Acting Cool? I Can Do That Too
Acting Cool? I Can Do That Too
“Young Master Gu, this disciple Ye Chen knows nothing of proper etiquette. I beg you not to take offense.”
The Supreme Stygian Archbishop’s expression grew darker and darker.
As he apologized to Gu Changge, he shot meaningful glances at several of the elders.
All the guests were watching the spectacle.
When had Supreme Stygian Holy Land ever lost face like this?
“Archbishop, allow me to take down Ye Chen myself and make amends to Young Master Gu.”
At that moment, the Supreme Stygian Saint, Chu Xuan, stepped forward first to curry favor.
With that, he had already made his move. Runes flickered, surfacing in his palm as he reached toward Ye Chen.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
A muffled thunder echoed through the void.
Runes interwove, transforming into terrifying lightning, like a thunder dragon.
As the Supreme Stygian Saint, his strength naturally placed him among the finest of his generation.
Ye Chen was merely an inner Sect disciple.
The gap between their realms was far too great.
How could he possibly be Chu Xuan’s match?
Within the great hall, treasure-light glimmered faintly and runes flashed.
Everyone watched this battle.
Including the Supreme Stygian Archbishop, many people paid no mind whatsoever to the outcome of this fight.
They simply waited for Ye Chen’s defeat.
After all, if they themselves stepped in, it would only invite criticism.
Among the great powers that had come to attend the ceremony, there was no shortage of spies from other Holy Lands and noble families.
He had no wish to lose any more face.
“Well come.”
Ye Chen, however, was somewhat fired up for this battle.
He showed not the slightest fear. Instead, magic surged through his entire body as he met the attack with a palm of his own.
“This Ye Chen really overestimates himself. Doesn’t he know his own limits? He’s purely courting death.”
One inner Sect disciple sneered in disdain.
“Saint Chu Xuan is half a step into the Transcendent realm, while Ye Chen is merely at the Spiritual Palace realm. Not to mention the Saint bears the Thunder Prison Divine Body...”
“There will be no surprises in this fight.”
The other disciples chimed in as well, all feeling that Ye Chen was seeking his own death.
The next instant, firelight blazed and lightning burst forth.
Hair whipped about as searing, dazzling radiance collided in the void.
Chu Xuan’s body shuddered; his powerful Physique actually went somewhat numb.
Ye Chen, however, stood like a young god of fire, unmoving, his expression confident and mighty.
“What...”
“He’s actually this strong...”
Quite a few young female disciples couldn’t help but have a strange glint in their eyes.
Ye Chen’s strength was somewhat beyond their expectations.
Many people were stunned.
With this one palm strike, the two were evenly matched, neither gaining the upper hand.
“Ye Chen clearly only has Spiritual Palace realm cultivation, yet he blocked a Saint at the Transcendent realm?”
All the disciples and elders were somewhat shocked at this point.
Even the Supreme Stygian Archbishop, whose face had been dark all this time, felt his heart tremble slightly.
One had to know that Chu Xuan bore the Thunder Prison Divine Body, which allowed him to battle opponents above his own level.
Among his peers, he was nearly unmatched.
Yet facing Ye Chen, who was a full major realm weaker than him, he actually failed to take him down with a single palm?
Could it be that Ye Chen’s talent surpassed even Chu Xuan’s? Had everyone simply failed to notice it before?
Of course, if there was anyone present who wasn’t surprised by this,
it was Gu Changge.
After all, this was the Fortuitous One.
Slapping faces and shocking the crowd was just routine for him.
He leisurely sipped his tea.
His tone was unhurried.
“You seem to have always had quite a bit of confidence in this Ye Chen?”
Su Qingge turned her head at his words.
A ripple suddenly stirred in her previously calm gaze.
A faint, elegant fragrance drifted over, like orchids and musk.
She said nothing.
But this demeanor of hers had, in fact, already betrayed her state of mind.
Gu Changge’s eyes seemed very deep. He smiled. “Trying so hard to keep a calm face—are you trying to make me think you and Ye Chen have nothing to do with each other? Afraid I’ll move against him?”
“What a clever woman.”
One sentence laid it all bare.
For some reason, Su Qingge felt that this man was terrifying—more unsettling to her than his earlier indifference.
But she pressed her lips together and still said nothing.
Gu Changge glanced at his teacup and said flatly, “It’s empty...”
Su Qingge looked at him, then silently picked up the teapot and gently refilled his cup.
“Interesting.”
There was a strange hue to Gu Changge’s smile, as if he were talking to himself, yet also as if he were saying it for Su Qingge to hear.
The hand with which Su Qingge held the teapot trembled slightly.
As for these rotten, overused tropes, Gu Changge could rattle off hundreds of them off the top of his head.
The reason Ye Chen was so frantic today
was purely because he had heard that last night, the Supreme Stygian Archbishop had sent his daughter to Gu Changge’s palace.
But the original owner’s temperament had actually been quite aloof, with eyes only for cultivation.
So he hadn’t touched Su Qingge at all.
However, judging from this connection, it was quite obvious that this Su Qingge was the so-called female lead.
After all, looking at the plot, Ye Chen had risen from a small backwater, survived the Hundred Dynasties War, and finally gained entry into Supreme Stygian Holy Land.
The story had more or less already transitioned into its middle stage.
Su Qingge had powerful talent, a perfect countenance, and as the Saintess of Supreme Stygian Holy Land, she was very clever.
She knew that for Ye Chen to face Gu Changge was like an egg striking a rock.
So she would not plead for Ye Chen.
Doing so would only make Gu Changge detest Ye Chen even more.
The best approach was to sever any connection with Ye Chen, to make Gu Changge mistakenly believe there was nothing between her and Ye Chen.
If this kind of character setup wasn’t the female lead, then what was?
What a pity—Gu Changge had long since seen through all of this as clearly as fire.
It was like having a god’s-eye view.
Especially now, after Gu Changge learned of his own positioning as the villain, he had even less intention of letting Su Qingge go.
A melon forcibly twisted off the vine may not be sweet.
But it quenches thirst.
“I underestimated you.”
Meanwhile, in the arena, the Supreme Stygian Saint Chu Xuan’s expression was none too pleasant. He spoke coldly, intending to strike again.
Failing to take down Ye Chen in front of everyone—especially in front of Gu Changge—made him feel utterly humiliated.
But at that moment, Gu Changge had already walked over, waving a hand.
“Boring.”
Yet this very first sentence made Ye Chen’s expression freeze, his whole person going dumb as if turned to stone.
“However, since this matter concerns me, there’s no need to trouble Saint Chu Xuan.”
“So-called fearlessness—is it merely born of ignorance?”
Gu Changge said indifferently.
As his gaze descended,
the next instant, a vast and terrifying pressure, like the sky collapsing and the earth caving in, the universe itself splitting apart, swept down in an instant like a tidal wave.
The entire great hall was even whipped up into a dreadful hurricane; runes flickered and spiritual energy roiled.
Everyone felt a dread that came from the depths of their souls.
Even the many elders’ expressions changed drastically, some of them trembling.
“So this is Young Master Gu’s strength...” The Supreme Stygian Archbishop’s expression also grew solemn.
Thud!
Ye Chen, the one bearing the brunt of it, saw his expression change drastically, his face going deathly pale.
Then his legs gave out, and his whole person dropped to his knees on the spot.
His head struck the ground, and he could no longer move an inch.
He was completely, utterly suppressed.
No matter how he called out to the master within his ring, it was of no use whatsoever.
“His strength... how can it be this powerful...”
Ye Chen barely managed to lift his head, looking at the white-robed man before him whose expression was like one looking down upon an ant, still somewhat unable to believe it, unwilling to accept it.
Isn’t it just acting cool?
I can do that too.
Gu Changge’s face was all indifference and lofty superiority, but inwardly he was sneering coldly.
Without even thinking about it, the outcome of this battle would surely have ended with Ye Chen, the weaker party, defeating Chu Xuan.
A mighty slap to everyone’s faces.
After which, Ye Chen would seize the opportunity to challenge Gu Changge himself.
Something like a three-palm wager? With the old grandpa in his ring, wouldn’t that be easy to pull off?
What a nice little plan.
But I’m a Transmigrator, and I’ve got a Golden Finger.
(Early-stage realms: Physique, Spiritual Sea, Spiritual Palace, Transcendent, Mighty-Transcendent, Honoured Noble, Honoured Marquis, Honoured King, Partial-Enlightened.)