Chapter 7: Ambush at the Mountain Gate

A dull thud echoed, and a blood hole the size of a fingernail suddenly appeared in the palm of the mountain guard disciple.

"How dare you shout at me!" The gatekeeper disciple frowned, and with a swift motion, slapped towards Xiao Rang's face, accompanied by a whooshing sound.

What? Xiao Rang furrowed his brows and tugged at his sect's attire, saying, "Open your eyes and see clearly, I am also a disciple of the Jueque Sect. I have never heard of having to pay spirit herbs when returning to one's own sect!"

The disciple of the inner sect with the surname Xiao immediately waved his hand impatiently, "Hmm? A useless person dares to insult others? Quickly kneel down and apologize to me, sever one of your arms, and roll down the mountain. The Jueque Sect does not need trash like you."

Puff

Xiao Rang stood tall with his head held high, his voice resounding to the utmost degree

Some members of prominent families would rather cultivate within their family than serve as laborers in a sect. After all, within the family, they can gather the resources of the entire clan for their training, free from other trivial distractions, allowing for focused cultivation, which is far superior to being a labor disciple by several times.

The disciple of Shoushan was nearly laughed to death, his face flushed, and he gasped, "Useless, if you can hold on for just one breath, I will crawl through your pants!"

Faced with a sky full of leg shadows, Xiao Rang's right palm instantly petrified. With a flick of his hand, a palm resembling a miniature mountain was directed towards the myriad leg shadows of the figure, Xiao Chen.

"Just a useless person, unworthy of speaking." The gatekeeper disciple extended his hand and coldly said, "Bring the Xuanling Grass, or get lost immediately"

Xiao Chen cast a disdainful glance at Xiao Rang and said, "Inner sect disciple Xiao Chen, what, do you have an opinion?"

Hmph, come down here!

"Shut up!" Xiao Rang cast a cold glance at the furious Xiao Chen and said, "You keep calling me a waste, yet your brother was crushed to death by my finger. If I am a waste, then what is your brother? He is even less than a waste!"

Xiao Chen's expression immediately twisted, a murderous intent spreading across his face. "So you are the useless one, Xiao Rang, the murderer of my brother!"

The reason he was lingering at the foot of the mountain was to ambush Xiao Rang, which is why he happened to encounter the conflict between the mountain-guarding disciples and Xiao Rang. Otherwise, an inner sect disciple would have to be quite idle to come to the mountain-guarding disciples.

"Human-level martial arts, Wind Shadow Kick!" The disciples of Shoushan exclaimed in astonishment, their eyes ablaze with admiration, "It's over, that waste will be instantly turned into mud."

Xiao Rang is not a soft persimmon that can be easily squeezed. The disciples of Shoushan cleared the way, saying, "Alright, I just misremembered the sect's regulations regarding the diagram and book. You may proceed."

Who is speaking ill outside the sect? Are you not afraid of damaging the sect's reputation

Laughing, he pointed at Xiao Chen, and his expression suddenly became somewhat ferocious, "Xiao Chen, just because of what you just said, I would have no psychological burden at all in killing you!"

Hearing the disciple of Shoushan refer to this inner sect as "Brother Xiao," Xiao Rang's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Who are you?"

How dare he reach out to catch Senior Brother Xiao's leg, utterly overestimating himself! Upon witnessing this scene, the disciples guarding the mountain looked on with even greater disdain, shaking their heads and saying, "He doesn't even possess basic combat knowledge, throwing himself into danger and seeking death. To have fallen to such a level of uselessness, he can be considered a talent in his own right."

Although the servant disciples are nominally also disciples of the Jueque Sect, they are, in essence, true servants, playing the role of laborers within the sect

It can be said that the miscellaneous disciples are like hardworking old oxen, toiling diligently without complaint, yet receiving no reward from the sect, except for the spiritual energy gathered at the mountain gate

Upon seeing the newcomer, the gatekeeping disciple immediately stepped forward respectfully, saying, "Brother Xiao, it is this useless servant who has insulted me!"

Although he was in the sect, Xiao Rang had no time to cultivate in the past. Growing spiritual herbs and managing spiritual beasts had already occupied the vast majority of his time, not to mention that the inner and outer disciples would often assign him tasks.

Hahaha

Now it was Xiao Chen's turn to laugh wildly, to the point of being out of breath. After a long while, he pointed at Xiao Rang and said, "You, a mere servant, a waste with a single layer of fetal breath, actually dare to say you want to kill me? Don't even mention killing me; even if you could last a single breath in front of me, I would twist my head off and give it to you"

How can you even say that, when you kindly let me go up

"Stop, worthless!" Just as Xiao Rang arrived at the Tianjian Mountain, where the Jueque Sect is located, a mountain guard disciple blocked his way, saying, "If you want to go up the mountain, you need to present two Xuanling herbs."

"Hiss!" The disciple of Shoushan winced in pain, a look of shock appearing in his eyes, "This is clearly a waste at the first level of fetal breathing, how could it possibly hurt me?"

The maniacally laughing Xiao Chen suddenly noticed something amiss. Why does this useless person seem somewhat familiar? He couldn't help but ask, "Hmm, wait a minute, useless one, what is your name?"

Hmph! Xiao Chen snorted coldly, "I can't be bothered with your affairs. In any case, as a mere servant, daring to offend an outer sect disciple, you deserve to die!"

A tremendous aura surged from Xiao Chen, lifting him into the air. Both he and the books hovered mid-air, his legs transforming into shadowy silhouettes, kicking the air with a howling sound, enveloping Xiao Rang.

Although Xiao Chen is also a member of the Xiao family, he has not returned to the family since becoming an inner disciple four years ago, so he did not recognize Xiao Rang at first glance

What do you think you are? It's you I'm shouting at! Xiao Rang could no longer contain himself, silently reciting the mantra of the Bitter Sea of Suffering. He raised his right index finger, pointing it like a sword, and directed a single strike towards the palm of the mountain guard disciple.

I can go up. However, Xiao Rang extended his hand to the mountain guard disciple and said, "Bring me two Xuanling herbs!"

Qin Hongwan is not just a name; at the age of fifteen, she is already one of the top experts among the inner disciples. In contrast, Xiao Rang is merely a servant disciple. The gap between the two is far more than just their respective paths in cultivation

Xiao Rang suddenly burst into hearty laughter, his laughter resonating loudly, echoing throughout the entire mountain forest.

Suddenly, a voice filled with anger emerged, and a tall young man stepped forward, identifiable as an inner sect disciple by his attire

Ah ha ha ha ha!

Although his status within the sect was quite awkward, Xiao Rang remained completely unconcerned. He donned the sect's attire, which resembled that of a servant, and set off on his journey under the stars and moon.

Xiao Rang felt an impulse to strike, gritting his teeth and saying, "You can't deceive me. I will return to my own sect and have no need to submit any items!"

Xiao Rang

However, in the next moment, the disdain in his eyes was replaced by intense shock. He had thought that the waste would be instantly crushed by the myriad of leg shadows, but when that palm met the countless leg shadows, it was actually Xiao Chen, the senior brother, who was sent flying seven feet away and fell to the ground like a dog.

Xiao Rang wore a look of disdain and mockery on his face, "This path was originally meant for me; why should you let me pass? It is you who has no reason to block my way! You attempted to forcibly take my spiritual herbs, and after realizing that my strength is not weak and you could not succeed, you ended up fleeing like a dog. How did it turn into you being kind enough to let me go?"

Xiao Rang coldly snorted: "Why should I be afraid? It is merely a useless guard."

How dare you speak to me like this

The disciple of Shoushan displayed an expression of anger, saying, "You servant, do not be ungrateful. I kindly allowed you to go up, yet you instead ask me for spiritual herbs?"

Waste, die

"I do have some opinions." Xiao Rang, undeterred by Xiao Chen's gaze and the oppressive pressure emanating from him, said calmly, "Aren't you going to ask me why I spoke harshly before demanding that I kneel and apologize?"