Chapter 4651 — A Illustrious Feat in the South Continent

Wei Zhao did not know whether any other masters of the Sea-Splitting Stage were present, nor how strong Ning Shanghe, the lord of West Island, truly was; but of one thing he could be certain—judged on strength alone, this new Azure Dragon ranked among the top three, or else he could never have stolen the spotlight by the sheer ferocity of his aura.

"I am the Azure Dragon, elder of the South Island's spirit-beast clan, here on behalf of the Great King to congratulate young mistress Ning on her birthday!" For all his fearsome presence, the Azure Dragon said nothing out of line; having presented his lavish gift, he went straight to the South Island guest seats. This left those who had come spoiling for a spectacle deeply disappointed—they had supposed the spirit-beast clan to be arrogant and ungovernable, yet here he was, so punctilious about the rules?

Had the Azure Dragon known what they were thinking, he would surely have laughed three great laughs. The spirit-beast clan was indeed arrogant and ungovernable, but not foolish. His purpose in coming all this way to the birthday feast of the West Island's princess was to draw closer ties and smooth the way for future dealings—not to go looking for enemies.

The crowd watched the Azure Dragon from afar. At that moment there was not a single soul beside him, nor any attendant in sight—so the South Island spirit-beast clan had sent him alone!

Even so, given this creature's strength and standing, his solitary presence was enough to show how highly the spirit-beast clan regarded West Island. And plainly West Island had known of it beforehand, or they could never have prepared the South Island guest seats in advance—they had merely not reckoned on the Azure Dragon coming by himself.

Seated in the South Island section, the Azure Dragon swept his gaze around the hall. Anyone else so singled out would have felt some awkwardness, no matter how stout their nerves; yet he seemed utterly unaffected—rather, those his eyes fell upon shrank back their own gaze without thinking.

No wonder. The aura and menace of this creature were simply too terrifying. Anyone of slightly lesser strength need only be glanced at once to have his mind collapse—wetting himself on the spot was not out of the question. Who would dare meet the eyes of such a monster?

Wei Zhao, too, lowered his head in some unease. It was not that he feared meeting the Azure Dragon's gaze, but that he feared being recognized by the creature. Though his appearance was altered, and by the naked eye it was hard to connect him with the figure who had once stormed into the spirit-beast assembly, this Azure Dragon was at least a Sea-Splitting Stage existence—who knew what heaven-shaking, ghost-weeping powers he possessed? Even now Wei Zhao's heart still fluttered with lingering dread.

Head bowed, Wei Zhao suddenly felt two piercing gazes at his back and gave a great start. Whirling around, he found that those two gazes came, unmistakably, from Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie.

Lan Tieshan sat close beside Wei Zhao, while Gongsun Jie, to avert suspicion, sat alone in an inconspicuous corner. At that moment the two were not looking at Wei Zhao at all, but past him—meeting the Azure Dragon's eyes!

It was plain that both Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie had taken an interest in this new Azure Dragon. They were high-ranking figures of the North Island's Threefold Pavilion, and the Azure Dragon had suddenly appeared in the world with great fanfare on behalf of the spirit-beast clan—what would follow, no one could say. This matter was bound to draw the attention of every human power; the two of them must find some way to sound out the Azure Dragon's true nature and strength, so that the Threefold Pavilion could prepare its countermeasures in advance.

Just as Wei Zhao was secretly weighing all this, he suddenly felt another gaze, one terrible beyond measure. His heart clenched at once. This gaze carried no oppressive aura; it was the sheer pressure of the eyes alone that made his hair stand on end. Such a feeling could no longer be called fearsome—only horrifying.

Wei Zhao turned instinctively, and sure enough, the owner of that gaze was none other than the Azure Dragon. But the Azure Dragon was not looking at him now; he was sweeping his eyes over Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie—plainly striking back at their scrutiny.

At the sight, Wei Zhao's interest was instantly roused. The new Azure Dragon's strength was beyond doubt, and Gongsun Jie and Lan Tieshan were likewise men of unfathomable power. He wondered what the outcome of this covert clash between them would be.

Wei Zhao had expected this contest of gazes to last a little while; yet to his great surprise, after only a brief moment Gongsun Jie's side was visibly unable to hold out. He withdrew his gaze in some discomfiture, and Lan Tieshan soon pulled his back as well.

Only the Azure Dragon still kept that thoroughly aggressive gaze—though now, looking again at Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie, it bore a clear trace of contempt.

Wei Zhao was astonished. That the Azure Dragon, given his strength, should have the last laugh was no surprise; what he had not expected was that Gongsun Jie, the foremost of the North Island's new generation, should prove so utterly outmatched before the Azure Dragon. And though Lan Tieshan might be suspected of withdrawing his gaze on purpose, he too could surely not have held out much longer.

After all, strong as Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie were, it was only relative to the finest of the younger generation; against the truly top-tier existences there remained no small gap. And plainly, this new Azure Dragon of the spirit-beast clan was one of those veteran masters whom they could not yet contend with.

At this point Wei Zhao had thought the matter would rest there; but to his surprise, the Azure Dragon suddenly rose to his feet and walked straight toward the North Island guest section, instantly drawing every eye in the hall.

Seeing the Azure Dragon stride over, Wei Zhao for a moment did not know what to say!

For all this new elder of the spirit-beast clan's strength, his magnanimity was a little too lacking. He had merely been looked at by Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie—and for that he meant to pick a quarrel with the two of them before everyone?

Yet what utterly exceeded Wei Zhao's expectations was that, upon reaching the North Island guest section, the Azure Dragon did not go to Lan Tieshan and Gongsun Jie at all, nor even spare them a glance, but came to a stop directly before Wei Zhao himself!

Face to face with that half-smiling expression of the Azure Dragon's, Wei Zhao hurriedly rose to his feet, his scalp prickling uncontrollably. This... surely his identity had not been discovered?

"Heh heh, greetings, Special Envoy Lin. I have heard of your illustrious feat in our South Continent—truly a young man of promise." The Azure Dragon suddenly smiled faintly.

What? Heard of my illustrious feat in the South Continent? At those words Wei Zhao nearly bolted in fright on the spot. Any normal person would have been scared out of his wits—did this mean the bastard had seen through his identity?

Yet Wei Zhao's nature was tough, and in a situation that would have made an ordinary man wet himself, he forced down the towering waves in his heart, stood his ground unmoving, and kept his face composed throughout. Glancing at the Azure Dragon, he said, "Oh? And what, pray, is Elder Azure Dragon referring to?" (To be continued.) xh118R1052