“He’s at our doorstep?”

Lin Xun was taken aback. It was just yesterday that he rejected Qing Zhi’s challenge letter. Hence, he was surprised that Qing Zhi had voluntarily come after a single day.

“That’s right. He looks completely at ease and has brought along a mat, table, and utensils for the consumption of alcohol and tea. From the looks of it, he will keep waiting there until you appear.”

Lin Zhong frowned. His expression was rather grave.

He had seen Qing Zhe earlier. The young man was handsome, had the refined elegance of a dragon and phoenix, and a pair of azure pupils. Although he was casually sitting there, his dignified posture and calm confidence made him stand out. He was definitely an extremely terrifying expert.

Lin Zhong grew increasingly worried when he recalled that Qing Zhe had defeated many bigwigs of the empire during the banquet a few days ago.

With initial Cyclic Derivation cultivation, he had steamrolled over the empire’s older-generation Cyclic Derivation experts. From start to finish, not a single person could block his three swords. It was frightening to think about.

It definitely wasn’t good news to Lin Zhong that a young man with such terrifying origins, foundations, cultivation, and combat ability was so insistent on challenging Lin Xun.

“I heard that not a single person could block his three swords ever since he arrived in the Forbidden City.”

Lin Xun fell into thought.

“Indeed.” Lin Zhong nodded and worriedly said, “Young Master, I doubt he’s here to make friends. I’m afraid that he must have some other motive.”

“Naturally. Even a blind man can see that something is wrong when a Cyclic Derivation stage cultivator like him tries to challenge me to a duel.”

Lin Xun off-handedly said, “In fact, I suspect that Qing Zhe had received orders from Yun Qingbai.”

Yun Qingbai!

The mention of his name caused hatred to flow out in Lin Zhong’s eyes. That was the fiend who had slaughtered all of the main clan members more than a dozen years ago!

“Young Master, how do you intend to deal with this?”

“As long as he doesn’t cause trouble, let him sit there and drink as much tea as he wants. I have no time to fight someone with dubious intentions.”

Lin Xun’s reply was rather nonchalant.

He took out the Nameless Pagoda as he spoke. Toady had gone into secluded cultivation to attempt a cultivation breakthrough when they left the Spirit Burial Sea. However, there was no sign of any breakthrough even until now.

Lin Xun sent his senses inside and discovered that Toady’s aura was flowing smoothly and gave off a sensation of fullness. This proved that he had not encountered any danger during his secluded cultivation, which immediately eased Lin Xun’s worries.

“According to Toady, it will take him one to three years to complete his cultivation breakthrough. By that time, I would have already left for the Ancient Wasteland Domain…”

Lin Xun contemplated.

By his side, Lin Zhong was finally certain that the Young Master wasn’t joking and genuinely had zero intention to fight Qing Zhe.

“That’s good. At least I don’t have to worry about danger befalling the Young Master…”

Lin Zhong left to fulfill his duties.

……

On the flat and spacious path outside the entrance to Mind Cleansing Peak.

A figure with excellent posture was seated on a mat.

He had long silver hair that shone brilliantly and a pair of azure eyes that seemed to flow with intimidating light.

There was a pot of tea and a jar of alcohol on the table in front of him. He was comfortably enjoying the beverages as if he was in his own courtyard, appearing very content and relaxed.

It was Qing Zhe, an inner true disciple of the Omega Sword Sect!

He was very young, looked to be about twenty years old, had a large forehead, and his skin seemed to give off a gem-like sparkle. It made him look like a superior being who had transcended the mortal realm.

Next to Qing Zhe stood his servant Chen Feng. Although he was a servant, he was handsome and had an extraordinary presence that far surpassed any ordinary cultivator.

Master and servant waited there, appearing fearless and confident.

Qing Zhe’s arrival outside Mind Cleansing Peak immediately became the focal point of the entire Forbidden City.

The areas around the entrance of Mind Cleansing Peak were packed with figures who were closely watching for any developments.

“Qing Zhe is so forceful. He went right to camping at the Lin Clan’s doorstep and is obviously trying to force Lin Xun out!”

Some cultivators were inwardly alarmed.

“Qing Zhe definitely won’t give up until Lin Xun agrees to the duel!”

“He doesn’t really have any good options. If Lin Xun refuses to fight, everyone will think that he’s afraid. This will be a heavy blow to his reputation!”

Numerous cultivators analyzed the situation and ultimately arrived at the same conclusion. If Qing Zhe continued to camp at Mind Cleansing Peak’s entrance, Lin Xun’s reputation would take a bigger and bigger hit as time passed.

Currently, Lin Xun was known as the supreme heaven pride of the empire’s younger generation and was essentially a leading expert of his generation.

If even he was afraid of accepting Qing Zhe’s challenge, wouldn’t it mean that the empire’s younger generation would forever be below Qing Zhe’s feet?

That was a serious consequence.

“Qing Zhe is too much. He has initial Cyclic Derivation cultivation, but he wants to fight Lin Xun, who only has Heaven Ascension cultivation. That’s clear bullying!”

Some cultivators felt indignant for Lin Xun.

“Ugh, that’s not all. Didn’t many bigwigs with perfect Cyclic Derivation cultivation take on Qing Zhe’s challenge during the banquet a few days ago? All of you know how that ended. If Lin Xun accepts the duel, his chances of victory will be abysmal!”

Someone sighed.

The duel had already caused a huge commotion in the Forbidden City before it began.

Many cultivators sorely wished that Lin Xun would teach Qing Zhe a lesson to take him down a peg and earn back some of the empire’s dignity.

However, there were also numerous cultivators who were not optimistic and believed that Lin Xun had almost no hope of victory. Qing Zhe’s combat power was too heaven-defying, and even mighty perfect Cyclic Derivation experts could not block his three swords, let alone Lin Xun, who only possessed Heaven Ascension cultivation.

“I guess it was inevitable…”

Surprisingly, even Zhao Tailai had personally arrived some distance away. However, his expression was somewhat different from the pessimistic looks of the other cultivators.

“If Qing Zhe knew of how Lin Xun had terrorized the Blood Kill Battlefield, I wonder if he would still dare to camp here…”

Zhao Tailai was in a very peculiar state of mind and was even gloating a little.

A few bigwigs from the imperial army also had strange expressions as they silently waited for the show to start.

Others might still be unaware, but they knew full well of the huge commotion Lin Xun had caused in the Blood Kill Battlefield for the past half a year.

His Half-Step King expert kill count alone was already four or five!

Would Qing Zhe still think that Lin Xun was an easy target if he knew?

Of course, there was no way that they would warn him. In fact, they were already itching to see Qing Zhe make a fool of himself.

To everyone’s surprise, however, an attendant soon walked out from Mind Cleansing Peak and said, “The clan leader is busy and has no time for such matters. If Young Master Qing Zhe wishes to, you can feel free to continue enjoying your drinks here.”

The attendant left after announcing this.

Everyone was stunned.

Lin Xun had directly rejected the challenge and left Qing Zhe hanging, clearly not intending to pay him any heed.

“Why is this happening…could…could he be afraid and wants to avoid the duel? Lin Xun has never been scared of such things in the past.”

Many cultivators were disappointed, believing that Lin Xun’s actions were only hurting his reputation and growing Qing Zhe’s momentum.

“Hmph, who does Qing Zhe think he is? Does everyone have to accept just because he challenges? What a joke! I feel that Young Master Lin’s response is brilliant!”

There were also many cultivators that approved of Lin Xun’s actions.

“How dare he be so rude?! He should make it clear if he’s afraid instead of giving so many excuses. Pathetic.”

In the distance, Chen Feng frowned in disdain at Lin Xun’s decision, believing he was a coward who did not dare to fight.

Qing Zhe was unruffled. He sipped from his teacup and nonchalantly said, “It’s fine, we shall continue waiting. I have the patience and know that he’ll have to come out and fight sooner or later.”

“Master, do you have to do this given your status and cultivation?”

Chen Feng did not understand. He believed that the likes of Lin Xun didn’t have the qualifications to duel Qing Zhe. However, he was adamant about going through with the duel.

“From what I understand, he has stepped onto the legendary strongest supreme path. I’m very curious how he managed to achieve this in a lower plane where the dao is incomplete. Don’t you think it’s interesting?”

Qing Zhe leisurely explained as he toyed with his cup.

However, there was one tidbit he had left out. From what he knew, the youngster called Lin Xun should have died more than a dozen years ago but had miraculously survived. There were honestly far too many interesting points about this matter!

“The strongest supreme path…”

Chen Feng’s pupils abruptly shrank as his heart violently shuddered. He was genuinely shocked. It must be known that geniuses who could ascend this path were rare even in the Ancient Wasteland Domain!

It was indeed unimaginable that a youngster could achieve this in such a barren lower plane!

……

Despite being left hanging by Lin Xun, Qing Zhe chose to wait. He appeared completely unfazed and seemed ready to keep waiting until Lin Xun had no choice but to come out.

This shocked the watching cultivators, and they began to realize that Qing Zhe’s intentions might not be as simple as they had initially thought.

Meanwhile, Lin Xun could not help but raise his brows upon learning Qing Zhe’s stance. “Does he intend to be stubborn until the end…”

“Kid, what are you thinking? Don’t you feel humiliated that he’s camping right at your doorstep? This matter has already drawn the attention of the entire city. If you let Qing Zhe stay there, how will the Lin Clan dare to show its face in the Forbidden City?”

It was not long before Zhao Tailai came to seek an audience and directly asked Lin Xun how he would resolve the matter.

Surprised, Lin Xun said, “Elder, why does it sound like you can’t wait for me to fight Qing Zhe?”

Zhao Tailai merely chuckled and said, “If you’re confident, then fight. If you’re not then it’s okay to hide. However, aren’t you curious to discover Qing Zhe’s intentions?”

Lin Xun answered, “After beating around the bush, it sounds like you do want me to duke it out with him.”

Zhao Tailai put on a serious look. “I’m anxious for you. The entire city is hoping for you to step forward and take him down a notch so he can no longer act so arrogantly as if there are no capable people in the empire!”

Lin Xun grinned and asked, “Is there anything in it for me?”

Zhao Tailai glared at him. “I’m here to try and help you solve your troubles, but you’re trying to take advantage of me? Allow me to say this, I won’t force you to accept the duel, but if my niece, Jingxuan, finds out that the man she fancies is hiding like a tortoise when he is supposed to do his part for the empire, how disappointed and sad do you think she’ll be?”

Lin Xun had a headache. The old fox was too shameless. To think that he would play the Zhao Jingxuan card to force him to fight!