"Hey, isn't that A'si Zhou? Have your wounds healed?" a member of the Crimson Tribe stepped forward, blocking their path.
A'si looked at the person blocking the way, his anger instantly flaring. "You dare show your face again, you despicable cowards!"
"Despicable cowards?" The man sneered. "You are nothing but livestock raised by us gods. How dare you insult your masters."
"Livestock?" Jiang Lan's expression turned cold. He looked at the Crimson Tribe members before him, a storm brewing in his eyes. They had endured being reliant on others here, being oppressed and insulted by the natives. They had tolerated it because they were mortals, and these people were gods. But for noble gods to be so despicable, their actions were no different from demons!
"Aren't you? You are merely livestock fed by us gods!" The man reached out and patted Jiang Lan's face. "Livestock should act like livestock. Don't think you can be arrogant just because you have a powerful newcomer among you."
Jiang Lan grabbed the man's hand and applied a slight force. The man yelped in pain. "Pain, pain, pain! Let go, let go!"
Jiang Lan not only didn't let go but increased the force. The man's face contorted in agony as he lashed out, but Jiang Lan easily blocked him.
"Jiang Lan, are you crazy? How dare you attack me!" the man shouted hysterically. "What are you all waiting for? Didn't you see me getting beaten?"
"I'd like to see who dares move!" Jiang Lan released his aura. The few men were stunned. They had never imagined that in just three days, Jiang Lan had broken through the peak of Nascent Soul and entered the Deity Transformation stage!
"You... you've advanced!" The man was also incredulous. The reason Zhongzhou Street had been oppressed for so long was that there hadn't been a Deity Transformation cultivator to anchor them for years. The Heavenly Demon Tribe, on the other hand, had many powerful Deity Transformation cultivators.
"What, are you surprised I advanced?" Jiang Lan sneered. "I have you to thank for this. If you hadn't repeatedly pressured us, we wouldn't have cultivated so diligently, and I wouldn't have advanced in such a short period. Tell me, how should I thank you?"
"Thank me?" The man's eyes darted. "How about giving me the Boundless Purple Crystal?"
Jiang Lan listened and laughed. It seemed these people had been in positions of power for too long and had forgotten how to humble themselves, not even understanding human speech.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, didn't you say you wanted to thank me? Since you want to thank me, give me the Boundless Purple Crystal," the Crimson Tribe man said, his eyes gleaming. If he obtained the Boundless Purple Crystal, Elder Brother Chi would be very pleased.
Jiang Lan laughed for a moment, then suddenly exerted force, dislocating the man's wrist. The man's face turned white with pain. "Jiang Lan, harming a god is a serious crime!"
"So, we all live here, you can arbitrarily bully and kill us, and we can't resist?" Jiang Lan sneered. "Noble gods, you do nothing but burn, kill, and plunder. If I didn't know you were gods, I'd suspect you were demons!"
"You impudent cur! How dare you insult the gods!"
"Bah!" Jiang Lan slapped him to the ground with a resounding smack. "Stop embarrassing the gods here. You are nothing but scum, utterly depraved. It's because of wicked people like you that outsiders are unwilling to believe in the gods!"
The man crawled up, trembling as he pointed at Jiang Lan's face. "Jiang Lan, you're insane, you're insane!"
"I am indeed insane!" Jiang Lan said with a cold laugh. "You've driven me insane. From now on, if anyone dares to bully the people of Zhongzhou Street again, don't blame me for being impolite!"
"Jiang Lan, if the Divine Lord finds out you deliberately caused trouble..."
"Did I deliberately cause trouble?" Jiang Lan asked calmly. "We tolerated your actions again and again, but instead of restraining yourselves, you became even more brazen. Since that's the case, we will no longer retreat an inch!"
Jiang Lan shoved him aside. "Get out of the way!"
The man was knocked to the ground and couldn't get up for a long time. He watched Jiang Lan lead his people away, a mouthful of blood stuck in his throat, neither able to swallow nor spit it out. Zhongzhou Street was inhabited by mortals of low status. Mortals were meant to serve them, the gods, to be their livestock. How dare such mere livestock treat him like this!
"What are you all waiting for? Help me up!" the man roared. "Quick, quickly go find Elder Brother Chi! Jiang Lan has advanced! It must be the work of the Boundless Purple Crystal!"
Jiang Lan led his team out to mine, heading to the same place where the Boundless Purple Crystal had been discovered last time. Chi Yuan also suspected that there might be more Boundless Purple Crystal at the discovery site and was leading his men to search there as well.
"Jiang Lan." Chi Yuan saw Jiang Lan appear and didn't think much of it. However, when he saw Jiang Lan's cultivation, a flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes. "You've advanced?"
"Lord Chi Yuan, long time no see," Jiang Lan greeted with a smile. "Why are you personally leading people out to mine?"
Chi Yuan straightened his body, staring blankly at Jiang Lan. They had met three days ago, and Jiang Lan's cultivation then was only at the late Nascent Soul stage, not even at the peak. How could he have advanced to the Deity Transformation stage in just three days?
"What, did you encounter some great opportunity? You advanced so quickly."
"Oh, it's all thanks to that Boundless Purple Crystal that I could advance so quickly," Jiang Lan said with a beaming smile. "Speaking of which, I must thank Lord Chi Yuan for showing mercy back then."
Chi Yuan's expression shifted through various changes. He asked with a forced smile, "That newcomer, didn't she come out with you?"
"Oh, she stayed at Zhongzhou Street."
"Is that so?" Chi Yuan's smile deepened. "That's a relief."
Chi Yuan suddenly attacked, aiming directly for Jiang Lan's vital points. Fortunately, Jiang Lan had been on guard against Chi Yuan, otherwise, he would have been struck.
"Lord Chi Yuan, what are you doing?"
Chi Yuan's sneak attack failed, but he didn't get angry. He picked up a mining shovel from the side and looked at Jiang Lan coldly. "I didn't intend to kill you, but you insisted on seeking death."
"I don't know what I've done to make Lord Chi Yuan so angry?" Jiang Lan felt a pang of despair. Xiao Man had been right. Once he became a Deity Transformation cultivator, there would no longer be room for him in Zhongzhou Street. The gods outside would never allow Zhongzhou Street to have a Deity Transformation expert. If humans were to become powerful in the territory of the Heavenly Demon Tribe, the Heavenly Demon Tribe would be restless.
"Your mistake was coming to provoke me!" Chi Yuan gave a command, and the rest swarmed forward, surrounding Jiang Lan and his men. "Leave no one alive!"
"Chi Yuan, even if you are a god, deliberately instigating conflict with humans will not be tolerated by the Divine Lord when he finds out."
"Do you think the Divine Lord will protect you?" Chi Yuan sneered endlessly. "The Divine Lord will not protect you livestock!"