Lying on the ground, Jessy struggled to voice her objections against Fars's autocratic behavior, but the piece of cloth taken from her own clothing deprived her of the right to express her opinions. With her body sprawled on the cold floor and her head pressed against it, even shaking her head was a difficult task.
Fars paid no heed to Jessy's struggles, continuing to mercilessly torment her, who was already on the brink of losing her sanity. "Since you haven't voiced any objections, from today onward, you are my female slave."
"You are Jessy, right? I believe you understand your current situation. No one is coming to save you. Your companions have already been sent to hell by me. And I, your master, am your only support. Even if I were to release you now and give you a chance, could you take revenge? Can you walk out of the Qihar Mountains on your own?" Fars seemed intent on making Jessy fully aware of her circumstances, taking pleasure in slowly enlightening her.
Realizing that his treatment of a lady might be a bit too cruel, Fars, with a sudden pang of conscience, gently lifted Jessy from the ground. Holding the beautiful girl in his arms, he found it hard to restrain himself. The dim light did nothing to hide the blush that crept up Jessy's cheeks. Just being held by a man made her so shy; it seemed he had unexpectedly gained a little bird.
He carefully placed the blushing Jessy onto his large bed. Jessy appeared even more helpless, clearly misunderstanding his intentions. She likely thought Fars was preparing to violate her. In reality, Fars simply felt that leaving a lady on the cold floor was detrimental to his gentlemanly image. However, he had no intention of unbinding her. Afterward, Fars merely stroked Jessy's head, treating her like a pet, and cooed, "Just lie here and wait for your master to return."
Gazing into Fars's affectionate eyes, Jessy found herself momentarily lost in thought. It seemed Fars's words struck a chord deep within her.
What Jessy didn't know was that Fars had activated his Charm Eye, attempting to plant a sense of dependency in her heart. However, this was his first time using it on a human, and he was still somewhat inexperienced. Jessy's hostility toward him was too strong, and after a brief moment of distraction, her gaze quickly shifted back to one of anger and hatred.
Fars chuckled softly, still unfazed as he stroked Jessy's silky golden hair. Ignoring her squirming, he leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead. After that, he turned and left the ruins. It was now nighttime, the time for Fars's hunting.
"Ah, it seems I need to prepare some food for my little beauty tonight," Fars remembered that his new little slave also needed to eat, and since he had bound her tightly, she couldn't fetch food herself.
With his wings now three meters long, his flying speed had significantly increased. The nearly hundred-mile journey from the ruins to the Cold Pool took Fars just over an hour. On his return that morning, he had been carrying a living person, which had slowed him down considerably, making him unaware of how much his speed had improved.
The reason for his return to the Cold Pool was mainly due to his unease about the two magical beasts. Since he had spent time in the Cold Pool yesterday, it seemed his body and the phoenix egg both enjoyed the cool atmosphere underwater, which sparked his desire to claim the Cold Pool as his own. Now, Fars regretted not having dealt with those two magical beasts directly last night. However, he didn't want to force them into a desperate fight. The level gap still existed; even though both beasts were severely injured, Fars wasn't entirely confident he could take them down.
Since their previous communication had gone well, it proved that the two magical beasts possessed considerable intelligence. This time, Fars planned to test whether his neighbors would willingly allow him to take over his secret garden. Not wanting to force them into a corner didn't mean Fars was afraid of them.
After a day and night of battle, the pair of magical beasts, injured and weary, had only ventured out briefly to find some food, spending the rest of their time recuperating in a small valley. The recovery ability of magical beasts was indeed impressive; when Fars saw them again after just one day, most of their wounds had already scabbed over. Of course, this didn't mean they had fully recovered. In terms of stamina, after a complete depletion, it wouldn't be a matter of just lying around for a day to regain it. Even Fars, who hadn't exerted himself much, needed a day of rest to recuperate from the mental strain.
Using a bit of trickery, Fars expressed his intention to claim the Cold Pool, this time with an overwhelming and arrogant demeanor. His ancient vampire noble bloodline lent him an aura that was both deep and unfathomable. Furthermore, his near-high-level mage strength radiated a formidable pressure. At least in terms of presence, Fars would not be outdone by an ordinary vampire count, corresponding to the aura of a high-level magical beast.
Sensing Fars's powerful aura, the two magical beasts, although partially recovered, dared not voice any objections, tacitly acknowledging that the Cold Pool now belonged to Fars. This realization pleased him greatly.
Territory disputes among magical beasts were typically resolved through force. Even in the vast Qihar Mountains, various magical beasts had divided the land among themselves. However, as new high-level beasts emerged, they needed to claim their own territory or hunting grounds. Sometimes, they had no choice but to challenge surrounding high-level beasts, and such challenges were often brutal, resulting in a fight to the death that established the authority of the high-level beast in that territory.
Given Fars's blatant demand for territory, one would expect fierce resistance from the two magical beasts. Yet, they offered little resistance and accepted Fars's "proposal." Fars deduced that their current weakened state forced them to submit to his oppression. However, this was not the whole truth; without even mentioning how decisively Fars had dealt with Carter yesterday, the two beasts were already terrified of him. Fars's varied methods exceeded the understanding of the two magical beasts, highlighting the gap in intelligence. This was why the strength of magical beasts often represented their level of enlightenment. Super-tier magical beasts at the lord level had even transformed into humanoid forms, possessing intelligence comparable to that of humans. More importantly, Fars's advancement last night had left a profound impact on the two beasts, who were not far away. The pressure emanating from his soul was something they could not contend with. Although they did not flee like lower-tier beasts, they were still trembling on the ground.
Fars had to thank the phoenix egg, which had continuously brought him surprises since his awakening. As Fars's aura began to merge with that of the phoenix egg, he absorbed a portion of its power, which had been accumulated over thousands of years, during his advancement last night. Even just a small fraction of that power refined Fars's body once more. More importantly, his aura now carried a hint of the phoenix's essence. This was undeniable; otherwise, the two magical beasts wouldn't have been frightened into submission. The nobility derived from the phoenix was not something these ordinary beasts could challenge. Due to their racial differences, Fars could not command all beasts to submit like a true phoenix. However, ordinary magical beasts would no longer dare to provoke him, somewhat akin to the dragon's might exhibited by high-level dragons. Wherever a dragon roamed, it was as if the area had been cleared.
After a joyful hunt, Fars was somewhat disappointed to find that he was still far from his prey. The mid- to low-tier magical beasts scattered in all directions at the sight of him. Reluctantly, Fars had to rely on his speed to pursue them. After finally catching one, before he could even begin to feed, it fainted from fright. Fars couldn't help but touch his face, wondering if he, Lord Fars, was really that intimidating now.
Fortunately, mid- to low-tier magical beasts had a limited range of perception, which didn't significantly hinder Fars's hunting. However, having grown accustomed to taking down prey in one swift move, Fars found this tedious chase somewhat inconvenient.
After satisfying his hunger, Fars no longer pondered why hunting had become so laborious. Instead, he began to envision how to build his own countryside villa. The geographical location of the Cold Pool was excellent, situated between the territories of several high-level magical beasts. If he were to reside there long-term, he wouldn't have to fly nearly a hundred miles back and forth for food. After all, there weren't many delicious magical beasts around the ruins, and they were too large a target. If Fars and his companions could find that place, it was likely others could too.
Taking precautions was the best strategy, especially since he had taken on a little lover. Spending all his time in the dreary ruins could easily sour their relationship. The Cold Pool was so beautiful; living there for a while would not feel monotonous.
Determined, Fars decided to start preparing to build a cozy little house by the Cold Pool while the night was still young. Wood was abundant in the forest, and as for tools—swords, ropes, and the like—he had plenty from his last haul. However, Fars had never done much manual labor, so he faced some challenges with his craftsmanship. Felling a large tree was simple; wielding his sword with his considerable strength, he successfully chopped it down. The real dilemma for Fars was how to turn the tree into planks. Having practiced swordsmanship for only a few days, he couldn't possibly create smooth cuts with his sword. After several attempts, the noble Lord Fars had to admit that he was not cut out for manual labor; his unparalleled nobility was always evident.
The task of logging and building could wait. Looking at the sky, Fars realized that his greatest achievement tonight was discovering his lack of skill in handiwork. Shaking off his disappointment, he decided to cheer himself up by gathering some fruits for Jessy, who was still enduring the torment of ropes and hunger. He had initially planned to prepare some roasted meat, but having taken the Cold Pool so easily, he had spent too much time "logging." He could only let the poor Jessy continue to suffer a little longer. He also filled an empty wine bottle with some clean water and hurried back to torment his lovely little slave.
After enduring a whole day of torment, Jessy was on the verge of breaking down. When Fars finally returned, she thought he could do whatever he wanted—kill or maim her—but this detestable man merely uttered a few words that stripped her of her rights and then left her to her own devices. Bound and sore, she could only continue to endure the devil's torment, cursing him fiercely in her heart.
Unbeknownst to Fars, who was flying in the air, his little captive was constantly thinking of him, even desperately so. With her stomach still growling, Jessy had grown too weary to struggle, resignedly lying on the large experimental table, hoping that the devil would return soon.