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Chapter 381: Insulting an Elder
🕑 Added 2024-02-22 17:36:01 +0000 UTC“Jack Rust, go.”
It was the bare minimum amount of words Boatman could say, as if his saliva was precious. His voice was hoarse and elderly, showing that he’d lived through the endless river of time, and even hearing it made one feel older.
As these words rang out, Jack grinned He was part of the Church. The humiliation just now had been aimed at him as well, and it had taken everything he had to suppress himself and wait for his turn.
Hearing that he could fight, how could he not be elated?
The Hand of God people raised their brows as they saw him fly towards the stage. They’d assumed he was just here for experience; could he possess some battle power as well?
And, even if he did, could he really stand up to Sassa, whose power was similar to an elite eight-fruit cultivator?
“Looks like Boatman has gone senile,” the Hand of God cultivators conversed telepathically—they would never dare say such words out loud.
But Purity would. “What is the meaning of this, Boatman?” she asked, her voice coming down like divine decree. “Are you just trying to buy time for your faction? If so, I admire your decisiveness. Not many could sacrifice a promising young man to save some face.”
Her words dripped with mockery, but Elder Boatman was completely unmoved. He didn’t even bother to glance in her direction, as if she was nothing but an annoyance. This behavior alone was insulting; Purity frowned, then directly sent a sound transmission to Sassa: “Find a way to injure him, and I’ll reward you.”
“Okay!” she replied cheerfully. If an Elder rewarded someone, anything they casually handed out would be a great treasure. For that, provoking the Church a bit was nothing; and, even if she overdid it, the two Elders had her back. At worst, she would be admonished.
She stared at Jack as he flew over, chuckling in her mind. I’m sorry, little man…but you’re about to be stepped on!
Jack seemed indifferent. He stopped three hundred feet away from Sassa, then said, “My name is Jack Rust. Please take it easy on me.”
Sassa laughed. “I’ll try my best!” she lied, then charged. Even if Elder Purity hadn’t said anything, she would still injure Jack. Sending such a weakling to face her was clearly an insult, and she was a very proud individual.
She wanted to end this as soon as possible.
Her body appeared before Jack’s almost instantly. Her hand shot out like a snake’s fang. Yet, just in the nick of time, Jack drew back. Her fingers missed him. She tried again and again, but Jack always dodged at the last moment. Sassa twisted her body in snake-like ways, striking from tricky and unexpected angles, but none of her attacks landed.
She was shocked—but, even more, she was incensed. There was no way a three-fruit cultivator could match her; he must have been a speed-oriented expert at dodging, sent out specifically to mock her!
Her heart burned with anger. Her strikes accelerated, leaning harder into offense. She forewent defending; a dodging master couldn’t possess the power to strike back. Yet, even a hundred exchanges later, she still hadn’t managed to touch him.
“Coward!” she shouted. “Don’t you even dare to show your Dao!?”
Jack hadn’t punched once yet. His Dao had not been made clear. Hearing her words, he only gazed at her as one would at an idiot. He teleported, appearing a mile away. “You do not possess the qualifications to meet my Dao,” he said, extending a straight palm. “However, I do have a secondary Dao. It is most suitable to deal with you—in fact, it is exactly what you need.”
“I do not possess the qualifications!?” Sassa did not understand the second part of his words, nor did she care. She was already fully incensed. Since when was she, a proud daughter of heaven, the direct disciple of an A-Grade Elder, mocked like this by someone of lower cultivation?
She had been at the peak of her glory just a moment ago, but now she was unable to touch him and was even mocked. Her previous achievement had evaporated. How was this happening?
“I’ll fucking kill you!” she shouted. Her vertical irises sharpened even more. She shot forward faster than before, a blur through space, forgoing defense completely to ensure she struck him down. Even if she had to receive a minor wound in return, it was fine. She would make sure his injury was far heavier.
Space shattered. Sassa teleported a hundred times, until her afterimages were all around Jack, blocking visibility of the void. She instantly appeared before him. One of her hands feinted a strike to the stomach. Right afterward, the other formed a fang-like shape and aimed directly for his eyes.
This strike was meant to directly blind him!
Facing this attack, Jack’s gaze sharpened. A hand clamped down on her wrist, stopping her instantly and abruptly. The world froze. Sassa’s hand stopped just an inch away from Jack’s eyes, her fingers poised to strike, and to her horror, she couldn’t move at all. No matter how she struggled, Jack’s hand was simply unmovable. She could neither advance nor retreat.
She was completely at his mercy.
At that moment, Sassa realized she’d made a mistake. Her heart grew cold. This man was not an expert in speed; he was an expert at everything physical, and she had completely underestimated him.
Her vertical irises disappeared, her face turning innocent. “You wouldn’t hit a woman,” she said.
Jack slapped her hard in the face. Teeth flew out. Her hair was disheveled. Her world shook. Her cheek tore up, and her eyes widened so much they almost popped out of their sockets.
Yet, despite the strength of this hit, Jack was still holding onto her wrist. She had not been allowed to fly away. “That was for your parents, who failed to make you a good person,” he said. His hand returned, slapping her in a strong backhand. Her head rocked as if about to unscrew from her torso. Her vision was blurry. Even a snake, when slapped like this, could lose their awareness.
“That was for my fellow disciples, whom you injured needlessly,” Jack said coldly. Sassa barely registered his words. She couldn’t believe what was happening. She, who had always been prouder than anyone…was slapped around?
The weight of this humiliation, when contrasted against her tall pride, made Jack’s slaps contain a mental attack as well. She could no longer understand the world.
“And this…” Jack said, winding up his palm to strike even harder, “is for trying to blind me.”
“Stop!” A voice echoed, but Jack ignored it. His palm crashed down. He struck Sassa even harder, simultaneously releasing her hand and sending her flying into the distance. A line of blood was left behind her, interspersed with teeth floating in the void.
A figure appeared in her path, grabbing her gently. Elder Ocean himself glanced down at his disciple. Half her teeth were missing; her face was bloodied all over, and her eyes were shaken.
Physical marks could be repaired. Even teeth could be regrown. However, such humiliation would never wash away. Her heart and pride were injured, and even her future cultivation might be affected.
“Junior!” Elder Ocean roared, his eyes filling completely with blue. “You went too far!”
The wrath of an A-Grade was overwhelming. Space shattered completely, time slowed down, and his aura crashed down on Jack like a towering mountain. He felt like a mortal facing a god, a starved beggar naked in a blizzard. Yet, Jack was not afraid. If he succumbed when he was right, what use was his fist? He might as well relinquish it and go be a farmer.
Jack raised his head. “I saw an opponent two fruits above me and didn’t dare hold back,” he said. “Isn’t that common practice in the cultivation world? If your disciple was seriously injured by the first move of a lower-level opponent, she can only blame her own weakness!”
The entire banquet was shocked silent. These were the exact words Elder Ocean had used to justify Sassa’s cruel attacks on other cultivators. Now, the situation had reversed, and his words were tossed back to his face. Moreover, his direct disciple had been manhandled right in front of him.
If Elder Ocean wasn’t completely incensed after this, he was not a person.
His aura rose further. He actually revealed killing intent. “I yelled at you to stop!” he shouted. “Why did not you stop!?”
“Why would I take orders from you? I’m not your disciple.”
This scene played out in front of everyone. The Church cultivators could barely believe this. A C-Grade disciple had not only reclaimed their lost honor, but he had also used his words to slap an Elder’s face—twice! Such boldness was unheard of! It was almost too much!
As for the Hand of God cultivators, they were simultaneously furious and wanted to find a stone to hide under. Let alone them, even their Elder had been humiliated. Just how would they recover from this?
Jack’s face seemed extremely punchable to all of them. They could barely restrain themselves from rushing up and beating him to a pulp.
In truth, that was a result of Jack’s Titan Taunt skill. It didn’t just work with words; it taunted others by making Jack so grating in their eyes that they really, really wanted to tear him to pieces.
However, on the Elders’ table, Heavenstar was conflicted. Jack had acted well…but then he’d gone too far, way too far! He’d directly insulted an Elder. No matter how talented he was, there was a limit to how much Heavenstar could defend him. This involved more than the life of a disciple—it involved the delicate balance between their two factions!
“Good, good, very good,” Elder Ocean said, his words seething with fury. “You think you are above the law, above propriety. Let me tell you this; in the cultivation world, power is all that matters. Since you have dared to insult and challenge me, let’s see if you can take my attack!”
The killing intent of an A-Grade was fully released. It gained absolute dominance over the surrounding hundred miles. The disciples at the banquet, be they C- or B-Grades, couldn’t even move a finger.
As for Jack, it went without saying. His body was immobilized. There was absolutely nothing he could do to resist. His entire life was a joke before such power. As a torrent of blue water rushed for his body, ready to turn him into a sieve and kill him instantly, he could only watch.
“Enough…” a tired voice echoed through the void. A black-robed figure appeared before Jack. The pressure covering him instantly disappeared, and the black-robed figure didn’t even draw a weapon—by raising a single finger, the water aiming for Jack rotted away and disappeared. “Let all return to nothingness,” Elder Boatman said, directly dispersing all of Ocean’s pressure.
Elder Ocean was clearly outclassed, but that didn’t mean he would take this lying down. He chuckled hoarsely. “You would step forward to defend this disciple, Boatman? Is he really worth that much to you?”
“Perhaps,” Elder Boatman replied.
“Hah! Then, how will you repay me? Even if he died a thousand times, that still wouldn’t make up for the insults he hurled at my face. No, Boatman, this cannot be allowed. If you don’t help me find justice here, then I swear that I will never drop this issue!”
Things had already escalated past a simple banquet or expedition. Ocean was directly threatening to pursue this matter. That could involve large-scale battles between the two factions. At the same time, Boatman had already declared his intentions. If he stepped back now, that would be the same as ridiculing himself before so many disciples.
Even Heavenstar was nervous. He did not possess the qualifications to advise Boatman, but he knew what should be done. Concessions had to be made from both sides. The question was, would Boatman offer something precious enough that Ocean would accept to drop this issue?
The insults he’d received were quite heavy! No Elder would tolerate being mocked by a disciple!
However, even Heavenstar did not expect Boatman’s next words. “You will not drop this issue? So what? You are nothing but a fart to me. If I say that you do not get to touch this disciple, then you will not touch him.”
Comments
Valerios
Thank you, this means a lot to me <3
Valerios
Hah! You remembered! It was three chapters indeed ;)
Knight Rhoden
Hahah! Literally face slapped! For the Hand of God's five-fruit 'genius' to be crushed by Jack Rust who isn't even at the peak of three-fruit, and WITHOUT using his Dao? Surely the more astute among the Hand of God must have noticed the discrepancy in power and how absurd Jack's talent is? Furthermore, it seems as though Elder Boatman is low-key an audacious individual at heart like Jack himself is, even if his way of showing it is more muted as expected with his age. Perhaps he sees his younger and more daring self in Jack Rust? You weren't lying when you said wait three chapters. Offending an Elder and not giving a fuck, is there nothing Jack Rust is unwilling to dare to do?
James Thomas
This is literally my favorite ongoing story. Well done.
