Battle Through the Heavens: Starting with Cao Ying as an apprentice

"Sigh, it seems you two can't talk things out properly!"

Su Baichen's icy voice was like a cold wind in December. He slowly walked to Cao Ying and Cai Die, protecting them behind him, and looked coldly at the three people in the air.

"Boy, don't think you can be arrogant in front of me just because you withstood my attack!" Although he was very wary of the white-robed man's strength, his dignity as a snake-man elder and the advantage of his own numbers forced him to suppress his fear and shouted in a fierce but weak voice, "We have three Dou Huangs on our side, and we can't take you down? If you don't want to die, get out of here!"

The other two Snake-Man Clan Battle Emperors also quickly stepped forward, forming a triangular formation, their battle aura surging as they locked onto Su Baichen, attempting to intimidate him with their imposing presence.

The combined aura of three Dou Huangs was indeed not to be underestimated; the surrounding air even became viscous.

"Young Master, please don't..." Cai Die was extremely anxious upon seeing this. Although she had lost her memory, she could clearly sense the terrifying power of those three powerful members of her clan. Fearing that Su Baichen would suffer because of her, she instinctively wanted to speak up and stop him, even if it meant agreeing to go back with them.

Before she could finish speaking, Cao Ying grabbed her wrist. The little girl's face had completely lost its previous grievance and fear; instead, it displayed an almost theatrical leisure. She even stood on tiptoe, patted Cai Die's arm, and comforted her in a condescending tone, "Relax, relax, Sister Cai Die! My master is incredibly strong, ridiculously strong! Just relax and watch the show, see how my master teaches them to be... uh, to be snake people again!"

“But…” Cai Die looked at Cao Ying’s confident expression, and then recalled how Cao Ying’s face had turned deathly pale when the attack came, and couldn’t help but ask in confusion, “Then why was your face so pale just now?”

Upon hearing this, Cao Ying blushed, stiffened her neck, and defiantly argued with a vacant look in her eyes, "Uh! What do you mean by 'scaring white'? That...that's just sand reflecting light! Yes, it's the sun shining on it! How could I, Cao Ying, be afraid? Humph!"

She would never admit it, but even though she knew her master was powerful, the sudden attack from a Dou Huang expert on her face still startled her.

Seeing the two women below not only showing no fear but also "chatting" idly, especially the little girl who seemed to completely disregard them, the three Snake-Human Battle Emperors felt utterly humiliated. The leading elder trembled with rage and roared:

"Damn it! They don't even consider us..."

Before the word "in their eyes" could even be uttered, a sudden change occurred!

As if space itself were folded by an invisible force, Su Baichen's figure vanished from his spot without warning, like a ghost, and in the next instant, he appeared in front of the roaring elder as if by teleportation.

His speed was so fast that it exceeded the limits of visual perception; the other two Dou Huangs present couldn't even see how he moved!

Su Baichen remained expressionless, simply raising his right hand and then... waving it down.

"Snapped--!"

A crisp, extremely loud sound suddenly echoed across the silent desert sky.

This wasn't the roar of colliding energy, but the sound of pure physical contact, yet it carried a tooth-grinding sense of power!

Before the five-star Douhuang-level snake-man elder could even turn his anger into astonishment, he was struck head-on by a meteorite, his protective Dou Qi shattering instantly like paper.

Before he could even utter a muffled groan, his body transformed into a blurry afterimage, shooting backward at astonishing speed. With a deafening boom, he slammed into the hard sandstone strata below, embedding himself directly into a human-shaped crater. Smoke and dust billowed around him; he lay motionless, his fate unknown.

quiet!

Deathly silence!

The remaining two Snake-Man Battle Emperors froze completely, their eyes wide like copper bells, their mouths agape, wide enough to fit an egg. Their minds were blank; they had almost stopped thinking.

Fast! Too fast! So fast that they didn't even have time to react!

Powerful! Too powerful! So powerful that they couldn't understand it! A five-star Dou Huang, a top-tier fighter in their clan, was actually... actually slapped like a fly, leaving him utterly defeated?

“Space…the power of space?!” One of them stammered, his voice trembling with boundless fear.

Only a Dou Zong powerhouse who has mastered the power of space can move instantly without regard to distance!

The words "Battle Master" struck them like a massive boulder, chilling them to the bone. All their fighting spirit and arrogance vanished in the face of such an absolute disparity in strength!

With difficulty, like rusty machines, the two slowly twisted their stiff necks, casting their eyes, filled with boundless fear, onto Su Baichen, who had somehow returned to his original position as if he had never moved.

At this moment, Su Baichen seemed oblivious to the two people's ghostly gazes.

He was frowning slightly, looking down at his right palm intently, turning it over and over as if checking something.

"Sigh!" He sighed softly, his tone carrying a hint of disdain and... self-reflection!

"This guy has pretty thick skin."

"My hand hurts from holding that big fan. I need to practice my hand strength more when I get back."

"Besides, I haven't slapped anyone in a long time, so I'm a bit rusty with the angle and force. I almost broke his neck, so it's hard to talk about compensation then."

As he spoke, he symbolically flexed his wrist, as if he were genuinely in some discomfort. Finally, he slowly raised his eyelids, his calm and unwavering gaze landing on the remaining two trembling snake-man fighting emperors.

Upon being struck by that gaze, the two powerful Dou Huang warriors, who were considered formidable figures even in the Tagor Desert, instantly trembled uncontrollably. Large beads of cold sweat rolled down their foreheads like waterfalls, soaking their clothes. Their legs went weak, and they almost collapsed to their knees.

"Senior... please forgive us! We... we did not mean to offend you! We were blind and did not recognize your greatness, we offended your esteemed presence!" One of them pleaded for forgiveness, his teeth chattering and his words incoherent.

"Please...please forgive our previous reckless behavior, senior! We...we are willing to compensate! Yes! Compensate!" another person quickly echoed, their voice trembling with tears.

They wished they could go back a few minutes and slap themselves dozens of times for ever provoking this scoundrel!

Upon hearing this, Su Baichen remained expressionless, simply staring at the two of them silently with his deep eyes, without uttering a word.

Silence can sometimes be more oppressive than any words.

In this deathly silence, the two snake-man warriors felt that every second was as long as a year.

An invisible pressure, like a mountain, weighed on their souls, almost suffocating them. Their bodies trembled more violently, and cold sweat had already soaked a small patch of sand beneath their feet.

They dared not utter another sound, and could only bury their heads even lower, awaiting the final judgment.

After what felt like an eternity, Su Baichen finally broke the suffocating atmosphere. His expression was cold, his voice calm yet carrying an undeniable authority, as he slowly spoke:

"The girl you were talking about just now is my disciple."

“And she,” he pointed to the still somewhat dazed Cai Die beside him, “is my maid.”

"The three of you attacked them without any explanation, hurling insults and causing them severe psychological trauma and fright."

His gaze lingered on Cai Die for a moment, and he emphasized, "Especially my maid. She suffered a trauma to her soul before, lost her memory, and is emotionally fragile, making her even more susceptible to fright. What you did just now could very well worsen her amnesia and even leave her with permanent psychological trauma."

Cai Die blinked. Although she had lost her memory, she felt that her heart was... not so fragile? However, seeing Su Baichen's serious expression, she still cooperated by slightly frowning and showing a perfectly appropriate "uncomfortable" expression.

Cao Ying was quick-witted; she immediately covered her chest, scrunched up her little face, and made a face as if she had suffered a great injustice and fright.

Su Baichen seemed quite satisfied with the acting of the two "victims," ​​nodding slightly: "Quite clever, worthy of being my people."

He then looked back at the two ashen-faced snake-man fighting emperors before him and slowly concluded:

"So, let's have a proper discussion about compensation for my apprentice and maid's emotional distress, shock, reputational damage, and potential follow-up medical expenses."

His tone was calm, but to the two snake-man fighting emperors, it was more terrifying than any thunderous roar.

They knew that without suffering a significant loss today, they would have no chance of leaving safely. As for their companion who had been slapped into the ground, whether he lived or died would likely depend on the mood of this "senior" and how much "sincerity" they could muster.

Chapter 17 The Butterfly's Transformation (1)

"Alright, alright! We'll give it to you! We'll give it to you!" The two snake-people elders hurriedly responded, frantically searching their bodies, not even sparing the linings of their robes.

In the blink of an eye, bottles and jars of pills, scrolls of fighting techniques, and all sorts of rare and precious materials radiating strange light were piled up into a small mountain in front of him.

The second elder of the snake-people clan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, and bowed, saying, "Senior, this... this is truly all the possessions we have, even the fourth brother's share is here, there is absolutely nothing to hide!"

Su Baichen glanced casually at the pile of "treasures," a sneer playing on his lips. All this junk, added up, probably wasn't even worth a single mid-grade sixth-rank pill.

He didn't even bother to reach out and touch it, only letting out a cold sneer through his nose.

"not enough."

The two seemingly casual words struck like thunderbolts, causing the two elders' knees to buckle and nearly collapse to the ground.

The Third Elder's face turned ashen, his lips trembled, and he wanted to say something more, but the Second Elder secretly grabbed his sleeve tightly.

Just when the two were filled with despair and thought they were doomed to die, Su Baichen's indifferent voice rang out again, like a ray of light in the darkness.

"One of you stays, the other goes back to get the ransom. You two decide who stays and who goes."

These words were like a pardon, instantly filling the eyes of the two elders with the ecstatic joy of surviving a calamity. Almost simultaneously, the Second Elder took a deep breath, his face instantly filled with sorrow and resolve. He gripped the Third Elder's hand tightly, his voice choked with emotion, filled with genuine feeling:

"Third brother! Now that the fourth brother's fate is unknown, the four of us brothers are left with only you and me to depend on each other! As the second brother, the eldest brother is like a father to me. How can I let you stay in such a dangerous situation? This time, I... I'll give you the chance to go back and deliver the message!"

He slapped the Third Elder's hand hard, speaking so fast it was almost impossible to get a word in edgewise, his spittle nearly splattering the elder's face: "Don't refuse! This is not just politeness, it's the responsibility and duty of your elder brother! You're still young, the future of the tribe depends on you, how can I let you take such a risk? Let me... stay here, whether I live or die, it's up to fate!"

This impassioned speech was delivered with great emotion and deep feeling. The Third Elder was stunned by his sudden display of deep affection. Looking at his Second Brother's reddened eyes and his hands tightly clasped in his own, a surge of warmth rushed to his heart, and he was deeply moved.

His throat tightened, and almost instinctively he blurted out, "No! Second Brother! How can this be! You go back, I'll stay!"

"Good! Good! Good!" The Second Elder gave him no chance to back down, saying "good" three times in a row. He clenched his fists tightly, his face a mixture of grief and relief, as if he had made a tremendous decision: "Third Brother! I understand your intentions! In that case... I will grant your request! Rest assured, I will not fail you. I will return to the tribe as quickly as possible to raise the ransom and come back to save you!"

Before he finished speaking, the Second Elder's figure shot out like a wisp of green smoke, his feet moving with the wind. He used the Snake-People's strongest escape technique to its fullest extent, running frantically towards the tribe without looking back. His speed was unprecedented, as if he was afraid that if he was even a second slower, his "affectionate" third brother would change his mind.

Su Baichen watched this scene of brotherly affection with great interest until the Second Elder's figure was almost out of sight. Then, he raised an eyebrow with a hint of amusement and looked at the Third Elder, who was still not fully recovered. His eyes were filled with undisguised pity.

"Tsk, I've lived this long, and it's all been for nothing. A few words of insincerity, and I'm completely taken advantage of, even foolishly helping them count the money." He thought to himself, shaking his head.

At this moment, the third elder of the snake-people clan stared blankly at his second brother's almost disappearing figure. A cool breeze blew by, and he suddenly jolted awake, his muddled mind abruptly clearing.

I...I've been tricked by my second brother?!

He sold me out!

sold!

Holy crap! Are you kidding me?!

Damn it... how could I be so stupid and naive!

Overwhelmed by immense regret and despair, he trembled with rage, even the scales on his body quivered slightly. But it was too late. With his last glimmer of hope, he mustered all his strength and screamed in the direction where the Second Elder had disappeared: "Second Brother—! You must come back—! I'm waiting for you—!"

The sound echoed in the empty space, mournful and helpless. Whether the "deeply affectionate" second brother could hear it, or whether he wanted to hear it, only heaven knew.

Seeing that the farce had finally come to an end, Su Baichen felt bored and turned around to walk back to Cai Die.

He didn't say anything, just crossed his arms, tilted his head slightly, and stared directly and unabashedly at Cai Die's exquisite face, his gaze bold and focused, as if he were admiring a rare treasure.

Seeing this, Cao Ying immediately pouted so much her lips could hang an oil bottle, and snorted loudly through her nose, muttering under her breath, "Hmph! Master is a pervert! A big lecher! His eyes are practically glued to me!"

Cai Die felt uncomfortable under Su Baichen's burning gaze. Two blushes quickly rose on her fair cheeks, spreading all the way to her ears.

She knew, of course, that she was beautiful, but this was the first time in her life she had ever been stared at so directly, even somewhat domineeringly.

Her heart raced uncontrollably. She secretly glanced up and quickly looked at Su Baichen's handsome profile. Thinking of how he had saved her from danger, her heart pounded even harder.

After hesitating for a moment, she finally couldn't withstand his gaze. She lowered her head slightly, her voice barely audible, tinged with shyness and panic, and said, "Young...Young Master...I...I'm not...not ready yet..."

Upon hearing this, Su Baichen was taken aback at first, then his handsome face darkened visibly. Without saying a word, he raised his hand and flicked his finger at Cai Die's smooth forehead, then turned to Cao Ying, who was standing to the side with her puffed-up cheeks, and mercilessly gave each of them a crisp, loud thud.

Boom!Boom!

Two muffled thuds sounded almost simultaneously, accompanied by two delicate cries.

Su Baichen nodded in satisfaction and commented seriously, "Hmm, the voices are clear and loud, not bad, both are good."

He changed the subject, his eyes full of mockery, and said in a drawn-out tone, "However, I'm quite curious, what kind of filthy thoughts are going on in these two seemingly decent heads all day long?"

"I just find Cai Die's current appearance a bit awkward. What are you all thinking?"