Chapter 42: A Small Ripple

  Pricking up his ears, a clamor of voices came from outside the house. Ling Feng was about to get up and take a look, but saw that Zhao Min had already taken a step ahead and walked to the door.

  "Ah!" exclaimed Zhao Min, turning her head back and saying to the two people inside the house: "It seems that Guan Bai had a conflict with someone!"

  Ling Feng and the other person got up and walked to the door. Looking out, they saw seven or eight children punching and kicking someone, while the rest of the children in the courtyard were playing, but now all gathered around to watch.

  The person who was beaten up had a slender body. At first glance, it was Guan Bai, who covered his face and cried earlier, running out of the house!

  "Come on, let's go take a look!"

  Ling Feng didn't think twice and strode towards the crowd of onlookers. Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji also followed behind him.

  "You blind fool, you bumped into me and didn't even apologize. Let's see how I'll deal with you today!"

  Ling Feng and the other two squeezed into the crowd of onlookers, and what they saw was that among the children beating up Guan Bai, there was one who was the most arrogant, kicking and scolding Guan Bai who had fallen to the ground while loudly cursing.

  "This guy's name is Ma Yan, a young master of the Ma family in Nanling. He relies on his family's power and influence, and is extremely arrogant!" said Zhang Wuji softly beside Lingfeng, his tone seeming to express extreme dislike for Ma Yan.

  "No wonder this guy is so arrogant... "

  Ling Feng furrowed his brow slightly after hearing this and took another look at the little boy named Ma Yan.

  Nanling Ma family is one of the several major families in the Eastern Yue State's Xianmen world, with a deep foundation and immense power. According to Ling Feng's knowledge, this Ma family has a subtle relationship with Tianji Pavilion, with intricate connections, it is highly likely that Nanling Ma family can become a major Xianmen family, actually being supported by Tianji Pavilion from behind the scenes.

  At a glance, Ling Feng found that the people standing around watching all had expressions of schadenfreude on their faces. Even though there were a few who looked indignant, they only secretly sympathized with Guan Bai and did not dare to come forward to dissuade him.

  It seems they are all afraid of Ma Yan's family power behind him and dare not make trouble easily, lest they get into trouble!

  As for Guan Bai, he had been beaten until his nose was blue and swollen, with fresh blood flowing from the corner of his mouth. He didn't fight back or make a sound, but instead stared at Ma Yan with eyes full of hatred and anger.

  If looks could kill, Ma Yan would have been killed by his gaze countless times!

  "You still don't look convinced!"

  Feeling the fierce gaze of the man on the ground, Ma Yan's heart chilled and his anger surged, he kicked out with one foot, straight at the man's face.

  All of a sudden, there was a dull thud, and Guan Bai's face was splattered with blood. He was kicked by Ma Yan and flew backwards, flipping over in mid-air before heavily crashing to the ground, not moving at all.

  This kick is quite powerful!

  With a heavy hand, Ma Yan's anger had not dissipated, and he beckoned to several helpers beside him, saying: "Get this trash beaten to death, if anything happens, I'll take the blame!"

  Those children looked at each other and immediately rushed forward, punching and kicking Guan Bai who was lying on the ground.

  "Stop!"

  Ling Feng didn't want to get involved, but the scene before him made his heart burn with anger. Without thinking much, he took a step forward and spoke out to stop it.

  As soon as he shouted, dozens of eyes in the courtyard immediately turned to look at him, and even the few people who were surrounding Guan Bai stopped their hands and turned their heads to scrutinize him carefully.

  "In the southern part of Nanling, there is a Ma Yan, I don't know what this junior fellow's name is?"

  Ma Yanqi was indeed arrogant and domineering, but he wasn't reckless. Seeing Ling Feng's calm and fearless demeanor, he changed his expression and introduced himself, taking the opportunity to probe into the other party's background.

  "In the lower four Ping Mountain Li Changqing!" Ling Feng looked at him and said calmly.

  "Li family of Siping?" Ma Yan was taken aback at first, then burst out laughing loudly, his laughter filled with disdain and contempt.

  Ling Feng saw this and ignored him too, striding straight over to Guan Bai who was lying on the ground.

  The laughter stopped, Ma Yan looked at Ling Feng who was walking over, with a disdainful expression on his face, and said: "I thought you were from a noble family? It turns out that you are just a young master of a small and insignificant family. Humph! I advise you not to interfere in other people's business, otherwise, don't blame me for being rude to you!"

  "In my humble life, I have a hobby, which is to love meddling in other people's business!" Ling Feng continued walking without stopping, his eyes gazing at Ma Yan, his face with an expression that seemed like a smile yet not quite a smile, teasingly saying: "I just don't know how Master Ma will be impolite?"

  His tone was provocative, with a hint of calling out. The onlookers around him, including Ma Yan, did not expect him to be so bold as to openly challenge the young master of the Nanling Ma family.

  "Take him down!"

  With a loud roar, Ma Yan's eyes blazed with fury as he glared at Ling Feng, his teeth clenched in rage. He pounced on him viciously. The several helpers beside him abandoned Guan Bai and joined forces with Ma Yan, raising their fists to assist him.

  "The people of Ma's family are all like this!"

  "Beat him to death!"

  Ling Feng saw Ma Yan and others rushing over, just about to make a move, but saw two figures flying out from behind him, it was Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji!

  They flew out and didn't even greet Ling Feng, raised their fists and smashed them at Ma Yan's face.

  "Zhang Wuji, you dare to strike me in the face with your feminine moves!"

  "You're the one who's been beaten!"

  ……

  In the blink of an eye, both sides were entangled in a fierce battle, with fists and feet flying everywhere. Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji faced off against their numerous enemies, undaunted and counterattacking with all their might, yet somehow managing to hold their own!

  "These two guys are also troublemakers!"

  Ling Feng saw it in his eyes, smiled slightly, and exerted force under his feet. His whole person rapidly rushed towards Ma Yan.

  It was he who stirred up the trouble, so naturally he can't just stand by and watch!

  When it comes to fist and footwork, Ling Feng is a master among masters. With his agile physique like a cheetah, his punches were as swift as lightning, and with just two or three moves, he had already knocked Ma Yan and his accomplices to the ground!

  "One hit and it's done!"

  With a similarly disdainful tone, Ling Feng clapped his hands and appeared extremely relaxed.

  "Great skill, Master Li!"

  Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji walked over, both of them now admiring Ling Feng with utmost sincerity, giving him a big thumbs up.

  "It's nothing!"

  Ling Feng smiled slightly and walked up to Guan Bai, helping him up from the ground.

  "Are you okay?" Seeing his face with multiple bruises and blood still flowing from his mouth and nose, Ling Feng asked with concern.

  Silently pushing away Ling Feng's hand, Guan Bai still didn't make a sound, lowering his head and turning to leave, walking slowly towards the house.

  "We lent him a hand and he didn't even say thank you, this guy, deserves a beating!"

  Watching him leave, Zhang Wuji felt a lump in his throat and said irritably.

  "Whatever!" Ling Feng laughed and said.

  "Let's go back!" Zhao Min was a kind-hearted person, seeing Guan Bai covered in injuries, he prepared to return to the house to give him some wound-healing medicine.

  As the three of them were about to leave, the crowd surrounding them suddenly let out a scream of surprise.

  Ling Feng reacted extremely quickly, catching a glimpse out of the corner of his eye to see that Ma Yan had somehow stood up, holding a spiritual talisman in his hand, which he flung at the three of them.

  "Not good!"

  In his heart, he secretly cried out, and with a burst of strength, Ling Feng pushed Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji away from him by several feet. Immediately after, he felt a scorching hot breath attacking him from behind, and with an instinctive reaction, his body dodged to the right side.

  "Boom!"

  A fireball fell from the sky, heavily hitting the ground and making a low, muffled sound. Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji were pushed away just in time by Lingfeng and did not suffer from the aftermath of the fireball. As for Lingfeng, he was one step slower and was hit by the scorching hot air waves ejected by the fireball, sending him flying over three zhang before crashing to the ground.

  "What a close call!"

  Ling Feng slowly got up from the ground, secretly rejoicing in his heart. When he was hit by the residual flames of the fireball, he clearly saw that the blue silkworm clothes on his body emitted a faint blue light, which firmly resisted the scorching air waves and did not allow them to invade his body at all.

  The remaining aura was no longer enough to harm Ling Feng, and it only sent him flying three zhang away. Except for some scrapes on his hands and feet, he was unharmed.

  "What a big nerve Ma Yan has, actually daring to use the fireball spell to hurt people. Doesn't he know the sect's rules that disciples are not allowed to engage in private duels?"

  "Hmph, he's still relying on his family's powerful influence!"

  ……

  The onlookers whispered among themselves, and judging from their expressions, most of them had a very bad impression of Ma Yan.

  At this moment, Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji quickly walked up to Lingfeng's front, seeing that he was not seriously injured, they put their minds at ease.

  "Ma Yan, you despicable little man, today I'll see just how capable you are!" Zhao Min whispered to Ling Feng and the others to move aside, then, with eyes blazing like fire, he stared fixedly at Ma Yan standing three zhang away in front of him.

  "Zhang Shidi, this Ma Yan has cultivated his skills, so Zhao Shixiong shouldn't be in danger, right?"

  Ling Feng walked over to one side and asked Zhang Wuji in a low voice.

  "Brother Li can rest assured!" Zhang Wuji smiled slightly, with a somewhat flirtatious demeanor, saying: "Before entering the sect, Brother Zhao had already cultivated the Thunder Attribute Skill for two years. Now he should have the strength of at least the first or second layer of Qi Refining, and his actual strength is stronger than Ma Yan's!"

  After hearing this, Ling Feng put his mind at ease and then looked around the scene.

  "Zhao Min, are you really going to go against me!" Ma Yan's tone was harsh, but anyone with discerning eyes could see that he was secretly intimidated by Zhao Min.

  "Hmph, since you used a fireball spell to ambush me, I'll let you taste the flavor of 'Palm Thunder'!"

  Zhao Min's eyes flashed with a fierce glint, but he saw that his hands were stretched out in front of his chest, palms slowly closing inward. A thread of tiny electric arcs suddenly appeared between his fingers, looking extremely powerful!

  Ma Yan's face changed suddenly as he stood opposite, gritted his teeth, and took out another talisman from his bosom, flinging it at Zhao Min.

  The Ling symbol suddenly changed in mid-air and transformed into a scorching hot fireball that flew towards Zhao Min's head.

  "You'll pay for this!"

  Zhao Min's palms were already clasped together at this moment, he saw the incoming fireball, his face expression didn't change a bit, his left hand flipped over, and a finger-thick electric arc suddenly appeared on his palm, immediately striking and dispersing the incoming fireball.

  At the same time, his right palm pushed forward, and another electric arc appeared, shooting towards Ma Yan's shocked face in front of him.

  The lightning bolt came extremely quickly, arriving in an instant, and Ma Yan had the heart to dodge but was powerless to do so, immediately being struck head-on.

  "Ah!"

  A loud scream, and he saw his whole body violently trembling, the hair on his head standing upright, threads of small electric arcs swirling around his entire body, and the whole person fell straight back.

  It is well known that among the various schools of Xian Xia, the Thunder Attribute Skill has the greatest destructive power, far surpassing the ordinary Five Elements Skill. Although Zhao Min only had a cultivation base of Qi Refining Stage 1, when he exerted his full strength, this "Palm Thunder" was several times more powerful than Ma Yan's "Fireball Seal"!

  Fortunately, Ma Yan was also wearing a Qingcan shirt, and this low-grade defensive artifact, although not of high quality, managed to withstand 90% of the 'Palm Thunder' attack. As for the remaining 10% of the aftermath, it was borne by Ma Yan himself!

  Although it was only a tenth of the force, Ma Yan Chi had eaten enough bitter heads. He fell to the ground, feeling intense pain all over his body like being scalded by fire, and from time to time accompanied by numbness!

  "Brother Ma, isn't the taste of 'Palm Thunder' not bad?" Zhao Min said with a smile on his face as he looked at Ma Yan who was lying on the ground. He then turned to the few kids who had helped Ma Yan bully Guan Bai earlier and chuckled: "Do you guys also want to try some?"

  Those children were so frightened that they ran away as if their lives depended on it, without even looking back at Ma Yan who was lying on the ground.

  After resting for about half a work period, the severe pain on Ma Yan's body had subsided somewhat. He gritted his teeth, propped himself up with both hands, and shakily got to his feet.

  "You're ruthless! Let's see how things go!"

  His gaze was extremely venomous, like a wild beast about to pounce on its prey, staring fixedly at Zhao Min without letting go.

  "Master Ma, this lesson seems a bit too light for you. Alright, I'll give you another 'Palm Thunder'!"

  Anyway, since she had already made an enemy of him, Zhao Min decided to take this opportunity to teach this arrogant and self-important guy a good lesson.

  He spoke and acted, only to see his two hands flip over, with a spark of electricity shooting out from the center of each palm, shooting towards Ma Yan.

  Ma Yan was shocked and lost his soul, the electric arc had not yet reached him, he only felt his body go soft, and fell to the ground.

  "Look at you!"

  Zhao Min let out a cold laugh and controlled two electric arcs that descended from mid-air, striking Ma Yan who was paralyzed on the ground.

  Just then, a man's voice rang out in time.

  "Stop!"

  The voice fell, but a figure flashed by, and two middle-aged cultivators wearing purple robes suddenly appeared in front of Ma Yan, blocking his way. One of them waved his sleeve, and a yellowish-brown shield suddenly appeared out of thin air, blocking the two incoming lightning arcs.

  Lingfeng, standing by, looked over and saw that one of the two people was someone he knew, Zhang Zhenglin, the master in charge of the inner temple affairs. As for the other person, he looked unfamiliar, but judging from his clothes and demeanor, he should also be a foundation-building cultivator!

  The person who neutralized two electric arcs with a shield and a staff is that unfamiliar-looking cultivator!

  "Second Master!"

  A loud cry, Ma Yan, who had fallen to the ground, somehow managed to summon his strength and scrambled up, crying out to the two of them: "The three of them ganged up on my junior, please, Second Masters, do justice for me!"

  As he spoke, he also used his hand to point one by one at Ling Feng, Zhao Min and Zhang Wuji, so that the two masters could identify them.

  "Zhang Shu and Han Shu are both very close to Eldest Uncle, they will definitely speak up for me!"

  Ma Yan thought to himself, his eyes fixed fiercely on Ling Feng and the other two, a schadenfreude expression appearing on his face.

  That surnamed Han's foundation-building cultivator indeed spoke up for Ma Yan, but seeing his face sink, he pointed at Ling Feng and the other two, scolding: "You three just entered the sect and don't follow the rules, this won't do, watch me..."

  He hadn't finished speaking, but was interrupted by Zhang Zhenglin standing beside him, "It's just a few kids' families, they've gone too far in their playfulness, it's just nonsense, why must you take it seriously, Brother Han!"

  He paused for a moment, his eyes turned to Lingfeng and the others, and with a wave of his hand, he said: "All of you go back now, from now on, don't make any more trouble!"

  Ling Feng and the other two knew that Zhang Zhenglin was biased, so they came forward to pay their respects and then turned around and left, walking towards the wing of the house where they lived. As for the onlookers, they had already quietly dispersed when Zhang Zhenglin and the others appeared.

  "Zhang Shu, they..." Ma Yan's heart was unwilling and wanted to argue, but saw Zhang Zhenglin waving his hand at him and said lightly: "You go back too!"

  Not even allowing himself to finish speaking, Ma Yan was so angry that he turned around and left in a huff.

  In an instant, the children playing in the courtyard all dispersed and returned to their rooms. The vast grounds were left with only Zhang Zhenglin and the monk surnamed Han.

  "Zhang Shixiong, why didn't you let me teach those three kids a lesson?" asked the monk with the surname Han, his face showing displeasure.

  "Brother Han, there are many things that you may not be clear about!" Zhang Zhenglin stroked his beard and smiled, saying: "These three little guys have excellent innate talents, possessing the Thunder, Wind, and Ice attributes of heterodox spiritual roots. Moreover, they have all been taken in as disciples by someone. Not to mention others, but that child with the Wind Spiritual Root is actually Brother Zhong Sun's designated disciple. Brother Han, you should also know about Brother Zhong Sun's temperament; if he comes two days later to take his person and finds out that you've made things difficult for his disciple... Heh heh, it won't be easy to say at that time!"

  Xing Han's face changed suddenly when he heard the four words "Zhong Sun Shixiong", and he hastily made a fist to Zhang Zhenglin, saying with gratitude: "Thanks to Brother Zhang for stopping in time, otherwise, I would have gotten into big trouble later!"

  "You and I are brothers, is there a need for courtesy?" Zhang Zhenglin chuckled and whispered a few words to the monk surnamed Han before they both turned around and left together.