The Sublime Pavilion was the largest brothel in Multitude City. But just like the Fineheart King said, the girls within sold only their arts and not their bodies. The Finepure and Fineheart Kings wouldn’t obstruct anyone from claiming one of their girls if both parties found each other agreeable.
The Miss Bingruo they spoke of was their leading act, possessing both beauty and talent. She was also a third step king and the object of many an affection in Multitude City.
Someone had slipped into the Sublime Pavilion three years ago and tried to make off with Miss Bingruo. When the two kings discovered the interloper, he flew into a rage and killed his would-be captive. Thus, a wondrous lady of Multitude City was no longer.
The matter stirred up enormous tumult in the city. Countless cultivators roared to take revenge for Miss Bingruo, but the Finepure and Fineheart Kings elected to quickly settle the matter peacefully.
Now that the Fineheart King brought up the matter again and was plainly targeting the Luminous King… it gave rise to a bad implication.
It’d be one thing if these were normal times, but the Luminous King had first been denounced by the spirit of the Earth Light Magneticus as a hypocrite, then undertook one shady dealing after another against the Immortal Pagoda…
“An absolute litany of nonsense!” Luminous pointed a berating finger at Finepure and Fineheart. “The Sublime Pavilion is built from greed and diabolical ambitions! You capture law-abiding women and force them into servitude for you. You are the demons of evil and lust in the Hongmeng!
“My fellow peers!” He rose and expounded with high spirits, “I am but one person and cannot vie with this nest of wanton perverseness. They slander me instead, but I trust there is still justice to be found in the realm!”
If it’d be any other time, his speech would immediately cast the Sublime Pavilion in a disadvantageous light and inspire others to despise them. But now, cool heads prevailed in all of the cultivators on the scene.
“Please be calm, Luminous King.” A fifth step king stepped out. “Right now, we’d like to know the reason behind Miss Bingruo’s death. The Fineheart and Finepure Kings decided not to pursue the matter three years ago, but that they raise it now means they know the truth!”
Three years wasn’t a long time for Hongmeng beings; it was just the blink of an eye. Miss Bingruo’s smiles and the twinkle of her eyes were still engraved in many of their hearts.
“You would rather listen to those two whores than believe me?” The Luminous King looked at the speaker with an unpleasant expression, whose mood also shifted when he heard the response.
“It’s not that we don’t believe the Luminous King, but that Miss Bingruo was of good repute in Multitude City. Though she came from Sublime Pavilion, she was a benevolent person who was fond of giving. She loved to help others and her death three years ago remains unexplained.
“You don’t ask about the reason behind her death and berate the two pavilion kings instead. I wonder what’s your motivation behind that?” A young man smoothly addressed the Luminous King as he walked out on thin air. Long robes of white jade were the perfect backdrop to his deeply alluring features.
“It’s the Elysium King!”
“The Elysium King is taking a stand for the Sublime Pavilion!”
“That makes sense, the Luminous and Alchemist Kings used illusion to control someone from the Elysium Atelier earlier and tried to drag them into this mess. They wanted to pit the atelier against the Immortal Pagoda, so it’s only natural that the Elysium King is prejudiced against the Luminous King now!”
The Elysium King was extremely strong and his words carried a lot of weight. He could firmly support the sprawling Elysium Atelier through himself alone, being so steadfast that it remained unmoved through all these challenges.
“Elysium King, you need to think carefully about the consequences of setting yourself against me!” the Luminous King gabbled with a bit of panic. One great personage after another was coming out against him—it was the first time this had ever happened to him and he was feeling overwhelmed.
He was the Moral Emperor of the Hongmeng and stood at the highest peak of moral and ethics in the realm. A hundred voices answered his every call—when had he ever been in such straits?!
Though there were many cultivators and lower level kings speaking out on his behalf, none of the fifth and sixth step kings would pay attention to the agitation of lower level kings.
“The consequences of setting myself against you?” chuckled the Elysium King. “I don’t think you were even born yet when I ascended to sixth step king. Very well, let me see today just what these nebulous consequences may be!”
He let loose with a blast of terrifying aura that bore down on the Luminous King.
“And, I’ve always been curious what title the Hongmeng Tower gave you. You’re the one who says it hailed you as the Luminous King, but you’ve never shown it to anyone!”
The title of “luminous” hearkened to a piece of beautiful jade hidden among the masses, illuminating all with great virtue and integrity. If this wasn’t the Luminous King’s title, then all of his actions were worthy of deeper examination.
The Elysium King displayed his title as he spoke.
Elysium King!
Two enormous purple characters appeared over his head, exuding a different sort of pressure.
“In this life, I seek not to place myself above others or dominate all beings. I only want to live out carefree days that are unfettered by worries. The release of the soul is my dao, and so the tower bestowed me the title of ‘Elysium’—a state of perfect happiness and the validation of my dao.” The Elysium King’s voice reverberated like a bell and spread in all directions. This was his dao, a path that the tower endorsed.
“I’d like to see if the tower really gave you the title of the Luminous King! Are you truly the concealed jade that lights up the night?!”
Whoosh!
A terrifying aura unfurled from his body and intensified the light of his title before sweeping down on the Luminous King.
“Elysium King!” A man in long black robes, full of strength and energy, materialized and stood in front of the Luminous King.
The Human King!
The final king of the Colosseum, the one who single-handedly built the organization, had finally shown himself.
“The Luminous King is known throughout the Hongmeng for his virtue, you cannot bully him like this!” The Human King formed a seal with his hands and projected it into the air, grimly defending against the pressure from the Elysium King.
“Go on,” he transmitted to the Luminous King.
“Alright!” Luminous was far weaker than Elysium. If his title was forced out into the open, then that would spell the end of him.
He immediately turned to retreat, but two more terrifying auras came down on him from the sides. The Fineheart and Finepure Kings released their titles, sealing off space in their direction.
“You want to go? Not that easy.” Fineheart giggled. “Our peers are also curious about your title.”
“You can just display your title if the Hongmeng Tower hailed you as the Luminous King. You will still be the Moral Emperor of the realm and a single word from you will list us as depraved demons. We’ll die without even having a final resting place.” Finepure was as detached as always, but a teasing hint colored her words. She knew that Luminous didn’t dare show his title!
“Actually, I’m also very curious about what your real title is.” Another female voice echoed in the air and a fragrant wind swept by. A charming woman who looked like a typical girl-next-door walked out of the void. She released her title and sent it down on the Luminous and Human Kings.
The Ingenium King.
