"Well, this is all thanks to you. If I hadn't come here with you, I wouldn't have been able to break through so quickly," Chu Feng said.
"Good, good, good — this is wonderful! It's truly a double blessing! Let's go out and let the elder share in our joy." As Yaojiao Tingyu spoke, she soared out of the inheritance pool.
"Did it work?" That Martial Emperor wore a look of pleasant surprise — after all, Yaojiao Tingyu's transformation was so obvious.
"It worked, Elder — it really worked! Our peace faction can continue to hold power over the Yaojiao King Beast clan, and it's all thanks to Chu Feng. He is a great benefactor of our clan," Yaojiao Tingyu said.
"Good, good, good." The Martial Emperor was so emotional that he repeated the word three times, and then, with a thud, he dropped to his knees before Chu Feng.
"Elder, what are you doing?" Chu Feng hurried forward to help him up.
"Young friend Chu Feng, great kindness need not be repaid with words, but the favor you have done for us today — the Yaojiao King Beast clan must repay it. Should you ever need anything, just say the word. Even if it means braving fire and water, sacrificing my own life, I would be willing," the Martial Emperor said with a grave expression, refusing to stand.
"Elder, you exaggerate. Princess Tingyu and I have known each other for a long time — we are friends. I, Chu Feng, help my friends without expecting anything in return," Chu Feng said.
"Young friend Chu Feng, this debt the Yaojiao King Beast clan will repay. You have no idea how important this is to us," the elder said firmly.
"Kneeling before a human — truly bringing shame to our Yaojiao King Beast clan." But just then, a familiar voice suddenly rang out from the distance.
"You're not dead?" Upon seeing the newcomer, both Yaojiao Tingyu and the Martial Emperor were shocked, their faces filled with alarm. The one who had arrived was none other than the second-grade Martial Emperor from the war faction.
He had actually survived the onslaught of the Hellfire Insects.
"Tingyu, I am at least your elder — do you really wish me dead?" The man sneered as he approached the three of them.
"What do you want?" Yaojiao Tingyu asked.
"It's simple. You wished me dead, so I will make you dead — especially now that you've received the Lord Dragon King's inheritance. You must die," the war faction Martial Emperor said coldly.
"Chu Feng, Tingyu, run — now!" At that moment, the peace faction's first-grade Martial Emperor suddenly shot forward, transforming into a massive black Yaojiao, and charged at the war faction's second-grade Martial Emperor.
He had taken his true form, intending to sacrifice his own life to buy Chu Feng and Yaojiao Tingyu a chance to escape.
"Foolish." The war faction Martial Emperor snorted coldly. As a second-grade Martial Emperor, how could he possibly regard a first-grade Martial Emperor as a threat?
With a mere thought, his oppressive might swept outward, intending to crush the elder to death with pressure alone.
BZZZ— But just as the oppressive might was about to sweep down, a brilliant golden barrier suddenly materialized out of thin air, forming a wall that blocked the war faction Martial Emperor's pressure.
"A Dragon Vein barrier?" Upon seeing the golden barrier surging with dragon patterns, not only was the war faction Martial Emperor shocked — even the peace faction Martial Emperor and Yaojiao Tingyu were stunned.
"Chu Feng — you're a Dragon Vein Royal-robed Spirit World Master?" The war faction Martial Emperor stared at Chu Feng in utter disbelief, knowing that the barrier had been his doing.
"You're quite tough — you must have used some kind of treasure to survive," Chu Feng said.
"Answer my question," the war faction Martial Emperor barked, the shock on his face only growing rather than fading.
"You've seen my barrier — why ask what you already know?" Chu Feng smiled coldly, then continued, "Actually, it's just as well that you survived. Scum like you — I've always preferred to finish off with my own hands."
By this point, Chu Feng had walked over to the peace faction Martial Emperor and said, "Elder, leave this scum of the Yaojiao King Beast clan to me."
"Chu Feng, you..." The peace faction Martial Emperor was uneasy. Though Chu Feng's cultivation had improved, he was still only an eighth-grade half-emperor — how could he possibly stand against a second-grade Martial Emperor?
"Elder, trust me," Chu Feng said confidently.
"Be careful." In the end, the peace faction Martial Emperor relented. He knew he had no ability to fight the war faction Martial Emperor himself — but Chu Feng had indeed blocked that oppressive might with his barrier techniques.
Although he had no confidence in Chu Feng, the truth was that Chu Feng's abilities were currently superior to his own. If he himself were to fight, he knew he would only die. But if Chu Feng fought, there might actually be a sliver of hope.