Splitting the Heavens - Chapter 937: Bandits?
Even though the city walls of the Star Origin City appeared in the distance, they were still extremely far away. Shang Xia and Luo Qi were still hundreds of miles away.
After asking many questions regarding the Star Origin Guard, Shang Xia swept his gaze across his surroundings and asked casually, “Are there usually so many people waiting to be guides for people who arrive at the city for the first time?”
Stunned for a good second, Luo Qi eventually replied, “Of course. However, I do not know how many people there are exactly…”
“Are you familiar with your fellow cultivators who choose to act as guides?” Shang Xia continued asking.
Luo Qi shook his head in response. “I’m operating alone and I might know a few other people, but we are mere acquaintances. We don’t really have much of a relationship with each other…”
After he spoke, he could tell that Shang Xia didn’t ask that question for fun. He hesitated for a moment and inquired, “Young Master Shang, is there a reason you’re asking?”
Shang Xia merely smiled without responding.
Luo Qi could only remain puzzled by his response.
The next moment, several streaks of light emerged around them and crossed tens of miles to surround them.
Luo Qi couldn’t help but look at the 2 experts standing before them. He took a step forward and asked, “What do you think you’re doing? Do you know who you’re obstructing right now?”
Luo Qi truly sounded shocked. He didn’t understand the meaning behind their actions, and at the same time, he wanted to warn them not to act without thinking.
The most confusing part about the entire thing to Luo Qi was the fact that they had the guts to confront a Martial Void Realm expert!
As soon as the words left his lips, the experts before him sneered, “Oh? Isn’t this Luo Qi, an ex-member of the Star Origin Guards? Now that you no longer have your Star Robes, how dare you act all high and mighty in front of me? Who gave you the courage to do something like this?”
Shang Xia’s eyebrows twitched slightly. He looked at Luo Qi with a little more interest.
As though realizing the real problem, Luo Qi couldn’t help but turn back to look at Shang Xia.
The person who was mocking him earlier snorted once before he continued, “What’s the matter? Do you really think you’re so lucky to run into a Martial Void Realm expert in the wilderness? Hehehe… come on, if not for us, I’m afraid you’re going to be scammed big time. The person behind you is a Martial Dipper Realm expert who has some sort of treasure to hide his aura. There’s something wrong with your brain alright. It’s no wonder you couldn’t even see the problem with your Origin Dipper when you refined it back then. You truly are blind! Hahaha…”
Those surrounding Shang Xia and Luo Qi started to roar with laughter as they stared at him with barely concealed traces of mockery.
“You…” Luo Qi was enraged as his face flushed red. The next moment, his expression changed slightly and he coughed violently. His aura started to fluctuate unsteadily and it was clear he aggravated his injuries.
The stronger his reaction, the worse the laughter became.
It was especially so for the expert who stood before him. He couldn’t help but retrieve a Jade Ruler while chuckling. Pointing it at Shang Xia, he waved it about before and noticed it shining. An inch lit up, and eventually, a second inch appeared. After the fifth inch lit up, it slowed down greatly. However, it continued to extend and closed in on the end of the sixth inch.
That was the Opportunity Measuring Ruler and it could discern a cultivator’s aura to discern their true cultivation level.
The light that lit up on the ruler displayed one’s cultivation level. Every inch represented a major cultivation realm and despite nearly 6 inches of the ruler being lit up, it hadn’t reached the sixth inch. That would mean that Shang Xia’s cultivation had not reached the Martial Void Realm!
“Don’t you see this? The person behind you is merely in the Martial Dipper Realm!” The expert in the lead showed the ruler to Luo Qi.
Taking 2 steps forward aggressively, Luo Qi growled, “So what?!”
As he spoke, the fluctuations around him that seemed to calm down a little earlier became even more intense. His hands started to tremble as he clenched them into fists.
Earlier, the cultivator on the other side seemed to have some reservations before confronting Luo Qi. When he saw how Luo Qi started coughing violently and was nearly unable to catch his breath, he didn’t seem concerned any longer. He sneered, “Heh… Is that it? Isn’t it just a Martial Dipper Realm cultivator? What a joke. Luo Qi, you’re a disgrace to the Martial Dipper Realm. You might as well smash your head into a wall somewhere and kill yourself! That way, you won’t embarrass the Star Origin City any longer!”
Luo Qi, who eventually regulated his inner qi, wiped the perspiration dripping from his forehead before staring at them coolly. “It doesn’t matter if I’m a disgrace to the Martial Dipper Realm, or if I’m blind. Since I chose to be his guide today, I’m responsible for bringing him to the city. I hope all of you can show me some respect and allow me to pass today.”
Shang Xia, who had been standing behind Luo Qi glanced at him casually. His expression didn’t betray his feelings and it was as though everything that happened before him wasn’t related to him in the slightest. He didn’t even seem to care that they were surrounded by the other group and the fact that they seemed to be there for him.”
“Show you some respect?” The cultivator who spoke earlier snorted in disdain. “Luo Qi, if you still had your Star Robes, all of us would definitely allow you to do as you wish. However, you don’t have them anymore. Why the hell should we care about what you say? If you know what’s good for you, hurry up and scram. We might even give you a portion of what we get our hands on. You can also be a part of us that way. Oh… Why don’t you be in charge of luring experts who haven’t reached the Martial Void Realm over to us from now on? We’ll definitely give you a share of the loot!”
Before waiting for Luo Qi’s reaction, the other cultivators who surrounded them roared with laughter, “That’s a good idea! It’s just another person in our ranks anyway! He’s a cripple who might not even be able to beat cultivators at the Martial Extermination Realm like us!”
“You can’t say that. If he manages to bring a few more easy marks over, it’s not impossible for us to actually give him a portion of loot.”
“Alright, let the chief make the decision!”
“Yeah, yeah! Let the chief make the decision!”
All of them started to chime in with sarcastic sneers. The chief they referred to was the old expert who was standing in Luo Qi and Shang Xia’s way.
Seeing as the situation was taking a turn for the worst, Luo Qi couldn’t care about his chaotic flow of inner qi and he growled, “Aren’t you afraid of alerting the Star Origin Guards?”
As soon as they heard the words ‘Star Origin Guards’, all of them choked on their words. Eventually, a light cough broke the awkward atmosphere.
The old cultivator who was apparently their chief took several steps forward. The cultivator who had been mocking Luo Qi the entire time bowed slightly to allow the elder to pass.
Their chief hadn’t said anything from the start, and he seemed to be watching the entire thing play out from the sidelines. His attention had been on Shang Xia who didn’t seem the slightest bit panicked.
“Fellow cultivator, please.” The elder didn’t even bother to look at Luo Qi. Instead, he half-heartedly cupped his fists in Shang Xia’s direction. “I believe you know the situation you are in right now. There are a bunch of us and as long as you leave your treasures behind, we won’t have any trouble. We never planned on killing anyone. I hope you can make things easier on yourself and hand all your valuables over. At the very least, both sides won’t embarrass ourselves today.”
Luo Qi wanted to say something, but he felt a hand pressing against his shoulders the next second.
Shang Xia patted Luo Qi’s shoulders and a grin finally appeared on his face. “Is this a robbery? I think that such behavior isn’t allowed in the Star Origin City, right? All I want to know now is if all of you were robbed by me instead, or if you were captured by the Star Origin Guards, what will happen then?”
The chief’s expression sank and he growled, “Are you planning to refuse a toast, only to be forced to drink a forfeit?”
Luo Qi, who had turned his body slightly because of Shang Xia earlier, spoke, “If you retaliate against those who try to rob you and kill them, you won’t be held accountable for their deaths! If they are captured by the Star Origin Guards, punishment for robbing someone will cause their cultivations to be crippled and chased out of Star Origin City!”
Luo Qi’s gaze swept across the bandits who surrounded them and he growled, “Since all of you know that I was once part of the Star Origin Guards, you should know that I know the punishment of anything you might try to do!”
Luo Qi understood that it was possible for Martial Dipper Realm experts who got lucky and stumbled upon the Land of Star Origin. However, he felt that Shang Xia didn’t come to the Land of Star Origin by chance!
Those who surrounded them might not know, but Luo Qi saw how Shang Xia tore open space to arrive. The sword qi that accompanied him back then was definitely something unleashed by someone else, that someone being a horrifying expert in the Martial Void Realm!
In other words, Shang Xia might be a Martial Dipper Realm expert who had been hiding his aura the entire time, but there was most definitely a Martial Void Realm Ancestor backing him up! The reason he could enter the Land of Star Origin was also because of that Ancestor!
Those reasons were why Luo Qi had the guts to confront the bandits surrounding them. He believed that Shang Xia was no simple character either.
The experts surrounding them were intimidated by Luo Qi’s sudden outburst and they didn’t dare to look directly at Shang Xia.
However, rage appeared on their chief’s face and an angry light flashed in his eyes. “What are you guys standing around for?! Hurry up and make your move! We need to deal with this before the Star Origin Guards are alerted!”
As soon as he spoke, he took action. His aura burst forth and a protection barrier made of dipper qi appeared around him. He was actually an expert in the fourth element of the Martial Dipper Realm!
As soon as he made his move, his 6 companions also leaped into action. Even though 4 of them were in the Martial Extermination Realm, all 7 of them managed to deploy a battle formation to surround Shang Xia and Luo Qi.
“This… You’re imitating the Star Origin Guards’ battle formation!” Luo Qi discovered it the moment it was unleashed.
“Hmph, annoying fly.” A sharp light flashed in the eyes of the chief and he started to lead the battle formation to suppress Shang Xia.
All of them no longer took Luo Qi seriously as he was a joke in the Martial Dipper Realm. Not even the Martial Extermination Realm bandits cared about him.
“Heh, all of you are still afraid of the Star Origin Guards at the end of the day.” Shang Xia sighed and spoke casually.
Luo Qi might not understand Shang Xia’s reaction, but he didn’t seem to care about his chaotic inner qi at the moment. Even if he had to forcefully activate his abilities, he wanted to go all out and fight against the bunch of bandits.
None of them expected Shang Xia to release his inner qi the next moment as a profound, yet unfathomable, aura filled the region. Dipper qi emerged from his body and dyed everything around them with five colored lights.
Shang Xia might not be a Martial Void Realm Ancestor, but he was clearly different from ordinary Martial Dipper Realm experts!
The energy contained in their battle formation couldn’t even touch Shang Xia when it was shredded to bits by the five colored dipper qi that emerged.
The Five Element Dipper Qi around Shang Xia didn’t stop there as it continued to spread into the surroundings. The battle formation was torn to shreds.
Fear was the only thing left in the eyes of the bandit chief and the scream that left his lips made him seem like a little bitch. “Run… Run away!”