"What happened? Let's follow him, shall we?" Wei Chen spoke to the camera before quickly following after.
The broadcast did not stop, Wei Chen chose to continue streaming. This was an unexpected disruption, the kind of thrill most audiences crave.
From his experience in the content creator circle, he knew that sudden, thrilling disruptions usually caused a spike in viewership.
For example, there was once a streamer who specialized in ghost-hunting content but happened to stumble upon a man's corpse in an abandoned house instead. He called the police to handle the situation and even followed up on what happened next.
The result? The video went viral, his channel received a flood of engagement, and his popularity skyrocketed.
Such unexpected gains can only come through sheer luck, not by planning. So Wei Chen wasn't about to waste this opportunity.
And just as he predicted, the audience's interest was immediately piqued, their curiosity hooked by the sudden turn of events.
In the chat room, the silence that had lingered during Jian Heng's heart-wrenching story was instantly broken.
Handsome Tall and Rich: [Who's that? What happened? Who dares cause trouble!? Isn't the Heavenly Sword Sect the overlord of your province?]
Little Wealthy Demon: [To the comment above, there are only a few powers who would dare cause trouble at the Heavenly Sword Sect. It's not impossible, we just need to wait and see who they are.]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [You named yourself Little Wealthy Demon, you seem very confident in your wealth! Tell me, who are you?]
Little Wealthy Demon: [Why should I tell you? You only need to know that I'm wealthier than you.]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [Oh really!? I'm from the Ximen Clan! The Ximen Clan of the Vermilion Bird Province! Am I wealthy enough for you!?]
Little Wealthy Demon: [Oh! That Ximen Clan that's very influential, one of the Four Pillars of the Vermilion Bird Dynasty… but also has that idiotic young master, Ximen Hao!?]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [You!]
Jian Ganglie: [Huh? You're from Vermilion Bird Province? Did you come to Azure River Province to travel?]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [Of course not! Why would I lower myself by coming to a weaker province? I'm just resting at my vacation manor near the border when suddenly this thing called the Spirit Net Jade that I bought at auction for 2 million spirit stones lit up, and I saw this! It's a very interesting artifact.]
Little Wealthy Demon: [So… you're that idiot Ximen Hao, huh? That artifact I sold was only worth 2,000 spirit stones. You got completely duped by that auction house, you know.]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [What!?]
Somehow… the chat had turned from discussing what interrupted the broadcast into a roasting session aimed at that "Handsome Tall and Rich" guy.
At the sect gate, several Heavenly Sword Sect disciples were lying on the ground. All of them had various injuries; some were more severe than others, and the worst had even lost limbs.
There were four people in fiery red robes. One of them appeared to be an elder, as he was the oldest and wore the most luxurious robe among them. The others seemed to be his disciples.
"What's the meaning of this?" Jian Heng demanded the moment he arrived at the gate. His sword was brandished, ready to draw blood.
Wei Chen also arrived, standing atop a nearby tree to get the best view. The broadcasting orb shifted into immaterial mode, hovering around to capture the best angle of the scene.
"Don't know who those guys are, but they definitely look like bad news to me," Wei Chen commented.
Little Wealthy Demon: [Aren't those people from Sacred Flame Valley of the Vermilion Bird Province? Why are they here?]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [Hahaha! Don't you know there's a martial exchange between your province and mine in about six months? Of course they're just here to say hello!]
Ethereal Snow: [Sacred Flame Valley is always like this. They act domineering toward anyone they judge to be weaker than themselves.]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [Judging from your name, you must be a pretty lady. I'm Ximen Hao, young master of the Ximen Clan. May I know your honorable name?]
Little Wealthy Demon: [So you really are that idiot Ximen Hao, huh?]
Handsome Tall and Rich: [You!]
At this moment, Jian Heng was face-to-face with the elder from Sacred Flame Valley. His sharp, cold eyes were fixed on the man like an unsheathed sword, ready to strike.
The elder only smiled faintly and cupped his fist.
"My apologies, this was just a spar that got out of hand. I'll teach my disciples some restraint later. We simply didn't expect the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect, the overlord of Azure River Province…" The elder glance at the injured disciples on the ground "to be this weak."
Though his words were framed as an apology, his tone and meaning carried the exact opposite.
Jian Heng didn't say anything. He looked at the disciples lying on the ground and signaled to the Heavenly Sword Sect elder who had arrived earlier to bring them to the infirmary.
At this moment, one of the disciples bent down to retrieve the severed arm of an injured comrade. But a Sacred Flame Valley disciple standing nearby suddenly fired a scorching flame from his finger, burning the severed limb to ashes and making it impossible to recover.
"You!" The disciple who had tried to recover the arm pointed an angry finger at him.
"My apologies, Elder. My Sacred Flame Sword is only at minor completion. I failed to control it, causing this… misunderstanding." The disciple cupped his fist and apologized to his own elder, not to the Heavenly Sword Sect.
"Man… that guy's personality is so rotten even maggots wouldn't want to stay in it," Wei Chen commented, making many people in the broadcast chuckle.
But the Sacred Flame Valley disciple heard this remark and immediately rushed toward Wei Chen, preparing to burn him to a crisp. Judging from his clothes, he was clearly not a Heavenly Sword Sect disciple, so killing him wouldn't be a problem.
The Sacred Flame Valley elder didn't seem bothered, nor did he try to stop his disciple. Jian Heng, however, appeared ready to intervene. This made the elder guess that this young man might be Jian Heng's guest, or perhaps even his friend.
If so… then this was even more interesting.
Slap!
!?
Before anyone could fully register what had happened, a resounding slap echoed through the air. The Sacred Flame Valley elder turned toward the sound and saw his disciple lying on the ground, clutching his cheek as blood oozed from his mouth.
Several teeth were scattered on the ground nearby, clearly knocked out of his disciple's mouth.
"You!" The disciple was furious and immediately wanted to retaliate, but then…
Slap!
Another slap landed, knocking several more teeth out of his mouth.
This time it was clear. Wei Chen used his left backhand to slap the daylight out of the man. The blow was so crisp and resounding it sounded like a note from a musical instrument, bringing delight to Jian Heng and the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples who were watching the scene unfold.
"What the f*ck are you trying to do? Were you really trying to burn me, you f*cking little sh*t?" Wei Chen cursed, he started to get angry at these people.
Why are these people always like this? Without getting a clear picture, they just assume the other person must be weaker than them whenever they can't sense the other's cultivation. Isn't this basically asking for a beating?
"Vice Sect Leader Jian Heng! Who is he?" The Sacred Flame Elder pointed at Wei Chen.
"Oh, he's my guest," Jian Heng replied with a relaxed smile.
"Why don't you stop your guest!? Is this how a host should act?" the Sacred Flame Elder demanded.
"He's not a Heavenly Sword Sect disciple. He's a guest, so I don't have the right to command him. Besides, wasn't it your disciple who attacked him first?" Jian Heng calmly retorted.
This time, that disciple immediately retreated, and another disciple, who seemed to be the leader of the group, stepped forward.
"Who are you? What sect have you come from?" the disciple leader asked.
"I'm just a simple vagabond, no sect or whatever," Wei Chen replied.
Hearing that Wei Chen was just a vagabond with no backing, the disciple leader snorted.
"Hmph! Since you are a vagabond, don't you know the consequence of offending us, the Sacred Flame Valley?"
"Why? Am I supposed to stay put and let you guys turn me into charcoal? Are you high or something?" Wei Chen retorted.
Hearing this, the disciple leader was confused. "High? Of course I'm high, at least my status is higher than you!"
Wei Chen chuckled. "High is the term I use for people who are too into that kind of stuff, like herbs or drugs that make you feel good and put you into delusion."
The Sacred Flame disciple leader's face immediately darkened with anger the moment he understood Wei Chen's clarification. Of course, he knew about those kinds of drugs and plants that made mortals feel like they were floating on clouds, filled with false happiness. But such drugs had no effect on cultivators like them!
"Of course, people like you who are full of themselves always think others must praise them. I wonder how your brain developed. Did your pa or ma accidentally hit your head when you were born? Is that why your intelligence seems to be lower than it should be?"
Hearing Wei Chen's trash talk, the disciple leader's anger burst forth. He immediately rushed toward Wei Chen, filled with killing intent, wanting to teach this arrogant man a lesson.
He was in the Nascent Soul Realm; there was no way he would lose to this man!