Chapter 73: Domineering Second Highness
The peaklord of the Seventh Peak had three successor apprentices.
One of them was forthright, charismatic, and made friends easily. That was, of course, the third highness.
One of them had a fiery temper and was feared by fellow disciples. That was clearly the second highness. It wasn’t just disciples from the Seventh Peak who could feel her wrath; disciples from other peaks could as well. Everyone knew that she had a violent temper, as well as a bewildering level of strength. Say one wrong thing to her, and she might attack you. Furthermore... over the years, her wrath had been unleashed even on Foundation Establishment cultivators from other peaks. A lot of them.
Because of her spectacular strength, and the fact that she represented the peaklord, no one could even attempt to reason with her. She was so domineering that her name was known throughout all of Seven Blood Eyes. Even elders hated running into her, much less ordinary disciples. In fact, she wasn’t just famous in the sect. She was even more well-known on the open sea. She had killed too many pirates to count, and there were entire minor species who would tremble upon hearing her name.
Now that she was here, her incredible might weighed down on everyone present, even Xu Qing. He felt an intense sensation of crisis in his heart, something that reminded him of the spectacular beasts in the forbidden region jungle.
In fact, she seemed far stronger than Honor Guard Li, to the point where Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior would seem weak in her presence.
Xu Qing was more on guard than ever and even backed up a few steps out of caution.
The threatening sensation he felt from Second Highness was simply too intense and terrifying. In fact, he even looked through the door and out onto the street, but didn’t see anyone... apparently, nobody else in the sect cared about what was happening here.
However... Huang Yan didn’t seem to feel any of the pressure at all, as if he’d planned all of this and things were going exactly as he’d thought they would. He didn’t even try to keep the excitement off his face.
Groveling over to Second Highness, he said, “Elder Sister, this shopkeeper and that stinking fish said that the things I gave you were stolen from the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect. Elder Sister, you know that I’m an upright person. I’m sincere, honest, straightforward, genuine, gentle and considerate. You’re the only person I’ve ever loved! If they want to slander me, fine, I can deal with that. But they cannot slander the gifts I give to you! Slandering my gifts is the same as slandering the love I’ve shown for you for the past eight years, Elder Sister!”
Standing next to Second Highness, the pudgy Huang Yan looked a bit out of place. Whether it was how tall she was, or how thick he was, he seemed like a child standing next to an adult.
In response to his words, everyone in the shop gaped in absolute shock, including Zhang San. To them, this turn of events seemed almost inconceivable.
The shopkeeper looked a bit dazed as he muttered, “Second Highness... is the Elder Sister you talk about all the time?”
The words sounded awkward coming out of his mouth, yet they revealed how the shopkeeper felt inwardly, as though an endless herd of wild horses was trampling through his mind and heart. Most people were familiar with Huang Yan, who was relatively well-known on the Seventh Peak for being “head-over-heels in love.” Everyone had heard the rumors about how he’d been pursuing some Elder Sister for eight years, showering her with so many gifts they could fill up entire shops....
Because of the details, everyone assumed that there was more to Huang Yan than met the eye, otherwise he wouldn’t have been able to survive for so many years with his wealth intact. However, many looked down on him. After all, most people didn’t think a true man would debase himself so much for a woman.
Therefore, everyone present, from Zhang San to the shopkeeper to the other disciples, were now seeing Huang Yan in a new light. Most of them looked at him with unprecedented reverence, and others seemed outright jealous.
Obviously... all of them wished they could have an Elder Sister like this.
It didn’t matter if it took them eight years, eighteen years, or even twenty-eight years.
Xu Qing was also shocked. He looked at the smugly content Huang Yan, then at the domineering Second Highness, and he seemed somewhat dazed. Never in his wildest imaginings could he have guessed that the person Huang Yan had pursued for eight years was actually the second highness from the Seventh Peak. Now Xu Qing realized that Huang Yan had been so brash earlier because he missed his Elder Sister. He had intentionally created a scene in the hopes of getting her to show up.
Upon hearing Huang Yan’s tale of being wronged, Second Highness’s eyebrows shot up and she stalked contemptuously past the young merman, who stood there with his head bowed.
Huang Yan went with her, keeping his chin stuck up in a good imitation of her contemptuousness.
Her attitude seemed to irritate the young merman. He trembled as if he were having a hard time controlling himself. However, his complexion was ashen, and there was fear visible in his eyes.
Right now, he was thinking about a massacre that took place in the Merfolk Isles thirty years before. Second Highness had been in the middle of it all, splattered with blood. It took place during the Seventh Peak’s Grand Competition. Because humans were evil to the core, and because the magnificent Merfolk refused to acknowledge subservience, the Seventh Peak chose to have their Grand Tournament in Merfolk territory. The reality was that they used it as a pretense to suppress the Merfolk. It was only after that incident that the Merfolk and the humans became ‘allies.’
After that, Seven Blood Eyes had stepped in on numerous occasions to save the Merfolk from being exterminated by others. But to many Merfolk, the only reason the humans did that was because they were obligated to. In the end, the alliance with humans was a disgrace to them.
Despite his chaotic mood, the young merman kept his head bowed, and didn’t dare to look up. However, in his heart, he was raging, and he vowed to make Seven Blood Eyes pay for the humiliation they had heaped on his people.
Seeing the young merman stand there with head bowed, Second Highness seemed even more contemptuous than before. Walking up to Xu Qing, she looked at him coldly.
Taking a deep breath, he kept a somber expression on his face as he clasped hands and bowed. “Well met, Second Highness.”
“Elder Sister,” Huang Yan said, “this is my good friend Xu Qing. He got implicated in this whole thing as well.” He went on to proudly show off all the items he had just dumped out of his bag of holding.
Nodding, Second Highness turned away from Xu Qing and stepped to the counter. Lifting her huge sword, she put it down with a thump.
The black sword was so huge and heavy that the sturdy wooden counter creaked and half-collapsed. As a result, the sword tip came to point right at the shopkeeper’s belly. As it gleamed coldly, the shopkeeper started to sweat, and his face turned pale.
Trembling, he said, “Second Highness, I just—“
“You said my things were stolen goods?” she asked coolly.
The shopkeeper started sweating even more, to the point where his back was soaked. His expression was bitter, and in his heart, he was howling in grief. He had originally thought he could make some money out of all this. Then Huang Yan came along and threw everything into chaos. And how could the shopkeeper have ever guessed that Huang Yan was backed by someone as god-like as this? There was no way he would ever dare to provoke the explosive Second Highness. In fact, not even the honor guard who had organized this entire matter would ever dare to trifle with her. After all, Master Seventh doted on her, treating her like the senior princess of the Seventh Peak.
All the shopkeeper could do was stammer, “It was a m-mis... misunderstanding. Really, j-just a misunderstanding. I misjudged the situation. How could those possibly be stolen goods....?”
Xu Qing saw all of this, and his eyes gleamed. More than ever, he realized that in the world he lived in, strength was the eternal constant. What was more, Second Highness’ words revealed what it truly meant to be domineering.
“You didn’t misjudge,” Second Highness said coldly. “These really are stolen goods. And you know who stole them from the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect? Me. You have a problem with that?” She nudged her sword forward, so that it sliced into the shopkeeper’s garment, and touched the skin of his belly.
He shivered from head to toe, and cold sweat poured down his face. Although he wanted to go along with whatever she said, he wasn’t sure exactly how to respond.
Continuing, she said, “You can tell whoever you work for that I’m the one responsible for the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect heist. Furthermore, you can tell the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect that they have three days to bring me a satisfactory apology accompanied by a gift.”
Her words were an obvious threat. Anyone who heard her understood that if the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect’s apology and gift weren’t satisfactory, then... soon enough there wouldn’t be anything called the Golden Vajra Warrior Sect. After clearly establishing how domineering she was, she looked at the items Xu Qing had been trying to sell.
“Are you going to buy these?”
“Y-yes... yes I’m going to buy them....” the shopkeeper said. Wanting to pant from frustration, but not daring to, he quickly took out 100 spirit stones. Then he noticed Second Highness frowning, and he gritted his teeth and took out an additional hundred. With 200 spirit stones placed neatly off to the side, he looked at Huang Yan and Xu Qing with a pleading smile.
Ignoring him, Second Highness picked her massive sword up off the counter and turned to leave. As she passed the young merman, she said, “Get the hell out of my way. You stink like rotting fish.”
The young merman trembled visibly, but he also backed up a few paces.
As she stepped out the door, everyone in the shop clasped hands and joined their voices to say, “Respectful farewell, Second Highness!”
Xu Qing did the same, though he looked up with his eyes to observe her leaving.
After she was gone, Huang Yan glanced around at the crowd looking very pleased. Then he slapped Xu Qing’s shoulder.
“You saw that, right?” he said, beaming with delight. “That was my Elder Sister. My goddess. After this, who would ever dare to slander us? That said, you were certainly on your game, you little punk. You didn’t hesitate to stand up for me, and even share responsibility. I’m going to remember this. Let me tell you, I’m the kind of person who repays kindness with kindness. Unfortunately, I don’t have anything good on me right now. But don’t worry, I’ll go back and find a good gift to send you later.”
Before Xu Qing could respond, Huang Yan waved goodbye and rushed after Second Highness. “Elder Sister! Wait for me....”
Xu Qing still felt a bit dazed. After Huang Yan was gone, he looked down at his clothing, then at the dour young merman, whose eyes flashed when their gazes met.
Xu Qing took the 200 spirit stones from the shopkeeper, who didn’t even dare to meet his eyes. Then he left without another glance at the merman. Outside of the shop, he adjusted his clothing and walked off with a dark look in his eyes.
Meanwhile, back in the shop, the young merman watched Xu Qing leave, his expression unsightly, and his heart full of malice.
When someone dares to touch me, even if they survive, they don’t stay alive for much longer afterward. Sadly, I rarely get to see them die.
With a cold harrumph, he flicked his sleeve and left. In his mind, Xu Qing was an ant, and would be dead already if it weren’t for Huang Yan.
Everyone in Seven Blood Eyes deserves to die. That kid took credit for my hard work, so he deserves to die more than anyone else. And he’ll be dead sooner or later.