"Just now, I heard the Young Master Xing say that your staff technique has improved greatly?"
The leader of the Xing family disciples stood before Chen Yan, leaning on his white waxwood staff, and asked this question.
These people were not of the direct bloodline of the Xing family;
most were relatives by marriage or orphans and beggars the Xing family had picked up from outside.
"An undeserved compliment from the Young Master. I'm new here, and compared to you gentlemen, I still fall far short."
Upon hearing this, Chen Yan revealed a smile.
He didn't want to clash with this bunch of youngsters, as it held no meaning whatsoever.
So Chen Yan simply chose to show weakness outright.
"What are you pretending for?"
Seeing Chen Yan like this, that person glared angrily and said:
"......"
Before Chen Yan could speak, the youth used his toes to hook the white waxwood staff Chen Yan had just dropped on the ground, then shoved it into Chen Yan's hand:
"Come on, I want to see exactly how much you're worth!"
"Brother, I'm afraid that's unnecessary."
Chen Yan still maintained proper courtesy and tone as he refused.
"What, do you only know how to wag your tail and beg for pity behind the Young Master Xing?"
As soon as the words fell, the youth in front directly grabbed his own white waxwood staff and swung it towards Chen Yan's direction, aiming to strike him head-on.
Having no other choice, Chen Yan could only step back, create distance, and raise his wooden staff to block.
What a nuisance.
Chen Yan sighed inwardly.
It must be said that rash young men of this age, like the one before him, were the hardest to reason with.
Arrogant and dismissive, impervious to both soft and hard approaches.
That was the best description Chen Yan could think of.
From the moment these few people stood before Chen Yan, they had made up their minds.
That this fellow named Yan in front of them today, this stinking brat who only knew how to flatter behind the Young Master Xing, absolutely had to be taught a lesson today.
No matter how Chen Yan showed weakness or tried to maneuver, it would be useless.
And Chen Yan was also very clear about one thing.
That was, since hands had already been laid on, he absolutely could not show mercy or swallow his anger.
Otherwise, these rash youngsters would only become increasingly worse in the future.
The staff momentum of the youth opposite Chen Yan was fierce, clearly having practiced martial arts for some years, ranking among the top levels within this martial training ground.
And precisely because of this, he had chosen to challenge Chen Yan today.
Because this guy named Yan Chen, who clearly hadn't been here long, had just relied on his good relations with the Xing family to gain quite a few benefits.
And just now, he had even heard Xing Zimo tell Yan Chen that he would take Yan Chen to meet the Young Master of the Duan family.
Why!
Why do you get to meet the Young Master of an immortal cultivation family? Where exactly are you better than me?
It was precisely thoughts like these that made this youth determined to teach Chen Yan a lesson.
The youth swung his staff blow after blow, raining down towards Chen Yan's direction.
Chen Yan did not retaliate, only fighting while retreating, stepping back while raising his staff to block.
Although the youth's staff momentum was quite fierce, in Chen Yan's eyes, it was as full of holes as a child's play.
The so-called martial arts of mortals weren't even worthy of being called child's play.
The control of breath and the changes in rhythm between each move and stance were simply too far apart from that of immortal cultivators.
Chen Yan suddenly accelerated his retreating pace for a moment. The youth's footwork was clearly thrown off rhythm by Chen Yan's sudden speed change, resulting in a stumble underfoot.
Immediately after, Chen Yan seized this opportunity, thrusting his staff tip towards the youth's chest, causing him to stiffen for an instant.
Then, Chen Yan's still somewhat unrefined staff momentum, like a mountain's roar and a sea's roar, dense as raindrops, assaulted the youth before him.
It looked completely like a wild, patternless flurry of strikes.
But it was effective.
Forehead, shoulder, elbow, wrist, chest and abdomen, finally sweeping towards the knee!
The moment Chen Yan's white waxwood staff swept towards the youth's knee and struck home, the youth completely lost control and knelt down.
The youth's eyes held resentment and unwillingness as he looked up to glare in Chen Yan's direction.
Chen Yan had no intention of being merciful.
He grabbed his staff, raised it high, then swung it down towards the forehead of the youth before him.
"Stop!"
A voice shouting to stop suddenly came from behind.
And the wooden staff in Chen Yan's hand only stopped abruptly at the very last moment before it would have touched the forehead of the youth who had just provoked him.
The wind from the staff blew aside the sweat-stuck strands of hair on the youth's forehead. His entire body also trembled uncontrollably for an instant as Chen Yan swung the staff down.
If this blow had landed solidly, his life would probably have been in danger.
"Young Master Ziyu."
Chen Yan planted the white waxwood staff upright beside him, then turned around, cupping his fists towards the young man who had just shouted to stop him from behind—a youth not yet twenty years old.
"What are you all doing?"
Xing Ziyu frowned and questioned loudly.
"Brother Ziyu, Brother Xie Yi just wanted to spar with Yan Chen, but Yan Chen, this brat, didn't know his place. He went for a killing blow!"
The youths who had been watching from the side, clearly comrades of the kid who had given Chen Yan trouble, namely Xie Yi, accused Chen Yan like this.
Xing Ziyu didn't speak. His gaze fell in Chen Yan's direction, seemingly wanting to hear what this newcomer had to say.
"Yan Chen admits his mistake. I got carried away during the spar just now and might indeed have struck without proper restraint. I await your punishment, Young Master."
Chen Yan only said this, taking all the responsibility upon himself.
Xing Ziyu still didn't speak, only giving Chen Yan another meaningful look.
"Not practicing martial arts properly, fooling around here. Tonight, neither Yan Chen nor Xie Yi are allowed to eat!"
Then, Xing Ziyu finally spoke, before turning his gaze towards the few watching youths over there:
"You all won't eat either!"
"...Yes!"
The group of youths responded somewhat reluctantly.
For these martial arts youths who were still growing and had extremely high daily physical activity, not being allowed to eat was even more painful than being beaten up severely.
Chen Yan also didn't speak, only accepting the punishment willingly.
Then, Xing Ziyu placed his hands behind his back, no longer paying attention to these rash youngsters, and turned to leave.
"...Yan Chen."
After another while, Xie Yi, who had just been lying on the ground, stood up and spoke towards Chen Yan's direction as if somewhat embarrassed:
"Why did you take the blame on yourself just now?"
"I didn't take the blame on myself."
Chen Yan said:
"Just now, when I struck, I indeed was a bit unrestrained."
Hearing this, Xie Yi remembered that final blow just now, the one that nearly smashed into his forehead...
If it had landed solidly, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
He suddenly began to feel a bit of belated fear.
Moreover, the places on his body that had just been wildly and patternlessly struck by Chen Yan's wooden staff were still burning with pain even now.