Chapter 4526 — Vermilion Bird
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
Were he not in his present condition, the ghost-thing would absolutely have gone up in person to test the mettle of this new Spirit Beast King. If the bloodline proved false, he would be the first to let the Vermilion Bird off the hook no longer. But as things stood, he had the will and not the strength—what was he to do?
The ghost-thing fell speechless for a moment, then spoke again in a low voice: "As for the one at the right hand, I don't know him either. Could it be an elder the Vermilion Bird has lately promoted?!"
From the mere fact that this person could stand alongside Elder Vermilion Bird at the king's left and right, one could see that his status must be very high—most likely he too was an elder. Yet the ghost-thing had dealt with the great and small elders of the spirit beast clan to some degree, and had never seen the like of this one. This was a completely unfamiliar new face.
The ghost-thing could not help sinking into thought. From the strange spectacle before him today, he had already caught a whiff of something out of the ordinary; every sign indicated that this spirit beast clan was no longer the spirit beast clan he had known.
The ghost-thing's heart was a tangle of feelings, but Wei Zhao harbored no such reflections. He merely blended in among the crowd without betraying a thing... oh no, more precisely, among the beasts. To him it mattered not in the least what became of the spirit beast clan, so long as his human identity was not discovered.
And what gratified Wei Zhao somewhat was that the attention of these powerful spirit beasts all around was wholly fixed upon the high platform and the troupe of dancing spirit beasts in the middle; from first to last not one had spared him a second glance. Even those nearby who had occasionally noticed him let their eyes slide past.
After all, Wei Zhao had only the aura of a spirit beast at the mere Golden Core stage. Such paltry strength, set against the whole assembly, could only rank at the very bottom; no one would waste time paying heed to such a weakling, much less strike up a conversation with him! Had this been some other occasion where slaughter was permitted, being taken for a snack and gulped down whole by the spirit beasts present would have been about right.
Be that as it may, from what could be seen so far, the ghost-thing's disguise had succeeded; barring any mishap, they ought to slip through without trouble.
Amid a tide of earth-shaking cheers rising and falling, the shapeshifted spirit beasts in the middle at last finished their dance and dispersed among the beast throng, and at once the eyes of every spirit beast in the hall swung in unison to the high platform. That dance just now had been but a festive overture; what came next was the true main event.
Sure enough, once the focus of every spirit beast present had of its own accord shifted to the high platform, the Vermilion Bird stepped forward with a great laugh, leaving the so-called new Spirit Beast King and the other elders all behind him. From his high-spirited air, anyone not in the know might well have taken him for the Spirit Beast King himself.
"Very good. This elder is delighted to see the spirit beast brethren of Anluo Cultivation City gathered in one place, come from all quarters to pay homage to our new king!" the Vermilion Bird declared, and with every gesture a scorching wave of heat engulfed the whole assembly, proclaiming his absolutely overwhelming strength while raising the already fervent atmosphere to an even more fevered pitch.
As his words fell, the hall erupted in a roar like mountains and seas; every spirit beast, whether in human or beast form, dropped to its knees of one accord, crying "Long live the king!" as they performed the full kowtow, forehead, hands, and knees all to the ground.