Emperor's Reckoning

Afurnae was shaken.

The tournament was forcibly postponed as something major was happening outside the arena. One rushed outside and the others followed. The thousands of steps reverberated the city.

*Step! Step!

(What is he doing?!) thought Ivy as she rushed with the others before her. Her beauty might be captivating but the heart-thumping moment was caused by the two prominent figures outside.

The cold woman saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Illuminating her eyes from the event. She put a shade to cover her vision from the blinding sun as the image was received by her retinae.

Her pupils only opened wide as she saw what the hustle bustle was about.

"He is serious..." muttered Ivy as she looked at the young man standing with his arms crossed.

She suddenly got shivered as she crossed her arms and put her palms on both elbows. She might have the extreme aptitude of ice, but that moment where he fought Eternal Golem still etched inside her eyes. The furious eyes of the beast could stare down the sun itself.

The mortal cultivator was standing strong with his firm posture. Even when two mature golden dragons standing in front of him, he didn't shed a flinch. His eyes were looking down at the man who was heralded as the prince of the powerful kingdom.

No sigil could deter his will as he stood toe to toe with the three of them alone. His name was instantly spread as Afurnae had borne witness to his domineering performance in the first round, however, the scene today was different.

"You have crossed the line, mortal!" said one of the soldiers guarding the prince.

His partner took a leer around before noticing that they were surrounded by the cultivators themselves. (Heh!) he grinned. Despite the combined aura of both of them bringing no effect, he was certain that with the other golden dragons arriving, the young man in front of him wouldn't act so cocky.

"You have insulted the pristine Golden Dragon Kingdom! Bow your head to the ground and apologize, or off with it!" said the other soldier.

The deterrent voice reverberated with the roar of the golden dragon itself fused within. There was no ordinary cultivator that could stand the words.

Lumina leered left and right before she snorted.

"The one that should apologize is that blonde over there," said Lyon as he pointed Rupert with his chin.

The onlookers couldn't believe his action at all. The young man was cornered as Afurnae naturally sided with the prince, however, the young man couldn't care less. 

"You should kneel and apologize mortal!"

"Yeah, yeah! You are in the wrong here!"

"Kneel! The second round is waiting!"

The onlookers caught on the waves. Seeing that they won overwhelmingly in number, they shared their opinion openly. Even the mad young man wouldn't do anything crazy now.

Lyon paid no heed as he looked at Rupert. "Are you going to apologize?"

The onlookers shook their heads in disbelief. This was the brazen mortal of all time. 

"Apologize?" Rupert raised one of his eyebrows, "That woman supposed to be my concubine!"

The atmosphere froze as the onlookers gasped. The revelation was too big for their brain to handle in an instant. 

Porealus shrugged his shoulder as he puckered up his lips. "Oof, this is going to be a mess."

Ivy narrowed her eyes before she noticed someone stepping in.

"I see, so that means, this man is stealing your concubine?"

Rupert looked at the handsome young man as he said, "That's right, Raul."

The prince from the Pala Kingdom snorted before he crossed his arms as he looked at Lyon. He smiled before shaking his head, "Lyon, you are really something, huh."

"You want to kill our commander, and you have stolen Rupert's concubine, you have crossed the line far ahead. Offending two kingdoms at once, tell me what is your plan?" asked Raul.

"Commander?" Lyon raised his eyebrows, "That guy is a commander? Bah! This is what a commander looks like."

Lyon smirked before he took a breath from his nose that could be heard by millions of ants.

"Graham!" Lyon said the name.

The name echoed across Afurnae. The dissipating tone made the onlookers look around.

"Yes, master."

*Thump!

An astronomical pressure was poured out before some onlookers crashed their knees to the ground with a resounding crack. They couldn't even wail in pain as they were enveloped by the froze from their own fear. 

A footstep was heard.

*Tap! Tap! Tap!

The shadow of the half-giant engorged their fear-stricken face as he made his way beside the one he called master.

The ash-haired half-giant was like his master. He looked down on the Golden Dragon with his arms crossed. 

Though size didn't represent the strength of an individual, the one in front of the two elite soldiers seem to represent it very well.

"?!" Raul couldn't suppress his fears he looked at the half-giant. He made a harsh swallow as he took a step back.

(Wh-What the hell is he?!) thought Raul as he could feel that the half-giant could kill him over and over again.

"Heh, enough Graham."

"Understood, master," Graham nodded before gradually and skillfully depleting his astronomical aura.

Lyon smirked before turning his glance toward the Golden Dragon prince, "Concubine you say?"

Prince Rupert snapped back to reality before he answered, "Y-yes, our kingdom had made it clear with the Jade Dragon kingdom in the mortal world, that the woman whose name is Lumina. She has jade hair and silvery wings due to her parents. That woman is the woman beside you right?!"

"That is true, her name is Lumina, and you shall address her respectfully," said Lyon as he admitted it.

The onlookers were flabbergasted. The matter had escalated to a new height. Lyon had once again become the center of the problem for First Heaven.

"Then..."

"Then what?" Lyon couldn't care less. "I don't need you to understand that Lumina is my woman, and shall be for the rest of eternity, she had waited for me, not for you, now apologize then scram!"

Lumina immediately had a shade of red across her cheeks as she tried to avoid the gaze of the others.

Rupert and the two soldiers couldn't believe their eyes as they heard what Lyon had just said. He was threatening the prince, in Afurnae of all places. The humiliation of having a mortal threatening a prominent figure such as himself was unacceptable.

Cecile who was watching from afar chuckled, "He is becoming more and more like his past self."

"Definitely!" Kesya nodded. "This First Heaven is nothing but a playground then and a playground now."

"Emperor only need to give us the order," said Assid before his tone changed coldly, "and we will turn the First Heaven upside down."

Cecile smiled as she looked at her husband unfazed by the crowd.

"You!" Prince Rupert couldn't believe his ears. 

(These two hard-headed men!) thought Hilde before she stepped forward.

"Alright you two, break it off," said Hilde.

"Hilde, stay out of this!" said Rupert.

"Shut up Rupert! This matter should happen outside the tournament! Don't waste everyone's time."

"Akh?!" Rupert was stupefied as he received the glare from the lady.

"You seem to be supporting him since the beginning," sneered Raul.

"I agree with Hilde."

Cherie stepped in as her beauty captivated the cultivators nearby.

"Cherie..." Raul muttered with his eyebrows furrowed. "Not you too."

Cherie shook her head, "The respective matter of the kingdom should be solved outside the tournament, otherwise, we are breaking the union law, and this city would mean nothing."

"Kh! You!"

Cherie had only stated the fact in which the onlookers couldn't help but agree. Though brazen as Lyon may seem, the matter regarding Lumina being Rupert's concubine should be solved outside the tournament, outside Afurnae.

Lyon smirked as he turned around before seeing Cecile coming with a smile to pick up Lumina.

"Let's go, Lumina."

The latter nodded before she left Lyon with Graham by his side.

"Lyon! This is not over!" said Rupert.

"Shut your mouth or your cheek will have another taste," said Lyon as he walked back to the arena. 

The insult almost made the prince puke out blood. Never thought that he would be humiliated again and again by a mere mortal. It should have been the other way around.

The onlookers immediately made way for the young man that had no chains tying his conduct. Not even the cultivator from this region dare to say that to his face, let alone a mortal cultivator. The unprecedented young man returned to the arena for the second round where the next challenge awaited him.

Everyone watch his back dissipating to the dark as he entered the tunnel entrance to the arena.

Graham grimaced as he looked at the two soldiers. He twitched his eyebrows.

*Ding!

A soft blast of a gale made the two elite soldiers tumble backward and fall.

Graham left the fear-stricken elite soldiers and the gasped onlookers to follow Cecile and the others.

Wanda was the first one to notice him coming in from the entrance. She smiled as she noticed that the ruckus outside has been sorted out without the intervention of the kings and queens.