The Lord Is Too Overbearing

"What happened to…" Anthony trailed off as he recalled what Basil had said. "Right…you tripped yourself and became a Goddess—a woman."

Some heads turned to Anthony at his slip but none of them said anything. They looked at him in relief, glad that they were not the only person who thought that way.

"You have a very…interesting kink, Basil. I didn't expect that," Iliana remarked.

Deactivating her Pacifer seal, Basil responded, "A special treatment was done to me to boost my growth. This is the result of this."

Xander hummed to themselves before widening his eyes in realization. Daoism wasn't found after the people of Hua migrated; he and his fellows knew a little bit of Daoism, so he already figured out [Reverse Cycle] was the reason.

Basil noticed his reaction and glanced at him. He knew what his temporary Mistress wanted, so he immediately nodded his head and pretended to be as clueless as the others.

"I want to inform you that I may spend more time than I initially planned here. There is a Legacy I want to retrieve and I have to participate in a tournament to be given access to retrieve it."

"Are you even allowed to participate? It's for Daoists, isn't it?" Anthony asked.

"Yang Tian Long turns out to be my father's good friend. I have his backing," Basil said casually. "Yan Xueyi also asked me a favour to help her disciple, so my victory is secured. No one will dare to say a thing about my un-Daoist-like methods."

At this point, everyone was already aware of Anthony's relationship with Tian Long. They turned to him to look at his reaction and found him smiling wryly. They were considerate enough, however, to ignore him afterwards. They marvelled at the fact that Basil had powerful backing instead.

"So, in other words, we are guaranteed to fight without you for a couple of days," Iliana remarked, bringing the people back to the matter they should be concerned about.

"Indeed." Basil nodded her head. "You shall worry not, however; I have a way to help you. I have been working on a Golem with my Soul Imprint as its core. It is already finished but I believe the Dwarf can make it better. It is going to replace me for the time I am absent."

"How are you going to send it here? I am sure [Teleportation] doesn't work in Huaxia," Alphonse chimed in.

"Deacon, my Beast Companion, shall arrive there by the dawn of the day after tomorrow. Make sure to wait for him—I am sure there will be many bastards chasing after him."

One of the Dwarven Elders raised his hand, prompting Basil to look at him. He had messy and unkempt brown hair, a chest-length beard that was braided tidily and a typical Dwarf's burly physique. A frown adorned his face. He looked angry with how impatient he bit on his pipe.

"Excuse me, brown-haired Goddess. Forgive me for being rude—this is just how we, Dwarves, are. From your words, assuming that the truce will end in three days, can I conclude that you are only giving us a day to modify your Golem?"

"May I know who you are?" Basil asked with a small smile, stunning the Dwarven Elder.

"It's Atheron Herathon, my Goddess."

"Atheron…"

"Yes, my Goddess."

"I have been working on that Golem for two whole years. Obnoxious I may sound but I dare guarantee you will never be able to achieve the same feat in two years. Modifying something is not as hard as creating it. With your splendid craftsmanship and revolutionary mind, I believe you will be able to know what to do upon glancing at it."

"That is…" Atheron hesitated. "What I am concerned about here is, my Goddess—"

"Imperfection shall not exist in my work. Should you manage to find one—I will bow before you and kiss your boots."

Atheron immediately raised his hands in panic. "I will never dare to do that, my Goddess. This one is blunt yet he still has pride."

Basil smirked and then turned to Iliana. "Tell me how is the progress."

Nodding her head, Iliana told Basil about how the seventy-two Pacifer's Warriors trained the whole army together. Elves, Dwarves and humans fought in the same army, covering each other's weaknesses and strengthening their overall power.

They were still awkward with each other but their relationship wasn't tense. Elves were aloof, so humans were closer to Dwarves than they were to Elves. The harmony of the army was always maintained. They respected their commanders, so all of them did what they were commanded without questions.

Shortly, everything was progressing well. Whether it sufficed to face Dantalion, however, was still up for debate.

"Hm…. Three days—that is your limit. Unless you want to risk it all and go for Dantalion's head, you will not be able to stand against his army—no, his creations," Basil said. "Though, it is unlikely, if I come any later than two days, immediately retreat."

Tinuviel, who had been silent the entire time, pondering when Basil would become a male again, exclaimed, "When things go south, my mother has agreed to step forward. Nothing shall intrude the Great Forest of Yitoupheo!"

"No Empress or Emperor should interfere in this matter," Basil said firmly. "They should be on the lookout for the shenanigans of the Human Empire. August Rancuser is one of the many Old Monsters the Arthean Empire is hiding. Always beware of them."

As the people recalled how fearsome a Ninth Circle Mage was, the mood in the room turned solemn. Imagining how their home would be attacked when their Emperor and Empress were absent brought a chill to their spine.

"Just believe in me. I may disappoint myself but very few people are disappointed by what I can pull off. See you somewhen in the future."

The projection disappeared at the same time the Visual Orb lost its lustre. The people stared straight at it silently for a few seconds before sighing softly at how nonchalant their leader seemed to treat the whole situation.

While most of them were astonished and worried about the unbound optimism of their leader, the Dwarves sighed in amazement at the sheer conviction Basil had. They were grinning from ear to ear, extremely eager to feel the heat of Basil's fiery spirit directly.

It wasn't hard for battle maniacs to find their kin.

….

Time flies as quick as an arrow; an incense turns to ashes the moment one turns one's eyes away. Two days had passed since Basil informed Iliana and the others about his lateness. Deacon had delivered the Golem to the Dwarf and the day of the tournament had come.

In Tian Long's flying ship, Basil sat cross-legged with her eyes closed. Her chest moved up and down every minute; purple Qi was surrounding her like a mist. Upon becoming a Purple Core Knight, her connection with the star was stronger. The closer she got to a star, the faster her Core developed.

"That lass is abnormal. She cultivates better than most top ten Daoists. Look at how ridiculously clear you can see the condensed Qi around her!" Tian Long remarked, earning a side glance from Xueyi.

"Failing my Tribulation has made me realize two things: first, Daoism is not the only way to unshackle myself from this world; second, I need to have a Heart Demon to pass the Tribulation."

"What are you talking about, Senior Sister?"

"I have never fallen in love, Tian Long. At the 72nd strike, I was faced with my Heart Demon. I didn't have it and all I saw was emptiness. I didn't know what to do, so I failed my Tribulation. Had I fallen for someone, I would have been tested with mundane, worldly pleasure. Had that been the case, I would have become a Daoist of the Nirvana Tribulation Realm!"

"…is that why you want to marry Basil."

"Yes. I have fallen for him. He shall be my Heart Demon. He is my ticket to the limitless world."

"…."

Yan Xueyi had always been a unique Senior Sister to Tian Long. He was familiar with her shenanigans yet he had never thought the day when she came across a false logic and fully believed in it would come.

He couldn't help smiling wryly and then just nodded his head. They didn't say anything afterwards and waited until Basil stood up and gazed at the gate of the floating arena ahead of them from the bow of the ship.

There were many floating Arenas spread around Huaxia; however, Star Devouring Arena was the biggest. It was opened only for important events such as Soaring Dragon Tournament.

It was a third of the size of Zunshen City, which made maintaining it a little bit pricey. It was only open for a day because none of the events held there lasted more than a day. Only talented people came to fight there, so the fight never lasted long. A lot of talented individuals, though, had lost their lives there.

"You look impressive, sister!"

At the exclamation, Basil turned her head to the right. "You already said it this morning, Chang Yu."

"I know, but the dress looks very good on you. You look like the other Fairies in our Sect!"

Basil had passed her two days spending her time with Shirley and the lasses. Chang Yu was among the bunch and, by the time she knew it, Chang Yu already called her sister.

She had never been bothered by how people called her; however, being a man mentally made her feel slightly uncomfortable. Looking down at her dress, she recalled the visage that stared at her back when she looked into the mirror. It was an attractive feminine face.

Challenging as it was, she had to accept the fact that she was temporarily a woman. No, she had accepted that. What slightly irk her was the fact that she had to behave like one. She wasn't amused that she was forced to wear a dress.

"You are permitted entry because you have our names behind you, Basil. You still have to dress like us, so no one will make a fuss about your participation. You can wear a male Daoist robe but your…gifts are too prominent to hide. You don't want to risk exposing them, do you?"

"I get that, Xueyi."

Soon after, the flying ship stopped before the gate of the Arena. The Daoists guarding it paid respect to Tian Long and Xueyi before letting it pass. It moved aside as soon as it passed the gate before berthing. As the passengers got down from the boat, all eyes turned to them.

First, they were gaping in awe at Tian Long and Xueyi and then widened their eyes in surprise at Mei Qi's appearance. After that, ignoring Danzel and the others, they turned to the participating disciples—Basil and Chang Yu.

Basil attracted the most attention due to her peerless beauty and mysterious aura. Among those whose interest was attracted was Wei Ye Xiu, Xiu Li's older brother.