"Is that you?!"
Luo Chentian's eyes flashed with a cold, sharp light.
The others quickly noticed something was wrong as well. When they saw the name on the Sky Ranking, they instantly understood.
"Qin Zi??"
"He actually showed up!"
"Something's off. If he's here to apologize, why is he acting so arrogantly? Could it be... he's here to cause trouble?"
"That can't be right. Luo Chentian has several unfathomably powerful experts by his side. Who would dare seek death?"
The crowd erupted in astonished murmurs.
Those who had been eager to challenge the Sky Ranking momentarily suppressed their excitement. After all, given the sudden development, none could afford to ignore it—doing so would show disrespect to the young master of the Luo family.
"Can I take it that you're here to apologize?"
Luo Chentian looked down at Qin Zi, speaking coldly.
"You can."
Qin Zi smiled casually.
"Then why are you here alone? If I recall correctly, I asked you to bring your father along to apologize as well."
Luo Chentian narrowed his eyes.
"My father didn't want to come, so naturally, he didn't come." Qin Zi shrugged, looking completely at ease.
"Is this how you apologize?"
Luo Chentian's gaze grew sharper.
"Who said I came to apologize?"
Qin Zi feigned surprise, then with a hint of mockery in his eyes, said, "I only said you could interpret it that way. That doesn't mean your interpretation is correct, does it?"
"Are you mocking me?"
Luo Chentian's expression turned icier.
"What do you think?"
Qin Zi smiled playfully, throwing the question back at him.
"How dare you! You lowly creature, how dare you speak back to the young master? Do you have a death wish?" one of the Luo family's young men shouted angrily.
"The Luo family sure throws its weight around!"
Qin Zi sneered fearlessly, saying, "In this matter, I don't believe I was wrong. So why should I apologize?"
"Still so stubborn!"
A middle-aged man from the Luo family snorted coldly, stepping forward. Instantly, a terrifying pressure from a Heavenly God surged toward Qin Zi.
However, Luo Chentian stopped him.
The young master of the Luo family seemed to prefer reasoning, or at least didn't want to appear too domineering in front of a crowd.
He gazed at Qin Zi, asking, "You claim you weren't in the wrong. Are you saying you didn't kill my servant?"
"I did."
Qin Zi raised his head and replied calmly.
"You killed someone and yet claim you weren't wrong?"
Luo Chentian pressed.
"A mere servant, weak in power but arrogant in demeanor, dared to order me around. His death was well deserved!"
Qin Zi said coldly.
"Well deserved? True, as a servant, he shouldn't have been so arrogant. But even so, when you kill a dog, you have to consider its owner! By killing him, where does that leave me, Luo Chentian? Where does that leave my Luo family, one of the Divine King Clans?"
Luo Chentian thundered.
"Where does that leave you?"
Qin Zi sneered and retorted:
"Then where does sending a dog to recruit my father and me leave me, Qin Zi? Where does that put my father?"
"You may be an Upper Realm prodigy, but what gives you the right to stand above me and my father?"
"Is it because of your background? Let me be blunt—if you take away the Luo family name, you... are nothing but a worthless piece of trash!"
Trash!
The sharp, piercing word left everyone around stunned and breaking out in cold sweats.
To call Luo Chentian trash to his face—that took unimaginable guts!
Even Luo Chentian was briefly shocked. But soon, his expression turned completely dark as he said coldly, "In my fifty years of cultivation, this is the first time someone has spoken to me like this. But boasting is easy—let's see if you have the strength to back it up!"
Boom!
In the next moment, an overwhelming aura surged from Luo Chentian's body. Divine light surged to the sky, and three massive shadows of the heavens floated above his head.
He was a Heavenly God of the Third Heaven!
"Whoosh!"
The intense aura caused the wind to roar, blowing violently at Qin Zi, making his clothes flutter wildly and his hair whip about in disarray.
But Qin Zi remained calm, disdainfully saying:
"What now? Are you planning to suppress me with your cultivation level? Only trash uses their cultivation to bully others. If you were stronger than me under the same conditions, I'd accept it. But you grew up in the prosperous Upper Realm while I trained in the declining and barren Xuanhuang Heaven. Does comparing our cultivation really matter?"
"A true prodigy competes in battle prowess, not cultivation level. If you want my respect, defeat me at the same realm!"
Luo Chentian retracted his aura.
He composed himself and said indifferently, "Whether or not you respect me means nothing. Crushing an ant doesn't require its respect."
"In that case, go ahead and do it!"
Qin Zi raised his head defiantly, spreading his arms wide as if to welcome death.
He had nothing to fear!
However, Luo Chentian furrowed his brow—if this were a private matter, he would have crushed this man with a single palm. But now, with so many eyes on him, if he killed Qin Zi in such a manner, people would talk.
Some might say he was too afraid to fight on equal ground and instead relied on his higher cultivation level to silence Qin Zi.
That would damage his reputation.
"Heh, a cheap provocation. Do you think this will make me lower my cultivation and fight you?"
Luo Chentian smirked coldly. "Whether or not I defeat you means nothing. Do I, Luo Chentian, need to prove anything by beating you?"
His arrogance was boundless.
Indeed, as he said, he didn't need to prove anything. His mere presence already made him shine brightly!
"In the end, you're just scared."
Qin Zi sneered with disdain.
"Foolish!"
Luo Chentian snorted and then glanced behind him at a young man with green hair.
Upon receiving Luo Chentian's signal, the green-haired youth immediately understood and stepped forward. He looked at Qin Zi with disdain and said coldly:
"A lowly insect like you dares challenge the young master? Arrogant indeed, but... you're not qualified! Let me take care of you!"
With that, he charged forward.
Boom!
His body burst into flames, turning him into a blazing fireball that hurtled toward Qin Zi.
"As if I'd be afraid of you!"
Qin Zi snorted coldly and charged forward as well. His opponent was at the Yaoci realm, but after enduring the baptism of the Sky Ranking, Qin Zi had also broken through to the Yaoci realm. Moreover, his physique and bloodline had undergone another transformation due to the immense luck and energy he absorbed. He had no fear of a head-on clash.
Boom!!
With a loud explosion, countless sparks flew, and a crimson beam of light shot into the sky before instantly dissipating.
The next moment, the green-haired youth was sent flying backward, his clothes torn and body covered in bloody wounds, as if he were about to fall apart!
"How… how is this possible?!"
The youth cried out in shock. In that collision, he had felt the overwhelming strength of Qin Zi—a power that was simply invincible.
"Too weak."
Qin Zi sneered, then charged forward like a raging bull. His powerful aura was suffocating.
"Three Thousand Strands of Green!"
The green-haired youth shouted as the hair atop his head grew wildly, spreading across the sky like a vast field of green grass, enveloping Qin Zi.
"Tricks!"
Qin Zi paid no attention to the attack, charging straight through. Everywhere he passed, the green strands snapped, disintegrating into ashes.
Thud!
With a dull sound, the youth's clothes exploded, and he spat out blood before collapsing in a heap.
Qin Zi stepped on the unconscious green-haired youth, looked up at Luo Chentian, and mocked, "So this is the so-called Divine King clan? Not much, after all."