Road to Mastery: A LitRPG Apocalypse

Chapter 382: Elder Boatman

Heavenstar almost swallowed his tongue in surprise. Boatman was just too domineering! Not only did he make zero concessions, he directly threatened Ocean! This was lunacy!

Consider this well, Boatman! he sent into the other Elders mind but got no response.

Oceans face was warped in anger and humiliation. How nice! Like master, like disciple! I want to see just how long youll support your claims for!

For as long as I want, Boatman replied, still with the same calmness as before. You think you are above the law, above propriety. Let me tell you this; in the cultivation world, power is all that matters. Since you dare to insult and challenge me, how about you take one of my attacks first?

Elder Ocean wanted to explode. He had never been so humiliated in his life. These were the exact words hed used against Jack before, and now Boatman had tossed them in his face. It was the second time in a few minutes this happened.

In this world, there was nothing more aggravating than having your own words used against you!

Moreover, he couldnt even retort! He was a mighty A-Grade, but compared to Boatman, he was nothing but trash! He really didnt think he could take a single attack!

All disciples, regardless of faction, were shocked. As for the Church cultivators, they burst with excitement. Just seeing an A-Grade cultivator was already extremely rare; seeing two of them argue so overbearingly was just unheard of!

As for Heavenstar, he was already sweating bullets. In his opinion, Boatman was going way too far. This wasnt just slapping Oceans face; he was directly dragging that face into the dirt and stomping it for fun.

He was leaving no room for retreat at all!

Heavenstar glanced at Purity just in time to see her disappear. She reappeared beside Ocean and faintly ahead of him, her pressure rising to meet Boatmans. For a moment, every inch of space within sight was a battlefield. Half the world turned white, the other black. Their two powers mixed like fire and watercompletely unreconcilable!

Many people assumed that life and death were opposites. That was not the case. Those two were part of the same cycle, each completing the other. The true opposite to life and death was a bleached, perfectly clean world where nothing could survivewhich was precisely Puritys domain!

Elder Ocean re-ignited his aura as well. Heavenstar sighed and appeared beside Boatman, he too unleashing his pressure. The entire world became a battlefield between A-Grades. Everyone else was equally excited and horrifiedif the Elders actually came to blows, every single disciple present would perish in the aftermath.

As for Jack, he stood right behind Boatman, enduring no pressure at all. He seemed relaxed; his mind, however, was tense. The only reason hed acted so wildly before was that Boatman had telepathically promised to protect him.

However, even Jack hadnt expected Elder Boatman to be so damn domineering. The moment hed appeared, hed escalated wildly and shown zero consideration for anyone. He was as bold as Jack!

Even now, when the balance was so delicate, Elder Boatman hadnt considered giving away Jack for even a moment. The auras of the Elders struggled for a few moments, no side coming out on top.

Why do you insist so much? Purity asked. He is just a disciple. If you let us have him, I can kill any of my own to make it up to you.

Her own disciples drew cold gasps, especially the stronger ones. Shed just directly sold them out!

No, Boatman flat-out refused. His aura didnt feel particularly stronger than Puritys; he just didnt give a damn.

However, as their auras were still warring, Boatmans darkness gained a very slight edge. One had to look very closely to see it, but all Elders naturally noticed it.

Then, how do you want to resolve this? Purity asked, taking a mental step back.

Your disciple harmed mine. My disciple harmed yours. Let everything be resolved.

He was proposing to just forget about everything. Even Purity frowned. Shed already taken a step back, but Boatman remained so resolutely domineering. My disciples insulted no Elder, she replied. Injuries are nothing, but honor is important. There is no balance here.

Boatman chuckled, a hoarse, grating sound. I am the old one, but it is your vision that is blurry. Did Ocean not suppress, threaten, and attack my disciple? Was that not an insult of my honor? Or do you think that my honor is worth less than his?

Ocean was only reacting. It was your disciple that instigated this. Moreover, he is not even your personal disciple; in such a direct matter, Ocean had no need to consult you before acting as he saw fit.

He is not my personal disciple? Hehe, lets see. Boatman turned around, showing his back to Purity and facing Jack. Jack Rust. Do you want to be my disciple?

Jack never in a thousand years expected to be asked anything. Moreover, Elder Boatman, this unfathomably powerful figure, had just asked him to be his disciple. This was not just referring to being part of the same faction. It was an offer of forming a direct master-disciple relationship.

What could he even say? Okay, he responded, short-circuiting a little, and Elder Boatman turned back to the other Elders.

He is my disciple, he said. Ocean directly acted against my personal disciple in my presence.

Purity was speechless for a moment. Everyone was. This was all too sudden, too dangerous. One wrong move here could spark an all-out war between the factions, and Boatman was just being wildly unreasonable?

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Finally, Purity said, Even you cannot act like this, Boatman. He clearly just became your disciple. He was not before. Ocean did nothing wrong. Your argument is invalid.

Not invalid, just lessened, Boatman replied. Of course, attacking my almost-disciple is not the same as attacking my disciple. Our side insulted yours more heavily. However, I am stronger than Ocean, so my honor is worth more. Balance is achieved. The two insults cancel out. Unless you want to fight me here, you had best accept this and we can all return to our seats. Otherwise, not only will you fail to achieve any compensation, but it will be me pushing for Ocean to compensate my disciple!

Elder Boatman just didnt give a shit about anyone. In his words, the sharp insults of Jack against Ocean were the same as Ocean insulting Boatman by attacking someone who later became his disciple.

Even Jack could only call this unreasonable!

However, the world revolved around strength. And, at the end of the day, it was the Hand of God side that started everything by having Sassa purposefully injure the Church cultivators.

The Elders remained at a tense impasse for some time. Everyone held their breath. Boatman was clearly a lunatic, so if the Hand of God didnt relent now, things might really come down to a battle. That would easily kill every disciple present, and what an unjust death it would be.

The minutes flowed on, nobody giving ground. Finally, Purity spoke up. Your words are not reasonable, but they are not unreasonable, either. Since the truth is unclear, let us not pursue this issue further. Otherwise, if we really escalate a C-Grades running mouth to this degree, we will become the laughingstock of the universe.

Well said! Heavenstar hurried to respond before Boatman could say anything further. Our two major factions may not be allied, but we have a long history of working together for hidden realms such as this. Ruining such a grand event over a few errand words would really be unjust.

With that, the Elders slowly retrieved their auras, and space returned to a silent calmness. No disciple dared make a peep, and the Elders didnt say anything further either. They simply teleported back to their seats, picking up their plates and drinks as if nothing happened. Even Ocean seemed to have completely forgotten about the previous incident; if he was someone partial to his own emotions, he would have never survived until the A-Grade.

Let the banquet continue, Elder Boatman said, reclining back in his chair and returning to his motionless state. Jack Rust, show everyone the might of my disciple.

Jack was speechless. Yes, Master, he replied, then quickly returned a mile away from the banquet tablesthis place was used as the battle stage.

Did I just become the disciple of an A-Grade? Moreover, a powerful A-Grade? He gulped. And a somewhat insane one

Would anyone like to spar? he asked, looking at the Hand of God cultivators.

Nobody moved for a few moments. Finally, a seven-fruit cultivator shook off his numbness and rose to his feet. Please advise me, he said. He flew to the battle site and faced off against Jack. His Dao was the Sword, which he wielded expertly against Jacks fists. However, at the end of the day, he was unable to resist. It only took Jack two moves to send him flying, and thats because he was being polite.

Jacks power had increased tremendously in the last six months. The greatest factor of that was the world-creation vision hed experienced while absorbing the World Anchorby observing energy in its elementary forms, he now had a much clearer understanding of how it all fit together, which guided his Dao comprehensions and made his progress in that regard far faster than it used to be.

As a result, these low-level geniuses couldnt hold a candle.

Whos next? he asked calmly.

A second seven-fruit C-Grade took the stage. He tussled against Jack for three moves, then was tossed away.

Whos next? Jack asked again, not even panting.

The Elder face-off was still fresh in everyones minds, but they hadnt forgotten about the previous situation. Sassa had repeatedly declared, Whos next? and challenged the Church cultivators. The seven-fruits didnt want to stand up and get humiliated, and the eight-fruit ones didnt know if it was their turn to go. That kind of suppression had felt very bitter. The Church cultivators had been grinding their teeth, while the Hand cultivators had been glowering.

Now, thanks to Jacks strength, the situation had been completely reversed!

An eight-fruit cultivator finally stood. Jack activated his Life Drop, causing his strength to rise precipitously. With this new addition, the eight-fruit cultivator only lasted four moves. Even the second eight-fruit cultivator, who also happened to be the strongest one, could only resist Jack for ten moves.

Before, everyone thought that Jack had gotten lucky by becoming a disciple of Boatman. Only now did they understand that Boatmans offer wasnt forced or random. Jack really deserved it. He was a freak!

Even the title of prime genius wasnt enough to do him justice.

A three-fruit cultivator had completely wiped the floor with the Hands most elite eight-fruit disciples. This was unheard of. And, most of all, everyone wondered: Could Jack face even the nine-fruit ones?

Just like in the Cathedral, the Hand of God also placed heavy emphasis on its nine-fruit cultivators. Moreover, these were the top ten nine-fruits of the Hand of God. If Jack could face any of them, it would be ridiculous.

In truth, even Jack didnt know if he could fight them. His last ranking was 97, but that was six months ago. Hed developed a new fruit since then, gained some levels, and also tempered his body. He estimated his current strength to be near the top ten of the Cathedral, maybe a bit worse. He could struggle against the weakest of these nine-fruit cultivators, but it would reveal his full strength, and that was something he wasnt comfortable doing.

Moreover, after everything that happened, he felt hed already stood out enough.

Thanks for your guidance, he said. I am out of energy, so I will return now.

Nobody believed he was out of energy, but nobody refuted him either. Jack returned to his seat, and since no nine-fruit had taken the stage yet, the banquet continued with the eight-fruits fighting each other. The seven fruits had lost their turn, but none of them was in the mood to fight anyway.

Well done, Brock said after Jack sat down. I am proud. Grandpa Dead is good bro too.

Jack laughed.

No more ill play ensued, and all the following fights were splendid. Shi Mo defeated one opponent and gained great honor, through he lost immediately after. Nobody earned a winning streak. Finally, a few nine-fruits fought as well, but only those at the bottom of the rankings. Nobody on the level of Baron Longform or Min Ling wanted to exhibit their strength. The purpose of this banquet fight was just to let the weakest people present show off a bit and entertain everyone.

As the banquet carried on, many eyes were glued on Jack. However, he ignored everyone, focused on either his exceptionally tasty food and drinks or on making small talk with Brock and Shi Mo.

Min Ling was also a disciple of an ElderElder Heavenstarbut her master was weaker than Jacks. That lit a fire in her heart. She now saw him as a full-on rival. Noticing her fervent gaze on Jack, Spacewind frowned deeply but said nothing. His eyes revealed even deeper bitterness.

As for Baron Longform, he revealed no change of expression despite everything that happened. His thoughts were known to him alone.

Finally, after six hours, the banquet was over. The tables and chairs were gathered, everyone revolved their Dao to remove the intoxication of alcohol. The egg-shaped portal in the distance seemed inviting.

It was time to enter the hidden realm.

Before that, however, Elder Boatman approached Jack. Come with me, he said, then the two of them disappeared.