Chapter 476: Chen Dong’s Departure
“The Accursed Land?” Xia Fei muttered. “I remember now. You’re the Blood Candle Kingdom’s prince, and your kingdom is considered by the common people as the Accursed Land.”
Constantine laughed. “You rule Despair’s Domain, while I will inherit the Accursed Land’s throne. Moreover, the entire region is called the Death Land. If we put everything together, we’re basically in a horror movie.”
Xia Fei silently nodded. The Blood Candle Kingdom that this prince, whose EQ was somewhat in the negatives, would one day inherit was not far from Terminus. In ancient times, it was a place where criminals were banished to. Its people were tough, and though many of them were disabled in some way, they were extremely powerful fighters. It was one of the rare regions of the Alliance which was only half-civilized.
“Now that I think about it, I should pay you a visit in Terminus. Unfortunately, I’ll be having a wedding soon, so I really can’t leave,” Constantine apologetically said.
Xia Fei replied, “There’ll always be more opportunities in the future. Let me first congratulate you; I’ll have someone send you a wedding gift.”
Constantine asked, “Why do I feel like you’re not very happy to be the master of Terminus?”
Xia Fei faintly smiled. “A friend has recently decided to leave, and things just haven’t been going smoothly, too, so I really am in a rather sour mood.”
Constantine proposed, “If that’s so, why don’t you come to Blood Candle and relax a little? It’s not even four days from Friedel to Blood Candle; it’s easy to go here and back.”
After saying this, Constantine slapped himself on the head. “Wait, Friedel is the old name. It’s called New Terra now.”
Xia Fei was just about to refuse when he suddenly noticed the fervent look in Constantine’s eyes. It seemed like he was really hoping that Xia Fei would pay a visit to Blood Candle Kingdom.
“After two years without any contact, you must have some other matter to call me so suddenly, right?” Xia Fei smiled and asked.
Constantine’s smile faded as he solemnly replied, “In truth, there’s something I need your help on.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“My mother left after giving birth to me, and later on, my father married my stepmother and had a boy and girl with her. Thus, I’m not the only successor to the empire. My royal father is growing weaker and older by the day, and it’s time for an heir to be appointed.”
Xia Fei gave a slight nod. “So both you and your half-brother want to become the heir apparent, and as your mother is no longer around, you don’t have the upper hand in this power struggle.”
Constantine helplessly said, “You’re as sharp as ever. Running off in my adolescence to the Alliance to take part in the Golden Finger Cup left a very bad impression of me on my royal father.”
“What do I get for helping you?” asked Xia Fei bluntly.
“Friends.h.i.+p. The friends.h.i.+p of the Blood Candle Kingdom,” Constantine solemnly answered. “My kingdom is just a small nation, surviving in the middle of the numerous warlords of the Death Tri-region and having subpar relations with the powerful Alliance. Do you know why these people have never tried attacking Blood Candle all this time?”
“Why?”
“Because we have the strongest army of ability warriors. To boast a little, while Blood Candle may have many disabled citizens, but in a real fight, we fear no one.”
Constantine emphasized the power of his kingdom’s army, but this was not enough to move Xia Fei. He lit a cigarette and casually said, “I managed to become Terminus’s ruler without anyone’s help. In the future, I’ll also not need to rely on anyone for defense.”
Constantine was somewhat disappointed. Dropping his head, he began to ponder on what else he could say.
However, Xia Fei spoke again. “But since we two have some connection, it’s not hard for me to make a trip to your kingdom and lend you a hand, but whether or not you can ultimately take the throne will depend on you.”
Constantine was elated. “Great! It’s a deal, then. If I can take the throne, my kingdom will become eternal friends with Terminus. Didn’t you want to know where I learned my mechanical skills? Once you get here, you won’t be disappointed.”
Once the screen was off, Phantom said, “A pretty decent trade. The Blood Candle Kingdom is an extremely unconventional existence in the Alliance, and becoming friends with it is certainly vital to Terminus Star Region’s continued peace. After all, you’re going to leave soon. Having an extra friend is better than an extra enemy.”
…
Exquisite delicacies were served on the table. Xia Fei and Avril accompanied Old Porter in drinking some wine, and the atmosphere warmed. Xia Fei was the typical arm-flinging shopkeeper, only concerning himself with policy and leaving Porter, Charlie, and his other friends to complete it. Thus, Xia Fei had deep respect for these people.
He told Avril and Porter about what Constantine had told him, and Porter agreed that he should make a trip to Blood Candle Kingdom. After all, that kingdom was really close. The two sides being at peace would benefit the civilians on both sides. The citizens of Earth had yet to settle down fully, and now was not the time to make enemies.
“Xia Fei, I think that putting Constantine on the throne is great, but do your best not to make an enemy of his younger brother.”
Xia Fei smiled. “I understand what you mean. I’ll consider both the feelings of the people and the inclinations of the current king.”
Avril was rather absentminded. Xia Fei did not bring it up in front of Porter, but at night, when Porter was gone, Xia Fei raised the matter.
“Avril, what’s wrong with you today?” asked Xia Fei as he sat on the bed and stroked Avril’s golden hair.
Avril nestled against Xia Fei’s chest like a little bird as she softly said, “When I was in the kitchen, Pang Xing called me and told me that my grandfather’s health hasn’t been good lately.”
Xia Fei replied, “You’ve been with me in Terminus for several months now. The data relays of Starlink Corporation have basically been set up in this region. Why don’t you go home and see your family?”
Avril was somewhat unwilling to leave Xia Fei, and she pondered on this for some time. “Mm, then I’ll go back for a visit and be back in two months.”
It was a dark and quiet night, but Xia Fei could not get any sleep. He went alone to the cultivation chamber and took out two items from his spatial ring. The first was the slumbering Pod and the other was the Blood Demon Claw which had yet to bear fruit.
Xia Fei obtained the Blood Demon Claw when it was dark red. Though Xia Fei had been diligently watering it with the Source of Life for three months, it was still a dark red.
“How strange. The Blood Demon Claw should have flowered at this point. Why is nothing happening with it? Isn’t this a little too strange?” Phantom helplessly asked.
Xia Fei watered it with the waters from the lake. The water source at the center of the lake was plenty, and Xia Fei always gave the plant just the right amount of water. This work had gone on for three months, once in the morning and once at night, without stop.
Returning the Blood Demon Claw to its storage device, Xia Fei picked up Pod and began inspecting all of his components. This was something that Xia Fei did once every one or two days; alas, Pod showed no signs of waking up.
Letting out a sigh, Xia Fei thought about the Law of Primal Chaos on his left arm and Peac.o.c.k Blue on his right arm. There was also no movement from them. It was as if he had big stacks of money in his hands which he had no way of spending, and he could not help but feel depressed.
“It’s about time I go out a bit. It seems like this peaceful life doesn’t suit me,” Xia Fei said as he looked up at the stars.
…
Starlink Corporation’s First Fleet, with Avril on board, was accompanied by Sarah’s transport fleet and Ling Xiao’s Quantum Holdings Third Fleet. It turned out that they also needed to return to the Alliance and carry out a transportation mission.
The construction of the Terminus Star Region consumed a vast amount of materials every day, and local production was lacking. Thus, Sarah’s fleet needed to go back and forth to the Alliance and Terminus; hence, she had become much busier than Old Porter.
With a powerful fleet protecting her, Xia Fei did not need to worry about Avril’s safety. Moreover, she had the Golden Jasper Spirit, and such an Immortal-rank protective barrier was nothing to scoff at. No one in the Alliance would be able to hurt Avril now.
After sending off Avril, Xia Fei prepared for his journey to Blood Candle Kingdom. Besides the normal gifts, Xia Fei also brought a lot of the water from the Southern Four Lakes. The clear lake water contained the energy of the Source of Life. The plants of New Terra grew rapidly when nurtured with its water. Saplings would grow into trees, which were five or six meters tall, within a few weeks. After being irrigated by the waters of the Southern Four Lakes, barren land would quickly begin to sprout green gra.s.s. It had such a miraculous ability to alter the environment that Porter called it magic water.
Of course, the Southern Four Lakes were encircled by the military, and no one except Xia Fei was allowed to get close. It must be understood that the Source of Life was resting at the bottom of the lake, and it would be terrible if someone stole it.
Taking Furball with him, he boarded Nirvana. Xia Fei took out the navigation map that Constantine had given him, set the course, allowed the AI to calculate the route, and took flight.
The route to Blood Candle Kingdom was treacherous, and without a navigation map, let alone four days, getting there in forty days would be difficult.
Suddenly, his communication device began to ring. Glancing at it, he saw that it was Chen Dong’s number.
“I have something very important to tell you,” Chen Dong solemnly said, but there was a hint of excitement in his voice.
“What is it?” asked Xia Fei with a smile.
“I need to thank you!”
Xia Fei was speechless. He did not know why Chen Dong wanted to thank him, but from his expression, he was not joking.
“Thank me?”
“Yes! I must thank you for teaching me the YES theory.”
Xia Fei smiled. “Really, I only saw that you’re spending all your days at the cultivation center and knew that draining too much energy from Hearts of Spirit wasn’t good for you, so I came up with a way to persuade you into leaving and breathing fresh air outside from time to time. It’s a small thing. No need to give me a call just to thank me.”
Chen Dong waved his hands and solemnly said, “I must thank you! I must! Still, I have to leave soon.”
“To where?” asked Xia Fei in confusion.
“I can’t say, but it’s a good place,” replied Chen Dong excitedly.
Xia Fei smiled. “Why so mysterious? Forget it. Once you have time to visit Terminus, I’ll treat you to a big meal.”
Suddenly recalling his agreement with Yujiang and Yuhua, Xia Fei added, “You’ll have to be fast, though.”
Chen Dong frowned. “I might be gone for a long time.”
“How long?”
“Very, very long.”
Xia Fei was speechless. Chen Dong was not very good with his words. All he had eyes for was cultivation—constant cultivation and constant advancement. That he was talking with Xia Fei now was already quite good. When it came to others, unless he wanted a fight with them, Chen Dong would cherish his words as if they were made of gold.
After turning off the screen, Xia Fei stroked his chin and said, “Strange, where is Chen Dong going? He seems to be taking it very seriously.”
“I know, right? That’s probably the most he’s said in his entire life. It seems to be something very important to him,” Phantom replied.
Standing up, Xia Fei said, “Forget it. Every person has their own path. I can only hope that he doesn’t get caught up in something dubious.”
*Whoosh~*
Nirvana took off just as the sun started to rise, its destination, the Accursed Land.