Chapter 65: Bowing One's Head in Apology

None of the people present ever imagined that Lu Qingyun would be so unyielding, nor could anyone have guessed that he would utter such words.

No one understood how someone dressed so plainly and looking so young could display such backbone when facing a young master from such a lavish and prominent family.

Everyone around felt profoundly surprised, even finding the unfolding scene terrifying. They believed that offending this young master would lead to unimaginable consequences.

The two receptionists spoke up decisively.

"You brat, do you even know what you are saying? Do you have any idea how high the status of Young Master She is before you? Are you country bumpkins simply not afraid of death?"

"Indeed! Pack up and get lost wherever it is cool; this place is entirely beyond what you can afford. Just taking a look here should satisfy you. If you truly provoke us, we will summon the guards to throw you out!"

Hearing such an attitude made Lu Qingyun feel even more displeased.

He detested being looked down upon the most. Regardless of what identities these people possessed, they had no qualification to treat another human being in such a manner.

Living on this continent, everyone was a cultivator. By what right should they be targeted? By what right should they receive such disdainful glances?

Faced with this kind of mockery, Lu Qingyun was certainly not going to let the matter rest, especially when dealing with members of these prominent families. He was determined to make them understand the immensity of heaven and earth.

Lu Qingyun looked at them with eyes filled with anger. He watched as the ring on his finger flashed, immediately producing a piece of spirit jade, and said slowly:

"You people simply adore this sort of thing, don't you? You believe that possessing such items fulfills all your desires, right?"

Young Master She watched coldly from the side, clearly harboring an expression of utter contempt.

Seeing that he had produced only a single piece of spirit jade, the two attendants looked at him with eyes full of scorn and said:

"Just a single piece of spirit jade? We have far more of them than you do. What qualifications do you have to bluster here before us? I truly have no idea where you got your capital from, and I simply cannot fathom what you mean by this..."

Before that fellow could finish speaking, Lu Qingyun caused spirit jades to flash forth continuously. Like a miniature waterfall cascading downward, they quickly piled up into a small mountain.

And that was not all. City Lord Biqiang had filled his entire ring with spirit jade; the amount was simply countless.

Lu Qingyun had brought these items precisely to squander them at will. Since these things had never belonged to him in the first place, he could spend them however he pleased.

Lu Qingyun cared not a whit about the monetary value of these objects. The pile of spirit jade grew larger and larger, eventually blocking the entire entrance of the Penglai Inn.

The mocking look in Young Master She's eyes gradually shifted into profound shock. Even as a young master of a prominent family, he had never laid eyes on such a vast quantity of spirit jade.

The two receptionists were completely dumbfounded at the sight.

Never could they have anticipated such a turn of events. Realizing that the situation was escalating out of control, the two of them panicked and turned to scurry inside.

Having been humiliated by the pair, how could Lu Qingyun possibly allow them to flee so casually?

Employing the Lotus Movement Technique, he flashed swiftly to block their path. Glaring at them with eyes blazing with fury, he spoke in a low voice:

"Didn't you rely on these objects to judge a person's status? What was it you called me just now? A country bumpkin? The place where I was born may indeed not be large, but it is certainly not grand enough for you to heap such insults upon me!"

"I care not what grand worldly spectacles you have witnessed, nor do I give any thought to how you view things. Regardless of how formidable your background may be, when you do wrong, should you not apologize?"

Lu Qingyun gazed at them with eyes full of rage, looking as though he might swallow them alive on the spot.

Clueless as to what was happening, the two men were utterly stupefied when faced with the immensely powerful Lu Qingyun and the towering mountain of spirit jade.

They had never witnessed such an enormous amount of spirit jade before and had no inkling of what was going on. However, Lu Qingyun's ghostly movement technique had filled them with absolute terror.

The pair groveled and pleaded tearfully:

"Good sir, we were blind and lacked eyes. We spoke wrongly and should not have acted in such a manner. It was entirely our fault; please spare us."

"Indeed! If you kill us, the master of the Penglai Inn will never let you off either! Consider it a favor to our master!"

What Lu Qingyun loathed most was being threatened by others, especially by those who caused trouble and then resorted to threats.

Lu Qingyun said in a deep voice:

"Of course I know you belong to this place, and I am well aware of how formidable your master is. However, that is no excuse or justification for you to casually insult others!"

"Your lofty Young Master She here hasn't even uttered a word, yet you two kept barking endlessly. Such an eager display of flattery—will he actually reward you for it?"

Lu Qingyun was genuinely enraged now, because the ones being insulted were not just him, but all of them together.

Aside from Meng Tianhai and Meng Li, the rest of the group came from small places and naturally harbored a sense of inferiority.

Upon arriving at a place like this, they truly had never witnessed such a grand spectacle.

Consequently, facing the obstruction of these two fellows made them feel extremely uncomfortable.

Ever since setting out, Lu Qingyun had expected to encounter some trouble upon reaching the Wind and Cloud Gorge, yet that leg of the journey had proven to be the smoothest.

Even when meeting the High Priest of the Holy Land, she had not looked down upon them; instead, it was these young masters from prominent families who endlessly came looking for trouble.

Moreover, this incident was not Young Master She's fault; the fellow hadn't even said much, merely uttering a few brief sentences.

Conversely, these two lackeys who bullied others based on borrowed power were so desperate to show off, acting like loyal hounds in front of this young master.

Not an ounce of dignity could be found in them.

Chu Sheng stared intently at them with an extremely ugly expression. Young Master She did not even speak up, because in his eyes, these two servants were simply not worth saving.

In fact, Young Master She chose to completely ignore them, turning instead with a smile to address Lu Qingyun:

"I have never witnessed anyone as generous as you before. May I ask which family you hail from and what your background is? Would you be willing to enlighten me?"

"Our She family possesses some considerable strength here in Hanhai City, and we collaborate with many outsiders. If the opportunity arises, might we have a chance to cooperate?"

Seeing Young Master She change his tune completely and lower his status entirely, Lu Qingyun noted that all of this was solely because of those useless pieces of spirit jade.

The only reason these objects served as currency was because they contained a certain amount of spiritual energy. Yet that spiritual energy was extremely sparse; tens of thousands of pieces of spirit jade could refine only the tiniest fraction of it.

Ignoring him entirely, Lu Qingyun shouted loudly at the two servants:

"Did you see that clearly? A moment ago you spoke on his behalf, and now he won't even lift a finger to help you, lowering his voice to speak to me submissively instead. Do you not feel regret?"

"Do you not think your actions were utterly laughable? I should think the master who owns such a massive inn cannot be an unreasonable person either."

"Even if he were to emerge, he likely wouldn't spare you. You might as well die at my hands to vent my frustration, lest I remain this furious!"

At this point, Lu Qingyun had already drawn the Qingyun Sword, preparing to finish off the two servants.

Young Master She did not speak again. Unmoved by the tearful pleas of the two lackeys, Lu Qingyun turned his gaze back to Young Master She and said through gritted teeth:

"You are next on my list for a lesson. Regardless of how much strength your family possesses, and regardless of your background, I care not. You have offended me, and I must have my revenge!"

"You people are so fond of bullying the weak and fearing the strong. If I hadn't possessed all this spirit jade today, what would your attitude have been? Would you have let me off?"

It had to be said that Lu Qingyun was truly someone who showed no fear of authority. Every single opponent he chose seemed to hail from a background of immense power.

Yet the companions by his side all felt that his actions were entirely correct. While they lacked the courage to carry out such deeds themselves, they would forever support Lu Qingyun. Even if it meant fighting alongside him and offending these prominent families, they would harbor no hesitation whatsoever.

Trembling all over with fear, the two servants had no idea what to do.

Especially when this formidable young man remained completely unmoved by their plight, a profound terror gripped them.

They could neither run nor muster the strength to resist; all they could do was endure it in silence.

Hearing his threat, Young Master She felt a flicker of fear. He never would have dreamed that this young man possessed such a terrifying aura.

He even felt that he would never reach such heights in his entire life, and could only murmur weakly:

"I already offered my goodwill to you just now. Why must you target me so relentlessly? I haven't offended you, have I? It was all their doing."

"I merely spoke a single sentence, yet you hurled such harsh words at me. What did I say? It seemed I didn't utter a single thing, did I?"

Young Master She had clearly cowered; he was plainly terrified of Lu Qingyun, fearing that this aggressive young man might suddenly strike and take his life.

Grasping the Qingyun Sword tightly and pointing it at Young Master She, Lu Qingyun's eyes turned frosty as he said coldly:

"Is that so? I can see you truly wish to avoid trouble, then. Apologize and admit your wrong in front of everyone present, so I can see whether you are genuinely repentant."

"I don't require you to perform grand kowtows; I merely require an attitude. I know this task is hardly easy for you—consider it a challenge!"

Lu Qingyun's eyes were filled with mockery, transforming completely into an expression of utter disdain. By doing so, he was treating them according to their own standard.

He wanted to let them know how excessive their behavior had been, and to make them clearly understand how hateful their actions were!

Only in this way could they be taught a proper lesson.

These young masters cared above all about face and lived every day for their pride. Subjecting them to humiliation was far more agonizing than death itself.

Hearing his words, Young Master She found it utterly unbelievable, deeming his actions exceedingly excessive. Making such a prominent young master apologize caused everyone present to feel deeply astonished.

"Isn't that the brat who nearly got killed down at the docks just now? I heard he offended the young master of the Cui family. Why is he stirring up trouble with Young Master She now?"

"Who knows? One can only say he possesses extraordinary confidence! After all, they are acquainted with the Long family; otherwise, he might well have been killed at the docks!"

"Really? When I arrived there, I only caught the tail end of it and noticed how quiet everyone was. No wonder the Cui family couldn't kill him—he was with the Long family! Why haven't I seen him around before?"

Overhearing these whispered discussions, Young Master She was completely dumbfounded.

He never would have imagined that he had offended such a formidable figure, for in all of Hanhai City, who was unaware of the Long family's standing?

Families like theirs could not possibly compare to top-tier clans such as the Long family.

To offend someone from the Long family meant facing certain death, with no favorable outcome whatsoever!

One might even say that his entire family could end up perishing in obscurity as a result.

Noticing his profound panic, Lu Qingyun spoke once more:

"Rest assured, the Long family merely assisted me for a moment; they will not protect me for a lifetime. You may refuse to apologize right now, and I will not inform the Long family."

"However, I will definitely take action against you myself. Make your own choice!"

Hearing him say this, Young Master She remained somewhat skeptical.

After all, as had already been noted, had he not stayed up late the previous night, he would not have missed the morning's events at the docks.

After pondering for a moment, he ultimately lowered his lofty head and said in a trembling voice:

"Everything just now was entirely my fault. May I leave now?"

No one had expected that this usually lofty Young Master She would utter such words.

Feeling quite satisfied, Lu Qingyun slowly waved a hand and said:

"You may get lost now. You are also welcome to bring your people back to exact revenge on me, but bear one thing clearly in mind: the consequences of angering me are grave indeed!"

"I am not merely making empty threats; I have always been a man of my word!"

With that, Young Master She turned and departed with his retinue.

As for the two servants still in his hands, Lu Qingyun naturally had no intention of letting them off lightly.

Casting a cold glance at the pair, Lu Qingyun asked:

"How shall I deal with the two of you?"

"Should I truly put you to death? Decide for yourselves!"