24 Confrontation

Just as both sides were refusing to back down, a clamor arose from the back of the crowd. "Let us through! Let us through!" Several other Qingsha pupils pushed through the people and came to stand beside the first Qingsha pupil.

"Junior brother Zhu, what's going on?" asked a man who looked slightly older than the rest.

Seeing that his sect brothers were now here, the Qingsha pupil with last name Zhu immediately became even more arrogant. "Senior brother Lu, it's their fault! First the girl ran into me and almost pushed me to the ground, then she refused to apologize when I asked, and now the guy is insulting me!"

"Stop twisting the truth!" Wang Jingyuan was this close to rushing out and beating some sense into the Qingsha pupil's dense head. "You ran into me, not the other way around!"

"See, senior brother Lu? She's lying!" The Qingsha pupil with last name Zhu pointed at Wang Jingyuan accusingly.

"Since you're his senior brother, I suggest you teach him some manners." Mo Xian spoke up coldly. "Or does your sect let your pupils run wild, sprouting lies and harming innocent people?"

"We Qingsha Sect have our own sect rules. It's none of your business as an outsider to discipline our pupils!" Another Qingsha pupil retorted.

"That's right! That's right!"

"Justice for junior brother Zhu!" The rest of the pupils began chanting.

The Qingsha pupil who bumped into Wang Jingyuan looked at them triumphantly, as if to say, I have my entire sect behind my back. Who's behind yours?

"Wow. I always heard that Qingsha Sect was one of the major sects in the martial arts sector, but seeing you in person today has greatly disappointed me. Qingsha Sect can't even compare with the smaller sects who value virtue and honor above all else." Mo Xian sniffed disdainfully. Wang Jingyuan watched gleefully as all six Qingsha pupil's face turned sour.

"What sect are you from? For sure some tiny sect that popped up in a farm somewhere, right?" One of the pupils jeered. Mo Xian looked at Wang Jingyuan out of the corner of his eye. Her eyebrows were standing up in anger.

"Like my friend said, brutes like you do not need to know, and do not deserve to know, who I am and which sect I am from. You will dirty our name if you hear it." Wang Jingyuan seethed. Several onlookers in the crowd hooted in approval.

"I think you're looking for death!" A couple of the hotheaded pupils unsheathed their swords halfway. The crowd gasped and drew back, leaving a large ring of empty space for the Qingsha pupils, Wang Jingyuan, and Mo Xian.

Wang Jingyuan grabbed the hilt of her sword with her right hand. She didn't unsheathe it, but Mo Xian could see that her knuckles were white from gripping it so hard. "Don't make me fight you," Wang Jingyuan warned. "I don't want to dirty my blade with the likes of you."

"Hey, this girlie is pretty feisty. Why don't you come and play with me?" One of the pupils pulled out his sword fully and prepared to charge. Just as Wang Jingyuan was about to unsheathe her sword, Mo Xian placed a hand on hers and stopped her. He shook his head slightly at her. If she showed her sword, her cover will be blown.

"No one will be fighting today. There are too many civilians around, and I'm worried that your skills are not polished enough where you can avoid accidentally hurting an innocent," Mo Xian said firmly. "Besides, why should we speak with weapons like uncivilized savages when we can just settle this peacefully with you apologizing?"

"You want me to apologize? In your dreams!" The Qingsha pupil with last name Zhu laughed in Mo Xian's face. Wang Jingyuan didn't understand how Mo Xian could be so calm and collected. She wanted to just bust out Song of Phoenix and make all of these arrogant thugs eat dirt in front of all of Pingkang. That would teach them for being rude.

The pupil who was addressed as "senior brother Lu" finally spoke up. "There are indeed too many civilians around. We don't want any trouble either."

wE dOn'T wAnT aNy tRoUbLe eIThEr, Wang Jingyuan mocked him in her brain.

"Why don't both parties take a step back and compromise? I will have my junior brother apologize for bumping into the miss, and you can apologize for insulting him. How does that sound?" He gestured at Mo Xian for the last part.

"Senior Brother Lu, why do I have to apologize?!" The pupil with last name Zhu did not think this was a good idea. His senior brother shot him a look.

"When we left, shifu clearly told you to stop getting in trouble. We are here to look for Luo Qingye's last disciple and go to the Hero Assembly, not fight in the middle of the street!"

Mo Xian saw Wang Jingyuan pale. She had told him that Qingsha Sect was looking for her, and this pupil just said they were looking for Luo Qingye's last disciple, whoever Luo Qingye was. He put two and two together and figured that Wang Jingyuan's mentor must be this Luo Qingye.

The senior brother turned his attention back to the people standing in front of him. His piercing gaze swept over a calm Mo Xian and landed on Wang Jingyuan. "Miss, why does your expression not look so good?"

All the Qingsha pupils' gazes landed on Wang Jingyuan. Mo Xian once again casually blocked her from their view. "You've seen how your junior brother has upset my friend. I think it's about time he apologized. In return, I will apologize for my insults earlier."

The senior brother nudged his junior brother. "Hurry up. Apologize."

"Senior brother Lu—"

"Now!"

The Qingsha pupil glared at Mo Xian and Wang Jingyuan with pure hatred. "Fine. I'm sorry for running into you earlier. There, happy now?"

His apology did not sound sincere at all, but Mo Xian was too lazy to press on. "And I am sorry for insulting you. Now if you'll excuse us, it has been a long day and we will be heading back to our inn now."

He took Wang Jingyuan's arm and began walking with her past the Qingsha pupils. The crowd parted to let them pass.

"Wait a minute!" The Qingsha senior brother's voice sounded again. Mo Xian and Wang Jingyuan turned around.

"What else do you want?" Mo Xian asked, a hint of irritation and impatience creeping into his voice. He knew that Wang Jingyuan was uncomfortable around these people, and he wanted to get her out of their sight and to safety as soon as possible.

"Miss, could you let us look at your sword? The gold design seems familiar." The Qingsha senior brother pointed toward Feng Ming Sword.

Wang Jingyuan looked down. Darn it! As she moved to unsheathe her sword earlier, the cloth had slipped away from the hilt. One golden wing of the phoenix was now revealed for all to see.