Shi Hao looked at her askance. What did the fairy Yue Chan have in mind? Was she trying to get involved as well? Had the battle a while ago brought her to some sort of decision?
He glanced at her and saw that she was as calm as ever. Shi Hao was not afraid either, for even though he was still young, he had been through all kinds of turbulences and storms. He had even fought with supreme experts, so not even great sects beyond the wastelands could intimidate him now.
Hearing this, a smile swept across Shi Zitengâs face. Even though he had reached middle-age, he remained handsome and looked more like a talented young man. He said, âYiâer will probably return.â
The crowd was greatly impressed by the announcement. Was Shi Yi really coming back? In that case, the Capital would surely see some noise and excitement.
The fairy Yue Chan gave a little smile and nodded. She then said, âHow about we forget what happened today once and for all? Iâve witnessed the whole incident just now. The people from the Demonic Spirit Lake were indeed in the wrong.â
The claim astonished many people. She had just approached Shi Ziteng and showed interest towards Shi Yi, yet now her attitude had took such a turn. Exactly whose side was she on?
Shi Zitengâs countenance remained the same and did not react to those words right away. However, simply retreating like this would be too shameful. What would others think of him if could not even save his own martial nephew?
âMy fairy, those people are from the Demonic Spirit Lake. Donât you think your suggestion was a bit premature?â A middle-aged man beside Shi Ziteng challenged.
âExactly whatâs so special about the Demonic Spirit Lake? Itâs all in your heads. Youâve worshipped it, willingly became their slaves and abandoned all dignity.â Shi Hao criticized harshly without any hesitation.
âYou are too arrogant!â said the middle-aged man in a chilly tone. The hostility in his voice was apparent.
âFairy Yue Chan, this is a life we are talking about here. My martial nephew may have made a mistake, but he shouldnât be treated and punished in such a manner, right?â Shi Ziteng wouldnât give in easily.
The fairy Yue Chan turned to Shi Hao and said, âYoung brother, thereâs no need to be so ruthless. Let him live.â
Shi Hao pondered for a while. Since fairy Yue Chan had mediated the dispute for him just then and was no longer opposing him, he did not want to make the relationship difficult again. He nodded and said, âFine. For the sake of the fairy, I wonât kill him.â
The crowd knew that the conflict was very likely to end this way and the battle they were expecting was not going to happen.
Beside Shi Ziteng were his cousins and nephews. One of them said with a sneer, âThen please release him.â
âWho told you I was going to let him go? Why should I?â There was nothing but coldness on Shi Haoâs face.
âBut you said just now...â The middle-aged man then realised that Shi Hao indeed did not promise to release the spider, only that he was going to let him live. The man said with a resentful voice, âYou misled us. What are you going to do to him?â
Shi Hao replied in an indifferent tone. âNothing. Teach him a lesson, thatâs all. If I canât even deal with a little spider myself, what should I do when wolves and tigers show up at my doorstep in the future? Letting it live does not mean Iâll release it right away. It needs to stay here and repent.â
Such words astounded nearly everyone. The crowd was utterly amazed to hear that the mighty experts from the imposing Demonic Spirit Lake were only referred to as a âlittle spiderâ. The young man acted with such a dominating manner.
âThat will do. Even princes should be punished by the same law as the common people. The Demonic Spirit Lake is an outstanding place, but they should know where their limit is. The spider should learn some discipline while being suppressed here,â said the Heavenly Fox fairy.
Since both fairies from beyond the wastelands had agreed on the point, the crowd could only express their amazement inwardly. The teenagerâs background must be so great that both of them would try to have him on their side.
People of the Martial Imperial Manor were discontented at the result, and Shi Ziteng was the only one who remained calm. He nodded and said, âAll right. My martial nephew will be disciplined here for a few days before we have him back. I think the ancestors of the Demonic Spirit Lake would also like to teach him a lesson through this incident.â
Those words came out in a tranquil and otherworldly manner, but was alerting at the same time. Had an old pure-blood creature arrived at the Capital? Such news would definitely create quite a bit of pressure for everyone. People would think twice before they did anything in the future.
To some extent, it was another way of putting forward a serious warning. Whoever inflicts harm on the Demonic Spider would be asking for formidable revenge from that sect ancestor.
Shi Hao smiled at his words. âDonât worry, Iâll teach it a good lesson. The finest diamond must be cut. Disciples with such a massive ego need some ruthless tidying up.â
âYou...â Rage almost erupted from the eyes of those beside Shi Ziteng. They clenched their fists so tight that the knuckles all turned green.
Shi Ziteng took a long look at Shi Hao and turned to leave. As he got on the bronze chariot, vicious beasts roared and the chariot rumbled away. Their party soon disappeared into the distance.
Two men remained behind, who seemed to be ordered to stay here and watch Shi Haoâs every move. They were obviously still holding grudges towards Shi Hao.
âDonât forget what family you belong to. You are not servants of the Demonic Spirit Lake, but have the same ancestors as the royal family. If you are conscientious of yourself, donât make the Martial Imperial Manor go through the humiliation with you.â
The words of Shi Hao expressed his stark contempt. He might as well have slapped those men in public. The two menâs faces were dark with anger, and they finally turned around to leave as well.
âIâd never thought you could be so cynical.â The witch laughed.
âIâll show more respect to those who respect me. Theyâve brought the war to my doorstep, how could I not fight back?â said Shi Hao.
âI think youâll find dealing with the spider alone a troublesome matter. Why donât you hand it to me? If I manage to refine a divine medicine in the future, Iâll surely repay you for this.â The Heavenly Fox fairy said with a chuckle.
Hearing this, the crowd were all fretting at the request. That foxy fairy was incredibly audacious!
Shi Hao only smiled. Needless to say, he would not agree to her request. Since he had already offended the Demonic Spirit Lake, giving some major medicine to others would make no difference to his situation. Heâd rather keep it for himself. The feud was long established, and there was no way to resolve it.
Only the most talented people were invited to this gathering, but the atmosphere was no longer what it was now. After the disturbance caused by Shi Hao, many wild souls had now restrained themselves.
For that teenager had taken all the spotlight away. He was even bold enough to capture and kill pure-blood creatures, which made other people want to keep a low profile in this gathering.
Pure-blood creatures like the Horned Dragon and Bifang were also invited. Their eyes were glistening, and no one knew what they were thinking. It appeared that they had realised something.
Shi Hao then began his treasure-hunting. He explored carefully with the dual-pupil and had managed to find a few materials. He then purchased two of them.
In the distance, those with old feuds began to fight. Seizing the opportunity, some disciples from famous sects and aristocratic descendants finally started fighting, attracting a large audience.
These scenes were no longer appealing to Shi Hao, however. He was focused on picking treasured artifacts and finding valuables among piles of ordinary items.
A white-clothed figure moved near, filling the air with a delicate fragrance. Fairy Yue Chan approached Shi Hao with her graceful gait and tried to start a conversation, which raised many eyebrows.
Shi Hao found to his surprise that the fairy did not attempt to draw him over to her side, but only made some small talk, which involved nothing surprising.
âFairy Yue Chan is getting smarter. She obviously wants to wheedle you in, but sheâs not doing it explicitly. Instead, she only chatted with you to leave a good impression, leaving everything else to the future.â Not far away, the little fox beside the Heavenly Fox fairy grumbled.
âSometimes, thereâs nothing to choose from. We can only wait and see if the dual-pupiled person will come back. If he really is as powerful as the rumors say, and is comparable to the ancient deity, then things will get very interesting.â The witch chuckled.
Shi Hao wandered around the place and managed to satisfy his enormous appetite. He picked some treasured artifacts and materials, drank his last glass of fine wine and turned to leave.
It was because by then, the gathering was drawing to its end and many had already left. In other words, the gathering was no longer useful to him.
He was in deep thought his entire way back, and was even looking forward to the world beyond the wastelands.
âDo you know why the wastelands fell into chaos?â The witch approached him and walked out together. Her flawless features, paired with her perfectly curvaceous body, had made many young talented men drool over. They were all grumbling in secret, wondering what exactly was so fantastic about this teenager that made both fairies talk to him. It did not make sense at all.
âI do not know. Could you tell me about it?â Shi Hao was eager to find out.
âEons ago, this region used to be a prison, and many great vicious beings were locked up within.â The most startling fact came out of the witchâs mouth.
Even someone as steady and calm as Shi Hao was dumbstruck by the words. He raised his head abruptly and looked into the Heavenly Fox fairyâs eyes. He then stared at her in a daze.
The witchâs unsurpassed beauty could charm anyoneâs souls from their bodies. She was indeed a beautiful woman hard to come by in the mortal world. In Stone Country, the fairy Yue Chan was probably the only beauty comparable to her. She blew lightly at Shi Hao in a somewhat provocative manner and rolled her eyes with a smile. âScared?â
âNo, just surprised.â Shi Hao gave his honest answer.
âIt had something to do with the Great Chaos.â The Heavenly Fox fairy told him directly.
The statement was obviously a startling one, and countless ideas came into Shi Haoâs head in that moment. His past speculations were all overturned now, for what had happened seemed much more severe than he had imagined.
âOf course, the great vicious beings of the archaic time have long died away. However, some creatures managed to take refuge in the wastelands later on their own. Moreover, with so many sinful descendants left behind, attention would inevitably be drawn from the outside world.â
The witch was very candid and offered Shi Hao incredibly valuable information from their casual conversation.
âI can see that you all care about the wastelands very much, or you wouldnât have entered here. What are you trying to do here?â Asked Shi Hao.
Everything was driven by profit, or the Sky Severing Sect and the supreme sect behind fairy Yue Chan would not have competed against each other. There must be a reason behind this.
âOf course, there are no permanent enemies, only perpetual temptation and benefits. The great battle this time will bring out the true deities.â The witch said frankly.
âThe true deities?â Shi Hao was bewildered and surprised by such an expression. He felt like there was an extremely unordinary implication behind her words, as if a monstrous storm was going to engulf the wastelands and send everything into complete chaos.
She emphasized the word âtrueâ, as if there it made a different. Could it be that the deity she mentioned was not the same as the one he perceived?
âXixi...â The witch laughed and said, âIt is definitely not the deities you normally refer to. Iâm not talking about those who ignite divine flame and eventually die.â
Shi Hao was greatly shaken by her words. It seemed that the witch did recognize the deities of the wastelands. What could that mean?
âWhen they become deities and have the divine flame ignited, why would the fire extinguish? It is because their cultivation hadnât reach a certain level.â Such was the comment of the witch.
Starting from the wastelands, the true deities were going to be created. The impact of such events would be incredible!
âHow will the true deities be created?â Shi Hao asked. Naturally, he would like to know the answer. As a resident of this region, even if he couldnât hope for such a thing, he still wanted to be informed at the very least.
âThat would be a secret. If you really want to know, youâll have to pay extra attention in the future. Maybe youâll learn some great abilities if you are willing to join the Sky Severing Sect.â The witch did not go into details, but only tempted him with such words.
âCan you really not tell me a bit more?â Shi Hao asked.
âAlthough this region used to be a prison, something unusual was here as well, which is where the Great Chaos stems from. Even the supreme sect wants to obtain something from this place.â