Chapter 129: Want to Compete?

Inside a guest room at the Shanghe Trade Hotel.

Xu Fengbin, Chen Zhiyuan, and Qi all looked at Lin Jian with complex expressions.

He had given them far too many surprises tonight! The first surprise was how quickly Xu Yunzong, an expert of the Innate Seventh Grade, had died. The second was that Lin Jian had the audacity to linger at the scene of the crime. The third was that his girlfriend was actually the one in charge of investigating the site. Because of this, Xu Fengbin and Chen Zhiyuan felt that Lin Jian was not only daring, but outright insane.

"Are you three here to interview me or something?" When Lin Jian noticed their silence, he took the initiative to joke with a smile.

Chen Zhiyuan smiled. "We are simply digesting how utterly unique you are."

Xu Fengbin thought for a moment before speaking. "Lin Jian, the trouble you’re facing next is not small. Therefore, my previous offer still stands: become my disciple, and I will handle everything for you. How about it?"

Lin Jian narrowed his eyes as he assessed Xu Fengbin. He noticed that the man seemed slightly stronger than before. Previously, when he used his Thought to inspect Xu Fengbin’s Dantian, there had been a mass of Qi about the size of a soccer ball. Now, the amount of Qi in his Dantian had decreased, but it had condensed into a solid, spherical shape!

How could he describe it...

In the past, the mass of Qi was just clumped together without any boundaries, merely taking on the shape of a sphere. Now, however, a true ball had formed within his Dantian. It was like a basketball or a soccer ball, encased in an outer skin! Although the True Qi inside this sphere had diminished in volume, it had become far more refined and pure.

This, he figured, must be the hallmark of a Grandmaster.

"I heard you became a Grandmaster?" Lin Jian asked curiously. "Can a Grandmaster fly? Can you use Sword Control?"

Xu Fengbin felt incredibly exhausted. Lin Jian clearly still had no intention of becoming his disciple; otherwise, he wouldn’t be asking such flippant questions.

"Airplanes can fly. I only know how to handle women, not Sword Control!"

"PFFT!"

Nearby, Chen Zhiyuan nearly choked with laughter. He wondered when Xu had started being so indecent too.

Qi was even more shocked; he had never seen his master joke around with anyone before. This was a first.

Lin Jian shook his head. "Then forget it. I prefer being free and unfettered. I don’t like being restrained." Taking a deep breath, he added, "Thank you for the flattering offer, Mr. Xu!"

This was a complete and utter rejection of Xu Fengbin’s desire to take him as a disciple.

Xu Fengbin was neither rushed nor annoyed. Instead, he smiled and said, "You probably don’t fully understand the concept of a Grandmaster. In our circle, Entering the Dao begins the moment one becomes a Grandmaster.

"Furthermore, the Grandmaster Realm is incredibly strong.

"Although I lost to you a few days ago, right now, I could defeat you with just one finger," Xu Fengbin continued, looking at Lin Jian with a playful expression. "This is an incomparably overwhelming Power. Don’t you want to possess this kind of Power?

"Also, Jin Er from the Capital City succeeded in Entering the Dao even earlier than I did. He has already taken steps toward becoming a Grandmaster. Since he has his eyes on you, your fate is sealed.

"But as long as I take you in, he will give me some face and stop making things difficult for you. Otherwise, you have no other way out!"

"You’re talking a little too big, Xu!"

Suddenly, Lin Jian dropped the respectful title and switched to calling him Xu!

The moment the words left his mouth, Chen Zhiyuan’s face darkened. Qi was so furious that his killing intent was completely exposed.

Lin Jian was far too ignorant of basic etiquette and thought entirely too highly of himself. They wanted to take him in as a favor, elevating his status because they saw him as a promising talent. However, he couldn’t just use their goodwill as capital for his own rudeness and arrogance. Because of this, Chen Zhiyuan felt bitterly disappointed in Lin Jian and completely abandoned any thought of bringing the young man under his wing.

Even Xu Fengbin sighed inwardly. He thought, "He’s a great seedling, but he’s just too arrogant. He doesn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth."

Lin Jian took in all of their expressions but maintained his wide grin. "Xu, I can also defeat you with a single finger. So, if I offered to take you in as my disciple, what would you think?"

This was exactly what Lin Jian was truly thinking in that moment. He believed that a Grandmaster like Xu Fengbin had absolutely no right to take him as a disciple! In his own mind, he was also a powerhouse—an even stronger one than Xu Fengbin. To be taken in as a disciple by someone weaker than him; if that wasn’t an insult, what was?

"Lin Jian, aren’t you being far too arrogant?" Chen Zhiyuan said coldly.

"Lin Jian, do you dare fight me again?" Qi stood up furiously. He had been dissatisfied from the start, believing he hadn’t been able to fully utilize his skills earlier. If he were given the chance to go all out, he was convinced Lin Jian wouldn’t necessarily be able to beat him.

Xu Fengbin glanced at Chen Zhiyuan and Qi before turning back to Lin Jian. "If you can defeat me with a single finger, I will acknowledge you as my master!"

"Don’t. Even if you wanted to, I wouldn’t dare accept you," Lin Jian laughed. "Mr. Xu, I thank you again for your flattering offer, and I also thank Master Chen for his favor. But since I can kill Young Master Chu and Xu Yunzong, I can also kill Jin Er!

"How about we make another bet?" Lin Jian’s eyes suddenly lit up. "I currently have fifty million in liquid funds. If I get killed by Jin Er, I’ll give you that fifty million. But if I kill him, you give me fifty million. How does that sound?

"Yeah, we can leave the money with Master San. I’ll transfer it to him in advance, so if I die, Master San can just transfer it directly to you!"

Xu Fengbin felt a wave of confusion. He could see nothing but absolute confidence in Lin Jian’s eyes; there wasn’t a single trace of worry or anxiety. This completely exceeded his expectations.

Even Chen Zhiyuan frowned at this. Lin Jian’s confidence was abundant—incredibly abundant. It was as if Jin Er was already dead! But what was he relying on?

"Lin Jian, if you can defeat me right now, I’ll give you fifty million. How about that? Master San, do we have enough cash in the accounts?"

At this moment, Xu Fengbin desperately wanted to test the source of Lin Jian’s confidence. Furthermore, having been defeated by Lin Jian previously, he naturally wanted to reclaim his pride. He also intended to demonstrate the overwhelming might of a Grandmaster, teaching Lin Jian that there is always someone stronger, and always a higher mountain to climb!

"PHEW."

Lin Jian took a deep breath. Xu Fengbin’s curiosity had clearly been piqued.

"Don’t just say fifty million. I can easily pull out five hundred million, or even five billion, before dawn!" Chen Zhiyuan’s extravagant wealth reached Yuntian; he was a true tycoon. What was a mere fifty million?

"Alright!" Lin Jian nodded. "Just don’t go back on your word when the time comes!

"Also," Lin Jian added after a moment of thought, "when I spar with Mr. Xu, I don’t want anyone else present. Furthermore, Mr. Xu must promise not to tell a single soul about the details of our fight afterward. How about that?"

"Heh. If I win, I have the final say; if you win, you call the shots. How’s that?" Xu Fengbin said as he stood up.

"Deal. Let’s do it like that!" Lin Jian also stood up. He thought for a moment and said, "There’s a patch of woods in the suburbs, and dawn is approaching. Let’s head over there, so we don’t cause too much of a commotion and disturb the public!"

"Fine by me."

Xu Fengbin nodded without a shred of hesitation and strode out the door!

A short while later, the four of them went downstairs, got into the car, and drove toward the suburbs.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Lin Jian curiously picked up a screwdriver from the center console. It was a standard household Phillips-head screwdriver!

"This is a good tool. Lend it to me. I’ll use it to spar with Mr. Xu later!" Lin Jian said, weighing it in his hand.

Chen Zhiyuan spoke coldly. "No weapons allowed."

"It’s fine!" Xu Fengbin shook his head. "In a true life-and-death struggle, any object at hand can be used as a weapon."

Lin Jian smiled and continued playing with the screwdriver!