The Hunt Begins, the Oppressed Venna

"Respected elders, our Four Divine Beasts Clan has been silent for too long—so long that some idiots from the outside world actually dare to bully us! Ren, the Liang'an Prefecture Lord of the Bifu Continent, actually dared to destroy the clone of Elder Emmanuel of my Azure Dragon Clan! Tell me, what should we do!"

Vermilion Bird Clan Chief Tia raised her right hand, looking down at the many elders below as she spoke in a deep, majestic voice.

Boom!

As her words fell, the entire hall erupted in chaos.

"Damn it! A mere Prefecture Lord dares to kill an elder of our Four Divine Beasts Clan? Clan Chiefs, please let me lead the charge; I will definitely behead that Ren!" Blue, a genius elder of the Azure Dragon Clan, was the first to speak in a deep voice, his tone filled with anger and resolve.

"Clan Chief, this matter cannot be let go. How can our Four Divine Beasts Clan be humiliated by a mere Prefecture Lord? Let me go; I will certainly execute that Ren!" An elder of the Vermilion Bird Clan quickly looked up, his eyes fixed on Tia with determination.

"Clan Chief..."

"Great Elder..."

Noisy voices echoed throughout the Vermilion Bird Palace. Over a hundred people spoke one after another, all without exception demanding to be sent into battle. Only the four people at the very front remained silent.

The three men exchanged glances, seeing the relief in each other's eyes. At this moment, all three felt a slight weight lift from their hearts. If it were just a common Prefecture Lord killing an elder, things would be much simpler; as long as it wasn't a war against the Augusta Clan, everything was manageable.

Only the silver-haired woman, Caroline, maintained her original posture, appearing as if she hadn't heard a thing. Whether it was the hundred-plus elders clamoring for battle or the silent communication between the other three Sovereign Envoys, she remained completely uninterested.

"Enough, quiet!"

Gaia frowned and barked a command. The entire hall fell silent instantly; no one dared to speak further.

Although Gaia was only the Great Elder of the Azure Dragon Clan, the elders of the other clans within the Four Divine Beasts Clan held her in great awe. The hierarchy of the Four Divine Beasts Clan was very strict; aside from the ancestors, the four Clan Chiefs and two Great Elders held the authority.

Gaia was especially known for her iron-fisted impartiality. She never showed favoritism to any clansman who committed a wrong, not even her own children or grandchildren. Consequently, her prestige within the clan was immense, and most elders were quite afraid of her.

"The four of us have already discussed this matter. Although our eldest brother is not here, this incident cannot be left as is; it must be handled severely!" Tia swept her gaze over the many elders below once more and spoke slowly, her voice suddenly rising a notch:

"One hundred years ago, the Venna Clan of the Wind Divine Plane laid hands on our people. Today, Ren of the Bifu Continent has also attacked us. Our Four Divine Beasts Clan has been silent for so long that the people of the Divine Planes have forgotten our power!"

"Therefore, this time, we will use overwhelming strength to broadcast the prestige of our Four Divine Beasts Clan. At the same time, we will let everyone in Hell, and indeed all the planes, witness the majesty of our Four Divine Beasts Clan!"

"By the order of the Clan Chiefs, the Four Divine Beasts Clan issues a hunt for the Liang'an Prefecture Lord, Ren. Everyone whose name is called, mobilize immediately: Fuerhan, Kifusi, Banton..."

As each name was called, figure after figure stepped forward to stand at the front. Every face was etched with battle intent, as if they would gladly sacrifice their lives to fight for the honor of the Four Divine Beasts Clan.

Tia selected thirty Seven-Star Demon elders from the four clans and arranged for four honorary elders to join the expedition. She, along with Azure Dragon Clan Great Elder Gaia and Black Tortoise Clan Chief Morey, led the team personally. A total of seven Asuras and thirty Seven-Star Demons set off together for the Bifu Continent to uphold the glory of the Four Divine Beasts Clan.

"This lineup is too powerful, isn't it? Is it really necessary?" The black-haired youth Felix couldn't help but send a voice transmission to Hansen beside him. One had to know that such a lineup was more than enough to wipe out several Asura clans; using it against Ren alone was clearly overkill.

"Don't you understand yet? The fundamental purpose of this battle isn't just to kill Ren, but to show off the strength of the Four Divine Beasts Clan to the Divine Planes. We want everyone to know that anyone who offends the Four Divine Beasts Clan will die. Even if it's a Prefecture Lord, the Four Divine Beasts Clan can mobilize dozens of Seven-Star Demons and seven Asuras to surround and kill them."

The red-haired, burly Hansen couldn't help but roll his eyes as he replied via voice transmission. He wondered how it was that, despite looking more honest and simple-minded himself, this guy Felix was actually even more naive.

Just as the Four Divine Beasts Clan's punitive force set off toward the Bifu Continent, on the other side...

Wind Divine Plane, Wind God Mountain.

White mist covered the entire mountain range, which rolled on for thousands of miles. Cyan air currents flowed between the peaks, looking from afar like a massive, gentle breeze sweeping across the land.

At the summit of Wind God Mountain stood a cerulean palace, a hundred meters tall at its center, surrounded by a cluster of mansions of various sizes where a large number of deities busied themselves.

This was the base of the Venna Clan, an Asura clan of the Enya Continent in the Wind Divine Plane.

But today, the members of the usually high-profile Venna Clan all wore expressions of terror. In the palace at the summit, the cold-faced man at the head of the table clenched his fists, staring fixedly at the two visitors before him.

"Clan Chief Gaiseresen, I wonder what business brings the two of you to my Venna Clan today?"

Venna's eyes emitted a deep blue light, and his cyan eyebrows fluttered, signaling his turbulent mood as he asked in the calmest tone he could muster.

At this moment, in the hall, the clan chief Venna—who usually held the highest status—had voluntarily retreated to a secondary seat. Several clan elders stood behind their chief, not even daring to sit, simply because of the two figures currently occupying the main seats.

Across from Venna, in the seats originally reserved for the clan chief, sat two figures: one was a cold-faced man with flowing cyan hair and a robe embroidered with cyan patterns, and the other was a man wearing a white robe that seemed to blend perfectly with the tiger-skin-like patterns on his body.

Even without transforming, everyone present recognized their identities: Gaiseresen Reding, Chief of the Azure Dragon Clan of the Four Divine Beasts Clan, and Gus Lius, Chief of the White Tiger Clan.

"Oh? You don't know why we're here? An elder of your Venna Clan actually dared to bully a member of my White Tiger Clan, and now you dare to ask us what we're doing?"

The White Tiger Clan Chief sneered, his tone dropping low. The patterns on his robe suddenly emitted a surge of tiger-like pressure, and the temperature in the room plummeted instantly.

"Bully? Your clan's Yell Gus began by molesting our young clan chief's wife and even demanded that the young clan chief hand her over to him. The young clan chief simply didn't agree on the spot—you call this bullying?"

Behind Venna, a white-haired elder couldn't help but retort. As an elder who had existed since the birth of the clan, Terry Venna had watched the young clan chief grow up, and seeing this scene, he couldn't help but speak out.

"Shut up!"

Venna was the first to react, backhanding Terry with a slap. He held back almost nothing, and Terry was sent flying, spitting out a mouthful of blood.