Chapter 37: First is the Hardest (Part-1)

The encounter with the prince unfolded exactly as Zen had anticipated — an encounter with a figure whose ego soared high above the clouds. Zen, no stranger to arrogance himself, considered it a hallmark of strength. What irked him was when people allowed their egos to balloon to the size of the galaxy, confusing it with arrogance and pride.

As the royal entourage exited the area, everyone around them stood up, casting incredulous looks Zen's way. Even nobles from the top houses had knelt in deference, yet this commoner had shown no sign of submission in the presence of royalty.

"He really is as arrogant as I've heard."

"I know, but having arrogance in front of us and royalty is completely different."

"I know, right! Especially the prince. If it was the princess, it would have been fine."

Oliver Banks had an elder sister, Katrina Banks, the firstborn of the current emperor. Unlike Oliver, Katrina was rumored to be perfectly suited for leadership, possessing both vision and kindness. However, born from the current emperor's first wife, who met an 'accidental' demise, Katrina was ignored and not considered for the crown.

Most of the girls couldn't help but cast glances at Zen. With his recent foray into cultivation, his body had become leaner and more muscular. Already handsome, the silver hue of his hair added an extra layer of charm.

"You are something else, man!" James draped an arm around Zen and remarked.

"You are stupid for kneeling in front of someone," Zen retorted.

"Hmph! You're crazy. Who wouldn't kneel in front of His Highness? Even Stacy Hudson warned you."

"Oh! That was Stacy Hudson, huh? One of the wonders or something."

"One of the jewels!! JEWELS! Just how carefree are you about this whole situation?"

James found himself at a loss talking to Zen. After this brief exchange, they continued their conversation, and James and Tanya filled Zen in on Stacy and Oliver.

|RINGGGG| Zen and Anna's phone rang and they saw that Evelyn just saw Zen's message and was asking him to come to meet her. 

|DIE| James shouted while leaving Zen and Anna. He was still sour that Zen got a girlfriend before him.

—--------------------------------

Zen and Anna reached the training grounds, where Evelyn was engrossed in her practice. Inside, Shreya was offering Evelyn some pointers.

"Your attacks are unnecessarily organi–"

"Evelyn!" Zen called out, cutting Shreya short.

Evelyn swiftly turned, catching sight of Zen, and sprinted toward him, leaving Shreya with her mouth half open.

"Darling!" she exclaimed, leaping into his arms. Zen effortlessly caught her, now that he was more powerful than her.

With a twinkle in his eyes, Zen pressed his lips against hers. Evelyn, not one to be outdone, responded with a passionate kiss. A week apart felt like an eternity after months of sharing the same space.

Shreya, witnessing the unexpected display of sugar, widened her eyes. Her two disciples were completely oblivious, lost in their sugary world.

'How dare they? I am so envi… angry. Yes, I am angry.' To emphasize her displeasure, she harnessed her energy and vanished from her spot.

|BANGGG| An explosion resonated. Anna turned around, only to find Shreya now standing where Zen and Evelyn had been, flames dancing on her palms. Meanwhile, Zen, a few meters away, remained in the midst of the kiss.

Zen finally broke away and looked at Shreya, a cheeky grin on his face.

"Hehe, master, did you miss me this much?"

"My, my!" She coldly smiled. "Disciple, it seems you've grown arrogant. I should correct you before you tread any further on this path."

A shiver ran down Zen's spine. It appeared he might have overplayed his hand, but he wasn't one to back down from a challenge. Without warning, Zen released a thunderbolt. Shreya, with a smile, deftly dodged the attack.

Mid-jump, Shreya sensed danger from her side, using flames on her feet to accelerate and narrowly avoid a deadly blade. The blade left a vertical cut where she had stood, and Zen grinned.

"Master, don't suppress your cultivation this much." Zen understood Shreya was keeping her cultivation at the peak of the third outer ring to give him a fair chance.

Shreya grinned, unleashing a wave of energy that passed through everyone. "Alright, stupid disciple. I will restrict my cultivation to the peak of the 8th outer ring." She summoned pointed poles from the ground, targeting Zen. Anticipating the attack, Zen jumped vertically from his spot.

"Stupid disciple, never jump in the midst of a battle unless you can control your body arbitrarily." Shreya slashed.

"Haha, master, did you forget my technique?" Zen retorted, changing his position to dodge the attack mid-air. But Shreya was waiting for this moment. How could she forget Zen's technique? She immediately stretched out her hand and a golden slash shot out of her palm. The slash instantly took form and grew to look like a crescent moon flying straight towards Zen at an astonishing speed, leaving a long trail.

Evelyn and Anna held their breath. Although they knew that Shreya would not harm Zen, it was terrifying to see attacks of such degrees.

|BAMM|

Just as slash was about to land on Zen, he used his skill and infused lightning into his halberd. He raised his hand and sent it flying in a different direction. The attack resulted in a series of explosions, shaking the entire room. 

Zen wasn't even fazed. He poured more lightning into his halberd and rotated 180 degrees at an unimaginable speed, and then threw his halberd towards Shreya. The halberd rotated like a boomerang, flying towards Shreya. The speed of the halberd was incredible because of the lightning infused in it.

Shreya's eyes shone as she stomped her one foot on the ground. Instantly, a pole-like structure came out of the ground. As soon as it came out, Shreya tossed it and kicked it towards the halberd.

|BAMMM| The pole and the halberd collided mid air and a strong wind was caused by the ear piercing sound. Anna and Evelyn could feel the whole building shaking. Evelyn was surprised but not afraid but Anna had never seen such a fight before in front of her eyes. And what's more astounding was that these were the attacks the cultivator in outer rings launched. What about inner rings and core rings? This is called strength!

While stunned, they both failed to see that now the pole that Shreya launched was coming towards them at a ridiculous speed, after being deflected by the halberd. Now that the pole was in front of their eyes, it was already too late to do anything. Evelyn could survive with some injuries but Anna was still a normal human and she would not be able to take this, so instinctively, Evelyn covered Anna so as to protect her from the pole. They both shut their eyes and were waiting for the disastrous moment to arrive.

|BOOOMMMM| The resulting explosion shook the ground. However, the expected catastrophe never materialized. Slowly turning around, Anna and Evelyn were met with the sight of Zen on the ground, his clothes in tatters, and two substantial stones on either side.

In that crucial moment, Zen had summoned every ounce of his energy to arrive in front and kick away the pole. Utilizing his full energy, he had saved Anna and Evelyn from impending danger.

"Urghh… are you guys alright?" Zen groaned as he somehow managed to stand up. Anna and Evelyn, snapping out of their trance, rushed to support him.

"Yes… brother, are you alright?"

"Yeah! Don't worry. I am just out of energy now. Phew."

Shreya joined them, her face completely flushed with embarrassment due to her carelessness.

"Ahem. I–I'm sorry," she whispered like a squirrel.

"It's okay, master. You made a mistake. No big deal, right? You. Just. Made. A. Mistake." Zen gave a cheeky grin to Shreya. How can he waste this rare chance to get one over his master.

Shreya gritted her teeth but refrained from saying anything. It was her mistake.

"Oh! Evelyn, thank you for protecting me." Anna, still shaken, expressed her gratitude as she came near Evelyn. Just moments ago, she believed that she might not even survive but in front of such danger, Evelyn had decisively shielded her. The gesture touched Anna's heart.

"That's something I should do." Evelyn said while hugging Anna. Anna was Zen's sister so she was family. This was all Evelyn needed to think.

"Yes, Evelyn, thank you for protecting Ann. It should have been a master protecting everyone, but it seemed like you had to shoulder the responsibility." Zen, offered his thanks, without forgetting to taunt Shreya.

|Slap| Shreya swiftly slapped Zen's head from behind. "Enough."

"Hehe." He chuckled. "Anyways master, are you sensing that outside?" Zen smiled demonically with his teeth on full display.

"Haha… some people cannot wait to meet grim-reaper."