Beside them, Lei Lie had been sitting obediently on his chair, listening to Gu Qingfeng and Huode bicker.
To be honest, he was utterly impressed by Gu Qingfeng from the bottom of his heart.
His admiration was different from Huode's.
Huode admired Gu Qingfeng because he knew his identity and circumstances.
Lei Lie, however, did not know Gu Qingfeng's true identity.
It was precisely because he didn't know that his inner admiration was even greater.
What he admired was Gu Qingfeng's audacity to openly comment on and critique the seniors of the Eternal Life Pavilion in front of everyone.
To be precise, Gu Qingfeng's words weren't just simple commentary or critique.
It was practically showing no regard for the seniors of the Eternal Life Pavilion at all.
Saying things like that stunning woman had curves in all the right places, a perfect figure, was both seductive and wild, and was a four or five-fold fragrance, just at that insatiable age, perfectly seasoned... and even more terrifying, he said that old woman was a nine-fold fragrance, a slaughterer of ten thousand, and that with just two or three breaths she'd suck Huode dry.
Heavens above!
Earth below!
That stunning woman was none other than Senior Li Xin of the Eternal Life Pavilion!
That old woman was none other than Granny Jin Hua of the Eternal Life Pavilion!
What kind of existence was the Eternal Life Pavilion?
It was one of the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands!
It stood above the Myriad Heavens and Worlds; even the Three Thousand Great Daos had to show it some deference.
Under normal circumstances, let alone ordinary mortal immortals, even Upper Immortals like Mo Baiyu, who bore the Mandate of the Immortal Dao, wouldn't dare to breathe heavily in the presence of someone from the Eternal Life Pavilion.
And now?
This Great Old Master was openly using such vulgar language to comment on the seniors of the Eternal Life Pavilion in front of everyone.
Although the members of the Eternal Life Pavilion and the group of Upper Immortals were standing in mid-air, some distance away from this Xuantian Great Vessel, and words spoken here probably couldn't be heard over there... but what if they were?
Furthermore, it wasn't like there was no one else on the deck. What if the people here on the deck repeated what the Great Old Master said to the seniors of the Eternal Life Pavilion?
The consequences would be unimaginable!
Lei Lie was so frightened he froze in place, even forgetting to drink his wine.
He truly didn't know, and couldn't understand, whether the Great Old Master was genuinely fearless and unafraid of the Eternal Life Pavilion, or if he was simply ignorant and didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth.
If he was ignorant and didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth, the Great Old Master certainly didn't seem like an ignorant person. And even if he were the most ignorant person, how could he not know of the existence of the Eternal Life Pavilion, one of the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands?
But if the Great Old Master was truly fearless... what gave him the right?
What gave him the right to disregard the Eternal Life Pavilion?
Just because he was some kind of Worthy One?
A Worthy One might be a Worthy One in the eyes of mortal immortals, but in the eyes of the Eternal Life Pavilion, a so-called Worthy One might not even be worth as much as a lowly servant.
One must understand, within the Eternal Life Pavilion, there were Star Lords, there were Throne Holders, there were Great Powers, there were Ancestral Elders... not to mention figures who shaped the Present-Ancient Era like the Floating Life Emperor. Throughout the Myriad Heavens and Worlds, the Three Thousand Great Daos, who would dare to disregard the Eternal Life Pavilion?
No one dared!
Absolutely no one!
Lei Lie took a deep breath and stole a glance around. Thankfully, the attention of everyone else on the deck was completely focused on watching the spectacle in the sky. No one seemed to be paying attention here, and probably no one had heard the Great Old Master's words.
Lei Lie originally wanted to advise Gu Qingfeng to watch his words, lest trouble come from his mouth and bring disaster upon himself, leading to immense trouble.
But before he could speak, Huode beside him suddenly stood up and let out a loud cough.
It was truly a loud cough.
This single cough instantly attracted the attention of everyone present. In almost an instant, everyone gathered in mid-air watching the spectacle looked over here, as if curious about who was so bold, who was so tactless.
And Huode's cough scared Lei Lie out of his wits, especially when he realized all eyes were now fixed on them. He was utterly dumbfounded.
Not only did it scare Lei Lie, but even Gu Qingfeng opposite him was startled by Huode's sudden, unexpected cough.
"Huode, what the hell are you yelling for!"
"Didn't you not believe that I know that little girl?"
"You think yelling like that will make her recognize you?"
"Heh! That's hard to say."
Huode looked quite pleased with himself, as if he had Gu Qingfeng cornered.
And indeed, that was the case.
Initially, when he first saw that clever, spirited little girl, he only thought she looked familiar, very much like a young girl he had once saved. And he vaguely remembered that girl was a disciple of the Eternal Life Pavilion, one of the Seventy-Two Blessed Lands. However, he wasn't entirely sure if it was really her. Later, upon learning the little girl's name was Qiao'er, Huode was basically certain she should be the young girl he had saved back then.
Originally, Huode planned to walk over and greet the little girl.
But upon further thought, if he just walked over to say hello like that, it would be too embarrassing.
For someone as old as him to run over and greet a little girl would make him seem too lowly, and he'd lose face.
Moreover, doing so could easily lead to misunderstandings.
Others might misunderstand that he was trying to cozy up to someone from the Eternal Life Pavilion.
After all,
Huode was also someone who valued his pride, especially in front of Gu Qingfeng. He absolutely had to maintain his dignity and not let this kid look down on him.
And there was another point that made Huode a bit uneasy.
Although he was basically certain Qiao'er was the girl he had saved back then, the problem was, what if she had forgotten all about that incident?
How embarrassing would that be? Losing a bet wasn't a big deal, being laughed at by others wasn't a big deal either. What Huode feared most was being ridiculed by Gu Qingfeng. Knowing Gu Qingfeng as he did, if he went up to greet her and the little girl didn't recognize him, this guy would use this incident to mock him for the rest of his life.
Therefore,
after much deliberation, Huode came up with this plan.
First, let out a deliberate cough to attract everyone's attention, most importantly the little girl's attention.
If the little girl remembered him, she would definitely recognize him.
Then he'd save face.
Taking a step back, even if the girl had truly forgotten about the past and didn't recognize him, he could always claim his throat was itchy and he couldn't help but cough loudly. That way, at least it wouldn't be too awkward, and he wouldn't lose too much face.
Sure enough, everything went exactly as Huode had anticipated. His cough successfully attracted everyone's attention.
In mid-air, Upper Immortals like Mo Baiyu, Yun Zhou, Yuanwu, the group of Upper Demons led by Fuying, including Bai Ze, Leng Jue, and the Eternal Life Pavilion members like Li Xin and Granny Jin Hua all looked over curiously.
"Who was that just now!"
Upper Immortal Yuanwu stepped forward first, staring imposingly at the people on the deck and shouting, "Stand up!"
"This... I'm truly sorry."
Huode stood up obediently, offering an apologetic smile. "This old man had no intention of disturbing you all, nor any desire to offend. It's just that I was eating greedily and accidentally swallowed a whole fruit, forcing me to cough loudly. I hope you can all be understanding."