Chapter 20: She’s Pregnant?
The small buildings where the island guardian warriors lived were scattered throughout the mountains and forests. Just by looking at the number of these buildings, Linley understood that the number of island guardian warriors was definitely a terrifying figure.
"Maintaining such a massive army of Highgods, the power of these five great clans is truly formidable," Linley couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Maintaining an army required paying salaries. After all, no one was willing to work for free. The salaries for Highgod warriors were generally quite high.
Maintaining such a massive army required an astonishing amount of wealth.
However, seeing the flow of people at the Battle Arena and the Freedom Castle made it clear just how staggering the profits of Moluo Island were.
"We're here," Obrien said with a laugh.
"Obrien, this building covers a huge area," Linley said in surprise, looking at the residence before him. This residence occupied nearly ten times the area of an ordinary small building. It had a tall courtyard, and inside were three separate buildings, each with a unique style, with carvings adorning the walls.
Obrien laughed. "This is Tarosa's residence. Generally, Highgod warriors who achieve a hundred consecutive victories, if they join the island guardian warrior army, receive residences and salaries far beyond those of ordinary island guardian warriors. Although I was also assigned a small building, we usually all stay here at Tarosa's place. His place is huge!"
With that, Obrien pushed open the door and entered.
"Oh, Obrien, you're back." A voice rang out. On a patch of green grass by the side of the courtyard, a green-haired man was sitting cross-legged in meditation. It was Tarosa!
Tarosa turned his head to speak, but suddenly he froze, staring blankly at the four people behind Obrien—Linley and his group. Seeing Tarosa's expression, Linley deliberately grinned at him.
"Whoosh!" Tarosa instantly appeared before Linley and the others.
"Haha!" Tarosa slapped Linley on the shoulder. "Linley, you guys actually came too. This is really rare. The Infernal Realm is so vast, yet we've managed to run into each other. Haha..." Tarosa was extremely excited and happy.
"Bebe, Lord Beirut actually allowed you to come to the Infernal Realm?" Tarosa noticed Bebe.
Bebe pouted. "What? Is there a problem?"
"No, no problem at all." Tarosa quickly greeted everyone. "Come, everyone, have a seat. Dylin, Hisset, and the others are all out, really!"
Linley and the others laughed and sat down. Tarosa busied himself with hosting them. "You guys came at just the right time. I was on patrol today and only got back a little while ago. For all of us from the Yulan continent to gather here, it's fate!"
Linley was also very happy and chatted cheerfully. When the conversation turned to how Linley and Oliver had met, it naturally led to the Amethyst Mountains, but Linley and the others glossed over it. Tarosa didn't seem to pay it any mind at all.
Or rather, he didn't realize the significance of Linley and his group emerging safely from the Amethyst Mountains!
Actually, that was normal.
Although Tarosa was a Highgod, he had been in the Infernal Realm for too short a time. His understanding of the Infernal Realm came mostly from books. Most books that described geographical information only gave a brief description of the Amethyst Mountains. Linley had also read geography books back then, but before reaching the Amethyst Mountains, he hadn't known how dangerous they were.
"Creak!" The courtyard door pushed open, and a black-haired man, reeking of alcohol, stumbled in. His eyes were bleary, and an air of decadence hung over him. It was Hisset!
Seeing Hisset like this, Linley couldn't help but sigh. The man who once roamed freely among a hundred flowers was now like this. Truly, life was unpredictable.
"Hisset!" Linley called out.
Hisset heard someone calling him but didn't pay much attention. He casually glanced at Linley and continued walking toward his own residence. But after taking two or three steps, he paused, turned back to look at Linley, and his hazy eyes gradually brightened a little.
"Linley?" Hisset's voice held a note of disbelief.
"Hisset, long time no see!" Linley grinned.
"Haha, Hisset, it's me, Bebe!" Bebe immediately jumped out.
Hisset took a deep breath, divine power surging within him, and the smell of alcohol on him instantly dissipated. He became much more clear-headed. A rare smile appeared on Hisset's face. "Linley, you guys came to the Infernal Realm too? When did you arrive?"
Hisset eagerly began to chat, and Linley and the others responded warmly. Although Linley knew about Hisset's situation, he hoped Hisset's mood would improve. Clearly, the arrival of their fellow countrymen from the Yulan continent had indeed lifted Hisset's spirits a bit.
"Linley, talk more with Hisset, but remember, don't mention that Cecilia matter at all," Tarosa sent a divine sense message. Hisset's current state was the best he had been in for a short while.
"I know."
Linley replied, but he was also a bit puzzled. What was so special about this Cecilia that she could make someone as carefree and unrestrained as Hisset so deeply infatuated?
On Moluo Island, in the residential area of the five great clans, at its center lay the residence of the Bagshaw clan. Among the five great clans, the Bagshaw clan was the leader, but its population was not large, far fewer than the other four clans.
Precisely because of this, every member of the Bagshaw clan held a relatively high status.
At this moment, in the back garden of the Bagshaw clan's ancestral mansion, two men, both about two meters twenty tall, were walking together. One was a young man with short red hair, the other a middle-aged man with long, flowing red hair.
If Linley were there, he would recognize the red-haired young man as Sekra!
"Sekra, you need to pay special attention to that person in the Battle Arena named Luomiu!" The red-haired middle-aged man had thick eyebrows and large eyes, and his every move exuded an air of dominance. "According to the servants' reports, this Luomiu is very likely a Seven Star Fiend. He's been winning ten consecutive battles for several days now. In another two days, he'll reach a hundred consecutive victories!"
"Yes, Father!" Sekra said respectfully.
Sekra's father, Bockway Bagshaw, was the patriarch of the Bagshaw clan. Although Bockway had lived for countless years, he only had two children. Members of the Bagshaw clan had very few children; most only had one.
Having two children was already considered lucky.
"If he really is a Seven Star Fiend, that would be a good thing. It's rare to encounter a Seven Star Fiend; we can't let him get away," Bockway said calmly.
"I understand, Father." Sekra smiled. "Father, you were at the secret realm earlier, so I didn't get a chance to tell you. About seven or eight days ago, I encountered an expert at the Freedom Castle. There was a minor conflict, and that expert killed twelve Highgods with a single move!"
"Killed twelve?" Bockway looked at him.
Killing twelve ordinary Highgods with one move—many experts could do that.
"That's not the strange part. The strange part is... those twelve Highgods hadn't even gotten close to that expert before they stood there like fools, not resisting at all, letting him kill them with one move."
Bockway was startled.
Making twelve Highgods not resist?
"This person is very strong in soul attacks," Bockway commented.
"Most importantly!" Sekra lowered his voice. "Father, that person could conceal his aura. From the outside, he only appeared to be a Demigod. Even the thousand-man commander we have at the Freedom Castle, a Six Star Fiend expert, couldn't detect his true aura at all!"
Bockway was shocked this time.
A Six Star Fiend couldn't detect the other's true aura, and his soul attacks were this powerful!
"At the very least, he's a peak Six Star Fiend, possibly a Seven Star Fiend. And he specializes in soul attacks," Bockway judged. Experts specializing in soul attacks were the most frightening, because the soul was a person's foundation. Soul attack experts were very troublesome to deal with.
"Where is he now?" Bockway quickly asked.
"He left." Sekra shook his head. "He probably isn't from Moluo Island. He didn't know anything about the Bloody Moluo Token. I didn't dare act rashly, so I could only watch them leave."
Bockway let out a long sigh, then smiled. "Forget it, then. You did the right thing. When encountering such an expert, don't provoke them recklessly. If he had killed you, that would have been truly disastrous."
Sekra also smiled.
"Sekra!" A cheerful voice came from the garden entrance. A beautiful woman with fair skin and captivating green hair ran in, her face full of joy. This woman was Sekra's newlywed wife—Cecilia!
"Father." The green-haired woman saw Bockway and quickly bowed.
Bockway nodded faintly.
"Lily." Seeing his wife, Sekra's face immediately lit up with a smile as he walked over. "Lily, you look so happy. Any good news?" Sekra laughed.
"Sekra, I'm pregnant." Cecilia quickly said.
Hearing this news, Sekra and Bockway were both stunned. Joyful expressions appeared on the father and son's faces. They exchanged a glance, and Bockway even laughed excitedly: "Haha... Sekra, you chose a good wife! Good, good, haha!"
"I'm going to be a father? I'm actually going to be a father!" Sekra was also extremely excited.
Cecilia was a bit puzzled.
Wasn't it just a pregnancy? Why was even the usually cold clan patriarch so excited? She had never seen Patriarch Bockway so worked up before.
"Excellent!" Bockway's face flushed red with excitement as he slapped his son on the shoulder. "Sekra, your wife has rendered great service."
"Mm." Sekra nodded excitedly.
Then, Sekra rushed straight to his wife, hugged her, and kissed her passionately in his excitement. "Lily, you're pregnant! I... thank you, really, thank you so much!" Sekra said excitedly.
Seeing her husband so passionate, even with the patriarch standing nearby, Cecilia felt a bit bewildered and embarrassed.
"My child." Sekra extended his right hand and gently placed it on his wife's belly.
"Huh?" Cecilia looked at her husband in confusion. She saw Sekra's right hand slowly emit a blood-red light, extremely eerie. Sekra's face was full of excitement, but gradually, his expression froze. He looked at his wife, Cecilia, in shock.
That look made Cecilia feel confused.
"Slap!" He suddenly swung his hand, slapping his wife directly across the face, sending her tumbling to the ground.
"You bastard, you slut!" Sekra trembled with rage.
Cecilia touched her face, looking at her husband in disbelief.
"Sekra, what are you doing?" Bockway was furious.
"Father." Sekra turned to his father and quickly said, "That... that's not my child!"
Bockway was stunned. "Sekra, you mean...?"
Sekra nodded.
Bockway's face instantly darkened, as if covered in a layer of frost. He glanced at Cecilia and said in a chilling voice, "Sekra, this woman is unworthy of being your principal wife. You handle the punishment. In a while, prepare to marry another."
"Yes, Father!" Sekra turned to glare at Cecilia.
Cecilia was still full of confusion, then quickly said, "Sekra, this is your child! How can you say it isn't?"
When it came to pregnancy and childbirth, even gods generally couldn't tell whether the child in their wife's belly was their own. But there were exceptions! For example, Linley. Because Linley was from the Dragonblood Warrior clan, any descendant of the Dragonblood Warrior clan would definitely have Dragonblood Warrior bloodline in their body. Even if it was diluted, it would still be there!
If there was no Dragonblood Warrior bloodline in the body, then it definitely wasn't a child of the clan.
"Why?" Sekra's face twitched with rage.
The Bagshaw clan was the Bloodstripe Titan clan of the Infernal Realm. Descendants of the Bloodstripe Titan clan all had the Bloodstripe Titan bloodline in their bodies, though its concentration varied. When the concentration reached a certain level, it granted extremely formidable power.
Just now, Sekra had used his clan's special energy to sense, and he discovered—
The child in his wife's belly had no clan bloodline at all!
Without the clan bloodline, it definitely wasn't his child!