Ever since he reincarnated, Mark was consistent on one thing, which is to develop grudges over the people with authority.
Likewise, there's also an unpaid debt with the Mt. Hua sect. Back then, he decided to forget it as the leader of Mt. Hua is a legendary realm expert (8-circle) and he doesn't have the strength to contend against him.
He expected it would take months or even years to achieve the strength enough to crush that entire sect but his growth accelerated at a rapid pace, and now that he could afford to showcase his enmity, Mark didn't hesitate to act.
Of course, he wasn't just acting on his feelings. To bring Shang Fu down, Mark planned to increase the dependency of the Imperial Palace on his firearms and other weapons.
However, just selling the weapons wasn't enough. Mark wanted to leave Shang Fu without any powerful and wealthy allies. His allies should turn into his enemies. Only then, when he gets dethroned, no one would come to his help.
Indirectly, he already influenced the Emperor to take action on Song Yun. It is already enough to shake the clan leaders' confidence in Shang Fu. And now, it is Mt. Hua sect's turn.
Using his grudge against Mt. Hua Sect's, Sui Ping, and taking advantage of Shang Fu's helplessness, he wants to irk the Sui clan even more.
Luckily for him, the leader of the Mt. Hua sect served himself on the platter and he used the opportunity to rake up the issue at a perfect moment.
The Emperor was in a bind. He doesn't know how to react. There's a Supreme realm expert on Mark's side and his help is very much needed in acquiring the fire seed.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtAt the same time, the Mt. Hua sect is a valuable ally to the Imperial Palace and he personally requested Dai Long to side with him in the upcoming battle, offering him earth-grade armor (Semi-divine).
So, what should he do?
Well, whether there is Wu Weibao or not, his heart has already sided with Mark, but as the Emperor, he cannot go with what his heart says. He should be logical in his actions.
But, first, he needed to make sure that no fight erupts at the scene.
Hence, Emperor Shang decided to divert everyone's attention quickly before the matter turns worse because of Dai Long's reaction.
"Lu Zhen, you can settle your issues with the Mt. Hua sect later, but for now, we need to think about how to face the enemies that are blocking our way to the fire seed.
We need to deal with the Church of Doom, the Dragon Empire, and the Ironpalm Sect. Neither of them is on peaceful terms with us and wouldn't spare our lives if it comes to obtaining what they want.
But, we should be wary of the Church of Doom the most since they will be looking for your blood."
Emperor Shang believed that this topic would be enough to control the situation. However, little did he expect Mark's reply to that will worsen the atmosphere in the room.
With Lan Ju giving him the word, he was confident about acquiring the fire seed. Hence, he didn't care about the identity of the opponents.
Of course, he didn't know that the Church of Doom's leader was also present. So, he paid little attention to them, or else, he would run off right away to kill him and complete the pending quest.
Mark made himself loud and clear as he threatened Shang Fu, "Your Majesty, with me on your side, you can be assured that the fire seed will fall in your hands. However, even for the sake of our agreement, I cannot work with the people, with whom I had grudges.
If they are our store's customers, it would be different but I don't have a reason to put with their existence. So, you have to make a choice right now. If you choose Mr. Dai, then, forget our deal. We will leave and obtain the fire seed on our own. Since I don't have any use for it, I might just auction it to make money out of it.
Oh, and also, if I won't have any allies, I will be bombarding the transformed beast with missiles. Those warheads don't distinguish between a friend and a foe. So, I will not responsible for any accidents and I don't want you to guys put blame on me. Just saying…
The rest is your wish. Tell me when you made the decision. Until then, I will be waiting outside."
Not intending to negotiate on the terms, he made the exit right away. Allen and Lan Ju followed the suit.
As he walked to the edge of the cliff and observed the lava pillar from far away, Lan Ju stood beside him and said, "I don't care about the lives of humans much less their feelings but I think that you were a little bit harsh earlier. That man named Dai Long; I didn't feel an ounce of darkness from him. He's worthy to befriend."
Mark shook his head and stated his opinion, "I don't agree. Light asks for stability and peace while darkness motivates one to get hungry for strength. As for that Dai Long, he might be good but he shelters evil. So, I don't think he is worthy of befriending."
Lan Ju fell silent and just quietly observed his future sect master. As for Allen, he just doesn't care about anything other than following Mark's orders, well, excluding his new friend, Lin Xue.
Meanwhile, inside the tent, the Emperor dismissed the others except for Dai Long. Of course, Bai Xun and Shang Wen stayed inside.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmShang Fu then apologizes to the leader of Mt. Hua Sect, taking others by surprise, "Lu Zhen has often suffered injustice since childhood. So, he tends to show hostility against people with whom he had a grudge. His young age is to blame for that. I hope you forgive him for my sake and try to solve the issue in a peaceful way."
Dai Long wondered why the Emperor was apologizing on behalf of Mark.
Was he worried for Mark or was he worried for Mt. Hua Sect? Not many people were aware but the Mt. Hua sect's origins lie with the Ancient Shaolin sect branch of the Dragon Empire. The main branch is located in the plane of earth and metal.
Hence, if Dai Long personally makes a request, then, the Shaolin sect branch will be involved. They won't be a problem as long as the mysterious expert is with Mark.
However, if the situation escalates and brings the powerful experts from the main branch to his world, then, Mark will be done for good, well, atleast, in Dai Long's opinion.
However, Dai Long never planned on creating unnecessary violence over petty revenge. He lived enough to know how to deal with someone like Mark and was confident in resolving the enmity.
The only problem is how to handle the present situation. Mark didn't seem to be enthusiastic to work with them and even mildly threatened to kill them with the missiles. The best solution is to leave the place. But, that will make them a laughing stock
So, Dai Long chose a different route. He replied, "Your Majesty, I think me and my people should stay here at the tent and protect you from any possible attack. If there is more than one powerful assassin, then, Venerable Song won't be enough. In the meantime, Prince Wen and Supreme Commander Bai can work with Lu Zhen."
Shang Fu nodded with a smile, "Thank you."
After a while, the second prince informed Mark and the latter was forced to agree, considering Dai long wasn't his real enemy. As the relationship with Shang Fu hasn't gotten to the stage where the Imperial Palace is completely dependent on him, Mark gave Shang Fu enough space for negotiations.
Soon, a separate tent was set up for him with enough furniture inside to feel luxury. Mark rested there with his companions. Citing the reasons for unpleasantness in the presence of Dai Long, he rejected the dinner with the Emperor and decided to eat in his tent. Allen didn't need the food to eat and Lan Ju prefers the raw meat of monsters. So, he ended up eating alone. After eating regularly at home with Song Yue, he kinda felt lonely and missed her presence.
Thinking that he will return by the next morning, Mark put away his thoughts and spent his free time creating the bullets.
Little did he expect that the lava pillar won't transform all night, at all.
And so, three more days passed away in a blink of an eye.