Chapter 434 - 395: Pay the Ransom

Chapter 434: Chapter 395: Pay the Ransom

"We might not be able to kill you, but you won’t have an easy time killing us, either. How about this? I’ll give you 500 Mid-Grade Spirit Stones as an apology for today’s events. Release Jiang Youx. Otherwise, if something really happens to Jiang Youx and the Primordial Heart Sect comes looking for someone to blame, the Yi Family won’t be able to escape, even if you aren’t afraid!"

Jiang Feng didn’t know how many more trump cards the young man had up his sleeve. He knew that continuing this confrontation would only end badly for him. Taking a deep breath, he suppressed the turmoil in his heart and spoke slowly.

"Are you threatening me?" Nie Yun’s eyes narrowed.

"It’s not a threat. We should both take a step back. Pushing this too far will benefit no one. I believe you’re a smart man; you should understand that!" Jiang Feng snorted.

"Ten times that amount. Five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and not one less!" Nie Yun took a step back to stand before Yi Cheng, reached out, and grabbed Jiang Youx again.

’Jiang Feng and that Elder are both Immortal Realm experts, so I really can’t push them too hard. Besides, I’ve only just arrived in the Floating Heaven Continent and my foundation isn’t stable. In my past life, the Primordial Heart Sect was nothing to me, but my current strength is still too low. It’s not wise to make an enemy of them yet.’

’However, not wanting to make an enemy of them doesn’t mean I’m afraid. Even if they are strong and numerous, I have my Disguise Talent. At worst, I can just change my appearance and leave. They’ll never find me no matter how hard they search! Besides, I still have the Zihua Cave Mansion. I can just hide inside. As long as it’s not an expert at the fifth or sixth stage of the Secret Realm, I have nothing to fear!’

"Five thousand?" Upon hearing Nie Yun’s demand, Jiang Feng’s fists clenched tightly.

One Mid-Grade Spirit Stone was worth a hundred Low-Grade Spiritual Stones, which meant five thousand of them were worth 500,000 Low-Grade Spiritual Stones!

While the nominal value was equivalent, Mid-Grade Spirit Stones were far rarer than the low-grade ones. On the Black Market, 5,000 Mid-Grade Spirit Stones could be exchanged for at least 600,000 Low-Grade Spiritual Stones—sometimes even seven or eight hundred thousand!

A fortune of this magnitude would be enough to nearly bankrupt the Jiang Family, despite their considerable wealth.

"You can refuse to pay. You can even have the Primordial Heart Sect come after me for revenge. But I guarantee your son will be dead long before they arrive!"

Knowing what the other man was thinking, Nie Yun tightened his grip once more.

"Father... save me..."

With his breath cut off, Jiangg Youx’s face turned a deathly purple, and he choked out a cry.

"Fine, I agree! I’ll gather the funds as quickly as I can. Just... keep your word and don’t harm Jiangg Youx!"

Seeing his son in such a state, Jiang Feng gritted his teeth.

’He’s my only son, and our link to the Primordial Heart Sect. I can’t let anything happen to him.’

"Don’t worry. I can’t be bothered to kill an ant like him." He casually sealed Jiang Youx’s power and tossed him to Yi Cheng. "Senior Yi Cheng, keep an eye on this kid. He’s worth a fortune!"

"Mm!" Yi Cheng nodded, then casually grabbed Jiang Youx and slapped him hard across the face. "You want to marry my daughter? Looking like this? You think you’re worthy?"

SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!

After slapping him more than a dozen times, Yi Cheng finally exhaled, his face breaking into a wide grin.

’Ever since Jiang Youx became a Primordial Heart Sect disciple, the Yi Family had been suppressed and had suffered greatly. Today, this young man’s incredible display of power had finally let him vent all his frustrations. This was the most satisfying day he’d had in months!’

"Yi Cheng... you’re ruthless. Just you wait!"

Watching his son get slapped senseless in Yi Cheng’s hands, Jiang Feng trembled with rage. He scooped up the injured Primordial Heart Sect Elder, turned, and flew off, disappearing from sight in a matter of moments.

Nie Yun just chuckled.

’It seems Yi Cheng isn’t one to shy away from trouble. That makes sense. If he were a coward, he wouldn’t have been so composed when he heard I’d beaten up the City Lord, nor would he have stood up for me when that Primordial Heart Sect Elder showed up.’

"Let’s go!"

The people in the courtyard had come with Jiang Feng, hoping to get a slice of the pie. They never expected the Primordial Heart Sect Elder to be gravely wounded by a single punch, or for Jiang Feng to just turn and flee. Their faces paled, and they all scrambled to escape.

"Thinking of leaving? Not so fast." Nie Yun flickered, appearing in front of them.

"I heard Jiang Feng say you’re all prominent figures in Rongtian City. I imagine you’re all quite wealthy. So, here’s the deal: each of you hands over one thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and I’ll let you leave. Otherwise... you die!"

Nie Yun said coolly.

"One thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones?" Everyone was on the verge of tears.

’We may be prominent figures, but our wealth is nothing compared to the Yi or Jiang Families! It’s taking everything those two families have to come up with five thousand Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, so how could we possibly afford this?’

"Low-Grade Spiritual Stones will do as well. You have until tonight to bring them to me. I don’t care how you get them, but if a single one of you fails, I will wipe your entire family from the face of Rongtian City!"

Nie Yun snorted coldly, unconcealed killing intent glinting in his eyes.

’Since they dared to come looking for trouble, they should have been prepared for the consequences. Did they really think they could just come and go as they pleased? The world doesn’t work that way.’

"Scram!"

After giving his instructions, Nie Yun snorted and waved his hand dismissively.

"Yes!"

The prominent figures scrambled out of the courtyard, practically crawling over each other. It was only when they were outside that they realized they were drenched in cold sweat.

’That young man may not have killed anyone, but the cold indifference in his eyes was no act. We’re certain that if we don’t meet his demands, he will absolutely massacre our entire families, leaving no one behind!’

’If we’d known we’d gain nothing and it would end like this, we would have never come in the first place...’

"Enough. The Yi Family and the Jiang Family both have Immortal Realm experts overseeing them. This is completely out of our league. We need to stay out of their business from now on. Right now, we’d better focus on raising the money!"

An old man said, wiping the cold sweat from his brow after they had left the Yi Family estate.

"Agreed. Let’s hurry back and get the money. Their struggles are truly not something people of our caliber can get involved in."

Another person sighed in agreement, then turned and flew toward his own family’s estate.

The crowd scattered in an instant, all rushing back to raise the money.

........................

"Phew." After everyone had left, Nie Yun sighed in relief. He turned to Yi Cheng. "Wait here for the ransom money. I was injured a little, so I’m going to go recover."

Fighting against two great Immortal Realm experts just now had put immense pressure on him, both mentally and physically. Now that they were gone and he could finally relax, Nie Yun felt himself drenched in sweat and a wave of weakness washed over him.

"The adjacent courtyard is empty. You can use that one! Just give a shout if you need anything!" Yi Cheng nodded eagerly.

"Mm!" Nie Yun said no more. His body flickered and he entered the courtyard. With another flicker, he had already entered the Zihua Cave Mansion.

Standing on the spacious training grounds of the Cave Mansion, Nie Yun replayed the recent battle in his mind.

’That was incredibly dangerous. Two Immortal Realm experts attacking simultaneously... their power was enough to overturn rivers and seas. If I hadn’t been so quick-witted and composed, I don’t know how it would have ended!’

’I just got this Flame Master Talent and haven’t had a chance to test it. If I’d imbued my Sword Momentum with the power of fire back there, it would have been so much stronger!’

’Even without testing it, I can already feel the power of this Flame Master talent. One punch unleashes a torrent of fire that incinerates everything. If I could have applied that to my Sword Momentum, the fight wouldn’t have been a stalemate. It would have been a complete rout!’

’Dark Force combined with Dark Fire... heh heh. Once I perfect that move, who cares if I’m just an Ultimate Venerable? I’ll be able to flatten an Immortal Realm expert into a pancake!’

As he thought this, he took out his Longsword and pointed it forward. A jet of flame instantly spewed forth, its scorching temperature causing the very space within the Zihua Cave Mansion to distort.

The space inside the Zihua Cave Mansion was a type of Array Space. In terms of stability, it was far inferior to the Floating Heaven Continent or the Qi Sea Continent.

’As I thought, the consumption is immense. Even with a Qi Sea as vast as mine, I can’t just use this power whenever I want!’

Feeling the amount of True Qi consumed by the flames, Nie Yun finally understood why Yi Qing didn’t dare to use the Flame Talent lightly. The rate at which this thing consumed True Qi was simply terrifying!

’Even with my deep reserves and unparalleled True Qi, if I used it at full power, I probably wouldn’t last more than a few moves before my True Qi was completely depleted!’

’Of course, the greater the True Qi consumption, the greater the power. With this Flame Talent, my combat strength has doubled again. Before, if I was fighting alone, I would have had a hard time escaping from an array formed by five Primordial Saint Realm experts. Now, with the Flame Fire burning, any Combined Array would be instantly reduced to ash. Forget five, I could make even ten of them flee with their tails between their legs!’

’If I had used the Flame Master talent properly, my fight with Jiang Feng wouldn’t have been so troublesome. A single sword strike combining Dark Force and Dark Fire... no matter how sharp his combat instincts were, he would have been knocked to the ground, completely powerless to fight back!’

’As expected of one of the Five Elements Talents. Terrifying!’

’I wonder if the treasure left by that Primordial Qi Master has a method for sensing Primordial Qi. If it does, and I can form a Primordial Qi Dantian, then this level of consumption will be nothing to worry about!’

’If what Yi Cheng said is true, and such a Primordial Qi Master really exists, then it won’t matter how much True Qi the Flame Fire Dantian consumes.’

’If I can replenish my energy faster than I consume it, my Qi Sea would effectively be permanently full. My strength wouldn’t just double, it would be far greater!’

’And if I can acquire that talent, I could use it to attempt my third Nirvana!’

’My foundation is incredibly deep. I can’t imagine how much energy it will take to reach the third Nirvana. I’m afraid even hundreds of thousands of Mid-Grade Spirit Stones won’t be enough. With what I have now, it’s simply impossible.’

’But it would be a different story with a Primordial Qi Dantian. The consumed Creation Qi could be completely drawn from the void through this Dantian, giving me an endless supply of power. The success rate would definitely increase significantly!’

’I am currently at the Ultimate Venerable Peak. Once I succeed in my third Nirvana, I will definitely break directly into the Secret Realm, reaching the Peak of Magical Power Realm or even the higher Primordial Saint Realm!’

’Once I reach the Primordial Saint Realm, I’ll even be able to fight against someone at the Peak of the Immortal Realm. In the Floating Heaven Continent, I would be considered a true powerhouse.’

"Primordial Qi Master... I must obtain this talent!"

Nie Yun clenched his fists, his eyes shining with a look of absolute determination.

PS: Although I’m stockpiling Chapters and preparing to make a big move, there will still be normal Chapter bursts.

The rules for Chapter bursts are the same as before. An Alliance Leader gets 20,000 words. If recommendation tickets get us to the homepage, that’s another 20,000 words! A 10,000 Qidian coin donation gets an extra 1,000-word Chapter. If monthly tickets get us into the top five of the category, I’ll release four Chapters a day for ten consecutive days!

Of course, if there are no bursts, we’ll stick to the normal guaranteed update schedule: one Chapter at midnight and one at 7 PM.

Additionally, I, Lao Ya, will put my heart into writing this book and strive to make it better and better. Please come support the official version on Qidian. The 24-hour subscription count (which you can set to auto-subscribe) is currently under one thousand. For every hundred it increases, I, Lao Ya, will release four Chapters a day for seven days, until we get a banner recommendation. A banner recommendation will mean a super massive burst...

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......(To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)