Chapter 52: An Encounter In The Village

"Mr. Xu. "Chen Fan nodded and didn't answer his question.

Xu Ao's face hardened as he was not pleased by Chen Fan, ignoring his question. However, he didn't want to press the boy for an answer in public. He simply told Chen Fan, "Come find me at the Qin Yang Hotel tonight."

He then walked past Chen Fan without a word.

Chen Fan and A'Xiu stepped aside to make way for the large crowd. He felt many watchful eyes staring at him, some of those belonging to powerful Internal Force users. However, Chen Fan was not concerned at all.

A brawny bald man was walking side by side with Xu Ao, and he asked, "Lord Xu, who is that kid?"

"A distant nephew. I have no clue what is he doing here." Xu Ao said with a dark face.

"Hehe, the tournament is very popular among the kids nowadays." The skinhead smiled and said. "That little girl beside your nephew looked so damn hot. If she were not with your nephew, I would have already made a move on her."

Xu Ao snorted displeasedly.

This skinhead was a rich magnate from the city of Clear Water, and he was well known for his appetite for women. However, he wouldn't make a fool of himself while Xu Ao was here.

"This boy gets around. He was courting my daughter at the Chu Zhou City while flirting with another girl at the Qin Yang County. I will be blind if I trust my daughter with him."

So thinking, Xu Ao furrowed his brows as his impression of Chen Fan deteriorated further.

After the big group of people was gone, A'Xiu patted her chest and stuck out the tip of her tongue.

"They are scary people. Especially that Mr. Shiny Head. The way he looked at me is scary."

She said as she gazed at Chen Fan, batting her lashes.

"Brother Chen, do you know them?"

"I have met the leader once; his name is Xu Ao." Chen Fan said lightly.

"Lord Ao of Hai Dong?" A'Xiu exclaimed, drawing many people's attention. She grabbed Chen Fan's arm and urged him to walk away as she asked under her breath. "Do you know Boss Ao?

"Ah, what am I thinking. You are an honored guest of Boss Zhang; It makes sense for you to know Boss Ao."

"Do you know Xu Ao as well?" Chen Fan asked lightheartedly.

Was Xu Ao really that famous that even a country girl had heard of his name?

After hearing Chen Fan's question, the smile on A'Xiu's face disappeared.

"I know a lot of people working for Boss Ao."

A'Xiu led Chen Fan through an old district and arrived at a plaza just outside of the village.

The plaza was already packed with spectators. There was an equal amount of villagers and visitors. A large stage was set at the center of the plaza for the wrestling competition.

The stage was huge, enough for three competitions to be carried out at one time.

On the stage, a few combatants were wrestling each other. Cheers and applause came from the audiences in fits and starts.

Chen Fan lost interest in the wrestling game very quickly. These were all amateurs, and there were no skills involved in their contest. Most of the combatants had inferior skills to A'Bian much less to the Internal Force users such as Linbao.

As he was about to tell A'Xiu to head back, a girl among the crowd spotted Chen Fan and called out to him.

"Chen Fan?"

Chen Fan paused a second after he saw a girl wearing a broad-brim hat and a pair of sunglasses. He couldn't recall who this girl was

"Do I know you?"

"I am Yang Li! Your cousin's best friend plus roommate. Don't you remember me?" The city girl took off her sunglasses, revealing a small face with fine features. She was at least as attractive as Chang Wen.

"Ah, Sister Li-Li!" Realization finally dawned up Chen Fan.

The girl was Chen Fan's cousin, Chen Ning's roommate. When Chen Fan visited Jin City, his cousin, Chen Ning introduced her to him before. However, that was a good five hundred years ago, and therefore, it took Chen Fan a while to recall the piece of memory.

"I wonder how is my cousin Chen Ning doing." Chen Fan thought to himself.

Chen Ning was his cousin on his dad's side of the family. She went to Jin City for university, and she should be in her fourth year as of now.

Although Chen Fan's father's family could not compare with the Wang Family, the Chen Family had a reputable name in the city of Jin.

All children of the Chens had outstanding grades in school. Chen Ning, for example, was admitted to one of the top ten universities in China because of her exceptional grads. In Chen Fan's distant memory, Chen Ning worked at Wall Street after she graduated and became a successful Investor consultant. She married a hedge fund manager and lived an opulent life; a stark contrast with Chen Fan's tragic fall from grace.

However, those were the stories of another life; Chen Fan was reborn to rewrite a new chapter in the book of fate.

"The last time I saw Yang Li was two years ago. Surprisingly she still recognized me." Chen Fan felt lighthearted by the encounter. He shook his head and asked, "Sister Li-Li, why are you in the Qin Yang County?"

"Hey! That is my question for you!" Yang Li rounded her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

"Aren't you supposed to be at school right now? Did you come here by yourself?"

"No... I came with my friends."

Yang Li's reprimand had rendered Chen Fan wordless. He might be a five-hundred-year-old cultivator, but in the eyes of ordinary people, he was still a child.

Amused by Chen Fan's embarrassed expression, A'Xiu covered her mouth to suppress her sniggers.

"Hum? Who is this girl? Your girlfriend?"

Yang Li was astonished by A'Xiu's beauty as her eyes were lit up with surprise.

Although A'Xiu was wearing plain and ordinary clothes, her natural beauty made her stand out among the crowd. Her skin was smooth, and her eyes were wide and cutesy-looking.

"No." Chen Fan answered lightly.

A'Xiu lowered her head and was blushing. Her embarrassed look made Chen Fan's denial powerless.

"Ok... I see."

Yang Li gave Chen Fan a knowing look and then shook her head.

"The kids nowadays are beyond me. Not only did you start dating way too early, but also traveled so far to such a dangerous place!"

By then, some of Yang Li's friends had also gathered around her.

One of the men who looked like Yang Li's boyfriend furrowed his brows and asked.

"Xiao Li, who are these two?"

There were five of them, three men and two women, all from big cities. All of the three young men looked around at A'Xiu, and their eyes were brimming.

"This is Xiao Fan and his girlfriend." Yang Li introduced. "Xiao Fan is the cousin of my best friend."

"Why don't they tag along with us?" A young man asked.

Judging by the way he talked, he seemed to be Yang Li's boyfriend. He was wearing brand name clothes from head to toe. Wrapped around his wrist was a piece of Vacheron Constantin and a BMW key chain was also hitched at his belt.

"Brother Zhang was a member of the Provincial Sanshou team. I bet you that he is going to kick everyone's asses."

Brother Zhang was the tallest young man among the three.

He was wearing a small black tank top, exposing his incredible pecks. His callused hands were an indication of years of training behind him.

Brother Zhang shook his head and said

"I am here only for the tournament, not for the wrestling during the day."

"They can bluff all they want; I will defeat them regardless." Brother Zhang said contemptuously.

The others nodded in agreement.

However, Chen Fan disagreed, but he kept his opinion unspoken.

Brother Zhang was too full of himself. He thought Sanshou was all there was in the vast world of martial arts. He had the delusion that he would be victorious because he had been living under a rock so far.

Yang Li's boyfriend urged Chen Fan and A'Xiu to follow them to watch Brother Zhang's match.

Chen Fan knew they wanted them to tag along because of A'Xiu, but not because they wanted to befriend him.

Chen Fan was going to refuse the invitation, but Yang Li insisted on him going, so he eventually caved in and followed them.