Chapter 123 - Misunderstanding
The moment Jiu Shen stepped out of the Refining Hall, he saw that Can Ye was seated on a random corner while covering his ears with both his hands. This perplexed Jiu Shen so he walked towards him and asked in a curious voice. "Can Ye, what are you covering your ears for?"
With Can Ye's cultivation level, although he was way weaker compared to Jiu Shen, he still felt his master's presence approaching him and when he heard him speak, Can Ye stared at him with an unusual look and shook his head forcefully. "Master, I didn't hear anything I swear!"
After hearing his reply, Jiu Shen was at first confused, but then he thought of something, which made his eyes twitch. His gaze towards Can Ye turned incredibly stern, causing the latter to misunderstand the situation even more.
'Did master just...with senior sister? I'm certain that it was senior sister's voice... So master is so fierce even in that field...' Can Ye muttered in his heart.
"Master, I won't speak about this to anyone and no other soul will know that this happened! I vow under the heavens that this will remain a secret and if I break this promise, may the heavens incinerate my soul!" Can Ye stood up as he made a heavenly oath with a serious look on his face, but this made Jiu Shen's face twitch even more.
A heavenly oath is a vicious vow that was usually established to protect secrets, and if the oath was broken, the person who made the vow will immediately be punished by the tribulation lightning. Just that, this scene looked comical in Jiu Shen's eyes...
'This kid... I haven't even spoken yet... Oh well...' Jiu Shen sighed in his heart.
"Go upstairs and tell Hestia to come down here." Jiu Shen said in a calm voice as he looked at Can Ye's ever-changing facial features.
Can Ye nodded his head like a chicken pecking on rice and replied with a quivering voice. "Y-Yes, master!"
After bowing at Jiu Shen, he immediately sprinted out of the second floor, but before he could take a step outside, he suddenly heard Jiu Shen's indifferent voice.
"Oh, and ah, tell her to bring some clothes for Sulan."
Can Ye almost stumbled when he heard those words, luckily, he was able to balance himself after taking several steps.
'Master is so mighty! He didn't even spare senior sister's clothes!'
With a face full of reverence, Can Ye answered. "I'll be back right away, master."
Jiu Shen waved his right hand impatiently and didn't even bother looking at Can Ye's figure. He was afraid that he might smack the latter to death if he saw his weird expression.
"This is going to be a long night... If Theia hears this, she will most likely come down here and make things even worse... That kid Can Ye... Sigh." Jiu Shen shook his head with a wry smile suffusing his handsome face.
* * *
On the same night.
Inside the Silver Wing Empire's imperial throne room, Emperor Elyk Silveria was already wearing a new set of robes and he was seated on his throne with a dignified look on his face.
In front of him were the four guardians of the empire who had cultivation levels at the peak of the 7th-rank Emperor Realm. It won't be long before they break through to the next realm looking at their stable and vigorous true essence.
"Your Majesty, what will Wine Master Jiu do with those one hundred people?" Defender Duanmu asked with a curious look. He was together with the emperor when the latter had discussed with Jiu Shen, but unfortunately, he wasn't allowed to join their discussion.
Emperor Elyk recalled the scene when Jiu Shen blocked the dragon's flame breath with just one hand. That kind of attack was enough to decimate half of Beltran City, but Jiu Shen merely used a hand to ward off that kind of frightening ball of raging flame. Emperor Elyk thought that he had already overestimated Jiu Shen's strength, but it appears that he had underestimated Jiu Shen's true power.
'That kind of power... Is Wine Master Jiu someone above the 9th-rank Saint?'
Emperor Elyk sighed in his heart.
Defender Duanmu and the other three guardians were surprised at the emperor's silence, but they didn't dare disturb him after seeing his preoccupied look. It seemed like he was still affected by earlier events, but it was understandable since even the four of them were still shaken about it. After all, it was their first time seeing a dragon that was at the peak stage of the 9th-rank Saint, but they were also curious about how Emperor Elyk managed to turn things around. However, the emperor remained silent and refused to talk about it, so they refrained from asking him.
Emperor Elyk glanced at the four old men kneeling before him and let out a gratified smile. They were willing to stay and die with him even in the most precarious situation, so he was happy to have such loyal subordinates.
"I've tried to ask Wine Master Jiu about what he will do with those one hundred people, but he refused to answer me. It's not too much anyway, so we can just give him what he wants. Furthermore, with his strength, he could have long since conquered my Silver Wing Empire, but he didn't do so. By this alone, I can tell that he doesn't harbor malicious intentions, so make haste and arrange this properly." Emperor Elyk was still uncertain about Jiu Shen's purpose in staying inside Beltran City, but he welcomed his presence especially after what had happened recently.
Defender Duanmu and the three defenders bowed their heads in obeisance.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" They answered in unison.
Emperor Elyk closed his eyes as the figure of a woman with icy blue hair suddenly appeared in his mind. He could not help but shake his head and silently bury this unrequited emotion deep within his heart. "I can finally be at ease. With a man like Wine Master Jiu standing behind her, she will certainly reach the heights that I can only look up to. Lu Sulan, I wish you good luck..." He muttered in his heart.
* * *
All the major households within Beltran City were still unable to calm themselves even if the dragon can no longer be seen. They saw the huge behemoth that towered over the skies as it looked down towards them as if it was looking at a group of ants. They couldn't forget how it had almost obliterated the whole capital city in just two attacks. However, their surprise was also because of their emperor's majestic presence during the entire event.
The fearless and dauntless Emperor Elyk of the olden days was back with a much more frightening power! Some were happy about this, but a few were also feeling unsettled.
Inside the Xue Family's estate, Elder Ming can be seen standing with his hands behind his back. The look on his face was unsightly as he stared at the three figures in front of him.
"All of you failed in taking the Earth Origin Dragon Tree and even Shiti Xibo died! Useless fools!" Elder Ming's face contorted in fury as his spittle rained on the faces of the three old men who were kneeling before him.
The three old men were none other than Da Bi, Mu Bai, and Cai Jun who were elders of the Undying Corpse Sect! They were actually showing a look of dread as they knelt before Elder Ming!
"Lord Sect Master, there is a very strong expert in that store. She should be on the same level as the Sect Master in terms of cultivation prowess. Furthermore, the emperor also offered his assistance to them that even Shao Fenhua of the Crimson Sun Sect could only escape from the scene." Da Bi's voice was slightly quivering as he spoke. The person in front of him was the person he feared the most in his entire life. He might look like an amiable old man, but behind his facade was a vicious personality with great strength!
Cai Jun and Mu Bai remained silent and they didn't even dare lift their heads. Thick beads of sweat trickled down their wrinkled faces as they faced Elder Ming's oppressive aura.
Eldering Ming snorted and waved his sleeves, throwing the three old men a few dozen meters away from him.
Swoosh.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The three hurriedly knelt down after standing up with difficulty. Blood trickled down their lips and their bodies trembled ceaselessly in trepidation.
"This is just a light punishment. Scram out of my sight before I kill you!" Elder Ming shouted with a dark countenance.
Dabi and the other two immediately scrambled out of the scene and they even stumbled as they left.
Elder Ming stared at their receding figures with a trace of killing intent, but he decided to let them off. "Jiu Shen. Jiu Shen. Jiu Shen. I have underestimated you severely and I even lost a capable elder! Besides, the dragon that came earlier... It was definitely a peak stage 9th-rank Saint, so how did that old bastard Elyk manage to defeat it?! I don't believe it was done by him, but I need to be careful with my actions now!"
Elder Ming's voice carried a deep tone of furiousness and hate, but his contorted face slowly regained its usual amiable and kind look. It was as if two persons with different personalities exist in one body...
His figure slowly turned into a small cloud of dark gas before it vanished from the scene.