Tainted Blood

by Tinalynge

  Having reached this point, he just wanted to get the answers he needed from Lan. However, at the same time, he was also worried. What would Lan ask from him in return for his help? It could not be anything simple.

  Chapter 30 - A Man Once More

  Arriving at the gate leading to the inner city, Xue Wei found that they were not the only ones who had decided to show up early. At least thirty experts were already waiting in a queue, but Xue Wei said nothing and just moved to the end of the queue, his eyes distant as he regularly scanned the area.

  Time ticked by slowly, but no one there really minded waiting. They were all cultivators and thus they could spend the time refining the heaven-and-earth essence into Qi. The time was in no way wasted.

  The sunset came, and finally, it was night. Although the sun had set, the entire city was still alive with a buzz of activity and it was as light as day with light orbs on every house and wall. Soft light flooded out from every shop and house, inviting the wayward customers inside with alluring scents and promises of cheap deals.

  A loud bang resounded in the area around the gate before a creaking sound could be heard and the massive inner city gate was pushed open by ten Ordinary Knights.

  “Five low-grade essence stones a person is the price to enter the inner city. While you are there, you must follow the rules of the inner city. If you do not, you will be punished according to the law!” one of the guards called out with a clear voice. He spoke neither hurriedly nor slowly. It was clear that the guards here knew those words by heart already from having to repeat it every time.

  Xue Wei was not surprised. From what information they had gathered earlier, it was clear that the inner city was incredibly important to Tianxian City, and that only the best of the best were allowed to settle inside.

  They soon found that it was not only a matter of paying an entrance fee. Not only did they have to pay low-grade essence stones, they also needed a purpose. Every person was interrogated when they reached the gates, and the procession into the city was rather slow.

  After half an hour, it was finally Xue Wei’s turn. He looked at the guard in front of him and handed him the low-grade essence stones.

  “What is your purpose within the inner city?” the guard asked the routine question. The other three looked at Xue Wei. “We have been invited by Prophet Lan,” Xue Wei said honestly.

  There was no reason for him to lie about this fact, because anyone could figure out their purpose if they followed them as they headed straight to Lan’s residence.

  “Prophet Lan invited you to his residence?” The guard frowned and looked at them. Although their clothes were made from Fierce Beast Silk, it did not seem as if there was anything special about them. Why would Prophet Lan pay attention to such a normal family?

  “Yes, I had the pleasure of encountering Prophet Lan on one of my travels, and he invited me to come to visit him. It so happens that we were in Tianxian City and wished to visit him.” Xue Wei did not back down. He was neither humble nor arrogant, and spoke straightforwardly and elegantly. His demeanor not one bit inferior to a superior cultivator.

  The guard was secretly shocked. This young woman was quite dignified, and he could not help but do a double take at her, unaware that it was actually a man who had dressed as a woman.

  Still, he did not dare say anything knowing that it would be a disaster for their Dragon Hunter Guards if they erroneously blocked the guests of Prophet Lan entry.

  “Enter, but remember to follow the rules. Additionally, I will send someone to lead you towards Lan’s residence,” the guard finally sighed and said, waving and nodding at someone beside him.

  Xue Wei cupped his hands in gratitude and entered through the gate, where an Ordinary Knight was waiting for them. Their escort stared at the female Xue Wei curiously.

  “This way,” he said politely, gesturing for them to follow him, and started walking through the beautiful inner city.

  The inner city was many times more beautiful than the outer city. Where the outer city was filled to the brim with houses that had been pressed together, the houses in the inner city were not as compact. In fact, all of them were mansions that had their individual gardens. None of the mansions were attached to one another.

  Although there were few stores, these stores also occupied mansions and the luxurious items for sale in these mansions could not be compared to any that were sold in the outer city.

  They walked for a long time in silence. They had entered from the eastern side of the inner city, and Prophet Lan’s mansion was at the western side - right next to the Baixing Lake. In fact, the wall that surrounded Prophet Lan’s property went into the water on both sides of the lake.

  After walking for what felt like an eternity in a very awkward silence, they finally made it to the mansion. Xue Wei was considering how to get rid of the guard that was leading them, as he could not introduce himself as ‘Xue Wei’ with him present, but he realized that he did not need to bother right as they reached the mansion. Lan was waiting outside, and his eyes landed on Xue Wei the moment they were within reach.

  At first, silence permeated the air. The guard was wondering what was going on, but then Lan collapsed into a chair that was standing by his side. His shoulders were trembling uncontrollably, he slapped his thigh, and tears fell from his eyes as he erupted with the kind of laughter that one would think he would die from.

  Xue Wei’s face turned black. He was acutely aware of what had caused him to laugh like this, but the guard was completely shocked by this uncharacteristic display of emotions from the prophet.

  “Seriously, don’t laugh like that, you might die,” Xue Wei said with a dry voice that did not disguise his annoyance the least. Hearing the tone he took with Prophet Lan, the guard was immediately on alert and his eyes showed even signs of hostility. It has to be said that Prophet Lan was one of the most important persons in the entire continent. To be disrespectful towards him was considered a crime.

  “Sorry, sorry.” Lan waved his hand, wiped a tear from his cheek, and looked at Xue Wei before erupting in yet another fit of laughter.

  “You wanted to see me that much, huh?” he asked after getting his shaking shoulders under control, and Xue Wei gave him a fierce glare. “Yes I did, what about it?” he asked with the same dry voice.

  “Have you still not considered becoming a part of my collection?” Lan suddenly asked, his voice containing amusement but also hope.

  Hearing this, the eyes of the guard widened in shock. He completely misunderstood the words said by Lan. Currently, Xue Wei was in a female disguise. ‘She’ was speaking rudely to Lan, but he did not even bat an eyelid. And to boot, he even said he wanted this woman to join his collection. Was this a proposal?

  “You there, bring my thanks to the Dragon Hunter Guards for leading this group here,” Lan finally turned towards the guard, addressing him, “I have some important matters to deal with now, so I will have to invite my guests into my mansion and entertain them.”

  The guard was astonished when he heard the esteemed Lan thank him, so he quickly saluted before excusing himself.

  The group of people entered the mansion. “Here, go in there and change your clothes and take the disguise off.” Lan pointed at one of the first rooms they encountered. “I can imagine that you are rather unhappy with the current situation, and don’t worry, no one will dare to make a move on you when you are in my mansion.”

  Xue Wei heaved a heavy sigh of relief and entered the room, where he quickly changed from a green dress into a red robe. He did not wear his armor as he was still within Lan’s mansion. As Lan had said, this place was safe.

  When he came out, a smile was on his face. Xue Wei was clearly very pleased with being a man once more.

  Looking at the relaxed smile on Xue Wei’s face, Lin Xiao, Hei Gou and Bai Tianyi could not help but feel slightly guilty, but the truth was that they had no option back then.

  “Come with me,” Lan said before dragging them int
o a study with a big round table in the middle where nine people could sit.

  “Sit,” he said, gesturing for the quartet to take a seat. They sat opposite of him, in a single file.

  “So, my dear Wei, have you thought about what you can give me in return for the answers you want?” Lan asked with a great smile on his face. Xue Wei knew that it was time.

  “I assume you are not interested in inscriptions?” Xue Wei tried asking, but the disinterested expression on Lan’s face told him enough.

  “What do you want?” Xue Wei finally asked. Lan could not help but grin. “You are going to leave this continent, right?” He asked and Xue Wei, albeit surprised, was not overly worried about how he knew. Instead, he just nodded his head.

  “What do you want?” Xue Wei resided in asking.

  Lan could not help but grin. “You are going to leave this continent right?” he gleamed towards Xue Wei who, albeit surprised, was not overly worried about how Lan knew. Instead, Xue Wei just nodded his head.

  “Well, that is perfect. I can’t really leave the continent for the time being, but if you enter the Demon Phoenix Continent, you can get me something very rare that I have wanted for a long time.”

  “Demon Phoenix Continent?” Xue Wei was confused. He had never heard of such a continent before, but the truth was that he had never heard of any specific continent other than theirs, which was named Chang’an.

  “Well, where were you planning on going?” Lan asked curiously. Xue Wei scratched his head embarrassedly. “I don’t know,” he admitted honestly. “As long as it is not here. As long as it is somewhere we can be free, then it is good.”

  Xue Wei was tired of their constant fleeing. He wanted to have a different kind of life.

  Lan contemplated for some time before he nodded his head. “Then you should go to the Demon Phoenix Continent,” he said seriously. “That is a place much more chaotic than the Chang’an continent, but it is also much more suitable for you. The stronger you are, the more revered you will be. There are a few factions, and although these factions have some disagreements, it is quite far from the full-out ethnic war between the humans and the beasts here.”

  “The races on the Demon Phoenix Continent are also rather interesting,” he continued, trying his very best to sell this place to Xue Wei. Seeing his mannerism, Xue Wei could not help but chuckle.

  “So what is it you want me to find for you?” Xue Wei asked curiously. It could not be a simple thing.

  “It is a Thunder Flame Crown,” Lan said casually, as if it was the most common thing in the world, but Xue Wei had a feeling that this so-called crown was likely the most precious thing on that entire continent. Still, beggars can’t be choosers.

  “I will do what I can to get it, but I cannot do more than what my ability will allow me to do,” Xue Wei promised. Hearing this promise, Lan considered Xue Wei’s conditions for a moment or two before nodding his head.

  “Okay,” he agreed readily. “Now ask your questions. I will answer as many of them as I can.”

  Chapter 31 - Answers

  Xue Wei had never guessed that Lan would simply lean back in his chair and just let him ask all the questions he had. It was clear that this Thunder Flame Crown would not be easy to get from how Lan was acting.

  “Okay, first off. Is Xiao Lei my biological uncle?” Xue Wei asked. This was one of the most important questions he had to ask. He needed to know.

  “He is. He is your mother’s brother. He is also an Azure Dragon. The Azure Dragon Clan is in decline, though. Right now, only three of your kind exists in the clan, and you are one of them. I guess you only count as half an Azure Dragon, though, so you could say that two and a half experts exist in the Azure Dragon Clan.”

  “Was my father my real father?” This was Xue Wei’s second question.

  “Yes, he was. Though he was a simple apothecary, he was indeed your real father. He had no actual strength or anything going for him, but it is not always strength that matters.” Lan sighed as if he was reminded of something. His usually cheerful expression faded to sorrow, his eyes turning slightly misty.

  It lasted for the briefest moment, but they all noticed it. And they all tactfully decided not to point it out.

  “If he is my real father, and Uncle Lei is my real uncle, then why would he kill my father?” Xue Wei asked the question that had been in his heart ever since he had understood the true ins and outs of the attack on Lingyun Town.

  Lan hesitated. “I cannot answer this question for you,” he answered after deliberating a bit. “If you want an answer, you should go to your uncle. This is something personal and the reason behind it is complex. I know the answer, but I feel that the right person to give you exactly this answer has to be your uncle.”

  Xue Wei muttered for some time before he nodded his head. This made sense. It was a very important question and Lan was after all not involved. Although he was not involved, it seemed as if he still knew what had happened.

  “I am half human, half Sovereign Beast. How did I manage to be born? Is it not against the laws of this world that a mixed breed can appear?” This was another question that had troubled Xue Wei for a long time, and he hoped that Lan could shed some light on his confusion.

  “It is not that it is completely impossible,” Lan said seriously. “There is one way in which the child is able to survive. However, this method is very drastic and no beast is willing to do it, even if they knew about it.

  “To give birth to a mixed child, the mother needs to fuse her own life essence into the child. She has to feed the child her own life for it to survive. At the same time, the mother is unable to eat anything, as anything she consumes will be poison to the child. Many who have attempted would have died long before the child was born, but your mother was different.”

  “Your mother was a Sovereign Beast. Not only this, she was the one who was considered the Holy Maiden of the continent, so she had a very strong life essence, and at the same time, she had a tenacious will that let her stay alive until the day you were born. She traded her life for yours.”

  Lan sighed when he said this. What Xue Wei’s mother had done was clearly an emotional thing to do, so he could not help but reveal a look of admiration. It was clear that he understood the feelings that Xue Wei’s mother had—the urge to give one’s life for someone else.

  Xue Wei was quiet. He had long since given up on feeling the warmth of a mother as she had died when he was born, but now he understood that she had always loved him unconditionally and gave her all for him. Was there really any greater love than this in the world?

  With this in mind, Xue Wei’s heart became heavy despite the warmth he felt. To think that the reason he was alive now was because of his mother making the ultimate sacrifice for him. This was something he could not even have imagined before.

  “What does being the Holy Maiden of the continent imply?” Xue Wei then asked with a frown. Lan had mentioned it before, but he was unaware of what exactly it was.

  “It is the Sovereign Beast with the purest bloodline,” Lan answered readily. “It is the beast that they wish to sacrifice for the sake of mutating every Primordial Beast elite and council member so that they can take over the continent once more.”

  “They wanted to sacrifice my mother?” Xue Wei was stunned. Lan sighed. “This is a world where the strong survive. This is how it is. The purity of her bloodline was outstanding, so her lot in the world was to be prey for those selfish members of the council.”

  Xue Wei took a moment to ponder what he had been told. “So my mother’s bloodline was extremely pure, but mine is rather muddled?”

  “Although I have managed to unlock the bloodline of the Azure Dragon and managed to get my hands on the inheritage, my bloodline is nothing to brag about. Why would they want me when my uncle is still alive? He is alive, right?” Worry suddenly appeared in Xue Wei’s heart. If his uncle died, would he not be all alone in this world?

  “Xiao Lei is still alive, don’
t worry.” Lan nodded his head seriously. “Although Xiao Lei has a strong bloodline, actually better than the average Azure Dragon, you have something he does not have,” Lan said mysteriously while looking at Xue Wei.

  “Well, I cannot tell you what it is yet,” he said with a sigh and shook his head. “Also there is a chance of you becoming a real monster in the future! Who knows what might happen when you travel to the different continents. I look forward to seeing your performance.”

  “Also, let me give you some bonus information: you are not the first mixed breed to be born in this world, but you are the only one alive right now!”

  Xue Wei widened his eyes in shock. If he was not the first, who was? He suddenly felt a longing to know the fate of others in the same position as him, but he dared not ask.