Chapter Fifty-Two: Little Zhezi

The Young Martial Goddess of the Southern Sky Continent, Qu Hongxiu, had actually arrived as well!

The crowd instantly erupted into a commotion.

"Qu Hongxiu's words must be representing the stance of the Martial God Chu, making a public statement, right?"

"Could it be? Is the Martial God Chu openly announcing support for Xu Tianjiao?"

"Does she not fear offending that lord from the Northern Land Continent?"

"Hah, the Martial God of the Vermilion Bird Army, Chu of the Southern Sky Continent, has been awakened for thousands of years—who has she ever feared?"

"True enough, but it's still rather surprising."

"Indeed! I originally thought the first to speak up would be the Saint Lord Lin of Jade Pool. Even if not her, then perhaps the Blade God Li, or Daoist King Jianguo. But to think it would be the Martial God Chu who stepped forward first."

"Maybe you all are overthinking it. What if Qu Hongxiu just ran her mouth on her own?"

"That's plausible too. This little Martial Goddess is known for making wild statements."

"Remember when she declared the Vermilion Bird Army would flatten the Northern Land Continent? It sent the whole continent into panic, mobilizing millions of troops overnight, until the Martial God Chu herself had to step out and say, 'A child's words, not to be taken seriously.'"

The discussions and speculations were endless.

Ever since Xu Zhe awakened, countless eyes had been watching the various powers at play.

Everyone had heard the rumors that the Saint Lord Lin of Jade Pool once had a romantic entanglement—a relationship—with Xu Zhe.

But after seeing him stand by and do nothing during the Soul-Calming Night, most people understood the truth.

Moreover, since Saint Lord Lin never publicly clarified their relationship, it suggested things were not as rumored—perhaps it had ended.

Therefore, more and more people turned their attention to the Southern Sky and the Eastern Qian Continents.

The Southern Sky Continent had the Celestial Mechanism Sect led by King Jianguo, and the Eastern Qian Continent had the Li Group under the leadership of Blade God Li.

It was said that both these titans had once been inseparable brothers to Xu Zhe.

If Saint Lord Lin did not step forward, surely one of them would?

Yet, neither did.

To make matters worse, Blade God Li's third disciple, Li Xunhuang, publicly humiliated and provoked Xu Tianjiao, making his attitude clear.

What no one expected was that the Martial God Chu, with almost no rumored connection to Xu Zhe, would send Qu Hongxiu to participate in the Stoneflame Secret Realm.

Not only that, but Qu Hongxiu even issued a harsh warning in public, seemingly directed at Li Xunhuang, but in truth a message to everyone.

This made things rather intriguing.

"Could it be the rumors were wrong? Maybe it wasn't Saint Lord Lin who had a romance with Xu Tianjiao, but the Martial God Chu?" someone ventured a daring guess.

"No way, could Xu Tianjiao even handle that? I saw an image of the Martial God Chu on the Spirit Web—those legs... Ahem, what's happening, who is bewitching me with soul-craft to spout such nonsense?"

"Haha, you certainly have the nerve to say that."

...

Meanwhile—

Li Xunhuang stood in place, his face ashen as he glared at Qu Hongxiu.

"Qu Hongxiu, what do you mean? Are you declaring war on the Li Group?" he asked coldly.

"Is this how disciples of Blade God Li behave? While our cultivation is on par, you are of a lower generation. I am the senior disciple of the Martial God Chu; you are the third disciple of Blade God Li. Do you understand the difference?"

Qu Hongxiu strode up to Li Xunhuang, her expression dripping with disdain, utterly nonchalant. "I'm senior, you're junior—do you get it?"

With that, she skipped over to Xu Zhe, instantly switching to a sweet, playful demeanor and beamed, "Uncle Xu, it’s been ages! You look even more handsome now."

What a woman—two entirely different faces.

Xu Zhe was taken aback, about to speak.

Li Xunhuang, beside them, snorted coldly, his voice dark. "Qu Hongxiu, this is not your place to meddle. You—"

"So noisy! Is there a fly buzzing about? Uncle Xu, let’s go over there to chat about... our thoughts, catch up."

She grabbed Xu Zhe’s hand and pulled him away.

"Little Qu, this is inappropriate. Men and women—"

"Oh, Uncle Xu, just treat me as a man. I don’t mind!"

"...???"

Before long, the two had slipped away into the crowd, with Ji Dalì and the others exchanging glances before following after them.

Li Xunhuang watched this, his face growing darker yet.

A man beside him stepped forward, smiling lightly. "Brother Li, you lost. You didn’t unmask him. That’ll be a hundred spirit stones."

"Hmph. If that crazy Qu Hongxiu hadn’t interfered, I’d have done more than unmask him—I could have taken his head with ease," Li Xunhuang grumbled, tossing over a storage ring.

"Take his head? Now, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, isn’t it? Don’t forget, Xu Tianjiao slew several Foundation Establishment assassins in a single move ten days ago," the man shook his head with a mocking smile.

But Li Xunhuang wasn’t angered; instead, he sneered. "I’ve seen the footage. It’s all theatrics. He merely withdrew the black fire from the Black Devouring Flame Pearl and pretended to toss out a spark. Those assassins were fools, not realizing Xu Zhe was only borrowing their black fire. A single spell would have blocked it, but instead they fled and were all consumed by the flames."

"It’s not that simple. The footage didn’t capture everything, but did you consider how he managed to withdraw the black fire unscathed and then hurl it at them?" the other man said gravely.

"Nonsense, he must have used a magical artifact or treasure. Could he have swallowed the black fire? Don’t forget, Qu Hongxiu visited Xu Zhe after his awakening—she must have given him plenty of good stuff," Li Xunhuang rolled his eyes, looking even more dismissive.

"You’re rather presumptuous, Brother Li."

The man chuckled and went on, "My master has yet to make his position on Xu Zhe known, so I’m content to watch and wait. But you, Brother Li… Even if your master, Blade God Li, hasn’t taken a public stance, those rumors may not be groundless. Offending Xu Tianjiao now, you may regret it later."

"Heh, I know the truth better than anyone. In all my years under my master, I’ve never once heard him mention Xu Zhe, not even in passing. Yet the world says they were as close as brothers. Laughable," Li Xunhuang scoffed.

"But Blade God Li has never denied it, has he?"

"Should he? If mere mortals claimed you and I were brothers, would you bother denying it?"

"I would."

"..."

Elsewhere, Xu Zhe was pulled by Qu Hongxiu into a quiet corner by the wall...

"What do you want?" Xu Zhe demanded, wide-eyed.

"Shh, Uncle Xu, don’t speak..." Qu Hongxiu put a slender, soft finger to his lips, conspiratorially. "My master wants a word with you."

"What?"

Xu Zhe blinked in confusion.

He watched as Qu Hongxiu reached into her bulging robes and produced a luminous Universal Jade Talisman, pressing it to his ear.

"Xiao Zhe, are you courting death? Fifteen days, six hours, thirty-seven minutes, and forty seconds—and not a single call from you?"

A voice rang out from the talisman—one that could make any lover of imperious beauties howl on the spot.

Chu Xiaotong!

A smile spread across Xu Zhe’s face.

...