Chapter 155: The Fisherman's Profit

"Have you heard? That Shen Qingyun, who's ranked first on the monument, is actually just a despicable villain who stops at nothing to achieve his goals!"

Inside the secret realm, teams from the same academy always took the opportunity to chat and share their spoils whenever they met. By the third day of the trial, the name Shen Qingyun had spread completely throughout the entire realm, though his reputation was far from favorable.

"I heard about it. This guy specializes in playing the snipe and clam fighting to reap the fisherman's benefit!"

"Every single guardian of the strongholds has strength on par with ours. This guy just waits until both sides are battered and bruised, then jumps out with a smile on his face, claiming he's there to help, only to take the core once the guardian is dealt with!"

"It's so infuriating! He has no human decency left!"

Just as they were speaking, another team approached from the opposite direction. Both groups looked closely and realized they were from the same academy, and right now, they looked utterly dejected.

The leaders of both teams spoke simultaneously, asking, "Did you run into Shen Qingyun?"

The dejected team raised their heads at the sound. "Oh, it's you guys." With a nod, the leader said, "Not just him, but a wolf cub too."

"A wolf cub?" Both teams blinked in surprise.

At the mention of the wolf cub, the previously dejected group instantly turned furious, saying viciously, "Don't let me run into that wolf cub again, or I'll definitely beat it until it calls me grandpa!"

Hearing this, the other two groups grew even more curious and hurriedly pressed for details.

The young man gave them a helpless look, sighed softly, and recounted the whole ordeal.

"We had also found a stronghold, and judging by the number of guardians, it was undoubtedly an intermediate ruin."

"How could we let such a ruin slip away? We all went in. Our strengths were matched, so while we couldn't wipe out the guardians right away, they couldn't do anything to us either."

The young man's expression suddenly turned indignant, his body trembling with suppressed anger. "Who would have thought that Shen Qingyun would suddenly appear, with a wolf cub following right beside him?"

"The guardians that we couldn't do a thing against were like mud in Shen Qingyun's hands. He could basically take one down in a single move!"

"Afterward, he naturally went to take the core. How could we possibly let him take it? Who could have imagined that Shen Qingyun didn't pay us any mind at all? Instead, that wolf cub by his side wore a look of mockery and disdain, calling itself 'Grandpa Wolf' every other word and mocking us as utterly worthless."

"We couldn't hold it back, and the moment we made a move, Shen Qingyun finally turned to look at us. There was a flash of golden light before our eyes, and we all lost consciousness. When we woke up, there was a wolf's face right in front of us."

"It, it actually..." The young man suddenly clenched his fists. The only girl in his team seemed to recall something particularly heartbreaking; her face, already teetering on the edge of tears, suddenly burst open like a broken dam, her tears flowing without end.

Hearing the crying, the young man lifted his head to gaze slightly at the sky, his youthful features looking as though they had aged decades in an instant. "It actually peed on a woman's face!"

"What?!"

Upon hearing the young man's words, the two teams were initially shocked, and then uncontainable anger surged onto their faces. Looking at the girl, they said, "Sister Qinghe, don't cry. If we run into that wolf cub, we'll geld it for you to vent your anger!"

"Right, and then pee on its wolf face!"

"Exactly!"

"And we mustn't forget that Shen Qingyun either. He must have been the one who ordered it to do that."

Was that really the truth of the matter?

Not at all.

At this moment, Shen Qingyun and Feng Chuxun were walking side by side across a desolate plain, with the large black wolf wagging its tail closely behind them, looking so self-satisfied that anyone who saw it would want to punch it.

Shen Qingyun said helplessly, "If you pull a stunt like that again next time, I'm not taking you with us. I'll have you operate with Chuxun instead."

The large black wolf immediately lost its cockiness, its tail dropping as it pleaded, "Boss, you can't do that!"

"Who told you to run wild on someone's face?" Shen Qingyun rolled his eyes. After all, he still couldn't bring himself to use the word "peed."

"Isn't that the treatment losers deserve?"

The large black wolf asked in confusion, "In the forest, battles between spirit beasts have always been like this. The losers can only be humiliated."

"That's among you spirit beasts. That set of rules doesn't work among humans," Shen Qingyun said. "Have you ever seen me or your Second Grandpa do that?"

The large black wolf thought about it seriously, and it seemed to be true. "But Boss, you can't just suppress my nature, can you?"

"Next time someone swarms you, don't go crying for help."

Shen Qingyun added, "Besides, don't you even know what it means to be chivalrous to the fairer sex?"

"Chivalrous to the fairer sex? What's that?"

Shen Qingyun was left speechless. "I can turn a blind eye if you want to do that, but at least pick a man next time. Look at how you made her cry."

"If it doesn't listen, just beat some sense into it," Feng Chuxun chimed in, glancing sideways at Shen Qingyun. "You're too soft on it."

"Fair point." Shen Qingyun felt that made sense. "Next time, I'll learn from you and not let it be so rampant."

Hearing this, the large black wolf let out a miserable howl. "Second Grandpa, you can't do this!"

"If you can beat me, nobody will bother you." Feng Chuxun gave the large black wolf a cold glance, and the latter immediately shut its mouth.

The monument in the sky changed every moment. The top five remained consistently occupied by the same few people, while Shen Qingyun's score was more than double that of second place, leaving everyone far behind.

Ahead, violent fluctuations of spiritual energy spread out, mixed with a familiar aura that Shen Qingyun recognized.

"Let's go take a look."

Shen Qingyun spoke softly, his figure flashing several yards away in the blink of an eye. Seeing this, Feng Chuxun and the large black wolf did not hesitate, their bodies transforming into streaks of spiritual light as they followed.

"Give up the resistance and hand over your points."

The leader of a team sneered as he looked at the few individuals who were as weak as lambs, a majestic wave of spiritual energy emanating from his body.

"In your dreams!"

The five surrounded individuals all turned pale with anger and shouted sternly.

"It's only the first stage, yet forfeiting the right to compete is going to be a huge disadvantage for your academy!"

The speaker wore a sneering smile, a flash of greed sweeping through his eyes. They had been tracking these people for a long time; they knew very well how many cores and points they had obtained. They were just waiting for the moment when their targets were exhausted and trying to recover—that would be when they struck!

"Bah, despicable!"

"Heh heh, when it comes to being despicable, I can't compare to Shen Qingyun, the number one on the leaderboard. His reputation is already completely ruined!"

As he spoke, the spiritual energy surrounding his body burst forth, and the greed in his eyes was completely unmasked. Compared to their own peak condition, the auras of these five people were much weaker, but they still stood their ground, unleashing all their strength for a decisive battle!

The atmosphere became tense and bristling with hostility.

"Such a lively scene."

Just as both sides were about to make a move, a faint voice rang out, causing the two teams to freeze.

Seeing them all staring at him, Shen Qingyun smiled faintly and said, "Go on, please continue."

Joy burst across the faces of the five, while the other team cast vigilant and guarded gazes toward Shen Qingyun.

"Is Your Excellency planning to reap the fisherman's benefit?"

With violent spiritual energy fluctuations permeating his entire body, the young man spoke to Shen Qingyun with a gloomy expression.

"I wouldn't do such a thing, but I do love being helpful."

Shen Qingyun lazily stretched his back, looked at the young man, and then shifted his gaze to the five people whose auras were unstable. "I see they're weak and plan to help them. Any objections?"

"Do you even know what you're saying?"

The young man said coldly, "This is a conflict between Tingfeng Academy and Zixiao Academy. If Your Excellency is from Qinbiao Academy, I must ask you not to muddy these waters."

"When did I ever say I was from Qinbiao Academy?" Shen Qingyun looked at the young man as if he were an idiot.

The young man was momentarily stunned, then forced a smile devoid of warmth. "Does that mean you're from Zixiao Academy?"

"Is something so obvious even worth asking?" Shen Qingyun said as he stepped forward toward the five.

"Why are you looking in such a sorry state?"

Shen Qingyun asked, looking at Guanyan.

That's right, the surrounded team belonged to Zixiao Academy, and their leader was Guanyan.

"We got our backsides kicked."

Guanyan had lost all semblance of his usual composure, and he spoke as if he were a completely different person.

Shen Qingyun raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you know you shouldn't pet a tiger's backside?"

Guanyan was momentarily stunned by Shen Qingyun's nonsensical remark, then shook his head with a bitter smile. "There are no tigers here—defeated soldiers are more like it."

"With me here, you lot are tigers."

Shen Qingyun spoke calmly, yet his words carried an unquestionable self-assurance.

Guanyan and the others couldn't help but believe Shen Qingyun, because he possessed the strength to back up such words.

The young man's gaze had been fixed on Shen Qingyun the entire time. Seeing Shen Qingyun and Guanyan chatting familiarly without paying him the slightest heed, his face turned livid with anger.

Arrogant! Shen Qingyun was simply too arrogant!

"Though I'm terribly sorry to interrupt your business, I'd still like to ask: do you have any points on you?" Shen Qingyun finally shifted his gaze back to the young man and asked with a slight smile.

The expressions of the young man and his team members turned ashen.

"They've been following behind us the whole time; they probably don't have a single point on them," Guanyan whispered.

Hearing this, Shen Qingyun frowned slightly. "No points? Then what's the point of making a move?"

"What did you say?!"

"You're courting death!" How could the members of the young man's team endure such utter contempt? Rage filled their eyes, and they wished they could kill Shen Qingyun with a glare alone.

Looking at them as they grew completely agitated, Shen Qingyun grinned. "Chuxun, I'll leave them to you."

Bang!

As his voice fell, a figure was sent flying from the rear of the young man's team, crashing heavily to the ground and coughing up a mouthful of blood.

The young man's expression changed drastically. Someone had appeared at the rear of his team, and pathetically enough, he hadn't even the slightest inkling of it.

"How dare you!"

The young man spun around just as four more figures were sent flying backward, spitting blood.

The angry expression on the young man's face froze before it could fully form. In a single instant, out of the six members of his team, only he remained standing.

However, the fact that he could become a team leader meant he possessed some extraordinary abilities. Recovering from his shock, he threw a fierce punch, its surface wrapped in spiritual energy that tore through the air with a sonic boom.

As Feng Chuxun felt the fist wind tearing through the air, a stinging sensation prickled the skin of his face. Even so, Feng Chuxun showed no intention of dodging. Instead, he took a step forward, without even moving his hands, directly unleashing a towering sword intent that surged toward the young man.

The young man's expression changed drastically. Facing this towering sword intent, he felt as though he were confronting a primordial fierce beast, and the slightest carelessness would cause his body to be torn apart. But his punch had already been thrown; recalling it was clearly impossible.

"Screw it!"

Gritting his teeth, the young man thrust his fist forward with all his might.

"Bang!"

The fist wind shattered, and the young man was sent flying in a miserable state.