Chapter 208: The Fray

Fortunately, almost no one was paying attention to Qian Ye at the moment. Zhao Ruoxi was fixated on Ji Tianqing, who in turn was wary of Li Kuanglan. Although Li Kuanglan was engaging Ji Tianqing, he was also diverting at least half of his attention to Zhao Ruoxi. The relationship between the Zhao and Li families had never been good. These three were in a delicate deadlock, each checking the other.

Among them, Zhao Ruoxi was the most free. Seeing that Ji Tianqing had calmed down quite a bit, she snorted, threw William to the ground, and then walked straight up to Song Zining, saying, “Move aside!”

Song Zining had already sensed the tension and immediately cast a helpless look at Qian Ye before swiftly stepping aside to join Wei Potian.

Zhao Ruoxi sat down beside Qian Ye, raised her wine cup, and said, “Have a drink with me!”

Ji Tianqing’s eyes flickered, and she also picked up her wine cup, drinking it all in one go. She wore a smile, but there was no trace of mirth in her eyes as she looked coldly at Zhao Ruoxi.

Li Kuanglan, too, drank his cup dry and then sat next to Ji Tianqing. As soon as he sat down, Ji Tianqing became “real,” and the elusive aura around her vanished. From that moment on, she became an ordinary girl, no longer shrouded in mystery.

Ji Tianqing’s smile was somewhat forced, and she turned to give Li Kuanglan a silent glance. Li Kuanglan just snorted, pretending not to see her.

“Brother Kuanglan, won’t you have a drink?” Ji Tianqing began to provoke him.

Naturally, Li Kuanglan did not refuse and promptly downed his cup. The two of them went back and forth, quickly finishing five or six bowls of strong liquor. Even Wei Potian was stunned by their speed.

For some reason, Zhao Ruoxi joined the fray, and the three of them engaged in a fierce drinking contest, drinking as if they were merely sipping water—no, even faster than that. In the heat of the battle, Li Kuanglan stood up, while Zhao Ruoxi and Ji Tianqing pushed Qian Ye to the side, finding him an obstacle in the middle.

Wei Potian watched in fear and secretly called a servant, instructing him to bring more wine. The servant, now deeply understanding the meaning of “ferocity,” hurried off like the wind.

Wei Potian, seeing that there was still plenty of wine left, just breathed a sigh of relief when he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. Song Zining, with a tone of both teasing and sarcasm, said, “Prince Wei, aren’t you here to avenge your past humiliation? Why are you afraid now? The flames of war haven’t even reached you yet!”

Stirred by Song Zining’s words, Wei Potian instantly exploded with anger, shouting, “Which eye of yours saw that I’m afraid? Stop talking nonsense! Come, let’s drink! If I don’t knock you out today, I’ll stop using my surname Wei!”

Song Zining accepted the challenge, downed his cup in one go, and then laughed, “I won’t bet with you. This kind of bet where I’m sure to win is simply not interesting.”

Wei Potian was furious, and he plopped down at the table, setting out cups of wine in front of him. “Come on, if you have the guts! Don’t act like a woman.”

Before Song Zining could respond, Zhao Yuying was already displeased. She sat next to Wei Potian, grabbing him and demanded, “Explain to me, what’s wrong with women?”

In an instant, the ongoing battle among Zhao Ruoxi, Ji Tianqing, and Li Kuanglan came to a halt, and all of them turned to look.

Being the center of their attention was not a pleasant experience. Although Wei Potian was quite arrogant, he was self-aware enough to know that he couldn’t defeat any of them. So, his heroic demeanor vanished, and he raised his cup, smiling apologetically, “I’ll punish myself with three cups!”

Seeing the matter resolved, Zhao Ruoxi and the others’ attention returned to their opponents, and the battle resumed.

However, Zhao Yuying was not about to let Wei Potian off so easily. She dragged him into more drinking, and Song Zining fanned the flames, adding fuel to the fire. But for some reason, whether it was because his flattery was off or because Zhao Yuying simply didn’t like him, she dragged him into the fray, starting a three-way battle.

The courtyard was now divided into two groups, and the intense drinking continued. The noble girls, young and inexperienced, foolishly joined in, only to collapse in a heap after a short while.

Qian Ye and William were, surprisingly, outside the storm, not involved in any of the conflicts. Wei Potian, Song Zining, and Zhao Yuying, all of whom had suffered at Qian Ye’s hands, instinctively avoided him. As for Zhao Ruoxi’s side, everyone was focused on the fierce battle, and seeing Qian Ye swaying, they found him uninteresting. No one wanted to push him to his limits, so they ignored him.

Qian Ye, relieved to be spared, pretended to play with a dog, dragging William to the side, and whispered, “How did you end up here?”

William remained unmoved, pretending not to understand.

“William! Don’t think I don’t know who you are!” Qian Ye directly confronted him.

William: “Woof!”

Qian Ye’s vision darkened with anger, whispering, “You! Have you no shame? Look at yourself now! Where is the William who once promised to broker peace between werewolves and humans?”

William: “… Woof woof woof!”

Feeling utterly defeated, Qian Ye sensed something within him collapsing. Just then, a soft body suddenly pounced on him, hugging him tightly from behind.

As Qian Ye tried to break free, he heard Ji Tianqing’s voice in his ear, “Why are you talking to this dog instead of drinking properly?”

Qian Ye broke out in a cold sweat, turning to see Ji Tianqing, her face flushed, her eyes dazed, and her appearance slightly blurred. Clearly, she was drunk and hadn’t noticed Qian Ye’s strange behavior.

Relieved, Qian Ye turned to see William still feigning ignorance, and he grew even more irritated. Suddenly, he grabbed a bone and brought it close to William’s mouth.

This time, it was William’s turn to freeze.

A low growl rumbled in William’s throat, and his eyes flashed with menace. But Qian Ye wasn’t afraid; he pointed in Zhao Ruoxi’s direction and moved the bone closer.

Furiously, William’s neck hair stood on end! But seeing Zhao Ruoxi and Li Kuanglan still locked in a drinking contest, and Ji Tianqing watching with interest, William’s courage to attack again faded. He turned to leave.

But Qian Ye grabbed his neck fur, dragging him back, and kept waving the bone in front of William’s face, trying to force it into his mouth.

Underestimating William, Qian Ye suddenly felt a sharp pain as William bit down hard on his calf. The bite was so strong, the sharp wolf teeth pierced Qian Ye’s leg, making a metallic sound!

“You, you actually!!” Qian Ye was shocked beyond words.

Ji Tianqing intervened, grabbing William’s neck fur and pulling him away from Qian Ye, tossing him to the corner. She then told Qian Ye, “Stop playing with the dog, get back to business!”

By “business,” Ji Tianqing meant drinking. When Qian Ye returned to the fray, the situation had changed. The crowd was no longer divided into two groups but was now in a chaotic mix. Zhao Yuying was forcefully making Song Zining drink, Wei Potian and Li Kuanglan were in a one-on-one contest, and Zhao Ruoxi was chasing after anyone she could catch, adding to the chaos with Ji Tianqing and Qian Ye.

Amidst the chaos, a large dog appeared. William, unwilling to be left out, wanted to show off, but his drinking skills were mediocre. The others in the courtyard were all powerhouses, and any one of them could easily overpower him. After just one round, William was sprawled on his back, foaming at the mouth, and was tossed by Li Kuanglan into an empty wine barrel, which he then sealed.

As the battle progressed, Wei Potian and Song Zining fell one by one, and Qian Ye noticed that the number of people still able to move was decreasing. The wine was running low, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to find more.

As the alcohol took effect, time seemed to speed up. Before he knew it, Qian Ye found himself standing alone in the courtyard, with no one left to challenge. He took a step forward and tripped over something. Looking down, he saw Wei Potian, who was snoring loudly, his body covered in footprints. Zhao Yuying was slumped over a nearby table, and Song Zining was tucked under another table.

In another corner, Zhao Ruoxi, Ji Tianqing, and Li Kuanglan were sleeping together, with the noble girls serving as a makeshift bed beneath them. It was unclear who had done this, but among the three, Li Kuanglan was perhaps the least devious, while Ji Tianqing and Zhao Ruoxi were evenly matched.

Left with such a scene, Qian Ye was at a loss. He was becoming more and more sober, and he wanted to find someone still awake to continue the contest. But no matter how he called, no one responded.

Alone, Qian Ye felt a profound loneliness. He thought of Ye Tong, far away in the Black Flow City. Because of her identity, she might never be able to participate in such gatherings, meaning she would always be cut off from Qian Ye’s circle of friends.

With a deep sigh, Qian Ye raised his cup towards the direction of the Black Flow City and drank it in silence.

At the same time, Ye Tong, who was reading in the courtyard, felt a sense of connection and looked up at the night sky. She smiled gently, sipped her tea, and continued reading.

In the Unfallen City, Zhao Jundu leaned against the window, gazing at the planet Mars high in the night sky, lost in thought.

A woman dressed in black silently appeared in the room and asked, “What is the young master thinking about?”

A smile played on Zhao Jundu’s lips as he said, “They are having quite a party over there. I was wondering if I should join in. If I go now, I will definitely sweep the floor with them, ha!”

“Then go, young master!”

Zhao Jundu shook his head, “No, I expect many guests tonight. If I am not here, how can I give them a welcome they will never forget?”

“Are you referring to Edward and his group? A worthless criminal, I can handle him.”

Zhao Jundu smiled and said, “No, I am waiting for someone else. She cannot be handled by you.”

Curiosity piqued, the woman asked, “Who is she?”

Zhao Jundu did not answer, but instead gazed at the night sky, his eyes fixed on a particularly bright star.

That night, the sky was filled with stars. That night, more than one meteor streaked across the sky, falling toward the floating land.

Each meteor was a warship.

On one of these warships, a young demonic being stood by the porthole, watching the approaching floating land, his eyes blazing with pale flames. A fellow demon beside him said, “Young master, be very careful on this trip. It would be best to avoid Zhao Jundu.”

The young demonic being remained silent for a long time before saying, “Now that the Dark Empress has awakened, Zhao Jundu is no longer my concern. The old ones have already agreed not to interfere. Who else is there to fear?”

“Be cautious of Edward as well, young master.”

“Him? Haha.”