“Damn it all, that Wu Qianfan. His ability is nothing special, but his temper sure is,” Elder Longbrow grumbled. “Little brat, I’m telling you, if he weren’t your servant, I’d have brained him with a brick long ago.”
“Calling him a prince is already giving him face. Without that face, he’s just a pile of dog shit.”
“He actually dared to act arrogant in front of me. It infuriates me!”
Lin Da’niao suddenly cried, “This is bad! Wu Qianfan has already left the mountain. He’s ruined our plan. Big Brother, what do we do now?”
Before Ye Qiu could answer, Elder Longbrow waved a hand. “Since he’s already gone, let him go.”
“Who knows if those top-tier sect powerhouses have arrived yet?”
“Though I can’t stand that stinking temper of his, he is still the little brat’s servant. Let’s just wish him luck.”
Ye Qiu stared at the spatial rift and said quietly, “No need to worry about Wu Qianfan’s safety. He has two peak Tongshen realm guards. Unless a Saint personally acts, he’ll return unharmed.”
He said this aloud, yet in his heart he felt certain Wu Qianfan would run into trouble the moment he stepped out.
“Big Brother, when do we leave?” Lin Da’niao asked.
“We wait a little longer,” Ye Qiu replied. “When the rest of Azure Cloud Sword Sect’s disciples arrive, we leave in separate groups as originally planned and pin everything on Wu Hua.”
“Fine, then we wait here,” Lin Da’niao said. Then he suddenly added, “Big Brother, got any more beer? I think your secular world’s beer is really tasty.”
Another alcoholic.
Ye Qiu was not stingy. He pulled several cases of beer straight from his cosmos pouch.
Then he produced spicy strips, crisps, and nuts.
The moment Little White Fox saw them, she shot down from the branch like a white streak, tore open a pack of spicy strips and finished it in two or three bites. A complete foodie.
“Ye Changsheng, hurry and give me more spicy strips! I want them, I want more…” she shouted, exactly like a three-year-old child.
“Glutton,” Ye Qiu said, tossing her a few more packs. “Eat slowly. When they’re gone, they’re gone.”
Next he took out a bar of chocolate, unwrapped it, and handed it to Yun Xi. “Try this.”
Yun Xi took a delicate bite and savoured it slowly, her table manners impeccable.
“How is it?” Ye Qiu asked.
“Quite nice, just a bit too sweet,” Yun Xi answered. Then she sent him a secret transmission: “I still prefer salty things~”
Ye Qiu turned and saw the provocative charm at the corners of her eyes.
“Next time,” he transmitted back. “Xi’er, if you get bored after you return, you can chat with Yue’er and exchange… experiences.”
“Good,” Yun Xi laughed. “Next time she and I will serve you together.”
The words sent a jolt through Ye Qiu. A vivid scene instantly formed in his mind.
Two peerless beauties from the Heavenly Immortal List attending to him at once. Just thinking about it was thrilling.
Ye Qiu began to look forward to the next time he would see Yun Xi and Fairy Hundred Flowers together.
Everyone munched on snacks and drank beer, perfectly relaxed.
…
Five minutes earlier, outside the Undying Mountain.
Several Saint-level powerhouses concealed themselves in the void, expressions calm.
A short distance away, Wu Tian of Beast Emperor Sect clenched his fists, staring fixedly at the entrance rift. The instant anyone emerged, he would charge forward.
“Almost every genius who entered is dead. I wonder who will be the first to come out?” Nangong Jingyun said softly.
An Zaitian replied, “The only geniuses still alive should be Azure Cloud Sword Sect’s Yun Xi, Great Thunderclap Temple’s Wu Hua, and a few from the Central Continent.”
Toppling Cloud Crane asked, “If Yun Xi comes out first, do we seize her?”
Li Chaohui answered, “Yun Xi is the holy maiden of Azure Cloud Sword Sect and has another special identity. We must be cautious about touching her, or Yun Shan will fight us to the death.”
At the mention of Yun Shan, everyone except Infinite Heavenly Venerable felt their hearts sink.
They were merely ordinary Saints, whereas Yun Shan had already been a Great Saint King many years ago, his cultivation comparable to Infinite Heavenly Venerable’s and far above theirs.
Moreover, Azure Cloud Sword Sect commanded a million sword cultivators. If they crossed Yun Shan’s bottom line, the fury he unleashed was something none of them could withstand.
Nangong Jingyun said, “It might not be Yun Xi. It could be Great Thunderclap Temple’s Wu Hua.”
“We must not touch that young monk lightly either,” Li Chaohui warned. “Wu Hua is the Buddha-son of Great Thunderclap Temple and deeply favoured by the Lingshan Holy Monk. Back then, that monk was capable of destroying his own sect. Someone like that is best not provoked.”
An Zaitian said, “Earlier a beam of light shot out from the Undying Mountain toward the Western Desert. It was saturated with Buddhist nature, yet so fast even I couldn’t track it. Could that have been Wu Hua?”
Everyone except the later-arriving Nangong Jingyun had seen that light.
Even Infinite Heavenly Venerable, the strongest among them, had not managed to see it clearly.
“It should not have been Wu Hua,” Li Chaohui said. “Though his talent is extraordinary, he is still young. He could not possibly have escaped Brother An’s pursuit. He must still be inside the mountain.”
An Zaitian mused, “Perhaps the first to emerge will be one of the princes from the Central Continent.”
Li Chaohui sighed. “In recent years the Central Continent has had no conflict with our Eastern Desolation. We should treat their princes with courtesy, or we risk provoking war between the two continents. That would be troublesome.”
Toppling Cloud Crane grew irritated. “We can’t touch Yun Xi, we can’t touch Wu Hua, and we have to be polite to the Central Continent princes. Then who exactly can we touch?”
The hitherto silent Infinite Heavenly Venerable finally spoke.
“You are all Saint-level powerhouses, yet you hesitate and fret like this. Are you not afraid of becoming a laughingstock?”
“Besides, our sects have already formed an alliance. Why should we fear the Central Continent dynasties or Great Thunderclap Temple?”
“No matter who comes out first, seize them immediately and force the truth about what happened inside.”
Infinite Heavenly Venerable declared domineeringly, “If Yun Xi is first, we do not merely interrogate her. We imprison her as well.”
“Sooner or later we will move against Azure Cloud Sword Sect. With Yun Xi in our hands, Yun Shan will not dare act rashly.”
Li Chaohui frowned slightly. “Heavenly Venerable, do not forget that Azure Cloud Sword Sect still has a Supreme Elder.”
“That person has been in seclusion for thousands of years. If he truly took that final step, he would have emerged long ago. Otherwise, with all the provocations we have thrown at them, Azure Cloud would not have stayed hidden like a turtle.”
“In my view, that old fellow is probably long dead.”
“Azure Cloud Sword Sect simply conceals his death to maintain their position as the foremost sect of the Eastern Desolation.”
“In short, no matter who emerges first, seize them at once…”
As Infinite Heavenly Venerable spoke these words, he suddenly turned toward the entrance rift.
“Someone is coming out!”
