"Boy, I am Jin Wudi. Weren't you going to kill me with a single punch?" Jin Wudi burst into mocking laughter again, as though he had just heard the most ridiculous joke in the world. "Hahahaha, ignorant little whelp!"

"You're Jin Wudi?" Ergoudan was taken aback. He had never imagined that this fool was the very Jin Wudi Wu Chengtian had spoken of!

"The one and only!" Jin Wudi said proudly.

"He's Jin Wudi? Then why does he look so half-witted, as if there's something wrong with his head?" Ergoudan glanced at Jin Wudi, then turned to Wu Chengtian. "You haven't got the wrong man, have you?"

"Boss, I think it's him all right." Wu Chengtian studied Jin Wudi. He had never met the man, but he knew every one of the people standing behind him. With them at his back, no one would dare impersonate Jin Wudi.

"Oh. Then we'll say you're Jin Wudi. Old man, what exactly are you here for? I hear you've come to make trouble for my boss. If that's the case, then I've no choice but to kill you with one punch!" Ergoudan said, looking at Jin Wudi.

"Hahahaha!" Jin Wudi laughed again, laughing with boundless delight. He turned and looked at Zhen Yingjun, Pi Zhishan, and the rest behind him, his face a picture of hilarity. "Did you hear that? He says he's going to kill me with one punch. Do you find that funny or not?"

"Hahaha!" Zhen Yingjun echoed at once: "This fellow is a **, overestimating himself like that. He wants to kill Ancestor Wudi with one punch? Even a hundred punches wouldn't kill him — he'd wear himself out first, wahahaha!"

Hearing Zhen Yingjun play along so obligingly, Jin Wudi nodded with immense satisfaction.

"Wu Chengtian, what's gotten into you? Why are you standing on Wei Zhao's side? Don't tell me you mean to make enemies of the Xiao, the Pi, and the Zhao families?" Xiao Wangba jabbed a finger at Wu Chengtian and demanded. The Wu family had been the Xiao family's ally — who would have thought Wu Chengtian would suddenly swear himself to their enemy as his boss?

"Wei Zhao is my old boss now, so naturally I stand at his side!" Wu Chengtian said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "The people your Xiao family hired are far too weak. In front of my boss they're less than nothing — to say nothing of the old boss! I mean to learn skills from them. I mean to become someone formidable!"

"Wu Chengtian, have you thought about what will come of this?" His face having been thrown back at him, Xiao Wangba's tone turned dark. "You should know you're setting yourself against the Xiao family, the Pi family — even the Zhao family!"

"And who the hell do you think you are? That old shrew's son? Shut your mouth, or I'll kill you along with the rest of them in a moment! And the lot of you — all of you, shut up!" Ergoudan was growing tired of all this talk. Wu Chengtian might be good for nothing, but he was at least loyal. He had sworn himself to Ergoudan as his boss, and before Ergoudan had taught him a single thing, he was already loyal to the bone. It raised him enormously in Ergoudan's estimation.

In truth, Wu Chengtian, arrogant as he was, was no complete fool. He had his own calculations. In the martial world, the one thing most despised was a man who broke faith and betrayed his word. In the old days he and the Xiao brothers had been drinking-and-meat friends, and that had been the end of it. But now that he had acknowledged Ergoudan as his boss, everything was different!

And so, having set his eyes on Ergoudan, Wu Chengtian would follow him to the very end. Of course, he also had faith in the man, believing he would come out on top — otherwise, why would Ergoudan speak so disdainfully, as though a top Earth Rank expert were nothing worth mentioning?

At that moment Zhao Qibing burst out laughing: "And what are you supposed to be? Even Wei Zhao wouldn't dare talk such big talk. You're just one of Wei Zhao's lackeys, and you're this arrogant? Don't you know that people who are too arrogant tend to get hurt?"

"Oh, I know. It's because you were too arrogant that Brother Arrowbrand broke your legs with an arrow!" Shen Yushu said, looking at Zhao Qibing with sympathy.

By now Shen Yushu and Gu Mengyao had come outside as well. Hearing the commotion in the villa's courtyard, they had naturally come to see what was going on — and had never expected to find so many people gathered there.

"Shen Yushu, you needn't be so cocky. In a little while you'll be carried off by Zhen Yingjun to be his plaything!" Seeing Shen Yushu, a flicker of hatred crossed Zhao Qibing's eyes.

"Oh, that's impossible," Shen Yushu said indifferently. "If anyone's going to play with me, it'll be Brother Arrowbrand. As for that Zhen Yingjun, once Jin Wudi is dead he'll be so frightened he'll wet himself and flee."

"Pretty words are worth nothing!" Zhao Qibing refused to believe that one of Wei Zhao's lackeys could stand against Jin Wudi. Only — why was Wei Zhao himself not here?

"Prophet Shu's predictions are always accurate. If you don't believe me, just watch." Shen Yushu cast Zhao Qibing a contemptuous look, as though he were hopelessly ignorant.

"What's going on?" Gu Mengyao waved a hand, signaling Shen Yushu to hold her tongue. Her gaze turned to Ergoudan.

"This Jin Wudi fellow says he's come to make trouble for the boss. How about I just beat him to death and have done with it?" Ergoudan said, pointing at Jin Wudi.

"You've come to make trouble for Wei Zhao?" Gu Mengyao frowned and looked at Jin Wudi.

"I mean to have Wei Zhao's life, and you two little girls I'll be taking back with me as well. I've taken ten million from the Zhen family to seize you and bring you back for their amusement!" Jin Wudi announced his purpose without a care, not in the least afraid that Gu Mengyao might hear it.

"You—" Gu Mengyao had meant to ask about the whole affair from beginning to end, but the old man had opened his mouth and come out with something so shameless that she too grew angry. "Ergoudan, then beat him to death. Xiaoshu, let's go back inside!"

"Going back won't help you. Once I've dealt with Wei Zhao and this bragging brat, I'll come and take the two of you away!" With that, Jin Wudi stopped looking at Gu Mengyao and turned to Ergoudan: "Where's Wei Zhao? Call him out to die as well. A man like a turtle, hiding behind a brain-damaged lackey!"

In Jin Wudi's eyes, Ergoudan was nothing but a hot-headed young fool who talked of nothing but beating people to death. Did he not know that Jin Wudi's specialty was the Golden Bell Shield? Did he think that beating two Pi family Mystic Rank experts made him formidable?

"The boss isn't here. He sent me to protect Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu. If you want to take them, then I've no choice but to beat you to death!" Ergoudan said earnestly. "Old man, do you really want to die?"

"Wahaha, ignorant whelp! In all my years I've heard no end of arrogant talk, but you're the first to claim you could kill me with one punch!" Jin Wudi laughed. "Today I've seen something new — what it means for a newborn calf to fear no tiger! Since that's how it is, I'll stand right here and let you hit me. Let's see whether you can kill me with one punch."

...