"Hahaha... hahaha......"
Xia Min'ao laughed heartily, leaning back. "You didn't fall for that, you're truly remarkable."
He Li put on a long face. *Deceive? I'm an ancestor-level deceiver. Besides, what you call deception is just a trick.*
Xia Min'ao stood up and said, "If you don't want to go, so be it. But if you have to go out for business, just call me, and I'll accompany you. Although the Western Battlefield isn't seeing much action, with fewer battles, it's still a battlefield. Battlefields are always perilous.
Sometimes, things appear calm, but beneath the surface, currents run deep. If I accompany you, I can protect you."
He Li nodded and gave a soft hum. Although Xia Min'ao was a bit unreliable, his intentions were good; his desire to play pranks was just too obvious.
Still, he had been tricked. Ah... he had finally felt a sliver of sympathy, and it was given to a trickster.
Hmm?
Sympathy?
Was that feeling just now sympathy?
He Li savored the taste of his emotions from earlier and couldn't help but purse his lips and chuckle. His emotions were slowly returning, which was wonderful.
How to celebrate?
With good wine, of course!
He Li mimicked Xia Min'ao's earlier nonchalant posture, leaning against the white wall, crossing his legs, holding a bottle of fine wine, and taking a sip with narrowed eyes.
With the taste of the wine, he savored the taste of emotions.
At the railing of the stone tower, Xia Min'ao smiled knowingly, his eyes filled with relief. As he himself had said, children who were not valued at home had to learn to observe expressions, to understand people's hearts. If they mastered this, they wouldn't necessarily live well, but they certainly wouldn't fare poorly.
On the other side.
The Eastern Battlefield,
Xia Kuduou sneakily pulled out a bottle of wine from a hidden corner inside the stone tower. He extended his hand, casting a divine power barrier, and was about to take a secret sip when suddenly, his eyes sharpened. He looked back at the sky outside the window. After a moment of hesitation, he forcefully downed a mouthful of wine and flew out.
When Xia Kuduou arrived outside the heavens, the divine illusion of Yishu Divine Lord had already appeared, followed by hundreds of divine race soldiers. Facing them was a colossal demon, its body like molten lava, resembling a great ape, with a palm-sized fiery bird perched on its shoulder.
Xia Kuduou blinked. "Huo Li Da Ming Wang? Golden Crow? Why are you two on the battlefield?"
Xia Kuduou knew of Huo Li Da Ming Wang and the Golden Crow, having witnessed He Li fighting them before. He also knew that He Li was very fond of Huo Li Da Ming Wang and wanted to keep it as a pet, talking about starting a "Shan Hai Zoo." He didn't quite understand it himself.
Huo Li Da Ming Wang's eyes, rolling with lava, gazed deeply at the divine race army without a word. The Golden Crow flew out and stopped a hundred zhang in front of Xia Kuduou, chirping unceremoniously, "Where is He Li? Tell him to come out and see me."
Yishu Divine Lord narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Xia Kuduou, his gaze conveying: *This is your family's business again, handle it yourself.* After Yishu Divine Lord shot Xia Kuduou a fierce glare, his divine illusion vanished. Seeing that there was nothing to be done and that Yishu Divine Lord had left, the divine race soldiers also departed.
Xia Kuduou said, "He Li has left for the Western Battlefield. The situation is complicated and hard to explain. If you're looking for him, you can go to the Western Battlefield, or you can wait here for him. After all, reaching the Western Battlefield requires crossing the Central Battlefield, which is very dangerous. Although you two are outstanding among the demon race, you're not enough for the Central Battlefield."
Xia Kuduou's statement carried two intentions:
First, if they were looking for He Li, he would tell them his whereabouts, but the journey there was extremely perilous.
Second, by keeping these two demon kings with him, he could keep an eye on them. If they harbored any ill intentions towards He Li, he could kill them with two swift blows. If they wanted to help He Li in his battles, he wouldn't mind protecting them, preserving a fighting force for He Li, especially Huo Li Da Ming Wang, whose combat power was too valuable to be wasted in the Central Battlefield.
The demon race was no longer glorious, nor a dominant power, but they were not trash to be killed at any time. Not enough for the Central Battlefield?
Huo Li Da Ming Wang, with its fiery temper, instantly unleashed its demonic power, causing the surrounding space to creak. Xia Kuduou frowned slightly. *Why doesn't this fellow understand what I'm saying?* With a slight movement of his fingers on his hanging arm, a giant hand appeared in the void and grabbed Huo Li Da Ming Wang. No matter how much Huo Li Da Ming Wang struggled, it couldn't budge an inch.
Seeing this, the Golden Crow's body erupted in flames, like a blazing sun. Its piercing shrieks sent out ring-shaped sound waves, emitting incredibly scorching heat waves. Xia Kuduou glanced at the Golden Crow.
The Golden Crow immediately felt a mountain pressing down on it, and instantly, it ceased its commotion.
Xia Kuduou smacked his lips, as if savoring the taste of the wine he had just had, and then said impatiently, "You two will stay here. Once there's news of He Li, you can go find him."
Huo Li Da Ming Wang and the Golden Crow were thus casually subdued by Xia Kuduou and held captive, so to speak.
Divine Realm.
The Divine King's Hall was as usual, with only the absence of the Navia Divine Race's seat, which was of no consequence. The Divine King sat on his throne, his peripheral vision falling on Chen Du, who stood below. He had a question that he couldn't figure out.
Chen Du had no superfluous "actions." How did he orchestrate all of this? Everything he said and did was within the Divine King's sight and with his permission. Yet, the Southern Battlefield had indeed fallen into chaos, Sian Divine Lord had harbored rebellious intentions, and not only that, the Navia Divine Race was almost shattered under his machinations, but in the end, they had become friends. The Divine Guard race could be understood, but what about the Mu Kui Star Race? The Qi Ling Divine Race and the Hui Yue Divine Race had become targets because of him, but now it was all settled, and their clan leaders were also on friendly terms with him, communicating frequently. How had he managed it?
After the discussions in the Divine King's Hall concluded, the Divine King kept Chen Du behind. Xia Bailin and Yu Li Che paused, glanced at the Divine King, and then at Chen Du. The clan leaders of the Qi Ling Divine Race and the Hui Yue Divine Race also cast subtle glances. The clan leader of the Yao Jin Divine Race reached out and touched Xia Bailin, as if communicating through telepathy. Xia Bailin gently shook his head.
Chen Du looked up at the Divine King and smiled. "Does the Divine King have any matters? Your subordinate will certainly do his best to handle them."
The Divine King raised his eyes, looked at the clan leaders who had not yet departed, and then at the respectful Chen Du, and said softly, "It's nothing major. This time, I went to the Southern Battlefield and passed through the Central Battlefield. I discovered that the situation in the Central Battlefield was unstable, and the Southern Battlefield had suffered repeated defeats. Fei Lei Divine Lord is extremely worried about He Li's lone stand against the enemy."
As the Divine King's words fell, the clan leaders' hearts skipped a beat. Chen Du, however, continued to smile, as if he had anticipated this, and replied, "Indeed, my master's strength is now formidable, reaching the peak of two Cosmic Realms. He has few rivals among the Realm God level. With such combat power, keeping him on the Four Directions Battlefield, running around for resources, is a waste of talent.
It would be better to let my master go to the Central Battlefield, to assist Shentu Divine Lord and Ye Qi Divine Lord in repelling the enemy together. If he can advance to Divine Lord during the battles, our Divine Race will have another Divine Lord."
The Divine King paused, looking at Chen Du with an unreadable expression. This fellow had guessed everything the Divine King wanted to say and do, as if he had anticipated it all, not merely deduced it from his words. Unaccountably, the Divine King felt a trace of fearful killing intent, but he quickly suppressed it. Across from him, the five clan leaders were still standing there, clearly not trusting Chen Du.
The Divine King smiled slightly and said, "Good. Since that is the case, let it be so. Notify Shentu Divine Lord to preserve He Li's life during the war. He is the future of our Divine Race, with such talent, unprecedented in all eternity."
"Yes, your subordinate will do so." Chen Du also smiled, a bright, triumphant smile.
...