Lin Lei had already fallen into despair, believing there was no hope of Dilia surviving. He hadn't placed much hope in the Azure Prefecture Lord who was about to arrive either. But he never could have imagined that the Azure Prefecture Lord — the one who had saved the Four Divine Beast families from their plight, and whom Gasleison described as incomparably powerful — was actually Bei Bei's grandfather, Belut!
Seeing Belut, hope involuntarily welled up in Lin Lei's heart.
Belut had always been unfathomably deep in Lin Lei's mind.
"Perhaps Lord Belut really does have the power to save Dilia." Lin Lei's heart began to stir with excitement and anticipation.
The large crowd at the doorway stared in astonishment at the intimate manner between Bei Bei and the Azure Prefecture Lord "Belut." They had no idea… that this unremarkable young man beside Lin Lei actually had such a close relationship with the Azure Prefecture Lord!
"Belut, you're his grandfather?" Pusiro blurted in astonishment.
Belut glanced at him with an amused smile and nodded slightly. "Pusiro, I really am sorry for lying to you before. I was afraid that if you knew Bei Bei's and my true relationship, you'd be too indulgent toward this little rascal… You have no idea how mischievous and lazy Bei Bei is. Without proper training, it simply won't do."
Pusiro laughed as well.
Back when he was still a kitten in Ariquin's arms, the first time he had met Lin Lei and Bei Bei — especially after seeing Bei Bei use that divine spark weapon — he had guessed that Bei Bei might have some connection to Belut.
Later, he had gotten to know Belut and asked about it. But Belut had brushed it off with a casual remark, deceiving him.
"Haha, this kid does need proper training," Pusiro said with a laugh, looking at Bei Bei.
Bei Bei let out a huff. "Grandpa, I've already comprehended five Profound Mysteries, and it's only been a little over a thousand years. That's already very fast!"
"You've got the nerve to say that!" Belut didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Of the five Profound Mysteries Bei Bei had comprehended, one was naturally possessed upon reaching adulthood as a Divine Beast, and the other four had been obtained through soul-rending fragments that he had asked a friend to prepare.
Of course…
Bei Bei's comprehension was still decent enough to break through the bottlenecks of those four Profound Mysteries in succession.
Gasleison, the Vermilion Bird Clan Chief, and the other two clan chiefs, along with all the elders, were all stunned. They truly hadn't expected that Lin Lei and Bei Bei would have such a deep connection with the formidable Azure Prefecture Lord.
"My Lord, for Bei Bei to have comprehended five Profound Mysteries in just over a thousand years is already quite impressive," Gasleison chimed in from the side.
"The secrets behind it, you wouldn't understand," Belut replied, his eyes always narrowing into a smile.
"Grandpa." Bei Bei sounded a bit displeased.
Belut laughed heartily. "But compared to when you were on the Yulan Continent, you've already improved a great deal. At least your patience has gotten better. Haha…"
Only then did Bei Bei smile.
"Lord Belut." Lin Lei finally spoke up. "My wife Dilia, she…"
Belut turned to look at him, and upon seeing Lin Lei's expression, his own face grew slightly solemn. He nodded. "I heard about your wife and came here right away. Back when the two of you were married, I even sent my son to deliver a divine spark to your wife as a gift. Who would have thought… that it would come to this. Sigh. Come, take me to see her."
"Yes." Lin Lei hurriedly led the way, and the two entered the room one after another. Pusiro and Bei Bei quickly followed.
Belut had acted out of kindness that year when he gave her a divine spark. After all, in the Material Plane, the probability of becoming a god independently was exceedingly slim. Although becoming a god on one's own carried far greater benefits… letting Dilia become a god on her own — forget about becoming a god, even reaching the Saint Realm would have been difficult. Who knew when she would have managed it.
The same was true for Wotton.
If Wotton hadn't undergone the Ancestral Baptism, becoming a god on his own would have been equally difficult.
"So Lin Lei actually has such a relationship with the Prefecture Lord." Gasleison and the others stood outside the room, exchanging glances. They were still reeling from this revelation. At the same time, Gasleison deployed his Divine Domain, isolating the sound so that those inside the room could not hear their conversation.
"Haven't you heard? When Lin Lei got married back in the Material Plane, the Prefecture Lord even sent a gift. Their relationship is very close indeed." The Vermilion Bird Clan Chief's lips curled upward as he smiled. "This is good news for our Four Divine Beast families."
"Indeed. If the Prefecture Lord is truly determined to help our families, how would the Eight Great Families dare to act so arrogantly?" The Black Tortoise Clan Chief nodded in agreement.
"The Prefecture Lord's methods are truly terrifying," Gasleison marveled.
They all remembered the scene when Belut had appeared to stop the Eight Great Families — wielding a black staff, moving through the Eight Great Families' experts like lightning. Of those Seven-star Demons, anyone who came into contact with the staff had no hope of survival.
As for the experts of the Eight Great Families, their physical attacks couldn't harm Belut in the slightest, and their soul strikes that landed on Belut's body also elicited not the faintest reaction.
In the blink of an eye, Belut had slaughtered more than twenty Seven-star Demons. The Eight Great Families' forces were so terrified that they immediately halted their assault. Even Patriarch Bolin of the Eight Great Families, who had exchanged blows with Belut once — though he survived, was severely wounded.
One should note that Patriarch Bolin also possessed a Sovereign Artifact. But when compared to Belut —
the two were simply not on the same level at all!
Belut was known as the strongest being beneath the Sovereigns on the Blood Peak Continent! He dared to carry such a title, and no one dared contest it — the other Infernal Realm Asuras all tacitly acknowledged it. It was clearly a universally accepted fact! His strength spoke for itself.
"Back then, if the Prefecture Lord had forcefully ordered the Eight Great Families to leave, they probably would have departed even if they were unwilling," Gasleison sighed quietly. "But the Prefecture Lord seemed unwilling to offend the Eight Great Families too much. He was probably considering the Sovereigns behind them. He merely forbade the Eight Great Families from breaching the Heavenly Sacrifice Mountain Range."
"For the Prefecture Lord to be willing to go this far is already more than enough," the Vermilion Bird Clan Chief said with a serious expression. "Back when our four ancestral founders were still alive, countless powerhouses had pledged themselves to our families. Under the four founders' banners, there were even many Sovereign Emissaries. But once the founders died? Not a single one of those Sovereign Emissaries bothered with our families anymore."
The other elders all sighed softly and fell silent.
Indeed, when the person leaves, the tea grows cold!
Once the ancestral founders died, even the founders' Sovereign Emissaries watched the Four Divine Beast families march toward their destruction without lifting a finger. Fortunately, the Azure Prefecture Lord had finally stepped forward. True, the Azure Prefecture Lord hadn't completely driven away the Eight Great Families. But at the very least, he had ensured that the Four Divine Beast families would not be annihilated.
One must not be too greedy.
The Azure Prefecture Lord had already shown them every possible kindness. With everything the Azure Prefecture Lord had done, the Four Divine Beast families had nothing to offer in return.
"Come, let's go in and see." Gasleison entered first, and the elders filed in after him one by one.