Fantasy: I Am the Villain.

Chapter Forty-Eight: Appearance

Ding Chunqiu pretended to be no match for You Tanzhi, and moved toward Azi's position while fighting. Azi's eyes were blinded by his poison, so she naturally did not dodge.

Suddenly, taking advantage of You Tanzhi's inattention, Ding Chunqiu grabbed A Zi, who was standing by excitedly listening to the commotion on the field, with one claw.

Forcibly restraining the struggling Azi, Ding Chunqiu wiped her face, took a deep breath, and chuckled:

"Oh my! What a lovely young beauty! She's so young and already knows how to seduce men?"

As they were talking, Ding Chunqiu grabbed Azi by the neck and said, "Tell me! You little bitch, where did you hide the Divine Wood King Cauldron?"

"If you tell me, I won't hold it against you for secretly teaching me Xingxiu Sect martial arts. Otherwise, you know the rules of my Xingxiu Sect."

Seeing his daughter being restrained by Ding Chunqiu, Duan Zhengchun became anxious and quickly said, "Hey! Ding Chunqiu, put down the girl in your hands first. Let's talk slowly. Don't hurt her."

Ding Chunqiu looked at Duan Zhengchun with a strange expression. "So it's Prince Duan of Dali. What? You've taken a fancy to this girl too?"

After saying that, he chuckled lewdly and looked at the voluptuous Ruan Xingzhu beside Duan Zhengchun. "Everyone says that Prince Duan is quite lucky with women, but I didn't expect you to have such a taste?"

Duan Zhengchun's face darkened. Not wanting to get entangled with this shameless old man, he said urgently, "Enough nonsense, Ding Chunqiu, what do you want in return for releasing the girl in your hands?"

Seeing Duan Zhengchun's anxious face, Ding Chunqiu smiled strangely and said with feigned distress, "I don't know where this little Azi has hidden my Divine Wood King Cauldron, and I'm very worried..."

Duan Zhengchun hurriedly said, "Okay, you can put the girl down first, and I will naturally send the Divine Wood Cauldron to you afterwards."

Ding Chunqiu's face turned cold. "Prince Duan's words are utterly insincere. How can I return this little girl to you if you don't hand over the Divine Wood Cauldron?"

Duan Zhengchun was furious. "Ding Chunqiu, you old scoundrel! Only Azi knows the whereabouts of your Divine Wood King Cauldron. If you don't return it to me, how can I find it for you?"

"That's Duan Wangye's business! All I want is the Divine Wood King Cauldron. If the cauldron comes, this girl will be yours. If the cauldron doesn't come..." Ding Chunqiu sneered, as if he had Duan Zhengchun completely under his control.

Before Duan Zhengchun could reply, You Tanzhi loudly answered, "If I retrieve the Divine Wood King Cauldron for you, will you return Azi to me?"

Ding Chunqiu glanced disdainfully at You Tanzhi, who was hesitant to act rashly, and replied lazily, "Oh? And who are you? Hiding your face like this doesn't seem like the behavior of a gentleman."

The old immortal Xingxiu's behavior, coupled with his disdain for others' lack of gentlemanly conduct, drew laughter from the crowd. Seeing his leader being ridiculed, Quan Guanqing quickly spoke up:

"Quiet down! So that all the martial arts heroes present may know that this is the new leader of our Beggars' Sect, Zhuang Juxian, Leader Zhuang."

You Tanzhi released his aura at the right moment and nodded to the crowd before turning around and staring intently at Ding Chunqiu.

Ding Chunqiu looked at You Tanzhi and exclaimed in sudden realization, "Oh...! So you are the new leader of the Beggars' Sect. But why do you use the martial arts of my Xingxiu Sect? Did you steal them?"

Those present already disapproved of the Beggars' Sect's swift replacement of its leader after driving away Qiao Feng. Upon hearing this, they began to murmur amongst themselves, pointing and whispering at You Tanzhi.

You Tanzhi, seemingly unconcerned, repeatedly asked Ding Chunqiu, "I have found the Divine Wood King Cauldron for you, are you willing to return Azi to me?"

Ding Chunqiu smiled sinisterly, "That won't do. I only made those conditions out of respect for Prince Duan." As he spoke, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture toward Duan Zhengchun.

Duan Zhengchun snorted coldly, his face displeased, ignoring Ding Chunqiu's flattery. Ding Chunqiu, unperturbed, turned to You Tanzhi and said:

"As for you! So what if you stole my Xingxiu Sect's martial arts? Hmm? You want me to release Azi? You're dreaming!"

You Tanzhi was extremely anxious and wanted to rush forward to snatch Azi back, but he was afraid that something might happen to Azi, so he could only humbly ask Ding Chunqiu how he could release Azi.

Ding Chunqiu stroked his long beard, looked towards where the Beggars' Sect members were, and said with a sinister smile, "I heard that your Beggars' Sect wants to challenge Shaolin and win the title of Martial Arts Alliance Leader."

"But you clearly use the martial arts style of my Xingxiu Sect, so how can you be considered a disciple of the Beggars' Sect? Why don't you leave the Beggars' Sect and join my sect?"

When the Beggars' Sect disciples and elders heard Ding Chunqiu say this, they immediately became indignant and started to clamor. The demons and monsters of the Starry Constellation Sect were naturally not to be outdone, and the scene became quite chaotic.

Ding Chunqiu coughed a few times disdainfully and said to the Beggars' Sect members, "You say he is the leader of the Beggars' Sect, but does your sect's leader know the secret Twenty-Eight Subduing Dragon Palms of your Beggars' Sect?"

The Beggars' Sect fell silent. Qiao Feng had been forced away by them. Where did he get the inheritance of the Twenty-Eight Subduing Dragon Palms?

Seeing that the Beggars' Sect members were speechless, Ding Chunqiu stroked his long beard triumphantly and said to You Tanzhi:

"How about it? As long as you become my disciple, respect me as your master, and kill that old bald monk Xuanci of Shaolin on my behalf, I will return Little Azi to you. What do you say?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene erupted into chaos. Not to mention how indignant the Beggars' Sect disciples were, clamoring to slaughter the entire Xingxiu Sect.

Even the martial arts heroes who were watching the show couldn't stand it anymore. Abbot Xuanci was fair and just, and had a good reputation in the martial arts world, earning him a great deal of respect from people in the Jianghu.

Ding Chunqiu's instigation of Zhuang Juxian to assassinate Abbot Xuanci immediately provoked public outrage, with many accusing Ding Chunqiu of being a treacherous villain.

Ding Chunqiu didn't take it to heart, just smiled and stared at You Tanzhi in front of him, completely ignoring the insults and accusations directed at him by the crowd.

You Tanzhi turned around and looked at Quan Guanqing and the others who were cursing Ding Chunqiu, then looked at Azi, who was struggling in pain in Ding Chunqiu's hands, and slowly replied, "I...agree!"

As soon as You Tanzhi said this, the room fell silent, and everyone stared incredulously at You Tanzhi, who was kneeling on one knee in front of Ding Chunqiu.

This is truly an extraordinary event; it's the first time they've ever seen a sect leader from another school join another's sect. It's a truly remarkable thing!

The Beggars' Clan members' faces turned as black as charcoal. They had just lost face in front of their fellow martial artists, but no one cared about their feelings anymore.

Just as You Tanzhi was about to get up and challenge Xuan Ci, a series of rapid hoofbeats came, and the group crossed the open space and stopped to the side.

One of them leaped up, cursing "Disgraceful!" and then passed over the group of beggars to reach Ding Chunqiu's head.

He exchanged a palm strike with Ding Chunqiu from a distance, causing Ding Chunqiu to stagger back several steps. He then reached out and scooped A Zi into his arms.