Overprotective-The Scarlet King Was Utterly Dumbfounded
"I meant no harm," Dai Huabin said.
The Scarlet King snorted, tilting all three of its heads to the side simultaneously, a gesture that could be interpreted as, "You say you don't have it, so you don't?"
The atmosphere froze for a moment.
Just then, a rustling sound came from beside the fire.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion rolled over, its golden fur brushing against a few withered leaves on the muddy ground, and yawned widely.
She opened her two normal golden eyes, and the vertical pupil on her forehead also lit up, flashing a red light, as if she wasn't fully awake yet.
"Scarlet King?"
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion tilted its head, its golden tail swishing twice on the ground.
She glanced at Ice Empress, then at Scarlet King, and finally turned to look at Dai Huabin.
What are you doing?
The Scarlet King and the Ice Empress both fell silent for a moment.
The Scarlet King's middle head opened its mouth, momentarily at a loss for words to explain to a junior of 15,000 years that "I almost turned your human friend into a meat patty."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion got up, shook off the dust, and the golden flames under its four dragon claws flickered. It trotted over to Dai Huabin and sniffed his hand.
"Are you alright? You're so cold."
Dai Huabin looked down at her and patted her on the head.
"Fine."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion turned its head to look at the Scarlet King again, its golden vertical pupils filled with confusion.
"Scarlet King, what are you doing here? Did you come looking for me?"
"Your Highness!"
The Scarlet King's tone changed abruptly, and all three heads bowed low, their posture becoming completely respectful—a stark contrast to their previous beastly demeanor.
"You left the Core Circle, and I tracked you down. It's not safe here, you..."
"Oh," the Three-Eyed Golden Lion interrupted him, "I just came out for a stroll. And I made a friend."
She gestured with her chin towards Dai Huabin.
"His name is Dai Huabin, and his barbecue is especially delicious."
Scarlet King:...
The six eyes on the three heads twitched simultaneously.
"Your Highness, he is human."
"I know."
"Humans hunt Soul Beast."
"He told me that. But he didn't want to hunt me. He even grilled meat and fish for me with lots of seasonings. It was delicious."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's tail swung faster and faster.
"By the way, Scarlet King, have you ever eaten salt? It's those little white granules that, when sprinkled on meat, completely change the taste."
The Scarlet King remained silent for three seconds.
His left head turned to the middle head, which in turn glanced at the right head. The three heads exchanged a complex expression that seemed to say, "Is this child mentally challenged?"
Dai Huabin suppressed a laugh.
Ice Empress couldn't help but smirk slightly, then quickly suppressed it.
He then turned around and looked at Dai Huabin.
"Tell me about what just happened."
Dai Huabin knew what she was asking.
"The Scarlet King suddenly appeared and attacked. I didn't have time to explain, so I could only block him."
Dai Huabin lowered his voice,
"I used the power within you to create a Domain of Eternal Freeze."
Ice Empress pursed their lips.
Through the Blood Pact, she already knew the whole story: Dai Huabin was driven to the brink of despair by the Scarlet King's claw and had no choice but to forcibly call upon her power.
"How do you feel now?" Ice Empress asked.
Dai Huabin answered honestly, "I've used up more than 70% of my Soul Power, and my body feels a little weak."
Ice Empress glanced at him and snorted.
"Do you think my power is so easy to control?"
Dai Huabin gave a wry smile and didn't reply.
"Alright, go sit down and rest for a while," Ice Empress said, turning to walk towards Scarlet King.
Dai Huabin found a tree to lean against and sat down, cross-legged to regulate his breathing and slowly recover his Soul Power. The Three-Eyed Golden Lion followed him over, lying down beside his legs, its golden tail resting on his knees.
"Did you fight with Scarlet King just now?" the Three-Eyed Golden Lion asked in a low voice.
"Almost."
"He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"No. Your Ice Empress sister arrived just in time."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion turned its head to glance at the Ice Empress, who was talking quietly with the Scarlet King, before turning back.
"She's amazing! Even Scarlet King goes easy on her."
Dai Huabin patted her head without saying anything.
On the other side, Ice Empress stood in front of Scarlet King, and the two spoke in hushed tones.
"Ice Empress, why are you with a human?"
The Scarlet King's middle head leaned closer, his voice softening considerably, his attitude completely different from before.
"In all my years, I have never seen you treat humans with any kindness."
"I have my reasons," Ice Empress replied flawlessly.
"Your power is within him; I can sense it."
The Scarlet King's left head chimed in.
"This isn't a simple matter of leaving your place. Ice Empress, what exactly did you do with him?"
Ice Empress's brows furrowed slightly, and a faint emerald green magic mark flickered across his cheek.
"Why ask so many questions? All you need to know is that he won't harm the auspicious Auspicious Beast."
The Scarlet King, unwilling to give up, pressed on:
"Just in case..."
"There's no 'what if'," Ice Empress interrupted him. "I'm keeping an eye on my people; you don't need to worry about them."
The Scarlet King's right head tried to say something, but was hit hard by the middle head.
The Scarlet King pondered for a moment.
He was certainly not satisfied with this answer.
The fact that Ice Empress's power appeared in a human body is simply not normal.
But he knew Ice Empress's personality well; the more he pressed them, the less they would say.
Getting the words "He's one of mine" out of Ice Empress today was already an unexpected bonus.
"Alright." The Scarlet King conceded a step.
"I will not abandon Your Highness's affairs. If anything happens to her, even if you are Three Great Heavenly Kings of the Far North, I will not be lenient."
Ice Empress chuckled and ignored the polite remark.
The Scarlet King turned around, and all three heads looked at the Three-Eyed Golden Lion lying next to Dai Huabin's legs.
"Your Highness, please come back with me."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion lifted its head off Dai Huabin's knees, its golden vertical pupils flashing red light.
"Scarlet King, I don't want to go back."
"Your Highness!" The Scarlet King's voice rose half an octave.
"I'm going to take Dai Huabin to find that Ice Ridge Tiger," the Three-Eyed Golden Lion said matter-of-factly. "I promised him."
The Scarlet King's six eyes slowly turned towards Dai Huabin.
Dai Huabin was leaning against a tree, meditating with his eyes closed, when he felt that gaze and slightly opened one eye.
The Scarlet King cursed this human a dozen times in his mind. First, he tricked His Highness with roasted meat, and then, by some unknown means, he lured Ice Empress onto his pirate ship. Just who is this kid?
But he couldn't do anything about Dai Huabin.
The Ice Empress is protecting His Highness, and His Highness refuses to leave...
"I'll be keeping an eye on things from the sidelines." The Scarlet King compromised, turning all three heads to Ice Empress simultaneously. "You don't have any objections to this, do you?"
Ice Empress shrugged.
"What ever."
And that was the end of it.
The Scarlet King withdrew from its attack stance, its massive body retreating to the outer thicket and lying down.
The three heads were arranged in a triangle, each staring in a different direction, with one head always fixed on Dai Huabin.
The night fell silent again.
The campfire, extinguished by the Domain of Eternal Freeze, was no longer usable, and the surrounding ice only began to melt slowly after the Ice Empress returned to the demiplane.
Dai Huabin took out a spare tinderbox from his backpack, lit a fire again, and continued to sit cross-legged and regulate his breathing.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion circled the fire twice before finally crawling down next to Dai Huabin.
"Your sister, Ice Empress, has such a bad temper," the Three-Eyed Golden Lion whispered.
"Your Scarlet King has quite a temper too," Dai Huabin retorted.
"That's true."
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's tail curled up.
"Every time he comes to see me, he's fierce. He won't let me leave the Core Circle, and he won't let me go to the lake to drink water. I've cultivated for 15,000 years, I'm not a little brat."
Dai Huabin didn't reply, but he was somewhat speechless. If the Scarlet King really cared so much, would the Auspicious Beast have even met Huo Yuhao in the original story?
But it doesn't matter anymore; the best course of action now is definitely tomorrow's Soul Beast.