Divine Wilderness Dragon Emperor

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Swords Drawn, Bows Bent

Even when facing the oppressive aura of an Innate Realm expert, Ling Fei remained fearless.

In fact, his gaze was just as sharp, meeting Liu Yuan’s head-on.

Seeing this, Liu Yuan was slightly taken aback. ’This kid has some backbone.’

Normally, a surprise attack with an aura like his would have terrified any ordinary Body Tempering Realm cultivator long ago.

But the young man before him was perfectly calm. In fact, a power seemed to be building within him, as if he were forcefully holding his ground.

This surprised him slightly.

However, Liu Yuan didn’t take Ling Fei seriously and instead just sneered.

’At Celestial River Academy, almost no one dares to compete with me, Liu Yuan, for a girl!’

A young man beside Liu Yuan stepped forward. ”Kid, let me give you some advice: stay away from Xiaoman. She’s the woman Brother Yuan has his eye on. A country bumpkin like you thinks you can touch her?” His gaze was sharp as he stared coldly at Ling Fei with an expression of utter arrogance. Seeing this, Wu Dapang and the others frowned deeply.

’Looks like this academy isn’t so peaceful after all!’

Ling Fei’s brow arched and the corner of his mouth curved into a smirk. ”Your Brother Yuan?” He then turned to Huang Xiaoman and asked, ”Xiaoman, do you like him?”

”I don’t.” Huang Xiaoman shook her head, a hint of disgust in her eyes.

Because of Liu Yuan’s presence at Celestial River Academy, very few male students dared to befriend her.

It wasn’t that Huang Xiaoman was interested in any of these boys.

But the feeling of having her life disrupted by one person was truly infuriating.

Unfortunately, not only was Liu Yuan a disciple of a Major Clan, but he was also extremely talented, ranking in the top ten of his grade.

How could Huang Xiaoman possibly contend with such a figure?

Hearing this, Ling Fei simply nodded. Then, his gaze shifted to Liu Yuan and the man who had just threatened him.

”You all heard her. Xiaoman doesn’t like your Brother Yuan!” Ling Fei said. ”That being the case, isn’t telling me to stay away from her a bit like meddling?” He had no goodwill toward these arrogant guys, so he didn’t bother giving them any face.

’This kid...’ At Ling Fei’s words, Liu Yuan’s face instantly burned with shame.

This was a straight-up slap to the face!

But then, with a move of his hand, Ling Fei pulled away from Huang Xiaoman’s fair arm.

Then, his hand wrapped firmly around Huang Xiaoman’s slender waist.

Her slender waist was suddenly held tight. ”This...!” Huang Xiaoman was stunned for a moment, but then a faint smile appeared on her lips.

A hint of pleasant surprise flashed in her eyes.

’This kid... he’s finally not a block of wood anymore. He’s finally getting it!’

So, she didn’t resist, simply letting Ling Fei hold her by her slender waist.

Ling Fei raised an eyebrow and declared, ”Xiaoman is my woman. You’d best stop bothering her from now on.”

At these words, Liu Yuan’s gaze turned incomparably cold.

”Honestly, are there no other women at Celestial River Academy? Is it really necessary to be so obsessed with my Xiaoman?” Ling Fei muttered, his tone dripping with sarcasm. ”My Xiaoman has no good qualities, besides her legs being a little long, her chest being a little big, and her face being a little pretty!”

But as soon as the words left his mouth, a sharp pain shot through his back.

Huang Xiaoman leaned in and whispered in Ling Fei’s ear, ”You brat, is that really how you talk about me?”

To outsiders, however, her actions looked just like a couple flirting playfully.

This made Liu Yuan’s expression darken completely.

”It seems you really don’t want to survive at Celestial River Academy,” Liu Yuan said, his gaze turning cold. It was as if a vicious python had materialized in his eyes.

A sharp, cold aura spread out, striking fear into the hearts of all who felt it.

Ling Fei’s brow furrowed. ”Do you own this academy?” he asked in a low voice.

He was disgusted by such arrogance.

”Yeah,” Wu Dapang muttered from the side.

”Looks like you’re still a bit green.” The man beside Liu Yuan raised an eyebrow. ”It’s true that Brother Yuan’s family doesn’t own the academy. However, Brother Yuan is a disciple from the direct lineage of the Liu Clan, one of the Empire’s Four Major Clans. Heh heh, he’s also a genius who ranks in the top ten of the grade’s Celestial List. With just one word from him, there are a hundred ways to make sure you can’t survive at Celestial River Academy. When that happens, you’ll regret it for the rest of your lives.”

The young man’s face was full of arrogance. ”Kid, are you going to get away from Xiaoman or not?”

It was as if he expected these underclassmen to be scared witless by his words and immediately become meek and submissive.

”The Liu Clan? Never heard of it,” Wu Dapang said, shaking his head. ”But my Brother Fei is a bona fide genius from Longtan Town.”

Hearing this, the upperclassman across from them was speechless. ”What a country bumpkin!”

But what Wu Dapang had just said nearly made him cough up blood.

”A genius from Longtan Town?” he said with utter disdain. ”That’s just some backwater place. Since when do people from there deserve to be called geniuses?”

”That Qin Ming who came from your Longtan Town, wasn’t he completely respectful to our Brother Yuan? But why didn’t he show up?”

The man looked genuinely curious.

Only a few people in the Divine Guard Bureau knew about what happened with Qin Gang.

These people were not among them.

Being looked down on like this, Wu Dapang grew angry.

He opened his mouth, a sharp glint in his eyes. ”Brother Fei’s adoptive father is incredible...!”

He was about to mention Elder Ling.

In Wu Dapang’s eyes, Elder Ling was a very important person.

Ling Fei raised an eyebrow and said, ”Dapang, why bother with them? They’re just a bunch of self-righteous idiots.”

”A bunch of self-righteous idiots?” Hearing this, the men beside Liu Yuan became furious.

”Is this kid looking down on us?”

”Damn it, we’re being looked down on by a country bumpkin! Brother Yuan, I can’t stand for this!”

The young men around Liu Yuan were all enraged.

In all their time at the academy, when had they ever been looked down upon like this?

And by a new student, no less.

A country bumpkin from some backwater town!

If they didn’t retaliate, how could they possibly maintain their standing at Celestial River Academy if word got out?

Liu Yuan’s gaze hardened. ”Fine. Tang Hai, teach them a lesson,” he said in a low voice.

”Yes!” The young man who had mocked Ling Fei earlier stepped forward, a cold smirk on his lips.

At the same time, the aura of the Innate Realm radiated from him.

This aura surpassed Huang Xiaoman’s, having clearly reached the Late Innate Stage.

Feeling that aura, Huang Xiaoman frowned. ”Tang Hai, Liu Yuan, are you really going to do this?”

The academy had a rule against bullying new students.

But rules were often ignored by certain people.

As a disciple of the Liu Clan, one of the Empire’s Four Major Clans, Liu Yuan clearly had the power to do so.

So if he really made a move, there was nothing Huang Xiaoman could do.

”Xiaoman, these people are just too disrespectful. If I don’t teach them how to behave today, I’m afraid they’ll have a hard time adjusting to life at the academy.”

Liu Yuan’s tone was icy.

His meaning was clear: he intended to teach Ling Fei a harsh lesson.

Seeing their arrogance, Ling Fei’s brows furrowed tightly. ”So you can bully new students just because you’re in the Innate Realm?”

The Cold Chi True Qi in his body began to circulate, and his blood started to boil.

At this moment, he really wanted to see just how big the gap was between himself and an Innate Realm expert.

But just then, a deep voice suddenly rang out. ”Tang Hai, I dare you to touch a single hair on Young Master Ling Fei.”

The voice was deep, laced with a sharp coldness.

”Shangguan Qingmu!” Tang Hai, who was about to strike, paused and looked toward the source of the voice.

He saw a man dressed in brocade robes walking toward them.

This man was none other than Shangguan Qingmu.

Beside him was Shangguan Yurou.

As Shangguan Qingmu approached, his gaze, sharp as a sword, was fixed coldly on Tang Hai.

This made Tang Hai, who had been ready to attack, freeze in his tracks.

Clearly, he knew of Shangguan Qingmu.

”It’s Young Master Shangguan!”

Seeing this, Wu Dapang and Huang Liang were astonished. ”It seems Tang Hai is really afraid of Young Master Shangguan!”

Although they had known Shangguan Qingmu for a long time, they never thought he wielded this kind of influence.

After all, Shangguan Qingmu had never made a move in front of them before.

When Shangguan Qingmu walked over, Tang Hai immediately retreated to Liu Yuan’s side.

At this, the young men beside Liu Yuan all frowned slightly.

It seemed they were all wary of Shangguan Qingmu.

However, Liu Yuan appeared unafraid of Shangguan Qingmu. ”Shangguan Qingmu, what is the meaning of this?”

He raised an eyebrow, his sharp gaze confrontational. There was more than a hint of gunpowder in his eyes.

Shangguan Qingmu’s gaze was frigid as he spoke, his words ringing with conviction. ”Anyone who dares to touch Young Master Ling Fei makes an enemy of me, Shangguan Qingmu.”

His words were accompanied by a sharp aura.

His gaze was like a sharp sword, making one’s skin prickle with pain.

Tang Hai and the others all frowned slightly.

This Shangguan Clan was also one of the Empire’s Four Major Clans.

Liu Yuan just laughed. ”Heh heh, make an enemy of you, Shangguan Qingmu?” he said. ”You’re nothing but a loser I’ve already defeated. You dare to stand up for someone else?”

”But I am curious. Don’t you like Xiaoman, too? Why are you suddenly standing up for this kid today?”

His face was full of suspicion.

This was his love rival!

They had fought over Huang Xiaoman once before.

But Shangguan Qingmu had lost that time.

However, Huang Xiaoman wasn’t the least bit interested in either of them.

”I do like Xiaoman. However, Young Master Ling Fei did a great service for my uncle, which means he did a great service for my Shangguan Clan. If you touch him, you not only make an enemy of me, Shangguan Qingmu, but of my entire Shangguan Clan. If you want to have an open confrontation with the Shangguan Clan, then by all means, make your move today.”

Shangguan Qingmu’s tone was sharp as he enunciated every word.

He almost completely ignored Liu Yuan’s mockery.

Although Shangguan Qingmu was proud, he had his own principles.

Hearing this, Liu Yuan’s brows furrowed, finding it hard to believe. ”This kid did your uncle a service?”

What could a junior from a backwater town possibly be capable of?

He knew that Shangguan Qingmu’s uncle was a Celestial Spirit Realm cultivator!

Shangguan Qingmu didn’t elaborate, only saying coldly, ”I’ve said my piece. If you want to make a move, the Shangguan Clan will gladly oblige!”

Hearing this, Liu Yuan frowned. ’Looks like this kid really does have some connection to the Shangguan Clan.’

His Liu Clan was very powerful in the Empire, perhaps even a bit stronger than the Shangguan Clan.

However, he, Liu Yuan, could not represent the entire Liu Clan.

If he caused a conflict between the Liu Clan and the Shangguan Clan, he would find it very difficult to bear the consequences.

Liu Yuan’s gaze hardened. He stared at Ling Fei and said coldly, ”Fine. Count yourself lucky, kid. This young master will let you off the hook today. But the face of the Shangguan Clan isn’t enough to protect you forever. We have plenty of time, so you’d better watch yourself in the future.” With that, he turned around. ”Let’s go!”

Then, he left with Tang Hai and the others.