Tribulation of Myriad Races

Su Yu’s eyes flickered.

A human.

Shadow Marquis?

No. He could see the dao of the visitor. That was not Shadow Marquis’ dao. Who could it be?

Su Yu asked, “Where did this human come from?”

“Heavenly Hole Range.”

May did not hide anything after concluding that the two were real iron devourers. He could feel their bloodline, and he could also sense the 72-Forged Iron Devourer Su Yu cultivated. In fact, he could sense that this little iron devourer might have completed seventy-two forgings.

This wasn’t something an outsider could imitate. Furthermore, an outsider wouldn’t be able to cultivate this method to such a level.

Su Yu’s heart thumped. Heavenly Hole Range. South Suppression Marquis. Surprisingly, they had maintained contact with the iron devourers.

“Is South Suppression Marquis here?”

“No.”

Su Yu blanked out. But he could clearly see an additional Daofuse here.

“It’s General Wen Qi under South Suppression Marquis. He achieved Daofuse not long ago.”

Understanding dawned on Su Yu. They had been quite lucky, it seemed.

Stable Army Marquis’ subordinate, Chong Ming, had also achieved Daofuse recently. It wasn’t that the Upper Realm humans couldn’t reach the Daofuse Realm. Rather, they did not have the opportunity to break through.

Stable Army Marquis’ information was greatly outdated. Some inaccuracies were expected.

Su Yu said, “In that case, let us join the meeting.”

“You’re interested in the meeting?”

May did not mind that. But he couldn’t resist complaining, “It’s annoying. Kids, it’s too boring for even someone like me. Humans are annoying.”

Seeing that May was only complaining but not kicking that general off, Su Yu was slightly relieved. May was unfriendly toward humans, but he wasn’t too hostile toward humanity. They did not say more and started moving deeper into the bamboo forest.

Su Yu was curious as to what that general had to say. He also wanted to observe the reaction of the iron devourers. In his opinion, that general had picked a great time to visit the iron devourers.

***

Inside the bamboo hall.

Noticing that May’s dao power was still fluctuating endlessly, April knocked on the table and berated, “May, you’re being rude. We have a guest here.”

What was he doing?

They had to show some respect to a guest.

Hearing that, General Wen Qi said, “It’s fine. Dao Master May can do what he want. I’m here bringing South Suppression Marquis’ apology. During the war back then, humanity was too careless and caused the death of Dao Master May’s son. The marquis has always been regretful about that…”

May couldn’t even be bothered to say anything. His child had perished during the third epoch. That was how June had risen to the position of the leader in the Lower Realm. Otherwise, the iron devourers would still be led by those from his direct lineage. Then again, June was his nephew, so they were still a part of the same lineage.

Too many years had passed since then. May didn’t even feel like talking about it anymore.

But since this human had mentioned the topic, May said, “Well, I suppose I should be understanding since this is normal for you humans. Didn’t July die while helping you guys as well? So are you trying to send August or September or October to death this time?”

General Wen Qi sighed and said, “Both the marquis and I are deeply regretful about the event of the previous epoch. If we had known that we had the crown prince in our ranks, we would have protected him at all costs…”

May snorted with disdain. He didn’t even bother to say anything. What was the point of saying all that now?

Suddenly, April blanked out and looked at May. Sensing the arrival of the two newcomers, May said, “Great Bamboo Marquis’ descendants are back from the Dao Origin Land.”

“Great Bamboo Marquis’ descendants?”

April blanked out. When did Great Bamboo Marquis produce two descendants?

How was he unaware of this? Upon focusing, he noted that the two were indeed bearers of their bloodline, but he was still suspicious. He looked at May with a frown. Was May sure that these two were the descendants of Great Bamboo Marquis?

Was this a mistake?

To the side, General Wen Qi’s expression changed slightly as he asked, “Senior Great Bamboo’s descendants? Are they back? What about Great Bamboo Marquis?”

April explained, “It is unlikely that Great Bamboo Marquis will return himself anytime soon. The situation at the Dao Origin Land is quite complicated. Recently, several new masterless daos appeared. The various parties are fighting over those daos.”

At that point, Su Yu and September stepped into the hall.

The moment the two arrived, April’s expression changed slightly as his gaze landed on September. Noticing that April was more cautious than May, September said, “Greetings, Senior April and Senior May.”

As he spoke, a token appeared in his paw before vanishing.

April’s heart thumped heavily.

Iron Devourer Token!

What was this? Wasn’t that thing supposed to be in the Lower Realm? June was the bearer of that token.

After seeing that token, April sank into confusion. What in the world was this? This fellow was clearly not a descendant of Great Bamboo Marquis. And he came bearing the Iron Devourer Token of the Lower Realm. Furthermore, this was a Daofuse with a bloodline of their race.

April couldn’t help but be confused.

An innocent smile appeared on September’s fluffy face as he said, “Senior April, I heard from Senior May that a human has arrived. May we listen to this discussion?”

The still confused April considered the matter before nodding, “Sit down. Do not run around. Do not interject.”

“Okay.”

September smiled and walked toward May. With this, there were four Daofuses in the hall.

April, May, General Wen Qi, and a newly advanced iron devourer.

Noticing September’s curious gaze, the newly advanced iron devourer explained with the trademark innocent expression of their race, “Full Moon.”

September blanked out slightly, “A female?”

A female iron devourer! And a Daofuse! This was very rare among their race. Upon noticing that it was a female iron devourer, September suddenly switched direction and walked toward Full Moon instead. He asked, “How old are you?”

“It has been nine great bamboo seasons since my birth.”

“Oh, oh. Not bad.”

September was saying that this female was older than him, but not too old for him. Then, he plopped down beside Full Moon, leaving Su Yu standing alone. Su Yu felt like cursing someone.

What was this guy doing? What was so special about a female iron devourer? Female or male, they all looked the same!

Meanwhile, both April and May were staring at September. This newcomer was flirting with the prettiest iron devourer of their race right after arriving.

How excessive!

At that time, General Wen Qi laughed and said, “Since the descendants of Great Bamboo Marquis are here, may I repeat my words?”

“Sure.”

April was no longer interested in what the human had to say. He was more curious about the two newcomers. Where did they come from? Lower Realm? Was that even possible?

How odd.

After flashing both September and Su Yu a smile, General Wen Qi said, “Since the two of you are here, you must be aware of the recent incident involving the dragons. That was a surprise attack launched by Stable Army Marquis. Some of the hidden experts of humanity have finally revealed themselves.

“Blood Dragon Marquis is dead. Humanity has yet to return to its peak, but we are already capable of contending against the myriad races. Hundred Battle King will return soon as well. Thus, South Suppression Marquis wishes to rebuild the human alliance.

“The iron devourer race has always been our close ally. South Suppression Marquis wishes to reach an agreement with the iron devourer race.”

Understanding dawned on Su Yu. This guy was here to recruit some allies. And from what that fellow was saying, he was clearly here to fool the iron devourers into allying with them.

Understanding that, Su Yu spoke bluntly, “We are aware of that incident. Great Bamboo Marquis is taking this matter seriously. We are here to learn more about the incident. So General, are you saying that humans were the ones who had inflicted such damage to the dragons?”

“Yes.” General Wen Qi smiled and said, “Yes. Humans.”

“Oh. Can you tell us about their background?” Su Yu smiled and asked, “Where were they before this?”

“Prior to this, all those seniors were hiding in various dangerous locations. After Marquis Minshan’s death, South Suppression Marquis contacted the various hidden seniors and sought their help. They all decided to leave seclusion. Initially, they planned to first release Hundred Battle King. But since the situation was too tense, they were forced to act earlier than expected.”

Su Yu asked again, “According to what I know, there was a pseudo king among the attackers. All pseudo kings are seniors who have been around for a while. Can you tell us the identity of this senior? An ancient human marquis? A pseudo king can’t appear out of thin air, right?”

General Wen Qi smiled and said, “There was naturally a pseudo king among them or they wouldn’t have been able to kill Blood Dragon Marquis. As for the name of that senior…It’s not appropriate for me to say anything. We have to be cautious lest the myriad races learn of this. After learning the identity of that senior, they will be able to set specific traps to target that senior. We have to prevent that from happening.”

Su Yu chuckled and asked, “But we’re going to be allies soon. Are you unwilling to even give us a name? In that case, we won’t have the courage to actually ally with you. How can you leave your allies completely clueless?”

General Wen Qi raised his brow and looked at April.

April had an odd expression. He was content to listen silently, but he was also quite curious. This newcomer had a lot of questions. Since when did his race produce someone with so many questions?

Nevertheless, he still nodded and asked, “Your name…”

Su Yu said, “I’m Big Bamboo.”

Fine. Fine.

“Big Bamboo is right. General Wen Qi, tell us more about this pseudo king. Maybe that’s someone I know.”

General Wen Qi had a look of contemplation. After a long while, he sighed and said, “Fine. Cultured Peace Marquis. That’s the senior.”

“Cultured Peace Marquis?”

April said, “Isn’t he dead?”

“No, he has merely hidden himself away. He’s not dead.”

Wen Qi explained.

Su Yu already knew what they were doing. He wasn’t too surprised. It was perfectly normal for South Suppression Marquis to do something like this when he was in dire need of allies. But this did not seem wise. What would he do when the lie was exposed? When fooling someone, it was imperative for one to weave truth and falsehood together.

However, this general was using only falsehood. Su Yu chuckled and said, “Since South Suppression Marquis is asking for an alliance, what does he expect us to do after the alliance is formed?”

Wen Qi exhaled in relief. Finally, they were talking about something else. He hurriedly said, “Lord Great Bamboo has been residing in the Dao Origin Land, right? As of late, the myriad races are stirring. They might gather for a meeting to discuss the incident concerning Stable Army Marquis. Some experts might depart from the Dao Origin Land for this meeting.

“South Suppression Marquis wishes to join hands with all allies of humanity to look for Hundred Battle King and unseal him. With him free, all problems can be solved.”

Wen Qi’s voice grew fervent as he continued, “Lord Hundred Battle is incredibly powerful. He is someone near the level of a Master of Law. He is capable of handling three to four pseudo kings at the same time or even kill them in a battle.”

A pseudo king at the level of East Heavenly King was already capable of handling five to six Daofuses. In other words, Hundred Battle King alone was as strong as twenty to thirty Daofuses.

He was incredibly powerful. So that was South Suppression Marquis’ goal. No wonder they were trying to seek help from the iron devourers. Great Bamboo Marquis was someone with the strength of a heavenly king, and he was residing in the Dao Origin Land. March might also be there. Since Stable Army Marquis was aware of that, South Suppression Marquis was probably aware of that as well.

If they could establish an alliance with the iron devourers and free Hundred Battle King, they could indeed amass enough strength to contend against the myriad races.