Aftermath

"I knew that demonic Gu Master couldn't be trusted to act with honor!" Huo Li Li said, trying to catch her breath while hurriedly healing Huo Mei Yan. Her face burned with rage, but her emotions deep in her heart were more complex.

On one hand, she felt relieved because the fact that she had spoken out against him when she should have remained silent could no longer be used against her. But she was also deeply worried, seeing the precarious state of the clan leader after such a short confrontation with him.

This was especially because she knew that if it had been her in Huo Mei Yan's place, her situation would have been far worse. Fortunately, the demonic Gu Master had chosen to extort them using the clan leader's condition rather than attempt to kill them all.

"Calm down, woman. Your hysteria helps no one now—just heal the leader Yan without making mistakes," Huo Xi said, his cold gaze directed at the Gu Masters of the Huo clan who were rushing toward them in panic.

"And all of you, stop running around like headless chickens and form a defensive perimeter right now!" he shouted in a strong, authoritative voice, laced with a clear threat to anyone who dared disobey.

This was the authority he had to exercise as the highest-ranking elder, second only to Huo Mei Yan in the clan. Now that she was in a precarious state, it was expected of him to take command for the time being, and he certainly had no intention of refusing it.

"Yes, Elder Xi!" all the Gu Masters responded in unison, following his orders without the slightest hesitation.

The other elders nodded as they tried to calm their nerves, still on edge from the battle that had ended as suddenly as it had begun.

"I'm fine... The Aperture-Breaking Fire Gu i think was only Rank 2, so it shouldn't be able to completely destroy my aperture..." Huo Mei Yan said, attempting to maintain her dignified and strong appearance in front of the clan members.

However, her trembling eyes betrayed her as she stopped coughing up blood, thanks to the skilled healing of Huo Li Li, who was now a little pale from using most of her primeval essence to continuously heal her.

Seeing this, Huo Li Li wore a deeply worried expression as she whispered for only Huo Mei Yan to hear, "Clan leader, even if it doesn't destroy your aperture, from what I can see, it will leave it severely damaged... perhaps even cause a regression in your cultivation realm."

"That... shouldn't..." Huo Mei Yan weakly stammered before closing her eyes, seeing the walls of her aperture being incessantly burned by a white flame that seemed endless.

"...Is it this bad because I was hit directly by his attack?" she asked, now in better physical condition, able to reflect on what had just happened enough to recall the hand-shaped burn mark Chen Wei had left on her belly, though it had now disappeared due to Huo Li Li's healing.

"I'm afraid so..." Huo Li Li replied, looking helpless.

"We should quickly check if the clan has any treasures that can deal with this," Huo Xi said, his expression cold and calm, in line with his serious and aged appearance. "Does the clan leader know of anything in the deeper levels of the clan's treasure vault?"

Huo Mei Yan looked at him with a complicated expression. After closing her eyes and remaining silent for a few minutes, she simply shook her head in denial.

"We should be thinking about killing that damned demonic Gu Master for his actions!!" Huo Li Li shouted, her voice filled with fury, teeth clenched as if she wanted to tear Chen Wei apart with her bare hands.

"Attacking recklessly will only lead us to a more precarious situation," Huo Ji Pei, who was approaching, said without hesitation, his calm demeanor in contrast to elder Li. "We need to formulate a calm, concise plan to defeat him definitively."

Huo Zhing, witnessing this, sighed in slight disappointment. "Don't forget his words about the other clans. I don't believe we have much time to plan."

"It was probably him who spread the rumors of his own arrival as well..." Huo Xi, seeing the matter brought up without needing to start it himself, didn't miss the opportunity. "Our initial suspicion that he's in a conspiracy with the other clans is likely true!"

"So what do we do about it? We need to find a way to stall him for as long as possible, probably making him believe we'll actually give him the benefits he's demanded—" Huo Ji Pei, speaking quickly and focused, was suddenly interrupted by Huo Mei Yan raising her hand.

"We will follow his demands..." Huo Mei Yan forced herself to say loudly enough for everyone to hear, pushing her shame, anger, and melancholy deep into her chest. "...We must ensure the clan's safety... no matter the sacrifice."

"But clan leader, we don't even know if he really has a method to—" Huo Xi began, but the furious look from Huo Mei Yan was enough to stop him, leaving him looking indignant and conflicted.

Deep in his heart, however, he was almost shouting with joy. The shock of the sudden battle and the clan's precarious situation had passed, and he could now look at everything coldly, realizing that this outcome aligned with his plans, which greatly relieved his nerves.

Those nerves had been extremely strained since, like the other elders, he was caught off guard by Chen Wei's actions. The Demoniac Gu Master hadn't fully informed him of his plan nor bothered to explain afterward. But Huo Xi was intelligent enough to piece everything together and see the bigger picture, which, from his perspective, was greatly beneficial to him!

"Do not question my orders... In matters of emergency concerning the future of the clan, my authority is absolute!" Huo Mei Yan finally stood up straight, speaking those words to assert her strength—something she knew was extremely important to demonstrate now, given her most vulnerable state since becoming clan leader.

Hearing this, all the elders nodded their heads, not daring to voice any further dissent.

This was because they all understood that the clan leader's actions, though allowing the clan's resources to be extorted, left her with no choice. She had no other means of ensuring that her aperture would not be permanently damaged, which would be any Gu Master's worst nightmare.

Such is so that she had no hesitation in sacrificing the clan's honor and dignity, as well as its ancestral legacy, for a method she wasn't even certain would prevent such a catastrophe.

"I need paper and a brush..." Huo Mei Yan quickly saw one of her subordinates rush over with a sheet of white paper and a brush.

Without wasting time, she grabbed the paper and wrote in impeccable calligraphy the various items Chen Wei had demanded. The demands were so shameless and extortionate that she couldn't possibly forget them in such a short time.

"Communicate with Huo Zhi in the clan so he can begin preparing the items from the list that we possess..."

Huo Mei Yan was acutely aware of the strange looks from everyone around her, but she couldn't afford to care at this moment.

In fact, her only real concern now was the growing sense of impending disaster as the white flames continued to burn her aperture relentlessly, and there was nothing she could do but watch helplessly.

But unbeknownst to her, Chen Wei had a similarly complicated expression as he tried to remain calm in the face of the imminent disaster he had just realized, thanks to Yu Lian's words, which had fallen like anvils on his head, leaving his ears ringing.

"What are we going to do? She really needs a real midwife for this!" Yu Lian's face was full of despair as she struggled to stand still.

Chen Wei clenched his teeth so hard they cracked as if about to break, and he did the same with his fists, leaving nail marks in his palms for a few seconds before taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, which were more on edge than they had been during battle after hearing Yu Lian's words.

"Are you absolutely sure her water broke?" he asked quickly but more calmly.

"What do you mean? Of course, I'm sure! Look at her condition! Now can you stop asking pointless questions and come help your wife?!" Yu Lian said, nearly on tiptoe, breathing irregularly due to the nervousness etched across her face.

Chen Wei, still forcing himself to remain calm, asked her one last thing, "You've helped animals give birth in your previous world, right? Do you think you're capable of doing it for a human?"

Hearing his words, Yu Lian's eyes widened in shock.

"Of course not! How would that even be possible??" Yu Lian was almost speechless at his question. "She needs a midwife, damn it!"

"You think that's an option? That we can just sneak away to get one unnoticed under the clan's nose?" Chen Wei said, taking quick steps toward his room.

"Can't you demand one from them?" Yu Lian quickly followed, as she also needed to return to Wang Mei's side.

"If they find out Wang Mei is giving birth, they'll certainly attack..." Chen Wei's face twisted slightly, a look of helplessness flashing in his eyes. "This would obviously be the moment when my attention is most divided, and my emotions most unstable. They'd be foolish not to take advantage of it."

Before Yu Lian could respond, Chen Wei forcefully opened the door to the room, where he saw Wang Mei lying on the bed. The three hairy women, along with Feng Hua, were by her side, holding her hand and trying to assist her with the birth.

Wang Mei saw him instantly, releasing one of the hairy women's hands without even thinking and reaching out to him. But before she could call for him, he had already rushed to her side and taken her hand without the slightest hesitation, looking deeply into her eyes.

"I... I'm scared! This wasn't supposed to happen for at least another month... what if Chen Yuan is... Please, tell me everything will be okay!" Wang Mei had small tears running down her cheeks, breathing heavily, her face showing clear signs of pain, likely from trying to push the baby out.

"I promise you everything will be fine. I'm here now, and no matter what, I'll ensure your safety and that of our child!" he said, feeling her trembling hand grip his so tightly that her nails nearly drew blood from his skin.

"If... you have to... choose one of—" Wang Mei began to speak with difficulty but was interrupted by Chen Wei.

"I promised everything will be fine," he said, looking deeply into her eyes, not letting her finish the words he knew all too well.

"How long has it been since her water broke?" he asked, addressing anyone who could answer first.

Yu Lian, who had quickly followed behind him, responded without hesitation, "Less than thirty minutes, not long after the Huo Clan elders left!"

'So we should have at least six more hours of labor?' Chen Wei tried to deduce, guessing the time for birth, though he remained uncertain, as he had never witnessed a normal birth.

The only one he could remember in this world was his own mother's, which, due to the use of various Gu, had ended in less than half an hour, with his mother healthy and able to walk the next day.

"It should take about ten to twelve hours... My sister and I have assisted with births in our clan, and even though we are different from humans, I believe most of the process is the same!" one of the hairy women beside Wang Mei quickly said, noticing Chen Wei's attempt to remain calm.

"I swear on my honor that I will reward you all richly for this," Chen Wei said, uttering words of empty promises that he barely thought about fulfilling, but at this moment, he would say anything to motivate them to work as hard as possible.

He quickly saw them take control of the situation, guiding Wang Mei through the steps of labor as he continued to hold her hand, offering words of comfort. Wang Mei weakly screamed, the herbal mixture tea she had taken earlier greatly reducing the pain she felt.

Yet while all this was happening, Chen Wei's mind was working overtime, barely concerned about the future headaches he might face. He was revising and restructuring all of his plans, especially improvising new ones to deal with the Huo Clan once they discovered what was happening. At this point, he already considered it only a matter of time, due to his habit of always imagining the worst-case scenario.

Call it paranoia, but it was the best way to avoid ending up in precarious situations like this one, which had caught him unprepared. Now, facing it, this was the greatest problem he had encountered since setting foot on this mountain!