Baili Weisheng clearly noticed that the moment the Ninth Young Lady was transferred into his arms, the entire swarm of flying beasts immediately fixed their attention on him, making every part of his body deeply uncomfortable.
Release her, and they’d be allowed to leave?
At Jun Buli’s question, the Xiao patriarch scoffed inwardly, assuming the two of them had gotten scared!
Daring to raid the Xiao family estate and kidnap someone, and now, once they released her, expecting to simply walk away unscathed—did they really think the Xiao clan would let them leave alive after that? What naive nonsense!
The Xiao patriarch sneered inwardly, but outwardly put on a show of delight, quickly agreeing, “Of course! As long as you release Ninth Girl, I guarantee you both safe passage out of here!”
Seeing Jun Buli frown as if considering this, the Xiao patriarch, thinking he had a chance, immediately added, “This old man always keeps his word, does exactly as he says. Young man, release Ninth Girl, and I’ll give you another chance—leave now, and should you ever wish to seek vengeance for your parents another day, feel free to come knocking openly, and this old man will meet you head-on!”
Tsk, tsk, what sincere, generous words indeed.
The corner of Jun Buli’s mouth curved into a disdainful smile. He glanced at Baili Weisheng, saying, “You’ve misunderstood. He’s the one with a blood feud against you—father, mother, wife, and child all slain. I have no quarrel with you at all.”
The corner of Baili Weisheng’s mouth twitched—this wasn’t the first time this wretched brat had turned his own sharp tongue against him!
The Xiao patriarch, stunned for a long moment, finally snapped back to himself, roaring furiously, “You wretched brats, you’re toying with this old man! Who exactly are you people?”
Jun Buli didn’t answer, instead sweeping his gaze across the surrounding beast army filling the sky, saying, “Patriarch Xiao is certainly generous. Unfortunately, I haven’t quite decided to leave yet.”
“You! You!” The Xiao patriarch was furious beyond measure—never in all these years had he encountered anyone quite like this. He bellowed loudly, “Attack! Especially that wretched scholar—tear his mouth off!”
“Wait!” Jun Buli raised a hand, stopping him.
“Wretched boy, there’s still time. Release Ninth Girl now, kowtow three times to this old man, and I’ll spare you!”
It wasn’t that the Xiao patriarch was being unrealistic—the Xiao beast clan’s power was simply too overwhelming. Whether it was the patriarch himself or any other member of the Xiao family, they naturally assumed these two intruders would be frightened, would capitulate!
Because if they didn’t yield, death was certain!
“I have no interest in kowtowing. Your beast army, on the other hand, interests me quite a bit,” Jun Buli said with striking nonchalance. “That’s all the Xiao clan’s beasts, right? Any that haven’t joined in yet, might as well come now too.”
“You! Such arrogance! Not shedding tears until you see your own coffin, is that it? This old man will make you regret this!” The Xiao patriarch could hold back no longer. With a wave of his hand, the entire sky’s worth of flying beasts immediately dove down at once.
Jun Buli paid them no mind whatsoever, smiling. “Patriarch Xiao, forgot to mention—this young lord has taken a fancy not only to your daughter, but to your birds as well.”
As he spoke, he raised a hand and swept it through the air. Instantly, half the sky’s worth of flying beasts simply vanished. The remaining half, clearly terrified by what they’d just witnessed, all retreated at once, not daring to move!
On the ground, every single member of the Xiao clan, including the patriarch himself, stood dumbstruck, utterly unable to comprehend what had just happened!
Among everyone present, only Baili Weisheng, besides Jun Buli, understood what was going on.
He absolutely despised flying beasts, pinching his nose with a look of dread, muttering, “Wretched brat, collecting so many—the bird droppings are going to filthy up the Universe Poison Pouch.”
Ten years, and given Jun Buli’s diligence, the Universe Poison Pouch by now was probably capable of holding every poison beast in the entire world.
A minor beast clan like the Xiao family—he truly had every right to hold them in contempt!
He hadn’t struck at Nanzhao before now, partly due to the war in the northern frontier, and partly due to internal instability. Whether in the northern territories or within the domestic court, though he ruled with an iron fist, he’d rarely resorted to using beasts at all!
After all, using beasts to subdue people was a deeply inhumane practice.
But here, on this land of Nanzhao, things were entirely different. After all these years, his Universe Poison Pouch had finally found a proper use, and it seemed his childhood dream might finally come to fruition here as well.
Facing the panicked, chaotic Xiao clan, Jun Buli stood with his hands clasped behind his back, high atop the rooftop, letting the wind billow his robes.
Gone was his earlier playful manner. His handsome face now carried a stern, cold severity. Standing high above, looking down disdainfully at the crowd below—both people and beasts—he resembled nothing less than a sovereign radiating unspoken authority, emperor of men and king of beasts alike!
The Xiao patriarch simply couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. His most prized possession, his flying beast army, the pride of his life—how could half of it simply vanish in an instant?
What exactly had happened?
He rubbed his eyes repeatedly in disbelief, wondering if his eyes had deceived him, but no matter how much he rubbed, the flying beasts remained gone.
Fear crept unbidden into the Xiao patriarch’s heart, and he raised his voice, shouting to bolster his own courage, “Who exactly are you people! Wretched boy, what did you do to my flying beasts!?”
What did he do to his flying beasts?
Jun Buli found the question genuinely amusing.
“Nothing happened to them,” he answered helpfully, and as he spoke, he slowly raised his right hand again. Seeing this, many present couldn’t help holding their breath, and even the Xiao patriarch froze, holding his breath, watching intently.
As Jun Buli raised his hand, he stared coldly at the Xiao patriarch. When his right hand was fully extended, pointing straight up at the sky, his lips slowly curved into a cold, demonic smile, wicked as sin.
Instantly, a sharp, commanding shout: “Return!”
The moment the word left his lips, his hand slashed down viciously, and in that instant, both the terrified remaining half of the flying beasts in the sky and the thousands of massive beasts covering the ground vanished simultaneously, all at once!
At this, even Baili Weisheng unconsciously lowered the hand pinching his nose, staring at Jun Buli in utter disbelief!
Ten years!
In ten years, just how much had this wretched brat grown, to what degree had he mastered the Universe Poison Pouch?
Just how many things about this wretched brat did they still not know?!
“Jun Buli, have you turned the Universe Poison Pouch into an entire world of poison beasts?” Baili Weisheng asked in a low voice.
Back then, Meng Wanyue had spent years of effort and dedication trying to transform the poison-beast world into the Universe Poison Pouch, then further condense it into a portable poison-beast world!
If successful, it would essentially mean carrying an entire vast realm on one’s person, along with an unmatched army of beasts—and moreover, an army composed entirely of poison beasts!
Whether or not Jun Buli had heard Baili Weisheng’s question, he didn’t answer, only staring coldly down at the Xiao patriarch, who looked nearly ready to collapse from shock.
At this moment, the entire courtyard didn’t hold so much as a single shadow of a beast—only rows of terrified faces.
The Xiao patriarch couldn’t manage to speak for the longest time, and Jun Buli had no patience to wait. He reached over, yanked the Ninth Young Lady from Baili Weisheng’s arms, and clamped a hand around her throat, glaring provocatively at the Xiao patriarch.
Baili Weisheng expected Jun Buli to say, “Hand over Baili Xiaosheng! Otherwise, don’t blame me for what happens next.”
But to his surprise, Jun Buli said instead, “Hand over the White Jade Flute, or I’ll feed her to the beasts.”
Baili Weisheng sucked in a sharp breath, genuinely awed by Jun Buli—this wretched brat was even more scheming, more darkly calculating than Jun Beiyue himself! Absolutely shameless!
“You wouldn’t dare!” Finally, the Xiao patriarch snapped back to his senses, his fists clenched so tight they cracked audibly. Having his entire beast army seized was a genuine humiliation.
Seeing this, Baili Weisheng understood—the Xiao family was about to reveal their trump card. And that trump card, without a doubt, was the poison corpse… Shiliang!