"What is a frog at the bottom of the well?"
Yang Cheng sat high above, looking down at Jiang Bingjun.
That angle alone made Jiang Bingjun very unhappy.
He walked to the window, pointed at the sky, and said, "Crown Prince of Great Zhou, what do you see?"
Yang Cheng chuckled. "You mean to say I'm watching the sky from the bottom of a well."
Jiang Bingjun frowned slightly, annoyed that Yang Cheng always disrupted the rhythm of his words.
With a cold snort, he said, "You were born in the Wasteland Realm. The sky you see is only this tiny."
"But when you look across the myriad worlds, the Wasteland Realm is nothing but a mayfly. For you to look at the sky here—calling it watching the sky from the well is already too generous. At best, you're sitting inside a jar staring upward."
Yang Cheng said calmly, "You came here just to lecture me about life?"
"No. I came to tell you to stay away from my daughter."
Jiang Bingjun continued, "My daughter's future husband is destined to be a prodigy of the great worlds."
"You may be noble here in the Wasteland Realm, but compared to those from the great worlds, you are nothing."
"You've said so much, but your premise is that I'm interested in your daughter," Yang Cheng replied. "But, Father of Jiang Hengwu, I'm very sorry—I have no interest in her whatsoever."
"If you want to scold your future son-in-law and flaunt your so-called superiority from the great worlds, find another place to do it."
"You came to me—you picked the wrong person."
Jiang Bingjun's expression darkened.
"And another thing."
Yang Cheng rose, hands clasped behind his back. "The one who truly hasn't seen the world is you, not me."
"The so-called prodigies of the myriad worlds—before me, they are nothing."
When it came to understanding those so-called geniuses, he far surpassed Jiang Bingjun.
With his current talent, Yang Cheng could say for certain that even among the myriad prodigies, he would stand tall above the rest.
He would never be blindly arrogant, but he would also never belittle himself.
"Hahaha, that is exactly what it means to be ignorant of heaven's height and earth's depth!" Jiang Bingjun sneered. "Forget others, just take me, for example—I come from the Jiang clan of the Azure Jade Realm."
"My clan's ancestor is a Yang God powerhouse."
"My father is half a step into the True God realm."
"And I myself am at the peak of the Martial Saint realm."
"So tell me—what grounds do you have to act arrogant in front of me?"
"The truth is your vision is too narrow. Many things are beyond your comprehension, which is why you spout such laughable words."
After hearing this, Yang Cheng suddenly felt bored.
Before Jiang Bingjun entered, he had thought of suppressing him to wash away the humiliation of his past life.
But now, hearing this man's ignorant arrogance, he realized arguing with Jiang Bingjun was beneath his status.
"Guards, see him out," Yang Cheng said faintly.
He no longer had the interest to waste words.
As for why Jiang Bingjun had appeared in the Wasteland Realm so early, he had plenty of ways to find out—no need to pry it from him.
"You…"
Jiang Bingjun's face sank.
If this had been the Azure Jade Realm, Yang Cheng would have paid dearly for such disrespect.
But this was the Wasteland Realm, within Great Zhou's borders.
Though he looked down on Yang Cheng, he still had to respect Great Zhou's army.
"You said you have no interest in my daughter. I hope you keep your word."
"Also, the prodigies of the myriad worlds will descend upon Great Zhou soon enough. When that time comes, you'll suffer a crushing blow and realize that what I said today was no lie."
With that, Jiang Bingjun swung his sleeve and strode out.
Yang Cheng watched his back with a cold gaze.
"Jiang Bingjun, those prodigies you revere so highly—I, Yang Cheng, will one day trample them all beneath my feet."
"No matter who dares invade the Wasteland Realm, I will cut them down with a single sword!"
Those so-called prodigies treated the Wasteland Realm as nothing more than a playground, a hunting ground.
When the time came, Yang Cheng would show them who the true hunter was.
After that, Yang Cheng didn't let Jiang Bingjun's visit affect his mood.
His mind entered the Divine Mountain.
He willed it, and said, "High-grade Spirit Spring, claim."
A spring of high-grade spirit water appeared atop the mountain.
Gurgle, gurgle…
The Divine Mountain, the Spirit Spring.
Yang Cheng nodded with satisfaction.
Though the mountain had not yet been fully activated, it was already taking shape as a sacred land for cultivation.
Three days later.
Spring Lake bustled with endless carriages and people.
Two young girls strolled along the lakeside, enjoying the view.
One carried an ominous fate, the other was cold and refined, both drawing countless gazes.
"Ah Wu, I didn't expect your biological father to be a noble from the great worlds," Ouyang Xue's bright eyes sparkled.
Between Jiang Hengwu and Tang Xingyu, she had originally wanted to curry favor with Tang Xingyu.
Who would have thought that plain-looking Jiang Hengwu actually had such a powerful background hidden away?
And with Tang Xingyu lately being as elusive as a dragon, she couldn't cling to her even if she wanted to. So instead, she stuck close to Jiang Hengwu every day.
Jiang Hengwu had once been displeased with Ouyang Xue's behavior, but seeing her like this now, she couldn't stay angry.
"But I feel he's far too domineering," Jiang Hengwu said softly, her face showing a restraint she had never carried before, though mixed with worry.
She used to feel inferior about her origins. Now that her biological father Jiang Bingjun had appeared, she indeed felt more confident.
But she also realized Jiang Bingjun was much more overbearing than Jiang Zhenghong, always wanting to meddle in her affairs.
"You mean about him forbidding you to associate with His Highness the Crown Prince?" Ouyang Xue asked. "I'm so envious of you—others would kill for a chance to draw closer to His Highness, yet your father actually looks down on him."
Jiang Hengwu sighed helplessly. "He told me that my future husband should be one of the great world prodigies. That even though His Highness is noble here in the Wasteland Realm, in the myriad worlds he's nothing."
Her eyes turned slightly dazed. "Ouyang Xue, do you think our Wasteland Realm really is just a mayfly world? That in the eyes of those great world prodigies, our so-called geniuses are nothing more than a group of uncivilized monkeys?"
"Though I don't want to admit it, my father has told me similar things," Ouyang Xue murmured.
Ouyang Xue said, "In my eyes, His Highness the Crown Prince is already like a star in the sky. It's really hard to imagine just how dazzling those prodigies of the myriad worlds must be."
"My father told me," Jiang Hengwu replied, "that this time a very outstanding genius from the Azure Jade Realm will descend to the Wasteland Realm. He's Young Master Chu Chen of the Chu clan."
She continued softly, "My father wants me to meet him. He said that once I've seen Young Master Chu Chen, I'll realize His Highness the Crown Prince is nothing compared to a prodigy from the Azure Jade Realm."
"Then I'm really looking forward to seeing such a figure," Ouyang Xue said eagerly. "By the way, on Spring Lake's central island, there's the former residence of the Azure Emperor. It's very interesting. Since we're out for leisure, why don't we go take a look?"
"Alright," Jiang Hengwu nodded.
The two rented a small boat and rowed toward the island in the center of the lake.
But before long, they found their way blocked.
"What's going on?" they asked in confusion.
"Clear out quickly. No idlers are allowed on Spring Lake today," an official barked.
Soon, they saw that many other pleasure boats were also being driven away.
Just then, Zhou Chong approached in a small boat.
When he saw the two girls, his eyes lit up. "A'xue, Miss Jiang, come aboard my boat. I'll take you in."
Ouyang Xue was delighted. "Zhou Chong, how is it your boat can enter?"
"It's not about my face," Zhou Chong said smugly. "It's about the Fang clan's face. This is one of their boats. Today the Azure Emperor's tomb will emerge, an event of massive impact, so the court has barred ordinary people from the lake. But the Fang clan's influence in Spring City is great. Getting a few boats with passage tokens is no problem for them."
The two girls stepped onto his boat.
Zhou Chong took out a token, and sure enough, the guards let them pass.
Not long after they entered the lake, they noticed a bamboo raft floating not far away.
On it lay an old man, drinking wine.
Jiang Hengwu and Ouyang Xue both looked at him curiously.
"Elder, what's your relation to the Blade Emperor Miao?" Zhou Chong suddenly asked when his eyes fell on the flying knife hanging at the old man's waist.
The Blade Emperor Miao was a renowned powerhouse of Chanzhou, a peak Martial Emperor whose mastery of the flying knife was unmatched.
"You mean Miao Yongnian?" the old man chuckled. "Back then he challenged me, and with three punches and two kicks I beat him down. Later, he asked me for guidance and gave me that knife as a gift."
Zhou Chong looked doubtful. "And how should we address you, senior?"
"I'm just a useless old man. My name isn't worth mentioning. The martial world humors me by calling me 'Old Drunkard.'"
"Old Drunkard?" Zhou Chong sneered. "Never heard of you. You must be bragging."
But Old Drunkard wasn't angered. He only laughed. "I do like bragging when I've nothing else to do."
Zhou Chong ignored him and rowed toward the central island.
But when they were still several miles away, they had to stop.
Because on the island, powerful experts were already fighting.
The terrifying shockwaves spread out, churning the lake waters so fiercely no boat could move closer.
"That's the old servant beside Fo Ye," Zhou Chong exclaimed.
On the island, two figures were battling fiercely.
One of them was indeed Fo Ye's old servant.
But at this moment, the servant was completely suppressed.
"Who's fighting him?" Ouyang Xue asked with wide eyes.
Just then, a flying knife shot out.
The servant hastily raised his fist guards to block, but with a loud clang he was blasted backward.
The knife curved in midair and returned to the hand of a lean middle-aged man.
"The Blade Emperor—it's Miao Yongnian!" Zhou Chong said excitedly.
"No wonder he's so powerful—it's the Blade Emperor," Ouyang Xue said in awe.
On the island, Fo Ye's voice called out, "Stop. I, Bai Lifo, withdraw from the fight for the island."
The servant smiled bitterly. "Fo Ye, it seems I no longer belong in today's martial world."
Once, Bai Lifo's achievements in building his influence were great, and this servant had many battle honors.
But now, it seemed they could no longer best anyone.
"It's not your fault," Bai Lifo said. "Chanzhou has recently seen many powerful newcomers."
He wasn't surprised.
Chanzhou was too small.
Having a bit of fame here didn't mean one was truly important.
The world was vast, full of experts, and the little power they controlled wasn't much.
It was exactly because he understood this that he wanted to find a stronger backer.
"Bai Lifo, at least you still know your place," Miao Yongnian said with a faint smile.
Suppressing his anger, Bai Lifo took the servant away from the island and boarded a boat at its edge.
"Do you think His Highness the Crown Prince will come today?" the servant asked.
Bai Lifo sighed. "His Highness has immense talent and limitless potential. But today's struggle is not about talent or potential—it's about sheer strength."
The servant didn't need him to finish; he already understood. Even if the Crown Prince came today, he would gain nothing here.