"Gao Xuan is an interesting person. I want to be friends with him."

Lan Tiancheng leaned on the bar, gulped down a glass of strong liquor, and then let out a long, satisfied sigh.

"Are you crazy? He almost beat your ass to shreds, your tailbone's broken!"

Bai Yue was furious: "Gao Xuan is our enemy, we must take him down!"

"You're just full of hostility."

Lan Tiancheng took another big swig of his drink, speaking slowly, "Xiao Ting wasn't wrong. Your so-called love isn't worth much. Hating others for it is pretty pointless. More pointless than liking to be a simp."

"A peasant from the wilderness doesn't deserve to be our friend."

Bai Yue said sharply, "It's either him or me!"

Lan Tiancheng shook his head, "There are billions of people in this world, but few interesting ones. Gao Xuan's swordsmanship is better than mine, his vision is higher than mine, and his character is flamboyant and interesting. I admire such people."

He emphasized, "My dull and boring life needs such people to illuminate it."

Bai Yue glared at Lan Tiancheng: "Boss, you're ditching your brothers for an outsider!"

"Listen to you, it sounds like a jealousy fight. I'll make my friends, you'll seek your revenge. It doesn't conflict."

Lan Tiancheng assured, "I won't side with Gao Xuan, but I won't help you either. Whatever you want to do is your business."

"Boss, you've changed!"

Bai Yue couldn't understand Lan Tiancheng's mindset, smashed his glass in anger, and left.

Lan Tiancheng didn't try to stop him, just raised his glass and gestured to Bai Yue's angry back: "Take it slow, brother."

"Your tone is almost sarcastic."

Even Yu Feiying couldn't help himself, "Boss, you've changed a lot these past two years."

Lan Tiancheng was known as the top young swordsman on Taurus. Though the title was a bit exaggerated, it still held some weight among the noble families.

Today's battle saw Lan Tiancheng not only utterly defeated but also publicly humiliated. It was a huge disgrace.

The old Lan Tiancheng was proud and arrogant, couldn't stand to be slighted. Such a loss would have spurred him to seek crazy revenge.

But now Lan Tiancheng was dejected and lazy, seemingly unconcerned about failure, and he even wanted to be friends with Gao Xuan.

Yu Feiying really couldn't grasp Lan Tiancheng's thinking, he asked, "Boss, what's really going on?"

"Nothing, I've just come to understand the true nature of life."

Lan Tiancheng then drank another large glass of liquor, his eyes growing more blurred and dazed.

"You're not believing in an evil god, are you?" Yu Feiying considered the possibility, his stern face showing a hint of tension.

Lan Tiancheng laughed heartily: "Evil god, you mean the Master of Blood?"

Yu Feiying was even more startled, instinctively glancing around.

This bar was originally a Lan family business. Because Lan Tiancheng and Yu Feiying came, a few drinking customers left. Now it was just the bartender behind the bar.

The bartender noticed Yu Feiying's wary glance and tactfully moved to the other side of the bar.

Yu Feiying then used spiritual power to connect with Lan Tiancheng: "Boss, seriously, stay away from the evil god."

Lan Tiancheng gave Yu Feiying a complicated look: "Brother, take care of yourself, I'm fine."

Reaching this point in the conversation, Yu Feiying didn't press further. He just sat beside watching Lan Tiancheng drink left and right, until he was dead drunk.

Getting a Silver Sword Hero drunk is not easy. Fortunately, this bar had a lot of high-quality liquor.

Watching Lan Tiancheng slumped over the bar in deep sleep, Yu Feiying helplessly asked the bartender, "Is he always like this?"

"Every day," the bartender replied with a bit of helplessness as well.

"Where does he live?" Yu Feiying felt it was time to send Lan Tiancheng home.

The bartender pointed to a booth in the corner: "He lives right there."

Yu Feiying was speechless. Everyone had been quite busy in recent years, no longer so carefree. He didn't expect Lan Tiancheng to live so dejectedly.

He glanced at the bartender and said, "His butt is injured. Please spray some medicine on it later."

When Yu Feiying left the bar, the eastern sky was already golden-red.

A day on Taurus is over thirty hours long, with only about six hours of night.

As Yu Feiying exited the bar, he tapped his belt, activating the hover system. Then he channeled the sword qi, and he took off into the air.

Upon becoming a Silver Sword Hero, the most direct sign is being able to fly using sword qi. This is because sword intent can intricately direct sword qi, increasing its operational efficiency by a hundred times.

Flying by riding sword qi became the mark of a Silver Sword Hero.

However, flying purely with sword qi is too slow. Silver Sword Heroes generally use hover equipment. Combined with sword qi propulsion, flying becomes exceedingly easy, and the sword qi consumption minimizes.

Yu Feiying wore the biochemical battle armor, although in non-combat situations, there was no need to wear the full armor.

Biochemical battle armor is extremely advanced personal combat equipment, extremely expensive, and requires deep customization for one's genetic makeup.

Only top noble families have the capacity to custom-create biochemical battle armor for their family's upper echelon.

Generally, only Silver Sword Heroes are qualified to use biochemical battle armor.

Cultivators below Silver Sword Hero can't utilize the biochemical battle armor's power.

Like Yu Feiying, having the biochemical battle armor increases combat power tenfold. It's a frightening statistic.

Because of this trump card, Yu Feiying wasn't really afraid of Gao Xuan. In a life-or-death fight, he could handle Gao Xuan in a few moves.

Bai Yue wasn't afraid of Gao Xuan either, because he had a biochemical battle armor.

Yu Feiying leisurely flew in the air for over ten minutes, reaching a group of independent villas on the eastern end of Starfish Island.

There are dozens of independent villas built here, offering greater privacy. Certainly, being far from the bustling entertainment area, it feels extremely quiet.

Yu Feiying flew into the courtyard of one villa; after electronic identity scanning, the villa's door silently opened.

He walked quickly into the villa, passed through the main hall, arrived at the backyard, and turned into the basement.

The basement was spacious, easily over a hundred square meters. At one end against the wall stood a two-meter-tall dark red humanoid statue, none other than the statue of the Master of Blood.

Yu Hualong was kneeling on a cushion before the statue, murmuring to himself, though what he said remained unclear.

Yu Feiying hesitated a moment, then knelt on the cushion beside him, bowing three times.

Yet Yu Hualong was very devout, continuously chanting for a long time before finally standing up.

Although his hair was gray, his face looked quite young, giving off an impression both handsome and mature, with deep eyes that conveyed wisdom—he was a charming older man.

"Is something the matter?"

Seeing his nephew's complex expression and unspoken words, Yu Hualong took the initiative to ask.

Yu Feiying was indeed hesitant; after all, Lan Tiancheng was his good friend. Yet, having reached this age, he understood how interests far outweigh friendships.

Ultimately, he said, "Lan Tiancheng seems to have perceived the activities of our cult."

"Lan Tiancheng..."

Yu Hualong pondered for a moment, saying, "Many in the higher echelons of the Lan Family have become faithful followers of the Master. I will speak with the Lan Family People to manage Lan Tiancheng."

Though the Blood God Association is a cult explicitly banned by the Alliance, it remains covert and vast, with influence spreading throughout the entire Alliance.

The Master of Blood, though brutal and wicked, possesses considerable divine power.

For noble families, as long as there are sufficient profits, they are not afraid of sacrifices, nor of sacrifice. Fear of evil and corruption means nothing.

The divine power of the Master of Blood is most directly manifest in granting longevity.

That alone is enough for all noble powerhouses to flock toward it. As long as they survive, how many lower-class poor die means nothing.

The technology of the Alliance is unable to break through human lifespan limits—yet the Evil God can. This grants the Evil God an incomparable advantage over the Alliance.

Not to mention the Evil God possesses other unimaginable powers.

Hence, regardless of the Alliance's strict prohibition against the Evil God and cults, they cannot stop the cult's spread.

A top-tier noble like Yu Hualong cares little about the Alliance's investigation.

On Taurus, the governance of the Alliance serves as their pawns, obedient to their will.

Just as he worships the Evil God here, who dares to investigate?

For noble families, the Evil God is merely a tool for exploitation. What truly matters is themselves.

Of course, there are some with less clear minds who become brainless followers of the Evil God. However, such individuals are few.

Yu Hualong exhibited piety, yet his mind was quite clear.

The Evil God is the Evil God, the noble families are the noble families.

Even if Lan Tiancheng knows something, they cannot act recklessly; after all, Lan Tiancheng's identity is significant.

If there indeed were a problem, it must be resolved by the Lan Family itself.

Yu Feiying contemplated for a moment and said, "Last night Bai Yue was badly defeated by Gao Xuan, and he's eager for revenge. I think we can introduce him into the Association."

"Excellent."

Yu Hualong praised: "The more followers you introduce, the greater the gifts from the Master to you."

Spreading the faith is akin to marketing; as the higher-ups, they always receive the most benefits. This, in turn, motivates followers to spread the faith.

"Leave this matter to me."

Yu Feiying was confident in this; he knew Bai Yue well. Bai Yue would do anything now for revenge. Worshiping an Evil God was not an issue for him.

He thought for a moment and added, "Third Uncle, Gao Xuan is quite peculiar, isn't he suspicious?"

"Gao Xuan, this young man is truly formidable."

Yu Hualong also felt some admiration; though he wasn't present at the scene yesterday, he watched the Sword Assembly's video.

With great admiration for Gao Xuan's display of unparalleled swordsmanship.

"Third Uncle, I find Gao Xuan to be a significant threat."

Yu Feiying said: "He's also a member of the Xiao Family. It's best to deal with him sooner."

Yu Hualong chuckled, understanding Yu Feiying's mixture of jealousy and reverence towards Gao Xuan.

But given Gao Xuan's current prominence, with the Xiao Family treating him as a treasure, and no direct conflict with both parties, there's no need to kill him now.

"The Xiao Family is currently quite aggressive; I think it's necessary to teach them a lesson."

Yu Feiying added a crucial reason: "Gao Xuan is so exceptional; sacrificing him to the Master would surely please the Divine Lord. His genes are extremely valuable as well..."

Yu Hualong laughed speechlessly: "You've convinced me."

Yu Feiying was also delighted, for reasons unknown; he just found Gao Xuan disagreeable.

Eagerly, he asked, "Great, how should we proceed?"

Yu Hualong thought for a moment and said, "This matter requires careful planning. It's best not to let the Xiao Family notice. When doing bad deeds, secrecy is crucial!"

"I agree."

An unknown voice suddenly echoed in the ears of both Yu Hualong and Yu Feiying.

Simultaneously, a brilliant golden light, like a blazing sun, imprinted on their eyes.