Chapter 91: Death, or Submission?

Yunli was a character who had never appeared in the book before. Jiang Yan could not fathom his true identity, nor could he grasp the direction in which the plot was now heading. In truth, Jiang Yan's own joining of the Qilin Sect was already an unexpected variable. With the way things were unfolding now, even the original author would probably shake their head in disbelief.

Jiang Yan watched as Yunli beamed with joy at being allowed to stay, grinning as if he had just found a treasure. With a soft click of his tongue, Jiang Yan sighed inwardly.

Through the gaping, shocking hole in the roof, Lin Qi glanced at the ink-black sky and waved his hand to the group. "That's enough, it's getting late. Everyone, go back and rest."

"Yes, Master," responded Ji Chuxue and the others in unison, each turning swiftly to return to their own dwellings.

Tonight, it was certain that some would find sleep elusive.

The humble thatched hut assigned to Yunli was now in disarray, its roof a ruin. Should night rain fall, the gaping hole would surely let the water pour in without hindrance. Yet no one suggested he find another, more intact hut. Yunli himself showed not the slightest sign of discontent, and so he remained in that room, lying silently on the bed beneath the broken eaves.

In the dim chamber, Yunli coughed lightly twice, his eyes piercing the gloom as he gazed into the fathomless night sky. His thoughts drifted far into memories long past.

He could still recall with painful clarity his first encounter with the Lord of Demons. At that time, he had been nothing more than a six-year-old orphan, with neither father nor mother.

The conversation then, the fateful meeting—everything remained as vivid as yesterday.

It had happened in the divine realm’s arena, where some noble deities found it amusing to watch bloody gladiatorial combat. There, the use of divine power was forbidden; only physical strength determined victory or defeat.

With his small, frail body, he stood bravely against three wolves, each larger and fiercer than himself. The wolves snarled at him, but he responded without a trace of fear.

Among the audience, raucous voices rose and fell. A richly dressed nobleman burst out laughing. "Hahaha, this little brat is as fierce as those three fire wolves!"

Another spectator asked with curiosity, "Where did these fire wolves come from?"

The nobleman scoffed dismissively. "Hmph, just some offspring of wolf demons who ascended from the lower realm, hoping to change their fate. Don't worry, I’ve already slaughtered their parents. These fire wolves are now under my control."

The other spectator nodded in approval. "It's for the best. Those who ascend from below, whether human or demon—how can they compare to those of us born in the upper realm? They're nothing but ants in our eyes! These fire wolves need to be tamed from a young age. If they grow up, they might well turn on us."

The noble issued a command to the wolves, "Go on, all of you—tear him apart. Don't embarrass me!"

Someone raised a hesitant objection. "Isn't it a bit much, setting three fire wolves against a child?"

But another shot back immediately, "Don't you see? Look in his eyes—there's nothing ordinary about them. There's a ruthless glare there, just like a wolf’s. This boy is no innocent."

Little Yunli’s hearing was exceptional; he caught every venomous comment from the crowd, his heart seething with rage, consumed by a desire to tear them all to pieces.

More than the wolves, he wanted to kill those hypocrites in the stands.

Was he thrown into this arena to fight beasts, simply because he was an unwanted orphan? To survive in this brutal place, he had no choice but to become fiercer than any beast.

As for why he wanted to live—he didn’t know. But in his mind, a vague, gentle figure urged him to endure and live on.

Just as his strength was about to fail, a sudden wave of terrified screams erupted from the audience. The three wolves halted their attack at once.

The once-arrogant nobleman now trembled, pleading, "Who… who are you? Please, spare me! Don’t… don’t kill me!"

"Heh, coward," a man's cool voice echoed through the arena.

A crisp snap followed, and the noble’s neck was twisted effortlessly.

The man chuckled, his tone taunting. "Isn’t it just brute strength? Is this enough for you?"

"Ahhh!"

"Murder! Run for your lives!"

"Aren't we going to fight back?"

"Go ahead if you want to. They look terrifying!"

Panic overtook the stands as people scattered in all directions.

The man snorted coldly, "Kill them."

"Yes, my lord!" At his command, his subordinates sprang into action, hunting down the fleeing nobles and cutting them down one by one.

In an instant, the arena was awash with blood—a scene out of the netherworld itself.

Yet little Yunli felt no fear at the carnage; instead, his heart rejoiced.

How many innocents, humans and beasts alike, had been dragged here to die for the amusement of these so-called nobles?

Did they believe their noble birth could cloak all their crimes?

The man suddenly appeared in the center of the arena and spoke in a low voice to the three fire wolves, "Death, or submission?"

[Note: The flow of time is different in the divine realm, the immortal realm, and the lower realm. The settings in this book are as follows: One year in the immortal realm equals ten years in the lower realm. One year in the divine realm equals three years in the immortal realm. Calculated as 365 days per year, one day in the divine realm equals three days in the immortal realm, and one day in the immortal realm equals ten days in the lower realm. In other words, one day in the divine realm equals thirty days in the lower realm.]