Chapter 896: A Furious Qing Yixuan
Jian Chen declined the status of a hall elder without any hesitation, which caused the hall master to stare blankly. This was the first time a Saint Ruler had ever been offered a position as a hall elder within the sea realm. She would not have treated Jian Chen so well if it were not for the fact that he had been chosen by the sea goddess.
This was because within the three great halls, there was only one method to earn the status and position of a hall elder and that was to reach the peak of the 16th Star.
Other than an indication of strength, the position of a hall elder in the sea realm was also a representation of status. It represented supreme glory. The position was only second to the hall master and was the objective of countless members of the Sea race.
“You actually declined my invitation.” The hall master’s voice was filled with shock. She originally thought that Jian Chen would ravish with joy but never did she think that he would not show any emotion and would even end up rejecting the position.
“Are you worried over the fact that it might raise the disagreement of the other hall elders if you become one with your current strength? If that’s the case, there’s nothing to worry about. The status is personally bestowed by me, so they can’t do anything to you,” said the hall master.
“Hall master, a treasure of mine was stolen. When I become strong enough in the future, I need to go to the Serpent God Hall and retrieve it. That’s why I can’t accept the position,” Jian Chen explained. He was worried that his declination would make the hall master unhappy.
“If that’s the case, then forget about it.” The hall master walked up to her throne and sat down. She then continued, “If that’s the case, then you can be a guest of the Sea Goddess Hall. You’ll enjoy a similar treatment to Qing Yixuan, Lei Batian, and the others but you won’t be a person of the Sea Goddess Hall.”
“I thank the hall master’s bestowal,” Jian Chen thanked her with his hands clasped. With the status of a guest, he could move around in the territory of the Sea Goddess Hall much more easily in the future. It would save a lot of pointless trouble.
The hall master grabbed at the thin air. Immediately, a powerful energy quickly gathered, before finally condensing into a palm-sized blue medallion. She said, “Take this medallion. There’s a sliver of my presence in there. It’s what identifies you as a guest. With it, you can enjoy a similar status to the ordinary elders. You’ll be able to move freely through some public spaces of the palace.”
Jian Chen accepted the medallion and immediately felt the ripples of a vast energy from within it. The medallion was a materialized energy which made it countless times harder than steel. Jian Chen immediately shivered when he realized that. The hall master really was a Saint Emperor after all. She was able to condensed vast quantities of energy into the medallion with a wave of her hand. That was some terrifying strength.
Jian Chen sighed deeply after he left the hall. Only now was he truly safe, no longer needing to worry over the potential ill-intentions of the Sea Goddess Hall.
“I never thought that the mysterious woman who gave me the Water Spirit’s Pearl was the sea goddess. No wonder she had appeared as an apparition of her soul. She only has her soul left.” Jian Chen sighed inside. He had learned the true identity of that woman from the hall master.
“No wonder that mysterious woman knows about the things happening on the Tian Yuan Continent and no wonder she was brave enough to declare that she would block the experts from the Beast God Continent. Turns out she’s the sea goddess of the four champions from the ancient times,” Jian Chen gasped as he thought back to when he first met the mysterious woman. Never did he think he would meet the sea goddess as soon as he entered the sea realm. The only pity was that he did not know who she was when he had met her.
Jian Chen moved through the palace by himself with the medallion in his hand. He walked outside by backtracking the way he came in, coming back to where he had separated from Xie Wang and the other four very quickly. The five of them had not left and instead remained there waiting for him. However, everyone now looked at him with a weird gaze.
“Jian Chen, did you meet the esteemed hall master? What did the hall master say? Is she going to make things difficult for us? Are we safe now? Do we have to face the pursuit of the Sea Goddess Hall now?” Xie Wang asked nervously. The Sea Goddess Hall was his final sanctuary. He was worried that he might not be able to stay here anymore.
Jian Chen revealed a smile. He could understand Xie Wang’s worry. Those days of flight had made him rather tired as well.
Jian Chen raised the guest’s medallion and said, “Don’t worry, we’re safe now.”
“That’s the guest’s medallion. You’ve become a guest of the Sea Goddess Hall.” Lei Batian and the other three stared wide-eyed at the medallion in disbelief. Right now, they were even doubting their eyes. A mere Saint Ruler had actually become a guest of the Sea Goddess Hall.
”Suddenly, Mo Ziran’s complexion changed greatly. His eyes immediately popped out as he cried out uncontrollably, “It’s the presence of an emperor! The medallion was issued by the hall master herself!”
“What!” The expressions of Lei Batian and the other two changed as well when they heard that. Their medallions had all been issued by hall elders, yet Jian Chen’s medallion was from the hall master herself. Didn’t that mean that Jian Chen’s status in the Sea Goddess Hall was now greater than all four of them?
Also, basically only hall elders had the right to receive medallions personally issued by the hall master.
“Jian Chen, just what is relationship do you have the hall master? Why does the hall master treat you so well?” Lei Batian asked softly. He was filled with curiosity but also felt some envy and jealousy.
“I don’t know either. But since this is what the hall master has done, she must have her intentions,” Jian Chen said vaguely. He did not go into detail.
Qing Yixuan stared at Jian Chen fixedly as the light in her eyes flickered. Sensing her gaze, Jian Chen’s heart sank slightly. However, he soon remembered that he was in the Sea Goddess Hall and relaxed in the end. He asked, “Senior Qing Yixuan, can you tell me why you’re looking at me like that?”
“You’re one of the two juniors who robbed me of the Octoterra Map fragment before.” Qing Yixuan gnashed her teeth. Roaring flames of anger burned in her eyes. She felt bone-deep hatred for this person who had stolen her undergarment.
“Senior, do you have any evidence for what you’ve said?” Jian Chen said shamelessly.
“Hmph, you still try to deny it. Even if I have no idea how you changed your presence but that treasure you possess has sold you out. You hid in that golden treasure when you suddenly approached me before, then used an underhanded method to steal the Octoterra Map fragment when I was unaware. I’ve never heard of a treasure that can store living people in the sea realm; only your treasure has that ability. What else do you have to say now?” Qing Yixuan’s face was dark like a storm.
Jian Chen did not know what to say in that moment. He never thought that it would be the saint artifact that would expose him in the end. Jian Chen understood that it would be extremely difficult to deceive her with the unique ability of the artifact and its dazzling golden light now.
“Senior is indeed wise. However, junior had no choice with the matter before as well. I hope senior can understand and forgive me,” Jian Chen said apologetically.
“So it really was you,” Qing Yixuan said coldly as her eyes shone with a piercing light. “Why don’t you hurry up and return it then? I won’t be holding back even if you’re a guest of the Sea Goddess Hall otherwise.” Qing Yixuan was like an agitated lion right now. Her clothes and hair fluttered and danced despite the absence of wind.
“Brother, after so much confusion, it really was you who stole the map fragment from Qing Yixuan. My god, respect. I respect you. I really admire you from the bottom of my heart.” Lei Batian chuckled. He laughed extremely happily.
To one side, Mo Ziran, Ou Yun, and Xie Wang all formed weird faces. A faint smile formed on their lips, while they admired Jian Chen’s bravery secretly. He actually dared to rob Qing Yixuan of the eight great human experts as a Saint Ruler and he had even succeeded. That was a rare, thrilling piece of news.
Jian Chen smiled awkwardly when he saw their expressions, before looking toward Qing Yixuan apologetically. He said, “Senior, apologies. Junior really caused great offense with what junior did before. I hope senior can be the bigger person and forgive me. Junior will return senior’s thing right this instance.” With that, Jian Chen pulled out a white cloth from his Space Ring.
The white cloth was the undergarment Jian Chen had taken from Qing Yixuan. It was folded up neatly and it still possessed Qing Yixuan’s unique fragrance.
Jian Chen thought Qing Yixuan wanted this back so he absent-mindedly pulled it out.
Qing Yixuan’s beautiful face became completely flushed when she saw Jian Chen pull out the piece of clothing. She became bright-red from ear to ear as her face burned.
“T- t- t- t- this…”Lei Batian and the other naturally noticed the white cloth in Jian Chen’s hand. They recognized exactly what it was with a single glance from their thousands of years of experience. Each and every one of them became tongue-tied. Their faces were filled with disbelief and incredulity.
“Qing Yixuan, t- t- t- that can’t be yours, right?” Lei Batian stuttered as he pointed at the white undergarment and stared at the flushed Qing Yixuan.
Ou Yun, Mo Ziran, and Xie Wang all revealed an even weirder expression. Their lips were stretched into a long, flat line, struggling to not burst into laughter.
Qing Yixuan became even more embarrassed with what Lei Batian had said. She was tempted to just find a hole and hide in it. She originally wanted Jian Chen to return the Octoterra Map fragment but never did she think that Jian Chen would pull that out, especially before so many people.
“You bastard, you’re dead!” Qing Yixuan screamed out with an ear-piercing voice as she raged with shame. She raised her sword and chopped it toward Jian Chen mercilessly.