Wang had been able to clear out Ruiyun Residence with a single command was precisely because he had invoked the name of Director Wang Tong. Therefore, upon seeing Wang Teng arrive, everyone from Ruiyun Residence, from top to bottom, rushed out to welcome him.