After a simple tidy-up, Song Wanníng set out for the Beast Clan's territory.
The Beast Clan had just signed an agreement with the Central Region, gaining the qualification to enter the Central Region.
It was a major shift. Among the four regions, the Beast Clan and the Demon Clan had long been disliked by the human race. Every meeting ended with blades drawn and arrows nocked.
But the Central Region was different. They did not care about race, nor did they shout for the slaughter of beasts. Under that influence, perhaps the humans of the Eastern Region and Southern Region would change as well.
Of course, the Beast Clan also had to hand over many resources. Faced with the Central Region's power, they had little choice.
At Bai Yao Palace.
The Beast King, Gong Ye, was bathing. The medicinal pool brimmed with rare ingredients. Any single one taken outside would cause a scramble. Here, they were merely a tonic for the body. Extravagant to the extreme.
Beside him, several beast attendants kneaded his legs and pounded his back. A grape was slipped between his lips. He closed his eyes to enjoy it, expression cold and remote.
Before long, a beast cultivator strode in, clearly angry. She bent at the waist, marched in with a huff, and kept her head lowered.
"Your Highness, that person still refuses to confess. And she dared to insult Your Highness. Her crime is unforgivable. In my view, why not kill her outright?"
As she reported, the beast cultivator stole a glance at the Beast King, who sat with eyes closed in repose. Pink bubbles of infatuation rose in her heart and flushed her ears bright red.
That woman had dared to insult the lord she worshiped most. She ought to be cut into a thousand pieces without a burial.
Gong Ye opened his eyes slowly, but he did not look at her. He accepted another grape at his lips and swallowed. Contempt flickered in his eyes.
"Oh?"
His voice carried a note of curiosity. Then a cold smile hooked at his mouth as he finally glanced at the beast cultivator.
"Since when did Bai Yao Palace become yours to command?"
A heavy thud.
At those words, the beast cultivator collapsed to her knees and kowtowed again and again. "Spare me, Your Highness. I only wished to defend your honor. I would never overstep."
She knocked her head so hard that blood rose under the skin.
There was not a trace of pity in Gong Ye's eyes. His palm shot out without warning. In the blink of an eye, the pleading beast cultivator became a heap of sludge, silent forever.
"Such a trivial task, and she could not do it. A waste of Bai Yao Palace's resources."
With that, he hooked the corpse, which had reverted to its original form, then revealed his own flood dragon body. He tossed the corpse into his mouth in one gulp. His jaws cracked and crunched as if he were savoring a rare delicacy.
Around him, the attendants trembled, too frightened to lift their heads, wishing they could vanish into the floor.
In the vast bath chamber, only the sound of chewing remained, one bite after another, chilling to the bone. When he had swallowed, Gong Ye resumed his human form and continued to enjoy his bath. He had not forgotten business, however. He chose another person to interrogate the human captive.
Not long after, someone else arrived.
Gong Ye's mood soured. He waved the attendants away.
"What is it?"
He climbed from the pool and dressed. His physique was compact and powerful, the exposed torso solid and broad.
The messenger darted a glance at him and lowered his head. "Your Highness, the Beast Clan Alliance sent another message. The Central Region wishes to discuss terms with Bai Yao Palace."
When the Central Region's restriction opened without warning, the Beast Clan had been caught off guard and gathered early to plan a response.
Only Bai Yao Palace had refused to participate. The Alliance had already sent several messages over it.
A cold light crossed Gong Ye's face.
"What of the Central Region? This king is not impressed.
Tell them Bai Yao Palace will not take part. If the Central Region dislikes us, let them come to Bai Yao Palace directly.
I would like to see how far their arrogance reaches."
As Gong Ye spoke, his aura surged, the pressure of a peak Mahayana cultivator. His true strength had already surpassed the peak of Mahayana. He had touched upon the path of a loose immortal.
Loose immortals were those who had weathered tribulation, yet by ill fortune were not accepted by the ascension channel.
Unable to enter the Immortal Realm, they could only wander the lower realm.
Such loose immortals were exceedingly rare, perhaps one in hundreds of thousands of years, but their strength stood at the very apex of the Spirit Realm.
So Gong Ye felt no need to respect the Central Region.
In this Spirit Realm, there was no one left worthy of a fight.
"Yes, Your Highness. I will go at once."
The beast cultivator hurried away. No one dared defy the Beast King's strength.
It was a curious tale. At birth, the Beast King had been a cast-off hatchling of the Snake Clan, abandoned for poor aptitude and deemed trash. By a twist of fate, he later awakened the flood dragon bloodline, then advanced as if guided by the gods.
Bai Yao Palace was built by him alone. The Snake Clan watched like tigers eyeing prey, yet they could do nothing to the Beast King.
With a sovereign like this, all they had to do was obey.
When the hall had cleared, Gong Ye lifted his eyelids. A chill flashed in his eyes. He thought of the woman in the dungeon and decided to pay her another visit, to see how long her hard mouth could hold out. He soon arrived at the water dungeon.
Bai Yao Palace's water prison held more than a hundred captives.
The innermost cell confined a single woman. She had been there for years, questioned daily by beast cultivators, and every time they failed.
Threats and bribes, cruel torments, none of it moved her. Everyone in the water prison remembered her vividly.
Gong Ye strode to the deepest cell. A stench of stagnant water and blood rose to meet him.
Within, a woman in a blue robe was pierced through by bone spikes and nailed to the wall. Her hair hung in tangled curtains, hiding most of her face. The sharp line of her jaw still revealed that she must be a beauty.
"I hear you cursed me today." Gong Ye opened the door and sauntered in.
The water that had risen to the woman's chest recoiled as if meeting some dreadful thing, drawing back until none of it came within half a step of Gong Ye.
At the familiar yet strange voice, the woman stirred at last. She slowly raised her head, a cold light in her eyes.
Blood smeared her face. A cyan gleam haunted her pupils as she stared straight at Gong Ye.
If Song Wanníng had been here, she would have recognized the blood-streaked woman at a glance.
Her long-sought Martial Uncle.
Liu Lanyi.