Chapter 732: It’s him (1/2)
This shout resounded in the air and spread to every corner of the residence, yet it couldn’t be heard at all outside of the compound. One could tell Xue Ding’s standards just from this move.
A stone-cold voice arrived from behind the courtyard. “Come in, no need to shout so loud. It’s not like you’re going to die.”
Greatly delighted, Xue Ding ran through the hallways into the rear residence. Apparently, he was quite familiar with this place.
What greeted him after passing through the courtyard and entering the rear compound, was a large drill grounds filled with all kinds of weaponry. There was a half-naked male standing in the field with a large battle axe in hand. Tanned and well-built, the man’s muscles were like pieces of steel, containing explosive amounts of power within them. Xue Ding ran over to that person and stood respectfully before him, “Big Brother!”
The man finally looked up and said coldly, “You’re the Wolf King’s foster son, I really don’t dare to accept this address. Say what you must, I’m about to cultivate.”
“It’s like this. I met a person, and he actually provoked me. So, I exchanged a couple of moves with him. I wasn’t his match, however, and had to pay with one of my subordinate’s legs to escape.”
The man sneered, “He provoked you? I’m more inclined to think you’re the one who picked a fight. I told you before that the neutral lands are full of hidden experts. There are countless powerful experts all around. You think you can do whatever you want just because you’re hugging the Wolf King’s thigh and calling him foster father?”
Xue Ding’s face turned red. “I had no choice. If I didn’t recognize him as my adoptive father, the Wolf King might not let our family go.”
The man’s face turned gloomy. “Not let go? No matter how powerful the Wolf King is, do you think he dares kill all the races in the Eastern Sea? Humph, if he dares to do that, the one to die first will be him.”
Xue Ding laughed along. “The Wolf King is crazy, why would you want to contend with him? I only wanted to help the family in my own way. I’m no use, either way, and the family has you, doesn’t it?”
“Enough excuses. Since you’ve recognized the Wolf King as your adoptive father, you’re no longer a member of the Xue family.”
“Even if I’m no longer a Xue family member, you’re still my big brother!”
The man responded with a snort, but his expression softened somewhat. “The Wolf King has so many sons, grandsons, and foster children. All of them are your siblings, why not go to them for help?”
Xue Ding let out an embarrassed laugh. “How can those people count as my siblings? They can’t wait to see me die early. Of course, the same goes for me. If they know of this matter, they’ll surely report it to foster father, I mean, the Wolf King. When the time comes, he might kick me out for being useless, and all my efforts will be wasted.”
The man placed his axe back on the weapons rack. “Your inferior skills have naught to do with me. If you can’t beat him, why not cultivate more and go back for a rematch? Even if you have learned nothing from the Wolf King, I’ve taught you at least three of our family’s nine secret arts. Yet you still managed to lose? Is his origin power a lot higher than you?”
Xue Ding whispered awkwardly, “He only has two origin vortices.”
“Rank eleven? You can’t even beat someone who’s at rank-eleven?” The man was astonished.
“This… yes, it would seem so.”
The man stopped on his way into the building and mumbled, “Interesting, but do you really want me to go and challenge someone at rank eleven?”
Xue Ding replied hurriedly, “How can it be called challenge? It’s merely teaching him a lesson, helping me vent my anger against this arrogant fellow. One of my subordinates lost a leg, how can I convince my men if that brat isn’t beaten up?”
The man pondered for a moment. “Fine, I’m a bit interested too. I’ll pay him a visit.”
Xue Ding was delighted. “With Big Brother taking the scene, it’ll be a piece of cake.”
Thousands of kilometers away, on the edges of the continent, was an ancient castle. Facing the endless void alone, it looked nothing short of bleak and desolate.
The structure, with its thick, tall walls, was built entirely of large stones. The windows were long and narrow, and the outer walls were mottled from the many years of exposure to the wind and frost.
The Eastern Sea was one of the biggest islands in the neutral lands, yet it was far smaller than any of the twenty-seven major continents. It was even less stable than the floating continent where the two factions were currently at war due to the lack of a protective layer.
Not far from this castle, one could see the dense rolling clouds and flashes of lightning. At times, a thunderbolt would streak across the skies and strike at the cliff, sending pieces of stone drifting into the void.
Perhaps due to the many years of lightning strikes and raging winds, the stones on the precipice had turned dark and contained pieces of crystals within them. This kind of crystalline object born from the invasion of void origin power would fetch a sky-high price in external markets.
Since the castle was built on the cliff, its mottled walls also suffered from the wind and lightning.
On the higher floors of the castle, a young man with long, hanging hair was standing before the french window and admiring the scenery outside. After a long while, he said with a sigh of satisfaction, “Only destruction lies at the end of the world. These words are so well-spoken!”
As he returned to his seat, the flash of lightning outside clearly outlined his facial features. He picked up a glass of wine and said while slowly savoring the contents, “Anything of note recently? Speak!”