“Ten… ten times?” Zhe Bieli was frightened out of his wits; his fingers trembled slightly.
“You can’t make the decision for this?” Lu Zhou stroked his beard and looked at Zhe Bieli.
“…” Zhe Bieli’s expression was rather unsightly. “They’re nobody. Senior Lu, why are you doing this?”
Just that one compensation alone was enough to make Zhe Bieli bleed. Ten times that compensation was equivalent to draining half of his life.
“Nobody?” Luzhou stopped stroking his beard and stared at Zhe Bieli who was sitting across from him indifferently. He placed his palm lightly on the table as he said, “In my eyes, you’re also a nobody.”
Swoosh!
The winecup shot out, flying toward Zhe Bieli.
Zhe Bieli recovered from his shock and hastily erected an energy barrier to block the winecup.
The winecup thrummed as it hovered a meter in front of Zhe Bieli. He said helplessly, “Senior, let’s discuss this. Why must you do this?”
“Why can’t I do this to a nobody?”
“Even if you kill me, they can’t be resurrected…” Zhe Bieli said.
“That’s not important. Killing 352 here is to comfort the dead.”
“…”
Buzz!
A faint blue energy appeared around the winecup at this moment.
Bang!
The winecup exploded. The wine hovered in the air in the form of droplets. Soon enough, the droplets of wine seemed to turn into energy swords that were as fine as a strand of hair. In just an instant, they arrived in front of Zhe Bieli.
Zhe Bieli shuddered. He tried his best to keep the thin energy swords at bay, but he discovered he could not mobilize his Primal Qi. At this time, the energy swords were right in front of his face. If they were half an inch closer, they would pierce his eyes.
‘How’s this possible?’ As soon as this thought appeared in Zhe Bieli’s mind, he realized how redundant it was. It was naturally a piece of cake for a 12 Chart expert to kill someone like him. He held his breath, giving up on resisting. Moreover, when he discovered he no longer had access to Primal Qi earlier, he knew it was futile to resist anyway. He said, “Fine! Ten times it is!”
Splash!
The energy swords reverted to wine that fell to the floor with a splash.
Lu Zhou stroked his beard and said, “Human lives are all important; there shouldn’t be distinctions based on their statuses. In your opinion, their lives aren’t important. However, in their families’ eyes, which one of them isn’t important?”
Naturally, Zhe Bieli understood this logic. He felt incredibly uncomfortable and did not dare to refute.
Lu Zhou continued to say, “If this were any other time, let alone ten times, even if it was a hundred times, I might not even agree to the compensation.”
Zhe Bieli was afraid Lu Zhou would raise the compensation again so he hurriedly ordered his men, “Hurry up and prepare the compensation!”
“Understood.” Upon receiving the order, the two subordinates left in a hurry.
Lu Zhou nodded in satisfaction. He looked at the injured people lying on the stretcher and asked, “Are you satisfied with my actions?”
“Yes… yes… We are…”
The two injured men were incredibly moved and excited.
Yu Zhenghai said, “If there’s anything you’re dissatisfied with, don’t be afraid to speak up. My master will seek justice for you…”
The two struggled to cup their fists together at Lu Zhou to show their gratitude.
My master will seek justice for you. If you are not satisfied, you can bring it up.”
Zhe Bieli said to the two injured men, “Please don’t worry. I’ll make sure the culprits are severely punished.
“Apart from that, you should also guarantee that nothing like that will happen again in the future,” Lu Zhou added.
“Of course.”
Lu Zhou nodded as he stroked his beard and continued to say, “Now that the first matter has been dealt with, let’s move on to the second matter…”
Zhe Bieli. “…”
Zhe Bieli felt suffocated; it was really unbearable.
Lu Zhou said, “In the Land of Chaos in the red lotus domain, Ye Liuyun, the master assassin of the Dark and Light Alliance, tried to assassinate me. I’m sure you’ve heard about that.”
“…” In fact, Zhe Bieli had heard more than that. When that idiot died, news of it spread like a wildfire in the Dark and Light Alliance. In the end, he asked, “Senior Lu, since Ye Liuyun is dead, why bother bringing up the dead?”
“So you’re saying I should swallow my anger?”
“…” Zhe Bieli’s expression grew unsightly. ‘It’s over! This is the end!’
“Ye Liuyun was quite skilled. I was careless and had to use the Sea Spirit Pearl to protect myself,” Lu Zhou said.
“Isn’t the Sea Spirit Pearl with the BTC?” Zhe Bieli asked as dread filled his body. He had misspoken again. He cursed his loose tongue.
Shen Xi said, “The Sea Spirit Pearl has long belonged to the Pavilion Master.”
Zhe Bieli hardened his heart and said, “The Dark and Light Alliance is willing to compensate Senior Lu by offering another portion of obsidian essences.”
Lu Zhou raised his head and stared at Zhe Bieli with his deep and ancient eyes that seemed to have seen the vicissitudes of life. He remained silent and continued stroking his beard. ‘Do you think I’m a beggar who could be easily sent away with a few trinkets?’
Zhe Biely, whose heart had not stopped bleeding since earlier due to the compensation he had to cough up, said, “Senior Lu, the Dark and Light Alliance really doesn’t have so many obsidian essences. They’re really rare. Even the BTC can’t take out more than ten portions.”
Lu Zhou maintained his silence and continued to look at Zhe Bieli.
Zhe Bieli’s expression was indescribable at this moment. In the end, he said in a trembling voice, “I… T-this… I’m afraid I don’t have the authority to make this decision…”
Shen Xi smiled and said, “Then why did you brag earlier that you can make all the decisions while the Alliance Master is away? You should’ve just invited your Alliance Master here in the first place. If it weren’t for the Pavilion Master’s even temper, do you think you’d still be alive?”
“…”
Shen Xi had deliberately said this to pay Zhe Bieli back for his earlier words. Seeing the unsightly expression on Zhe Bieli’s face, he felt incredibly comfortable. The ancients were right; it felt really good being able to lean on a tall and strong tree.
“Fine!” Zhe Bieli said through gritted teeth as he smacked the table, “Five portions of obsidian essences! The Dark and Light Alliance don’t have these many obsidian essences, but I’ll find a way to collect them. I hope Senior Lu will give me some time.”
Lu Zhou stroked his beard in satisfaction and added, “Don’t forget the ten portions you promised earlier as well…”
“… Yes…” Zhe Bieli clenched his hands tightly as he felt his heart bleed.
“Very good.” Lu Zhou slowly rose to his feet and said, “I’ll give you three days…”
After saying that, Lu Zhou did not wait for Zhe Bieli’s response. He waved his sleeves and walked out with his hands on his back.
Shen Xi ordered the men to carry the stretchers before he followed Lu Zhou.
Yu Zhenghai was the last to rise from his seat. He patted Zhe Bieli’s shoulder and said before he left, “To be honest, this is the first time I’ve seen my master being so kind. You should feel lucky…”
“…” What could Zhe Bieli say to that? He could only force an awkward smile on his face.
When Lu Zhou and the others exited the main hall, a figure flew toward them swiftly at a low altitude. Soon after, a loud laughter rang in the air. “I heard that Zhe Bieli, one of the Five Tigers of the Dark and Light Alliance, is a first-rate swordsman? Can he block one sword strike from me, Yelu Chunan?”
As the figure drew closer at lightning speed, everyone could see him holding a sword in his right hand. As he flew, a conical barrier with black energy swirling around it appeared a few meters in front of him.
Shen Xi exclaimed, “It’s the Seven Star Sword!”
Yelu Chunan did not stop flying. He only briefly glanced at Lu Zhou who was standing in front of the main hall.
All of a sudden, a voice rang from the main hall. “It’s you?! Stop!”
“Do you think I’ll stop just because you tell me to? You’re dreaming”
All of a sudden, Yelu Chunan held his sword and walked toward Lu Zhou.
Apart from Shen Xi and Yu Zhenghai who remained calm, everyone held their breaths and watched nervously as Yelu Chunan moved toward Lu Zhou.
Swoosh!
In just a flash, Yelu Chunan brought his sword down on Lu Zhou.
Lu Zhou raised his hand that was glowing with a blue light. Soon enough, a mini vortex appeared on his palm, churning rapidly.
The tip of the sword touched the mini vortex in Lu Zhou’s palm; the sword seemed to freeze.
Yelu Chunan looked up at the person in front of him in surprise.
At this moment, Zhe Bieli rushed out of the hall. “Stop! Stop! Brother Yelu, please stop! I am Zhe Bieli!”
Yelu Chunan smiled. “When did such an expert join the Dark and Light Alliance?”
Lu Zhou frowned; he could feel the supreme mystic power surging out continuously. What would happen if this stalemate continued?
“Impudent.”
A thunderous voice rang in the air.
Lu Zhou moved his hand and used his hand to smack the Seven Star Sword aside.
The Seven Star Sword bounced back, catching Yelu Chunan off guard. He did not expect his opponent’s strength to suddenly increase several times. Due to the impact, the Seven Star Sword’s hilt landed heavily on his chest, sending him flying back. He flipped three and half times in the air before he landed on the ground again.
Clank!
The Seven Star Sword fell on the ground at this time.
Everything ended with one move.
‘Hmm? This sword actually managed to withstand the supreme mystic force?’ Lu Zhou waved his hand, and the Seven Star Sword buzzed before it flew into his hand.
“…”
Yelu Chunan was still stunned by the palm strike.
Zhe Bieli, one of the Five Tigers of the Dark and Light Alliance, was stunned as well.
Meanwhile, Lu Zhou studied the Seven Star Sword for a moment before he passed it over to Yu Zhenghai. Then, he looked at Yelu Chunan and said indifferently, “Zhe Bieli said your cultivation base is almost on par with Fan Ruozhi’s. However, even with the sword, it seemed like you’re far from being on par with him…”