Tianhua Domain, Windstill Nation, Greenvalley City.

When Ming Rihao saw Yue Yang again, he noticed that after only a day apart the kid was wearing a smug grin all over his face — for all the world like a little fox that had just made off with a chicken. He couldn’t help asking in surprise, “What happened? Don’t tell me you went and swindled some poor little girl somewhere again?”

Yue Yang naturally denied it.

Things like elevating Princess Qianqian’s life-guardian war beast, the White Tiger, all the way to a Divine Beast — and even turning her into a true White Tiger maiden as well — that sense of accomplishment, paired with the delight of a surprise he hadn’t seen coming, was a double satisfaction that genuinely left him pleased with himself. But this was a joy to savor alone, to turn over slowly in his own mind; there was no way to take it out and share it. He waved Ming Rihao off, signaling that it was his own private business, and that this miserable old geezer should mind less of it.

Ming Rihao wasn’t the gossipy sort to begin with, nor did he enjoy prying into other people’s secrets. He’d only asked out of curiosity, seeing that smug look on Yue Yang’s face.

If Yue Yang wouldn’t say, he didn’t care either.

It was just that the kid’s spring-breeze radiance made his own gloom look all the drearier by comparison, and that left Ming Rihao thoroughly annoyed.

No one he’d ever met made him as depressed as this kid did — he figured the boy had been arranged by the god of fate itself, sent expressly to torment him…

“Tomorrow’s the birthday banquet. Are you sure you want to make your move?” Angry as Ming Rihao was, he still thought fairly highly of Yue Yang, reckoning that as detestable as this crafty little brat was, when it came to scheming and getting things done he was a first-rate ruthless operator. Partnering with him, you’d never come out at a loss.

“Actually, my original plan was just to squeeze the secret of the Windstill Swamp out of them and get a feel for the Tianhua Domain. Now that I’ve got you, there’s no need to go fishing for information out of the Windstill national ruler’s mouth. I think the original plan can be revised. If that runaway slave of yours isn’t here, then we don’t necessarily have to tip our hand and startle the snake. So — you first give me a full, detailed rundown of the powers in the Tianhua Domain right now, plus the hidden ones, all of it, and then I’ll see how to lay things out.” Before yesterday’s power-up, Yue Yang had already talked it over with Yue Yu and Princess Qianqian, and they’d decided the plan didn’t necessarily have to be carried out as originally set — especially with unknown, formidable enemies watching hungrily from the sidelines. Exposing your own side’s strength all at once was a deeply passive move to make.

“And if the runaway slave is here?” Ming Rihao naturally put the matter of his obsession first.

“Then there’s nothing to talk about. Whoever needs seizing, we seize; whoever needs killing, we kill.” Yue Yang laughed heartily. He was hardly the type to dither and second-guess and fret over consequences.

“Good.” Ming Rihao clapped in approval first, then nodded to Yue Yang and made his position clear: “If the runaway slave really is here, then moving to capture her is a given — but the timing won’t necessarily be immediate. As an ally, I can understand, and I’ll take your interests into account too. As long as it doesn’t affect your plans, I’ll cooperate as much as I can.”

“Let’s start with the big picture; everything else we can discuss slowly.” What Yue Yang wanted to know was whether, here in the Tianhua Domain, there existed a figure as monstrously powerful as Ji Wuri.

However you looked at it, word of a Divine Codex was here.

There was no reason the people of the Central Divine Hall wouldn’t have caught wind of it — and once they had, no reason they wouldn’t be tempted.

Especially given Ji Wuri’s tireless pursuit of the Divine Codex in the Trial Grounds, Yue Yang could deduce one thing: within the Central Divine Hall, even among powerhouses of Ji Wuri’s caliber, there was fierce infighting. Ji Wuri dreamed of contracting a Divine Codex, climbing to the divine tier, and becoming a true god — and there was no reason the other two of equal strength wouldn’t act as well.

What’s more, even setting aside the top-tier monsters on Ji Wuri’s level in the Central Divine Hall —

Powerhouses a rank below Ji Wuri, yet still arrogantly, obnoxiously strong, were beyond counting. Was there really not a single one of them who’d set his sights on the Divine Codex here in the Tianhua Domain?

This was a Divine Codex!

If none of them had been moved by it, you could beat Yue Yang to death and he still wouldn’t believe it.

Ming Rihao hesitated a bit at first, wondering whether spelling it all out would stir up the kid’s fighting spirit and send him straight off to challenge them. After all, back in the day at the Prison Emperor’s Hall, when this kid was still a nobody, he’d dared to talk back to Void Sovereign and Jiuxiao — figures on the level of the three giants of the Heavenly Realm.

Now that the kid had grown into his own, brazen to the bone as he was, what wouldn’t he dare to do?

But Yue Yang was fixing him with a dead stare, all but firing off death-ray beams like Ultraman — there’d be no getting out of it without talking.

And so Ming Rihao used a secret voice-transmission technique to report a few names to Yue Yang, then briefly explained the strength and factions those names represented.

The moment our classmate Yue Yang heard them, he stood up, turned, and walked off.

“Where are you going?” Ming Rihao hurriedly blocked the kid’s path, thinking that the very thing he’d feared had come to pass — this kid really was a walking disaster who wouldn’t rest until he’d brought the sky crashing down. He should have known better than to tell him, should have kept him in the dark for a while and dealt with it later when the moment came. Just as Ming Rihao was privately regretting it, Yue Yang’s answer nearly sent him toppling face-first onto the floor.

Because what Yue Yang said was: “I’m going home!”

Ming Rihao broke out in a cold sweat. “Home for what? To fetch reinforcements? Look, the Sky Tower might have a few people these days, but compared to the Central Divine Hall, there’s simply no comparison!”

Yue Yang shook his head. “Nonsense. I’d have to be an idiot to go butting heads with the Central Divine Hall. I’m going home to lie low and let the storm blow over!”

Ming Rihao practically sweated a waterfall. “And here I thought you were about to charge off and challenge them!”

Yue Yang looked at Ming Rihao with an expression that said you’re beyond hope. “Miserable old geezer, don’t go assuming everyone’s intelligence is as low as yours, all right? Are those fellows anyone I can touch right now? I’m heading back. As for the Tianhua Domain here — you can pretend I never came!”

Seeing the kid about to wash his hands and leave, Ming Rihao hurriedly blocked him again. “Don’t be like this. A man can’t be so devoid of loyalty — we’ve already sworn an alliance.”

Yue Yang gave a cold snort through his nose. “That alliance was just verbal, wasn’t it? Well, now I take it back!”

Damn — kid, could you possibly be any more shameless?

Watching Yue Yang carry on like this, Ming Rihao ached in both liver and gut, yet there was nothing he could do about him. In the end he had no choice but to concede: “Kid, if you’ll agree to stay, and we join forces against the enemy, then once we’ve beaten them and won the treasures, you get first pick. Wait — don’t go, don’t go, we can work this out, we can work this out. What I mean is, if the Divine Codex emerges, you get first crack at the spoils too…” Seeing the kid’s face still full of disdain, Ming Rihao finally had to steel himself — you can’t catch the wolf if you’re unwilling to risk the child — and, gritting his teeth: “If you stay, then after this fight is over, I’ll tell you where your sister is in secluded cultivation! This is no lie — otherwise you can peel this hide right off me and make it into clothes!”

Seeing that Ming Rihao had flipped over his trump card and laid it all on the table, Yue Yang was overjoyed beyond his wildest hopes.

He thrust out a hand and gripped Ming Rihao’s big paw. “Big brother! Say no more, I’ll stay and help you! Honestly, you’ve misjudged me. A jade-faced young gentleman like myself — righteous and upstanding, loyal and true, ever ready to leap to a friend’s aid, all for the common good, patriotic, devoted to the collective, willing without hesitation to take a blade in the ribs for a friend, resolute and unflinching — how could I ever abandon you, big brother, to fight on all alone? Clearly you’ve misunderstood me! But I’m a gentleman of great magnanimity; no need to apologize, I forgave you in my heart long ago!”

Ming Rihao’s face went black with rage.

He very nearly slapped the kid to death on the spot.

Of course, he understood in his heart exactly what kind of person this kid was: unless you let him gain some advantage, you could forget about getting him to lift a finger. Fine — he’d just shut his eyes and swallow the loss!

It was true that our classmate Yue Yang loved to come out ahead — but when it came to actual work he wasn’t stingy about putting in the effort either, and where his own life and fortune were concerned he’d spare nothing at all. He sat back down, and item by item, he and Ming Rihao set about hammering out the revised plan.

After two hours of back-and-forth deliberation, the new plan was at last nailed down.

Once everything was finally settled, Ming Rihao quietly let out a breath of relief… Thank goodness this kid was his ally, and not his enemy!

Out on the main street, another shocking piece of news came from the direction of the Mercenary Guild. Unlike the ordinary announcements they put out, this news once again swept through Greenvalley City like a hurricane. Yue Yang, mildly startled, cocked an ear and listened, and found it was still about that “Freedom Queen” he’d heard of the day before. From the laments of the starving masses and the destitute mercenaries, and the cheers of the wealthy, it seemed the Freedom Queen was to be moved to Greenvalley City and publicly executed once the birthday banquet for Lady Zhiguang — the national ruler’s beloved concubine — had concluded.

“Miserable old geezer, what do you make of this?” Yue Yang pointed out the window.

“To be honest, I’m not too clear on it myself.” Ming Rihao shook his head.

“She’s not a descendant of that first love of yours?” Yue Yang found it a little odd — if she wasn’t a descendant of his first love, then why the miserable long face?

“She’s probably a descendant of Fourth Sister’s disciple, or maybe a descendant of Fifth Sister. I never met her — I’ve only heard tell. In the Tianhua Domain, roughly every few centuries a ‘Freedom Queen’ arises. They revere Fourth Sister and Fifth Sister as the ‘Twin Saints,’ and carry compassion and forbearance in their hearts. No matter whose side they belong to, they save all the poor and starving, and redeem every soldier. Under this faith passed down generation after generation, the Freedom Queen roams all across the Tianhua Domain, appealing, hoping the three sides will lay down their weapons and end the war. Because of this anti-war creed, many of the poor and the crippled soldiers have become her believers, her devoted followers.” Ming Rihao paused, then said slowly, “And precisely because of that, these Freedom Queens and their faithful followers generally don’t live very long. The moment one is captured, those in power burn her alive.”

“And you’re not going to do anything about it?” Yue Yang felt Ming Rihao’s hulking frame had grown for nothing, and chided him: “This is the perfect chance for a hero to save the beauty!”

“Aside from a hero saving the beauty, can’t you ever think of anything else?” Ming Rihao felt he was seriously failing to keep pace with the kid’s train of thought. This was plainly a tragic affair — how had it gotten twisted into a hero saving a beauty?

Yue Yang chuckled and gestured for Ming Rihao not to be angry. In any case, she wouldn’t be burned until after tomorrow’s birthday banquet ended, so there was still time to save her if he wanted to.

Ming Rihao, however, fell silent, seemingly unwilling to meddle in the affair.

Downstairs, in the middle of the street.

A shocking, thunderous roar suddenly rang out.

The sound waves set the buildings all around the street trembling, and the window frames nearly rattled loose.

“You bastards of Greenvalley City, you damnable maggots, you blood-sucking leeches — hand over the Freedom Queen at once!” A booming, bell-like voice thundered out. Yue Yang poked his head out for a look and saw two axe-wielding warriors, brawny as bulls and with skin black as charcoal, standing like a pair of door gods there in the middle of the street.

“Don’t push me — when I get angry, I can be truly terrifying!” Unlike the charcoal-black fellow on the left, the one on the right spoke meekly, softer than a bride newly wed into the family. If not for his fearsome physique and formidable strength, people might have taken him for a little maiden who did nothing but hide at home embroidering flowers.

“It’s the Wild Bull Brothers — they’ve come!”

“Heavens, those two death-stars have actually arrived…”

“Tch, a pair of brainless fools — coming here is nothing but a death wish. Strong as they are, can they be stronger than His Majesty the national ruler? Right now the lords and city masters are all gathered here, and there are more than a dozen Sky-rank powerhouses come to attend the banquet. These two Wild Bulls are simply throwing their lives away for nothing!”

Hearing the chatter around him, Yue Yang turned to look back at Ming Rihao and found him still wearing that rigid, stony face, as if he truly had no wish to get involved.

It struck him as strange.

It made no sense — this miserable old geezer wasn’t the type to act like this.

Of course, there might be reasons behind it. Everyone had a little secret. Curious as our classmate Yue Yang was, he knew Ming Rihao wouldn’t say, so he didn’t press. Instead he turned his attention to the middle of the street, to see what reaction the collision between these followers of the Freedom Queen and the ruler of Greenvalley City would produce!

And if the chance arose — he could pose as a fan of the Freedom Queen himself and stir the pot a little.

That didn’t sound half bad either!

Watching him, Ming Rihao felt a wave of headache and very much wanted to say to Yue Yang: This Tianhua Domain is chaotic enough already — kid, stop stirring up more trouble!

(End of Chapter 935)