Only I am Venerable-Chapter 56: Causing Trouble

Wang Cheng still stood there, dazed. He never would have thought that right here, right now, Fang Haonan would actually strike him!

In terms of strength, he was nowhere near Fang Haonan’s match. In terms of family background, he was no comparison to the Fang Family. That slap from Fang Haonan was more humiliating than death itself. As he felt the stares of everyone around him, Wang Cheng was overcome with shame, wishing he could vanish on the spot. He could only fix a murderous glare on Qin Li and hiss, "Qin Li, I won’t rest until one of us is dead!"

With that, he turned to leave.

"Hold on." Qin Li remained seated, his expression calm as he spoke. "I just gave you a chance, but it seems you’re still completely unrepentant. Insulting someone’s parents is a crime worthy of death. Making you kneel and apologize is letting you off easy. I will give you one more chance. Kneel!"

On that last word, Qin Li suddenly raised his voice. His sharp command cut through the clamor of the banquet hall, silencing all other noise. In an instant, the several hundred guests in the hall all turned to look toward that corner.

Mo Feifei’s own face burned with humiliation. She wished she could kick the stupid pig beside her to death. At the same time, she was furious at Qin Li for being so relentless now that he had the upper hand. She hissed in a low voice, "Qin Li, we can settle our accounts later. How about we just drop it for today?"

"Drop it? Little girl, is there something wrong with your head? I haven’t even held you accountable for trying to assassinate me last time, and you’re talking about settling scores later?" Qin Li stood up and gave Mo Feifei a cold glance. With that one look, Qin Li focused his entire Spiritual Power into his eyes and barked, "I can’t be bothered to deal with an ignorant girl like you. Get lost!"

BOOM!

Mo Feifei’s mind suddenly went blank. An overwhelming shadow of death instantly enveloped her. Qin Li’s eyes were like two sharp swords, stabbing viciously into her very soul.

"AHH!" Mo Feifei let out a terrified shriek as a wet patch spread across her skirt! A warm, damp sensation shocked her back to her senses. That single glare from Qin Li had scared her so badly she had lost control of her bladder. For a young woman, this was a fate worse than death.

Mo Feifei’s figure blurred into an afterimage, vanishing from the banquet hall in a WHOOSH. Only a handful of people caught sight of the large, conspicuous wet patch on her skirt.

"Kneel!" 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Qin Li strode over to the dumbstruck Wang Cheng. Once again, he channeled his Spiritual Power into his eyes, stared into the other man’s, and roared.

THUD!

Every jaw in the room dropped. The banquet hall descended into a deathly silence, the guests frozen like statues as they stared at the scene in utter disbelief.

A legitimate son of the Wang Family was actually kneeling before Qin Li!

Qin Li’s voice was chilling. "For insulting another’s parents, I should have cut you down where you stand! Out of respect for the Shangguan Family, I’ll spare your worthless life today. Don’t think your family name gives you the right to do as you please! If you have any guts, stand before me and challenge me honorably. Anyone who doesn’t dare is a coward! Now, get out of my sight!" With that, he lifted his foot and kicked Wang Cheng in the face. He didn’t use much force, but the gesture was more insulting than any slap.

Suddenly, as if driven mad, Wang Cheng flew into a rage. He shot to his feet, drew the decorative Treasure Sword from his waist, leaped high into the air, and stabbed viciously toward Qin Li.

"Don’t!" someone shouted from a short distance away.

Everything had happened too fast for anyone to react. By the time the crowd registered what was happening, Wang Cheng was already consumed by a thunderous rage.

Qin Li remained where he stood. In one motion, he grabbed a nearby ornate wooden chair and, with a powerful gust of wind, swung it whistling through the air toward Wang Cheng.

CRASH!

The incredibly solid, ornate wooden chair shattered into splinters. Wang Cheng was already lying several meters away, screaming and writhing on the ground.

"An idiot who hasn’t even reached the Profound Level dares to be so arrogant!"

Qin Li tossed aside the wreckage of the ornate chair, dusted off his hands with a look of disdain, and then turned to the dumbfounded Fang Haonan with a bashful smile. "Um... Fang, you know that I practice the Only I am Venerable technique, right?"

Fang Haonan nodded dumbly, his gaze toward Qin Li filled with pure admiration.

The reason was simple: never before had anyone dared to cause such a ruckus on the Shangguan Family’s territory. Qin Li... was the first!

The others who heard Qin Li’s words felt like they might faint. Daring to start a fight at such an important Shangguan Family occasion, and then nonchalantly showing off the technique he was practicing afterward... This Qin Li was truly one of a kind!

However, his words fell on the ears of a few discerning individuals, who couldn’t help but cast thoughtful glances at Qin Li. They were all pondering the same question: ’Based on the amount of time Qin Li has been practicing the Only I am Venerable technique, he should be at the Nirvana Stage by now...’

The current Patriarch of the Shangguan Family, Shangguan Buhui, was in his fifties and bore a strong resemblance to his father, Shangguan Tie. The main difference was his eyes, which held a profound depth, unlike Shangguan Tie’s flamboyant nature.

With such a major incident unfolding, Shangguan Buhui, who had been hosting the leaders of the other great families, felt a great loss of face. He frowned and glanced at Qin Yongzhi, who simply gave a faint smile and said, "That boy has already been expelled from the Qin Family. He has nothing to do with us anymore. He is your Shangguan Family’s son-in-law, so how to deal with him is your family’s business!"

Qin Yongzhi was inwardly ecstatic. ’Serves the Shangguan Family right for going back on their word,’ he thought. ’This is what you get!’

Qin Feng, Qin Hu, and the other Qin Family disciples present today all had gloating smiles. They quickly began explaining to those around them that Qin Li was no longer one of the Qin family.

Shangguan Buhui let out a cold laugh and strode toward Qin Li. As soon as he moved, many of the guests began to crowd in that direction as well.

"Qin Li, you have gone too far! What sort of occasion is this? How dare you act so wantonly! Get out!" It was only out of consideration for his father, who was in secluded cultivation, that Shangguan Buhui refrained from telling him to "scram." However, the impatience etched between his brows was a clear testament to his foul mood.

Just then, Fang Haonan stood up. He gave a slight bow to Shangguan Buhui and said with a solemn expression, "Uncle Shangguan, allow me to speak a word of justice. Today’s incident is not Qin Li’s fault! Who among us could bear to have their parents insulted? Besides, they say a hero isn’t defined by his origins. If I may ask everyone present, what are your views on the ancestor of our Cyan Dragon Royal Family, Zhao Longteng?"

"You little bastard, shut your damn mouth!" someone in the crowd muttered. Fang Haonan flinched but bravely stood his ground. The one who had cursed him was his own father, the Fang Family Patriarch, Fang Zhengdong!

However, as soon as Fang Haonan spoke those words, peculiar expressions appeared on everyone’s faces. When the founding emperor of the Cyan Dragon Kingdom was mentioned, who would dare to speak disrespectfully? People tend to hold such haloed, larger-than-life figures in awe, subconsciously ignoring any of their shortcomings.

The founding emperor of the Cyan Dragon Kingdom, Zhao Longteng, was an illegitimate son! This was a fact known to all the world!

Yet who would dare to draw a parallel between the founding emperor of the Cyan Dragon Kingdom and Qin Li? Fang Haonan dared. In front of so many people, he had said it, frankly and openly.

Shangguan Buhui was also rendered speechless by Fang Haonan’s statement, left standing there in awkward silence.

At that, Qin Li turned to Fang Haonan and gave him a deep bow. "Thank you for speaking up for me today, Fang. Words are not enough to express my gratitude."

Qin Li then raised his head, glanced at Shangguan Buhui, and said softly, "I know your Shangguan Family dislikes me. But that’s fine; I dislike you, too! The only one I care about is Shangguan Shiyu! You don’t need to worry about me disgracing the Shangguan Family’s name. Today, I, Qin Li, will make my stance clear in front of all the elites of Yellow Sand City! From this moment on, I, Qin Li, have no ties whatsoever to the Shangguan Family! Qin Feng, Qin Hu, I know you hate me. If you want revenge, feel free to come at me directly! That’s right, I am practicing the Only I am Venerable technique. Heh heh, you can go ahead and try. Take advantage of my Nirvana and come get your vicious revenge! But it would be a shame to try to steal a chicken only to lose the rice you used for bait! You’re all geniuses, aren’t you? Great figures shrouded in glory. If you fall at the hands of a nobody like me, we’ll see how you manage to save face!"

With a final, cold sneer, Qin Li turned and walked away.

He left a crowd of dumbfounded people in his wake.

Only when Qin Li’s somewhat lean figure had disappeared through the doorway did the banquet hall seem to jolt back to life. With a BUZZ, everyone erupted into excited discussion.

"That kid’s got some real backbone! Daring to say that right to the face of the current Shangguan Patriarch... damn, it was satisfying just to listen to!"

"Satisfying, my ass! The kid’s an idiot. He had such a powerful backer and not only did he not use it, he severed all ties. It would be child’s play for Qin Feng and Qin Hu to get revenge on him. There are a hundred ways to make him disappear from this world!"

"Hmph, you’ve all been fooled by him. Despite what he said, the Shangguan Family has to protect him, even if they hate him! Everyone knows Miss Shangguan went to train with a master. No matter how you slice it, Qin Li is her fiancé. For the sake of their own reputation, could the Shangguan Family really let something happen to him? Not unless the old patriarch of the Shangguan Family himself comes out to annul the engagement. What’s more, the two young masters, Qin Feng and Qin Hu, can no longer use any dirty tricks against Qin Li. The loss of face would be too great if word got out!"

"Exactly. As if two genius Martial Artists would actually be intimidated by Qin Li. Still, what’s the deal with that Only I am Venerable technique of his? I hear he’s about to reach the Nirvana Stage. Aren’t Cultivators of that technique said to be weaker than ordinary people during their Nirvana?"

"..."

Listening to the crowd’s chatter, the faces of Qin Feng and Qin Hu alternated between pale and livid. They were so angry they could have coughed up blood. They never imagined that brat Qin Li could be so cunning as to publicly declare the feud between them. Now, if anything were to happen to him, they would be the first ones suspected!

Everyone called that kid useless, but it turns out he’s as cunning as a fox!

Not only did he make a show of his power, but he also washed his hands of the situation completely, backing both the Shangguan Family and the Qin Family into a corner. Without a doubt, by tomorrow, Qin Li’s name would be known throughout all of Yellow Sand City.