Myriad Realms Gatekeeper

Those people seemed as though an invisible force had choked their necks; they didn't dare utter another word.

Shen Ye didn't make a move either.

— The others were too many in number, and their strength was not weak.

Intimidating them into silence was enough; there was no need to drive them into desperation.

"Rosalia, let's go."

Shen Ye lowered his hands, turned around, and walked towards the Battle Beast Arena.

All remained deathly still.

Not until he had taken Rosalia back to the great doors of the Battle Beast Arena and disappeared down the corridor—

No one dared to make a move.

…

On the corridor.

The Black Flame Skeleton and a servant were waiting for Shen Ye.

The servant held a platter.

On the platter was a severed head.

The face of the head was frozen in a fierce expression—

— Even in death, it was defiant.

"Please have a look."

The Black Flame Skeleton said.

Shen Ye stepped forward to collect the head into his ring, smiling as he said:

"This is the Battle Beast Arena; naturally, you have many powerful Hell Beasts here, don't you?"

"Indeed, if you wish, I can take you to make a selection," said the Black Flame Skeleton.

"It's not easy for me to come out; indeed, I should take something back with me," Shen Ye nodded.

"Please follow me."

The Black Flame Skeleton personally led him through a secret passage and down steps until they reached the depths of the Battle Beast Arena.

It was like a colossal prison.

Walls thirty meters high, the underground area was no smaller than the Battle Beast Arena above.

The Hellhound seen before was kept in a huge rune-etched iron cage over five meters tall.

Bizarre and ferocious animals were kept in various cells.

Powerful sealing runes on walls, fences, and floors restrained them.

"This is the catalogue."

A booklet was handed over.

Shen Ye slowly browsed through it, seeing a thick booklet of about a hundred pages, each page detailed with an image of a beast, its weight, characteristics, and other information.

After flipping through for a while, Shen Ye felt somewhat perplexed.

Because bringing back provisions for someone else could often turn out to be a thankless task.

Besides—

Lord Nine Phases was quite particular.

Choosing something he'd like from over a hundred creatures was quite a test of discernment.

What to do?

Shen Ye suddenly glanced at the ground.

A thin layer of Frost covered the floor, constantly emitting a chilly air.

"What's below?"

"You've noticed that so quickly, it's quite surprising—"

The Black Flame Skeleton lowered his voice and revealed the answer:

"The master of Frost, Sky Lord."

Shen Ye's eyebrows rose.

As a Diva of Eternal Night City, he was quite aware of what this title signified.

— Frost Bone Dragon.

This creature could be considered top-tier among the Undead.

The Great Skeleton also exclaimed in disbelief:

"Impossible, a Frost Bone Dragon is at least at the fifth level of the Law Realm, and mature Bone Dragons can reach the sixth or seventh layer."

Shen Ye felt the same.

"I find that hard to believe... How did you capture it?"

He asked with feigned interest.

"Capture? No, you're mistaken—this is our boss; all the Ferocious Beasts of Hell were captured by it," the Black Flame Skeleton quickly explained.

That makes sense.

Only a force as powerful as the Frost Bone Dragon could operate such a large venue and keep it under control.

"The boss watches all the beasts here so there won't be any problems."

"Also, the entire slave binding Array of Ten Thousand Corpses was personally designed by the boss."

"After the people above die, as long as they're transported to the Valley of Ten Thousand Corpses, they will inevitably be captured by the boss's Array."

"Those with money pay up, those with power send people to fetch them, and the rest are resources."

"Human resources." Shen Ye nodded.

"Exactly, that's how it is. Please make your selection," said the Black Flame Skeleton.

— To capture souls as slaves, selling them for money, that was the Frost Bone Dragon's business!

Shen Ye felt disdain in his heart, but his face wore a smile as he said:

"Then, go ahead with your business, and I'll settle the account with you later."

"... but I'm in the midst of selecting slaves for you. Where do you want me to go?" the Black Flame Skeleton asked, perplexed.

"You don't understand what I mean," Shen Ye said.

"Have you already made a choice? Which one is it?" the Black Flame Skeleton continued.

Shen Ye didn't speak but instead weighed the booklet in his hand.

The Dark Skeleton couldn't utter the prepared compliment "You have a good eye" that was on the tip of its tongue.

"You mean... all of them?"

The Black Flame Skeleton asked, bewildered.

"Tidy up, then take all your people and leave this place. I don't want to see any living person in the Battle Beast Arena," Shen Ye instructed.

"When everything is settled, I'll call you."

Without waiting for a response, Shen Ye continued with a smile:

"We're conducting business, after all; can't just rely on face value—we should still pay a deposit first to show sincerity."

He released one million Bone Coins, neatly stacked on the ground.

The Black Flame Skeleton looked at the one million Bone Coins, holding his breath for a long while before he could react.

— No matter who the customer was.

The transaction was real.

And if it was real, it was worth conducting.

A subtle fluctuation from the depths urged him to agree immediately.

"Approximately how long will you need?" the Black Flame Skeleton asked.

"It probably won't be too long, a few hours should suffice," Shen Ye thought for a moment and replied.

"But our boss needs to subdue the wild beasts here."

"That's no problem, everyone else leave."

"Fine then, I've encountered many strange customers and accepted numerous bizarre requests— I must say, your request is concise, clear, and impossible to decline."

The Black Flame Skeleton slightly bowed, then led his subordinates out.

As for the one million Bone Coins—

It took out a ring and pointed at the Bone Coins, instantly collecting them all.

Just a few minutes.

The entire Battle Beast Arena was emptied.

Shen Ye tossed the booklet to Rosalia, saying:

"Lord Nine Phases will be here soon, you're responsible for introductions."

"Me?" Rosalia said in panic, quickly flipping through the booklet.

"Can you handle it?"

"Introducing, yes, no problem, but I... I'm afraid Lord Nine Phases won't take kindly to me."

"No worries, just speak honestly to whatever he asks, and don't mention my brother Nix Baxter—no one knows he's still alive, not mentioning him is protecting him."

"Understood."

Shen Ye pulled out one of Lord Nine Phases' teeth.

"Lord Nine Phases," he chanted.

One breath.

Two breaths.

Three breaths.

The void opened up.

Lord Nine Phases leaped down from mid-air, looking around with surprise that soon turned into exhilaration.

"Today is a buffet," Shen Ye said with a smile.

"What's a buffet?" Lord Nine Phases asked.

"Eat whatever you want," Shen Ye replied. Find more to read at empire

"Who's that woman? Is she also food?" Lord Nine Phases asked, pointing at Rosalia.

Rosalia nervously lowered her head and respectfully made a salute:

"Greetings, my lord!"

"She's responsible for introducing each of the foods," Shen Ye said.

"Interesting! Interesting!" Lord Nine Phases laughed loudly, "Let's begin then!"

Rosalia flipped through the booklet, extended her hand to gesture, and first approached the Hellhound:

"Please look, my lord, this is a creature unique to Hell, possessing certain Hell's Laws. Its Dharma Aspect can trigger the sins on the Undead Souls, making it rarely fail in Battle Beast Arena battles."

Lord Nine Phases looked at the Hellhound and nodded:

"I've eaten one of these before, tastes good, indeed worth a try."

He raised his hand, lightly waving.

The huge iron cage, riddled with defensive runes, fell apart instantly with a loud crash.

The Hellhound let out a ferocious roar and lunged fiercely at the three, spewing flames from all three of its mouths.

So strong!

Rosalia couldn't help but step back.

But Lord Nine Phases revealed an excited smile, and even the dozens of Skull Heads behind him joined in with their joyous whispers.

He simply raised his hand and pressed it down through the air—

Boom!

The Hellhound's massive form was pinned to the ground, unable to move an inch.

"Dig in!"

All of Lord Nine Phases' Skull Heads flew out and began to savagely gnaw at the Hellhound's body.

They feasted at such a fast pace.

Some Skull Heads barely took a few bites before flying straight up, heading towards other cages in the hall.

Rosalia was quick-witted enough to hurry up with her introductions of the monsters.

Thus, amidst the flying flesh and blood, there was also vivacious narration, which left Lord Nine Phases contentedly squinting.

He patted Shen Ye's shoulder:

"No need to rush, I can enjoy eating each and every one!"

"—Not bad at all, Baxter. I'm very satisfied with this buffet you arranged."

Shen Ye gave a slight bow:

"I'm glad you're pleased, my lord. We will continue to strive and serve wholeheartedly to make a greater future."

"But why did you get a female assistant?"

Lord Nine Phases asked, squinting.

—This was the second time he had inquired about this.

Shen Ye kept his composure: "Rosalia, explain it yourself."

Rosalia promptly stepped forward, kneeling before Lord Nine Phases, her voice trembling:

"Lord, I no longer wish to be tortured by Lord Tian Luo's subordinates in Hell. I want to follow you."

Tian Luo?

"So, you were previously under Tian Luo?" Lord Nine Phases asked.

"Yes, we were exploring the secrets of the Seal of Fate in the Great Tomb. My superiors had no clue about how to gather intelligence, only sending people to their deaths. I couldn't stand it, spoke out, and was killed," Rosalia explained.

Lord Nine Phases broke into a wide grin, his eyes shifting to look at the Skull Heads devouring the monsters.

Rosalia lowered her head and continued:

"Upon my death, I ended up here. Originally, I was to be bought by Lord Tian Luo's people in Hell, to continue the torment before being executed in public and sent to Purgatory—"

"I couldn't accept that, so I had to seek help from Mr. Baxter."

"So, Baxter, why did you save her?" Lord Nine Phases asked again.

"My lord, you've indulged in the underlings of other lords before; she's such an existence and should be edible as well," Shen Ye said.

"She is indeed edible," Lord Nine Phases nodded.

Shen Ye continued:

"Besides, she might still be of some use— it depends on your judgement, my lord. I believe intelligence is an important matter as well."

"—Her entirety belongs to you, my lord. Whether you choose to consume her or ask her anything, it's entirely at your pleasure."

Lord Nine Phases' previously squinted eyes opened up again.

The terrifying aura of killing intent that had been swirling around suddenly disappeared, as if it had never existed.

He suddenly reached out and pulled, extracting something luminous from above Rosalia's head.

It was a long string of runes, like a necklace, smeared with Rosalia's blood, slowly being pulled from the top of her head.

"I felt it earlier, this is Tian Luo's Seal of Fate," he said.

"Baxter, you suddenly brought someone from Tian Luo by your side, made me think you betrayed me," Lord Nine Phases said with a titter.

"My lord, as always, I was merely gathering ingredients," Shen Ye said, calmly and composedly.