How much are you prepared to pay for my forgiveness, Su Ji

The lively atmosphere in the plaza suddenly cooled after Su Ji's light and airy rhetorical question.

There was no way to respond to that.

Could they say, "Yes, yes, yes, we just look down on you?"

Even when beating someone, you don't slap them in the face.

Furthermore, while the Xiangsi Sect might not be a match for the Puppet Heaven Holy Land, that didn't mean they couldn't beat them.

Sigh...

It put them in a completely awkward position.

Especially the sect representatives who had just presented their "generous gifts," they felt their faces burning, as if they had been publicly slapped by an invisible hand.

They wanted to lash out, but the moment they remembered the rumors of this young man "slaying a Golden Core cultivator with a single sword strike," they forcefully swallowed their anger.

An elder of the Qingfeng Sect, dressed in a green Daoist robe and exuding an air of transcendent mastery, finally reached the limit of his patience.

He stood up abruptly, his gray beard trembling slightly with rage.

"Sect Master Su!"

His voice and expression were severe, looking as if he were deeply pained.

"The succession ceremony is a grand event for a sect, utmost in its solemnity! As the master of a sect, your words and actions are frivolous, utterly lacking the demeanor of a sect master! And now you publicly humiliate the guests from all over, what kind of behavior is this?! You..."

The old man spoke with righteous indignation, spit flying everywhere, looking very much like he wanted to act on behalf of the heavens and teach this arrogant junior a lesson.

Many cultivators secretly nodded, feeling that these words spoke their minds.

Su Jiu's heart leapt into her throat. She looked at Su Ji nervously, terrified that he would fly into a rage and draw his sword to chop the old man down.

However, Su Ji's reaction exceeded everyone's expectations.

Not only did he not get angry, but he also acted as if he were deeply stung by those words. The lazy smile on his face slowly faded, replaced by an indescribable sense of desolation?

He gently set down the wine cup in his hand, letting out a soft clack.

In the dead silence of the plaza, the sound was exceptionally clear.

Su Ji slowly stood up. He did not look at the Qingfeng Sect elder, but instead gazed at the distant sky and let out a long sigh.

"Yes... I, Su Ji, am nothing but a rogue cultivator by origin. Through a stroke of luck and some fortunate encounters, I managed to sit in the seat of Sect Master."

His voice was not loud, but it carried a strange penetrating power, reaching everyone's ears clearly.

"I originally thought that by slaying Lin Qingliu, who colluded with foreign enemies and brought disaster to the sect, I had made a great contribution to the Xiangsi Sect."

"I originally thought that by forcing back the envoy of the Holy Land, reclaiming justice and face for the Xiangsi Sect, I had vented the frustration of the entire sect."

"But in the end..."

Su Ji laughed self-deprecatingly, a smile full of bitterness.

"In the eyes of everyone here, I, Su Ji, am still just an unpresentable clown, and my Xiangsi Sect is still a soft persimmon that anyone can pinch."

He slowly turned his head, his eyes actually looking a bit red.

He looked at the crowd below the stage, his tone sorrowful.

"Fellow Daoists, ask yourselves, are these congratulatory gifts you brought truly meant to congratulate me on succeeding as Sect Master, to congratulate my Xiangsi Sect on being reborn from the ashes?"

"No!"

He slammed his hand on the table, his voice suddenly rising.

"You are here to watch me, Su Ji, make a fool of myself! You are here to probe the depths of my Xiangsi Sect! You think I, Su Ji, am easy to bully, and my Xiangsi Sect is easy to humiliate!"

These words were like a heavy hammer, smashing ruthlessly onto everyone's hearts.

Those cultivators who originally thought the Qingfeng Sect elder had a point now lowered their heads guiltily.

Because what Su Ji said was the truth.

Su Jiu watched from the side, dumbfounded. She opened her mouth to say something but didn't know where to start.

Senior Brother's acting skills... aren't they a bit too good?

If she didn't know Su Ji's true nature, even she would have almost believed it.

Just as everyone was at a loss from this sudden true display of emotion, the sorrow and desolation on Su Ji's face vanished without a trace in an instant.

He sat back down in the main seat, crossed his legs, and a familiar, cynical curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Since everyone thinks I, Su Ji, am a sucker, then I see no need to continue this succession ceremony."

He picked up the gift list from the table and casually tossed it to Li Fan behind him.

"Old Six... Elder, return all this garbage for me."

Li Fan caught the gift list expressionlessly, without the slightest hesitation.

The expressions of the crowd below changed drastically.

Returning the gifts?

This was even more severe than a public slap in the face!

This was tearing away all pretense of cordiality!

"Sect Master Su! Let's not go that far, let's not go that far. My subordinates mishandled things. I will make up for the congratulatory gifts another day."

The red-haired middle-aged man from the Blood Fiend Sect quickly stood up, trying to ease the tension.

Of course, he added a sentence in his heart.

Anyway, you probably don't have another day left.

It was just a verbal promise.

The Qingfeng Sect elder trembled with rage even more. "Boy, do not be too arrogant!"

Su Ji, however, acted as if he hadn't heard him, his face full of anger: "Thirty years on the east side of the river, thirty years on the west side, do not bully the youth for being poor today!"

However, after saying this, he leisurely picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and then spoke slowly.

"Did you guys think I was going to say that?"

"That's too boring."

"I, Su Ji, cannot wait that long."

He scanned the crowd below.

"How about this."

"Today, I suddenly don't want to hold any succession ceremony."

"Let's... hold an auction instead."

"An auction?"

Everyone was stunned, clearly unable to keep up with Su Ji's train of thought.

"We will auction... my, Su Ji's, forgiveness."

Su Ji pointed at the mountain-like pile of congratulatory gifts on the table and spoke faintly.

"Didn't you think I, Su Ji, was easy to bully, and the Xiangsi Sect was easy to bully?"

"Now, I am giving you an opportunity, an opportunity to make up for your mistakes and regain the friendship of my Xiangsi Sect."

"Those without money, or those who think I, Su Ji, am not worthy..."

He paused, the smile on his face turning sinister.

"Then don't blame me, Su Ji, for personally visiting your sects in the future to properly reason with you."

As his words fell, the entire venue went into an uproar!

Arrogant!

Too arrogant!

"You... your actions are simply those of a demonic cultivator!"

The Qingfeng Sect elder was so angry that his lips were trembling. He pointed at Su Ji, furious beyond measure.

"What a demon."

Instead of getting angry, Su Ji laughed. He locked his gaze onto the Qingfeng Sect elder.

"Since this elder has such a backbone, let's start with your Qingfeng Sect."

"Come on, make an offer."

"How many spirit stones do you think the Qingfeng Sect is worth?"

"If you can't make the decision, go ask your sect master right now."

"You!"

The Qingfeng Sect elder's blood surged, and he almost spat out a mouthful of old blood.

As a dignified great cultivator at the late stage of the Golden Core realm and an elder of a sect, when had he ever suffered such a humiliating insult!

"Today, this old man shall enforce justice on behalf of the heavens and slay you, arrogant demon!"

He roared in anger, the pressure of the late Golden Core stage exploding forth. A longsword flowing with azure light appeared out of thin air in his hand as he prepared to charge up the high platform.

Su Ji remained firmly seated like a fisherman on a platform, not even batting an eyelid.

He merely gave a casual order to Li Fan behind him.

"Old Six, help him calm down."

"Yes, Sect Master."

Li Fan's tower-like figure moved.

He took a single step forward, and a Golden Core stage aura—far more condensed and tyrannical than that of the Azure Sword Sect elder—instantly engulfed the entire plaza like an awakening primordial behemoth!

Thud!

Under the crushing weight of this pressure, the Azure Sword Sect elder, who had been so aggressive just a moment ago, could not even manage to take a single step. His knees gave way, and he collapsed to the ground in a pathetic kneel.

With a sharp clatter, the azure sword slipped from his grasp and fell to the floor.