Chapter 114: Bleeding the Serpent
Blue Lantern was silent for long moments. He ignored the serpent.
"I apologize. My discipline was not up to par, and it's made a fool of itself. Would you spare it on my behalf?" Blue Lantern looked at the gathered crowd.
"Master Blue Lantern, I'm being serious! I never provoked them. They're the stubborn, domineering ones!" the serpent cried out.
Blue Lantern was silent once more. It was clearly familiar with the serpent's personality.
The Lady Arclight hesitated. With Blue Lantern having spoken, she had no choice but to let it go. She was about to accede when a voice interrupted, "Hold it."
Everyone turned to Xiao Nanfeng, who was walking up to them.
Xiao Nanfeng looked toward the serpent. They had already taken it down; why should they release it freely?
If they did so, the serpent would only remember that Blue Lantern had asked for clemency on its behalf, and it would only hate them all the more. Considering its personality, they would never be able to reclaim the Lady Arclight's storage bangle. Better to offend it and reclaim what belonged to them instead.
"Elder, I heard from the serpent that Spiritsong-realm cultivators could be allowed to abstain from heading to the divine domain. Is that so?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
"Indeed?" Blue Lantern suddenly turned serious. His chilly aura pressed against the serpent.
"How dare you besmirch my name! When did I ever say anything of the sort? Master Blue Lantern has commanded me to send all Spiritsong-realm spirits and cultivators into the divine domain. Don't you know that?" the serpent thundered.
"Didn't you allow the crow king to remain? It's an Immortal-realm spirit. Why did you permit it to reside here long-term?" Xiao Nanfeng's smile widened.
"The crow king? It was injured. I allowed it to recuperate before heading over. This is no violation of the rules!"
"You did it because of a bribe, didn't you? Doesn't that mean I can bribe you so as to avoid heading to the divine domain, too?"
The serpent scowled in frustration. It shouldn't have accepted that bribe in full view—what it had done was now causing problems for itself!
"Liar! Xiang Kun offered me that storage bangle out of respect. It has nothing to do with my permitting the crow king to rest before heading to the divine domain," the serpent quickly replied.
"Are these matters entirely unrelated? Many people saw you take that bribe. It shouldn't be difficult to find a few witnesses. Do you think it's that easy to hoodwink Elder Blue Lantern?" Xiao Nanfeng continued.
The serpent froze. Blue Lantern had given it freedom and allowed it to do what it wanted, but his own commands were to be followed to the letter. It didn't dare make any more excuses.
"Elder Blue Lantern, that storage bangle belongs to the Lady Arclight. We simply want to take back what's ours," Xiao Nanfeng explained.
The serpent cried out in outrage, "You must be crazy! Do you intend on stealing my treasures? Dream on!"
"Take out the bangle and we'll see whether you're lying or not," Xiao Nanfeng challenged.
Blue Lantern stared at Xiao Nanfeng for some time before turning to the serpent. "Is he telling the truth?"
"No, he isn't! Master Blue Lantern, don't believe him!" the serpent cried out.
Blue Lantern stared at the serpent for long moments, a chilly air surrounding him. The serpent began to panic.
"Serpent, if you continue trying to hoodwink Elder Blue Lantern and refusing to take out that bangle, he'll stop minding you," Xiao Nanfeng added.
The serpent's eyes grew wide. If Blue Lantern were to leave, it'd be dead meat!
"Master Blue Lantern, I did claim a storage bangle, but it surely doesn't belong to them! He's lying to you. Here, Master, have a look!" The serpent immediately gave in.
It spat out a blue bangle. The Lady Arclight's eyes brightened. With a wave of her hand, the bangle shook off all its dust and flew straight toward her.
"This storage bangle is clearly extraordinary. I wasn't able to open it, and neither can she! It certainly doesn't belong to her," the serpent affirmed.
However, as the Lady Arclight slid the bangle over her wrist, an aurora-like light appeared. She retrieved a few objects from the ring and placed them back inside. Clearly, the bangle belonged to her.
The serpent: ... What, it really is hers? They've scammed me! I've lost out on a high-quality storage relic!
Blue Lantern snorted at the serpent, then turned to Xiao Nanfeng. "I'll deal with it later. Will you free it now?"
"Of course, Elder. However, I'd like to seek reparations for the damage that it has caused us. Please bear witness, Elder," Xiao Nanfeng replied.
"What? Haven't you already reclaimed that bangle? Aren't you satisfied yet? What damages have I caused you? You're the one who has damaged me!" the serpent thundered.
"You laid claim to the mountain peak in which Emperor Wei was buried and monopolized the draconic aether from the tomb. Is that not so?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.
"I've taken over the peak entirely and have been for a while. What does that have to do with you?" The serpent glared.
"The Seal of Great Wei has recognized me as its ruler, and I'm the successor of Emperor Wei. All this belongs to me, including the draconic aether you absorbed. You've snatched far too much from me. Don't you think I deserve compensation?
The serpent: ...
The serpent thought itself shameless enough, but it could hardly compare to Xiao Nanfeng. Even after becoming the successor to Emperor Wei, he was still thick-skinned enough to ask for the draconic aether that had seeped out of the mountain while the serpent was there!
"Furthermore, because of your bribe, which went against Elder Blue Lantern's orders and allowed the crow king to remain in the spirits' domain, my senior sister's flying sword, along with my own, were destroyed by the crow king. Are you going to take responsibility?!" Xiao Nanfeng cried out.
The serpent's face stiffened. "What does your flying sword being destroyed have to do with me? You're deliberately blaming this on me!"
"If you had listened to Elder Blue Lantern and chased the crow king into the divine domain, my senior sister's flying sword wouldn't have been destroyed at the crow king's hands. We would have been able to free ourselves from the real Xiang Kun more easily, and my sword would never have been destroyed! That's why I'm seeking compensation for these injuries incurred," Xiao Nanfeng replied resolutely.
"Dream on! Who can provide evidence for your claims?" the serpent thundered.
It had always been the one scamming those around itself, rather than the other way around. This sort of incident was far too indirect—and yet Xiao Nanfeng still had the gall to try to seek compensation from him!
"Elder Blue Lantern, I can prove to you that what I said was true, but I'll need quite a bit of time," Xiao Nanfeng reported.
"There's no need. I know you're not lying," Blue lantern replied coolly
Not far away, the serpent's face fell. "Elder Blue Lantern, please believe me! I'm your envoy, not him! Why would you believe him over me? He's speaking nonsense!"
"He's not wrong. If you didn't allow the crow king to remain here, their flying swords wouldn't have been destroyed. I tasked you with sending every single Spiritsong-realm cultivator to the divine domain at once. Don't you remember what I said?" Blue Lantern replied.
"I, I—" the serpent's face fell. not knowing what to do.
Xiao Nanfeng glanced at Blue Lantern in shock. All of what had happened had been done with particular privacy. How could Blue Lantern know it all? Was he surveilling just about everything?
"You may ask for suitable compensation for the losses you incurred as a result of his actions," the elder replied. However, Arclight and these two toad spirits have reached Spiritsong, and they must head toward the divine domain at once," Blue Lantern replied.
Xiao Nanfeng's face fell. The reason he had scammed the serpent wasn't to ask for compensation, but to use that precedent to allow the Lady Arclight to avoid heading to the divine domain for the moment. Unfortunately, Blue Lanterns seemed to have seen through his plan and blocked him.
"Master Blue Lantern, they're just a group of foreigners! You don't have to treat them well. What could they do against you?" the serpent anxiously persuaded.
"If you've done something wrong, you should be punished for it. You clearly have the means to compensate them for your misdeeds. Do you insist on my doing it on your behalf? Are those treasures more important than the laws I've set down?"
The serpent: ...
Blue Lantern was very clear: it would have to provide its own compensation.
"What compensation do you want, brat?" The serpent huffed at Xiao Nanfeng.
"My flying sword and my senior sister's flying sword were destroyed because of our actions. Just compensate us with one flying sword each, at least the quality of what we lost. That shouldn't be too hard, should it?
The serpent: ... You call this 'shouldn't be too hard'? These are flying swords, rarest of the rare, and you want two of them at once! Do you even know how rare your flying swords were?
The serpent eyed Blue Lantern, only for him to ignore it. In exasperation, it spat out a slender black rapier, carved with exquisite floral patterns. It was clearly a rare treasure.
"This is the only flying sword I have. Master Blue Lantern said that this was once used by a female immortal. Take it if you want!" The serpent eyed the treasure longingly, not wishing to let it go.
Serpents valued treasures like their lives. Even when Xiang Kun had trapped it in an array, it refused to free itself with one of the treasures it had collated. It felt as though its heart was bleeding after paying yet another of its treasures to Xiao Nanfeng.
"On account of Elder Blue Lantern's request, I'll take this flying sword for now. Don't forget—you owe me another flying sword," Xiao Nanfeng reminded it.
"What? Look carefully. This is a sword an Immortal used! It's far superior to your dinky flying swords from before. And you still want more?!" the serpent roared in outrage, barely suppressing its desire to tear Xiao Nanfeng to bits.
"Senior Sister, attune yourself to this flying sword for now. See if the serpent is lying." Xiao Nanfeng proffered the sword to Yu'er.
Yu'er's eyes brightened. She sent a wisp of spiritual power into the sword, but it remained inert.
"Oh, what's this? It's refusing my attunement—but I have a heart attunement technique that Master just taught me. I'll try again." Yu'er immediately made a few cryptic gestures as she infused spiritual energy into the sword again.
The sword suddenly shook, then glowed with dark red light. The entire cave was suddenly filled with sword energy, dense and ethereal, almost like ripples in the air. The waves of sword energy shimmered with light, bathing all that it touched in killing intent. This flying sword was far superior to the Immortal Cicadas.
"What an amazing sword!" Yu'er caressed the blade lovingly.
"How could this be? Is this flying sword crazy? I've been trying to attune to it for decades, but it's been nothing more than scrap metal all that time! How could you have suddenly activated it?" the serpent cried out.
Everyone gave the serpent a strange look. It really was shameless, wasn't it? It had only given the sword away because it was unable to attune it to itself.
"No, this won't do! I'll switch this treasure out for another one. Quick, hand me back that flying sword!" the serpent cried out.
Yu'er cradled the handle of her new flying blade, ignoring the serpent's words.
"Don't forget, you still owe me a flying sword," Xiao Nanfeng reminded the serpent.
The serpent: ...
It was so angry it might well spit out blood. It had already lost two treasures—but Xiao Nanfeng was still hounding it for more! Was there anyone else more shameless in the world?
"Thank you for being just and righteous, Elder." Xiao Nanfeng bowed toward Blue Lantern.
Not far away, the Lady Arclight pulled her blade from the serpent's body. Now freed, it quickly slid behind Blue Lantern and stared at Xiao Nanfeng with unbridled hatred.
Blue Lantern gave Xiao Nanfeng a searching look. "Nanfeng, you realize that this serpent is my envoy?"
Clearly, Blue Lantern was a little ticked off by his antics.
"Nanfeng dealt with things smoothly and logically, with reason and evidence. What has he done wrong? Blue Lantern, don't you think you should manage your subordinates better rather than blaming Nanfeng? Nanfeng is the successor of Emperor Wei—and don't you forget how much he did for you back then."
The dragon-quelling spike nearby trembled weakly as the Red Emperor made an appearance.
"Your Majesty!" Xiao Nanfeng's eyes lit up.
"Master!" Yu'er cried out.
The Red Emperor's spiritual avatar was growing fainter and fainter, but she still continued to protect Xiao Nanfeng.
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