Chapter 1195: The Great Villain

In the Golden Body encampment, tents were packed tightly together, and evolutionary beings from various races were engaged in lively discussions.

The Hong brothers had been beaten again. No one knew how severely they were injured, but they certainly wouldn't be getting out of bed anytime soon, leaving everyone speechless.

It was Cao De again!

"This guy is truly authentic, a real straight shooter!"

"He doesn't tolerate any nonsense. Cao De probably found out that the noblewoman's messenger was invited by Hong Sheng, which made him impulsive, so he went directly and beat him up. He's so straightforward and genuine."

When Hong Sheng and Hong Yu heard these discussions, they were furious, their lips trembling. They almost wanted to crawl out of their sickbeds and fight everyone.

The two brothers truly wanted to spit in the faces of all who were talking. "Authentic" and "straight shooter"... how could those labels possibly apply to someone named Cao?

They felt the world was too dark. That cruel and overbearing Cao De always took advantage, and by all appearances, wasn't a good person, yet he could still gain such a reputation?!

They even began to doubt life itself!

Originally, they had planned to hunt Cao De, take his life, and then replace him on that list to claim all the good fortune.

In the end, they found that Cao De was more like a major villain than they were, strong and overbearing, repeatedly crippling them.

What they found most unbearable was that public opinion sympathized with Cao De, claiming he was too straightforward and only retaliated in anger when pushed into a corner, thus putting himself in an even more dangerous situation.

Everyone believed Cao De could be retaliated against by the Hong family at any moment.

"I'm going crazy!" The once high-spirited Hong Sheng was now like a frost-bitten eggplant—wilted. He couldn't stand it. In the end, he and his brother were utterly miserable, burdened with a bad reputation, constantly beaten, always half-dead after each beating, their bodies crippled and their spirits crushed.

"Everyone, thank you for your support. Cao De will remember it. I'm just too honest and a bit stubborn. When faced with people who repeatedly try to harm me with underhanded methods, I can't control myself, so I just went directly to their door and dealt with it."

Seeing the heated discussions outside, Chu Feng deliberately showed himself, acting like a blunt and straightforward person, expressing his gratitude.

At the same time, he stated that if anything were to happen to him, it would undoubtedly be the Hong family's doing. He asked everyone to bear witness, and if he were to die, to bury him on the battlefield, as that was the best resting place for those who had gone to war.

"Straight shooter, don't worry. The Hong family can't control everything with one hand. We're all watching, and we stand behind you!"

Many people voiced their support.

Chu Feng clasped his hands in thanks before retreating back into his tent-cave.

The Six-Eared Macaque, Mitian, bared his teeth and grinned, saying, "Cao, you really have the nerve! You beat the Hong brothers so badly, then went out to gain sympathy. It's truly shameless!"

Chu Feng's face darkened as he replied, "I was originally honest and kind-hearted. They harmed me repeatedly. This was done out of sheer desperation; I was forced to retaliate."

Then, he fixed his gaze on the monkey and said, "Let's settle our own accounts now!"

The monkey was instantly startled. "Wait a minute, you're not going to go crazy and beat up your own people, are you?"

"Am I that kind of person?" Chu Feng glared at him.

The monkey, Peng Wanli, and Xiao Yao all nodded instinctively, with only Mi Qing discreetly suppressing a smile.

"What's that supposed to mean? You actually see me that way? Alright then, let's settle this!" Chu Feng said.

"Settle what accounts?" Peng Wanli asked.

Chu Feng replied, "Soon we're going to make our move and ambush the Quasi-Saints. But the more I think about it, the more uneasy I feel. I'd be acting as your enforcer for nothing. What would I gain in the end?"

The monkey rolled his eyes and said, "Cao De, do you realize that the Dao Fusion Grass is unparalleled in the world? It can elevate a being's ultimate potential. You have a chance to get close to it, and you're still not satisfied? What more could you possibly want?!"

Peng Wanli and Xiao Yao also criticized him.

Chu Feng eyed them skeptically. "Cut it out. All of you have family backing. If the ambush succeeds, most of you will likely make it onto that list, while I, a mere rogue cultivator, might end up as the scapegoat for this entire affair, gaining nothing but great misfortune. You see me as straightforward and want to exploit me? No way!"

"Straightforward my foot!" they all wanted to retort. If he were truly honest, he wouldn't be overthinking things so much; he would have cooperated readily long ago.

Xiao Yao said, "Cao De, you're overthinking it. How could something like that happen? As long as our ambush succeeds, we'll be considered Heaven-Blessed Golden Body experts, with halos of glory. With a little maneuvering, we'll make it onto that list. If we get on, would we ever abandon you?"

Chu Feng shook his head. "Please. In just a few days since arriving on this battlefield, I've already felt too much darkness. This place devours people whole. You have deeper roots and more powerful backgrounds than Hong Yu. Which of the Peng, Dao, or Six-Eared Macaque clans doesn't shine throughout ancient history? If I get involved with you, I'll most likely end up as the scapegoat, calculated by your families, who will swallow me whole, skin and bones."

Peng Wanli said gravely, "Brother Cao, you're overthinking it. We share the same ideals and are allied together; we're brothers in arms in the same trench. How could we possibly betray you like that?"

"You might not have such thoughts right now, but the old monsters behind you probably have hearts as black as pitch. Ask yourselves, if we truly succeed in ambushing the Quasi-Saints, will the fallout be immense? If those Quasi-Saints are pushed aside because of this, will their unfathomable families behind them just let it go? And what will the old folks in your families do? They'll most likely hold secret talks with them, reach a compromise, and the first step will be to give them an outlet for their anger, which will probably involve throwing me out as a sacrifice."

Hearing Chu Feng's words, the others were speechless. Based on their understanding of their clan elders, it wasn't impossible. The old folks were indeed very cunning; they wouldn't have survived until now if they weren't. And compromises between top powerful clans often came with bloodshed, requiring sacrifices.

"So, I'm not doing it. I'm leaving!" Chu Feng declared.

Hearing this, the others immediately grew anxious. They were on the verge of making their move, but Cao De's withdrawal would severely impact the plan, causing everything to be shelved, which they found unacceptable.

"Brother Cao, what do you need to feel reassured?"

"You must understand, the Dao Fusion Grass can enhance your ultimate achievement. If you have the potential of a Divine King, it can eventually help you become a Celestial Venerable. If you have the potential of a Celestial Venerable, it will propel you, sooner or later making you a Great Power. This is enough to drive anyone mad!"

The others both tempted and questioned him, urging Chu Feng to state what he needed to feel secure.

Chu Feng said, "How about we use the prehistoric soul-light blood oath to ensure this?"

Upon hearing this, the others were instantly alarmed. The prehistoric soul-light blood oath was extremely terrifying and almost impossible to break, causing them considerable dilemma.

Seeing their reaction, Chu Feng stood up, ready to leave, refusing to proceed.

"Fine, we'll make a guarantee with this soul-light blood oath!"

Mitian, Peng Wanli, and the others valued this opportunity too much to give up. It concerned their future and their desire to forge a brilliant path.

Their soul-light shone brightly, vital blood flowed, and strange symbols coalesced. Each of them swore an oath: if the ambush on the Quasi-Saints succeeded, they would share the good fortune; otherwise, they would be struck by five thunderbolts and endure a lifetime of hardship.

However, Chu Feng felt the oath wasn't potent enough, so he made them swear again, leading to the others' faces turning green, eventually leaving them with psychological trauma.

It wasn't until much later, when even Chu Feng felt a chill listening to it, that it finally ended.

After swearing the oaths, they all discussed how to properly communicate with the old folks in their families. They didn't want a mix-up to occur, where Chu Feng might actually be thrown out as a sacrifice, just as Cao De had suggested.

After all, they had sworn here to share the fortune. If the clan elders were unaware and ruthlessly viewed him as a pawn to be discarded, then the trouble would be immense.

"I'm still a bit uneasy!" Chu Feng said from his spot.

At this point, the others, their eyes gleaming green, looked at Chu Feng, truly wanting to ask him what more he needed to feel completely at ease.

After all, they had just performed various blood oaths with their soul-light resonating.

The monkey gloomily said, "Cao, how much more miserable do you want us to be? We just kept swearing; there were easily dozens of different ways to die."

They had all sworn according to his demands, covering all sorts of ancient and modern cruel death methods, such as dismemberment by chariots, lighting sky lanterns, gutting, and tearing apart by five horses, should they violate the oath.

So, at that moment, their eyes were gleaming green as they stared at Chu Feng, making even him feel embarrassed.

Chu Feng waved his hand. "Alright, what's the point of being so petty? One should be magnanimous. Look at you all, with your sickly faces and bitter, resentful expressions."

Indeed, only Mi Qing could still manage a smile.

However, the others didn't see it that way. The monkey indignantly said, "How can you even talk about being magnanimous? Wasn't one type of oath enough? How many did you make us swear? I counted carefully, and there were fifty-seven different ways to die!"

This meant they had sworn a total of fifty-seven soul-light blood oaths.

Chu Feng gave a dry laugh. "Were there that many? You must have miscounted. Besides, is it worth quibbling over what's already done?!"

The others desperately wanted to say, "Don't you have any idea how many venomous oaths there were? And who was the one being petty? You made us swear for over an hour, going on and on until foam came out of our mouths!"

The others no longer wanted to speak with him!

Chu Feng quickly changed the subject. "Didn't Sister Mi Qing go to invite an expert? Where is he?"

When the topic shifted to serious matters, the others grew stern and informed him that it was a master from the Red-Scaled Crane clan, mighty in magic power and resilient in body, a rare match in the Golden Body realm.

"His name is Chi Lingkong, and he's resting in a large tent."

The Red-Scaled Crane clan was undoubtedly a crane species, but their bodies were covered in crimson scales, making their physical forms exceptionally powerful. They were an ancient and formidable race, known as the Otherworld Crane clan.

Along the way, Chu Feng asked, "Does he also need to swear twenty or thirty oaths?"

At this moment, even Mi Qing, who always had a sweet smile, looked a little unnatural, her expression slightly stiff.

"Brother Cao, you're a person of virtue, please stop making such unbearable demands, alright? It's enough that a few of us have sworn!"

"Alright then!" Chu Feng nodded, feigning a magnanimous air. "These are trifles. I was just speaking casually. In fact, none of you even needed to swear. I trust you very much."

"Trust, my foot!" The others gave him disapproving looks. Just a short while ago, they had sworn until they felt sick, yet he hadn't said anything like that then. In fact, he still wasn't satisfied and wanted them to swear even more!

"Cao De, get out here and greet the arrival of the Saints!"

Just then, someone roared, shaking the entire Golden Body encampment.

Chu Feng's expression changed. "They've come to us. Let's seize this opportunity and take them all down!"

The monkey also said fiercely, "Quickly find Chi Lingkong! We're preparing for an ambush!"