Blood Battle Valley.
Immanuel and Fuerhan were together.
"I have a bad feeling," Fuerhan said with a frown.
"Father, what's wrong?" Immanuel asked quickly.
Fuerhan said, "Look at how much the Patriarch values the Highgod Messenger. I'd say he's trying to win over that Highgod Messenger. After all, the situation our Four Divine Beast families are in right now is extremely difficult. If that's the case... I'm afraid they won't punish Lin Lei."
"Won't punish him?" Immanuel grew anxious.
He had wanted to deal with Lin Lei all along. This time, his plan had backfired spectacularly — he'd even lost his strongest Water-type water clone. That resentment and fury naturally transferred onto Lin Lei.
He didn't have the strength to deal with Lin Lei himself, and he'd been hoping to rely on other methods.
"How can they not punish him?" Immanuel pressed. "The Grand Elder already agreed!"
"Shut up." Fuerhan's brow furrowed, and he barked the command in a low voice.
Immanuel immediately fell silent. Fuerhan took a deep breath and sat in thought for a moment. The room was completely quiet. After a long while, Fuerhan finally spoke in a low voice: "I think it's unlikely the family will punish Lin Lei. We'll have to rely on ourselves."
"What can we do?" Immanuel asked eagerly.
"There are plenty of ways." Fuerhan's eyes narrowed, and a cold smile crept across his face. "This time, someone saved Lin Lei. I refuse to believe that next time, it'll be so convenient, and someone will save him again."
"What do you mean, Father?" Immanuel grinned.
"The elders in the clan — which one don't I know? Setting a trap for him to fall into? That's not hard at all. Opportunities are everywhere!" Fuerhan said confidently. "During a battle, a little something on the side — hmph! When he's locked in a desperate fight with a powerful enemy, even the slightest interference could cost him his life!"
"Especially when all six-star demons on my side are dead. With no witnesses around, we can simply strike him from behind." Fuerhan sneered. "Even if he cries injustice all by himself, who would believe him?"
A smile immediately appeared on Immanuel's face.
"A mere junior descendant — and he's worthy of bearing the Ancestor's Coiling Dragon Ring?" Fuerhan scoffed. "With the Coiling Dragon Ring, he's still just an ordinary seven-star demon. But if I had that Coiling Dragon Ring... I'd be far more useful to the family than he is!"
Indeed. If Fuerhan and Lin Lei flew back together, Lin Lei would never suspect that Fuerhan would dare ambush and kill him. Under normal flight conditions, Lin Lei would remain in human form... If Fuerhan truly launched a surprise attack, the consequences were easy to imagine.
Lin Lei crying injustice alone, with no witnesses — who would listen?
Fuerhan would simply insist that enemies had killed him. Lin Lei would have no way to prove otherwise.
"Fuerhan, Immanuel." A voice came from outside.
"Mother is here." Fuerhan immediately stood up, and Immanuel also stood respectfully to one side.
With a creak, the hall doors opened. The Grand Elder, wearing her silver mask, walked straight in, regarding them both with a detached expression: "Fuerhan, Immanuel — the matter of punishing Lin Lei is settled. It won't be pursued."
Immanuel's heart lurched. "Just as Father predicted. But... not now. There will be plenty of opportunities later."
Executing missions meant walking the line between life and death.
If a companion sabotaged you from the shadows, the chances of survival were slim.
"From today onward, Lin Lei will leave Blood Battle Valley and no longer take on missions from Blood Battle Valley," the Grand Elder continued, her tone equally detached.
Fuerhan and Immanuel froze.
They were stunned.
"Mother, how can that be?" Fuerhan hurriedly said. "Our family's rules state that rotations happen once every thousand years. Lin Lei hasn't been in Blood Battle Valley for long at all — he's nowhere near a thousand years."
"Exactly! The family rules can't be broken!" Immanuel added urgently.
If Lin Lei stopped taking missions in Blood Battle Valley and stayed in the Heaven Sacrifice Mountains instead, they'd have no way to make him die. After all, unauthorized killing was forbidden within the Heaven Sacrifice Mountains.
"This is the joint decision of all four Patriarchs!" the Grand Elder said icily.
When Fuerhan and Immanuel heard those words, they were thunderstruck. The Patriarchs were the heads of the family — a joint command from all four Patriarchs was absolute and unchangeable!
From that day forward, Lin Lei no longer needed to go to Blood Battle Valley. He could now live a peaceful, tranquil life. When Dilia and Bei Bei learned the news, they were overjoyed... In that tranquility, day after day slipped by.
In the eyes of the Four Divine Beast families, Lin Lei was their best hope of contacting the Purpleheart Highgod!
But Lin Lei didn't know... In the eyes of the Eight Great Families, he was the greatest threat!
In the Heaven Sacrifice Mountains, inside the Great Canyon.
Before Lin Lei's house there was a patch of lawn, and beside it sat a stone table. A bottle of wine rested on the table, and Lin Lei held a book in his hands. All four of his clones were cultivating, while the original body enjoyed the peace and quiet.
Dilia walked out of the house carrying two platters of food. Seeing Lin Lei reading, she smiled and walked over, gently setting the dishes on the stone table.
"Hm?"
Lin Lei suddenly caught the scent of something delicious and looked at the platters, his eyes lighting up. "Dilia — my, my, just the smell is wonderful. Your cooking has improved enormously!" As he spoke, he flipped his hand and produced a pair of chopsticks.
He dug in immediately, eating and praising at the same time: "Not bad, not bad! The flavor could rival a restaurant in the city."
"Not even close." Dilia's cheeks flushed with a bashful smile. "Last time I went to the city, I bought a few cookbooks. As for the ingredients for these dishes, I had people heading into town pick them up for me."
Dilia sat across from him, resting her chin on her hand, watching him eat.
Lin Lei ate and ate, then began to chuckle.
"What are you giggling about?" Dilia asked with a laugh.
"I was just thinking," Lin Lei said with a contented sigh. "Comprehending the Laws, venturing through the endless Hell... and when there's a quiet moment, reading a good book, drinking fine wine, and eating a meal cooked by my wife. This life is simply... perfect!" He beamed with pure joy.