Bad Blood

"So you are saying that my mission is being pushed forward and I will have to leave in a month?"

Vasari was currently seated on a chair opposite Elder Equus in the flying mount quarters of the Cloud Stables. Not far from them, Otis was being chased by the cubs. It was uncertain if the cubs were playing or actually trying to hunt Otis but it didn't matter because no matter how hard they tried they couldn't catch the Beta-Stage Cloud Pegasus.

"Yes, the Sect Master ordered me to quickly finish the preparations and get you ready to leave in a month." Elder Equus once again relayed the message to Vasari who looked far from happy and why wouldn't he be? He was enjoying his time in Cloud Haven Sect and he did not want to leave when he just got here.

"Why?" Vasari asked, there had to be a reason as to why the Sect Master would suddenly order Elder Equus to hasten his preparations.

Elder Equus sighed and shook his head, "I don't know but the Sect Master is very rarely wrong when it comes to these types of matters. It is the reason why he is the Sect Master at such a young age."

"Agh fine. Is that all you wanted to tell me today?", since he was a disciple of the Cloud Haven Sect he had to obey the orders of the Sect Master and elders. Vasari decided to look for the positives, the earlier he finishes the mission the quicker he will be able to get his rewards. He was particularly excited about the 3 Heaven Grade cultivation techniques. He already had 1 Low Heaven grade technique although he only had the first two forms, it was clear that the quality was much higher than his rare-grade techniques.

"No, I am also going to teach you everything you need to know about the farming planet from its power structure down to all of its danger zones."

So for the next 3 hours, Elder Equus explained everything that Vasari needed to know about the planet Voxotis.

Playing non-stop for 3 hours tired the little cubs out. After not being able to catch Otis they changed their target to the other residents staying in the flying mount quarters. Many times Otis had to swoop in and save them from being squashed after disturbing beasts that they weren't supposed to. The naughty cubs thought this was a new game and constantly looked for the biggest beasts to hunt before Otis hurriedly carried them away.

Vasari stood next to Elder Equus who watched the wolf cubs sleep next to Otis and use his black mane as a blanket.

"Those cubs of yours are quite feisty aren't they."

"That's good. I don't want them to grow up to become tame like the beasts in here."

Elder Equus sported a wry smile at Vasari's not-so-subtle jab. He was in charge of the Cloud Stables so it was hard not to take offence to Vasari's words but what he said was true. The beasts here were much less aggressive than their undomesticated counterparts but it didn't necessarily mean that they were much weaker, when paired with their rider they could potentially be even stronger.

Having already spent enough time at the Cloud Stables, Vasari prepared to leave. He picked the cubs up in his arms and said farewell to Otis not before giving him a treat for his hard work. He gave Otis an apple that he bought from the grocery store and the pegasus happily accepted the reward.

Vasari then said his goodbyes to Elder Equus before walking to his residence under the starry night sky. While walking he could hear the muffled sounds of upbeat music playing from inside nearby buildings and the voices of many people.

"20 Cloud points and I'll give you a night you'll never forget!"

"A full body massage and a happy ending for just 10 cloud points!"

"Live entertainment featuring the hottest ladies Outer Haven has to offer!"

It was the first time Vasari had walked down this specific street at night. He was not surprised that the Cloud Haven Sect had a place like this, in fact, he found it to be natural. Some found revenue hard to come by and had to resort to performing activities and doing jobs that many frowned upon while others had too much income and had no clue what else to spend it on. Thus the never-ending cycle of debauchery.

"Young man you look lonely. Would you like this big sister to keep you company tonight~"

"Maybe another time, I don't want to wake my cubs."

"Come on mister~ we can arrange another room for your little cubbies while we have a room all to ourselves~"

"Sorry lady but I'm not interested. Find someone else to bother"

"Tsk, you think you're better than me huh? You think I'm some degenerate whore just because I work in a place like this don't you!?"

"Lady don't put words in my mouth and make assumptions."

"Ptui you piece of shit! I bet you're ugly as fuck and that's why you hide your face behind that mask and blindfold. You should be lucky that a woman as sexy as me even approached you, asshole!"

Vasari shook his head in disbelief and walked away.

'What just happened.' He didn't know whether to laugh or cry after experiencing such a random encounter.

"You see that boys, don't stick your pole in any random hole. Make sure they are crazily obsessed and loyal to you first." Vasari gave the cubs who woke up due to all the commotion some precious fatherly advice.

As if understanding his words the cubs nodded in unison before drifting back into dreamland.

'Now that I only have a month left before I leave I have to speed up my cultivation a bit.'

Vasari used the rest of the walk home to formulate some targets he would aim to achieve before he left for Voxotis.

------

"Ladies and Gentlemen we will be taking a four-hour interval. There are stalls and plenty of entertainment set up around the stadium grounds for you to enjoy during this interval."

From the speakers fitted all around the stadium, a male voice announced to everyone. Most of the spectators got up to explore the newly renovated stadium while others closed their eyes and waited for the interval to end.

"Wow, that was so amazing! I've never seen cultivators fight like that before, I'm so excited for the last 10 matches."

Witney was all smiles while walking around the stadium with Talia who also seemed to be enjoying herself.

"I only wish Vasari came with us. My wifey instincts are warning me that girls are trying to hit on him while I'm gone."

"Wifey Instincts? I feel the same way so does that mean I also have this Wifey Instinct?"

Talia asked with a neutral expression but her eyes were filled with hidden expectations that Witney was easily able to see through.

"Wifey Instincts can only be activated when interacting with your man's yang that he releases inside you. So you have to get Vasari to release some of his yang inside you before you can use Wifey Instincts." Witney teased her friend, hoping she would see a funny expression but it dangerously backfired when she saw Talia's determined eyes.

'Oh no, what have I done!'

"Haha, Ta-Talia I was just joking around. No need to take what I said seriously."

Seeing no change of expression on her friend's face, Witney knew that she fucked up badly.

"Talia, why don't we get Vasari a souvenir? I'm sure we will be able to find a nice gift for him before the interval ends.", Realising that changing this stubborn girl's mind was going to be near impossible, Witney changed the subject instead. From just a glance she could see plenty of stalls selling all sorts of amazing and unique items making her eager to check every stall out.

"hmm." Receiving a hum of agreement the duo went gift shopping for Vasari until the interval ended and the friendly competition resumed.

------

"The next match will be between Zhan Lin from the Heavenly Sword Sect versus Chester Brown!!"

A handsome man wearing a white tuxedo announced while standing in the middle of the stadium. Oohs and Ahs sounded from all over after the contestants fighting each were announced.

The announcer was soon joined on stage by 2 men with contrasting builds. The man on the right was 2.5m tall and had the body of a bear, while the man on the left was 1.75m tall with a small frame but unconcealed confidence oozed out of his body.

The men stared at each with none of them backing down from each other's gaze in the slightest. One wore a black robe with small red clouds embroidered on it while the other wore golden robes with an image of a mighty sword on the back.

"Chester I already beat you once in the Westernord Sect Tournament, the outcome will remain the same as it did 8 years ago no matter how hard you try."

Chester Brown stared at the infuriating confident smirk on Zhan Lin's face and internally swore to punch the shit out of him.

"Zhan Lin you talk big for such a small boy and don't forget how I humiliated your beloved senior brother so badly that he ended his own life. I beat him so easily that he struggled to perform in bed after our fight and his women left him one by one until he committed suicide HAHAHAAHAH!"

Chester loudly roared for all to hear and the body of Zhan Lin trembled in anger. Immense hatred and killing intent was directed at Chester, who merely smiled in response.

"Chester Brown one day I will kill you with the blade of Senior Brother Jin's sword."

"But today is not that day."

The two spoke no more and disappeared from their locations to suddenly appear again in the middle of the arena. Blade clashed against fist in a fight that got the spectators jumping off their seats.

This wasn't just a friendly spar but a battle filled with history and hostility causing it to be much more exciting than most of the matches fought before.

The battle lasted hours as the two men inside the arena traded blow after blow until a winner was eventually decided.

Chester stood proudly in the centre of the arena while Zhan Lin was breathing heavily to the side and used his sword as a crutch to stop him from collapsing.

"Small boy, you may have beaten me once but know that it will never happen ever again," Chester said before smoothly walking off the arena and disappearing backstage. Zhan Lin's eyes went red with rage and embarrassment, slamming the floor of the arena with his fist before walking off the stage in the same direction he entered.

"Gosh, that was intense. It's just a pity that we couldn't see the whole fight." Talia said after the fight was over.

These Core Disciples were 3 realms higher than Witney and Talia so it was amazing that they could even catch glimpses of those fighting. So it was nice that there was a massive screen showing the highlights of the fights in slow-motion for those who weren't able to keep up.

"I can't believe there are still nine more fights. I'm so excited."

It seems poor Vasari was going to have to dedicate a full day just to listen to Witney and Talia narrating the events of the friendly competition.