Chapter 175 - The Raven

Chapter 175: Chapter 166 The Raven"Master!" Kedel roared, but there was still a distance to Lei Shan, making support impossible.

The hidden Black Guards around also picked up their pens, recording the news of Lei Shan’s death, ready to send it back to the imperial capital.

Just when everyone thought Lei Shan was doomed, a massive scarlet eye appeared in the sky, overlooking them. The Golden Lion instinctively recoiled, pulling back the paw that had already crushed Lei Shan’s nose.

The Golden Lion, having failed in its killing blow, took a deep breath, staring intently at the blood-red eye in the sky. Eferot’s mane bristled, as if facing something extremely terrifying.

"Gray-robed Raven!" At this moment, the Golden Lion felt endless regret. Had he known, he would have preferred not to provoke a border war and directly executed Lei Shan. Now that the Raven appeared, he had no chance.

The scarlet blood eye caused panic in Xie’an, who quickly ordered a retreat of forces. Kedel also wisely stopped his attack orders. Since the Raven had come, it was better to leave everything to him.

"Golden Lion?" The blood eye blinked and disappeared, replaced by an old man in a gray robe. His face was so wrinkled it evoked sympathy. If one threw the Raven into a city, he’d look every bit like a decrepit old man.

"Aren’t you afraid of Sacred Empire’s questioning for crossing the border?" The Golden Lion steadied himself and said in a deep voice, "I think a powerful being like you wouldn’t be allowed to enter, would you?"

"No harm done," the Raven said softly, "After all, this is between the Eagle Alliance and the Empire. But you, a beastman, appearing on Empire’s territory, as an ally, I don’t mind doing Sacred Empire a little favor."

Hearing the Raven’s words, the Golden Lion was shocked. The Raven intended to kill him, so Eferot turned and ran. Facing the peak combat power of the Eagle Alliance, it would be at least a century before he dared to face him.

"Since you’re here, you shouldn’t leave," the Raven extended his withered fingers toward Eferot, and a wave of gray death energy instantly enveloped the Golden Lion, pressing in from all sides.

"Lion King’s Descent!" Eferot activated his bloodline power, yet the Raven’s death energy continued to squeeze his body, making his bones creak.

It seemed the Raven intended to return the favor of the Golden Lion’s near-fatal attack on Lei Shan, grinding him into a pulp would definitely be excruciating.

"Lionheart’s Roar!" The Golden Lion spat blood, attempting to dispel the death energy, but under the Raven’s control, how could he possibly succeed?

"Heh heh, kill him, kill him! Damn it, let him hunt me down, serves him right!" Lei Shan had by now regained his composure, excitedly watching the suffering Eferot.

Under the relentless pressure of death energy, the Golden Lion’s mighty frame seemed to shrink, with the bones in his chest unknown to be shattered into how many pieces.

Suddenly, a crystal teardrop-sized on Eferot’s chest sensed its master’s life-threatening crisis and emitted a golden glow.

Under the glow of this golden light, the Raven’s death energy dissipated, and the space around the Golden Lion warped.

The Raven frowned slightly, stepped forward, and instantly appeared before the Golden Lion, punching toward his heart.

Simultaneously, another golden fist extended from the twisted space, colliding fiercely with the Raven’s. When the two fists met, there was no world-shaking spectacle; the Raven staggered back several steps, barely steadying himself, took a breath, and smiled, "Tai’e Lion King, long time no see."

The golden fist retracted, the twisted space fully opened, and the Lion King, covered in golden fur, appeared before everyone. He smiled at the Raven, "All these years, you haven’t progressed at all."

"Heh heh, old and frail." The Raven pointed at the unconscious Golden Lion and said, "From now on, this starry sky belongs to the young; your son, I just tested him, and he’s quite good."

"Thank you." The Tai’e Lion King picked up Eferot, "If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my son and leave."

"Farewell to the Lion King," the Raven slightly bowed, giving full face to Tai’e.

"Hmm." The Tai’e Lion King turned away; the twisted space slowly shrank until it disappeared.

At this moment, Barley stood by the Lion King’s side, looking at his nephew with distress, "Big brother, why didn’t you kill the Raven? Look at what he did to little Te Er!"

The Tai’e Lion King glanced at Barley and said, "You think I didn’t want to?"

"Why didn’t you do it if you wanted to?" Barley muttered, took the Golden Lion from the King’s arms, and turned to prepare to return to the palace, only to be horrified to find the once magnificent Beastmen Palace behind him had turned into a ruin.

The Tai’e Lion King coughed up a mouthful of blood and said to Barley, "Don’t worry; I protected everyone in the palace. Only the buildings collapsed."

"Big brother, you’re hurt?!" Barley panicked even more now. Tai’e was the king of the Beastman Empire; he couldn’t be hurt!

"It’s fine, it’s fine. A few months of rest will do. But this Raven, truly exceptional." Tai’e said solemnly, "If given another hundred years to grow, he might indeed break through the threshold of being a Heavenly God, and by then, who knows how many storms he’ll brew."

While Tai’e worried about the Raven, Lei Shan on the border cursed at him angrily, "Raven, why didn’t you kill the Golden Lion? Are you afraid of Tai’e? There was clearly a chance just now!"

The Raven glanced at Lei Shan, who was collapsed on the ground, and said softly, "Duke Lei Shan, your performance just now did not befit a qualified Eagle Duke. I will report all of today’s events to our master."

Hearing the Raven’s words, Lei Shan felt indignant, "You were there; why didn’t you intervene immediately?" He didn’t believe the Raven arrived right on time; perhaps the Raven was watching while the Golden Lion tormented him.

"When I take action, is that any of your business?" The Raven preferred not to appear if possible; as the Golden Lion said, his presence within Sacred Empire’s borders was not a good thing for the Eagle Alliance. Indeed, a phantom figure flickered on the dim skyline in the distance.

"Vili, long time no see," the Raven smiled at the approaching Vili, "Have you found the path to godhood?"

"Soon, I suppose." Vili didn’t exchange pleasantries with the Raven; the Raven’s appearance at the border had brought him rushing over from who knows how many miles away, a mood likely not very pleasant.

"It’s a bit of a bother, you having to travel this far. Next time, I’ll seek out a divine crystal as compensation." From Vili’s indifferent expression, the Raven could sense his displeasure. Vili was an exceedingly gentlemanly person, and when he abandoned gentlemanly behavior, it was best not to provoke him.

"Well then, Raven, you should leave," Vili said in a deep voice, "If next time you enter the territory of Sacred Empire without permission, I will expel you!"

"I understand," the Raven nodded, waved his robe, and, taking Lei Shan from the ground, transformed into a jet-black raven, flying over the border and disappearing at the horizon.

As for Lei Shan’s forces, they broke camp and retreated. Before leaving, Kedel spent a long time staring at Xie’an. From Kedel’s gaze, Xie’an understood that if a war broke out between the Eagle Alliance and the Empire, Kedel’s first target would be him.

Being watched was truly unpleasant, but it didn’t mean Xie’an feared him.

"Let’s go, back to camp!" Xie’an shouted, and the Imperial army marched back to the city in grand formation.

With the Raven sent away, Vili left directly, giving no chance for Xie’an and others for further interaction.

Half a day passed, and under meticulous treatment, Lei Shan had fully recovered. He sat unhappily in the study of Duke Nuoshan.

"Your Grace, the Raven was just mocking me!" Even now, Lei Shan couldn’t resist badmouthing the Raven.

Duke Nuoshan ignored Lei Shan, quietly handling the documents in hand.

Several hours passed again, and as Lei Shan reached the limit of his patience, Duke Nuoshan finally spoke, "Lei Shan, do you realize how much trouble your Empire visit has caused the Alliance?"

"Oh well, let’s just start a war. Does the Eagle Alliance fear them?" Lei Shan replied indifferently, "Konstantin’s indulgence of the Golden Lion’s pursuit of me is something you can take advantage of."

Nuoshan shook his head, "There are too many reasons to justify aid; we hardly gain any leverage. Besides, we lack evidence of Konstantin’s assistance to the Golden Lion, so this issue can’t be officially addressed. Conversely, your exposure of the Dark Department and Raven’s cross-border actions have prompted the Empire to issue multiple warning letters to the Alliance, putting everyone in a difficult position."

"Then let’s just fight. I’ll lead the charge. I guarantee that if the Eagle Alliance and the Empire go to war, I, Lei Shan, will be at the forefront," Lei Shan declared grandly, "even take down the Beastman Empire."

"Foolish!" Duke Nuoshan shook his head again, "If not for the family’s ancestral instructions, I absolutely wouldn’t have sent the Raven to rescue you."

"Yes, yes, I owe it to your ancestors," Lei Shan retorted. Already short of words, he rose to his feet, slapped himself dust-free, pushed the door open, and left with no regard for the old Duke’s etiquette.

"I said before, why save him? It’s better if he just dies." As soon as Lei Shan stepped out, Duke Chen Hui walked in, sitting across from Nuoshan, "Now even Xinlie is dissatisfied with Lei Shan. Do you think his dukedom promotion should be put on hold?"

"No," Nuoshan rejected Chen Hui’s proposal and explained, "Since its inception, the Eagle Alliance has only had three first-class Duke titles: you, me, and Xinlie. Finally, Lei Shan’s power reached the promotion standard. If we suppress his title now, there might be disputes within the Alliance."

"Discussions are fine. Does Alliance expansion rely on them?"

Nuoshan didn’t reply, turning instead to a portrait hanging on the wall. It depicted their family’s ancestor, who had personally established the Eagle Alliance and left an ancestral instruction to protect every Alliance member before dying.