Chapter 19: Su Mu Is Here to Cause Trouble

After settling the little boy, Yangx Kai was in no rush to leave. After all, the boy had given him a portion of dry rations that night, and he had to wait until he woke up to leave with peace of mind.

The hunter rushed in and out of the room, fraught with anxiety. It wasn’t long before the clinic’s doctor shooed him out for being too noisy.

"Doctor Chu said that if it weren’t treated in time, my son would have truly lost his life. Benefactor, I, Zhang Shan, have no way to repay your great kindness. I am willing to work like a horse and toil like an ox for you in this life, at your absolute disposal."

With that, he dropped to his knees before Yangx Kai.

Yangx Kai didn’t try to help him up, only smiling as he said, "Brother Zhang, a man’s knees are worth their weight in Gold. This kneel of yours has already repaid the favor, so there’s no need to dwell on it anymore. Besides, I ate a portion of your son’s dry rations. By all accounts, I’m the one who owes you."

Only after saying this did he help the hunter, Zhang Shan, to his feet.

Moved to tears, Zhang Shan cried, "Benefactor, you truly are a good man!"

As they were speaking, the clinic’s doctor walked out and said to Zhang Shan, "He is out of danger, so there is no need to worry. However, he lost a lot of blood and will likely sleep for a while. He’ll be fine once he wakes up."

Hearing this, Yangx Kai and Zhang Shan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

As his Heart Spirit relaxed, Yangx Kai felt a wave of exhaustion. Today had simply been too thrilling. Furthermore, he had sustained many injuries and lost a significant amount of blood. Although the adrenaline had kept him going at the time, his body still suffered some damage. Letting his guard down, he actually fell straight asleep, slumbering all the way until Tianming.

Early morning, Lingxiao Pavilion.

Many Disciples had woken up bright and early. Filled with excitement, they gathered together and craned their necks toward a single spot. With their eager gazes, stretched-out necks, and restless anticipation, they looked exactly like a group of housewives waiting for their husbands to return from years of war. They were utterly focused and brimming with expectation.

As time passed, more and more people gathered here, everyone unanimously casting their gazes in the same direction—straight toward the small hut where Yangx Kai lived.

Today was the day they could challenge Yangx Kai again! How could the Lingxiao Pavilion Disciples present pass up on what was essentially free Contribution Points? There were some who felt a twinge of guilt, sympathizing with Yangx Kai’s plight. After all, getting brutally beaten every five days was truly a miserable existence.

But on second thought, their sympathy alone wouldn’t change anything. With so many people targeting Yangx Kai, someone else would challenge him even if they didn’t. He was going to get beaten up either way, so it might as well be them. Having justified it to themselves, they decided to join the crowd and try their luck. "If I’m chosen, I’ll definitely go easy on him so it doesn’t hurt too much," many reasoned inwardly, making excuses for themselves.

Normally at this hour, Yangx Kai would have long since gotten up to sweep the floors. Today, however, was strange. The Disciples waited for a long time but still didn’t see him. Standing on their tiptoes to peer toward the hut, they saw no sign of anyone.

"What’s going on with Yangx Kai? Did he oversleep? Why isn’t he out yet?"

"I don’t know. Now that you mention it, I don’t think I’ve seen him for the past few days."

"Could he have left Lingxiao Pavilion?"

"Impossible. It’s not like you don’t know Yangx Kai’s stubborn temper. He wouldn’t leave even if you beat him to death. If he were going to leave, he would have done so a few months ago when he was demoted to a Trial Disciple. Why would he drag it out until now?"

The crowd murmured amongst themselves in heated discussion, but none of them knew that Yangx Kai had taken a leave of absence a few days ago to visit Black Wind Mountain and had yet to return. It wasn’t surprising; Yangx Kai rarely interacted with others on a normal day, so naturally, no one paid attention to his whereabouts.

Amidst the commotion, a group of people approached from a distance. The one leading them had a face as flawless as jade and cut a striking, elegant figure. He was truly a handsome young man, though for some unknown reason, his expression was quite gloomy. As he walked, he muttered curses through gritted teeth.

Right beside this young man, a number of Lingxiao Pavilion Disciples followed closely, surrounding him like stars clustering around the moon, further highlighting his extraordinary status.

Arriving at the scene and seeing such a large crowd gathered, the leading youth scowled in displeasure. "What’s going on?" he asked, confused. "Why are there so many people here?"

Someone beside him quickly stepped forward and whispered, "Young Master Su, today is the day we can challenge Yangx Kai. All the senior and junior brothers are gathered here, waiting to grab some Contribution Points."

The young man addressed as Young Master Su raised an eyebrow and burst into loud laughter. "It seems our Senior Brother Yangx is living a rather hellish life." His words dripped with schadenfreude and cruel delight.

"Yeah, he basically gets beaten up every five days, and they don’t stop until he’s knocked out," the person from before explained.

Young Master Su chuckled again. "Well, for some reason, the pent-up anger in my heart has dissipated quite a bit. But it’s not enough. You must drive him out of Lingxiao Pavilion for me. As long as he is no longer a Lingxiao Pavilion Disciple, I can play with him however I want."

"You are absolutely right, Young Master Su. For that punk to dare ruin your fun in Wumei Town, he clearly has no idea how many eyes Lord Ma has! He didn’t even bother to ask about your status. He vastly overestimated himself!"

Young Master Su was very pleased with this flattery, nodding his head repeatedly.

Young Master Su was none other than Su Mu, whom Yangx Kai had encountered in Wumei Town. That day, Su Mu had partnered with two Great Hans to put on a double act, only to be exposed by Yangx Kai. Humiliated and furious, he had stormed off. Upon returning to Lingxiao Pavilion, he immediately began investigating Yangx Kai’s identity.

He had his means and connections, after all, and he uncovered Yangx Kai’s background in less than a day. However, due to the Sect’s ironclad rules, it wasn’t convenient for him to make a move directly. He had waited until today to bring his people here to cause trouble for Yangx Kai, only to find such a massive crowd gathered, all of them targeting the very same person.

This displeased Su Mu slightly. He waved his hand and ordered, "Make them disperse. Tell them I’m booking Yangx Kai for today."

The way he said it made it sound as if Yangx Kai was a girl from a Spring House—the kind who sold both her art and her body.

One of the lackeys behind him hurriedly stepped forward, clasping his hands toward the crowd. "Senior and junior brothers, Young Master Su, Su Mu, has claimed the fight with Yangx Kai today. We ask that everyone grant us this convenience. We are truly sorry for making you wait here, and we hope you can forgive us."

At these words, many people were startled and turned their gazes toward Su Mu. Some who didn’t understand the situation shouted, "Why should we? Yangx Kai always uses a broom to choose his opponent. Why should we just yield to you? There’s always a rule of first come, first served!"

As soon as he finished speaking, someone tugged at him and whispered, "That’s Su Mu. Do you know who Su Mu is?"

"Who is he?" This person hadn’t joined the Sect very long ago and genuinely didn’t know.

"Idiot. There’s an Elder in our Lingxiao Pavilion with the surname Su, and one of the top ten core Disciples also has the surname Su. Who do you think he is?" the man enlightened him.

Although he didn’t spell it out completely, the listener wasn’t a fool either, immediately shutting his mouth. He was just an ordinary disciple; hearing that Su Mu had such huge backing, how could he dare to continue complaining?

"Winning against Yangx Kai only gets you a few Contribution Points anyway. It’s not worth offending him."

"Yes, yes, you’re right." The listener accepted the advice, breaking out in a cold sweat.