Chapter 515 - Headstrong
Shen Lian remained silent for a moment and smiled, "Guan Longzi and you may regard me as the Man of Destiny from the prophecy but to be honest, it does not matter to me at all."
"It does not matter if you are bothered or not. Even if you are not the destined one, your existence here has disrupted the balance of this world. Hundreds of years ago, the person from the Asura Blood Sea destroyed the balance and as a result, there was a monk who would never leave the shore of the blood sea. Whether you like it or not, your appearance here would garner a lot of attention. Every step you take and every move you make will deeply affect the format of this world," The High Priest sighed.
The white Pegasus managed to muster up the courage after being consoled by Shen Lian. The dragon prestige released unconsciously by the Black Dragon no longer intimidated the Pegasus. In fact, it triggered the discharge of impurities of the blood of the Pegasus, and it slowly gained a glow on its face.
Shen Lian released the Pegasus from his hands and turned his clear eyes to the High Priest, "All these had nothing to do with me. But I want to know where is she? If you refuse to answer, I will use all means to make you undo your decision. You should trust that I have the determination and power to do so."
The prestige of the Black Dragon was terrifying enough but it could not match Shen Lian's stance at that very moment.
Shen Lian was not tall but it felt like his height was tall enough to stab through the sky of this space.
A hurricane came out of nowhere and swept the misty fog away. The Hellfire was replaced by the flames released by Shen Lian and it spread throughout the entire Dragon Pond.
There was lightning in the sky, shaped in the figure of a snake.
With this pure looking teenager standing in front of him, the High Priest tear away his mask to reveal the true colors of a Demon King.
The High Priest was fully aware of how terrifying Shen Lian could be.
"There were many barbarian tribes in the south and among them, some were homologous to the Xia Tribe. But their cultivation approach was different from Xia as they practiced witchcraft and sacrificial rituals in exchange for power. In other words, they were witches and wizards. Yun was born as a medium and is more skillful than I am in witchcraft. I brought her there to cultivate for five years. She then became the Saintess that was highly looked upon by the Southern Barbarians and a friendly figure to Xia Kingdom. Now that you are Xia Kingdom's State Preceptor and the price of Xiliang, if you choose to retire to focus on cultivation and never be involved in mortal affairs, I can guarantee that Xiliang will be one of the most respected nations ever aside from Xia Kingdom. You will become the God of the Xia Kingdom and be respected by all. Xia Kingdom would generously provide you with our fortune so you can pursue a higher realm," the High Priest said.
The conditions he proposed were really attractive. As long as Shen Lian stayed out of trouble, he would gain tremendously.
Shen Lian sighed, "What if I don't agree with it?"
The High Priest said, "Yun would be your enemy and Xia Kingdom would be your obstacle. Even if you became the master of the world, you could still be a lonely person."
"Are you threatening me?" Shen Lian lifted his head and questioned the High Priest.
The High Priest said, "If you agree to it, you can always be the Xia Kingdom's State Preceptor. In fact, I am willing to surrender my position as the High Priest to you."
Shen Lian shook his head, "But I am not interested in the things that you said. To be honest, I do not intend to go against Xia Kingdom because I dread getting involved in unnecessary troubles. But I noticed something and that pissed me off."
"What was it?" The High Priest fixed his gaze on Shen Lian.
Shen Lian answered, "I am sure you have taught Emperor Xia many things. I do not know if you have noticed that the two of you are actually very similar to each other. You all love to be in control so I am sure that you have taken her away a long time ago. You also want to recruit me to be part of Xia Kingdom through this compromisation. You must have told yourself that you could sacrifice everything for Xia Kingdom and it was not for the sake of immortality but for spiritual sustenance. In order to achieve this, you have planned everything meticulously.
You got it right. I absolutely hate being involved in unnecessary affairs and troubles. If I did not have all these supernatural powers, I might have stayed in the mountains in solitary. I would be content with my life, spend a good amount of time experiencing new things but very few people would know me.
However, I have cultivated such powers and I could not help but show it off. It is not a good habit but it's hard to change my character.
And that is why I would never compromise just to get out of trouble. I would just take the practical way, which is my fist, to eliminate all troubles."
Shen Lian lifted his fist and effortlessly threw out a punch.
From this punch, the High Priest could see Shen Lian's wildness, wantonness and his determination to not be played like a puppet.
After all, he did not know the real Shen Lian. With such wisdom and resolution, what Shen Lian really wanted was not to embark on a comfortable journey of Dao but a path where he could follow his heart.
If he ignored Shen Lian, Shen Lian would leave eventually, just like how he came quietly.
Shen Lian was definitely not a good person but neither was he a bad person. He was just very headstrong, headstrong with principles.
Up until that moment, he had yet to show any hostility towards Xia Kingdom and was more irksome and provocative. If one looked at it in a deeper sense, it was a case of a mutual intolerance between a celestial beyond the mortal world and an absolute monarch.
Shen Lian could play by the rules and use his wisdom to fight with the High Priest but what he did best was to just settle everything in one shot.
At least that would let the High Priest know what kind of person he, Shen Lian, was.
The dead Black Dragon was alarmed by Shen Lian's fist and it triggered its instinct. The dragon stood upright, its scales sparkled as the chants of High Priest awakened its memories and powers.
The force of the punch got really close to the Black Dragon and was countered by the dragon's breath.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The space was filled with sounds of explosions. It was the sound of the collision of pure strength as well as the surging of Shen Lian's fearlessness.
Dark clouds surrounded the sky of Diqiu and it started to rain.
Tianyi sat on Xia Stage and allowed it to rain on him. The chilly sensation was effective in taking out the heat in the body.
He smiled and thought to himself, "This celestial is so intriguing. He is such a stubborn person."
When one arrived at their current level, every move they make would have an impact on the world. Even if Shen Lian was in the world founded by Si Wenming, it was still a world attached to the Netherworld.
The battle inside would still affect the Qi dynamics outside. Tianyi was able to experience the part of the context of the battle through the changes in Qi dynamics.
He was somewhat envious of Shen Lian's unconstrained behavior. Shen Lian would take action as he liked, unlike him who scruple too much.
But he would never give up the scrupling because the purpose of his cultivation was to make things better for other people, not for himself.