fan the flames

"They're actually letting Long Chen off just like that?"

Everyone was a bit puzzled. Although Long Chen seemed to have a somewhat justifiable reason, letting him go like this seemed unlikely to convince the crowd!

"This is a bit unfair," said someone from Lei Qianshang's camp indignantly. Clearly, the monastery not expelling Long Chen had left him very disappointed.

"Idiot, didn't Senior Brother Wan say? In the monastery, you can talk about anything except fairness. Besides, most rules favor the strong. Do you have donkey hair in your ears? Didn't you hear him?"

As soon as that person finished speaking, someone from Tang Wan'er's camp immediately retorted, clearly having already accepted Long Chen as one of their own.

Earlier, they were fewer in number, and the other side had a powerhouse like Zhao Wu holding the line, bullying them until their hearts smoldered with rage. Now that a powerful helper like Long Chen had arrived, they accepted him without a second thought. The strong were always welcome.

Although that person spoke bluntly, it was the truth. The monastery's rules favored the strong, so once everyone understood this, they felt at ease.

If there were to be absolute fairness, then Lei Qianshang, Tang Wan'er, and the others would have to receive the same treatment as them. Wouldn't that be unfair to these monster-level Geniuses?

"Yes, this Disciple understands."

Senior Brother Chang respectfully bowed toward the mountaintop, then gave Long Chen a slight smile. "Congratulations, you can continue the assessment. However, you must be careful next time. Walking on the edge of the law is certainly thrilling, but if you fail, the loss will outweigh the gain."

This was a well-intentioned reminder. Although Long Chen had exploited a loophole in the monastery rules, such behavior was extremely dangerous. If he were judged to be out, ruining his life's prospects, it wouldn't be worth it.

"Senior Brother Chang's words are like gold and jade; I will keep them in mind. I was reckless this time. After all, killing is a low-level method, not something a smart person should do," Long Chen said seriously. Hearing this, a flash of admiration appeared in Senior Brother Chang's eyes. Only a powerhouse who was not arrogant could go further.

"So the next time I encounter such a situation, I definitely won't let him die. Instead, I'll make him wish he were dead. That way, I can vent my hatred without violating the monastery rules. That's how a smart person should act." Long Chen seemed to have attained enlightenment, a light of wisdom appearing in his eyes.

Senior Brother Chang's face stiffened, and then he shook his head. "You all continue with the assessment. In any case, you should look out for yourself."

After speaking, Senior Brother Chang's figure flickered and vanished into the valley, leaving the two major factions still facing off.

Seeing Senior Brother Chang leave, Long Chen turned around and saw everyone staring at him. However, those on Tang Wan'er's side were clearly more friendly, while those on Lei Qianshang's side were full of hostility, though that hostility was tinged with a hint of fear.

Lei Qianshang also stared at Long Chen with cold eyes, his Battle Intent burning continuously. It looked as if he might charge over at any moment.

"Hey! You blue-haired gorilla, please don't look at me with such worshipful eyes. I, Long Chen, don't like taking on lackeys, so you'd better give up on that idea."

"Besides, with that face only a mother could love, you actually want to pursue our Heavenly Immortal-like Young Miss Wan'er? You really don't know your own limits. Do you even know what shame is?"

"Haven't you heard that birds of a feather flock together? I'm really puzzled. How could the Senior Brothers of the monastery be so careless in their work as to let a Demonic Beast like you in?" Long Chen said with a face full of dissatisfaction.

Hearing Long Chen curse Lei Qianshang so rudely, the entire field was shocked. What exactly was Long Chen's heart made of?

He had just narrowly escaped expulsion, and now he acted as if nothing had happened, provoking a monster-level figure like this.

After hearing Long Chen's words, the people from both factions looked at Lei Qianshang. At this moment, Lei Qianshang was so angry his face had turned dark, looking so gloomy it seemed water could drip from it.

Lei Qianshang's skin wasn't fair to begin with, and now his darkened face made everyone realize something. They also secretly admired Long Chen's eye for detail; at this moment, Lei Qianshang truly did look like a gorilla.

"Long Chen, stop messing around."

Tang Wan'er was actually laughing hysterically inside, but she had to endure it on the surface and quickly scolded Long Chen.

She was afraid Lei Qianshang would go berserk in his rage. Although Long Chen had just displayed powerful combat strength, it didn't mean he could rival a monster-level Genius.

"Young Miss Wan'er, don't try to stop me. I just feel… aggrieved on your behalf." After saying this, Long Chen covered his face with his sleeve and even faked a couple of sobs, making it seem as if he were trying his best to suppress the urge to cry.

"It's true you're all monster-level powerhouses, but the four of you are humans. Why arrange for a gorilla to be forced between you? Isn't that an insult?"

"Especially you and Young Miss Zhiqiu, who are like Heavenly Immortals descended to the mortal realm. Having this guy around is simply a desecration to you both."

"Young Miss Wan'er, you are the goddess in our hearts, noble and holy. We will absolutely not allow anyone to tarnish your image! Isn't that right?"

As Long Chen continued, his tone became impassioned and filled with righteous indignation, which was highly infectious. He shouted the last sentence toward the people on Tang Wan'er's side.

Most of the people here were men who had long admired Young Miss Wan'er, seeing her as a celestial being, but they had never dared to say it aloud.

Now that Long Chen had spoken their innermost thoughts for them, it immediately struck a chord. Seeing Long Chen shouting loudly, they all turned red in the face and yelled:

"Yes! We absolutely won't allow anyone to defile the Young Miss's image!"

Long Chen was amused. A performance had to be seen through to the end. With reddened eyes, he shouted, "Young Miss, you see? In the hearts of us brothers, you are our goddess, our faith!"

"We won't allow anyone to desecrate you! And look at what this gorilla has done! He doesn't know the first thing about being tender toward the fairer sex; he actually dared to attack you!"

"Those filthy gorilla paws have already committed a monstrous crime. We will never forgive you!"

Long Chen pointed at the people from Lei Qianshang's faction and said, "And you little monkeys who follow this gorilla to stir up trouble, helping a tyrant commit evil—you are beyond forgiveness!"

"Brothers, what are you waiting for? Raise your fists to defend our goddess's purity! Use our hot blood to witness our devotion to our goddess!"

"Use our bravery to drive these little monkeys out of our sight! Brothers, charge!"

After speaking, Long Chen had already dashed out, heading straight for the opposing crowd. While those people were still looking dazed, he reached them and knocked out a boy who was still in a stupor with a single slap.

At this moment, the people on Tang Wan'er's side were completely ignited by Long Chen's slap. They all let out a roar and charged toward the enemy.

"Defend Young Miss Wan'er's purity to the death! Down with the gorilla!"

Whether influenced by Long Chen or because they already had such a desire, after one person shouted, everyone followed suit:

"Defend Young Miss Wan'er's purity to the death! Down with the gorilla!"

Dozens of Blood Condensation Realm powerhouses shouted in unison, their voices shaking the heavens, clearly audible even hundreds of miles away.

The chaotic battle broke out again, but this time was different. With Long Chen's joining, Tang Wan'er's side saw their Aura skyrocket. Although they were still fewer in number, they could now suppress the opposition.

Tang Wan'er looked blankly at her subordinates whose combat power was skyrocketing, not knowing what to think. What goddess? What desecration? What was all this?

"Long Chen, you're looking for death!"

Lei Qianshang finally couldn't hold back anymore. Gritting his teeth, he cursed and charged toward Long Chen.

"Your opponent is me."

Tang Wan'er gave a delicate shout and extended her jade hand, sending out a wind blade that blocked Lei Qianshang's path.

"Tang Wan'er, this Long Chen has gone too far. Are you sure you want to protect him?" Lei Qianshang's face was clouded with gloom; he was truly enraged today.

An ordinary person wouldn't be able to stand Long Chen's words, let alone Lei Qianshang, who was known for his violent temper.

"He's my person, so of course I'll protect him."

Tang Wan'er's matter-of-fact statement carried another meaning in Lei Qianshang's ears, and his eyes filled with a tyrannical killing intent.

"Then I'll kill him," Lei Qianshang said through gritted teeth, his eyes dark and killing intent surging.

Tang Wan'er was startled. She didn't understand why Lei Qianshang had suddenly become so tyrannical, but she still shook her head. "As long as I'm here, don't even think about touching him."

"Ah…"

Lei Qianshang felt like he was about to explode with rage and let out a roar that echoed through the fields. At the same time, thunder crackled around him like armor, and his Aura shot straight into the sky, making hearts tremble.

"Hehe, nice, the gorilla is about to transform."

Although Long Chen appeared to be gnashing his teeth with deep-seated hatred on the surface, he was actually just slacking off, making random movements in the crowd while focusing all his attention on Lei Qianshang's side.

Tang Wan'er's expression changed slightly. She clapped her jade hands together in front of her chest, and the air currents around her surged. Her long hair fluttered, making her look like a celestial being.

Hundreds of palm-sized wind blades suddenly appeared around her, rotating continuously like hundreds of floating flower petals, making Tang Wan'er look like someone who had stepped out of a painting.

"Beautiful."

Long Chen couldn't help but admire in his heart. In terms of the elegance of techniques, no one could compare to Tang Wan'er. This move was too cool.

And unlike the previous battle where the wind blades were just phantom-like shadows, the wind blades Tang Wan'er summoned this time were almost tangible, and one could even see the patterns on them.

Condensing nearly tangible weapons from invisible wind power, and so many of them at that, showed how terrifying Tang Wan'er's Wind Spirit Body really was.

The Aura of both continued to rise, becoming more and more terrifying. The space around them trembled and began to distort.

On a mountaintop hundreds of miles away from the valley, Tu Fang watched them blankly and sighed.

"The Sect Leader truly has a Dharma Eye as sharp as a torch; this Long Chen is indeed not a peaceful character. I even suspect the Sect Leader might have gotten injured on purpose just to dump this mess on me."

"Forget it, let them toss and turn as they please. It's too much of a headache to watch. I'd better go back and wait for news."

Tu Fang shook his head, and with a movement, he vanished from the giant tree, leaving only the branches trembling slightly.

"Tang Wan'er, I'll ask you one more time, do you really want to stop me?" Lei Qianshang asked coldly.

"Still the same answer: as long as I'm here, you won't be able to hurt him," Tang Wan'er said calmly, wind blades floating around her.

"Then excuse my rudeness!"

Lei Qianshang let out a roar, his body glowing brightly as he took a step forward and charged at Tang Wan'er.