Villain: My fate is in my own hands, not in the heavens.

The people in the main hall had just caught their breath when they froze, their eyes wide open like copper bells and their mouths agape enough to fit a fist.

A young figure suddenly appeared out of thin air, without even a ripple of air, like an invisible person, yet he made everyone in the hall feel suffocated.

Xie Zheng wore a simple black robe without any fancy ornaments. His face was as cold as ice, but his noble and aloof air seemed to be innate and could not be hidden.

Behind him were two followers: the Supreme Profound Saint Master was bent over at almost a ninety-degree angle, with a servile look on his face;

A woman in white stood beside him, her face half-covered by a light veil, revealing only a pair of eyes as clear as autumn water, which immediately captivated the attention of most of the young men in the hall.

"It's the Supreme Lord of Tai Xuan!" someone exclaimed in a low voice, but swallowed the rest of their words before they could finish.

"Do you even need to tell me? With this kind of display, besides that great one, who else could command such respect from the Supreme Profound Saint Lord?"

Before the discussion could finish, everyone in the hall knelt down with a "whoosh," heads bowed low: "We pay our respects to Your Excellency!"

Zhao Tian, ​​Chu Wuji, and other top geniuses were trembling.

Xie Zheng didn't reveal a single trace of his aura, but to them, it felt like standing on the edge of a bottomless abyss, terrifyingly deep.

Xie Zheng raised his eyelids slightly, his tone as indifferent as plain water: "Get up."

But secretly, he was delighted: "Tsk, just showing my face and I can act all high and mighty. I can't miss out on this kind of good thing."

While I'm at it, I'll also give these forces in the Eastern Wilderness a warning. After all, quite a few of them are close to that kid Ye Chen. With just one word from me, let's see who dares to get involved with him again.

He muttered to himself: That Ye Chen has been my treasure-hunting rat for long enough. He's been hoarding my luck for so long, it's time to call it quits and kill him.

I had already engraved a mark on that Gathering Spirit Pill using the Devouring Immortal Demon Art. Yan Ji is currently in a half-crippled state, so she definitely won't be able to find it.

The people below had no idea that he was plotting something. They lined up one by one to introduce themselves and their respective forces, spitting as they spoke, all hoping to gain favor with Xie Zheng.

Xie Zheng was getting sleepy listening to this, but his face remained as cold as an iceberg. His gaze drifted far away as he pondered how to tidy up his attribute interface, since it couldn't stay a mess forever.

He casually picked up the wine on the table, lowered his eyes, took a sip, and showed no emotion whatsoever.

Fortunately, he has this natural charisma. As long as he doesn't grin, he has an inherent "unfathomable" buff, which is to put it bluntly, he's incredibly cool.

The people in the hall panicked even more when they saw him like this, and they even held their breath, afraid that they might say something that would displease him.

"My lord, I am the sect leader of Danxia Sect. May I ask what your orders are for me since you have descended to the mortal realm?"

"My lord, my family has some excellent spiritual tea. I'll have my disciple send it to you later. Would you like to try some?"

A group of people tried every trick in the book to curry favor, either trying to find out his purpose or trying to build a relationship. Xie Zheng didn't say much, but he secretly felt smug: It's so comfortable being a villain, everyone revolves around me.

Everyone could see that the reason why the Supreme Saint Lord was able to get on Xie Zheng's good side was entirely due to the white-clad woman beside him, Su Qingge, the dream goddess of countless young talents in the Eastern Wilderness.

Many of the older folks' eyes darted around as they mentally considered their own descendants: Are there any good-looking ones? If they can't compare to Su Qingge, sending one over would just be embarrassing.

Just then, Xie Zheng's gaze suddenly swept across the crowd, settling on a beautiful woman. He stood up and asked, "What's your name?"

The woman was stunned for a moment, then her face lit up with wild joy, her voice trembling: "M-Sir, are you asking me?"

"Otherwise what?" Xie Zheng raised an eyebrow, his tone tinged with impatience. "Speak."

"My lord, my name is Wang Xue, and I am a disciple of the Myriad Flowers Palace!" Wang Xue quickly bowed and answered, her face flushed red, her eyes full of admiration.

Everyone in the hall turned to look, their eyes filled with shock and envy. What did Wang Xue do to deserve being questioned by this lord alone? This was an immense honor!

The Wan Hua Palace master next to Wang Xue was even more anxious than she was, secretly nudging her with his elbow: "Xue'er, the adults are asking you a question, speak properly!"

Xie Zheng ignored his master's subtle actions and stared at Wang Xue: "Have you met me before? What's your relationship with Ye Chen?"

Upon hearing Ye Chen's name, Wang Xue's face turned pale instantly, and she waved her hands helplessly, "My lord, Ye Chen... he's my ex-fiancé. I broke off our engagement three years ago!"

She took a deep breath to steady herself: "Some time ago, at the edge of the Forbidden Zone of Ten Thousand Beasts, you killed that ferocious beast at the Marquis Realm with a single sword strike. I happened to be nearby, and you saved my life, so..."

Xie Zheng stroked his chin, rummaging through his memories.

Oh, I remember now. The original owner did indeed try his luck in the Forbidden Zone of Ten Thousand Beasts a while ago, but he got nothing. He did manage to slay a ferocious beast, and unexpectedly ended up saving this person. No wonder this woman looked at him like he was an idol.

Before he could utter a sound, the hall erupted in chaos, filled with gasps of shock.

"One sword strike slays a ferocious beast at the Marquis level?!" Zhao Tian was so shocked he almost jumped up, his scalp tingling.

Chu Wuji swallowed hard. "Did I hear that right? A Marquis Realm expert? Those are formidable figures you only see in forbidden zones. This lord actually took them down with a single sword strike?"

Someone muttered under their breath, "A Grandmaster Elder can roam freely across tens of thousands of miles, a Saint Lord can control a million miles of territory, and a Marquis-level expert is invincible without a trace... Isn't this sir more powerful than all the forces in our Eastern Wilderness combined?"

No one doubted Wang Xue's words—no one dared to lie to this important figure. Su Qingge also frowned, her heart filled with shock: the younger generation of the Eastern Wilderness were probably less than ants in his presence.

The gazes of everyone in the hall toward Xie Zheng shifted from awe to fear; they dared not even breathe loudly.

The Supreme Elder of Yangxu Holy Land was covered in cold sweat. He secretly rejoiced: Luckily, he didn't ask Ye Chen's whereabouts earlier. He must keep a close eye on his granddaughter in the future and make sure she has no connection with Ye Chen whatsoever!

Another elder cursed inwardly: That Ye Chen is really asking for trouble, daring to offend this fiend. He'll die a horrible death sooner or later!

Xie Zheng looked at the panicked look on his men's faces and a barely perceptible wicked smile appeared on his lips. The effect was good; now no one dared to associate with Ye Chen anymore.

He picked up his wine glass and took another sip, thinking to himself: Ye Chen, your death is not far off.

P.S.: Without rising data, I lack the motivation to update more frequently. This humble writer has set a rule for extra chapters to motivate myself; currently, I have 15,000 flowers and nearly 2,000 review votes.

I've reached 30,000 flowers and 4,000 review votes, so I'll be updating at least seven times today. Please throw in your votes, everyone! It's the beginning of the month, so I'm also asking for some monthly tickets.

P.S.: Without rising data, I lack the motivation to update more frequently. This humble writer has set a rule for extra chapters to motivate myself; currently, I have 15,000 flowers and nearly 2,000 review votes.

I've reached 30,000 flowers and 4,000 review votes, so I'll be updating at least seven times today. Please throw in your votes, everyone! It's the beginning of the month, so I'm also asking for some monthly tickets.