How could he not sense the resentment emanating from Shangguan Ziqing? However, a mere half-step God King was not worth his concern.
Ye Chen continued to drink alone.
At that moment, a Quasi-Monarch arrived. His body was enveloped by numerous Divine Halos, and he wore a heavenly crown, resembling the Lord of the Heavens, making him quite conspicuous.
Even compared to the many Quasi-Monarchs present, he seemed to outshine them, making them appear dim in comparison.
This was actually another Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch, in no way inferior to Flame God. He approached the long table where Flame God sat and sneered, "Well, well. I truly didn't expect Flame God, who could have sat right in the center, to come and sit over here. This is quite an eye-opener."
"Gu Liu!"
"It's Lord Gu Liu!"
Many of the Quasi-Monarchs surrounding Flame God were greatly shocked. Gu Liu was a super existence on the same level as Flame God, a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch, far stronger than ordinary Quasi-Monarchs by an immeasurable degree.
However, Gu Liu was ranked twenty-first on the Epoch Quasi-Monarch Ranking, placing him ahead of Flame God.
Moreover, and more importantly, Gu Liu's origins were also extraordinary. He was a disciple of an ancient Great Emperor, one of the eight ancient Great Emperors of the Flame Emperor Domain.
Of course, Gu Liu's master, the ancient Great Emperor, naturally could not be compared to the Flame Emperor.
But compared to ordinary Quasi-Monarchs, his Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch cultivation and his master being an ancient Great Emperor were enough to inspire awe and fear.
Although Flame God was a disciple of the Flame Emperor, unless encountering an existence far surpassing his own that he could not resist, and being in absolute crisis, the Flame Emperor would generally not intervene, allowing Flame God to undergo the necessary tempering.
Therefore, from this perspective, Gu Liu did not fear Flame God much.
Naturally, an even more important point was that Gu Liu had some enmity with Flame God. Otherwise, two Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarchs would not normally be so confrontational!
Flame God glanced at Gu Liu and snorted, "Gu Liu, where I choose to sit seems to have nothing to do with you."
Gu Liu sneered, "That's not how I see it. You are, after all, a dignified Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch and a disciple of His Majesty the Flame Emperor. You represent the Flame Emperor's dignity. Sitting in such a corner tarnishes His Majesty's prestige. I cannot ignore this."
"If you sit here, it's as if you are associating with those ordinary Quasi-Monarchs, simply disgracing the name of us Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarchs."
It must be said that as soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of many Quasi-Monarchs in the Zui Baxian Hall changed.
The implied meaning was that Gu Liu was ashamed to be associated with them.
They were angry but dared not speak out. Gu Liu's strength and status were far beyond anything they could compare to.
In fact, Gu Liu indeed had the qualification to speak like this.
But saying it in front of so many people was truly too harsh.
Flame God's face immediately darkened, and he was about to speak when Ye Chen, beside him, frowned and said, "How noisy!"
The Zui Baxian Hall instantly fell into a dead silence. All eyes were on him, mouths agape.
Did Ye Chen just dare to rebuke Gu Liu?
Wasn't this seeking death?
Gu Liu's face darkened. The layers of Divine Halos around him brightened, and his aura quietly intensified many times over, vast as the starry sky, mighty and sweeping through the firmament. The entire Zui Baxian Hall trembled.
Countless people felt as if a sea of stars was pressing down on them, making it difficult to breathe.
Especially those below the Quasi-Monarch level, each felt as if their life and death rested on Gu Liu's whim.
"Kid, who are you talking to?"
Each word was spoken deliberately, containing a Dao might that could make the starry sky tremble.
Even the many Quasi-Monarchs felt their hearts pounding.
Gu Liu was truly enraged!
The consequences of a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch's anger were unimaginable; even a Great Perfection Quasi-Monarch could not withstand it.
Ye Chen raised his head, looking at him with an indifferent, ruthless gaze, and frowned again. "How noisy. I told you to stop making a racket. Didn't you understand?"
An uproar swept through the hall!
This Ye Chen's courage was truly immense!
"Good, good, good!" Gu Liu laughed in extreme anger. Over so many years, few had dared to speak to him like this. Even Flame God might not necessarily dare to do so.
Many looked at Ye Chen with pity in their eyes.
To rebuke a dignified Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch as 'noisy'—wasn't this like the God of Longevity hanging himself, courting death?
Shangguan Ziqing watched this scene, feeling immense pleasure in her heart. The suppressed mood from when Ye Chen had told her to 'get lost' earlier was now replaced by a great sense of relief.
So what if you are a Quasi-Monarch? Facing a peak existence in the Quasi-Monarch domain, ranked on the Epoch Quasi-Monarch Ranking, even an ordinary Quasi-Monarch could be suppressed and killed with a mere raise of the hand.
"Kid, today this lord will see what ability you have to make me, Gu Liu, shut up!"
Gu Liu was furious. An aura of terrifying, peerless imposing might quietly spread out, transforming into layers of pressure storms that swept forth, bearing down on Ye Chen.
Even though over ninety percent of this pressure was directed solely at Ye Chen, the remaining fraction still made the many Quasi-Monarchs present feel their hearts pounding, struggling to catch their breath.
Others were like small boats in a violent storm or raging waves, on the verge of capsizing at any moment.
Boom—
Without a word, Flame God forcefully intervened. His Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch imposing might also erupted, immediately cutting off the pressure from Gu Liu.
The collision of two Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch level imposing mights caused the entire Zui Baxian Hall to shake precariously. Instantly, numerous great Dao secret patterns, involving the Ancient Monarch level, manifested, interweaving across the hall, resisting all the pressure and preventing the Zui Baxian Hall from collapsing.
Inside the hall, everyone's hearts pounded. Were these two Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarchs about to start a fight?
"Flame God!"
Gu Liu looked at Flame God angrily. What was the meaning of this? He coldly shouted, "You dare to interfere?"
Flame God said coldly, "What if I do interfere? What can you do about it?"
"Step aside immediately, or don't blame me for being ruthless!" Gu Liu frowned. Unless absolutely necessary, he really did not wish to fight Flame God.
Flame God sneered, "I'd like to see just how ruthless you can be!"
A direct confrontation!
The crowd was astonished. It was clear that Ye Chen and Flame God had a close relationship; otherwise, Flame God would not have stepped forward like this.
Whoosh—
Ye Chen stood up and walked to Flame God's side, looking at Gu Liu as an equal. He said calmly, "Gu Liu, ranked twenty-first on the Epoch Quasi-Monarch Ranking, disciple of the Shijia Great Emperor, correct?"
Gu Liu looked at Ye Chen coldly. "If you have the guts, don't let Flame God protect you. This lord could crush you with a single finger."
Ye Chen's expression remained impassive. "To be honest, I originally thought of letting you off. But if I don't teach you a lesson today, you won't understand that there is always a higher heaven and a greater man beyond man."
"Brother Flame God, please step aside."
"Agreed!" Flame God gave Gu Liu a slight smile, but the smile was icy, giving Gu Liu a strange feeling, as if he was looking at him with pity.
Gu Liu was secretly startled. What did Flame God's expression mean?
Then he sneered. As a Heaven-Defying Quasi-Monarch, he was practically invincible in the Quasi-Monarch domain, unless the opponent was an Ancient Monarch.
But someone so young wanting to become an Ancient Monarch was simply impossible.
All eyes were on them.
Gu Liu looked coldly at Ye Chen. "Today, this lord will see just what ability you have."
"You will witness it soon enough." Ye Chen said this and suddenly made his move.