Three days later.
High Priest Ryun led his disciple Mingzhu down to that bio laboratory once more. He first examined all the devices around once before he said with great satisfaction, “Not bad. His heart rate and blood pressure are completely normal. This person has been reborn.
“Mingzhu, help pack up these things. He’ll wake up from his stupor in a few hours.”
Mingzhu nodded and quickly collected all the tubes and meters in the room, leaving just the bed and that abomination lying on top of it.
Ryun and Mingzhu stood together at the side of the bed and patiently waited. Time passed and that creature slowly regained his breathing. His four limbs slightly twitched as traces of life slowly became evident. Unfortunately, his body was still covered by that cotton bedsheet, so there was no way to know how he looked or what his figure was now like.
Suddenly!
That living creature in bed abruptly sat himself up! He was breathing heavily, seemingly having just woken up from a nightmare.
His head was covered by the white cloth, making him look like a ghost. Mingzhu had quite a fright from this sudden movement, and one of his hands raised to block himself instinctively.
Ryun patted his disciple on his back as he guffawed. “What are you afraid of?! Behold, your master’s creation!”
*Whoosh*
When Ryun pulled away that white bedsheet, a strange being appeared before their eyes.
This being had a human head, and his body was dark red in color with hard scales on it. His heart could be seen beating inside his ribcage, and one of his arms was thick and muscular, while the other was short and small, though it also boasted a degree of sharpness beyond comparison. His two healthy legs were like a bull’s, but he had a pair of webbed feet!
It was a very strange looking creature which happened to be a synthesis of human, insectoid, and beast!
His black pupils were empty and cold. Scanning around the room once, this abomination of a creature suddenly clutched his stomach. It was as if the air had turned turbid and brackish which caused him to vomit for over ten minutes.
Mingjing pinched his nose and was extremely displeased with the terrible smell in the room. Ryun chuckled. “Hehe! This is a very normal reaction from a synthesized abomination. He’ll be feeling hungry pretty soon; can you go prepare something and bring it over?”
Mingjing nodded and timidly hid behind Ryun. The abomination had given him too great a shock. He had never seen such an ugly and cruel creature his entire life.
That abomination struggled to stand up. He looked to be taller than 2.3 meters, and that was at least a head taller than most even in the insectoid society.
“Get him food,” Ryun said in a grave voice.
Mingzhu pulled out a cow’s leg which was still dripping in fresh blood and tossed it far away; it landed on the ground with a *splat*.
The abomination lowered its head and curiously examined that leg of beef. Squatting, he used a sharp finger to dig out a piece of meat and placed it in his mouth to taste.
A silly smile spread across his face as he picked up that bloody leg of beef and feasted on it. It was evident that his teeth had already been modified, and its set of sharp fangs made it most suitable for tearing meat, just like an animal’s!
Ryun contentedly rumbled with laughter, full of praise for his latest handiwork.
Xia Fei would have been greatly discomforted had he been here to witness this scene. That was because the face this monstrous abomination wore was one that he would distinctly recognize; it was the face of his nemesis, Li Mo!
…
On the royal fleet headed to the imperial capital, the consort Qingyan was feeling the biggest disappointment she had felt her entire life; she had been chased out of her room by Xia Fei and was now staying in the little side room, which was originally meant for servants to stay in.
What made her all the more indignant was the fact that Xia Fei seemed to be completely impervious to her seductive charms. Qingyan had always been very confident about her looks and grace, yet she had begun to doubt her figure and physical appearance today. In the bathroom, Qingyan was looking over herself in the mirror time and again as beads of water droplets slid down her immaculate and flawless skin. Steam slowly gathered around her, like a fairy that had stepped out from the bath.
She proudly lifted her head and did a tiny spin with her toes, a veritable paragon of beauty and grace.
All of a sudden, a pair of tiny wings appeared in the mirror, which was the only defect that the butterfly species had left after millions of years of evolution.
Qingyan was disappointed. Full of Anger and sorrow.
She felt that the reason Xia Fei was disgusted with her was this set of wings. Ultimately, humans and insectoids were two completely different lifeforms, and having studied human culture since she was young, Qingyan had stubbornly believed that everything about the humans was excellent.
The wings on her back gave her a deep sense of self-loathing. She gritted her teeth and pulled out a pair of scissors. She had a mind to snip them off right then and there.
Tears fell freely as Qingyan softly sobbed while kneeling in the bathtub.
“I’m still an insectoid. Even if I cut off my wings; I’m still a lowly insectoid!”
*Crunch*
She stabbed the pair of scissors into the beautiful marble wall, its handle poking out as it stuck to it.
Xia Fei was not in the least bit guilty for having commandeered Qingyan’s bedroom for his own use. He enjoyed the scrumptious imperial feast being sent to Qingyan every day, and this caused quite a fright for the royal chef. The consort had never eaten much, and most of the food that he sent over would be returned, practically untouched.
However, today was different. All eighteen dishes of the standard lunch had been consumed without any leftovers. In fact, the consort had even asked for more, to the point that the imperial kitchen had decided to change the three standard meals of the consort into a twenty-eight dish luxury banquet, so they could often be seen still making small snacks and such even well past midnight.
Soon, the rumors about the consort being pregnant began spreading. Aside from this, there was simply no other logical reason to explain this sudden increase in appetite with the consort.
It was said that the temper of a pregnant woman was mercurial and irritable. As such, the servants and guards were extra careful, afraid of angering her in any way. After all, the consort might be pregnant with Uti’s child, and that would mean another royalty to the Golden Tent!
“You’ve reached the fifth stage of the Delusion technique, which means you can now maintain your clones for up to sixteen hours and are able to transfer up to 50% of your clone’s strength!” Phantom was joyfully celebrating in the consort’s bedroom.
Xia Fei opened his eyes and went to the bathroom for a shower. Afterward, he went over to the table and unleashed his ferocious appetite. Grueling cultivation exhausted plenty of his physical energy, which was why he needed to replenish it constantly.
Recently, Xia Fei had been focusing on his Delusion cloning technique. As Furball was gradually becoming stronger by the day, Xia Fei’s need for the cloning technique was becoming greater as well.
Delusion would not only allow Furball to become another Xia Fei, it would even allow Xia Fei to use a portion of Furball’s energy as his. Even he had no idea just how much energy was stored in that tummy of his pet, and just considering the fact that he would on average eat about one Purple Heart of Spirit daily made Xia Fei’s heart hurt.
If he were to truly find himself in a difficult fight, being able to tap into the rich energies hoarded inside Furball’s body would be a great help to Xia Fei, far better and faster than relying on White Dew or other such fruits to help replenish his own needs. After all, fruit and the ilk would require Xia Fei to digest and convert them accordingly, while Furball’s energy was ready for immediate use.
*Knock knock knock*
A series of knocks came and Xia Fei opened the door, only to find himself face to face with Qingyan’s eyes which were filled with both sorrow and resentment.
“Is dinner here?” Xia Fei asked.
Qingyan giggled with a hand over her mouth. “All you know is to eat. How cute.”
Xia Fei furrowed his brows and did not care to respond to her.
“Father has something important to tell us.” Qingyan was now serious as she walked into the room. She took out a communicator, which was similar to a halo, and set it down on the table. It seemed that this small device was a dedicated communication device from the Guild of the Wise.
The screen switched on, and they saw a very excited Qingliu on the other end, his aged face flushed red.
“The heavens are truly on our side! The Silent Vale opened two hours ago!” Qingliu blurted out in his exuberance.
Qingyan held his two hands to her heart happily when she heard the news. “Father, are you telling the truth? Has the Silent Vale really opened?”
Qingliu nodded vigorously. “That’s right! The entire Golden Tent is reeling from this—everyone of the insectoid race are!”
Xia Fei was completely clueless on what this meant, so he asked, “What is this Silent Vale? What has it got to do with our plans?”
Qingliu burst out laughing. “Xia Fei, you may not know this, but this Silent Vale is the trial that our two Black and White Gods have left behind for the insectoids, and it’s located in the imperial capital. The existence of the Golden Tent is also to help guard the entrance to the Silent Vale.”
“A trial? So it’s similar to the one on Black Peak Ridge?” Xia Fei asked.
Qingliu waved his hand, “The two are absolutely not alike at all. The Black Peak Ridge is completed by the God of Black Night alone and can be considered a place for training. Meanwhile, the Silent Vale is a mystical space that both the Black and White Gods created with the one entrance, and the time that it opens is irregular. I remember that the last time it opened was in the year 2316, and it’s been over 7000 years ago when that happened.”
“Every time the Silent Vale opened, plenty of precious treasures and artefacts would be discovered. According to historical records, the last time that the Silent Vale opened, the insectoids managed to obtain over 1200 precious treasures, no fewer than four hundred mystical weapons and an inordinate number of medicinal ingredients. It was truly an abundant harvest for the race!”
Qingliu was getting more and more animated, practically praising this Silent Vale as a treasure trove, as if gaining entry to the place would allow anyone to leave with a motherlode of precious goods after.
Xia Fei frowned. “I still don’t understand. What has it got to do with our operation to assassinate Uti?”
Qingyan was the one to answer his question. “According to the rules, the emperor of the Golden Tent must set up an altar to give worship to heaven and earth, the Black and White Gods, before personally leading an army into the Silent Vale.”
Qingliu added. “That’s right. Back then, the Black and White Gods created this land and set this plan for the place to open at irregular intervals in these several thousand years to ensure that their descendants will be able to flourish and benefit in the future. Furthermore, the number of insectoids who can enter the Vale is set at only one hundred thousand. When that time comes, Uti will personally lead one hundred thousand of the fiercest insectoid warriors into the Silent Vale. This is the rule that our ancestors set, and no matter how fearful of death he is, Uti will have no choice but to comply.”
Xia Fei was surprised, for he realized what the two meant. “Do you mean to say that this is my chance to infiltrate the army, by joining those entering the Silent Vale and acting accordingly once inside?”
Qingliu ground his teeth as he bitterly replied, “Not just you. Now that all the high-level warriors across the insectoid race have been called to the Golden Tent, there are also our allies among them. If you work with them, you’ll be able to eliminate Uti and his bunch in one fell swoop!
“Once the insectoids enter the Silent Vale, the barrier will immediately turn on, so there’s no way for anyone to know what’s happening inside the Vale from the outside. If we manage to kill Uti and his companions, we will be able to put the blame entirely on the trial. We can say that Uti has been killed while participating in the trial, and no one will be the wiser!
“Looks like even the gods are standing on our side. They must truly want us to be rid of Uti but don’t want to do so by their own hands, which is why the Silent Vale opened at this opportune time!”
Xia Fei was speechless. The so-called gods being unhappy with Uti was something completely fabricated, and there was absolutely no basis to it. However, this lie had truly been effective. Qingliu and his people took it for a fact, and that strengthened their belief in eliminating Uti.
Xia Fei suddenly thought of a serious problem as he asked gravely, “Wouldn’t High Priest Ryun appear as well?”
