She frowned and asked in a deep voice, "They only have one or two Divine Body Realm cultivators each?"
The emphasis in her voice alarmed the five patriarchs.
"Are you lying to me?" Di Baijun raised her voice slightly and barked coldly.
"We wouldn't dare to."
The five patriarchs immediately bowed, their voices reverent. They honestly felt rather wronged.
Things had already progressed to the current stage. How would they possibly dare to deceive her or withhold information about such a trivial matter?
Yet, Di Baijun's frown deepened. These few people likely really weren't lying to her.
After musing quietly for a while, she said coldly, "Alright. Tell me about the level of combat power of all the species in the vicinity."
Not daring to dawdle, the five patriarchs quickly started to speak.
"My Queen, there are two Divine Body Realm cultivators and more than 300 Second Realm ones among the Field Frogs.
"For the Stone Bulls, they have one Divine Body Realm cultivator and more than 400 Second Realm ones…"
The five patriarchs, who were very familiar with the subject, started to talk about the various species in the continent. As overlords of the Lichi Continent, they naturally kept an eye on other species' level of combat power at all times.
Once they discovered signs of emergence among any of the species, they would immediately clamp down on them.
Even if any of the five species was unfamiliar with some certain species in the vicinity, with the five of them working with one another, it could be said that they knew the entire Lichi Continent like the back of their hands.
It was also precisely because they knew the continent like the back of their hand that the five of them hadn't assembled all the Divine Body Realm cultivators in the continent to fight against the Tiger King—because they knew that the chances of success were too low.
They didn't dare to take the risk.
As they introduced each of the species, they discovered to their horror and bewilderment that the Queen's expression was becoming stormier and stormier. An icy-cold aura pervaded the atmosphere, making them increasingly alarmed and fearful.
Yet, they had no choice but to brace themselves and continue talking.
"Enough." Suddenly, Di Baijun interrupted them with a shout. Icy displeasure filled her face as she looked straight at them.
As though a gigantic tiger looking at prey that was powerless to fight back, she demanded coldly, "Tell me straight up—apart from those among your species, how many Divine Body Realm cultivators are there in total in the Lichi Continent?"
Frightened, the five patriarchs didn't dare to raise their heads at all. Upon hearing her question, they secretly communicated by exchanging looks with one another and finally came up with a number.
In the end, Lan Li stepped forward and replied reverently, "My Queen, apart from our five species, all the other major species' Divine Body Realm cultivators come up to a total of roughly 230 to 250."
His words stunned Di Baijun. Then, her palm slammed downward.
Bang!
The whole table with the map in front of her—including the table itself—was reduced to dust.
Thud!
The five patriarchs and two demon generals fell onto their knees. Utterly confused, they honestly didn't know where they had gone wrong in their explanation to make the queen so furious.
"My Queen, I would never dare to deceive you. Everything I say is the absolute truth. There's no way there'll be any mistake with this number." Lan Li braced himself and said fearfully.
"The absolute truth…" Di Baijun gnashed her teeth in fury. "In other words, the species that the five of you are from are the five strongest species of the Lichi Continent?"
Not daring to speak, Lan Li could only nod along with the other four patriarchs.
"Hah." Di Baijun let out a cold laugh. Flames of fury so strong that they were almost tangible blazed in her.
Well done, Wang Hu.
You jerk.
No wonder you entrusted everything to me and brought the two little fellows out to play so early in the morning.
On top of that, you even said that we should leave you as the trump card? Hah.
Does this situation even require you to do anything? No, does it even require me to do anything?
These five species are already fully capable of bulldozing through the enemies by themselves.
You jerk, you've been playing me for a fool, haven't you? Do you know how hard I've thought about this? How much I've prepared? How much I've been looking forward to it?
You goddamn jerk.
Are you kidding me?
She clenched her fists tightly. An icy, domineering aura filled the air, weighing down so hard on the five patriarchs and the two demon generals that they became more and more fearful.
They had become sure of something by now—the Queen was definitely very strong.
"Wait here for further orders," Di Baijun ordered coldly before disappearing in a flash.
Somewhere more than 50 kilometers away from the camp…
This was a field with picturesque scenery. Wang Hu had brought the two little fellows out to play early in the morning, ultimately coming to this place and staying here.
The two little fellows got into a playful mood. Without paying any attention to their father, they transformed into two adorable little white tigers and started to have fun in the field.
Wang Hu was more than happy to let them do so.
This—the two little fellows playing by themselves—was exactly his most preferred situation whenever he had to take care of the children by himself. It would be ideal if they could play by themselves for a full day without crying, making a fuss, or pestering him.
If they could do that, then they would really be a couple of adorable and well-behaved little darlings.
He lay on the field a short distance away, watching the two little fellows; while his thoughts involuntarily drifted to the situation over at Silly Girl's.
There were still a substantial number of enemies in this alternate world even after they had crippled and subdued the five major species here.
It should be enough for Silly Girl to have her fill of fun. Surely… Silly Girl wouldn't get angry, right?
She likely wouldn't.
Out of the whole plate of food, even if he had eaten all the food on it, he had still left the plate there, hadn't he?
Yet, when he thought of how stern and serious Silly Girl had been the last few days and how she had spent the previous night contemplating the upcoming battle, he couldn't help but feel rather guilty.
Did Silly Girl really have to be so earnest about it, though?
Besides, he really wasn't to be blamed for this. Firstly, this was for Big Treasure and Little Treasure's safety.
Secondly, for some inexplicable reason, he had somehow just ended up taking out the enemies one after another.
Who would have known that this alternate world was so weak?
Sigh, he really wasn't to be blamed for this.
He had only just heaved a sigh when his gaze trembled. At once, he hastily got up and stood properly before focusing his gaze on the two little fellows with a gentle and kindly smile.
A few seconds later, the stunning Silly Girl arrived, accompanied by a breeze.
The stunning beauty was filled with hints of frostiness and balefulness at the moment, however.
A foreboding feeling came over Wang Hu the instant he looked over.
However, he kept his face straight as though nothing had happened. Then, he frowned and fury surged in him. He took a step forward—though he didn't go too close either—and asked furiously, "What's wrong, Baijun? Who made you angry? Is it those few useless pieces of trash?
"Hmph, they sure have a death wish, don't they? Wait a moment, Baijun. I'll catch them, bring them here right away, and then kill them for you. How dare they actually make you so angry."
As he spoke, he turned around immediately to carry out what he had just said.
Di Baijun's momentum stagnated for a moment, and she glared at Wang Hu right away. With a light wave, she isolated all sounds around them from the outside and said coldly, "Stop right there, you jerk."
Wang Hu stopped in his tracks and looked at her, perplexed. He frowned and asked in puzzlement, "What's… the matter?"
"Go on, keep up the act in front of me," said an expressionless Di Baijun.
Wang Hu's expression changed to one of panic. He took another step forward and asked anxiously and perplexedly, "No, you have to be clearer about this, Baijun. What do you mean by 'act'? Are you talking about me? When have I ever put up an act in front of you?"
"Hah." Di Baijun was so mad that she couldn't help but scoff. She gnashed her teeth in fury as she said, "Do you dare to say that you're in the dark about this? Do you dare to say that you didn't do this?"
"No," Wang Hu's expression became one of real panic this time and even carried some aggrieved sentiments. He said, "You have to be clearer about this, Baijun. What exactly has happened? Have I done something to make you angry?
"Tell me what it is. Even if you want my life, you have to let me know the reason why, isn't it?"
Di Baijun's eyes bore hard into the jerk. She was rather hesitant now.
Could it be that this fellow wasn't putting on an act?
He really hadn't realized what he had done wrong yet?
Despite her doubts, her anger, frustration, and grievance didn't decrease in the least, however.
"Fine," Her hands balled up tightly into fists, and she gritted her teeth and said, "I'll give you a quick death, then.
"Tell me, did you deliberately subdue those five species and resolve all the troubles before handing the matter over to me?"
With the same baffled look on his face and as though everything was right and justified, Wang Hu replied, "Yes, of course. Is there anything wrong?
"Those five species aren't strong in the first place, so I subdued all of them at the same time. Isn't leaving the rest to you after I've resolved all these troubles just right?
"I'll take care of half the work, and you'll take care of the other half. We'll do half the work each.
"Together, we can conquer all difficulties, isn't it?"
Di Baijun was so mad that she was close to letting out a scoff of laughter.
Half for me and half for you? Do you think we're Big Treasure and Little Treasure playing house?
She asked coldly, "Why did you say that we'll leave you as the trump card, then?"
"That's correct, isn't it? The world of Lichi has existed for so many years, after all. Who knows if there are any powerful hidden existences here? Isn't it correct that I'm the trump card?" Wang Hu looked rather baffled as though he found the whole thing rather absurd.
"Ptooey." Di Baijun was so furious that she couldn't be bothered about etiquette anymore. She demanded furiously, "Are you still trying to deceive me? Do you think you can even deceive me?
"You're playing me for a fool.
"Don't you know how much effort I've been putting into this during the last few days?
"Don't you know how seriously I've been treating this? Or how much I've been looking forward to this?
"But what about you? All you did was leave such nonsense to me. Does this even require me to do anything?
"Those five species are already strong enough to bulldoze their way through by themselves. What do I even need to do? Watch the show and have fun?
"You jerk. You're deliberately making a fool out of me and having fun at my expense. Do you think I wouldn't know?
"Hmph. So, is it fun?"
She paced about angrily as she spoke, her palm twitching again and again as she thought of whacking him.
Wang Hu sighed inwardly. Initially, he hadn't thought it was fun but only thought of it as an accident.
Yet, as he gazed at how Silly Girl was fuming huffily, he suddenly felt that this was indeed rather fun after all.
Silly Girl looked just like a little girl who had thought that she could make a great contribution to her parents, and had prepared for it for so long, and was looking forward to it very much; only to realize that it was all just wishful thinking on her part.
The sense of grievance resulting from it was honestly hard to even describe.
In Silly Girl's case, the situation was even a little more serious than that. Moreover, it also involved other aspects.
In addition, she shouldn't be asking something like 'do you think you can deceive me?'. Rather, she should be asking 'do you think someone like you won't be able to deceive me?'.
Seriously. Sigh.
Although he knew he shouldn't be thinking that way, that was exactly how Wang Hu felt.
In fact, he even felt that a huffy Silly Girl was just as good-looking as a shy and bashful Silly Girl.
As for which he thought was better-looking?
He couldn't quite decide for now.
Even though he had all kinds of messy thoughts in his head right now, he put on the sincerest expression and gaze he could muster and looked at Silly Girl openly and honestly without the slightest bit of guilt.
He took another step forward and looked into Silly Girl's angry eyes that also carried some grievance.
He said gently, "Look at my eyes, Baijun. What do you see?"
Di Baijun blinked. She didn't feel like she saw anything.
However, she was too embarrassed to say so and could only continue to glare fiercely at him.
"My eyes are full of love and sincerity," said Wang Hu naturally and incredibly seriously.
When faced with those undisguised words of his, Di Baijun felt even more embarrassed.
Wang Hu, on the other hand, went on to say, "Think about it carefully, Baijun. Have I ever deceived you?"
Di Baijun started to think about his question, but before she could even think of anything, Wang Hu's voice rang out again, this time louder. "Even if I were to deceive everyone in the world, I would never deceive you. I would never, ever deceive you.
"How can you say that I deceived you? You're wronging me, Baijun. Do you know that I'm really very sad right now? Are you actually suspecting that I'm deceiving you?
"Put yourself in my shoes and think about it. Don't you think you're being too much?
"You're suspecting that I, Wang Hu, am deceiving you, Di Baijun? How is that even possible?
"That's practically the most ridiculous thing ever in the world."
Taken aback, Di Baijun stared blankly at him. As she stared at the rascal who seemed to have gotten angry, she suddenly lost some of her confidence.
Am I really being too much?
But if that rascal were to suspect that I deceived him, I would also be very angry and think that he's being too much.
After putting herself in his shoes and thinking about it, Di Baijun believed him somewhat right away, and her confidence weakened a few notches again.
Wang Hu looked at Silly Girl seriously and sternly. His voice deepened, and he said, "Baijun, can we trust each other a little more? Don't say things like I've deceived you or you've deceived me.
"The word 'deceive' doesn't exist between the two of us at all.
"I, Wang Hu, swear upon my conscience that I would never deceive Di Baijun at all."
At the end of it, he secretly added: 'If I do, then I'll swear another oath.'
Di Baijun's momentum weakened. Nevertheless, she said stubbornly, "Fine, we won't use the word 'deceive', then. But how can you do that to me, you jerk?
"I was looking forward to it so much, treated the matter so seriously, and made so many preparations for it.
"All of it was for nothing. The situation doesn't need me to do anything except watch over it.
"Is this what you mean by 'conquering a world together'?"
The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she felt.
She was clearly the aggrieved one here, yet she had been reprimanded just now as though the rascal was even more aggrieved than her.
She didn't even say as much as he had.
"How is it not?" A look of resignation, speechlessness, and grievance from being wronged appeared on Wang Hu's countenance. "Baijun, aren't there a lot of species and forces here that haven't submitted to us yet?
"Do you really think that they aren't strong enough to let you display your strength?
"Baijun, we're husband and wife. There's no right or wrong but only love between the two of us. Why would you think that I'm in the wrong?
"Can the word 'wrong' be used to describe anything between the two of us?
"I took care of the most difficult things and left the simple ones to you. What does this mean? It proves that I love you.
"How I wish I could kill 999 out of 1,000 enemies and leave only the weakest one to you. This is my love for you.
"We're husband and wife. We talk only about love, not about what's right, what's wrong, or what's reasonable."
Di Baijun, whose mind was in utter chaos, stared blankly at the rascal in front of her.
What he said seemed to make some sense.
Yet… yet…
Why did she feel so frustrated?
Even her eyes felt somewhat hot.
She could only feel frustration stuck in her heart, unable to be dispelled.
This rascal…
Suddenly, a fairly unhappy-looking and seemingly somewhat sad Wang Hu hugged her.
The moment she felt his warm embrace, Di Baijun instantly felt even more sad and aggrieved.
"Alright, alright. Let's not be angry anymore. I'm not angry at you either, Baijun. I just feel rather sad that I did so much, yet you don't understand how I feel."
His gentle voice carried a sense of magnanimity.
Di Baijun gritted her teeth, feeling as though that sense of frustration had intensified. She wanted to hit him, but it seemed like the rascal hadn't done anything wrong.
It seems like he should feel even more wronged than me.
"Never mind, never mind. I'm not angry anymore. Let's not be angry anymore. I'm a man and your husband, so I'll give in to you.
"You can hit me a couple of times to vent your anger, Baijun." Wang Hu's resigned and doting voice rang out.
Di Baijun snorted. Still feeling incredibly frustrated, she said huffily, "Am I that unreasonable of a person?"
"See, I've already told you, Baijun. We're husband and wife. We talk only about love. Why should we talk about what's right, what's wrong, and what's reasonable?" said a resigned Wang Hu.
At a loss for words, Di Baijun couldn't come up with any rebuttal.
Wang Hu went on and said gently, "We both have our grievances this time. Neither of us is in the wrong, but we're also both in the wrong.
"That's right. Neither of us has done anything wrong.
"What we did wrong was that we weren't more considerate toward the other party.
"For your sake, I've resolved the biggest difficulties, but it instead made you unhappy.
"In your case, you didn't recognize my efforts. You only paid attention to your own grievance and came to me to throw a tantrum.
"This is what we both have done wrong. Do you agree, Baijun?"