"What do you mean?"
The old man in the white robe was confused, and Chen Fan was also in a daze.
Ying Tianqing said nothing, with his hands behind his back, and two enormous black wings suddenly unfurled from his back.
The black peng feathers flowed with a metallic luster under the sunlight.
With a gentle flap of his wings, Ying Tianqing unleashed a fierce gust of wind that tore through the earth and sliced through the clouds drifting in the sky.
The gale was like a great saber piercing the heavens, severing everything in its path!
This sight left the old man in the white robe stunned, and Chen Fan was equally dumbfounded.
Neither master nor disciple could have imagined that Ying Tianqing could achieve this with a mere flutter of his wings.
"Who are you?"
The old man in the white robe trembled all over, his gaze towards Ying Tianqing filled with extreme fear.
Because if that breath had struck him moments ago, he would not have been able to withstand it.
Ying Tianqing had clearly intended to instill fear in him by not harming him directly, but by using such means.
"You are not worthy of knowing who I am."
"I disdain to crush an ant; it would only soil my hands."
"However, turning you into a mortal even less significant than an ant is something I find quite interesting!"
Ying Tianqing spoke calmly, his sharp eyes, like those of a falcon, narrowed slightly. The old man in the white robe's body involuntarily drifted towards Ying Tianqing.
The old man in the white robe struggled to break free, exerting all his might, but felt his body was no longer his own, utterly powerless.
This was too terrifying; in front of Ying Tianqing, he had lost all ability to resist.
Heavens!
What in the world was happening?
The old man in the white robe was panicked, and Chen Fan was equally clueless about the unfolding events.
"Master, why are you being so polite to him? Just slap him to death!"
Chen Fan urged impatiently.
Little did the old man in the white robe want to slap Ying Tianqing to death, but he truly couldn't. His body was no longer his own!
Soon, the old man in the white robe floated before Ying Tianqing.
Ying Tianqing extended his palm, probed the old man's dantian, and extracted a golden core.
As the golden core was removed, the old man in the white robe was like a soul drained, instantly losing his imposing aura.
He seemed to age by more than ten years in an instant, wrinkles suddenly filling his entire face!
Having crippled the old man's cultivation, Ying Tianqing no longer bothered with such trash.
With a wave of his large hand, a blast of air sent the old man's limp body flying backward.
Seeing this, Chen Fan rushed forward and caught the hurtling old man.
"Master, what's wrong? Don't scare me!"
Chen Fan looked at his aged master, still completely unaware of what had transpired.
But he could tell that his master was in a sorry state, appearing like a decrepit old man.
Not only had he lost his former imposing aura as a Nascent Soul expert, but his complexion was also sallow.
"Xiao Fan, this fellow is not human. He is a demon, a great demon god."
"My golden core, cultivated for a hundred years, was taken by him. I am now a cripple!"
The old man in the white robe's cloudy eyes were filled with unprecedented terror and regret.
He had spent his entire life cultivating to the Nascent Soul stage,
all for the sake of being above everyone else.
Now, in just one encounter, Ying Tianqing had crippled his cultivation.
Who could comprehend such a dramatic shift in his fortunes?
Tears streamed down the old man's face, his regret over his lost cultivation so profound it gnawed at him.
If he had known Ying Tianqing was so terrifying, he would never have provoked or challenged him.
It was over; everything was over!
"Master, you... you've become a cripple? You're not joking, are you?"
Chen Fan could not accept such a devastating blow.
The fact that Ying Tianqing could so easily cripple his master's cultivation made him truly divine!
"Little brat, your master is not joking. The person before you is Ying Tianqing, the Demon Emperor from ten thousand years ago, my Elder Brother Qing."
"Let alone your master being in the Nascent Soul stage, even immortals are like ants before my Elder Brother Qing!"
Duan Liang stepped forward, laughing so hard tears streamed from his eyes.
The more the old man in the white robe had rejoiced, the more he was now weeping bitterly. He deserved it!
"What? The Demon Emperor Ying Tianqing?"
Chen Fan was incredulous, deeply shaken by the title.
The old man in the white robe was also stunned and bewildered.
"Master, what's the background of the Demon Emperor? I've never heard of him!"
Chen Fan, unfamiliar with figures from ten thousand years ago, could only ask his master.
The old man in the white robe, as if seeing a ghost, frantically urged, "Xiao Fan, quickly kneel and beg for mercy, beg the Demon Emperor not to kill us!"
"You must understand, the Demon Emperor Ying Tianqing was a prominent figure who dominated the Three Realms ten thousand years ago. Even the Heavenly Emperor had to treat him with caution!"
Upon hearing this.
Chen Fan felt as if struck by lightning.
Even if he didn't know about the Demon Emperor, he knew what the Heavenly Emperor was!
That was the ruler of the Immortal Realm, an existence that all cultivators aspired to reach.
"Lord Demon Emperor, we were wrong. We, master and disciple, did not know it was you. We beg you to spare our lives!"
Chen Fan knelt and begged for mercy, kowtowing repeatedly, not feeling the pain as his head bled.
Ying Tianqing truly had no interest in trash; even their pleas for mercy disgusted him.
He simply turned his back, refusing to look at these clowns.
Chen Fan, thinking Ying Tianqing intended to spare them, desperately implored Lin Feng, "Brother Lin Feng, you have a good relationship with the Demon Emperor. Please speak up for us, master and disciple!"
"I was wrong. I should never have opposed you. As long as you help me, I will give you anything."
Chen Fan pleaded.
"If you knew this day would come, why act so rashly in the first place? Chen Fan, I warned you before not to provoke Elder Brother Ying, but you didn't listen!"
Lin Feng sneered and also turned his back.
"Oh my, let this Daoist take charge for Elder Brother Qing. Little Brother Lin Feng, use the Underworld Demonic Jar to capture the master and disciple; quickly, don't let Elder Brother Qing be disgusted."
Duan Liang, sensing Ying Tianqing's disinterest in mere ants, winked at Lin Feng.
Lin Feng, understanding Duan Liang's subtle intentions, smiled and, in coordination, took out the Underworld Demonic Jar and captured Chen Fan and the old man in the white robe.
After the master and disciple were ensnared within the jar, Ying Tianqing finally turned around and gazed at Lin Feng and Duan Liang, saying, "You two have finished your act; do you no longer need me as your umbrella?"
"Elder Brother Qing, we weren't acting; it was just a coincidence. These master and disciple came to seek revenge from us and accidentally ran into you."
Duan Liang explained.
"Do you take me for a fool? You two are trying to play tricks on me, and I can't see through it?"
Ying Tianqing chuckled; having lived for ten thousand years, there was nothing he couldn't comprehend.
This was all planned by Duan Liang and Lin Feng, to anger the master and disciple, making them proactively court death by offending him.
Lin Feng and Duan Liang, meanwhile, were content to watch the conflict unfold, seizing the opportunity to capture this master and disciple.