CHAPTER 276: SHANG WU!!

"Even now, I remember his words that he left at the end of the match."

Shang Jiao mimicked the mannerism of Shang Wu, deepening his voice to imitate him.

"I don’t acknowledge this weakling as my brother!!"

Ashen’s pupils enlarged hearing this as he asked, "He said this in front of everyone?"

Shang Jiao nodded enthusiastically, as if finding someone of similar thinking.

"Yes. Even your grandfather was present."

Was this bravery or foolishness, Ashen wondered.

To say that he didn’t acknowledge Shang Xin as his brother meant that he was opposing Shang Long’s acknowledgement.

If Shang Long, the patriarch, announced Shang Xin as his son, then it by default made him Shang Wu’s brother.

"So? How did Grandfather react?" Ashen inquired curiously. He felt like a child listening to the stories of adults.

Shang Jiao let out a disappointed sigh as he fell back on the couch, muttering:

"He didn’t punish Shang Wu." Shang Jiao rolled his eyes. "He left the matter to his children. The only message he gave was, If Shang Xin wanted to prove Shang Wu wrong, he better grow stronger than him."

"I can understand Grandfather’s intentions." Ashen muttered, rubbing his chin.

Shang Long must have wanted Shang Xin to take this incident as the motivation to grow stronger. Moreover, if his grandfather was the one to help Shang Xin, it might’ve hurt Shang Xin’s pride.

"That’s not the worst part of this tournament." Shang Jiao leaned forward, crossing his fingers before continuing: "The worst part came after Shang Wu won."

"It was the rumors spread by the Lei clan." Shang Jiao’s face contorted in disgust and anger. "Those bastards used the win of Shang Wu to spread baseless rumors."

"The rumors said that Shang Wu won because he cultivated the lightning path and that the lightning path was stronger than Shang Clan’s Draconic arts and Dragon path."

Tightening his fingers, he continued:

"Another rumor was that Shang Wu was actually the son of the Lei Clan’s patriarch."

"What??" Ashen was surprised by the ridiculousness of the rumor.

Why would the Shang Clan make a child of the Lei Clan their young master?

"This rumor died down because of how ridiculous it was; however, it still became a joke among the descendants of the sacred clans." Shang Jiao explained. "This rumor gave Shang Wu a nickname—’The Bastard of the Lei Clan!’"

Shang Jiao then calmed down as a smile appeared on his face.

"After this incident, your mother was acknowledged by our father when she was still only 30. Due to her overwhelming talent, Father couldn’t help but acknowledge her."

"This made Shang Wu feel a little more agitated. He decided to make a name for himself by leaving on missions from the clan."

"Whenever a mission would appear, he would be the first to enroll his name for it."

"Sometimes a treasure would appear or a herb that would make the clans compete for them. He would always be the one to lead."

"In his leadership, the Shang Clan would always be the victor. It had almost become a saying—"

"If Shang Wu is present, bet on the Shang Clan!"

A light smile hung on Shang Jiao’s lips as he continued.

"In those years, Shang Wu became the face of the Shang Clan, his name resounding to every corner of the empire."

"Nobody doubted his strength and abilities. Everyone in our clan looked up to him."

"He would’ve been a hero of our clan if not for his uncouth behavior." Shang Jiao shook his head in pity.

"Just how bad was his behavior?" Ashen inquired curiously.

He had noticed that Shang Jiao addressed Shang Wu without any respect; however, from his story, he seemed like a great person with much greater abilities.

Just what kind of behavior cancels out all the qualities he had?

"Bad? His behavior was the worst!" Shang Jiao almost spat in anger. "On every mission he went on, he would always abandon the subordinates who couldn’t follow him due to their weaker strength."

"If he had to make a choice between someone’s life and the goal of the mission, he would always go after the goal, even if it meant sacrificing his whole team."

"Our Shang Clan lost countless King realm experts due to him; however, he wouldn’t be punished because he would always accomplish the goal."

"Huh? This doesn’t seem that bad, right?" Ashen didn’t find his behavior that unacceptable.

Instead, he found him favorable.

If someone was holding you back, why not abandon them?

If you chose your goal over someone’s life, was it really that bad?

Didn’t the Shang clan send cultivators after treasures despite knowing that there will be casualties?

If they didn’t send them in the first place, no one would die!

Just keep them in your protective shelter if you cared so much about them.

Hearing Ashen’s response, Shang Jiao sighed. "So you too think like that..."

He then smiled gently towards him and said, "However, this isn’t the main reason why I called his behavior uncouth."

"Then... what is it?" Ashen asked politely.

"When he was a king realm cultivator, he still acted a bit civilized; however, everything changed when he advanced to the emperor realm!" Shang Jiao told.

"As talented and powerful as he was as a cultivator, he still fell short in comparison to his debaucherous behavior!"

Shang Jiao then looked at Ashen with a scheming smile before requesting:

"Ashen, there is a popular joke about him. Why don’t I tell you?"

Ashen simply gave a nod, agreeing.

"Alright, I’ll ask you questions, and you only answer by asking, ’Who?’"

"I understand." Ashen spoke with a nod.

"Alright then, Let’s start."

Shang Jiao took a deep breath before standing up. He opened his arms before he made a smile and asked enthusiastically,

"Handsome Gentleman," he pointed at Ashen, rolling his fingers towards him. "Can you guess who is the most pathetic gambling addict who always loses??"

"Who?" Ashen did as Shang Jiao had asked of him.

"It’s the man of Shang! and..." Shang Jiao moved his hands in a dramatic manner, shaking them as he created an arc with both his hands. He almost looked like a performer you found at inns. "His name is Wu!"

"It’s Shang Wu!!" He yelled, almost too enthusiastically, as if he was enjoying this.

"Then let me ask you another question." He again rolled his fingers elegantly. "Who is the most lecherous womanizer, the one who has slept in almost every brothel, flirted with every woman, and been rejected the most by them?!"

"Who?" Ashen asked with fake curiosity; however, he was enjoying this himself, as a smile hung on his face.

"It’s the man of Shang! and..." Shang Jiao repeated his movement with more enthusiasm. "His name is Wu!"

"It’s Shang Wu!!"

"Here’s another question." He rolled his fingers a third time. "Who is the drunkard, the one that spent half of his fortune on expensive liquor??" Shang Jiao raised his eyebrows.

"Who?" Ashen also raised his eyebrows.

"It’s the man of Shang! and..." Shang Jiao moved his hands forward and backward, shaking them along before joining them in a clap. "His name is Wu!"

"It’s Shang Wu!!"

"Handsome gentlemen," His finger rolling one last time. "Let me ask this last question."

"Who is the rake, lecher, debaucher, degenerate, and dissolute man, the one who lost his entire fortune to a woman by getting seduced? The one who was abandoned by his own clan? The one who leads a solitary life without any money, spending his life in a cave with cheap liquor? Who is that man?"

"Who...?" Ashen asked with wide eyes.

"It’s the man of Shang! and... His name is Wu!" Shang Jiao joined his hands and bowed as if exiting the stage after a performance.

"It’s Shang Wu!"

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(A/N - Thanks for reading. ^..^)