"You think I am afraid of that little brat? What Heavenly Dog General, Heavenly Wolf General? In my eyes, they are little cubs that could be dealt with a swing of my fist. Just because they name themselves after the Heavenly Stars can they become formidable figures? What delusional fools!!!"
Liu Kong said domineeringly causing the figure to shake in fear. At that moment, a cruel bloodthirsty aura burst out of Liu Kong causing the figure to kneel down in submission.
"If it is the Crown Prince of the Star Dynasty, then he might be my match. As for that trash who is the Third Prince, he will be walking towards his death if he wants to deal with me," Liu Kong snorted arrogantly.
"As for that Level 7 beast, I have no plans to tangle with that. I am pretty sure that the Heavenly Demon Sect will be making their move as well. And that beast is only at the early stage of Level 7."
"With Heavenly Demon Sect making their moves, I just need to let the rest of the experts that come for the treasure entangle with them. I will act as the fisherman that reaps the benefits," Liu Kong said with a cunning gleam shining through his eyes.
"You don't need to worry about my safety. However, I want you to start chaos in the three cities closest to the Grasslands three weeks from now. Even though I am confident about obtaining the item, it would be beneficial for my escape if the Star Empire is forced to deal with internal problems."
"If needed, you can expose some of our less useful assets in these cities. Just make sure that the Star Empire is sufficiently distracted when the time comes. It would be better if things could be used to deal an insidious blow at the same time," Liu Kong said with a vicious smile causing the kneeling figure to nod.
"It will be done as you command, Holy Son," the figure replied in a solemn tone.
"Remember, this matter is very important to me. If any negligence caused me to lose out on this opportunity, I will personally hold you responsible. I don't care what you have to do, just make sure that the Star Empire's forces are in disarray three weeks from now. You are dismissed."
Liu Kong waved his hands as he once more restrained his bloodthirsty aura. The figure once more turned into a dark shadow and left the place.
Liu Kong stood alone once more as he stared in the direction of Grasslands. The calm breeze once more picked up and the tranquil atmosphere returned.
"Three weeks… three weeks… If all goes well, I will take that crucial step in my cultivation. Xing Siukong, just wait! Once I am successful, I will show you why some tears are bloody in color."
Liu Kong mumbled to himself before setting off in the direction of Grasslands.
*****
Nebula City, Imperial Palace
Xing Wukong's face looked very ugly as he stared at the servant who was kneeling in front of him. He very much wanted to blast the fool into million pieces at this moment.
"What do you mean that you lost track of Liu Kong?" he asked in a deadly voice causing the servant to shiver in fear.
"Our apologies, Third Prince. Liu Kong never arrived in Starmist City. We lost him somewhere from fifty miles to the city. I am afraid that he realized that our people were keeping tags on him," the servant reported with a quiver in his voice.
"You useless pieces of shits!!! Can't you do one thing without bungling it up?" Xing Wukong seethed in fury. "Get lost!!! I don't want you in my sight!"
The servant quickly scurried away leaving Xing Wukong to seethe in silence. Xing Wukong knew that things were getting out of hand by now. He really didn't expect whatever had happened in the Grasslands to attract so much trouble.
In the past two months, several experts have made their way into the Star Empire quite brazenly. They were acting so callously that it made his teeth ache. It was as if they didn't even place the Star Empire in their eyes.
It had started in ones and twos in the beginning. He hadn't bothered about it much. He knew that these experts aren't the type to listen to others. So, he had let them roam around as they pleased.
After all, with the Heavenly Demon Sect and the Level 7 beast present, these idiots would soon end up dead after entering the Grasslands. So, it hadn't mattered much in the beginning.
But, when these idiots start to create trouble wherever they go and even swagger around in Nebula City, then it became his headache. It was clear that didn't respect the Star Empire much.
As he ran around putting down the fires these imbeciles left in their wake, he had less and less time to devote to the matter that was going to happen in Grasslands. It literally drove him mad.
He was very close to snapping and ordering the entire army to move out to hunt these bastards down.
But, he preserved.
It wasn't very wise to create so much enmity with all powers standing behind these people. After all, these are dead men walking. And if he were to hastily lash out, then the Star Empire will have to face pressure from a lot of powers.
While neither he nor the empire was afraid of them, it would be troublesome to deal with a whole bunch of these people. But, if he let the Heavenly Demon Sect clear these rubbles, he would benefit in both ways.
If all these powers joined hands, they might even trouble the Heavenly Demon Sect for a while. So, it would be naturally advantageous for the Star Empire to let those two clash.
But, the thing that worried him most was the appearance of all these people at the same time. The incident occurred a few months ago, but these people are appearing now as if they all had received some valuable information.
This reeked of someone manipulating things from behind.
Now, what he wanted to know most was who their target is. Is it the Star Empire? Or is it the Heavenly Demon Sect?
There are no coincidences in this world.
The fact that a Level 7 beast appeared in Grasslands was somewhat believable. However, its appearance to coincide with that strange disturbance was a little worrying.
To add to that, several high-level experts of the Star Empire had perished in the initial wave of the incident bringing the fighting power of the empire down. And a few months later, several experts from outside of the empire are appearing inside it.
Strangely enough, the Heavenly Demon Sect has been silent until now. It didn't match their domineering style at all. Perchance, did they know something? Are they staying out of it because this plot was aimed at the empire?
Xing Wukong was not sure about anything at this moment. He had questions upon questions. But there were no answers for them. He dare not act rashly, lest he walked into a trap.
So, he could only grit his teeth and wait it out.
But, he had been sure of one thing. Liu Kong and the Seven Clouds Sect were behind at least some of the problems. So, he had increased his surveillance over Liu Kong for the past two months.
Now that he had lost him, Xing Wukong was beginning to feel a little uneasy.
With a heavy sigh, Xing Wukong decided to do the smart thing. After all, if he miscalculated, things might turn for the worse. As of now, in the entire empire, there was only one person who could tackle this matter.
Decision made, he abruptly stood and began walking towards the interior of the palace.
*****
Great Hall, Heavenly Demon Sect, Grasslands…
"Sect Master," the Head Elder of the Blood Hall spoke in a solemn tone, "something about this entire thing seems fishy. I fear that someone is stoking the fire from the dark."
The Sect Master of the Heavenly Demon Sect sat on his throne deep in thought for some time. He had underestimated the situation earlier. He had thought that only shrimp soldiers and desperados of other sects would step foot inside the Grasslands when the time came.
However, the reality proved itself different. The people who were making their way into the Grasslands were not some expendable idiots. They are the experts for whom their respective sects have high hope.
Clashing with them will only invite more headaches than necessary. Even if it was the Heavenly Demon Sect, they couldn't singlehandedly go against the entire world.
Meanwhile, remaining silent would also be perceived as a weakness by the enemies of the sect. Being a demonic sect, the Heavenly Demon Sect has flourished until now because of the fear the righteous sects have towards them. If it is lost, then soon they will be besieged and eliminated.
"Even if we fight with all these experts, I am afraid we will also be wounded a lot. It would drag down our power and our enemies might take advantage of this," the Head Elder of the Blood Hall said with an unsightly face.
"Hmmph," the Sect Master snorted angrily. "When have we Heavenly Demons cowered in our sect when mice come dancing before us? I can understand what you mean, but does it matter? We are demonic cultivators. Not those righteous morons. From when did we need a justification to attack anyone?"
"I have told this before, and I will tell this now. We have been silent for a long time. So, these imbeciles have forgotten the fear we induced in them. I think it is time for them to remember the terror we can bring."
"But, Sect Master, what if this is exactly what the perpetrator wants?" the Head Elder said in a worried tone.
"Doesn't matter," the Sect Master waved his hands impatiently. "I am done keeping quiet. I and the Vice Sect Master will hold the fort down. Meanwhile, mobilize our elites. I want the entire Grasslands to become hell. Hunt down anyone who steps foot into the Grasslands. Let's see who dares to step foot into our area after that."
"In that case, what about the Level 7 beast?"
"Why should we waste our efforts hunting it down? Can't we hunt it down after things have been calmed down? Let those idiots face it's rage. Meanwhile, let us show the world what we Heavenly Demons are capable of."
"As you command, Sect Master."