“I also disagreed. Not to mention that it would hinder my wedding with Yang Mu, the very survival of the White Tiger lineage would prevent me from backing down. So I insisted on not backing down in the clan, while the clan elders asked me to take on all the competitions—they wanted to preserve a portion of the elite forces to quietly withdraw, without showing any sign of retreat, but they had to prepare a way out. I simply couldn’t refuse such a thing, so I took on all the responsibility.”
After saying so much, Bai Zhi seemed to feel much lighter, and even her complexion improved.
"So..." Feng Fei tried to stop himself from speaking, "You summoned us here so that Yuan Jue and I could represent your White Tiger lineage in that so-called Emperor's Contest?"
Bai Zhi nodded without hesitation, but then hesitated: "I know this request is a bit excessive, but I really have no other choice. Among the people I know, apart from Yuan Jue, there are no other people with strong abilities."
It turned out that the only person Bai Zhi was seeking was Yuan Jue. Feng Fei immediately smiled and looked at Yuan Jue.
Yuan Jue touched his nose somewhat awkwardly. "Um, how are we supposed to cooperate?"
Chapter Twenty-Two: Hua Tianzhao
When Bai Zhi saw that Yuan Jue had agreed, she was overjoyed. If it weren't for her ladylike modesty, Bai Zhi would have been jumping for joy with Yuan Jue right now.
Even so, Bai Zhi had a big smile on her face: "It's very simple, just come with us to participate in the competition."
When is the match?
"tomorrow."
"..."
Although I felt the time was too tight, since I had already agreed, the thing to consider was not how to complain, but how to deal with it.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue weren't very familiar with the competition for the White Tiger Kingdom's throne, so Bai Zhi explained the key points and precautions to them in detail. After understanding the general process, Yuan Jue politely took his leave.
Bai Zhi naturally wouldn't stop her. Instead, she smiled and said to Yuan Jue, "I'm about to get married, but when will you let me have a drink at your wedding?" As she spoke, she gave Yuan Jue a sarcastic look, while her eyes occasionally drifted over to Feng Fei.
Although Yuan Jue felt a little shy, he didn't show it on his face at all. Instead, he teased Feng Fei as he answered Bai Zhi's question: "This isn't something I can decide! You know, Feng Fei... cough cough..."
Yuan Jue was unable to finish his sentence before Feng Fei pinched the soft flesh around his waist and cut it off.
Feng Fei bid farewell to Bai Zhi with a reserved expression: "We'll head back now, but we'll definitely be there on time tomorrow. Please help us prepare a place to stay temporarily."
After saying that, he and Yuanjue were about to leave.
But after walking a few steps, Feng Fei suddenly turned around as if he had thought of something and said to Bai Zhi with a smile, "First of all, congratulations on your marriage."
Bai Zhi blushed immediately after Feng Fei's words, glanced shyly at Yang Mu, and then waved goodbye to Feng Fei and Yang Mu.
As Feng Fei and Yuan Jue walked back to Tiger Roar City, their expressions were not as relaxed as before.
Feng Fei was considering his participation in tomorrow's competition. Yuan Jue, however, was thinking about something else entirely.
"Yuanjue, do you have any special thoughts on tomorrow's competition?"
Perhaps he was too engrossed in his own thoughts, for Yuan Jue did not answer Feng Fei's question immediately. It was only after Feng Fei stopped and stood in front of him that he caught his attention: "What are you thinking about?"
Yuan Jue chuckled lightly, indicating that he wasn't thinking about anything, and instead answered Feng Fei's earlier question: "I think tomorrow's match will be an opportunity for us?"
"Oh? What do you mean?"
"Some problems have suddenly arisen within the White Tiger Kingdom, and these problems are precisely what will lead to tomorrow's competition. The White Tiger Kingdom is called the White Tiger Kingdom not only because its ancestors were white tigers, but more so because the White Tiger lineage is far more powerful than the Black Tiger lineage. In the history of the White Tiger Kingdom, only two emperors were from the Black Tiger lineage, while all other emperors were from the White Tiger lineage—even if they did not pass the throne from father to son, they passed it from uncle to nephew. This is precisely why the White Tiger Kingdom is so powerful."
At this point, Yuan Jue paused, as if he had thought of another key point, but after only briefly considering it, he returned to the previous topic: "However, the once powerful White Tiger lineage is now suffering a great blow, so severe that it is resorting to seeking external forces to preserve its foundation. Perhaps the White Tiger lineage is not so weak, but under the dominance of the Black Tiger lineage, they have to be careful and calculating. And this is precisely our opportunity."
"A large portion of the flying forces in the Vermilion Bird Kingdom are under my control, but there are some deeply entrenched forces that I cannot control. Therefore, we need a stronger background and greater strength. We can use the forces that we develop later to defeat the deeply entrenched forces in the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, but we need a plan and we need to move forward step by step. This competition in the White Tiger Kingdom is the first step in our expansion of strength."
Yuan Jue's words made a lot of sense, and Feng Fei nodded slightly in agreement. But then another question suddenly occurred to him: "According to what you said, we need to rely on other forces, and Bai Zhi of the White Tiger Kingdom is our primary ally. But why don't we consider Jin Ming? Jin Ming's background is probably quite formidable as well."
Seeing Feng Fei's inscrutable smile, Yuan Jue knew that Feng Fei had roughly guessed Jin Ming's background, so he stopped hiding anything: "You're right, but from what I know, Jin Ming's current situation isn't very good either. Although there aren't two royal families vying for the throne in the Golden Qilin Kingdom, Jin Ming has many ambitious brothers. They all want to obtain that lofty throne. Even though Jin Ming has repeatedly stated that he has no interest in the throne, his brothers never believe him. Instead, they've increased their manpower to suppress him openly or assassinate him secretly, using every means possible. And that time in the illusion of the Ten Thousand Demon Cave, Jin Ming seemed to have figured out his biggest inner conflict. After returning to the Golden Qilin Kingdom, he began to consolidate his power and slowly maneuver against his brothers, seemingly planning to seize the throne. Because of this, Jin Ming is very busy right now, dealing with government affairs every day and dealing with all sorts of assassinations."
Yuan Jue spoke these words with great ease, and was even more delighted when talking about the many troubles Jin Ming would have to deal with, as if it would be a good thing for Jin Ming to encounter more troubles.
"So, according to you, the two of us will help Bai Zhi resolve the issues in the White Tiger Kingdom, while Jin Ming will handle the matters in the Golden Kirin Kingdom. Then, we can use the combined strength of the White Tiger and Golden Kirin Kingdoms to suppress those stubborn forces within our Vermilion Bird Kingdom?" Feng Fei slowly stated his conclusion, but his face showed even more doubt: "But shouldn't those forces within the Vermilion Bird Kingdom belong to the Vermilion Bird Kingdom in the first place? It would make sense if they had resisted the rule of the White Tiger Kingdom before, but according to you, you are using my name to reclaim the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, yet they are still not cooperating at all? What's going on?"
"Because they don't want to make you emperor, but want to make someone else emperor."
"Oh? Do they have a more suitable candidate?"
"Yes and no. The person they put forward is very strange. Originally, she was just a concubine's daughter from a small family in the Vermilion Bird Kingdom. She was always timid and weak, but one day after Lu Fei and Yue Jin visited, that concubine's daughter suddenly rose to power."
"Wait, are you talking about Yue Jin and Lu Fei from Mochou City?" Feng Fei asked in surprise, recalling the two handsome men in their new red clothes. She felt extremely strange. "Didn't they let us pass at the last minute precisely because I'm Feng Fei? Logically, they should have supported me. No, they never showed the slightest sign of supporting me. So, back then..."
Feng Fei paced back and forth, frowning, but he couldn't figure out the key to it.
"I haven't been able to find out what they're doing in secret, but the only thing I've found out is that the blood pool we saw before has an extremely powerful effect on them. But I haven't been able to find out what that effect is. Then I went to investigate myself and found that the illegitimate daughter of that small family entered the city lord's mansion of Mochou City many times after the change, and the place she ultimately went to was that blood pool. It is because of this that I feel that there is something very strange about that blood pool."
"What else?"
"Afterwards, I also sent people to investigate the many things that the illegitimate daughter did before she changed her ways, but apart from being 'timid and cowardly' and 'not good at speaking,' there was no other evaluation. Not long after, I discovered that the small family had mysteriously disappeared."
"To silence them?"
"It shouldn't be. When they left, they sold their house. According to the buyer, all the core members of that small family were present during the transaction. After they signed the purchase contract, the buyer witnessed them all vanish into thin air. The buyer thought he had seen a ghost. If it weren't for several of his confidants who also witnessed the scene, the buyer would probably have gone mad. Afterwards, the buyer thought the house was haunted and even invited monks and Taoist priests. Seeing that there were no strange phenomena, he moved in with his people."
Yuan Jue had no idea how those people had managed to disappear all at once. Not only were all the core members of that small family vanished, but even the servants cleaning the house were gone. Yuan Jue had tried various methods to make people disappear, but none of them could leave no trace. Left with no other option, Yuan Jue had to temporarily set aside the problem.
"It can be said that only the illegitimate daughter they had rejected remained from that small family; her name was Hua Tianzhao. After Hua Tianzhao appeared before everyone, she changed her usual timid demeanor and forcefully united all the surrounding forces that could be combined, while all forces that resisted were bloodily suppressed. Lu Fei and Yue Jin played the role of the vanguard, and the two of them seemed to completely obey Hua Tianzhao's orders. If I couldn't still sense their independent will, I would definitely think that they were controlled by Hua Tianzhao."
Feng Fei pondered Yuan Jue's words in his heart, unaware that they had already arrived at the city gate of Tiger Roar City.
Meanwhile, Mingfeng and Xuetuan were waiting for them at the city gate. Judging from their appearance, something urgent seemed to have happened.
Feng Fei's heart tightened, and without having time to consider the many questions in his mind, he quickly stepped forward and asked, "What happened? Why are you at the city gate?"
"A major problem has arisen in Tiger Roar City! Many places have collapsed! Many people have hurriedly left Tiger Roar City, and many more have lost their lives. If Snowball and I hadn't gone out into Tiger Roar City early this morning, we probably would have been trapped inside as well."
It was only at this point that Feng Fei noticed something amiss with Tiger Roar City.
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Fall of Tiger Roar City
The once majestic and imposing city of Tiger Roar City has developed many cracks, and gradually many places have collapsed.
Bai Zhi stepped out of Yang Mu's arms, looked at the departing Hei Yantian, and asked somewhat blankly, "What did he just say?"
Yang Mu kindly reminded him from the side, "He said he's handing over the entire White Tiger Kingdom to you..."
Seemingly surprised by Hei Yantian's reaction, Yang Mu watched Hei Yantian's departing figure, deep in thought. However, his expression was extremely subtle. Apart from Yuan Jue, who had been carefully observing him, no one else noticed.
"Has Hei Yantian gone mad? Or gone mad?" Bai Zhi was still reeling from the shock Hei Yantian had given her, even forgetting her pain and despair.
“Probably not.” At this moment, Yuan Jue walked to Bai Zhi’s side, glanced at Yang Mu with an inscrutable look, and then continued, “Hei Yantian must know some information, but he didn’t tell us. And if he knows, then someone in your White Tiger lineage should also know. Bai Zhi, you should go back first and carefully question your people. Don’t overlook any clues; you might be able to find out the truth about the collapse of Tiger Roar City.”
Bai Zhi nodded hastily. At this point, she was completely at a loss, and Yuan Jue's suggestion was undoubtedly the best option at the moment. Bai Zhi decided to immediately lead her people back to her clan, not only to inquire about the truth of Tiger Roar City, but also to take over the entire White Tiger Kingdom's power.
Before leaving, Bai Zhiyan glanced at Yuan Jue with concern, whispered "Take care" and quickly departed.
Yuan Jue stared into the direction Bai Zhi and her group had left, lost in thought, until Feng Fei stood beside him and whispered, "It seems many of our plans will have to change. After helping those outside Tiger Roar City, we'll head to Tiger General City. Firstly, we can learn about the situation in Tiger Roar City; secondly, we can help Bai Zhi stabilize the court; and thirdly..."
The third reason was something Yuan Jue didn't say aloud. It was a problem he wanted to solve privately on his own, and one that Feng Fei couldn't know about.
Feng Fei didn't pay attention to the unspoken meaning in Yuan Jue's words. After nodding, he waited quietly for Xue Tuan and Ming Feng to return.
Xue Tuan and Ming Feng returned quickly. There weren't many wounded people left outside Tiger Roar City to begin with, and after their lives were spared and their wounds were bandaged, they all left.
"Let's go."
"Um."
Feng Fei and his companions set off again, having only rested for one night in Tiger Roar City before being forced to continue their journey. Fortunately, Tiger Roar City, their destination, was not far from their home, Tiger General City, only about half a day's journey away—or less than an hour if they traveled at full speed. However, Feng Fei and his companions were not in a hurry to arrive by a certain time, so they were relatively relaxed on the road, despite the events of the day that made it impossible for them to relax.
The scenery of the White Tiger Kingdom has always been majestic and imposing, yet the same landscape here possesses a unique charm unlike anywhere else. The emerald leaves stand upright, resembling the bristling fur of an enraged tiger, exuding an extremely domineering aura. The grass beneath the carriages appears remarkably soft, but this is only in appearance—the carriage wheels and the iron hooves of the horses are made of a unique material, precisely because these plants possess exceptionally strong penetrating power.
Between Tiger Roar City and Tiger General City lies a vast lake, its amber waters shimmering under the blazing sun. The lake teems with all sorts of aquatic creatures—some cute, some fierce, some with tiger-like heads… If it weren't for the heavy weight weighing on everyone's hearts, they would surely have stopped to frolic and play.
"Huh?" Xue Tuan looked at the lake and suddenly let out a soft exclamation.
"What's wrong?"
The group stopped in their tracks.
“There’s something in that lake that I really want… It’s not just something I want, it would be good for you all!” Snowball seemed unsure how to describe it, and after scratching his head, he could only come up with this extremely vague statement.
Feng Fei and Yuan Jue exchanged a glance, knowing that Xue Tuan wouldn't speak without reason. "Let's go take a look!"
Mingfeng had no objections and followed closely behind Xuetuan, flying towards the lake.
The lake water was a beautiful amber color, and the various creatures beneath it were completely oblivious to the approach of Feng Fei and his companions, remaining immersed in their own worlds.
Yuan Jue was astonished to discover that this lake contained many creatures that should have disappeared from history. These creatures were all extraordinary beings, yet they were able to appear together in this body of water. Many of these creatures were natural enemies, but at this moment they were getting along very amicably.
Feng Fei thought of the illusion in the Ten Thousand Demon Cave and felt that this place was very likely also an illusion, but Yuan Jue's words refuted Feng Fei's guess: "These all have complete life aura, which means that the creatures in front of us are real!"
This body of water is home to dragon carp that can bring the dead back to life and heal the wounded, purple orchid star grass that can instantly raise one's cultivation level by a major realm, and black jade tiger-headed snakes that can regenerate severed limbs... These creatures, which have long since disappeared, are now swimming comfortably in the lake.
While Yuanjue and Fengfei were carefully examining the rare treasures among them, Xuetuan silently jumped into the water.
Mingfeng only had time to shout "Snowball" before jumping down.
Feng Fei was startled. She and Yuan Jue hadn't even confirmed whether it was safe here, and Xue Tuan and Ming Feng had jumped down without any precautions. What if they got hurt?
☆, Chapter Twenty-Four: Dripping Dew, Phoenix One