Chapter 32: Catch Him
Meng Hao stood beneath the shade of a towering pine tree, the dappled sunlight scattering across his robes like shimmering gold thread. A cool mountain breeze rustled the leaves above, the scent of earth and spirit herbs mingling in the air. Yet amidst this serenity, his eyes gleamed with contemptuous amusement as he gazed at the group of approaching female cultivators.
A cold laugh escaped his lips—low, sharp, and brimming with disdain.
These women... did they truly think they could intimidate him?
Foolish, he thought, shaking his head slightly. Completely and utterly foolish.
Though he had only just stepped into the Golden Core realm and lacked the deeper techniques and spells that came with it, the sheer difference in cultivation alone created an insurmountable chasm between them. These women—two at Foundation Building and the rest still struggling within the Qi Gathering realm—were nothing more than ants in his eyes now. Crushing them would take no more effort than swatting a fly.
And yet, Meng Hao mused, they bark orders with the confidence of wolves.
He found their ignorance somewhat amusing. As a Golden Core cultivator, his spiritual presence naturally exceeded their ability to sense without permission. Unless he actively released his pressure, they had no way of knowing the height of the mountain they dared to climb.
Their arrogance, to him, was laughable.
His eyes casually swept over their uniforms—the embroidered snowflakes upon blue and green robes, the signature of the Jade Ice Palace, a sect renowned for its strict cultivation of ice-attribute techniques. Equal in rank to his own sect, it was backed by a Divine Transformation realm powerhouse, a terrifying figure that even the most prideful sects dared not offend lightly.
These two at Foundation Building must be core disciples, he assessed silently. Wang Mei and her companion Su Mei... If I kill them outright, it may bring unnecessary trouble. It seems the situation calls for delicacy.