Chapter 559: Close At Hand
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Vigilante A and Tom the Cat’s series of movements had long since alerted the villa residents.
Black Robe, Ling Yunzi, and others all walked into the courtyard and looked up at the sky.
“Vigilante A, you call yourself a Hero, but trespa.s.s on others’ private property without permission. Do you know your crime?!” Black Robe shouted righteously.
Tom the Cat was furious when he heard this. ‘This b.a.s.t.a.r.d’s treating my residence as his own!’
It was just about to curse him but immediately shut up instead…
There was no choice. Although the house was its and it even had the real estate deed with it wherever it went with all the formalities completed, it could not say that the signature on the deed was its, let alone take it out!
After all, its ident.i.ty was currently the Upper Realm Spiritual Tiger Thomson. If it were to reveal the truth, would it not be like slapping itself in its face?
Vigilante A did not know its true ident.i.ty, but although it wanted him to know, now was not the time to reveal it. It could not afford to say so now.
Thus, it could only glare angrily at the other party.
Black Robe immediately felt the tiger’s furious gaze. At a glance, the black tiger definitely belonged to Vigilante A.
He subconsciously felt a trace of admiration. Although the tiger that Vigilante A mounted was quite dark, it was also loyal…
For a beast to feel anxious or anger on behalf of its master was incredibly rare. Of course, it was still slightly inferior compared to himself.
The thought flitted through his mind before he was struck with inspiration. The moment he thought about that, he immediately did not know whether to laugh or cry.
‘This tiger, isn’t it Tom the Cat?
‘When Owner wanted to forcefully seize the Bodhisattva Spirit King’s arcane realm, he had been interrupted by Vigilante A’s instantaneous appearance. That time, he said that the black cat Tom had already betrayed them.
‘No wonder this person hates me so much. It’d be weird if it didn’t…
‘The others and I seized its land and occupied its territory, easy and unfettered, while it could only become Vigilante A’s mount.’
After coming to this realization, Black Robe believed that he understood why Vigilante A dared to trespa.s.s into another’s home.
‘Isn’t it in line with his senseless path of heroism to forcefully take back the original owner’s property?’
While Black Robe thought of this, Tom the Cat could not hold back its words and spit, “You black b.a.s.t.a.r.d! You’re obviously a Devil who’s forcefully occupying another’s property, but you still dare to speak righteously. You really don’t know how to feel shame!”
When they heard this, everyone’s face turned a little strange. This scene really looked like the pot calling the kettle black…
Black robe was furious upon hearing its words. He had originally planned not to expose Tom the Cat, to prevent it from knowing that he had already figured out the truth about its ident.i.ty.
However, its words had struck a nerve. Since he was transformed by a black robe, he was extremely dark. When he walked on the streets in America, many people regarded him as an African-American.
Thus, he said hatefully, “Hmph, I wondered who I was talking to, so you’re that discarded cat… How funny, are you trying to take back your property by sucking up to your new owner? Shame, you’re just a cat. Everything here is under that woman’s name now. She’s already transferred this place to us, so you can just continue being a mount and work for a living as a dog!”
The black cat Tom was just about to explode in anger when it suddenly jolted. ‘That b.a.s.t.a.r.d, he directly exposed my ident.i.ty!’
It glanced sideways and immediately looked at Vigilante A, who was seated on its back.
However, he remained expressionless, as if everything was in his expectations. There was no anger or even a hint of surprise.
It immediately felt relieved. Being on the same team as an upright and honest person like him made it feel rea.s.sured. It did not have to worry about him double-crossing him or scheming behind its back.
Since he did not get angry because of this, it proved that he had already acquiesced to the fact that it defected.
A large stone fell in its heart. Tom thought quickly and immediately retorted, “Hmph, you parentless devil, you take things by force and even shove false arguments down people’s throats! You’re really uneducated, ignorant and don’t know about good and evil. If you know what’s good for you, bow your head immediately and return the property! Otherwise, I’ll grind you to powder in a second!”
Fang Ning felt very good hearing that.
Indeed, Vigilante A’s status would be lowered if he was the one doing the scolding. However, this nimble-minded and witty black cat was quite useful.
When this black cat shuttled back and forth between large forces in the past, it was best at all kinds of provocation. Its ability to shoot its mouth off was unrivaled.
“Hahaha!” Black Robe laughed with his head raised up to the sky, “Vigilante A? So what! Others may be afraid of him, but I’m not!”
Saying this, he swept his robe and wrapped the two people behind him, and immediately disappeared…
Thus, the only one left in the courtyard was the abandoned Ling Yunzi…
His figure turned and immediately tried to slip away, but he realized that the s.p.a.ce around him seemed to be an impenetrable wall that he could not pa.s.s through.
“Hmph, Vigilante A, you’re nothing much. You actually let them get away with such a simple verbal ability. How funny, it’s really too ridiculous!” Ling Yunzi stroked his beard and also laughed facing the sky.
“From the beginning, my only target was you.” Vigilante A said lightly.
Fang Ning also found it a little strange. How could Sir System, with ten threads running at the same time, let the targets before it just slipped away like that?
However, unlike before, Sir System already learned s.p.a.ce techniques.
Furthermore, the System’s threads were not human, so they would not be distracted by the opponent’s simple verbal abilities.
Ling Yunzi was shocked upon hearing this. His entire expression changed, and he lightly said, “Looks like I’m going to lose another Dharmakaya again.”
The System grew gloomy at his words, “Mr. Rich Boss, you kept delaying when I asked you to find this old man’s true body in the past and never gave me an answer. Look now, we’ve finally trapped him, but it turned out to be a fake!”
Fang Ning immediately fell short of arguments. He quickly looked at the System Map and saw that the Old Master’s dot was mostly black.
He knew that monsters’ colors would change from red to black. The darker the color, the more it represented its viciousness in the world. In contrary, if the color leaned towards white, that meant that it was an upright creature.
He was struck with inspiration and said, “Did you think I didn’t find him? In appearance, he looks far away, but in reality, he’s very close.”
“Speak clearly, I don’t understand.” The System said doubtfully.
“I’m saying,” Fang Ning said heavily, “that his old man is the real body. He’s just using verbal abilities to swindle you, and try to escape while you’re off guard.”
“I see, he’s really cunning. Without your reminder, I really wouldn’t want to waste too much energy on him… After all, killing him doesn’t give me any benefit, and it doesn’t eradicate him either.”
“Hehe, that’s where you’re wrong. In any case, even if that’s his Dharmakaya, if you destroy him, he’ll have to go back and cultivate yet another Dharmakaya again. It’ll waste a lot of his resources and power.” Fang Ning hurriedly patched up.
“Hm, why do I feel like you’re talking out of your *ss again?” The System immediately became uncertain.
“Whether or not I’m talking out of my *ss, the strategic advice I gave you is very clear. It doesn’t matter if it’s his true body or a Dharmakaya, just kill him all the same!” Fang Ning said confidently.
“Alright, I’ll do it. However, you’ll have to reimburse what I consumed for this…”
“You’ll get it back in after sleeping for two days and working for another two days. Why do you need reimburs.e.m.e.nt?” Fang Ning was puzzled.
“Who said so? I want to use your Khorium ore dog eyes to find out the truth, and the experience consumed is very high. You used to be lazy and didn’t find the real body in time, and delayed it all the way till now. This is all your fault, so of course I want you to reimburse me.” The System said righteously.
Fang Ning was unable to justify himself, he was indeed guilty of being lazy… He could only say, “Fine, I’ll reimburse you. However, my baby doesn’t have that much experience left, so I’ll have to let it out to harvest another wave. My heart aches for it.”
“Why are you feeling sorry for it? It’s just a useless book. It won’t get tired or torn or flattened…”
“Stop stop. Just get down to business and start fighting!” Fang Ning did not want to hear it bad-mouthing the precious game book and quickly commanded.
Ling Yunzi felt an overwhelming aura pressuring him at the same time the black tiger disappeared below Vigilante A, and immediately understood that he would not let him go.
‘d.a.m.n it, we’re all exceptional powerhouses and have no intention of sacrificing our lives in conflict. Why can’t we just coexist peacefully and improve our cultivation respectively?
‘Why do we have to fight amongst ourselves and let those outcasts reap the benefits?
‘Wait, that’s right. This guy gets stronger the more he fights and cultivates the so-called Path of Heavenly Punishment. Hmph, I was mistaken then. To Vigilante A, exceptional powerhouses are the best sources to let him grow.
‘In that case, there’s only one method left.
‘And that was to fight!’
Letting the Dust Settle
Bai s.h.i.+xin was completely surprised. He had made preparations to act, but he never expected that an insect would appear from the skies.
The deal between them was just to deal with fellow Greater Rats who had been urged by Nie Yuan to send themselves to their deaths. It did not include dealing with an unexpected factor like Cang Lang.
He never thought that the other party would actually take the initiative to act and help suppress this wretched Arctic Wolf.
At this moment, cheers sounded from the Square.
“Well said, how dare you bully others with force? We don’t want you to be King!”
“As expected of an influential clan from the Upper Realm, their insight is different. You should learn from them a little, you lowly mongrel…”
A group of Greater Rats already stood up and said hatefully.
This Arctic Wolf dared to launch a surprise attack and caused their Clan to suffer through humiliation. Since they could not beat it with force, they naturally had to resort to words instead.
Cang Lang’s face flushed in fury although its heart was calm as ever. It was thinking about a question, ‘Why do I always get beaten back every time I come out to show off…
‘Right, the reason’s very simple. I’m not wrong, it’s just that my power isn’t strong enough.
‘I’m at the apex of the second-rate world, but I’m only dregs in the first-rate world. That’s why I was beaten when meeting Elder Ancestor Bai, and why I don’t have a certainty of success and even have to fear its background when meeting Chong Daqing!
‘Hmph, looks like I’ll have to cultivate well and work harder. When I’m number one in the world, I’ll come back again!’
It secretly resolved itself and suddenly disappeared from the Square without saying a single word.
It appeared soundlessly but left in full view of the public.
“Hahaha, that mongrel ran away with its tail between its legs!”
“This is all thanks to the reinforcement. Thankfully, Chief Bai made countless plans and invited reinforcements in advance to be absolutely safe. They even prevented that vile person from succeeding and defended our dignity of our Greater Rat Clan.”
“Yeah, if I had to choose a leader for us, I’d choose Chief Bai. Without him, we’d be finished today!”
Although the credit belonged to the great green insect, since Bai s.h.i.+xin arranged for supporters first, they quickly guided the opinions so that all the credit s.h.i.+fted to his efforts.
Although what they were saying was not false, it was only a part of the truth.
The Greater Rats in the Square got up from the ground and secretly nodded after hearing all these.
That was just the way it is. Now that there was no suppression from top-notch powerhouses in the clan, they could only let a top-notch wise man come to power. They would temporarily sc.r.a.pe by and deal with the parties until a genius younger generation appears who can support the overall situation and make progress.
Those who had the qualifications to attend the funeral were all Greater Rats with some scholarly positions, not those laborers or even those incomplete ones. They could be considered to be the Greater Rat elites.
They could naturally make reasonable judgments. There really were only a few people who were suitable candidates to rise to power.
By elimination, only the exceedingly wise Bai s.h.i.+xin, who had always been selfless, impartial, and honest was the most suitable.
He also had an advantage: he could not cultivate.
This meant that if the other party did not perform well, he could be ousted at any time. They would not have to worry that a situation they were incapable of turning around would occur.
Disasters and fortune have always been interdependent, and good and bad luck always came together. A powerhouse leader was a good thing, but it was also a bad thing. Once the powerhouse could no longer be controlled, the entire clan may be led towards their demise.
They had heard of many legends in the Upper Realm where several strong and influential clans in the Upper Realm perished in that way. Some were treated as cultivation offerings by the powerhouses, and some provoked a stronger powerhouse, leading to the crisis of the extermination of the entire clan.
“I suggest that Chief Bai be our new King!” A Greater Rat supporter, seeing that the mood of the people was starting to brew, he might as well start to persuade and try to s.n.a.t.c.h the first contribution. When things blew over, he would be able to obtain more cultivation resources.
It was impossible not to arrange for supporters. The feelings of the public were blind, so without additional guidance, it would be hard to transform it to his own advantage. Everyone knew the importance of publicity.
“That’s right, Chief Bai is the most familiar with daily operations. If he’s king, then he can at least ensure a smooth transition.”
“Yeah, yesterday’s blackout was easily solved by Chief Bai. That really proved his capabilities!”
“Chief Bai is selfless, dedicated to the public, and works overtime every day. He’s a role model for countless people. He’s so hardworking, so why can’t we choose him to become the King?”
“That- but he doesn’t even have the strength to truss a chicken. Although he used to be a cultivation genius, he’s a cripple now. If he becomes King, won’t the other races laugh till their teeth drop if they find out?” Some ‘non-supporters’ sharply pointed out the problem.
“Yeah, the races will compete with each other in the future. There’ll be matters involving kings and other kings as well. If…” Some independently thinking Greater Rats shook their heads when they thought of that.
If Bai s.h.i.+xin kept getting defeated by the leaders of small clans, no matter how proficient he was in planning, he could not be the head. It was too humiliating!
This was not a trivial point. If the leader of a clan was not strong enough and was constantly beaten around by others, the clan’s mind would definitely fall apart, and they would be looked down upon by all kinds of ridicule.
That feeling was definitely something unpleasant.
Therefore, while the supporters Bai s.h.i.+xin arranged began to gain momentum, they encountered this unavoidable problem.
At this time, some elite Greater Rats began to voice their support, “So what if he’s a cultivation cripple? We’re not lacking in cultivation geniuses now. What we lack is a person who can keep our system running. All we need to do is just equip the new king with a few more bodyguards.”
“That’s right, if an invincible person were to rise in power, he might be able to gain face in foreign affairs, but would he be able to manage such a complex situation?” The supporting rats quickly began to ask, eliminating other candidates.
“Yeah, that’ll be tough. Look at that so-called official successor over there. If you leave it to him, would he know how to read the daily supply and demand chart, regulate supply and demand, and ensure the Greater Rats’ steady development?”
“I still think we should let a powerhouse come into power who at least can fight back against that Arctic Wolf. After all, we can’t be asking this n.o.bility to help us ‘everyday right? We probably can’t afford that.” Someone said lowly.
After the great green insect appeared, it just spoke one sentence and started eating without stopping. No one knew when it would finish eating. It was a question that probably only the Heavens had the answer to.
The Square was immediately plunged into a huge debate, each with their own arguments.
Bai s.h.i.+fu looked at Bai s.h.i.+xin, who was still standing still, and could not resist asking telepathically, “Brother, you have a superb spiritual skill. You just used it yesterday to give the announcement to the entire city. It’s just that the Greater Rats are ignorant and don’t know how amazing it is. Why don’t you demonstrate it again?”
“No,” Bai s.h.i.+xin already changed his mind. He lightly said, “I have a new idea now. I’ll be the new Greater Rat King with the background of a cultivator cripple.”
“You want to leave it as your trump card?”
“You can say that. This spiritual skill I’m cultivating is too partial and is easily targeted. Only if I have an extremely strong physical body as aid would I be able to reach the realm of perfection. Unfortunately, I can reach this condition, but I don’t have the opportunity to cultivate that book.” Bai s.h.i.+xin shook his head.
“I see, Brother, you really do have a plan for everything. With you as King, everything else will be a cinch.” Bai s.h.i.+fu watched the public opinion slowly change directions and began to humble himself and flatter Bai s.h.i.+xin.