Hearing Adrian Zhou's rebuke, the Daoist's face darkened even further. Unable to reveal his true identity, he didn't dare use any Phoenix Heaven Church techniques or divine arts.
With that, Elder Grace Foxwell lunged straight at the Daoist.
Thinking of this, he hated Ian Song to death.
The next moment, he took a deep breath and said to Adrian Zhou and the others, "This time, it was my fault. I can swear an oath to never attack Ian Song again. Please, give me another chance!"
After saying this, the Daoist felt stifled inside. For a dignified Immortal, when had he ever been forced to bow and scrape like this?
Because the Daoist was so constrained and couldn't use most of his divine arts, Elder Grace Foxwell landed a heavy punch to his chest within ten exchanges.
Hearing this, the Daoist's face stiffened. Adrian Zhou and the other two elders looked a bit puzzled, not knowing why Ian Song mentioned Marcus Solitude. But Gideon Skyreach glanced meaningfully at Ian—he knew Ian probably suspected the Daoist was Marcus Solitude.
Elder Grace Foxwell strode over and tossed Ian a Storage Ring.
Ian checked—it really held fifteen hundred immortal stones. Startled, he said, "Elder Grace, a hundred is enough for me!"
Elder Grace Foxwell paused and asked. She was always bold—otherwise, she wouldn’t have teased Ian Song when they first met.
Ian replied matter-of-factly, "Of course you have to compensate me. You ambushed me and I almost died. Even if my body wasn't hurt, my spirit suffered major trauma!"
"Then I thank Master, Elder Zhou, Elder Grace, and Elder Chen!" Ian bowed deeply to the four.
Ian continued, "How about this: you pay me a hundred immortal stones, and as for my master and the three elders who took action, they shouldn't work for free, right? At least three hundred immortal stones for each of them!"
The two late-Tribulation experts, hearing Ian try to extort an Immortal, were both impressed and speechless. Inwardly, they thought, this little demon must be born to shake people down.
"Fine!" Marcus Solitude, disguised as the Daoist, gritted his teeth and agreed. He tossed a Storage Ring to Elder Grace Foxwell, but it felt like a knife to his heart—fifteen hundred immortal stones was basically his entire savings. He'd tried to steal a chicken and ended up losing a whole sack of rice.
The mortal realm doesn't produce immortal stones. Immortals like them have to extract and refine them from ambient spiritual energy, and it takes a huge amount of time—three to five years just to make one.
Elder Grace Foxwell checked the Storage Ring and found exactly fifteen hundred immortal stones. Satisfied, she nodded. "He’s pretty straightforward. Now swear on your immortal foundation!"
But Ian just opened his mouth and demanded thirteen hundred immortal stones—that's four or five thousand years of work, completely wasted.
Besides, Immortals usually use the stones they produce for cultivation. For every ten stones they refine, they end up consuming seven or eight themselves. So to save up thirteen hundred immortal stones, it would take tens of thousands of years.
Looking at the furious Daoist, Ian wasn't afraid at all. Instead, he grinned and said to Gideon Skyreach, "Master, judging by his attitude, he clearly doesn't want to pay up. He must think our Phoenix Heaven Church is easy to push around. Why don't we teach him a lesson—beat him until he listens!"
"Young Ian is right. This guy must think us old folks are easy to deal with. We haven't stretched our muscles in ages—let's use him for practice today!"
With that, Linghu Menghua lunged straight at the Daoist.
Nathan Chen and Adrian Zhou didn't attack, but quietly stepped back, keeping a close eye on the Daoist. If he tried to escape, they'd immediately beat him back.
An Immortal-level clash was truly terrifying.
Fortunately, Nathan Chen and Adrian Zhou kept the overflowing energy contained within a small area.
Because the Daoist was so constrained, unable to use many divine arts, within ten moves Linghu Menghua landed a punch to his chest.
"Stop!"
The Daoist forced down the blood rising in his throat and called out, feeling aggrieved. He and Linghu Menghua were evenly matched, but hiding his true strength, he stood no chance at all.
"What now? Willing to hand over the immortal stones?"
Linghu Menghua stopped and asked. He was always bold—otherwise, he wouldn't have teased Ian Song when they first met.
"Elder Linghu, you took another shot—he should pay extra!" Ian shouted.
The other side nodded in agreement. "Young Ian has a point. You can add two hundred more immortal stones!"
Gideon Skyreach shot Ian a look—thanks to Ian's reminder, he'd scrutinized the Daoist and, despite the disguise, had spotted a faint trace. Now he was sure the Daoist was Marcus Solitude.
Even though they were all Phoenix Line elders, the fact that the other side ambushed his disciple made him furious. Since he couldn't really punish him, making him pay up would at least teach a lesson, so he wouldn't make the same mistake again.
"Fine!" Marcus Solitude, disguised as the Daoist, gritted his teeth and agreed. He tossed a Storage Ring to Linghu Menghua, but it felt like a knife to his heart—fifteen hundred immortal stones was almost his entire savings. He'd tried to steal a chicken and lost a whole sack of rice.
Thinking of this, he wanted nothing more than to kill Ian Song.
Linghu Menghua checked the Storage Ring and found exactly fifteen hundred immortal stones. Satisfied, he nodded. "He’s pretty straightforward. Now swear on your immortal foundation!"
Marcus Solitude nodded, released his immortal core, and swore never to attack Ian Song again.
"You can go now, but remember this lesson!" Linghu Menghua warned.
"Thank you for the advice, fellow Immortal!"
The Daoist said coolly, then flew forward. The void here was locked down by their combined power, so he couldn't teleport away.
"What a shame Elder Marcus Solitude and Elder Bloodsun aren't here. If they'd come, they could've scored a few hundred immortal stones as an appearance fee!" Ian said with a grin.
Marcus Solitude, already flying off in the distance, couldn't help but grit his teeth in hatred.
"Gentlemen, thank you both for your escort. You may return now!"
Ian walked up to the two late-Tribulation Fire God Church elders and smiled.
"It's nothing. Protecting Young Lord Ian is our honor!" the two replied, a bit nervously.
"Here, Ian—take it!"
Linghu Menghua strode over and tossed Ian a Storage Ring.
Ian checked—it really held fifteen hundred immortal stones. Startled, he said, "Elder Linghu, a hundred is enough for me!"
"Keep it. We don't need that little bit of immortal stones!" Adrian Zhou said.
"If they say you should keep it, then take it!" Gideon Skyreach added.
"Then I thank Master, Elder Zhou, Elder Linghu, and Elder Chen!" Ian bowed deeply to the four.
"Seniors, Young Lord Ian, we'll take our leave now!"
The two late-Tribulation elders said.
"Wait—take these immortal stones as hazard pay!" Ian tossed ten immortal stones to each of the two Tribulation experts.
"Young Lord Ian, we can't accept this."
The two late-Tribulation elders quickly tried to refuse.
"You deserve it. As the saying goes, those who witness have a share!" Ian said seriously. "If you don't accept, you'll embarrass me!"
"Alright then!"
The two accepted, bowed again, and left. Their opinion of Ian changed: maybe this little demon wasn't so bad after all. Ten immortal stones would do them a lot of good.