Emperor’s Domination

Neither voice answered Li Qiye’s claim.

“I came this time with this guess, but now, it has been confirmed.” Li Qiye said: “I didn’t come for any treasure but the girl on your golden lotus. She is an old friend of mine. If you don’t mind, I will take her away!”

“No!” The two voices refused his request in unison.

Li Qiye frowned after hearing this and slowly spoke: “Both of you should know that I am someone who will never give up. Despite my benevolent nature, I will kill those who stand in my way!”

“Haha, damned crow, you are quite presumptuous. Although we are trapped here, even that brat Tian Tu couldn’t kill us, so what makes you think you can?” The second voice retorted.

Li Qiye said dismissively: “I don’t necessarily have to kill you two, I can suppress you for an eternity. What the Ancient Ming did back then, I can also do the same! You should know that I forced out many secrets back then!”

“Plus, nothing is impossible for me!” Li Qiye slowly took out two items. One of them was the green lamp while the other was the Dao Sword.

The lamp had a black fire while the dao sword was plain and simple. The two items were not eye-catching at all.

“My god!” The second voice screamed after seeing the two items.

The first voice spoke in disbelief as well: “Impossible! Countless people tried to obtain these treasures, including even deities and emperors. They failed to obtain even one, yet you actually have both!”

“Which is why I said you two have to understand, if I decide to do something, I will pay any price to succeed!” Li Qiye slowly said: “You should also know that you have a lot of treasures here. Even if I have to pay this great price, it might still be worth it!”

The two voices became silent after the threat. After a while, the first voice responded: “We do not wish to harm this girl. To be more exact, we are giving her a supreme creation! Although we don’t know her origin, as her old acquaintance, you should know that her situation is not optimistic. Leaving this place is not necessarily a good thing for her.”

After a moment of contemplation, Li Qiye narrowed his eyes and spoke in a serious tone: “What kind of creation are you two giving her?”

A long silence ensued. The second voice eventually answered: “Hmph. It is related to that item. You damned crow wanted it in the past as well!”

“That item…” Li Qiye turned serious while staring at the ocean ahead: “That’s impossible. You two competed for this item for so many eras, but both of you failed! I understand now, she is the one giving you two the great creation! A chance to come back to the world, she will be your savior!”

“Hmph, we need someone else to save us?” The second voice did not like this claim from Li Qiye and coldly retorted: “Without our guidance, she wouldn’t have obtained this peerless opportunity.”

“But without her, both of you would never have the opportunity in the first place.” Li Qiye smilingly countered.

There was no response since the two voices knew that Li Qiye was right.

Li Qiye didn’t say anything either and only stared at the girl on top of the golden lotus. He gently sighed after seeing her familiar back, at a loss for words. Although he didn’t owe her anything, he felt uneasy because he was the one who brought her into that cruel war.

After a while, Li Qiye gently asked: “Is she doing fine?”

The first voice in the ocean answered: “When she first arrived here, she was in a precarious situation with a lifeless mind. Right now, her spirit is meditating as she is slowly recovering her life. I believe that she will be able to defeat her worries and regain her serenity.”

“Very well, this is a good thing for her.” Li Qiye nodded quietly and sighed: “The past is the most difficult to forget. To be able to forget is also a type of rebirth.”

“It is indeed a godsend for her. Many people had never come across such a chance.” The second voice emphasized.

Li Qiye calmed down after a long period of silence. He looked at the ocean and smiled: “So, it seems that you two will have a chance to come out then.”

“Hahaha, we won’t tell you, goddamned crow. You just want to trick us.” The second voice sneered.

“How can you say that? This is an auspicious day. Not only do we old friends get to meet again, you two have made peace from your timeless irreconcilable feud as well.” Li Qiye smiled: “Since it is such a good day, don’t you think we should exchange some gifts?”

“Really now?” The first voice answered: “Damned crow, although you are not as vicious as that Tian Tu brat, you are not a good person either. It’s not like I haven’t experienced your scheming before.”

Without a doubt, the two existences inside the ocean were very cautious of Li Qiye and knew that he was definitely up to no good.

Li Qiye laughed and leisurely said: “I won’t have any ideas about the item you two have been competing for. Even if I did, you two would go all out against me, right?”

“Hmph, what do you want from us?” The second voice coldly uttered.

“Frankly, you’re both underestimating me too much. This Dark Crow has never lacked treasures. Even though your treasury has many good things, it is not to the extent where I would start salivating for them. There are many locations in this world with better treasures.” Li Qiye acted as if he was not interested.

“You might not be lacking treasures, but I haven’t seen you say no to any treasure before.” The second voice responded: “If you want some treasures, we can give you a few, but don’t push it!”

“No, no, no…” Li Qiye shook his head: “Why are you two being so contemptuous? I didn’t come here for treasures. On the contrary, I may offer you two a great gift.”

The two existences both went silent. How could they trust someone who had tricked them before? Especially when the guy wasn’t a virtuous soul at all.

“If you two aren’t interested, then nevermind. There is a good proverb for this — business does not override friendship. May we meet again.” Li Qiye smiled and said. 1

The first voice finally spoke: “We’re listening.”

Li Qiye calmly began: “First, I want you two to answer a question. If you refuse, then I can’t reveal my gift. My question is, with this opportunity, when can you two come out?”

“Don’t tell him.” The second voice clearly didn’t trust Li Qiye.

Li Qiye waved his hand dismissively: “I can’t do anything about it if you don’t want to tell me. The only thing I can say is that both of you will miss the best opportunity.”

The first voice went quiet before answering: “This generation, we can definitely come out this generation!”

“Good.” Li Qiye rubbed his chin and said: “What are your plans after climbing out of this place? To travel freely or to dominate the world? Or perhaps go to look for something?”

The two existences didn’t answer. They had been in this place for too long and had never thought about what to do after going outside.

“Have you two thought about returning?” Li Qiye threw out this topic.

“Hah.” The second voice snorted: “Damned crow, are you trying to trick us? Return? We know more than you about this.”

Li Qiye only chuckled in response: “Know more than me? How long have you been here for? Tell me.”

He paused for a moment before leisurely continuing: “How can you two know how many times I have been there? Or how much time I have spent there? Or what tasks I have accomplished there?”

“Haha, it can’t be anything good, that’s for sure. Only one thing is certain, you must have been chased around by those bastards and had to hide the whole time.” The second voice gloatingly laughed after imagining Li Qiye’s pitiful state.

Li Qiye was still as carefree as ever: “Well, I won’t deny that. I’m not someone who does a lot of good deeds. Wherever I go, the risk of death will follow — this is quite normal. People always say that a crow is an ominous sign, so this isn’t strange at all.”

1. Another hard to translate proverb. It is saying that a failed business deal shouldn’t affect one’s friendship.