From the fake emperor to the concubine

Zhang Yunfan's movements were extremely fast and sudden; only Zheng Yi sensed them before he made his move.

With a crisp clang.

The greatsword struck a shield.

These two guys are clearly veterans; they've prepared quite thoroughly.

The shield shattered instantly, and the guy who had been lying on the ground pretending to be dead jumped up.

"Holy crap! My protective magic artifact is broken. You've really gone all out, kid."

This man was truly terrified; if it weren't for the protective artifact that blocked it, that attack would have killed him instantly.

The woman who was crying stopped and stared blankly at Zhang Yunfan.

They've been in this line of work for so long, they've seen all sorts of people, countless in number.

The moment the woman saw Zhang Yunfan, she thought he was a naive young cultivator who was easy to fool.

Unexpectedly, this time they ran into a brick wall.

This kid looks silly on the surface, but he actually has such ruthless methods.

Upon discovering that it was indeed a honey trap, Zhang Yunfan immediately distanced himself from the two men and raised his large sword as a precaution.

"Seniors, I had no intention of making things difficult for you. I only attacked you to save someone."

"Since this is a misunderstanding, I'll leave now, and we can go our separate ways."

Zheng Yi originally thought that, given this kid's temper, he would definitely fight these two damn swindlers to the death.

As it turns out, this stubborn, unruly boy also has such a smooth side.

"You call yourself a righteous man? These two bastards openly run honey trap scams. I don't know how many people have died at their hands. Aren't you going to be a righteous hero and avenge them?"

While keeping a wary eye on the couple, Zhang Yunfan explained to Zheng Yi through his sea of ​​consciousness.

"Senior, the reason I want to save people is simply because I can't bear to see anyone in danger."

"We cultivators are inherently fighting against the Great Dao and forcibly defying fate."

"I believe that in the process of spiritual practice, whatever you encounter is simply your fate."

"They are all cultivators, and they should be responsible for their own lives. Being deceived and thus dying is simply their own karma."

Zheng Yi was a bit dumbfounded. While this kid's views were still somewhat naive, they were definitely far superior to those of many cultivators at his level.
Most importantly, this kid is both strict with himself and lenient with others.

Looking at the entire Zheng family, probably only that kid Zheng Hui can compare to Zhang Yunfan.

Such talent should absolutely not be let go.

"There's something I'm curious about," Zheng Yi said, feigning indifference. "Why did you join the Zheng family?"

The two communicated very quickly in their minds. Although they seemed to say a lot, in reality it only took a breath or two.

The male cultivator who was pretending to be dead quickly checked Zhang Yunfan's cultivation level.

Upon discovering that the other party was merely a Qi Refining stage cultivator, his eyes immediately filled with murderous intent.

"You little bastard, you ruined our plans and you think you can just leave? If it weren't for you, how could my protective magic artifact have been damaged?"

"Hand over all your spirit stones, magic weapons, and magical treasures right now. Maybe we can spare your life. Otherwise, this time next year will be your death day."

The alluring woman had completely shed her pitiful appearance and giggled, saying, "Little benefactor, I advise you to do as he says. He's not a soft-hearted man. There are at least a thousand, if not eight hundred, cultivators who have died at his hands."

As she spoke, she winked at Zhang Yunfan, looking extremely alluring.

"It's not worth risking your life for a little bit of material possessions, is it?"

Although Zheng Yi was very satisfied with all of Zhang Yunfan's reactions, he still wanted to see how the kid would handle the current situation.

He sneered, "You'd better clean this up yourself, kid. Don't expect me to help you with the aftermath."

"By the way, I have to remind you. These two guys who are trying to scam you, although they're just small fry, are much stronger than you."

"That man is definitely no weaker than the ink monster you just killed. If you try hard enough, you might be able to die with some dignity."

Zheng Yi's words were full of teasing.

Although the monster was quite intelligent, it was still just a monster after all.

When cultivation levels are roughly equal, human cultivators are far more difficult to deal with than monsters.

His attempt to attract the monster's attention by throwing the greatsword into the air was definitely not going to work.

Zhang Yunfan did not answer Zheng Yi, but stared intently at the male cultivator, wary of him making a sudden move.

“Senior, your strength is indeed greater than mine. But I will fight to the death. Even if I can’t defeat you, I can still self-destruct my dantian before I die and take everything on my body with me.”

"In the end, the two seniors will have worked hard for half a day, but they won't have gained anything. Wouldn't that be a waste of time?"

"It was indeed I who ruined the good deed of the two seniors this time. For this, I am willing to offer half of my wealth, forty-two low-grade spirit stones, two mid-grade spirit stones, and eleven Star Gathering Grasses as my reward for risking my life."

"If you two let me go, I will immediately offer these things to you with both hands."

The female cultivator's smile remained unchanged: "Oh my, I didn't realize you were so wealthy, young man."

The male cultivator flatly refused: "Absolutely not! You destroyed my protective magic artifact. Do you think you can get rid of me with this piece of junk?"

Zhang Yunfan said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "Senior, please don't scare me. I am just a Qi Refining stage cultivator. Even with my full-force attack, I was able to destroy your protective magic artifact. This shows how powerful your protective magic artifact is..."

Before he could finish speaking, the male cultivator's face had already turned blood red.

To avoid provoking the other party, Zhang Yunfan did not continue: "This is my suggestion, and it is the limit I can accept."

"You can either gain half the benefits, or simply kill me and get nothing in return. The choice is entirely up to you two seniors."

Although Zhang Yunfan performed well, Zheng Yi felt that his solution still had some flaws.

However, he didn't show it. Through their interactions over this period, Zheng Yi felt that this kid shouldn't have such a big flaw.

The two cultivators involved in the honey trap exchanged glances. Clearly, they were communicating.

After a while, the male cultivator snorted coldly and said unwillingly, "Very good, I haven't seen such a courageous young cultivator in a long time. Someone like you has unlimited potential for the future, it's a bit of a pity that you died so quietly."

“I’ll take a loss, consider it a chance to make friends. You hand over half of the resources, and you can leave now.” Zhang Yunfan said expressionlessly, “In that case, thank you very much, senior.”

As he spoke, he took out the item he had promised earlier, wrapped it simply with a piece of cloth, and began to slowly back away.

Just as he took a step back, the male cultivator shouted sternly, "Stop! You can leave if you want, but leave your things behind."

The female cultivator's smile faded considerably: "Young brother, isn't that a bit unfair of you? You agreed to leave your things behind, do you really want to take them with you?"

Zhang Yunfan immediately stopped in his tracks: "You two seniors have misunderstood. Since I made a promise, of course I will keep it."

"However, I am now so close to you two seniors. If you want to go back on your word after taking the things, wouldn't I be like a fish on a chopping board?"

The expressions of the two people opposite each other changed slightly at the same time, clearly indicating that Zhang Yunfan had guessed their thoughts.

The reason their emotions were so readily apparent was that Zhang Yunfan's face was simply too deceptive.

No matter how you look at it, he seems like a simple-minded, honest boy who doesn't know the dangers of the world.

That's why she was so surprised when Zhang Yunfan guessed her thoughts.

Only Zheng Yi could see that since discovering the problem with these two people, Zhang Yunfan, although not as strong as them, had been in control of the situation.

In contrast, the other two who tried to extort money were clearly stronger than Zhang Yunfan, yet they were constantly being led by the nose by him.

"So what do you mean by that? You're not thinking you'll give us the stuff once you're in a safe place, are you?"

Do you take us for children who know nothing?

Zhang Yunfan slowly shook his head: "Of course it's not that bad, but I can't possibly give the things to you two right now."

As he spoke, he pointed to a huge rock about three hundred paces away.

"Please, seniors, stay where you are. When I get to that spot, I will put the things down and untie the bundle so you can see what's inside."

"After that, as long as the two seniors stand still for ten breaths, and the junior moves to a completely different position, he can naturally come and get the things."

"During this process, if the two seniors make any moves, the junior will naturally have time to come back and destroy these things, so that the two of them will gain nothing."

"What do you two think of my suggestion?"

The two discussed it in hushed tones for a while, and in the end, they actually accepted the proposal.

"Alright, you're really shrewd, kid. We've got our comeuppance this time. Leave the stuff here and get out of here."

"Thank you!" Zheng Yunfan stepped back warily, not daring to relax for a moment.

Don't be fooled by how generous the other person seems.

But what kind of good person would be capable of setting up a honey trap?
Zhang Yunfan was certain that if he revealed even the slightest weakness, these two would never let go of the opportunity to kill him.

Only after retreating to the chosen boulder did Zhang Yunfan secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

Untie the bundle containing those things so that the two men can see what's inside.

At this moment, Zheng Yi said jokingly, "I can help you with a little trick. With those two guys' cultivation levels, they wouldn't be able to tell that I've tampered with anything, even if you beat them to death."

"These things, you must have accumulated them through countless life-and-death struggles. Are you really willing to just give them to two scumbags who set you up like this?"

Zhang Yunfan didn't even hesitate for a moment: "No need. Since I have made a promise, I will never go back on it, no matter who they are."

"Tch, hopelessly stubborn." Zheng Yi seemed to be disgusted, but in reality, he was extremely satisfied with Zhang Yunfan.

They are flexible yet principled, and can maintain their childlike innocence no matter who they are dealing with.

To be honest, Zheng Yi had always thought that such a person could only exist in fantasy.

After putting his things down, Zhang Yunfan waved to the two cultivators and then decisively turned and left.

Less than two breaths after he left, the two cultivators broke their agreement and both unleashed their power to catch up with Zhang Yunfan.

Zheng Yi knew that the reason they did this was because they believed that with their strength, they could kill Zhang Yunfan while obtaining the items.

If Zhang Yunfan wanted to come back and destroy those things now, he couldn't possibly be faster than them; it would be tantamount to courting death.

These two have pushed their speed to the limit.

In the span of two breaths, with Zhang Yunfan's cultivation level, he definitely couldn't run very far.

Therefore, even though Zhang Yunfan disappeared behind the boulder in the blink of an eye, they were not too anxious.

What the two of them didn't know was that after Zhang Yunfan ran behind the boulder, he didn't go very far.

He hid in a corner of the boulder, chanted a few incantations, and quickly merged into the boulder, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

Zheng Yi whistled in Zhang Yunfan's mind: "So that's what you were planning, kid. Interesting."

"Those two idiots were completely fooled by you."

Zheng Yi had already noticed the flaw in Zhang Yunfan's proposal.

Those two people were far more powerful than Zhang Yunfan. In the three hundred steps and a few breaths, it was impossible for him to leave them far behind.

It turns out that this kid never intended to run away; he just wanted to catch these two in the dark.

The two of them never imagined that Zhang Yunfan, a mere Qi Refining cultivator, would dare to do such a thing right under their noses.

Zhang Yunfan had just hidden himself when two figures leaped over the boulder and appeared where he had been standing.

In order to catch up with Zhang Yunfan as quickly as possible, the two guys didn't even bother to get those things first.

Unfortunately, no matter how fast they were, they couldn't match Zhang Yunfan's ability to hide on the spot.

Their view was empty; there was no sign of Zhang Yunfan.

The male cultivator gritted his teeth and cursed, "Damn it, that brat still got away."

The female cultivator clenched her fists and said in a sweet voice, "It's all that boy's fault for looking so deceptive. I thought he was just a clueless idiot, but I never expected him to be such a master of playing dumb."

Just then, a fine layer of cold sweat appeared on the male cultivator's forehead: "You know, this kid is so shrewd, could he be the reincarnation of that old monster? We've offended such a powerful character, what if he grows stronger in the future?"

Compared to his worry, the female cultivator was quite calm: "What's the big deal? If someone is really that powerful, they wouldn't bother with small fry like us."

"Even if he really holds a grudge," the female cultivator scoffed, "the worst that can happen is death. What's there to be afraid of?" (End of Chapter)