Ill Intentions

On the outskirts of the core area of the Youquan Mountain Range, Leian and Derrick walked while chatting. Behind them, the Phantom Magic Monkey Selina kept her head down, following them with small, hesitant steps.

The reason the two men and one beast could be so relaxed was that the Saint-level Tyrannosaurus Rex Demos seemed to have suffered significant soul damage during his battle with Margaret.

After Margaret left, Demos had remained lying on the spot, motionless. Only then did Leian and his companions manage to leave the core area without incident.

"Leian, do you still plan on staying in the Youquan Mountain Range?"

Derrick turned his head, looking at Leian with curiosity.

Even though the other man was only a ninth-rank warrior and there were only fifteen years left until the competition for the Goddess of Dark Night's named disciple, he didn't seem the least bit anxious.

"No, I plan to return to the imperial capital."

Leian shook his head and stated his intentions truthfully. His goals for this trip were basically met, and he had even found a direction for cultivating the Laws of Destruction; staying in the Youquan Mountain Range was no longer of much use.

Moreover, he had only paid three years of rent for his house in the imperial capital, and the time was almost up; he had to hurry back.

Hearing this, Derrick laughed heartily: "What a coincidence, I also plan to return to the imperial capital. Shall we go together?"

Leian glanced at Derrick, his heart stirring slightly as he had already guessed the other man's intentions.

Perhaps to show sincerity, Derrick had already introduced his own background during their previous chats.

Surprisingly, this guy actually came from the royal family of the Byron Empire.

Although he was only a collateral branch, he still carried the name "Byron," and his own strength was not bad, having earned the title of "Marquis" early on.

Right now, his deliberate attempt to tag along was, unsurprisingly, an effort to recruit him.

After all, the entire continent still respected strength above all else!

The reason the Byron Empire was able to be established in the first place was that the founding emperor, Byron, was himself a Saint-level powerhouse and had received the support of several other Saint-level experts.

Furthermore, although the Goddess of Dark Night was the ruler of the entire Youquan Continent, she did not interfere much with the changes of kingdoms on the continent.

Thinking of this, Leian did not refuse. He was not alone in this world, and being on good terms with the royal family could be considered a form of protection for his family. Besides, Derrick's personality was quite to his liking.

The two decided on their itinerary and, without delay, prepared to set off. However, just then, a voice suddenly came from the side.

"Derrick, wait!"

The two looked toward the source of the sound and saw a middle-aged man approaching. He was not tall, dressed in a set of brown combat gear, with a large, earth-yellow sword strapped to his back.

Derrick clearly recognized this person and smiled immediately: "Andre, I didn't expect you to be in the Youquan Mountain Range as well. It seems you saw the great battle earlier?"

"That's right."

Andre nodded with a smile, but his eyes remained fixed on Leian. He spoke directly: "Derrick, aren't you going to introduce me?"

Seeing his expression, Derrick knew that the man must have seen Lady Margaret hand over the Goddess Token and had likely rushed over specifically to build a connection.

The two were friends, so he naturally wouldn't stand in the way, and he said smoothly: "This is Leian, a ninth-rank warrior, my brother."

As he spoke, he turned to introduce the middle-aged man to Leian:

"Leian, this is Andre, Andre Savinian. He's from the imperial capital, cultivates earth-attribute battle qi, and is also a ninth-rank warrior."

Leian had never heard of the name Andre, but he knew the surname "Savinian," which belonged to an old, established ducal family of the Byron Empire.

Andre looked to be of a considerable age, but to have reached the level of a ninth-rank warrior and to be training in the Youquan Mountain Range, he was undoubtedly a diligent cultivator. Leian held such people in high regard.

After hearing Derrick's introduction, he took the initiative to greet him: "Hello, Mr. Andre."

Andre's attitude was also very good, and he replied with a smile: "Mr. Leian looks very young. It's no wonder you were able to receive a token from Lady Margaret. I am impressed!"

When Derrick heard Andre say this, he acted as if he were being praised himself, saying with a proud look:

"That's right, brother Leian became a ninth-rank warrior at thirty. Such talent ranks in the top three in all of the recorded history of the Byron Empire."

Leian was no longer surprised that Derrick knew so much about him, as the man had already frankly admitted it:

Two years ago, after witnessing Leian kill a Green-Eyed Horned Tiger with a single sword strike, Derrick had used his connections to investigate Leian's background.

Leian had not deliberately hidden his identity on his way from Qingshi Town to the imperial capital, so it was clear to anyone who took the trouble to investigate.

Given this, Leian was not surprised that Margaret could recognize him at a glance. He even guessed that he must have caught their attention while trading at the Youquan Trading Firm.

Leian neither modestly denied nor smugly accepted Derrick's praise. Just as he was about to change the subject to discuss cultivation, a noise suddenly came from not far away.

He shifted his gaze and looked into the distance, seeing two figures in the nearby jungle rushing toward them at high speed, one after the other.

The newcomers made no attempt to hide their tracks, and Derrick and Andre naturally discovered them immediately. The former chuckled: "It seems there were quite a few people watching the battle!"

"It looks like Robert and Stefan."

Andre followed up with an explanation. Given his age, he had seen far more powerhouses than Derrick and recognized the two men at a glance.

Derrick was stunned for a moment and instinctively asked: "Stefan? That genius warrior touted by the Beni Empire?"

Andre nodded: "If I'm not mistaken, it should be him. Six years ago, I saw him once at the northern foothills of the Youquan Mountain Range."

Leian had also heard of the so-called genius warrior, Stefan.

Although the three major empires on the Youquan Continent had always lived in peace, they still had their own points of comparison and rivalry.

Among them, the comparison of genius powerhouses was always a popular topic of conversation.

This Stefan was under fifty years old this year and had become a ninth-rank warrior at the age of thirty-two. He was the most talented warrior in the Beni Empire today, so he had been constantly promoted by the entire empire, and his name was known to almost everyone on the Youquan Continent.

As for the Byron Empire, they naturally had someone they had always been promoting, a person by the name of Kleist.

However, this Kleist had already broken through to the ninth rank seven years ago, becoming a Saint-level powerhouse, and nowadays, the Byron Empire no longer deigned to mention Stefan and Kleist in the same breath.

Regarding the actions of the Byron Empire, the Beni Empire was naturally furious, cursing the Byron Empire for being shameless.

The reason for this was that Kleist was ten years older than Stefan; if the two were the same age, it was not certain that Stefan would not be a Saint-level powerhouse himself.

Right now, judging from the positions of both sides, it was feared that this Stefan had come with ill intent.