Chapter 336: Tian Fa’s Decision
Translator: Novel Saga Editor: Novel Saga
Big Bear was on the ground because of the shock. Then, he looked up and started to laugh since he couldn’t help but take pleasure in Long Crane’s misery. This was right before he suddenly shouted, "Eldest Brother… look! This little thing has a jade tied to his neck… this means it’s someone’s ‘pet’… and doesn’t it mean… ughhh…" it was obvious from his cold hiss that he had been shaken.
[A pet…?]
The black-clad man didn’t ignore that comment. He turned the little creature around, and noticed that white piece of jade. It was a translucent-white in color; much like the little ones’ fur. So, one wouldn’t have noticed it if they weren’t looking carefully. In fact, Big Bear wouldn’t have been able to notice it if he weren’t lying on the ground… and hadn’t noticed the reflection of light that had denoted the difference between the fur and the jade…
"Tian Xiang City… Dugu…" the shrouded man read these words softly. Then, he suddenly looked up and started to ponder. It was a while before he finally spoke-up, "Again, that Tian Xiang City! It seems that we must head over to this Tian Xiang City. This little one managed to advance there in a miraculous manner. And, this matter addresses our issue as well. This little thing was able to advance despite its frail body. Moreover, there’s still a lot of room for its growth. Plus, it doesn’t seem that it has suffered from any side-affects. This miraculous technique is genuinely world-shaking!"
Big Bear suddenly recalled something. Then, he started to crawl towards Little White, and stopped right in front of him. He then opened his big mouth, made a whining noise, and bared his white teeth.
Little White’s eyes shone. It raised its tiny claws, and made a gesture. Then, it opened its mouth, and whined feebly.
The black-cloaked man kicked Big Bear’s posterior, "I forgot that you could talk to it! Why didn’t you do it earlier, you fool?"
Big Bear rubbed his buttocks as he inwardly cursed; [you had forgotten about it too. Then, why did you do this to me…?] But, he didn’t dare to open his mouth. He whined for a bit, and then he started to make strange monosyllabic sounds, "O! O! O! ..." repeatedly.
Little White’s big eyes blinked in excitement. His two paws moved up and down. He made a chirping "O! O! O! ..." sound as well. [The opposite party is a bear, and I’m a panther… but we can still speak to each other! Isn’t this great?!]
Big Bear inquired more urgently thereafter. Little White tilted his head, and looked at the opposite party innocently. Then, he whined a bit. He wanted to give an explanation, but he wasn’t able to come up with one… and, his eyes were clearly relaying the confusion of his mind. So, he eventually gave up, and hung his head in a dispirited manner. The little creature stared blankly as his ears also drooped down, and he made no further noises…
Big Bear spread his hands to indicate that he was finished with asking his questions.
The man shrouded in black and Long Crane asked in one voice, "What?"
"O! O! Awwooo…" Big Bear had forgotten to switch back to the proper disposition, and had continued to speak in that monosyllabic language. It was then that he experienced a punch to his chest and a kick to his posterior. So, he shouted, and started to rub the parts where he had been hit…
"Hurry up and speak, you idiot!" The faces of the other two individuals had transformed to devilish masks. And, Little White had been frightened. So, he withdrew his head, turned, and moved towards the black-cloaked person’s bosom. This little creature was quite young. But, he looked up meaningfully, and realized that the black-shrouded person was the leader amongst the three. Therefore, he knew that he’d be the safest person to be with. So, Little White suddenly whined in doubt, opened his huge wet eyes, spun around twice, cupped his paws in respect, and then stretched his tiny soft tongue to lick the black-shrouded person.
The black-shrouded man flicked his hand like he had just received an electric shock. And, Little White cut a sorry figure as he dropped down to the ground.
"This little thing!" the black-shrouded person uttered with regret and anger. Then, he rolled-up his long sleeves and picked Little White, and held him to his bosom again. After that, he started to pat his head, "…Is too naïve!" he spoke in a strict manner.
Little White was terrified to look at him. So, he just lay prone; without making any movements.
"It said that a powerful… very powerful and nice… very nice man helped him." Big Bear panted angrily as he replied in his coarse voice. His eyes were opened round, and his expression was quite gloomy.
"I asked him how this man looks, and this thing replied — ‘good, very good’. I asked him about that man’s age, and he said — ‘good! Very good!’ …Everything was ‘good! Very good!’…" Big Bear continued gloomily. In fact, his voice was almost a hiss…
"There isn’t a single detail in that. How exactly did you communicate, you idiot?!" The individual in black had gotten a little anxious by now.
"There was only one other answer outside ‘very good!’ It said that the man’s smell was also ‘very good’. In fact, he said that it was better than that of its master." Big bear continued. He was feeling very gloomy since everything had turned into a mess for him…
"Be content. This little one is merely a couple of months old. So, it’s a great feat that he was able to communicate this much. What did you expect from such a young one? But, we have at least confirmed that this ‘person’ who can advance Xuan Beasts’ cultivation… exists!"
Long Crane had a disdainful look on his face. He turned to the black-clad person, "Eldest Brother, I think that this thing is related to that mysterious black-clothed masked man. In fact, I’m certain that it’s related to him. There’s no one else in the outside world — excluding that man — who could’ve done this. Moreover, this little one has a master. So, its master and the person who promoted his cultivation must be very close. He wouldn’t use this unnatural method if not for a close friend. How could that man use such a method lightly?"
"Yes, Brother Crane’s assessment seems reasonable. Why don’t you learn something from him, Brother Bear? So, speaking of the mysterious and skillful man’s current location… it’s quite possible that he’s here as well. Anyway, we know that this little one’s master is here to say the least…"
The black-cloaked man’s eyes had started to shine brightly. He took two steps, and gave a resolute order, "Execute the plan that was decided earlier! But, don’t rush at the Jun and the Dugu Family’s men. If…"
He then sighed.
"Eldest brother, if we reach the climax of the decisive battle… won’t it…?" Long Crane and Big bear looked at him anxiously, "You’re at the fringes of the Earth Level… If it had an effect… wouldn’t it be…?"
"It doesn’t matter!" The black-shrouded person waved his sleeves and said, "This is a battle for prestige! And, we will have at least ten years of stability if we win this war! But, the real disaster would be upon us if we timidly decide to abstain from a fight. I will return to seclusion and assail the twelfth gate once this matter ends. Then, you two can govern Tian Fa at that time."
"Yes!" the other two acknowledged in unison.
The Southern Heaven City seemed to be riddled with confusion at that point of time. And, everyone seemed to be anxious.
That assembly of ‘half of the world’s experts’ was no longer confident of their victory after they had witnessed the terrifyingly formidable line-up of the Xuan Beasts.
The great families and powerful factions had sent their men. Moreover, hundreds of Sky Xuan experts were present. And, there were at least forty to fifty Spirit Xuan experts present here as well. They had been brimming with confidence and had been rearing to go to battle… but that was before the Xuan Beasts had demonstrated their strength. In fact, some of them had even looked forward to exploit this battle since they had hoped to harvest several Xuan cores from Xuan Beasts by the end of the battle.
[This is going to get us a lot of wealth!]
However, those wonderful thoughts had vanished once they had come to witness the Xuan Beasts’ ‘show of strength’. A level eight Xuan Beasts equals a Sky Xuan expert, and level nine Xuan Beasts equals a Spirit Xuan expert. With that algorithm in place — Tian Fa’s strength far exceeded their own. They had forgotten about the others, and had only seen the level nine Xuan Beasts. And, they alone numbered no less than a hundred! And… the level eight Xuan Beasts must be tens of thousands in number. [How can we possibly fight this battle? How can we do it?!]
[Still thinking about collecting Xuan beast cores? You must be dreaming!]
Moreover, there was the ‘myth’ that… a Xuan Beast King could equal the Great Masters. However, there were only five of them present at this battle front… that is if Feng Juan Yun was included in that count! And, what was even more unreasonable was the fact that… the strength of Tian Fa’s Lord was unrivalled! Therefore, the Great Master Li Jue Tian was at a grave disadvantage on the present day at least…
The leaders of every powerful faction had been immersed in discussions the entire day, but they hadn’t taken a single countermeasure until now. If one came up with a plan… someone else refuted it. If one proposed a tactic… another overruled it. However, it was surprising that there wasn’t any internal strife due to this behavior. Moreover, there were many who inwardly desired to retreat after having seen the Xuan Beasts’ strength and line-ups.
Young Master Jun wasn’t at peace either. It could be said that the day been a very tiring one for him. First, he had expended a lot of energy in the matter relating to persuading Baili Luo Yun. He had been mentally and physically tired by that encounter, but he had thought that he would rest once he’d return to his tent. However, he arrived in his tent, and found out that Little White had gone missing. So, he had no choice but to try and cajole Dugu Xiao Yi. And, that too to no avail...
The Young Master Jun had started to feel very tired and stuck since he hadn’t been able to make headway. And, the little girl had continued to cry that she had to go and look for Little White. This made the Young Master Jun very restless. So, he eventually roared that he would tie her up like ‘rice dumplings’, and would send her back to Tian Xiang City.
This immediately quieted the Young Lady Dugu down. But, she was left to fume with anger. It was almost as if she would look for a day and opportunity to get back at him…
Guan Qing Han started to console her as she shot a quick and cold glance at the debauchee at her side. [This brat was quite amused with this little girl before he started to get annoyed. So, why not now…? His behavior has suddenly turned so vile. It’s such a shame!]
The hostile gaze of the two beautiful women were like pins and needles for Jun Mo Xie. So, he gloomily left their company, and started to whine mournfully; [my life is full of hardships! Anyone who has a problem… looks to me… What am I… a fireman?]
Then, he ran into Doingfang Wen Jian and Dongfang Wen Dao the moment he got out of the tent. And, the two Dongfang Uncles weren’t willing to let Jun Mo Xie off either. They interrogated him about what had passed in all those years; that too in in detail. In fact, they interrogated him so carefully that the Young Master Jun became extremely tired… and must’ve added a few hundred kilos of weariness onto his already tired mind…
[Good God! Can’t you let me rest for a bit?]
Then, Jun Wu Yi and Dongfang Wen Qing returned in the evening… with serious expressions on their faces. And, Jun Wu Yi returned to Jun Mo Xie’s tent immediately-after he had put the military-affairs in order.
"Is it bad?" Jun Mo Xie asked. Guan Qing Han was seated on his side. She quietly opened her eyes, and pricked her ears to listen.
"It’s not ‘just’ bad; it’s horrible!" Jun Wu Yi frowned and sighed, "There will be no battle. There’s no military strength here. No one is willing to agree to anything. Moreover, many families wish to retreat. I’m convinced that we’ll most-likely face a rout at the beginning of the battle due to the lack of fighting spirit that’s prevalent in the camp at the moment."
"What? So, nothing came out of this discussion that spanned an entire day? The situation can’t be that pessimistic, right?" Jun Mo Xie was shocked. [How can people be this inefficient?!]
"Pessimistic? That’s a very ‘optimistic’ argument to make in this situation! Do you think that such a gathering would ever come to a consensus?!" Dongfang Wen Qing overflowed with anger as he snorted, "We might’ve agreed upon a decision to end humanity if it were for those Great Masters’ proposals. Every man present here lacks fighting spirit and preparedness. We will collapse in a moment if those Xuan Beasts attack tonight!"
"It appears that Li Jue Tian is a very incapable leader," Jun Mo Xie sighed as he spoke.
"Oh really?! The stature of these Great Masters is truly majestic, but they’re still humans. They can gather so many troops for a war, but which one of them has the ability to lead them, ah? Each one of these men has only ever concentrated on their own training. How else could they have achieved so much? But, speaking of leadership abilities… the Greatest Master Yun Bie Chen and Master Shi Chang Xiao could be considered a little better than the rest of them. However, the rest of them are dumb in this regard. Especially that Solitary Falcon… he’s a barbarian!"
Dongfang Wen Qing continued angrily, "His words have completely infuriated me! He suggested that we must focus only on the Spirit Xuan experts from now on. He said that we should secretly infiltrate Tian Fa, and kill many Xuan Beast Kings before making a quick retreat. I wish to wipe his arrogance away. He’s genuinely a pig-headed individual!"