Transmigrated into a Total Shou Novel as a Cannon Fodder, but Ended Up 1v1-ing the Male Lead | Chapter 198 | A Confrontation at the Banquet | Novela.app

At the heart of the banquet, various demon tribes gathered in a semi-open courtyard known as the Brocade Painting Pavilion. In ancient times, these demon banquets were occasions for the various tribes to unite against humanity. However, as time passed and the demon and human races learned to coexist in harmony without infringing upon one another, the banquets gradually evolved into purely social gatherings for pleasure. A few thousand years ago, when relations between the four major tribes soured, the banquets had ceased for several centuries. Yet, as it was a tradition of their ancestors, the custom eventually resumed its old form. The seats of honor were naturally occupied by the four great tribes. The White Tiger Tribe had arrived as scheduled today, but the Xuanwu Tribe was absent as usual. In the Phoenix Emperor's words, that group of thousand-year-old turtles was likely tucked away in some corner of the sea sleeping; it was a miracle if they showed up once every few centuries. Though their seats were elevated, it did not mean the area for the four tribes was far removed from the other demons. Earlier that day, Xuan Yang had been forced by the Phoenix Tribe to dress up elaborately. He was draped in fine silk robes, adorned with a plethora of expensive gemstones and fine jade ornaments at his waist and in his hair. Truth be told, while it was a bit heavy, Xuan Yang actually quite liked these flashy things deep down. Because he was surrounded by strangers and Shen Yan wasn't by his side, Xuan Yang was in low spirits and even less inclined to speak. He sat expressionless next to the Phoenix Emperor, staring blankly at the small dishes on the table before him. Looking at his visage alone, anyone would find themselves catching their breath at the sight of such a cold, handsome man. Meanwhile, Xuan Yang himself was staring at the plates in boredom, thinking randomly: *They have the nerve to serve this pittance as food? I might as well not eat. All of this combined wouldn't even fill the gaps between my teeth. Eating it might just make me hungrier...* "I heard the news earlier, but the resemblance is uncanny! Even taking a Transformation Pill might not result in such a likeness..." "The Phoenix Emperor's son truly possesses a perfection of features identical to the man himself. The Phoenix Tribe is simply unreasonable!" "Did you hear? This younger son of the Phoenix Emperor has a bone age of barely two hundred years. The Phoenix Emperor must have already been a Golden Immortal back then, right? To be able to sire a child at the Golden Immortal stage... that is truly impressive..." Hearing the "whispers" of the surrounding demons, which were clearly intended for everyone to hear, the Phoenix Emperor curled his lips into a smile, his delight plain to see. Directly opposite the Phoenix contingent was the Dragon Tribe. The Dragon Emperor looked ashen-faced, his mood evidently the polar opposite of his rival's. Seeing his nemesis was never a cause for joy, but finding that the nemesis's face had now effectively doubled was stifling beyond measure. Being scanned from head to toe by gazes that were either curious or calculating made Xuan Yang feel equally stifled. However, remembering that Nie Shiyun and the Phoenix Emperor were currently in the middle of a "business deal" that hadn't concluded yet, he decided to give the Phoenix Tribe some face and behave with decorum. If not for that, Xuan Yang was absolutely capable of running around naked and performing a spirit dance at the banquet just to spite his old man—a classic case of inflicting a thousand wounds on the enemy at the cost of eight hundred to oneself. If it came down to a contest of who was more shameless, he would certainly win against the Phoenix Emperor. Aside from the Dragon Emperor's visibly displeased glare, the most unsettling presence was the fellow sitting in the row behind him. Xuan Yang glanced over; the guy was staring fixedly at them with a look of pure resentment. Zhai Bairong had drawn a portrait earlier, so Xuan Yang recognized him at a glance as the one they called Ao Fan. "I heard he was previously placed under house arrest," Xuan Yang said in a low voice. Seeing Xuan Yang take the initiative to speak to him, the Phoenix Emperor was in a good mood and sent a voice transmission: "The Dragon Emperor loves nothing more than flaunting his numerous offspring before me. Especially that Ao Fan; though he's an incompetent waste, he is a son sired just over a hundred years ago. His other children were all sired back when he was still in the Great Completion Stage at the latest." Xuan Yang gave an "oh" in response. According to what Nie Shiyun and the others said, Ao Fan had wandered the Middle Realm for years without any of his kin coming to find him. It was clear the Dragon Emperor had far too many children and lacked the energy to care for this youngest son, leaving him entirely to his own devices. Since both the Dragon and Phoenix tribes would be present at the demon banquet, and word had gotten out that the Phoenix Emperor would be bringing his newly recognized son, the Dragon Emperor had hauled Ao Fan out of confinement with a "refusal to lose" mentality. "This is a spiritual wine specialty of our Flower Spirit Tribe. It's different at every banquet! This year's batch is brewed from top-grade Purple Blaze Flowers. Please, have a taste." Just as Xuan Yang was wondering what kind of expression that Ao Fan across from them would make when Nie Shiyun and the others appeared, a gentle female voice suddenly spoke. Xuan Yang turned his head and accepted the wine cup offered by a woman of the Flower Spirit Tribe. "Thank you. Mmm... it's so sweet. Delicious. I've never tasted wine with this kind of texture before. Your Flower Spirit Tribe is quite impressive," Xuan Yang said, his eyes sparkling and his tone brightening upon tasting the good wine. "You flatter us! If you like it, please take a few jars back to enjoy at your leisure," the Flower Spirit woman said, overwhelmed by the favor. Whenever Xuan Yang encountered food or drink he liked, his mind immediately filled with thoughts of letting Shen Yan try it. Since the Flower Spirit said the wine was unique to them, Xuan Yang figured it wasn't available outside, so he spoke up: "Is that alright? Then I'll take two extra jars. Ah, no need to rush, just do it when you're finished with your current tasks! If you can't get to it, don't worry about it." "How could that be? Please wait a moment, I'll have my kin fetch two unopened jars for you immediately," the Flower Spirit woman said urgently. The Flower Spirit Tribe had been responsible for hosting the banquets for many years, and as one serving the Phoenix Tribe, she was considered highly senior and exceptionally beautiful within her tribe. Even so, the haughty Phoenix Tribe rarely gave her such a friendly response. The Phoenix Emperor had initially wanted to caution Xuan Yang not to be so informal with these low-cultivation flower spirits, lest people look down on the Phoenix Tribe. But seeing the Flower Spirit woman turn and run off with a blushing face, he felt his son had actually brought him some prestige in this regard, so he ultimately didn't scold him. "That's the way. Though their cultivation is low, the faces of the Flower Spirit Tribe are publicly acknowledged as beautiful. You were in the Lower Realm before and hadn't seen many beauties; now that your horizons have broadened, it wouldn't hurt to enjoy a few..." the Phoenix Emperor transmitted to Xuan Yang, his tone quite cheerful, his words implying that if Xuan Yang were interested, the flower spirit would throw herself into his arms this very day. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, we'll see," Xuan Yang replied perfunctorily. He was gradually learning how to handle the nagging Phoenix Emperor. Since direct confrontation yielded no good results, he would just brush him off. One had to adapt when living under someone else's roof. Although he sensed Xuan Yang's slight impatience, the Phoenix Emperor felt a bit uneasy, but he believed this might be a good start—how could a son of the Phoenix Emperor be hung up on a single tree? His thoughts were quite pleasant. Little did he know that Xuan Yang's head was currently full of plans: one jar of wine for Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong, and the other for him and Shen Yan to drink slowly at home, and while drinking, they could do this and that... From time to time, other demons came to offer toasts. Usually, there was a dividing line like the Milky Way between the Dragon and Phoenix tribes; the demons would distribute themselves based on their tribal relations, and occasionally, those who didn't want to offend either side would run over to the White Tiger Tribe. Today was different. All the demons had heard that the Phoenix Emperor had recognized a son named Xuan Yang whom he held in high regard, so they flocked to the Phoenix side to offer congratulations and take a closer look at this fellow named Xuan Yang. "Father, I... I'll have them refill your wine." Ao Fan had completely lost the overbearing attitude he had in the Middle Realm. He looked at the bustling Phoenix side and then at his own empty table, feeling inexplicably guilty beside the Dragon Emperor. "Refill what? It's cloyingly sweet with no kick to it. What's so good about this stuff?" The Dragon Emperor was naturally short-tempered, and seeing his rival stealing the spotlight with his "promising son" today had put him in a foul mood. "Just a Void Refinement stage, yet he flaunts himself everywhere..." The Dragon Emperor stopped mid-sentence, remembering that Ao Fan was of the same generation as that Xuan Yang and was also currently a Void Refinement cultivator. He fell silent as if choked. "How is your progress in artifact forging?" the Dragon Emperor asked crossly. One must remember that in his early years, as a rare young dragon who had mastered artifact forging, Ao Fan had also been surrounded and desperately flattered by a crowd of demons. The Dragon Emperor had been extremely proud of this back then. But now that the spotlight had been stolen, and the story of Ao Fan losing a scale had spread and made him a laughingstock, he was ignored at the banquet. "For the time being... but given time! I will surely..." Facing his father, Ao Fan didn't dare make grand claims. Hearing this, the Dragon Emperor waved his hand impatiently, indicating he couldn't be bothered to listen further. His mood a mess, the Dragon Emperor downed the wine in his cup in one gulp, seemingly forgetting that he had just called the stuff undrinkable a second ago. Suddenly, a significant commotion broke out in the distance. "Why are there humans here!" The Brocade Painting Pavilion was quite large. From the seats of honor, it was difficult to see what was happening at the edge of the courtyard through the layers of demons, but demon ears were generally very sharp. Upon hearing that single sentence, the place instantly erupted into a clamor. The teleportation arrays for the small world were scattered everywhere. Each demon tribe used different arrays to enter. But these arrays all dated back to ancient times when demons and humans were enemies, so none of them could be used by a human alone—unless a demon brought them in. It wasn't that humans had never been to a demon banquet before. Relations had been relaxed for a long time, and some demons had brought human Dao companions to the banquet before. However, people usually announced such things in advance; unlike today, where someone had suddenly popped up. "The ones beside them are from the Phoenix Tribe. Could it be someone brought by the Phoenixes?" Upon hearing it was the Phoenix Tribe's doing, the demons didn't dare shout anymore. They instinctively parted to make a path, allowing the two humans and the Phoenix maiden leading them to pass through. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong walked toward the seats of honor. Xuan Yang took a sharp breath inwardly; this was quite a grand entrance. The Phoenix Emperor raised an eyebrow. "Hmm? Why have you brought them here?" "This subordinate took the liberty. Nie Shiyun said he has urgent business and must leave, so he wanted to present something for your inspection first..." "Fine. It's not as if this is a formal occasion for business anyway. Since they're here, let them be." Hearing the Phoenix Emperor's feigned ignorance, Xuan Yang glanced at him from the corner of his eye. He thought: *This guy actually staged an 'uninformed' plot. This is too fake. Anyone with a brain knows your subordinates wouldn't dare bring people in without permission.* "...Nie... Nie Shi...? Ha... haha... To think there's someone in the Upper Realm with the same name. How hilarious..." Among the Dragon Tribe, Ao Fan's mouth hung open. He gave two dry laughs and muttered to himself in a low voice. Even the kin around him could only see that his expression was terrible; they couldn't hear exactly what he was saying. The demons gathered around the Phoenix Tribe couldn't figure out the context and dispersed slightly. They sized up Nie Shiyun and Zhai Bairong, guessing from the conversation that these humans had done some business with the Phoenix Emperor and were anxious to report the results. Perhaps the Phoenix Tribe had found a new alchemist? Most of them had also had business dealings with humans; it wasn't particularly strange. Nie Shiyun didn't actually have anything to present. He took two steps forward, and just then, the surrounding demons moved away, exposing his and Zhai Bairong's figures to the full view of the Dragon Tribe directly opposite the Phoenixes. "Nie Shiyun...? No... impossible!" That familiar voice was none other than Ao Fan's. Nie Shiyun turned his body, his face coming into Ao Fan's full view. The exact same face, the exact same expression—Ao Fan could never have mistaken him. "It really is you! ...No! Nie Shiyun is dead! I killed him with my own hands! Who are you pretending to be?" Nie Shiyun couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. This made things convenient; if Ao Fan hadn't blurted it out, he would have struggled to find an opportunity to broach the subject. "It's been a long time, Young Master Ao Fan. You're still as energetic as ever. I thought that after losing the competition to me in front of everyone and losing a scale, you would be devastated! Seeing you like this, I can rest easy," Nie Shiyun said with a smile. As soon as these words were spoken, the entire assembly was shocked. They didn't remember who "Nie Shiyun" was. But once "losing the competition" and "scale" were mentioned, the demons immediately remembered. Good heavens, this was the culprit behind the story everyone had been gossiping about for so long—the one who made Ao Fan suffer a setback in the Middle Realm! Within seconds, the Dragon Emperor guessed the gist of how this "coincidence" had come about. Looking at the Phoenix Emperor opposite him—who appeared to know nothing but was actually watching the show with a joyful glint in his eyes as he sipped his wine—the veins on the Dragon Emperor's forehead looked ready to burst. Ao Fan had already slammed the table and stood up before Nie Shiyun had even finished speaking, spilling the wine cups on the table. His wide-eyed expression was pathetic. If he had any sense, seeing the Dragon Emperor's ashen face beside him, he would have known not to make a scene. Unfortunately, he was thoroughly foolish; his mouth moved before his brain could think: "I personally set an array in the Middle Realm to trap and kill you! How is this possible? Who... who has a grudge against me and found someone to impersonate that guy just to upset me? Haha, I saw through it at a glance! Even so, you, an impostor, must die!" Nie Shiyun shrugged his shoulders and said with a look of helplessness, "Young Master Ao Fan, to say you personally set an array is truly nonsense. When did you ever learn array arts?" Feeling the gazes of the various demon tribes fall upon him, Ao Fan's face turned slightly green. "Death is at your door, yet you have the leisure to nitpick my words! Heh, you've got guts. I don't know them, but couldn't I have hired an array master to lend me a hand?" "Quite right. I wonder if the array master you mentioned..." Nie Shiyun stopped halfway, leaving them in suspense. The gazes of the demons shifted from Ao Fan back to Nie Shiyun. Nie Shiyun took a step to the side, revealing the figure that had been half-hidden behind him. "...is this gentleman?" Seeing that face, Ao Fan was utterly dumbfounded. "You... you're that array master! What was your name... something or other... You and Nie Shiyun, could it be you were in cahoots!?" Ao Fan's finger trembled with rage. He no longer remembered the name of that lowly human cultivator, but he remembered the face. Back then, this person had been desperate for money, dressed plainly, and even picked up things that fell on the ground. But the fellow before him—where was there even a hint of that former wretchedness? "Young Master Ao Fan doesn't remember the name? It doesn't matter; it wasn't my real name anyway. I didn't expect us to meet again... Allow me to introduce myself once more. I am Zhai Bairong—Nie Shiyun's Dao companion." "..." Ao Fan's mouth hung half-open, and for a moment, he couldn't make a sound. Zhai Bairong... This guy was Zhai Bairong himself? Nie Shiyun stole a quick glance at Zhai Bairong. They hadn't rehearsed this part, but hearing his beloved announce it like that in front of all the demon tribes would make any normal person feel a surge of warmth in their heart. The crowd of demons was watching the drama so intently they didn't know where to look. When a new character suddenly took the stage, everyone's gaze immediately shifted from Nie Shiyun to the face of the cultivator behind him. In an instant, those gazes were unable to look away for a long time. From the corner of his eye, Xuan Yang saw the Phoenix Emperor, who had been in high spirits until a moment ago, slightly tighten his grip on his wine cup. *Sure enough,* Xuan Yang thought. The Phoenix Emperor truly was just as Nie Shiyun had said—he was displeased with Zhai Bairong simply because the man's beauty rivaled his own! Such pettiness... he really had lived thousands of years in vain.