All Things Are Contracts

Chapter 161: Human Geniuses (3)

In a wilderness outside Night City, two shifty figures, one old and one young, were secretly busy.

“What are you doing? Do you even know how? Don’t waste my good ingredients,” the old man said anxiously.

“What do you know? This is my secret seasoning. If you hadn’t said this chicken was extraordinary, I wouldn’t have bothered using it. Don’t judge by the charred exterior, it’ll be delicious inside!” the young man argued.

This old man and youth were hiding here roasting a chicken.

“Look at this meat,” the young man tore off a chicken leg. Under the charred skin was exceptionally tender meat. The old man took a bite and kept giving thumbs up. “Good job, kid. I didn’t raise you for nothing. What excellent skill.”

“Of course. But your ingredients are good too. Where did you get such a delicious chicken? Do you have any more?” Feng Bulang asked. This young man was the infamous scoundrel of Night City Academy.

“This is Night Changtian’s phoenix chicken. I heard it might have ancient phoenix bloodline,” the old man said.

Feng Bulang suddenly stopped chewing, as if he’d eaten something poisonous. “Old man, are you crazy?! You roasted the principal’s treasure? We’re doomed!”

“You roasted it. I didn’t touch it. You killed the chicken, plucked it, and did the roasting,” the old man continued eating happily.

“You… you… you’re trying to get me killed! That old codger has been looking for a chance to expel me, but couldn’t because of school rules. Now I’m finished. If I leave Night City, where else will I find so many cute junior sisters to flirt with! You old scoundrel, you set me up!” Feng Bulang was furious.

“Look at your petty concerns. It’s just one of his chickens, he can’t eat you. Let me point you in the right direction,” the old man said.

“What direction?” Feng Bulang asked, confused.

“Go to the Eastern Kingdom’s academy town to compete for a Book World trial slot. Represent Night City and win a slot, I guarantee he’ll be all smiles and won’t pursue your responsibility,” the old man said.

“Eastern Kingdom’s academy town? Not going, it’s too far,” Feng Bulang disliked conflict.

“You don’t have a choice, since you’ve already eaten the chicken,” the old man grabbed Feng Bulang and threw him into a black hole. When Feng Bulang woke up, he found himself in a coastal city, which was Pearl City.

“Damn, I’m in the Eastern Kingdom? That old bastard tricked me!” Feng Bulang finally realized. “Well, since I’m here, might as well check it out. Let me think, I could possibly fight others, but I hope I don’t encounter that winged ice sculpture woman from White Cloud Tower or that scale-covered monster from the Sleeping Dragon Kingdom. I definitely can’t beat those two. Honestly, this kind of thing should be for Huan Xiaoyao. His strength isn’t less than mine. Wait, they didn’t say only one person could compete. That old guy should have sent him too for insurance.”

Soon after, a figure was thrown out of the void and crashed onto Feng Bulang.

“Brother Feng?” Huan Xiaoyao was dizzy, and upon waking, saw Feng Bulang’s disgusted face.

“Get away from me, you little gay,” Feng Bulang quickly moved away. Sure enough, that old man had thrown him over too.

Huan Xiaoyao said helplessly, “Brother Feng, that incident was an accident. I’m a proper man, not gay. Don’t tarnish my reputation groundlessly.”

“Damn, your gaze is just not right,” Feng Bulang said, exasperated.

“Brother Feng, this is an admiring gaze. What’s wrong with it? Forget it, Brother Feng, what’s this Book World trial about? The old man didn’t explain it clearly to me,” Huan Xiaoyao asked, confused.

“Nothing much, just wants you to fight against Yunyao and Fan Longyu,” Feng Bulang said casually.

“Ah? Fight them? The Yunyao you’re talking about is that Yunyao, right? And Fan Longyu…” Huan Xiaoyao smiled bitterly, “Damn, aren’t we just going to be their punching bags?”

“Don’t be afraid, if you can’t win, just admit defeat. Remember, that woman Yunyao doesn’t like people staring at her. I suggest you fight her with your eyes closed. You can’t beat her anyway, don’t offend her,” Feng Bulang said.

Huan Xiaoyao nodded solemnly, “Thanks for the reminder, Brother Feng. Admitting defeat, I’m a professional at that.”

In the southeast of the Myriad Spirits World was a sea area called the Rosy Sea. North of the Rosy Sea was the Eastern Kingdom, while deep in the ocean south of the Rosy Sea was a vast World with only one country, called the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom. Legend had it that this was the land where the sun rose, and the origin of civilization in the Myriad Spirits World. This isolated overseas kingdom rarely contacted the outside world, even more mysterious than the Eternal Night Kingdom. There were even rumors that deep within this Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom lived the legendary giant race.

In the capital of the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom, Golden Crow City, there was none of the prosperity seen in other imperial capitals, and almost no commercial atmosphere. Simple houses built of yellow mud lined both sides of the streets. Cheers frequently echoed to the sky. The not-so-large capital had a hundred huge arenas, where battles between humans and beasts, and humans and humans, took place daily.

At this moment, in one of the beast-fighting arenas, a muscular man wielding a dagger was facing off against a giant bear. The man was bare-chested, with long hair falling over his shoulders, wearing a necklace of beast teeth. His originally handsome bronze face was made fierce by a scar running from upper left to lower right.

Amidst the cheers of the spectators, the man stuck close to the bear’s belly, stabbing his dagger into its neck, then performed a shoulder throw, slamming the bear, several times his size, hard onto the ground. The giant bear groaned in pain and then lay still. The man had used no profound energy, defeating a bear comparable to the Moon Profound Realm with just physical strength. Amidst the cheers of the surrounding audience, the man left the arena, wiped his sweat, and put on a golden beast skin coat brought by servants. He drank a cup of some animal’s blood in one gulp. He was no slave used for beast-fighting performances, but one of the ninety-nine adopted sons of the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom’s ruler, and the most talented among them, holding a high position in the kingdom.

“Tai’e, the King Father is looking for you,” another muscular man came to inform him.

The man named Tai’e tidied himself up and walked into a great hall. Sitting in the hall was a man, but his body was five or six times the size of a normal person, the absolute focus of the hall.

“Greetings, King Father,” Tai’e respectfully bowed to the giant before him.

“Tai’e, I will send you to the Eastern Kingdom’s academy town to participate in a competition. You need to win a slot for the Book World trial,” the Giant King said.

“King Father, our Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom has countless legacy inheritances within our borders, more than we can explore. Why fight with those people?” Tai’e said somewhat disdainfully. How could that Book World trial secret realm compare to the various terrifying legacies within the ancient kingdom?

“It’s not like that. The Book World secret realm is a special existence, possibly even the legacy of one of the ancient human emperors. Such an opportunity cannot be missed,” the Giant King added: “I’m sending you over to also convey a message to Thunder Lord and the others. In the face of the Nightmare calamity, our Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom will not stand idly by.”

It was well known that Illumination Goddess statues were spread throughout the World, and Illumination Towers were symbols of modern civilized cities. However, within the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom, there was not a single Illumination Tower or Illumination Goddess statue. Instead, there was a giant statue. Although also human, the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom’s beliefs differed from other humans. But this time, the Sun-Chasing Ancient Kingdom seemed willing to join hands with other humans to face the calamity together. This ancient capital hiding endless secrets was about to show its splendor to the world for the first time.