Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

While Old Yu was still consumed with his thoughts, Madam Lan from First Inn had dispelled his Divine Ability as her slender hand was about to reach his chest. His expression changed drastically as he was aware that he was no match for her; after all, she was a Sixth-Order Master while he was only a Fourth-Order cultivator. At that instant, he flew backwards as the illusory phantom of a Small Universe appeared behind him.

World Force erupted as the illusory phantom lasted for a short moment before disappearing. Simultaneously, the Proprietress chased after him with a cold gaze.

Old Yu felt his neck tightening and realised that all his energy had stagnated. When he came to his senses, he was hoisted into the air as a whip had been wrapped around his neck. Madam Lan was just one step away from him, and she was grabbing the handle of the whip. A glacial aura was seen swirling around her.

[How is that possible!?] Old Yu widened his eyes and felt deeply horrified. He knew that he was no match for Madam Lan as she was two Orders above him, but he hadn't expected her to be this overwhelming.

He thought that even though he couldn't defeat her, he could trade a few moves with her. By then, Yun Zhen Hua would also lend him a hand. As long as the fallout of the battle spread, those from Great Battle Heaven would show up.

When that happened, the battle would be stopped immediately, upon which they could have a proper discussion.

However, faced with an absolute gap in power, Old Yu realised that all his thoughts were just wishful thinking.

[Is she really just a Sixth-Order? It's almost like she's as powerful as a High-Rank Open Heaven Realm Master!] Although Old Yu was only in the Fourth Order, he had seen some High-Rank Masters taking action before. From that experience, he had a feeling that Madam Lan possessed a power that surpassed that of an average Sixth-Order Master.

On the other hand, Yun Zhen Hua's expression changed drastically as he shouted, "Madam Lan, please don't harm him!"

It wasn't that he reacted too slowly, but rather that Madam Lan was too swift. She managed to capture Old Yu in less than a breath of time, so he was unable to lend him a hand. Seeing Old Yu lifted off the ground with a whip wrapped around his neck, Yun Zhen Hua was both shocked and incensed.

In the corner, Yang Kai, who was holding his fractured wrist with his other hand, was dumbfounded as well. While his blood was boiling, he was also shocked by the Proprietress' audacity. [Bold! How does she have the guts to make a move inside the Star City? She's practically slapping the face of the auction house. What if those from Great Battle Heaven show up? After all, this city is their territory...]

It had to be said that the sight before Yang Kai's eyes helped him vent out his anger. Unfortunately, Bai Qi had passed out; otherwise, he would've been able to watch the show together with him.

"How many of your ribs are broken?" The Proprietress suddenly asked.

Everyone was startled as they had no idea what she was talking about.

"I asked how many of your ribs are broken?" The Proprietress turned her head and stared at Yang Kai.

It was then Yang Kai realised that she was talking to him, so he hurriedly replied, "Three!"

The Proprietress nodded and suddenly pressed her palm against Old Yu's chest, whereupon he shrieked and sprayed out a mouth of blood before flying backwards, a cracking sound coming from his chest.

Yun Zhen Hua's pupils contracted as he charged forward and supported Old Yu's weight. They were standing alongside one another as they glared at her.

The Proprietress swung her sleeve, whereupon her whip shrunk like a snake and disappeared. With a dispassionate expression, she said, "You've broken three ribs of my subordinate, and I've done the same for yours."

While Old Yu gritted his teeth, Yun Zhen Hua glared at her, both of their gazes filled with fire.

Standing behind her, Yang Kai couldn't help shrinking up slightly. In truth, he was the one who had broken his own ribs. Old Yu had only fractured his wrist. [Things are getting out of hand…]

"Now, we can talk," The Proprietress lifted her blemish-free chin as she stood in front of Yang Kai, as majestic and imposing as a mountain. It was as though she was able to fend off all storms for him.

Undoubtedly, she was replying to Yun Zhen Hua's original request. When she was checking on Yang Kai and Bai Qi earlier, Yun Zhen Hua had said that they could talk it out.

Unfortunately, she ignored him and directly attacked Old Yu, breaking three of his ribs. It wasn't until now that she gave them a chance to discuss the situation.

A talk wasn't necessary anymore though. Old Yu had never been humiliated in such a way before, so at this moment, the fury in his heart was weltering like a volcano that was about to erupt. If it weren't because he was no match for her, he would've pounced on her to get his revenge. He didn't care about the fact that blood was still streaming down from his mouth as he stared fixedly at the woman in white with a gaze filled with hatred.

Yun Zhen Hua fell silent as well. He had never expected that Madam Lan would be even more unreasonable than what he had heard about her, showing them not the slightest respect even in their own home. Presently, he felt extremely bitter in his heart.

He had sent a message to the headquarters to inquire about First Inn's destruction and confirmed that a Senior from their force was involved. They indeed had something to do with destroying the inn.

However, he was on bad terms with the person who had made that move. Although both of them were from Wind and Cloud Paradise, they hated each other deeply. He didn't want to make compensation for someone else's mistake; moreover, he was the shopkeeper of the auction house in this city, and the profit he made would affect his chances of getting promoted. 10 million Open Heaven Pills was a big amount. If he had to fork out such a fortune, it would mean that his efforts in the past year would be wasted.

Therefore, he directly rejected Yang Kai and Bai Qi as he didn't have the intention to make up for someone else's mistake. He had even decided that if Madam Lan came over, he would still ignore her. In any case, he wasn't the one who had made a move in First Inn, so there was no way she could force him to pay up. She would have to head over to their headquarters to look for that person who had caused trouble to demand compensation.

Nevertheless, it had never crossed Yun Zhen Hua's mind that doing so would invite such big trouble to himself.

Old Yu was an arrogant man and had not hesitated to injure First Inn's shop hands. Therefore, Yun Zhen Hua had told someone to get 10 million Open Heaven Pills ready to settle the issue, but he had still underestimated Madam Lan's insanity.

"It's fine even if you don't want to talk. Yang Kai, explain what happened," Madam Lan said in a dispassionate voice without turning her head.

With his hand pressed against his chest, Yang Kai gathered his thoughts before beginning. He explained how he came across Bai Qi on the street, and upon learning about his frustration, they came to meet Yun Zhen Hua together. He also recounted Yun Zhen Hua's response at that time.

Hearing that, the Proprietress snorted, "Manager Yun, integrity is of utmost importance to a business person. Why did you renege on your debt?"

Yun Zhen Hua clenched his teeth and fell silent. He wanted to refute that he wasn't the one who owed her, but it was probably pointless to say that in front of this crazy woman, and doing so would just give her another reason to lash out.

"Continue!" The Proprietress commanded, "Since they're not willing to pay up, why did you still take part in the auction and bid for so many items?"

A meek Yang Kai replied, "Proprietress, I was just thinking that since they were not willing to repay their debt, we wouldn't be able to complete our task. We were not powerful enough to go against them, so I thought that if we could get some of their items that were up for auction we could use it as leverage, that is how…"

He felt apprehensive about having caused such huge trouble because of his rash decision. His intention was to create a reason for the Proprietress to demand repayment from them, but he hadn't expected that she would react so intensely as soon as she arrived at this place. Things had come to a point where the issue wouldn't be solved easily.

He wondered whether the Proprietress would blame it all on him at a later time.

"Very good. You came up with an excellent way to settle this matter." The Proprietress turned her head to flash a smile at him, "If I were you, I would've done the same."

At that instant, Yang Kai was dumbfounded.

Unable to take it anymore, Yun Zhen Hua rebuked, "Madam Lan, how can you condone what your subordinates have done?"

"What do you mean by that?" The Proprietress shot him a cold glance, "They have every right to demand repayment from you. Why should I not condone their actions? Moreover, do you think any stray cat or dog can harm this Queen's subordinates?"

[Did she just call them stray cats and dogs!?] Yang Kai widened his eyes in disbelief as he had the urge to cover her mouth. It wasn't until this moment that he realised what a sharp-tongued person Madam Lan was. What she had just said had naked humiliation.

As expected, as soon as she finished her words, the expressions of Old Yu and Yun Zhen Hua sank. They were Fourth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, and although they were not the top cultivators in the Outer Universe, they still belonged to Wind and Cloud Paradise. No one had ever dared to call them stray cats and dogs before.

Having just been humiliated, Yun Zhen Hua was still able to suppress his fury somehow, but Old Yu was trembling violently. His eyes had turned bloodshot, as though he was ready to risk his life to battle against the Proprietress.

"You want to fight? This Queen will gladly oblige. Or are you only brave when you are oppressing two little brats? Why don't we head to the Asura Arena and wager our lives? This Queen wants to see if you have the guts to do so," the Proprietress rebuked.

As soon as she finished speaking, Old Yu sprayed out a mouthful of blood as his aura weakened. Apparently, he was so enraged that his blood flowed in reverse.

Yun Zhen Hua said through clenched teeth, "Enough, Madam Lan. We admit that the punishment is deserved. You can leave with them." If he allowed this woman to keep making a scene here, he was worried that Old Yu would agree to her challenge. By then, Old Yu would lose his life in vain. No one could get revenge for a person who was killed in the Asura Arena, as that would be equivalent to insulting the dignity and honour of Asura Cave Heaven.

"This Queen will certainly bring them away, but what about the Open Heaven Pills you owe my First Inn?" The Proprietress glared at him.

After gnashing his teeth, Yun Zhen Hua tossed a Space Ring to her. He had already figured that there was no way he could keep these 10 million pills, so he had told someone to gather them up, which proved to be useful at this point.

The Proprietress took it and directly stored it in her sleeve. She believed that Yun Zhen Hua wouldn't dare to pull any tricks on her.

Seeing as she had taken the Open Heaven Pills, Yun Zhen Hua said, "Since you've accepted it and harmed our people, you should return our property to us."

"You mean these?" The Proprietress fished out a different ring and shook it, whereupon a few dozen items dropped onto the ground. These were the items that were sold in the auction.

[Why are these things in her hands?] Yun Zhen Hua was confused. He thought that Yang Kai had just hidden them somewhere.

"Yang Kai, they've injured you two. Although this Queen has extracted some interest, this matter is not settled yet. Pick some things from here and regard it as Manager Yun's compensation for you and Bai Qi." Although she was speaking to Yang Kai, she was staring fixedly at Yun Zhen Hua, whose face twitched when he heard that, but he wouldn't dare to say anything. Just like what he had heard about her from the rumours, Yun Zhen Hua realized that she was a crazy woman who was completely unreasonable.

At that instant, he was remorseful of his decision. If he knew this would be the outcome, he would've coughed up the 10 million pills from the start and avoided all this trouble.