[Is there anything wrong outside? I think I heard something…]

[Probably just a rat…]

​​

[…]

[What? This place can have rats?]

Lory and Girsha were inside her new room courtesy of Zhao Li Xin. It took three days for the room renovations to be completed. 

Lory’s jaw dropped when he showed her the new room. Even she knew that the room wasn’t meant for a maid. When Zhao Li Xin found out her favorite color was blue, he ordered for the room to have a splash of the color to include the curtains, blankets, and small table vase. Everything else was a combination of white and blue a light wooden color. The room was too beautiful to belong to a maid. Lory wondered for the first-time what role was as even the concubines in Lao Manor didn’t have such a bedroom.

However, Zhao Li Xin assured her that such a room was a norm in his manor. He also told her was not weird that her room was practically next to his and they shared a connecting door. His excuse for that was that she needed to be accessible to him as he might need something urgent at an inconvenient time and the door would minimize the time needed to search for her.

Lory easily believed Zhao Li Xin as he had a justified look and he had no reason to lie to her. On the other hand, the servants including Mong Ki and Mong Yi could only grimace when they had their lord lie with a straight face. They never knew their lord would lie so eloquently.

Lory was seated in her room by the small round wooden table in the center of her room. The room was half the size of Zhao Li Xin’s room, yet it was still considerably big compared to the normal noblewoman’s room. The bedroom and lounge areas were separated by a wooden partition and two-layer curtains. The lounge had a small round dining table with four stools. The corner also had a bookshelf, an arhat chair for leisure, and a few wooden drawers giving the room a lavish look.

Lory sipped her sweet jasmine tea with happiness. Zhao Li Xin informed everyone to always add honey to Lory’s tea. They were first confused by this but because his words were absolute, no one dared to question the order. They simply concluded Lory was a little weird.

Lory didn’t have much to do inside the manor especially when Zhao Li Xin was away. The other servants claimed she was the lord’s ‘personal maid’ and her job was to only serve his need when he was around. But Zhao Li Xin was a busy man who either spent his time in his study room, which didn’t need his attention, or he would disappear with Mong Ki and Mong Yi to cultivate leaving Lory with nothing to do. Lory at times felt uncomfortable with the situation as she was paid three times higher than her previous job, but she also couldn’t complain as her boss didn’t seem to mind it.

[How’s the situation outside?] Lory asked Girsha as she licked her lips while drinking her tea. She knew the old bird’s hobby was watching humans. She suspected it was the same reasoning humans used to visit the zoo as it was amusing to see animals in their natural habitat.

[He was right. It is crazy out there] Girsha said as he laughed with excitement. She could understand his laughter but to others, he sounded like a bird squeaking in a high pitch voice. [It’s like a gathering of a bunch of ‘ganks’. They are testing each other, mocking and some even end up fighting each other…]

[Really… even before the competition? Is this allowed?] Lory asked in shock.

[Oh, that is the best part. If a participant is injured or can’t perform before the competition, they are eliminated automatically. This means it is crucial to eliminate strong opponents on the eve of the competition. One can’t cheat or kill during the competition but the same is not followed outside the competition… which makes it more exciting]

[Is the Kingdom okay with this…?] Lory was stupefied. She couldn’t imagine the number of people who got injured before the competition. Harland also had martial arts competitions, but their rules were strict and cheating before or during the competition was prohibited. The participants were also highly monitored by the government.

[Are you kidding? I think they encourage them. Don’t you know how many prince factions are in this country? They all scheme against each other and like vultures watch as the others make mistakes. Such a murky situation would allow them to strike against each other]

Lory sighed deeply. She forgot the princes were fighting for the throne. It was no wonder Zhao Li Xin forbid her from watching the competition alone. The city was messier than she thought.

[Oh, I saw something awesome. Many participants have beasts with them…]

[Contractual Beasts?] Lory gasped. [I thought they were rare?]

[ I heard it depends on their levels. Creatures of common or mortal beast levels are found everywhere. But profound and divined beast levels are harder to find and subdue. Saint-level beasts are rare and only a few beastmasters can subdue them, while sacred and celestial levels beasts have not been seen on the continent for hundreds of years.]

[Wow! It is amazing… The level names also sound so cool] Lory was amazed.

[I know right…] Girsha agreed but suddenly felt wronged as one who was related to the beasts. [Why didn’t people in Verrion give such names? Who the hell gave us names like ‘Oh shit, Oh NO and HELL NO’ for leveling?!]

[Yeah… I think they were drunk when they decide on the names. You know how hunters can be…] Lory shrugged her shoulders. In her world, the first differentiated levels by using numbers from one to ninety-nine. The Hunter HQ board, however, decided to change the level names to something ridiculous. They claimed such names were easier to understand. They started with the ‘Watch Out’ level and end with the ‘Priest’ level at the top.

It was called priest level because it was very dangerous to fight a beast of this level and the chance of survival against such beasts was close to none so once they died, a priest would be called to bury the unfortunate hunters, that’s why the hunters to call this level as the ‘Priest’ level. This reasoning was so stupid. Lory couldn’t stop laughing when she first heard it. Her twin Lucas was also speechless.

[It is humiliation as a beast to called like that] Girsha scowl.

Lory smiled awkwardly [But it sounds catchy and is easier to understand, don’t you think?] 

Girsha glared at Lory as he strongly rebuked [It sounds STUPID…]

[Yeah, it is…] She couldn’t deny it, especially when she heard the level called ‘Holy SH*T’. She couldn’t say if people in her world were too creative or too stupid compared to people in this world.

_________________________________________________________________

 In another part of the Ningjing Manor, there was a small path leading to a small pagoda. It was said to be the place Zhao Li Xin prayed for his health and his country’s prosperity… The truth was however different as someone like Zhao Li Xin didn’t pray to anyone despite what the rumors said. The rumors were started when he first built the small pagoda which was surrounded by bamboo trees and a small waterfall giving it a serene feel.

What people didn’t know was the pagoda was the most guarded place in Ningjing Manor as it was the entrance to Hei Shen Sect headquarters, the Underground Palace. The public didn’t know where Hei Shen Sect, the biggest sect on the continent, was located. Some thought its headquarters was at the top of a snowy mountain, while others claimed it was inside the Forbidden Palace in the west, and others claiming it was in a desert. They wouldn’t have guessed the headquarters was under everyone’s noses and under Nan Jing City.

Zhao Li Xin found the Underground Palace by accident when he was first sent to the monastery by the Emperor. He was a child who liked to wander in the mountain alone as he found comfort in solitude. He was on one of his walks one day when he slid into a pit. He bumped onto a tree root a few times before slumping at the bottom. His body was covered with dirt and scratches. Alone and hurt, Zhao Li Xin tried to find his way out when he stumbled across the abandoned palace. The palace was made of grey stones and had white marble floors. Zhao Li Xin also discovered the treasures and martial arts secrets inside the palace.

Zhao Li Xin hid the entrance once he managed to leave the Underground Palace as he felt he may need to use it one day. His prediction was right as he met Tian Meng Ji, his master, who teaches him how to cultivate then later Zhao Li Xin established Hei Shen Sect.

Zhao Li Xin used the Underground Palace treasure to expand Hei Shen Sect and to create the Four Palace in order to grow his influence. This was the reason he only took less than a decade to make the Hei Shen Sect one of the biggest and the strongest sect on the Continent.

The underground palace had a room reserved for cultivation. The room had four grey stone pillars with a grey stone dragon sculpture crawling from one of the pillars up to the ceiling. It was quite a majestic view as the dragon was curved in its usual size.

A hexagon platform made of white marble stones with white frozen crystal on each side of the platform was at the center of the room. The stage had a ying-yang symbol carved onto its floor. Zhao Li Xin sat on the stage meditating in the lotus position. His body was cover with golden fire which was gradually getting bigger like wildfire.

It swirled around him like a tornado. The pool surrounding the platform was boiling as the room temperature rose tremendously. Fortunately, Mong Ki and Mong Yi had high cultivations and wore snow crystal amulets that protected them from the heat.

Mong Ki and Mong Yi watched their lord from below the platform with anxious looks. They had adequate protection, yet they were still drenched in sweat. Zhao Li Xin’s power rose to a monstrous level once he got cured. The power was terrifying even to them, yet they had served him since childhood.

The tornado fire suddenly exploded breaking the snow crystals into splinters. Mong Ki and Mong Yi covered their eyes with their arms in protection. They leaped onto the platform once the fire around their lord dissipated. Zhao Li Xin opened his eyes slowly and took a deep breath. His breakthrough was successful as he was now at the core stage of the Sovereign Level. He was the first in the country to do so after thousands of years. Zhao Li Xin smirked. He was a stage away from reaching Saint Level after which he can seek vengeance against the enemy who poisoned him.