Star Gate

Chapter 579: Audacious in the Extreme (III)

Li Hao really did burrow into Panther’s stomach. As small as the dog looked, there was a lot of space in its stomach. The young man finally understood why the dog could eat so much.

Panther was no longer black at this point; it was golden in color. Li Hao had wanted to dye it, but the dog shook its head and turned its fur gold with a simple shake of its body. Not many had seen it turn into a massive golden dog and eat the white-haired old man. The metamorphosis level Qian Feng was dead, Fan Chang had run off, and those watching from the shadows had already fled for their lives.

Panth had turned into the golden dog only at the last possible second, so Li Hao wasn’t worried that anyone would recognize it.

As for the Steadfast Duke sending his own envoy to the Kui Mountains... the thought didn’t cross the young man’s mind. He expected that the duke would either be delighted by his impressive visitor or send the monster spirit away. Regardless, the duke shouldn’t be willing to easily give offense. Sending an envoy to verify Li Hao’s presence... that seemed far too bold of a move. The duke should be more concerned with his man being eaten!

This train of thought showcased the inadequacies of Li Hao’s considerations. He was too young and too inexperienced. It was his first time undertaking such an endeavor and his lack of experience left a gaping hole in his preparations. A veteran would not take the same risk as him. Although it was difficult to inquire about monster spirit internal affairs, it wasn’t impossible to. He would be a lamb in a lion’s den when his subterfuge was unmasked!

Meanwhile, the oblivious Li Hao was sitting smug in his brilliance and found his scheme quite the good idea.

There were people clearing the way ahead of him. Li Hao couldn’t see them, but he could sense them. He pretended to be Panther in his aloof responses and didn’t say much. Major monster spirits were prideful entities, even if they were only of the Solar level.

He returned to East Heart City, this time avoiding the need to pay an entry fee. A Nova quickly met him at the city gates.

“We present our warmest welcome to the dragon envoy of the Kui Mountains. I am the second steward of the Steadfast Duke’s manor...”

Li Hao swept a brazen gaze over the man’s face, seeing it clearly. This was a middle-aged man with a slightly feminine cast to his features. He was decently strong at mid Nova—Novas were all powerhouses and the duke had many of them under his banner.

“Where’s the duke?”

“......” The steward frowned, but quickly smoothed his forehead. Monster spirits are crude alright! Did you think the duke himself would come out to welcome a mere Solar monster spirit? Do you think you’re the lord of the mountains?

“The duke is indisposed...”

“What?”

“The duke is sick...”

“He’s so weak that he can get sick? Is he about to die?” Li Hao blustered coarsely. This was how monster spirits acted in his memories, even Nova level ones. Should he be even more unrefined since he was just a Solar?

“You’re mistaken, envoy.” A strange expression hung on the second steward’s face. “It’s because the young master duke has fallen to evil sorts that has caused emotional upheaval in the duke. Please come with me to the manor, the second master is already waiting...”

“Is the second master strong?” Panther looked around as it followed the man, Li Hao stayed on communication duty.

“Ah, the second master is immensely astute and resourceful, as well as very strong...” The second steward smiled and walked forward, guiding their way down a small street instead of an avenue. This route evaded the more crowded locations. “The Steadfast Duke is holding a memorial tomorrow, sacrificing to the young master that was killed by evil villains. Is the envoy possibly here today for that matter...”

“Oh yeah, the ceremony. I know about that. The venerated dragon god mentioned it. It’s just someone dying, what’s the point of sacrificing to them? Dead is dead. We monster spirits eat our dead. Are you eating your young master tomorrow?”

A wave of nausea roiled in the second steward. Monster spirits are so base and crude! All they know is to eat!

Too bad he hadn’t gotten any useful information out of their primitive visitor, but there was no hurry. The manor loomed into view before long. They were at the back door instead of the front doors. The back doors were under heavy guard without a single extraneous person around. It was a far cry from the crowds thronging the front door.

The back door was flung open; Xu Xing waited in the rear yard. He brightened when he saw the golden dog. The monster spirit presented a dominating sight. It was apparent from its appearance that its bloodline was uncommon. It was slightly weak, however. The energy it exuded was mid Solar. However, given the strength of monster spirit bloodlines and bodies, regular Solars would likely be no match for it in a fight.

“We have been poor hosts to the dragon envoy!” A merry Xu Xing walked up in welcome. Panther swept a glance at the man; Li Hao also sent a wave of mental strength over him without asking permission to. Xu Xing seemed to sense it and furrowed his brows with discomfort. They quickly smoothed out.

Were monster spirits this rude?

Li Hao also frowned after momentary probing—this was a martial master! Not a supernatural!

It was hard to determine what level he was at, but one thing could be certain—he was likely a premier martial master. His blood qi and physical body made it so, yet it was difficult to identify how premier he was. The young man could only tell that the aura existed.

He feels less than He Yong... Maybe he’s on par with Golden Spear?

Although this was Li Hao’s preliminary judgment, confirmation would be hard to come by. Such was the annoying characteristic of martial masters. Their strength was only determined through revealing their strength in a fight.

It wasn’t entirely impossible to plumb one’s depths, the ancient civilization had been able to assess martial masters as well, but with the aid of certain treasures or those with particularly powerful mind intent. Li Hao was not yet at that level.

“You are a martial master?” he asked directly. “What level are you? Can you call the shots here? You’re that second master... So do you represent the duke?”

Xu Xing was thrown into a daze by these incredibly direct questions, but he suppressed his annoyance.

“Of course I do.” He smiled. “This way, please. It’s not convenient to talk outside.”

Li Hao punched Panther inside the dog’s stomach. Stop looking, walk in with them.

The dog was just curious as it’d sniffed some delicious odors. It stopped looking around and followed Xu Xing inside.

......

At this moment.

Xu Qing and a few other powerhouses sat inside the main hall of the rear yard, watching an image projected in its center. It depicted Panther, Xu Xing, and the others in crystal clear clarity!

Not only that, but a light appeared around the dog. The others were experienced enough with the image to know that it was the symbol for Solar. There were also points of light associated withXu Xing, the second steward, and some of the other supernaturals following the group. Even the ground seemed a bit transparent, as if one could see what was below.

This was only one part of the manor being shown. As the group progressed to the visitors’ reception ahead, the image changed with them. Any supernaturals that appeared in the scene were marked by special dots of light.

A bearded powerhouse sitting below Xu Qing’s seat of honor couldn’t help but exclaim with appreciation despite seeing the treasure numerous times, “Your Grace, this treasure is magical! No one can escape your keen eye with it present!”

“Indeed,” tittered a coquettish woman. “They say that the Steadfast Duke’s defenses are the most slack out of the three dukes, that anyone can come and go from the plaza outside. Little do they know that even a mosquito inside the complex will not escape the duke’s eagle eye! If those cretins think that they can do as they will inside the Steadfast Duke’s domain, they simply court death!”

“It is simply the wisdom of the ancients,” Xu Qing responded calmly. “What a pity that this is the only set of equipment we’ve uncovered from the ruins in all these years. We are unable to replicate it. Otherwise, if this could be found throughout the eastern continent and the dynasty, there would be no place that the net of justice could not cover in this world!”

It was a wonderful treasure, the only pity that there was just one of it. It didn’t envelope a large range—the complex was all it could barely cover. It was also an expensive item to operate as it consumed massive quantities of mysterious power stones every second. Xu Qing didn’t care about this, however. He could eat and sleep better with this treasure present.

Any supernaturals that sought to steal into his home would be revealed in full! While martial masters did not expose themselves with energy, they were still revealed on the screen. Alarms sounded anytime outsiders slipped in, not just the presence of unknown energy.

He didn’t go into detail as there was no need to divulge too many of his secrets, despite those present being his confidantes. It didn’t matter if they knew more about this matter, it would even increase their respect of him. However, his personal principle of not revealing too much was the main reason why no one had grasped his household’s secrets over the years.

Not even Light Sword had known about this, despite the many years she spent at the manor. He’d known early on that he would not win the loyalty of a Silver Moon martial master.

“Your Grace, the Kui Mountains have sent a minor Solar to us. They’re putting on quite a front!”

“Monster spirits do not understand custom, so there’s no need to be overly concerned. This major monster spirit seems to possess an uncommon bloodline. I wonder what species it is? It looks like a dog... and like a wolf. The Kui Mountains revere the snakes as their rulers, so what is a misfit doing here?”

“......” The group conversed in low voices and continued their observation. Some sounds and ripples even started flowing from the screen, painting a clear picture of what was taking place.

The golden misfit in the image spoke at this time. “This king is here on behalf of the venerated dragon god. I do not play the tricky games you humans play. The venerated dragon god is about to ascend, but he lacks certain things. We hear that you have the Windchaser Boots of the eight families. The venerated one would like me to borrow it for a period of time. We will thank you with rich rewards when his transformation is complete!”

Xu Xing didn’t have much of a reaction to his words, but the heavyweights in the rear yard did.

The front hall.

“Surely you jest...” Xu Xing eventually frowned.

“Who’s jesting, who has time for that?” Li Hao immediately snapped. “You may not know how to use that thing and we hear you’ve lost one of them! The remaining one isn’t very useful by itself. You might as well lend it to us! You are our friend if you do, and the venerated dragon god has said that you will be our enemy if you don’t!”