A Victim of Love

After the remainder of the Grand Martial Tribesmen gave in, providing the Bloody Totem Tribe with one huge vassal tribe and six smaller vassal tribes, the other tribes submitted soon after.

The Grand Martial Tribe was the strongest tribe in the province. Because of their renowned strength, the Grand Martial Tribe's sudden collapse caused the other tribes to realise that the Bloody Totem Tribe had truly taken in a monster of a warrior!

Those tribes led by 5-Star Realm warriors were hesitant at first, but after learning the truth, that Yaan had defeated a Late 5-Star Realm ancestor with a single move, and that he had the ability to dismantle tribe protecting formations, often within a matter of minutes, they no longer had the will to fight.

It might seem strange that these 'honourable' warriors were willing to concede so easily, but this was also due to the culture in the War Flower Empire. Across the empire, it was common practice for the weak to submit to the strong. If a tribe's enemy was of a similar strength to them, they would battle until their last breath. However, if the enemy far outmatched them, there was no shame in admitting defeat, so long as the terms of their surrender were favourable.

In reality, only the Aztecs and a few other distinct groups were willing to fight to the death in a hopeless situation. Most others were a bit more reasonable, though of course, this varied from person to person.

Even so, there were some that tried their luck, some that refused to back down. Some would rather die fighting…

And so, they died fighting.

Yaan dealt with anything that came up, rapidly solidifying his reputation as a demon warrior who could not be opposed. No matter the situation, he handled it easily and quickly, causing the fighting spirit of the other tribes to be quickly extinguished.

Soon enough, every tribe in the Star Plain Province submitted to the Bloody Totem Tribe!

Of course, it wasn't quite this simple.

Many individuals left the province, fleeing from this land and deciding to travel elsewhere. They were unwilling to live underneath another tribe, but there was nothing they could do to contend against Yaan's might, so their only choice was to leave and start anew in a different land.

The Bloody Totem Tribe did their best to prevent people from leaving, spreading out a net of elders from the vassal tribes to capture or kill these deserters. Those tribes which achieved merit and successfully captured anyone attempting to flee were granted better conditions as vassal tribes, motivating them to work hard.

Overwhelming tyranny was not a stable method of ruling. Yaan used his might to conquer these tribes, but he wanted them to become willing to serve him over time. He gave them favourable conditions to ensure this, allowing them to keep the majority of their autonomy. They only needed to pay a sizeable tribute to the Bloody Totem Tribe each year, and if the Bloody Totem Tribe issued any orders, they needed to obey.

With so many 4-Star Realm powerhouses hunting down anyone attempting to leave the Star Plain Province, most people no longer dared to leave! They felt stifled, forced to remain within their tribes, which were now merely vassals of the Bloody Totem Tribe!

After killing the two 5-Star Realm elders in the Grand Martial Tribe, there were only five publicly known 5-Star Realm powerhouses left in the province. Of these five, two attempted to fight back against the Bloody Totem Tribe during the tribe's initial conquest. Yaan dealt with them swiftly, killing them both without mercy.

This sent a message to the others, but another two of the remaining 5-Star Realm elders were unwilling to lower their heads. They departed from the province silently, and nobody was able to stop them. Since Yaan did not know when they left or where they went, he could do nothing to prevent this.

Honestly, he felt surprised that a single 5-Star Realm elder actually remained in the province. It was unusual that someone with such strength would be willing to roll over and accept their own defeat…Yaan knew that there must be a deeper reason for their choice.

Since this person was now the most powerful individual in his force, Yaan paid them a visit.

The Greenwood Tribe.

This tribe was quite different compared to the other tribes that Yaan had encountered on the Blood Plane until now.

The entire tribe was situated within a unique forest. Forests were rarely seen in the Star Plain Province, as 99% of the lands in the province were comprised of vast stretches of green plains. As for the Greenwood Forest, this was the largest forest in the province, yet it was still only twice as large as the tribe itself.

The trees in the Greenwood Forest were covered in green bark. These trees were extremely durable, they could not be felled easily, even 3-Star Realm body temperers would need to exert some effort to cut them down! For this reason, greenwood was a material used frequently by the Greenwood Tribe in their production of treasures.

When Yaan entered the tribe, having been permitted entry by the tribesmen who lowered the formation defences to grant him access, he immediately noticed that the tribesmen were not 'ordinary' humans. These people all had long pointed ears, whilst they shared the same glistening blue eyes and luscious blonde hair.

This reminded Yaan of the time that he had spent in the 4th Trial Realm.

Back in the 4th Trial Realm, many of the realm's inhabitants possessed strange features, yet they still claimed to be human. Yaan did not fully understand this matter, he only knew that it was caused by their distinctive bloodlines.

He knew that there were intelligent races other than humans, such as the demonic races, but also those born naturally into this world. He just didn't know what distinguished these variant bloodline 'humans' from those other races…

The Blood Plane was very similar to the 4th Trial Realm, in fact, the original inhabitants of the 4th Trial Realm were brought in from the Blood Plane, so it was quite normal to see similarities between these two places.

There were also bloodlines on the Qi Plane, Zue Yin was an example of such a person with a bloodline that supported Qi refining cultivation. On the Blood Plane though, bloodlines were tens of times more prevalent!

Not all humans with bloodlines had strange appearances, but many did. The Aztecs were the best example of a bloodline tribe with a body tempering supporting bloodline which altered their appearance compared to regular humans, and now, the Greenwood Tribe was another example…

Yaan soon learned from the Greenwood Tribe Ancestor that the Greenwood Tribesmen were actually members of the larger Fae Tribe, a tribe no less prominent on the Blood Plane than the Aztec Tribe!

Only, the Greenwood Tribe Ancestor whom Yaan met with after reaching the centre of the tribe…was not truly the Greenwood Tribe Ancestor…

This person kept himself distanced from most others in the tribe, rarely making public appearances. Whenever he did show himself, his face was hidden behind a black mask and his body beneath a large black cloak.

Even so, his enormous stature, not befitting a member of the Fae Tribe, could not be hidden.

Vital treasures were not nearly as advanced compared to Qi refiners' spiritual treasures, and concealment type vital treasures were even less common. Vital treasures tended to focus on amplifying a body temperer's raw power; any vital treasures which targeted specialised applications were extraordinarily difficult to produce. These types of treasures simply didn't suit Vital Energy, making them rarities, and even a 5-Star Realm warrior like this man did not possess a treasure which could conceal the size of his body.

But even if this person was able to conceal his size, Yaan would still have no difficulties in seeing past his disguise.

After all, how could anyone contest with Yaan when it came to creating illusions?

Even without Spirit Sense, Yaan could see past this visual concealment, he saw the truth behind the 'Greenwood Tribe Ancestor'…

This person was actually a member of the Aztec Tribe!

Yaan felt bewildered at first. He had learned recently that the Fae Tribe and the Aztec Tribe had been at odds since the beginning of the Blood Plane's historical records, so why was this Aztec Tribesman pretending to be the Greenwood Tribe Ancestor, supporting them from the shadows whilst hiding his identity?

"Senior Red, I ask that you hear me out and do not act rashly before we discuss things properly…" The man spoke in a muffled voice from below his mask.

Yaan gave a light nod, agreeing to this. As the Aztec Man led the way, Yaan followed silently, listening to his story.

"I was ostracised by a distant branch of the Aztec Tribe during my youth. I was captured in battle by an opposing Aztec Branch Tribe, but I was too afraid to be sacrificed…I allowed myself to become a slave."

"I lived under the ridicule of others for 12 years, until that Aztec Branch Tribe was invaded and destroyed. I escaped for my life, and I then wandered the world for a long time. Life was difficult, I saw many things. I finally realised that the Aztec Tribe's notion of honour was too vain, too shallow, in the grand scheme of things. In this world, only strength is important, all else is simply irrelevant noise."

"I truly believed that. Until one day, I met…her."

After saying this, the man fell silent. When the towering man led Yaan down into an underground temple, he understood right away.

The true Greenwood Tribe Ancestor was a woman. The woman was middle aged, but the few wrinkles on her pale face could not hide her beauty. Her hair was braided and cushioned behind her head, which rested on a pillow as her body soundly slept on a bed, positioned in the centre of this underground temple.

"So it was love…" Yaan muttered, casting a glance towards the Aztec man, who had now removed his garments and revealed his aged face to Yaan.

He clearly had the appearance of a burly middle aged man, but the wrinkles on his face caused by stress and worry caused him to look older than he should have.

His stature was enormous, he was 16 feet tall and bulging with so many muscles that he almost looked like a demonic beast. Oddly though, his hair was braided in a similar fashion to the Fae Tribe's hairstyles, and his body completely lacked any tattoos.

"Indeed. I am taking Freya's place out of love. Whilst I care for the Fae Tribe just as little as I care for the Aztec Tribe, I still care for her, and she cares for her people…" As the man spoke in his deep gruff tone, Yaan could see a faint tiredness hidden in his eyes.

Despite his exhaustion, he continually cast brief glances in Yaan's direction. Clearly, he was worried that Yaan might harm his wife.

"For how long has she slept? For how long have you taken her place?" Yaan couldn't help but ask.

"It has been 207 years now…" The giant Aztec man sighed deeply. The long-concealed traces of pain and difficulty in his voice failed to be hidden from Yaan's acute senses.

Love.

In this world, perhaps only love could change a cold-hearted and disillusioned man to such an extent that he would change his entire way of life, living in hiding as he protected and cared for others.

In this moment, Yaan made a mental note to himself…

He needed to be careful, and never fall victim to love.