Lion King Yan Shi

Guardian Elder stared intently at me. I only felt a dense, blood-soaked martial aura rushing straight at me, making my breathing hitch.

Heaven knew how many people he had killed? I vaguely recalled Guardian Elder's past. It was said that when he was young, he had served in the imperial army and even taken part in the war against the Chuyun Empire...

After a moment, Guardian Elder finally withdrew his gaze, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief. I rubbed my chest and gasped for air.

Guardian Elder turned his back to us and looked down at the shops below. In a deep voice, he said, "Nalan Zhan, take Nalan Ye inside."

"Yes, Elder."

A middle-aged man in heavy armor beside him answered gravely. He then turned his head toward me and said in a low voice, "Kid, come with me."

I nodded and smiled. "Sorry to trouble you, Uncle Zhan."

Following Nalan Zhan down from the pavilion, I signaled for Xiao Yan and the other three to follow. Nalan Zhan glanced sideways at the four members of the Xiao Family, paused, but said nothing as he continued leading the way.

No one stopped us along the way, and we soon reached the entrance to the shop. Looking out, I saw more than twenty people standing opposite the several hundred guards of the Nalan Family in the street. They were locked in confrontation, their momentum no weaker in the slightest.

I narrowed my eyes for a closer look. Among those twenty-odd people were old and young, men and women—these should have been the twenty-four Da Dou Shi Gu He had brought.

Da Dou Shi...

In some smaller cities, such as Wutan City and Wu Si City, the strongest cultivators were Da Dou Shi, enough to dominate an entire region.

Even in major powers such as the Nalan Family and the Yun Lan Sect, Da Dou Shi were core forces not to be underestimated!

Still, I shook my head and swept my gaze over them disdainfully. Though these twenty-odd people appeared imposing, they were merely a motley crowd cobbled together from all directions. Like flowers in a mirror or the moon in water, they would collapse with the lightest poke.

Nalan Zhan stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "These children need to go inside. Please make way."

The twenty-odd people exchanged glances. After a moment of silence, an elderly man of considerable standing stepped forward, brushed his sleeve, and said:

"Who are these children? The Pill King is currently discussing matters inside. It would be best for irrelevant people not to enter and disturb him."

Nalan Zhan kept a straight face and stood tall. "Make way."

The old man froze. Unwilling to offend the Nalan Family by himself, he turned back in search of support, only to find that the twenty-odd Da Dou Shi behind him had all shifted their gazes away. No one was willing to meet his eyes.

Seeing this, I could not help but chuckle softly. How could a mere Da Dou Shi afford to offend the Nalan Family?

None of these Da Dou Shi who had cultivated to this level were fools. They could answer Gu He's invitation and come lend him their presence, but actually offend the Nalan Family?

Heh, they still had to assess the situation first...

But now, the situation was unclear. Who would be willing to offend the Nalan Family over a few children? I raised my head and glanced at the shop, but its tall walls and buildings blocked the view, revealing nothing.

Taking a deep breath, I led Xiao Yan and the others toward the shop. The twenty-odd Da Dou Shi all pretended not to see us and offered no resistance whatsoever.

Following the same route as yesterday, we soon arrived before that courtyard built of blue-gray stone bricks.

There was no one around, and the courtyard gate stood slightly ajar. I reached out and gently pushed it open. The gate slowly swung apart, revealing everything inside.

Hai Bodong, Yun Yun, Nalan Jie, and Gu He were all in the courtyard, along with Lion King, Wind Walker, two Dou Wang, and quite a few Dou Ling.

Some stood while others sat, discussing something. The atmosphere was fairly harmonious, nowhere near as tense as it was outside.

I could not help but breathe a sigh of relief. Entering the courtyard, I clasped my hands in salute and said clearly, "This junior, Nalan Ye, greets Elder Temir, Sect Leader Yun, Old Man, Lion King, and Wind Walker."

Sigh, being weak and junior really was a disadvantage—and troublesome too. Just greeting everyone in turn was exhausting.

Hai Bodong glanced at me and gave a chuckle, but said nothing. Yun Yun nodded lightly. She too sat in the seat of honor, keeping silent.

Both of them were Dou Emperor and could not easily take a stance—although Hai Bodong's strength was no longer what it once was, his seniority and standing remained. Unless things truly came to a complete falling-out, everyone still had to show him some respect.

Nalan Jie looked at me, then swept his gaze over the four members of the Xiao Family behind me. After a pause, he said in a deep voice, "You're here? Stand behind me, all of you."

Naturally, I had no intention of merely standing to one side. Just as I was about to speak, a burly middle-aged man nearby spoke first. It was Lion King Yan Shi.

"Nalan Jie, are these children your juniors?"

He swept his eyes over us, snorted coldly, and shouted, "This little brat has no manners at all! Doesn't he know what sort of place this is, daring to wander in here as he pleases? And he actually dares to ignore Mr. Gu He?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the pressure of a Dou Wang bore down on me head-on. My chest immediately felt heavy, and my face turned pale.

How could Nalan Jie tolerate this? He snorted coldly, circulated his Dou Qi as well to block the pressure, and shouted, "Yan Shi, what kind of skill is it to bully a few children?"

As I rubbed my chest, I glanced at Yan Shi and cursed inwardly, but said nothing more. Gu He was the main figure in today's affair; Yan Shi was merely here to bolster his side. What was the point of wasting words on him?

I turned to look at Gu He. Dressed in a pale white robe, he sat on a stone chair. His sharply defined face appeared calm, but traces of excitement and greed still showed in the depths of his eyes.

He casually glanced at me but did not say anything. Was he ignoring me?

I did not care about that. Straightening my clothes, I asked, "Pill King, did you come here to seize my Exotic Flame?"

My words were too blunt. No matter how composed and refined Gu He was, his face still twitched. His body stiffened, but he forced himself not to speak and continued doing his best to ignore a living person like me.

"Child, do not speak nonsense!"

At that moment, a Dou Ling beside him spoke up. He looked down at me coldly and shouted, "Child, this is no place for you to speak. Get out at once!"

"Ba Gu Li, is that any way to speak to my grandson?!"

With a cold snort, Nalan Tie shouted back without yielding in the slightest.

I looked at Nalan Tie, feeling somewhat touched. This was what a real grandfather was like. I then swept my gaze over the people around Gu He. Two Dou Wang and seven Dou Ling—not one was missing. It was quite an impressive lineup.

After pondering for a moment, a faint smile appeared on my face as I said sincerely, "Senior Lion King, Senior Wind Walker, and all the seniors present, may I ask what benefits Gu He offered you? My Nalan Family is willing to pay double!"

"We do not ask the seniors to help the Nalan Family. We only ask that you stand aside and no longer involve yourselves in this matter."

The courtyard suddenly fell silent. Then bursts of laughter rang out one after another, with Lion King laughing the loudest. His bell-like eyes fixed on me, and he grinned broadly as though looking at a fool.

"Child, you actually think we came because we accepted benefits from the Pill King?!"

After saying that, he could not help bursting into laughter again. Turning toward Nalan Jie, he struggled to suppress his amusement and said, "Nalan Jie, is something wrong with your little brat's head?"