Chapter 1187 — A Tragedy of Misunderstanding
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
But no one had anticipated that Er Gou Dan would not hold Mr. Pi in the slightest regard. He caught the hand Mr. Pi swung at him, gave it the gentlest of tugs to one side, and Mr. Pi went flying off the third-floor staircase, tumbling all the way down to smash onto the marble coffee table in the first-floor sitting room. With a thunderous bang it was plain he had not landed lightly — he was knocked stone cold unconscious. And yet, for all that, Mr. Pi was an early-stage Profound-tier expert, and that made him a formidable presence by any measure. Never mind falling from the third floor — he could have dropped straight down from the fifth and walked away unharmed. A man who trained in the external school, his physical constitution was nothing short of savage.
Today, however, he had capsized in the gutter, so to speak. For one thing, he had underestimated his opponent: with no guard up whatsoever he was flung down the stairs by Er Gou Dan, and by the time he grasped what was happening it was already too late. For another, just how immense was Er Gou Dan's strength? Even had he reacted in time, he could never have matched that inexhaustible power. And when Er Gou Dan hurled him, hidden force rode behind the throw — it would have been a miracle if he had not been knocked senseless!
Er Gou Dan's sudden move left Elder Pi thunderstruck. He had not expected the young man to be so formidable — dispatching Mr. Pi with his very first gesture. True, Mr. Pi's own carelessness had played its part in it, but it still proved that the man before him was no bungler.
What mattered more, Er Gou Dan had struck in a single flash; before Elder Pi could even make out what grade of expert he was, the blow was already withdrawn. Elder Pi felt a stab of regret — he had only himself to blame for not paying attention. Yet the more he dwelled on it, the angrier he grew: he had lost face before a mere youngster!
"Boy, which faction do you belong to? What are you doing here?" Elder Pi decided to feel out Er Gou Dan's identity and origins before anything else.
"Old man, I came here for the lion, not to make trouble! As for that fellow just now, he swung at me first, so I threw him out." Er Gou Dan was a man of reason. "Hand the lion over, let me kill it with one punch, and I'll be on my way!"
"Boy, you don't know the height of the sky or the depth of the earth! And you dare make such demands of me?" At Er Gou Dan's words Elder Pi flew into a towering rage. "Good, very good! You have nerve. Few men have dared swagger so before me! You truly do not hold me in the slightest regard. Boy, whoever you are, today you will pay the price!"
Er Gou Dan's refusal to show deference only inflamed Elder Pi further. This was naked contempt. Within the Pi family he was no mere plodder either — he was reserve talent on the verge of breaking through to the Earth tier. And here he was, looked down upon by some green-behind-the-ears brat?
Er Gou Dan regarded Elder Pi with some bewilderment. "I don't even know who you are, yet here you stand calling yourself this old man and that. Are you here to stand up for the lion, or have you simply nothing better to do? If it's idleness, step aside — I don't want to beat you up."
"Waaagh! I am Pi Yangyang!" Elder Pi was so incensed by Er Gou Dan that smoke poured from his seven orifices — and the boy didn't even want to beat him up? For years Elder Pi had been a name to reckon with among the hidden great families; when had he ever suffered such an insult? So he announced his name outright — the name that even today's Eight Great Families had to show some respect.
"Huh?" Er Gou Dan stared, dumbfounded. "Your skin's itching?"