Li Qiye solely had everyoneâs attention. Some even inched closer in order to listen to his response, not wanting to miss a single word.
After all, knowing this other entry meant potentially grabbing the golden divine egg and changing their future trajectory.
âBy walking, of course. How else can it be, crawling?â Li Qiye smiled at the marquis.
â...â The listeners became speechless with black lines on their forehead. They exchanged glances with each other; some glared angrily at Li Qiye with fury in their eyes.
They felt that Li Qiye, a lowly woodchopper, was playing with them.
â...â The marquis thought that he would be able to get the right answer from Li Qiye, not expecting such an answer.
âYou!â The hot-headed senior defender was livid while shouting: âBrat, you must be tired of living to mess around with us!â He was already furious about this matter so this naturally didnât help.
Li Qiye smiled at him and said: âSo you have a problem with my response and prefer to crawl?â
âSir Shang, Young Noble Li isnât wrong. Of course one would have to walk to enter that valley but if you choose to crawl, Iâm sure nobody will say anything out of respect for your choice.â Up on his peak, Teacher Du clapped and laughed, clearly adding oil to the fire.
Unfortunately, the senior defender couldnât do anything to him outside of wearing an ugly expression. The guy snorted and waved his sleeve angrily.
The marquis took a deep breath to calm down. He asked seriously: âYou can really just walk in, Young Friend?â
âOf course, no need to perform a full kowtow rite or anything.â Li Qiye nonchalantly responded.
âImpossible!â Many among the crowd blurted.
There were numerous chaos primal beasts guarding outside the valley. Many experts and elders have been killed.
As for Golden Cicada Buddhist Child, he managed to get through the beasts but not the defense inside. Both his cultivation and Buddhist attainment were impressive but not enough to deal with the sonic waves from the statues.
Now a woodchopper said he could go there? How could anyone believe this? Moreover, they could see that he was only a Violet Marquis.
Such a cultivator could be found everywhere in Buddha Holy Ground. Even if a miracle were to happen for someone to successfully enter the valley, it definitely wouldnât be him.
âHeâs just boasting.â The students didnât believe it after seeing the failed attempts and bloody aftermaths earlier.
âAbsolutely impossible.â Zhang Changyu said: âEven if the beasts let him in, just one roar from the statues is enough to turn him into blood.â
âI agree.â The majority had this belief.
However, Yang Ling trusted him and said: âHeâll definitely have a method after growing up here.â
âItâs useless, the only thing that matters is strength here. If one can rely on methods and schemes to win, thereâs no need to cultivate.â Zhang Changyu snorted.
âSo will you bow and accept defeat if he can actually do it?â Yang Ling taunted.
Zhang Changyu didnât answer because he would never bow to Li Qiye after the guy killed his mount and humiliated him.
Meanwhile, the teachers talked among themselves.
The older teacher said: âWhat do you think? He doesnât look like heâs boasting.â
âHmmâ¦â Some teachers thought that Li Qiye was a talent worthy of development. However, they remained skeptical and were being polite by not expressing this.
âItâs difficult, nothing short of a miracle.â Another teacher said.
âJust watch, judging by his appearance, heâs not lying nor bragging. Plus, given his characters, he shouldnât do something like that.â Teacher Du said.
The teachers stopped talking and waited for the result.
âAnyone can brag, Iâm afraid you wonât be able to back it up a while later.â Zhui Xueyun snorted, only to be ignored again. He gritted his teeth angrily.
The other experts didnât think that Li Qiye could do so either. Even the ancestors had no solution to this problem.
âYou really can go in? Will you do it right now?â The marquis started losing his patience.
âSounds like you want to make a bet with me.â Li Qiye said.
âHmm, Iâll do it, what will you bet?â The marquis hesitated for a moment before making up his mind.
âYouâre at least more interesting than the fool next to you.â Li Qiye chuckled.
âBrat, you want to die?!â Sir Shang gripped the hilt of his blade and roared.
Li Qiye had insulted him several times just now, fully testing his patience. He wanted to cut the guy down.
The marquis hurriedly stopped him and laughed: âSir Shang is a general used to the battlefield. He has a straightforward personality and doesnât hold back, please excuse him.â
The marquis was smooth and slick, aware of how to please people. He grasped his opportunity and said: âAlright, letâs have some fun. Donât worry, I wonât make it hard for you if you canât go in, I just need a favor or two. But in the case of success, Iâll give you one million stones.â
âNot interested in that.â Li Qiye smiled at him: âYou just need to bark like a pekingese after I win. Itâs not a bad choice considering your personality.â [1]
âHey!â The marquisâ expression changed. He would rather lose the stones than bark like a dog.
âForget it if you donât want to.â Li Qiye said.
âNo, Iâll bark if you can go in.â The marquis found value in Li Qiyeâs friendship with the beasts and actually agreed.
âNot bad.â Li Qiye nodded, thinking that this marquis was flexible enough to be successful.
âAnd this sir over here, do you want to bet too?â Li Qiye smiled at Sir Shang.
The latter snorted and turned his head away, not paying attention to Li Qiye.
âAnd you? Oh, donât forget what I said last time.â Li Qiye glanced over at Zhui Xueyun.
The youth turned red and scowled, not wanting to bet against Li Qiye. The last loss was already humiliating enough.
âAnyone else?â Li Qiye turned towards the crowd.
They exchanged glances. Men of status like them naturally didnât want to bark like a dog.
âSeems like all of you canât match up to this pretty boy.â Li Qiye tapped on the marquisâ shoulder. [2]
The marquis became awkward. He was quite old already yet Li Qiye called him a âpretty boyâ.
1. The word here can mean pekingese (dog)/(figuratively) sycophant/lackey
2. Literal translation is little white face, the meaning is attractive young man (usually derogative); pretty boy; gigolo. It is used very often