In the next moment, Brian Zhang's finger struck the center of Ian's palm. He was confident that with one jab, he could pierce right through the other man's hand.
Suddenly, Brian's expression changed dramatically. He realized that what his finger had struck wasn't a human hand at all, but something as hard as ten-thousand-year black iron. The impact sent a numb shock through his finger, nearly shattering the bones.
Just then, he felt his wrist tighten—the next instant, a hand like an iron hoop clamped down hard on his wrist. At the same time, an incomparably scorching force surged into his body, instantly shattering all his internal energy and driving it back into his dantian.
That scorching power followed up and sealed his dantian completely.
"Pa! Pa! Pa!"
A sharp, stinging pain radiated across his cheeks.
Brian instantly realized—he was being slapped.
"You dare hit me?"
He stared at Ian, barely able to believe it.
"Pa! Pa! Pa!"
Ian gave him a few more slaps and said calmly, "Why wouldn't I dare?"
"Bastard! I'll kill you!"
Brian roared and charged at Ian, only to forget that his cultivation was already sealed.
"Pa!"
This time, Ian struck even harder, sending Brian flying with a single slap, crashing into the corner of the private room.
Seeing this, Sherry Summers felt a sudden surge of inexplicable satisfaction.
The other seven were surprised too, but more than anything, it just felt natural. After all, Evan Chu is one of the Soaring Dragon Ranking's top talents—beating Brian Zhang in an instant was only to be expected.
Only someone like Brian Zhang would doubt Ian's strength. The Soaring Dragon Ranking is compiled by dozens of top powers in the Mystic Sun Domain—there's no way someone with fake strength could ever make the list.
Under everyone's gaze, Ian calmly walked over and took the main seat, not sparing even a glance at Brian Zhang, who was scrambling up from the floor.
On his journey to Dragonfang City over the past month, Ian's strength had improved greatly. Though he hadn't reached late Sigilforge Realm yet, he was already very close.
As a result, his current strength was nearly unmatched in the Sun-Soul Realm. An ordinary late-stage Sigilforge like Brian Zhang was simply unqualified to provoke him.
Brian Zhang, though full of himself, wasn't a fool. He knew that further provocation would only bring him more suffering, so he spat out, "Today's humiliation will be repaid a hundredfold!" before leaving in disgrace.
With Brian Zhang, the troublemaker, gone, the atmosphere became especially harmonious.
The seven young elites frequently raised their glasses to Ian.
Ian didn't put on any airs and accepted every toast. Soon, everyone felt much closer and started calling him 'Brother Chu.'
When the banquet ended—
The straightforward Jackson Wenren quietly pulled Ian aside and warned him in a low voice, "Brother Chu, Adrian Zhang is extremely protective of his kin. After you humiliated Brian Zhang today, there's no way he'll let it go."
"Thanks for the heads-up, Brother Wenren. I'll be careful."
After that, everyone exchanged a few more polite words before going their separate ways.
Since Ian was staying at the Daxia Merchant Guild's manor, he shared a carriage back with Sherry Summers. The carriage was spacious, but Sherry's faint maiden fragrance kept drifting into Ian's nose.
Sherry had drunk quite a bit too; her pretty face was tinged with red, and her eyes were a little hazy, as if she were tipsy.
"Brother Chu, what are your plans for the future?"
Sherry asked, seemingly offhand.
Hearing this, Ian couldn't help but fall into thought. Ever since he'd started crossing worlds, his main goal had always been to grow stronger. As for anything else—he honestly hadn't given it much thought.
Seeing Ian stay silent, Sherry continued, "Brother Chu, what do you think of our Daxia Merchant Guild?"
"Not bad," Ian replied calmly.
"Have you ever considered joining us at the Daxia Merchant Guild?" Sherry pressed, her tone suddenly a bit nervous and uncertain.
Ian guessed right—Sherry really was a child of the Daxia Merchant Guild's top leadership. Her father, Harold Summers, was one of the Guild's current rulers, with countless wives and concubines. Sherry was born to one of the minor concubines.
Among Harold Summers' many children, she was the thirty-second, and her mother's clan was just a small martial family from a minor city—making her the weakest among all her siblings.
As a result, her siblings rarely treated her well. To put it simply, Sherry was collectively ostracized by her brothers and sisters.
Helpless, she had no choice but to leave the core of the Daxia Merchant Guild and come to the remote Mystic Sun Domain.
But she didn’t give up. She wanted to make something of herself, to earn the respect of her siblings. Unfortunately, she was weak and alone. Even though the stewards of the Mystic Sun Domain treated her with outward respect, none of them truly took her seriously.
After some thought, she realized that if she wanted real achievements, she’d have to start her own network from scratch—but she didn’t have anyone reliable at her side.
Although she used the Summers name to recruit some talent, none of them were truly useful.
That’s why, when she met Ian, she was so eager to recruit him.
"If I join the Daxia Merchant Guild, or rather, Miss Sherry Summers, what can you offer me? I don’t lack money, and I don’t lack cultivation resources!"
Hearing this, Sherry’s face flushed with embarrassment and disappointment. She said softly, “Sorry, Brother Chu, I was being presumptuous.”
Ian smiled, “I won’t join the Summers Family, but we can still work together, can’t we?”
“Work together? How?”
Sherry was stunned. She looked at Ian, hope rising in her heart again.
“Here’s a pill. Try it first, and once you’ve experienced its effects, we can talk about working together.” Ian tossed her a Marrow-Cleansing Pill.
As far as he knew, in this world, weapon refiners and alchemists were highly prized, and formation masters were even rarer.
Sherry inspected the Marrow-Cleansing Pill. She couldn’t tell its exact effect, but from its appearance, it was clearly a top-grade elixir.
Soon after,
the two returned to the manor.
The night passed uneventfully.
Early the next morning, Ian was practicing sword forms in the courtyard.
Just as he stopped, he noticed Sherry arriving, her face full of urgency.
Last night, she had taken the Marrow-Cleansing Pill that Ian gave her.
The results were even better than she’d imagined. After a full body cleansing, she felt refreshed. The pill had widened her meridians, healed old injuries from cultivation, and made her already fair skin even smoother, with a faint jade-like glow.
Most importantly, her ability to absorb spiritual qi during cultivation had increased by at least twenty percent.
"Brother Chu...!"
Ian raised his hand, signaling Sherry not to rush. He accepted a cup of hot tea from Lena Wei, took a sip, and then invited Sherry inside to sit down. “You’ve experienced the effects of the Marrow-Cleansing Pill, haven’t you?” he asked.
"Yes!" Sherry nodded vigorously.
“So, what do you think the Marrow-Cleansing Pill is worth?” Ian asked again.
“At least a hundred thousand taels of gold!” Sherry replied without hesitation.