Chapter 80 The Strange Punishment

—Present Time: Outside the Mansion—

Thirteen people relaxed around a fire pit without a care in the world.

They were exhausted, but the groups cycled based on their power limitations. At some point, they refused to return.

As a result, no one was suffering from Qi deprivation.

"Man, I'm so glad that woman showed up."

"Right? I thought she was scary when she ensured we were all okay, but now I'm thankful."

"I agree. Watching that ominous frost develop around the law was terrifying, but she shut up the entire mansion within a minute of walking in."

"She must be important, too. If that's the case, at least we're in luck for following the rules."

"But… we did refuse to return."

"That's true, but she can't differentiate which were new and which weren't, right?"

"I wouldn't start making excuses. If that woman could instantly shut down that raging party, she doesn't accept justifications, right? We won't get punished; just be glad for that."

"True. Either way, I'm glad its over."

—Kaze's Bedroom: Fourth Floor—

"That… was magical." Riley said with her eyes closed in bliss.

"Right? I'm glad the party's finally over so we can enjoy it." Sarah sighed, "It was getting loud."

Kaze chuckled mysteriously; his mind was somewhere else.

He heard everything that happened after the women had their grand climax, which included Evalyn's solution for dealing with the problem.

Naturally, the emperor monitored the people using his detox technique and ensured they were fine. So he knew her game was psychological punishment, but—

"Those idiots downstairs think [this] is the punishment." He chuckled under his breath.

"Hmmm? Did you say something… Kaze?" Riley blushed in embarrassment, turning away.

While she was satisfied beyond belief and felt connected to him, she was screaming and being crude for the last thirty minutes against her personality.

"The people downstairs have caused some trouble, and Evalyn's dealing with it." Kaze chuckled while standing and grabbing his slacks, neatly folded on his desk, "So I'll need to go."

"We're... not a nuance to you… right?" Riley cringed, "We can leave if you want."

"I'm okay with leaving too." Sarah followed huridly, "You don't have to leave because of us."

"You two are too much till the end." Kaze laugh-scoffed, "I'd never run away from a woman after sex unless there was a reason."

They looked at him in confusion.

"Forgive me." Riley blushed, "It just seems strange that you're so certain of things when it's dead silent right now."

"Do you question my word so much?" The emperor asked mockingly, "You're about to hear these exact words after a few failed attempts."

He recited the words, and sure enough, his words proved prophetic before he finished dressing.

Both looked at him with wide eyes, and he chuckled. "I'll be back later; the party is officially over, so you can feel free to spend the night here."

Their eyes lit up in surreal happiness at his words; they were glad he wasn't kicking them out and running downstairs to collect more women.

The emperor waved his hand, and a wall of warping space spread out before him. Before he entered it, he gave them both a charming smile.

"You already resigned from that pointless bet, yes?" Kaze said with a magnetic voice, "So don't feel awkward talking to each other.

What you experienced together is sacred and worth talking about."

Riley and Sarah blushed furiously and awkwardly turned away from each other.

"Suit yourself." He chuckled while walking through the warp gate.

After a minute of silence, listening to Kaze downstairs, they finally spoke.

"I… don't feel awkward." Sarah sighed, "Like, at all. I hope this doesn't sound like a confession, but I wouldn't have a problem doing this again."

"Same…." Riley confirmed, "Avoiding a cheating advantage that feels incredible seems stupid. But… I'm not sure how to initiate it. Kaze took care of that."

"Where's that blunt warrior from the bedroom?" Sarah laughed in disbelief.

The brunette turned on her side to face the blonde. "Where's the woman saying gimme-gimme?"

Sarah blushed bright red. "I couldn't think straight! That wouldn't have happened if Kaze wasn't using his dick like a magic wand!"

They burst into giggles after the statement.

"Buuuuuuut... you're different, you know that? I was brain dead when I started wylin', but you got bold and blunt just from me alone." The blonde chuckled.

"That was Kaze's power pulsing through you." The brunette replied mockingly, "You just experienced that, so you should know."

"Do you want to bet?" Sarah asked with curved lips.

"You're not good at winning bets." Riley laughed.

"I know." Sarah replied with a predatory smile, making Riley's heart skip a beat.

—Two minutes, seventeen seconds prior: Third Floor Sober Squad's Headquarters—

Kaze walked through the wall of the third-floor ballroom out of thin air.

It was impossible not to notice because everyone's body was suddenly pushed to the side by an invisible force.

The same thing happened when he walked forward, forcing everyone out of the way no matter how heavy they were—they just glided into everyone gently.

"K-Kaze!" The man who confessed stuttered in disbelief, "I-I can explain."

The emperor waved his hand, and everyone in the room began glowing. The aura color was shades of orange, from light yellow to red.

Once they began glowing, everyone who was intoxicated cringed.

With a wave of his hand, the emperor used a detoxification technique to sober everyone up and identified everyone that broke the rules simultaneously.

"F-Faction leader. I-I'm sorry that—" A faction member said before getting cut off.

"I don't forgive or forget transgressions against my rules." Kaze interjected coldly, "I only decide upon consequences ranging from warnings to swift, decisive retribution."

Everyone shuttered, chilled by his cold and definitive words that indicated that he wasn't forgiving. He declared that everyone was guilty in his mind, and he'd never forget that—and he wouldn't.

? With his hyperthymesic memory, he truly never forgot those that transgressed his authority.

"Considering there are no drinks in this room that I'm aware of, and the sober people enjoyed themselves, I don't feel this situation deserves consequences exceeding a warning—" The emperor announced.

The faction members began to breathe sighs of relief.

"—unfortunately for you, I'm not the person administering punishment."

Their hearts froze instantly, and icy chills crawled down their spines.

"The person punishing you isn't in a very [forgiving] state." Kaze chuckled in amusement, "I'm mentally preparing to be punished for having sex in my own home, so I suppose everyone else should prepare to do the same."

Without further discussion, the emperor chuckled and walked out of the room.

The hallway was too packed, and the space too scarce to push everyone out of the way.

So he waved his hand, and everyone in the hallway flew back-first into the walls as if they were magnets.

Everyone watched in silent awe as the Emperor walked through the hall, hundreds of people making their way for him.

One hall, one room, one area after the other, Kaze took note of everyone who broke or was in the process of breaking the rules—all 87 of them.

"E-Emperor, aren't you going to save them?" A worried woman stuttered.

Kaze smiled gently on the rule breaker, whose lamentation was suffocating.

"Don't worry." He smiled mysteriously, "Everyone's doing okay. You're all just learning the value of keeping the rules here.

The person enforcing order right now is far fairer than I am; however, she's… more [creative] in her punishments."

"C-Creative?" A man suttered.

"Oh, yes." The emperor smiled, "You'll see soon enough. You haven't been punished yet."

The guilty shivered in fear after his ominous words, watching his relaxed grin with extreme anxiety.

Evalyn frowned when the emperor finally made it down the first flight of stairs. "You took your—"

Kaze waved his hand, and everyone in the room developed an aura, with Evalyn being pure white and the rest tinted with orange hues.

Everyone gasped in surprise at what happened but fell silent again.

The blonde narrowed her eyes slightly, watching him take note of every person present with discerning eyes.

Aside from realizing he wasn't simply wasting time, she was studying his actions. He was looking at every person, focusing on those who were shaking and not.

Moreover, the thing that interested her was everyone's behavior.

They were silent from her dominating presence from the beginning and fell quiet despite not knowing who she was.

However, somehow the playboy commanded far more respect, not out of fear but some other force she didn't know about. She wanted to know what it was.

Kaze looked around the room and spoke. "This is Evalyn Skye; she's one half of Immortal Skye, so what she says goes.

I'm certain she didn't say her name for you to know that, yes?"

Everyone swallowed nervously and nodded.

He looked at the blonde with a mocking smile. "Since what you say goes, let's hear your punishment for this transgression.

While the detox team members are safe, I'm certain you're not okay that they were threatened, yes?"

The faction members turned to her with gasping expressions. "Hey, wait… are you saying that no one was in danger?"

They turned to him with wide eyes, seeking confirmation.

"You understand the meaning of [what she says goes], yes?" Kaze asked coldly, "It means your question is as fruitless as her words' veracity.

I suggest you look at her before you get reprimanded for not respecting her."

Evalyn was stunned by the authority that he abruptly gave her. However, when the people turned to her, she forgot about Kaze and remembered her rage.

"Your actions disrespected Kaze's simple rules, endangered the lives of the people enforcing them, and spat on the goodwill he provided you with this lavish party." She said coldly.

"It's unbelievable that hundreds of people rushed to break the rules on the [first day] to peep on women's intimate actions.

Most people stood around letting it happen, enabled it, and didn't try to de-escalate the situation.

You're all disgusting and unfit to be part of a faction.

Therefore, [everyone] is barred from cultivation for the next two days. Offenders will get immediate expulsion without a trial.

We can feel cultivation from the other side of this faction, so don't try cultivating in your bedroom unless you want to be expelled before the fourth day."

Everyone gasped in disbelief.

Evalyn turned to Kaze. "You know those who are guilty, yes?"

"Of course." He smiled in amusement.

"Good, they're the only people exempt from the punishment." She replied, "Cultivation practice is mandatory and public; make sure to let them know.

Also, I'd appreciate it if you posted an exclusive, useful yet minor technique for them to learn."

"W-Wait! How the hell is that fair!?" A woman yelled.

"That's extremely backward!" Another followed, "I haven't left this floor and never planned to!"

"This is absurd! How can you reward the people who broke the rules?"

Evalyn lifted her index and pointed at each person that yelled. "Six, seven… eight.

You eight—you're also exempt. Is there anyone else who would like to be exempt from the [punishment]?"

Four people said yes reflexively, unable to see the menacing smile on her face.

However, everyone was sober now and realized there was something horrifyingly eerie about how silent the front row was.

A sinister wave of negative synesthesia waved through the space, forcing everyone to fall still with fear.

"Okay, you four are also exempt." Evalyn smiled ominously, "That includes you, Kaze. You're exempt from [non-essential] cultivation for not creating a barrier. That's all."

After her statement, she walked out the front door to return to her cultivation spot.

The emperor watched her back with an amused smile.

Once she was gone, everyone in the room turned to him with pleading eyes, praying he would pull the [cool dad] card.

"Faction leader, I understand what she says goes…." A woman said meekly, "But Isn't this a bit… unfair? She just punished everyone but the offenders; she even punished you."

"Is there not a sane person amongst you?" The emperor scoffed, rolling his eyes, "Must I make more exemptions before you think about the punishment bestowed upon you?"

Everyone fell silent, deep in thought. A wave of communicatory synaesthesia waved through everyone present, and their eyes widened in horror.

"Hoh? It seems you understand." Kaze chuckled with a strange smile, "It's a remarkably effective and fitting punishment for this situation.

Remember this brutal punishment before your break the rules or disrespect your leaders."

With that, he walked up the stairs to inform everyone else of the punishment Evalyn gave them.

—

[A/N: While this may seem like a buzz kill, it's a level-up chapter. On the first day of training, you'll see that this ruthless, real-world punishment tactic is a mass manipulation tool that improves the training and leadership of Kaze's army. I hope that when you see it in action, you'll enjoy it. :)]