Chapter 924: Still Going On?

“Who might you be, sir?” He tried to ask.

Li Xiaofei immediately snapped, “You are not worthy of knowing.”

The fat man did not get angry but instead furrowed his brow as if sensing something. After a moment, his face revealed a look of shock.

“So, it’s an upper-ranking lord,” he exclaimed. He hurriedly stood up, his enormous body shifting like a mountain of flesh, and walked down from the golden seat to bow before Li Xiaofei. “This lowly one did not know that it was a weapon reserved by an upper-ranking lord. I deserve death, I truly deserve death... Please, my lord, forgive me.”

As he spoke, he slapped himself across the face several times. Li Xiaofei was slightly taken aback. Then he understood. The man must have sensed the aura of the Mother of All Beasts on his outer skin, which was why he kept referring to him as an upper-ranking lord.

The Mother of All Beasts held an extremely high status within the Reaper factions. It was at least at the King level and possibly even at the Emperor level. It was undoubtedly a position of supreme authority.

That fat man, despite being human, had clearly mastered the art of reading people and was thriving in the Reaper world.

“Get out.” Li Xiaofei had no intention of getting entangled with him since he did not know his true identity.

The fat man repeatedly apologized, then turned to the elderly attendant and said, “I’ll pay the cost of this blade.”

Then he bowed once more to Li Xiaofei. “My lord, please allow this lowly Master Jin to pay. Consider it a token of apology. Please, I beg you to accept my apology.”

Li Xiaofei felt a silent delight in his heart. Such a windfall. He decided to accept it.

Afterward, Master Jin left as though he had gotten the best deal in the world, offering countless thanks as he departed.

Li Xiaofei took the Darkblade, and as he left the shop, he turned his head and asked, “Who exactly is this Master Jin? A mere human, and yet so arrogant?”

The elderly attendant smiled politely and replied, “He is the beloved concubine of the port’s administrative clan’s patriarch, the Xu clan. He is highly favored, so he’s able to act recklessly in the port. We dare not speak out against him, but in front of an upper-ranking lord like you, he had no choice but to bow his head. My lord, you are the true high-level power here.”

Concubine? That fat man is a concubine? And a concubine to a Reaper?

When Li Xiaofei heard that, he felt as though his entire worldview was about to collapse. To think that something like that actually existed. What a heavy taste that Xu clan patriarch must have to fancy someone who was as fat as a pig. The Reaper’s aesthetic sense was truly bizarre.

Li Xiaofei began to carefully examine and admire the Darkblade. It was a fine blade but he chose not to refine it. Since Reapers could not cultivate martial arts and did not possess Immortal Force, they could not refine Immortal Artifacts. If he refined the blade, it might expose a flaw.

***

At the same time. In a secret place.

“Old Jin, where’s the Commander’s blade? Why didn’t you bring it back?” A young man asked anxiously.

Master Jin wiped the sweat from his face and said, “Damn it, everything was going perfectly. Who could have predicted that someone would jump out halfway and reserve the Commander’s blade before I could get it? I originally planned to act tough and strong-arm my way into taking it, but when the one who reserved the blade showed up, he turned out to be a high-ranking Reaper. He was at least a King-level one. If I tried to fight him for it, wouldn’t that be suicide?”

The young man’s face was full of disappointment as he asked, “Then what do we do?”

He couldn’t help but add, “The Commander died to protect us, and his body was never recovered. If we can’t even bring back his sword, we can’t even set up a cenotaph for him.”

Master Jin said, “The Commander’s sacrifice was indeed tragic, and we should do something for him. But brother, whether or not we have a cenotaph is just a formality. We shouldn’t get bogged down in these symbolic things. Right now, the rebellion is in crisis. Only by mobilizing all our strength and going to the Holy Ruins to find the legendary Sword Immortal Lin Beichen, who is said to be trapped there, can we turn the situation around.”

“But...” The young man still wanted to argue, but in the end, he only let out a long sigh.

Since its inception, the resistance had always fought for the independence of their race. Yet, they had failed again and again. However, they stood up again and again. Countless people had sacrificed themselves. Countless people had charged forward, undeterred despite facing annihilation.

The spark of freedom flickered in the dark starry sky, seemingly about to be extinguished at any moment. That hopeless situation, that deep and absolute despair, made every resistance warrior feel as if their heart was being cut to pieces.

Especially six months ago, when a traitor’s betrayal led to the death of the rebellion’s most outstanding commander, and the Darkblade had become a spoil of war for the enemy. The loss of hundreds of thousands of soldiers had dealt a devastating blow to the resistance.

The situation had become precarious. If things continued like this, the flame of resistance would surely be snuffed out. So those who remained were desperate to find a way to break through.

The young man took a deep breath to calm himself, then asked, “Old Jin, was that man really a King level Reaper?”

Master Jin nodded and replied, “Almost. You know my nose is sharp. I could smell the aura that only high-level Reapers have on him. Moreover, he had completely transformed into human form, with no flaws anywhere on his body.”

A fully transformed human?

The young man felt a surge of anxiety.

According to intelligence gathered by the resistance, the Reapers had made rapid progress in studying human evolution in recent decades. It was said that more and more ultra-high-level Reapers had already mastered the technique of perfectly transforming into human form.

That would make survival for the resistance even harder.

The young man continued, “Master Jin, do you think that the legend is real?”

Master Jin fell silent for a moment before saying, “A legend is just a legend. If there really is a human base somewhere in this universe where people live freely and bravely, able to stand against the Reapers without their oppression and enslavement... hehe, I find it hard to believe.”

The young man also fell silent. Yes. A legend was just a legend. If there truly were a human paradise like that in this universe, the Reapers would have invaded and conquered it long ago.

The human race had dwindled to just the hundreds of billions in this star system. But even most of those billions lived in ignorance, enduring Reaper enslavement, oppression, and humiliation, resigned to being treated like livestock. Only a few stood up to fight back. But why could that spark of resistance never become a raging fire?

The air in the secret room grew heavy.

After a long time, Master Jin spoke again, “So now, all our hope rests on Sword Immortal Lin Beichen. As long as we can infiltrate the Holy Ruins, break the formations left by the Ancestor of Wisdom, and rescue Lin Beichen, he will definitely be able to lead the resistance and stand against the Reapers.”

The young man’s spirits lifted and replied, “That’s right. We must not give up.”

Master Jin said, “Tell the brothers to act according to plan. According to the information I received, the princess of the Hui Yao clan will arrive at the port tonight and stay at the Wind Whisperer Hotel. She’ll be hosting a grand gala, inviting guests from all over. The Time Jade will be the final exhibit. That’s our chance.”

***

“Wind Whisperer Hotel?” Li Xiaofei was returning from his walk and happened to glance up, finally noticing the name of the hotel they were staying at. It did sound rather poetic. Just as he reached the hotel entrance, he sensed that something was off.

Hundreds of powerful cultivators had appeared around the hotel, all lurking in the shadows. At the same time, an armed Reaper military squad had entered the hotel and taken over all its defenses.

Did our identities get exposed? Or did Liu Shaji stir up trouble again?

Thoughts flashed through Li Xiaofei’s mind.

He pondered briefly, then continued walking toward the hotel lobby without showing any sign of alarm. Since neither Wei Xiaotian nor Liu Shaji had sent any warning, it probably wasn’t anything serious.

“Halt.” Just as he reached the hotel entrance, he was stopped.

After a brief exchange, he learned that this wasn’t a manhunt. Rather, a high-ranking Reaper was set to stay at the hotel that night. As a result, the personal guard was conducting strict inspections of all current guests. Guests whose identities or status didn’t measure up were being immediately evicted.

However, thanks to Wei Xiaotian, a King, vouching for them, and the powerful aura radiating from his group, Li Xiaofei and his companions were permitted to stay after a quick inspection.

Li Xiaofei then learned that the one checking in tonight was the Grand Princess of the Hui Yao clan, one of the top among the hundreds of King level clans. The Hui Yao clan had once been an extremely prominent clan at the King level. However, when Sword Immortal Lin Beichen had invaded, their ancestor had been slain in battle, and without a strong successor, their influence had gradually declined, leaving them as an ordinary King level clan.

But just six months earlier, the current Hui Yao patriarch had led his army to defeat and behead one of the key leaders of the resistance in this star system. For that victory, the clan had been rewarded by the Ancestral Court with various cultivation resources and treasures. Rumor had it that they might soon be promoted again to the Prince level.

𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The Grand Princess had come to the Holy Ruins to train and improve her strength. An ambitious, newly rising clan aiming to reclaim its ancestors’ glory naturally had to make a show of strength.

Thus, the Grand Princess had sent out a wave of invitations upon her arrival, summoning many of the port city’s prominent figures for a grand banquet.

Li Xiaofei returned to his floor. He saw that Liu Shaji’s door was still tightly closed.

“Still going on?” He was thoroughly shocked.