Chapter 792: 2 vs 2, Fight

In the chamber of commerce, amidst the corpses littering the inner courtyard, only Shen Bai, Guo Qi, and the newly arrived old man remained.

Guo Qi said in astonishment, “Grand Elder, what are you doing here?”

The moment those words were spoken, Shen Bai immediately knew the old man’s identity.

Beast Village had three masters at the Peak Realm: the Clan Leader, the Grand Elder, and the Second Elder.

These three formed the apex of Beast Village’s combat power and were the key to its very survival.

And this gray-haired Grand Elder before him had another identity: he was the leader of the Radical Faction.

The Radical Faction advocated for interaction with the outside world, even welcoming outsiders into Beast Village.

Shen Bai watched the Grand Elder, pondering the purpose of his visit.

A short while ago, the owner and his men had tried to flare their Qi to attract the attention of Beast Village’s strongest masters.

But Shen Bai had been clean, slaughtering them all before they could even make a move.

‘It seems that no matter how clean a job I did, some clue must have leaked out.’

The Grand Elder stroked the cyan head on his arm and smiled. “Young friend, you have a strong killing intent, and it’s directed at me. Don’t be alarmed. Your work was clean and decisive, but my little snake is an expert at sensing and concealing Qi. That’s how I found you. But I also helped you mask your presence. Otherwise, the Clan Leader would probably be here by now.”

As he spoke, the Grand Elder’s gaze fell upon Shen Bai, a hint of astonishment and admiration in his eyes.

This young man was strong. So strong that even he, standing right here, could feel a faint sense of danger.

Yet the young man’s Qi was only at the Void Realm, at most, while he himself was at the Peak Realm—a level higher than the Celestial Spirit Realm.

Despite this, he still felt pressure, which left him more curious than impressed.

‘What kind of talent must he possess to make someone at my level, the Peak Realm, feel pressured? Don’t tell me this young man can actually succeed in Overcoming Adversity and Attacking Upward… and kill me?’

Shen Bai raised an eyebrow. “If that’s the case, you must be here for a reason. Please speak plainly, Grand Elder.”

The situation seemed complicated, but it was actually quite simple.

It was nothing more than the Grand Elder wanting something from him; otherwise, he wouldn’t be here having a pleasant chat.

The Grand Elder nodded. “Young friend, you’ve killed members of the Chaotic Organization from the Era of Ten Thousand Cities. I am quite impressed. I would now like to invite you to join me in resolving a crisis facing Beast Village.”

Shen Bai frowned. “A crisis? What crisis? This Beast Village is prosperous and thriving. What crisis could there be?”

The Grand Elder shook his head. “Why feign ignorance, young friend? You know the crisis stems from the Conservative Faction and the Chaotic Organization.”

“This time, the chamber of commerce owner colluded with outsiders to let a master from the Chaotic Organization in. Although that particular threat has been dealt with, who can guarantee it won’t happen again?”

“Treating the symptoms but not the root cause is never a good solution. A village divided by two different voices will only cause Beast Village to gradually decline until it perishes. Therefore… Beast Village can only have one voice.”

Listening on the sidelines, Guo Qi wished he could just plug his ears.

These were major secrets, secrets that absolutely could not be known by outsiders. But now, he knew them.

Some things you could hear, and some things you couldn’t. Hearing the latter could get you killed.

Shen Bai had immense power, the capital to be a player on the chessboard. ‘But I’m just a traveling merchant,’ he thought. ‘How am I qualified to get mixed up in these things?’

‘Aren’t I just asking for trouble?’

But he had already heard everything, and there was nothing Guo Qi could do about it.

Shen Bai rubbed his chin. “Does this involve killing the Second Elder? Or someone else?”

The Grand Elder had been wearing a leisurely, self-assured expression, as if he held everything in the palm of his hand.

But when Shen Bai said those words, the expression on his face suddenly froze.

‘This young friend is truly bloodthirsty,’ he thought. ‘We’ve barely exchanged a few words and he’s already talking about killing.’

‘Are all outsiders like this nowadays? Do they draw their blades at the slightest disagreement?’

‘How crude.’

The Grand Elder rubbed his temples. “It’s not that he must be killed. I just hope you, young friend, can help me stage a rebellion.”

Shen Bai: “?”

The Grand Elder continued, “This all starts with the Clan Leader.”

“The Clan Leader is the one who created this Space. We learned the abilities of Space alongside him.”

“Later, the Clan Leader went a step further, combining Beast Taming with Space. For example, my Cyan Snake’s ability to perform Stealth and mask Qi are actually aspects of its Space ability.”

“The Clan Leader had always been neutral toward the Conservative and Radical Factions. He was impartial, but recently, he’s changed.”

At this, the Grand Elder sighed.

“He’s begun to favor the Conservative Faction and has even made many baseless decisions. It’s like he’s become a different person.”

“For instance, he recently proposed cutting off all contact with the other Refuges.”

“The change was so sudden that none of us have been able to adjust.”

Shen Bai stroked his chin, lost in thought.

The Grand Elder stroked his beard with his right hand. “If things continue down this path, Beast Village will be cut off from the outside world, gradually weaken in its isolation, and eventually face ruin. I cannot allow it to be destroyed.”

For any power or organization to survive long-term, it must not become isolated.

Isolation might seem like self-sufficiency, a severing of all ties, but it’s tantamount to a slow death.

Once a group becomes completely insular, it loses all knowledge of the outside world.

And over time, an increasingly isolated power will perish from its own internal contradictions.

Shen Bai found no issue with the Grand Elder’s reasoning.