Behind them?

Confused but sensing something momentous was about to happen, Zong Rui and the entire film crew turned to look. Ma Nanshan, who was in the middle of tying Zhang San, Li Si, and Wang Wu to a tree with vines, also turned his head.

In the next moment, he finally understood why Ye Lin’er had been smiling.

Ye Xiu was approaching at a leisurely pace, a simple wooden stick in his hand. His expression was as cold as eternal ice, and his eyes radiated the bloodthirsty light of a primordial beast.

"You hillbilly finally showed up! I thought you’d run away," Zong Rui taunted, completely ignoring Ye Xiu’s expression and gaze. He then turned to Ma Nanshan. "Uncle Ma, that’s Ye Lin’er’s bodyguard—the same hillbilly who bullied me and scammed me out of a million."

Ma Nanshan sneered contemptuously. "One look at this punk’s damn face and I knew he was bad news. Just wait. I’ll finish off these three first, then I’ll take care of him."

With that, he ignored Ye Xiu and went back to tying Zhang San, Li Si, and Wang Wu to the tree.

"Kid, you don’t know who he is, do you?" Zong Rui said, introducing Ma Nanshan with a smug expression. "His name is Ma Nanshan. He’s the Sect Leader of the Mad Blade Sect of the Northern Territory, a peak Great Grandmaster, and he’s known as the King of the Northern Territory. With his Seventy-Two Forms of the Five Tiger Broken Gate Blade, he’s undefeated in the entire region..."

He paused, then feigned a sudden realization. "Oh, right, I forgot. You’re just a hillbilly. You’ve probably heard of Martial Artists, but you wouldn’t know about their ranks. Since I’m in a good mood today, I’ll educate you."

Hearing this, the members of the crew perked up their ears, as they weren’t very clear on the cultivation system for Martial Artists either.

Zong Rui continued, "Martial Artists are divided into nine grades. Eighth Grade practitioners are called Grandmasters, Ninth Grade are Great Grandmasters, and above the Great Grandmasters are the War Gods!"

A shocked uproar went through the crew, and they all stared at Ma Nanshan in amazement. This man, who looked like a common bandit, was actually a peak Great Grandmaster—a warrior just shy of the War God realm. How incredible!

Previously, Li Ran, Tajiguli, Wang Xuan, Li Meng, and the Director had been worried that Ma Nanshan might not be able to defeat Ye Xiu; after all, Ye Xiu was strong enough to send dozens of bodyguards and security guards flying all by himself. But now that they knew Ma Nanshan’s true strength, their worries vanished. A peak Great Grandmaster could teach a hillbilly a lesson with ease.

Zhang San, Li Si, and Wang Wu, already tied to the trees, were on the verge of tears. Against someone as powerful as Ma Nanshan, we’re doomed!

Li Ran swaggered up to Ye Xiu. "Hillbilly, give me my money back and kowtow to me ten times. If you do, I might ask Mr. Ma to spare your worthless life. Otherwise..."

SMACK!

Before Li Ran could finish, Ye Xiu’s slap sent him spinning like a top before he collapsed onto the ground.

The crew’s expressions changed drastically at the sight. They stared at Ye Xiu as if he were an idiot. Has this hillbilly lost his mind? He knows how strong Ma Nanshan is. He should be running for his life or begging for forgiveness, not hitting Li Ran! He’s practically asking to die!

"Hey! Are you trying to get yourself killed, hitting Li Ran right in front of Mr. Ma?" Tajiguli yelled as she ran over to help Li Ran up.

SMACK!

Tajiguli went down, too.

Li Ran, who had just been helped to his feet, was about to erupt in fury, but when he saw Ye Xiu slap Tajiguli, the words died in his throat. He turned to Zong Rui. "Zong Rui, he dared to hit both me and Tajiguli! That’s a clear sign of disrespect to Mr. Ma! Are you just going to stand there and take that?"

Zong Rui couldn’t stomach it either. He had expected Ye Xiu to be on his knees, begging for mercy. Instead, Ye Xiu showed no fear of Ma Nanshan and had even attacked Li Ran and Tajiguli.

Zong Rui immediately looked at Ma Nanshan, who was preparing to "operate" on the three captives. "Uncle Ma, this kid doesn’t seem to hold you in high regard. Maybe you should deal with him first before taking care of those three."

Ma Nanshan turned to face Ye Xiu. "In such a hurry to die and be reincarnated? Fine. I’ll grant your wish."

Saying this, he slashed from a distance, intending to cleave Ye Xiu in two with his Blade Qi. Seeing this, Zong Rui, Li Ran, Tajiguli, the Director, and the others all covered their mouths, worried that the sight of Ye Xiu being cleaved in two would make them vomit. After all, if Ma Nanshan’s Blade Qi could slice through a massive tree, splitting a man of flesh and blood in half would be child’s play.

Of course, that was what Ma Nanshan thought as well. However...

"To act so arrogantly before me," Ye Xiu scoffed. "You’re courting death!"

With a casual flick of the wooden stick in his hand, he made Ma Nanshan’s incoming Blade Qi dissolve into nothing. The film crew didn’t understand what had just happened, but Ma Nanshan and Chen Yang did. However, Chen Yang had witnessed far more incredible feats from Ye Xiu, so a small display like this was hardly surprising to her.

Ma Nanshan, on the other hand, was stunned.

"You... you’re also a Martial Artist?"

Finally losing interest in Zhang San, Li Si, and Wang Wu, Ma Nanshan approached, gripping his broadsaber, and stopped three meters from Ye Xiu. "To think I misjudged," he said, sizing Ye Xiu up. "I never imagined you were also a Martial Artist."

What? Aside from Ye Lin’er, Chen Yang, and the three captives, everyone else from the film crew was completely shocked. This hillbilly is a Martial Artist?

"How is that possible? Uncle Ma, are you sure you’re not mistaken? How could a hillbilly like him be a Martial Artist?" Zong Rui asked doubtfully.

"There’s no mistake!" Ma Nanshan stated with utter certainty. "I may not have used my full power in that slash, but even a Second Grade Martial Artist wouldn’t have dared to take it head-on. For him to disperse my Blade Qi so casually means he must be at least a Third Grade, perhaps even a Fourth Grade Martial Artist."

Hearing that Ye Xiu was only a Third or Fourth Grade Martial Artist, Zong Rui and the others started to laugh.

"So what if he’s Fourth Grade?" Zong Rui said. "Uncle Ma, you’re a peak Great Grandmaster. Killing a Fourth Grade Martial Artist would be child’s play for you."

"That’s true." Ma Nanshan nodded with supreme confidence, his single eye looking down on Ye Xiu. "A mere Third or Fourth Grade dares to show off in front of me? Today, I’ll teach you what it means to be a frog in a well who knows nothing of the vast sky!"

The moment the words left his mouth, he lunged in front of Ye Xiu, swinging the great broadsaber from his back in an arc toward Ye Xiu’s neck. Seeing this, Zong Rui and the others could almost see Ye Xiu’s head tumbling to the ground as blood fountained from his neck.

"You’re the one in the well!" Ye Xiu retorted. With a cold expression, he swung his wooden stick, striking the broadsaber Ma Nanshan was swinging down.

CRACK!

With a crisp sound, the massive broadsaber, which weighed several dozen pounds, was snapped in two by the simple wooden stick. Then, Ye Xiu kicked Ma Nanshan square in the face.

BANG!

Ma Nanshan was sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing through more than a dozen large trees before finally collapsing.

"And look at you," Ye Xiu said, slowly walking toward Ma Nanshan with the stick in hand. "So damn proud of yourself for being a mere Great Grandmaster. I can slaughter War Gods like they’re pigs and dogs. Do you ever see me bragging about it?"