Hao Xuan's face was hidden behind the horned mask as usual. He knew there were a lot of people here so he had put it on before coming in.
Standing at the entrance of the great hall, he could easily see behind the row of soldiers blocking his path. His gaze landed directly on Ceni first and foremost. She was sitting right next to the City Lord in a somewhat revealing tight dress, shinning like a diamond in the rough.
Hao Xuan sighed instinctively, "Why is it I run into you no matter where you go?" he spoke lightly in the native language but because the hall was so silent, everyone could still hear him.
One of the hooded figures standing behind the City Lord jumped and landed in front of the raised platform while the other stood right next to him protectively.
"Who are you?" he spoke for the first time. It was the voice of a man and a pretty young one at that.
Hao Xuan peeled his eyes away from the coy smile that had appeared on Ceni's face as she stared at him without even blinking and looked towards the man standing in front of the City Lord.
"I'm the Second Guardian of the Academy. I have some business with a few of my people, nothing you have to worry about," he said in the native language again, surprising everyone that could understand him. Only the cultivators had no idea what he was talking about which was apparent from their faces.
He changed back to the Beast world's language while looking towards the right where they were seated.
"I'm looking for these three people, step out when you hear your name," he spoke in an authoritative tone, not giving them a chance to question or deny his 'request', he continued.
"Asha Tais, Kichirō Nor, and Mo Huan."
Staring intently at the expressions of these 15-16 cultivators sitting on the side, he said the names one by one. And as expected, two girls suddenly became nervous. They exchanged glances with one another before slowly standing up one by one.
Hao Xuan's brows furrowed, "Where is the third? What are your names?"
The girl on the far end of the table stepped forward, "I'm Asha Tais, my Lord."
She had short black hair and looked like a normal human. There was nothing exceptional about her at first glance.
Hao Xuan nodded and looked at the other, "And you?"
This girl had cat-like whispers coming out from below her nose and even a tail behind her. With a haughty expression, she looked once towards Hao Xuan before turning away.
"Nor," she replied coldly and sat back down as if it had nothing to do with her. Hao Xuan couldn't help but chuckle. She was putting on a cold front but her heart was beating like crazy. Hao Xuan could hear the blood madly rushing through her veins.
"Alright~," he said jokingly and took out the list from his shirt pocket and crossed out the two names.
Neither of them had any elvish blood in them. One wasn't even human.
"Where is this Mo Huan then?" he asked again but no one replied. They kept looking at one another and Hao Xuan could tell they didn't know either.
At this point, Ceni stood up. The City Lord that was sitting next to her also stood up without even realizing it.
"Why are you looking for them?" she asked curiously. She was still smiling but it was a little stiff.
Hao Xuan glanced at her once and then back down at the list.
"None of your business. Do you know where she is?" he asked casually, not even expecting an answer and was about to turn around to leave when his ears twitched.
Hao Xuan looked up, his eyes landing on the hooded man behind the guards.
"Hoh, that's new, eh?" he mumbled under his breath.
The rest of the people followed his line of sight, looking at the hooded man as well. Most of the locals didn't notice the difference but the cultivators could easily tell.
He was giving off a strong bloody aura, almost identical to that of a dangerous beast.
"Yo, are you one of those guys with that word of power thing?" Hao Xuan spoke in the native language.
The hooded man took another step and pulled off his robe, exposing his body.
Almost all the native people gasped in surprise and shock, well everyone but the City Lord while the cultivators all stood up, taking out their weapons.
The man's body was deformed. One-fourth of his face was bruised purple, patches of fur coming out of it. His upper arms had a fleshy growth that looked like extra muscles. There were long, bony protrusions coming out of his calves, covering his legs completely.
He had different marks all over his body almost like tattoos but these seemed alive, slowly moving about on his skin like living paintings.
