Whatever You Ask, Brother Will Grant It

"Could I really just be overthinking this...?" As the words left his mouth, Ye Feng's brow furrowed tightly, and he abruptly concealed his form and aura! A woman stepped cautiously out of the light gate leading from the Second Domain. She scanned her surroundings, and only after confirming nothing was amiss did she dart toward the wine shop! Hidden within the void, Ye Feng's eyes flickered with conflicting emotions. *Li Qingchan, just what are you hiding?* He watched until she vanished from sight, waiting a long while before finally stepping out from the void. He changed into a black robe, an attire far from uncommon in the Seventh Domain. Many reclusive cultivators preferred to conceal themselves this way. Upon arriving in the Second Domain, he found the lingering spatial fluctuations extremely faint. Had he not just broken through to the half-step Tribulation Transcendence realm and torn through the barrier of laws, he would never have detected them at all. Closing his eyes, he traced the faint spatial ripples forward. Chaotic storms of spiritual energy raged everywhere; in barely a dozen breaths, these lingering traces would be scattered into nothingness. *Gurgle, gurgle.* A bizarre black river, reeking of decay, flowed sluggishly below. The surroundings were deathly still. The ruined, blackened trees possessed nothing but bare trunks. Ye Feng hovered in midair without the slightest hesitation. Wrapping himself in primal energy, he plunged headfirst into the black river! A foul stench washed over him as the thick black water pressed close, carrying an aura of death. Ye Feng continued to sink. After an unknown span, he felt he had descended at least a hundred zhang. At last, his boots touched the riverbed rocks. Pushing his divine sense outward against the crushing weight of the water, he quickly located a bizarre square stone pillar! An immortal crystal embedded upon the pillar was now worn down to the size of a fingernail. A faint, wispy ripple of spatial power washed over the surroundings. A wave of unease and disorientation washed over Ye Feng's heart. The only reason he had forcibly torn himself from his state of epiphany earlier was that he had sensed a faint, fleeting trace of murderous intent! When he realized that the person might be Li Qingchan, shock and confusion had overwhelmed him... Most alarming of all was that under those circumstances, the target of that killing intent had very likely been Li Guanqi! He stared at the pillar before him, uncertain of what it was. Sweeping his divine sense across it, he imprinted its exact appearance into his memory, then quietly slipped away from the Second Domain. Though he did not understand its purpose, he knew better than to alert the enemy prematurely. Little did he know that the moment he had stepped down toward the Second Domain, Li Qingchan had already caught sight of his movements. Inside the wine shop, a busy figure froze for an instant. Li Qingchan's face remained impassive, but her eyes grew intensely complicated, and the knuckles clutching her serving tray turned faintly white. *Why... did he go to the Second Domain?* An inexplicable sense of dread crept through her heart. Yet she could not afford to show the slightest crack in her composure. Back at the White Jade Tower, Ye Feng felt thoroughly unsettled. For now, he was likely the only one who knew about that stone pillar. In truth, before diving into the river, he had silently prayed to find nothing at all. That way, he could convince himself that Li Qingchan had gone to the Second Domain for some unrelated matter. Yet the moment he laid eyes on the pillar and the fragment of the immortal crystal, his heart had seized violently—as if squeezed tight in the grip of an invisible hand. It meant that something was definitely wrong with Li Qingchan. He simply did not know what it was yet... Coupled with that earlier murderous intent, however, Ye Feng could only imagine the most terrifying implications. Was Ye Feng foolish? No. On the contrary, he was a very sharp man. A gentle breeze brushed across the rooftop of the White Jade Tower, where the blond youth sat alone. Swigging from a jug of wine, Ye Feng felt as though the wind itself were stoking his agitation. *Boom! Boom! Boom!* A golden barrier expanded outward a hundred zhang, sealing off the wind of heaven and earth. Ye Feng's chest heaved violently. Only after several breaths did he manage to suppress his churning emotions and dismiss the barrier. His sharp gaze pierced the distance. As if sensing something, Li Qingchan looked up from the entrance of the wine shop toward the White Jade Tower! Separated by several thousand zhang, they could not make out each other's features, yet their gazes seemed to collide across the expanse. Both burdened by their own thoughts, they slowly looked away. Ye Feng continued to drink, using no primal energy to ward off the alcohol, and empty jars soon piled up around him. After an unknown time, lightning suddenly flickered beside him. Having recovered somewhat, Li Guanqi frowned as he looked at the dead-drunk Ye Feng. "Ye the Second, even if you broke through to half-step Tribulation Transcendence, there's no need to drink yourself into such a stupor, is there?" Joking with Ye Feng, Li Guanqi hitched up the hem of his robe and sat down. At the same time, his heart sank slightly. *What happened to him?* *Steady as he is, why would he abandon himself to drunkenness like this?* Through a drunken haze, Ye Feng caught sight of Li Guanqi. He slung an arm around Li Guanqi's shoulder and handed him a jar of fiery liquor. Li Guanqi smiled, dropped his protective primal energy, and tilted his head back to down the entire jar! The spiritual liquor packed a potent punch, and as the heat surged through him, a faint flush crept onto Li Guanqi's cheeks. Exhaling a long breath, he draped an arm over Ye Feng's shoulder and asked in a low voice, "What happened?" Ye Feng swayed as he lifted his head, his conflicted gaze peering through disheveled hair to look at Li Guanqi. His lips parted, words catching in his throat as if wanting to say something, yet he could not bring himself to speak. In his eyes, Li Guanqi had always been decisive and ruthless! Moreover, his eldest brother was now fully capable of slaying Li Qingchan. Once Li Guanqi learned that Li Qingchan might be a threat to him—a powerhouse in the Tribulation Transcendence realm, no less—would he ever allow such a formidable enemy to lurk unchecked in the dark? Seeing Ye Feng hesitate, Li Guanqi's heart sank further. He knew well how resolute and composed Ye Feng usually was, yet here he was, faltering and holding back... Li Guanqi took a slow, deep breath. Looking straight ahead rather than at Ye Feng, he said plainly, "Just spit it out. What are you keeping bottled up from me?" Ye Feng's body stiffened slightly. Lowering his head, he stared at the glazed tiles of the roof in silence for a long time. Only after an eternity did he speak. "Bro." "Yeah, I'm listening." "If... one day I beg you for something, will you promise me?" Li Guanqi turned to look deeply at Ye Feng. He had no idea what Ye Feng would ask of him, but he knew one thing: this matter was bound to threaten himself. If it weren't so, Ye Feng would have handled it on his own. He had to have a reason that left him no other choice. Drawing a deep breath, Li Guanqi feigned a relaxed tone and spoke softly. "Don't worry. If that day ever comes, whatever you ask of me, Brother will grant it." Ye Feng had never imagined Li Guanqi would give such an answer. He jerked his head up, eyes brimming with tears, and nodded forcefully! Even so, he resolved to investigate Li Qingchan thoroughly. He felt this matter was far from simple. Between Li Qingchan and Li Guanqi, and between any of them, there was no enmity, nor had there ever been any past ties or grievances. Why would she harbor murderous intent toward Li Guanqi?