CHAPTER 186: CHAPTER 159: THE RELUCTANT YUE LI

After handing over the affairs to Su Mei, Chen Jiuge finally relaxed completely.

"According to Yue Meng and the others’ news, Eldest Senior Brother and Junior Sister Die Luowu went on a journey, and it looks like they’ve become a couple."

"Senior Sister also took Junior Sister Li He on a trip, with no known date of return. Hua Jianyu has recently been staying in the Main Hall all the time, hoping to build a good relationship with a Divine Beast cub, and rarely stays in Eden Garden."

"So, things have finally quieted down. Going forward, I just need to spend some time each day sorting out the Spiritual Beast Bloodline issues in Eden Garden and stick to my regular Cultivation schedule. The rest of my time can be spent enjoying life peacefully."

Chen Jiuge planned his upcoming life with a contented expression on his face.

「On the third day after returning to Eden Garden, Yue Li spent a huge sum to commission Chen Tingting to purchase a batch of Immortal Intoxication, sending out invitations to his good brothers.」

「Inside Yue Li’s abode,」

Zhan Ge, who heard there was liquor, was the first to arrive. He boomed upon entering, "Third Brother, I heard you’re hosting a drink? Did you make a fortune during the time you were out with Master?"

"That’s right! I even wondered if I’d misheard," Ao Li, who followed closely, said in disbelief.

Yang Huan, however, stood quietly to the side, nodding in agreement.

As for Ao Yi, Yue Li felt too embarrassed to invite her. The topic for today was a bit shameful; if his own sister knew about it, he would truly lose face.

At Yue Li’s enthusiastic invitation, Zhan Ge and the other beasts drank quite a bit.

After three rounds of drinks, seeing that the three beasts were suitably mellowed, Yue Li finally recounted his grievances with Li Kui.

After he finished speaking, Ao Li chastised somewhat reproachfully, "Your mouth really does get you into trouble easily, but this Li Kui has indeed gone too far."

"Don’t worry, I, your Big Brother, will see justice done for you," Zhan Ge assured, patting his chest.

Yang Huan also voiced his agreement; their brother had been bullied for so long, it was indeed time to help him out.

As they drank, the four beasts became thoroughly intoxicated. Then, when Yue Li brought up Li Kui again, the four of them, fired up with indignation, swaggered off to find trouble with Li Kui.

At that moment, Li Kui, who had just arrived in Eden Garden, had casually constructed a cave mansion for himself. He planned to make do for a while, observe the situation in Eden Garden, and then choose the most suitable place for himself.

Li Kui, who was resting comfortably, was awakened by a series of loud vibrations.

He looked up to see Yue Li arrogantly leading three other Spiritual Beasts, shouting, "Green-eyed cat, come out! This time I’m going to make you pay!"

Li Kui looked at the four beasts before him with disdain and said, "Just these few rejects?"

Li Kui’s words thoroughly enraged the four beasts, and a great Spiritual Beast battle erupted on the spot.

The commotion from the battle alarmed the other Spiritual Beasts in Eden Garden. Chen Jiuge was naturally aware of it as well, but after finding out who the involved parties were, he didn’t interfere much. Spiritual Beasts had their own minds, and the number of Spiritual Beasts he contracted would only increase; it was impossible for every one of them to get along.

Yue Meng, whose Elixir refining failed due to the noise, said angrily, "What’s all that ruckus? Damn it! Fire Crystal, Bai Ya, Tian Que, follow me and let’s check it out."

Nearby, Da Bai also failed at Artifact Refining due to the noise. He stamped his feet in frustration, "I was so close to success! It’s all because of that noise."

Silver King didn’t understand much about Artifact Refining and just nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Qi Daoyuan, who had returned to Vermilion Bird Peak some time ago and was now back to mingling in Eden Garden, said bluntly, "You would have failed even without that noise. I find it strange. Are you really a Fire Qilin? Even in my previous life, when I rarely refined artifacts, I was a Sixth Rank Artifact Refiner at your Cultivation level."

"Shut up! Follow me and see who the hell it is," Da Bai snapped, annoyed and embarrassed.

The twin snake duo, who had been honing their skills, also sensed the commotion. They beckoned to Black Eye, who was nearby, intending to go check it out together.

The reason these two snakes were associating with Black Eye was mainly due to Bali. Bali, having awakened the Ba Snake Bloodline, had a growing appetite. He had learned that the Golden Dog clan, while grazing their herds, received a certain quota of free Red Flame Sheep. However, because the Golden Dogs had grown tired of eating them, these quotas of free Red Flame Sheep were almost entirely untouched.

So, Ming Yujing had cleverly approached Black Eye, offering to buy the Red Flame Sheep for half the price in Spirit Stones. Over time, the relationship between the three beasts had grown closer.

「When most of the Spiritual Beasts had gathered at the edge of the battlefield, Silver King began recounting the history of the grudge between Yue Li and Li Kui.」

"Hmph, isn’t it just that Yue Li couldn’t beat him, so now he’s ganging up on him?" Yue Meng said contemptuously.

Ming Yujing, standing to one side, shook his head. "It’s not just Yue Li who can’t beat him; I’m afraid we wouldn’t be able to either."

"Indeed, Zhan Ge and the others are very strong. Four against one still seems a bit dicey," Black Eye said with some concern, unsure if he should offer help.

"That’s only because they haven’t met me. I could take care of them all by myself," Da Bai bragged arrogantly.

The scene went silent for a moment. The five beasts fighting on the field suddenly stopped and all turned to look at Da Bai.

Qi Daoyuan was the first to jump back, distancing himself. "I don’t know him well. Those were his own words."

Da Bai looked stiffly at the five beasts before him and quickly backpedaled, "Brothers, I was just joking. Don’t take it seriously."

The five beasts shifted their gaze away and resumed their battle.

Bai Ya mocked from the side, "Coward."

Da Bai’s face flushed then paled. He wanted to retort, but then he remembered Bai Ya’s previous performance in the Hunting Ground and stopped awkwardly. If I scold her, I’ll probably get beaten. Better not. A man shouldn’t quarrel with a woman.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, that’s a Hou, one of the Ten Ferocious Creatures, isn’t it? Now they’ve really got their hands full," murmured Qi Daoyuan cryptically.

The battle didn’t end quickly. At first, fueled by alcohol, they were just trying to get some satisfaction for their brother. But as the fight wore on, things took a turn—this fellow was incredibly strong, and the intensity of the fight sobered up the four beasts.

Had it not been for their many years of seamless cooperation, they would have been defeated long ago.

「At dawn, Ao Yi returned. Upon seeing her brother being pummeled by the newcomer, she immediately charged in to help. With Ao Yi’s assistance, the five beasts managed to fight Li Kui to a draw.」

Gazing upon the scarred earth, the six exhausted beasts halted their actions.

War Song voiced his grudging respect, "You’re very strong, but I absolutely must settle this score for my brother."

Li Kui sneered, "I’ll be waiting."

With the fight over, the other Spiritual Beasts that had gathered to watch began to disperse.

「Ming Yujing, absently manipulating sand, formed various suits of armor on Bali, his focus elsewhere.」

"Big Brother, what’s wrong? Something on your mind?" Bali asked curiously, looking at the distracted Ming Yujing.

"Bali, what do you think of this newcomer?" Ming Yujing asked.

"Big Brother, are you thinking of recruiting him? That might be a bit difficult, you know. We probably can’t beat him," Bali remarked naively.

"Let’s just stick to Cultivation for now," Ming Yujing decided, feeling Bali had a point.

「On his way back, Da Bai kept thinking about his embarrassing loss of face. He glanced at his two usual companions by his side and heaved a deep sigh.」

Silver King was strong and would help out when really needed, but most of the time he just acted like a docile, hired hawk whose spirit had been broken.

As for Qi Daoyuan, that guy wasn’t even part of his inner circle—just a fair-weather friend.

"Looking at it this way, my relationships with other beasts are the worst. I only have one true friend. No, that’s not right, there’s also Da Shan! I’ve heard Da Shan has already left War Song’s Great Saint Army. I must bring that little brother back to my side," Da Bai thought, his eyes lighting up.

「Yue Meng, on the other hand, didn’t dwell on it too much, though she had a bad premonition about the ongoing conflict. She felt it might drag on for a long time, which could interfere with her Alchemy.」

"As for intervening? What a joke. I’m just a little rabbit who specializes in Alchemy; how could I possibly overpower them? Besides, bullying the newcomer isn’t right, and neither is bullying War Song—we’ve known each other the longest."

"Forget it, forget it. If worst comes to worst, I’ll just go do my Alchemy in the ecological garden," Yue Meng shook her head, planning to lie low.

「Black Eye, however, felt a heavy burden. As the steward of Eden Garden, Black Eye had always performed his duties impeccably. With the increasing number of Spiritual Beasts, many problems and conflicts had arisen, all of which Black Eye had resolved. Only this time, the situation seemed particularly volatile.」

Sensing his own Cultivation level, Black Eye sighed. "Looks like I’ll need to dip into my nest egg to boost my strength a bit; otherwise, it’ll be difficult to intervene effectively."

「This quest for revenge of Yue Li’s lasted a whole month.」

During that month, the fights always ended in a draw, and countless Spirit Grasses and Spirit Plants were destroyed. Despite Black Eye’s repeated attempts to mediate, he was ultimately unsuccessful due to his lack of strength and had to report the situation to Chen Jiuge.

Under the watchful eyes of many Spiritual Beasts, Chen Jiuge began to calculate the total value in Spirit Stones of the Spirit Grass and Spirit Plants damaged over the past month.

"All in all, it comes to three million Top Grade Spirit Stones. I won’t quibble over the exact fraction. Based on the scenes reconstructed by the Water Mirror Technique, War Song, your side caused most of the damage—nearly seventy percent—so you’re responsible for that. Li Kui, you’re responsible for thirty percent."

"So, that’s two million one hundred thousand Spirit Stones from your side, War Song, and nine hundred thousand from yours, Li Kui. Any objections?" Chen Jiuge said with a calculating smile, holding a small abacus.

"None."

Both parties agreed to this.

Thanks to his time on the battlefield, War Song was now quite wealthy, so a few Spirit Stones were nothing to him.

After paying the fine, War Song and the other four beasts involved in the fighting gloated at Li Kui. This newcomer definitely doesn’t have any Spirit Stones. He’s in for it now.

But then, Li Kui calmly pulled out a piece of rare Spiritual Ore. "This should suffice."

Star Iron of the True Immortal Rank. Indeed, it sufficed.

Chen Jiuge pocketed the Star Iron, nodded in satisfaction, and left.

"The newcomer actually has Spirit Stones!" War Song couldn’t believe it.

Li Kui sneered twice and walked away without a word. Spirit Stones? What a joke. In my past life, I was a True Immortal. Although those despicable Cultivators took most of my treasures, I still managed to keep quite a few. I reclaimed them back during the Great Cheng Dynasty.

Da Bai, who had been hoping for some drama, sighed deeply. "I didn’t expect this newcomer to be so rich too."

Qi Daoyuan looked at Da Bai speechlessly. "You’re the poorest Fire Qilin I’ve ever met."

With the fines settled, both parties finally quieted down for a while.