Chapter 785: Level Up, Act-Tough Saint!
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Who’s that?”
The cultivators perked up at Xue Que and b.u.t.tface’s arrival. Everyone stood up at once. Some even grabbed their weapons and pointed them at Xu Que angrily and nervously.
Xu Que smiled. “I am Zhong Kui from the Exploding Heavens Faction. I have come after receiving orders. I am tasked to clean up the imposters of the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
The Exploding Heavens Faction!
The cultivators were stunned by his words.
Then someone yelled, “You guys again! You swindle us and cheat us in the name of the Exploding Heavens Faction. Now, what are you doing? You’re framing us! Do you intend to kill us all?”
Bang!
With a loud thud, a few big garbage bags fell out of the System parcel onto the floor. More than a dozen bodies rolled out of the bags. The cultivators were dumbstruck once they saw the corpses. Then, the crowd stirred.
“That…that’s the butler of the fake Exploding Heavens Faction Inn!”
“My G.o.d, it IS him!”
“c.r.a.p, he’s the one who killed my wife and child!”
“And that was the librarian of the fake Exploding Heavens Faction Library! He used to do whatever he wanted to do in the Imperial City. He only toned it down after Madam Ya was alerted!”
“My G.o.d! Everyone who bullied the weak and did evil under the name of the Exploding Heavens Faction, they’re all here!
Everybody turned toward Xu Que at once, their eyes pa.s.sionate and agitated.
“You…you are you a sovereign of the Exploding Heavens Faction?”
Xu Que smiled and nodded. “That’s right! The rest of us will arrive at the Imperial City soon!”
b.u.t.tface stepped out and said pridefully, “Behold the Vice Faction Leader of the Exploding Heavens Faction, all of you…!”
Slap!
Xu Que covered b.u.t.tface’s mouth before he could finish. However, everyone could hardly contain their excitement; they were quickly filled with euphoria.
“It’s the real Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“I remember this dog. It’s Xu Que’s pet!”
“They are finally showing up!”
“Five years, it’s been five whole years!”
Many almost cried in agitation.
Xu Que was bewildered by their reaction. “Fellow cultivators, aren’t you guys overreacting? From what I understood, you guys are also guilty of posing as followers of the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“No! We have never posed as the followers of the Exploding Heavens Faction!” The crowd was suddenly stern. “We have always believed that the Exploding Heavens Faction is the symbol of justice! Although every member is arrogant, lewd, and despicable, they still belonged to the side of justice. That’s why we have always tried to persuade the people that those rapists and oppressors were imposters of the Exploding Heavens Faction. However, we were caught off-guard by violent resistance. Therefore, we decided to band together to fend off all our enemies!”
“What are you saying? Every man of the Exploding Heavens Faction is innocent, kind, and pure-hearted. When have we ever been arrogant, lewd, or despicable? Outsiders simply misunderstand us. However, you guys have done well to defend the justice of the Exploding Heavens Faction. All of you have made great sacrifices to uphold our justice!”
The cultivators quickly stopped him. “Please don’t say that, fellow cultivator Zhong Kui! It’s just that we can’t stand those sc.u.ms who cause trouble while posing as the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“Very good. As the Exploding Heavens Faction’s harbinger of justice, I announce that from now on, you guys are now great men of the Exploding Heavens Faction! Tell me, who are the ones who hurt you? I, Zhong Kui, will seek redress on your behalf!”
Everyone could hardly believe their ears.
“So we are now part of the Exploding Heavens Faction, just like that?”
“Ha, ha, we’re finally part of the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“Five years! We have waited for five whole years, to think that my dream would come true!”
“The sacrifices we made over these five years have been worth it!”
“Yeah! I broke out of jail from the Metal Nation to realize my dream to join the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“Ha! How can you compare? I have lost my wife and son, for the sake of upholding the justice of the Exploding Heavens Faction!”
“Hmph, the things you guys just said were insignificant! Joining the Exploding Heavens Faction has been my dream since I was a young kid!”
Many of them started to talk louder and louder, over each other, listing the hards.h.i.+ps and grueling times they had suffered all this while. The more they boasted, the more shameless they became.
The reason for this behavior was merely due to that one sentence by Xu Que, which helped them find a place to belong – the Exploding Heavens Faction!
“Gentlemen, since you are now a part of the Exploding Heavens Faction, these slogans…” Xu Que murmured as he pointed at the slogans littered all over the mountains.
The gang of cultivators immediately a.s.sured him, “Fellow cultivator Zhong Kui, don’t worry! We will plant these slogans all over the whole world!”
“Yes, that’s right! We will plant them everywhere we go. Soon, the whole world will know our name!”
“That will be our new dream!”
“Li Bai from the Exploding Heavens Faction once said that a man is no different from a salted fish if he has no dreams! That’s why this dream shall be my new ambition from now on!”
The cultivators chattered excitedly, their tone determined and staunch. Their words moved Xu Que. These are all talents, talents! He must absorb them into the faction!
He nodded right away. “Indeed, indeed! With your potential, you quickly understood my intentions and could even expand on the idea. All of you are surely talents who were born to be in the Exploding Heavens Faction! From today onward, you guys shall be the marketing department of the Exploding Heavens Faction!
“Remember, when you’re planting the slogans, do it deftly and in a suave post! You must demonstrate how arrogant, lewd, or despicable…pooh no, our naivete, kind-heartedness, and lively cuteness!”
“Yes!” The group answered at once.
Xu Que generously pulled out a pile of medicinal pills and forcefully healed the wounded, helping the injured cultivators to recover quickly. Then, the whole gang followed him and b.u.t.tface as they charged onward to other territories.
The third territory on the map was similar to the first. It was made up of different manors and looked pretty well-off. However, this territory had beefier security. Before Xu Que and his men could approach, the guards had already discovered them.
“Freeze! Who are you, how dare you barge into the branch of the Exploding Heavens Faction!” With a yell, a dozen guards spilled out from all directions. They ignored Xu Que and fixed their gazes on the group behind him. They sneered once they saw who they were.
“It’s the good-for-nothings-with-a-death-wish again!”
“Looks like yesterday’s lesson wasn’t harsh enough? I see that you’ve come for round two!”
“To dare offend us, the Exploding Heavens Faction. Your only plight is to die!” The guards laughed coldly. As the manor was brightly lit, many people came out to see the commotion. A tightly packed group of people soon surrounded Xu Que and his followers.
“Yo, you’ve got quite the group!” Xu Que snorted plainly.
However, the cultivators behind him began to hesitate. After all, there were simply too many people in this territory. Furthermore, they are in an excellent position to summon backups swiftly and efficiently. It would be a fierce battle!
“Fellow cultivator Zhong Kui, why don’t we retreat for the time being? There will be no escape for them once the other sovereigns of the faction arrive!” Someone whispered a suggestion to Xu Que.
Xu Que frowned instantly and turned to that person. “That’s not the right mindset! As a member of the Exploding Heavens Faction, it would be best if you did not fear any trouble. If people knew that you were frightened by this small group of people, you’d be a laughingstock!”
Everyone’s mouths twitched at his words.
A small group of people?
c.r.a.p, bro, we have a total strength of less than 100, while our opponents count in the thousands! How is that ‘a small group of people’?
…
The good thing is that no one ran away after he finished his speech. As cultivators who had fought with these imposters many times up until now, they were definitely not cowards! The people outside the manor, however, looked on leisurely with cruel smiles on their faces.
Xu Que turned around, relaxed and nonchalant. He looked at the cultivators and said, “Remember, the motto of the Exploding Heavens Faction is…Be unfazed by life and death; If they say no, beat them up till they say yes!”
As his words fell on the crowd, he whipped out the steel chain in his hands!
Boom!
A gush of powerful cold fire ignited the whole chain and swept it forward! This time, Xu Que did not suppress his strength. He executed this move with the full prowess of a Void Training Stage cultivator!
Boom!
In an instant, the bleak white fire on the steel chain descended like the giant moon. It engulfed the few thousand of cultivators outside the manor. A split-second was all it took. Before they could react, the few thousand cultivators were frozen into human ice pillars. Then, the steel chain crashed down with unimaginable power, shattering all of the human ice pillars into smithereens, drifting into the wind!
It was only one move!
It was only one split-second!
Out of the few thousand outside the manor, not a soul had survived Xu Que’s attack.
The group of cultivators behind Xu Que stood rooted to the ground, eyes stunned and mouths agape.
At the same time, Xu Que had already collected his steel chain and said calmly, “The next territory.”
Tsss!
The crowd finally broke out of their daze and inhaled sharply, their hearts fearful. They had expected nothing less from the Exploding Heavens Faction sovereign! This prowess, this composure! He is matchless!
“Fellow cultivator Zhong Kui, the next territory has….” Suddenly, someone spoke up, sounding like he had recalled something.
However, Xu Que cut him off before he could finish.
“Remember two points. When we, the Exploding Heavens Faction, fight, we would never need to know how many we are up against or what cultivation stages they are at. The only things we need to know are the time and the place!”
The whole area fell utterly silent for a moment.
Everyone was shaken by what he had said. They could not move an inch and stared silly at the back of Xu Que, who seemed to glow mysteriously with that steel chain under the moonlight.
…
At the same time, the System notification had already sounded in Xu Que’s head.
Ding! “Congratulations to the Host Xu Que for successfully acting tough! You have been rewarded with 2,400 Acting Tough Points!”
Ding! “Congratulations to the Host Xu Que for successfully acting tough! You have been rewarded with 3,200 Acting Tough Points!”
Ding! “Congratulations to the Host Xu Que for successfully acting a Cold-hearted tough! You have received a special reward of 5,000 Acting Tough Points!”
Ding! “Congratulations to the Host Xu Que for obtaining a new achievement ‘Acted a Cold-hearted Tough!’, you have officially leveled up to ‘Act-Tough Saint’. All items in the System store will be available at a 20% discount!”
Ding! “Host Xu Que, please note that you have a new parcel ready to be received!”