Bloody Emperor - Chapter 31 Looking For Problems

“Isn’t he taking too long to take a shower? And that naughty waitress? I didn’t see her come back!”

Xun Lan was already very nervous about Nero’s delay. Of course, she was dying of jealousy, and she regrets not having insisted on going with him. When more anxious she gets, the more she eats, scaring Xiong Zhelan and Zhu Tai.

“Do you think he would do something with that simple girl when he did nothing with a beauty like you?”

Zhu Tai had been upset for a long time with the way Nero treated Xun Lan. He did not think he was suitable for her because he was very old and knew his limits, but he could not sit and watch Nero ignore such a beautiful young woman who was clearly in love with him.

“You’re right. Thanks for the praise, but I’m not as beautiful as you say. If I were, he wouldn’t run like that from me.”

Xun Lan liked to be praised before, but now no praise helps her ego because the only person she wanted to satisfy doesn’t seem to care about her ‘great beauty.’

“Do you not understand? He lived in the forest his whole life with his grandfather, so how do you expect him to come to society and out of nowhere understand everything?”

“He doesn’t know about concepts like ‘beauty,’ and he shouldn’t know about relationships either. So you must be patient and not force the situation because, at some point, he may be really upset with you before you can have anything with him.”

Xiong Zhelan did not want to get into this kind of youth thing, but he did not like to see Xun Lan treating Nero as a normal young man when he was clearly not like them. He didn’t think Nero was abnormal just that he had a childhood far removed from society and probably being not entirely human as he thought, so there was no way to expect things like that from him.

“Sorry, master. I know he is naive, but that is because I am worried that she will take advantage of him.”

“He is coming. Enough of this matter because what he does with his personal life is none of our business.”

Xun Lan still wanted to argue about Nero being a victim of the waitress, but Xiong Zhelan put an end to the issue when he felt Nero coming towards them.

“Hey guys, how was the meal?”

“Heh?”

Nero arrived excitedly and sat next to Xun Lan, asking about the meal. The group had not been with Nero for a long time, but they knew he wasn’t a talkative person and never saw him in such a good mood, making them surprised.

“What? Is there something on my face?”

“YES! That fucking radiant smile!”

Nero thought it was strange that the group gave him confused looks, but Sarah spoke again to clarify things. From her tone, he knew that this matter would not be easily forgotten, and one day he would pay for it. But even if he suffered some punishment, it would still be worth it because Nero didn’t know how he needed it until he remembered what it was like.

“Oh, sorry guys, I am not a very communicative person, but I want to improve this at least with the people close to me.”

“And the wound, did you take care of it?”

Xiong Zhelan saw that Nero seemed to be trying to be more social and he didn’t want to complicate things, so he started asking about the wound by making Nero show his bandaged forearm.

“It’s okay, I already took a bath, but now I’m going to get some sleep. I just came to tell you that I’m not going to eat with you, and I’m going back to rest in the room.”

“But it’s still the daytime! Didn’t you eat anything and go to sleep!?”

Nero tried to give an excuse to go back and sleep as he was really tired of all the actions he did for almost two hours with Qiao Mei. But Xun Lan hit on the table and exclaimed in objection, drawing the attention of everyone in the hall.

“Xun Lan! Don’t make a big deal out of it. We are all tired, and Nero fought the bear with me. So he is even more tired and has no problems if he wants to use the time to sleep before we get back on the journey.”

“My apologies. I will rest too.”

Xiong Zhelan had to get Xun Lan’s attention and it ended with everyone went to separate rooms to rest leaving a lot of talk for the people who observed the show.

___________________________________________

The stronger the cultivator, the longer they can go without resting or eating. As Nero’s group was still in the Qi Refinement Realm, they slept in the afternoon and evening until dawn the other day as the journey through the mountain was very tiring. Even Xiong Zhelan had to rest appropriately.

Nero was the last to wake up because he doesn’t like the day very much. He got up with the knock on the door that he already knew, but now he was not as angry as the first time.

“Good morning, Nero!”

Xun Lan was all overjoyed as if the previous day’s jealousy had not happened. She came to pick him up for breakfast.

“Good morning, Lan.”
for visiting.

Nero was not used to calling people by their full names, but he knew that calling she that way was a sign of proximity. He wanted to demonstrate that he accepted Xun Lan as a friend, but she had different thoughts and was all excited when he called her so.

They went to the main hall to have breakfast.

After talking to Xiong Zhelan and Zhu Tai, they chose a table and started having breakfast. Nero already had an idea of how to resolve suspicions about his eating habits.

“I don’t say much about myself, but it is because my life was not at all interesting. So it’s okay not to understand some things about me. I was born with a difference in the stomach, so I don’t eat normal food as it would make me sick. I consume liquid food with vitamins that I make myself with fruits and vegetables, so don’t worry if you only see me drinking.”

Nero had already obtained many bottles from Qiao Mei so that he could store blood in these bottles and drink as if it were vitamins, and no one would suspect. Of course, people with high senses could recognize, but he would be prudent when drinking. But it was a good excuse, and he would use it from now on.

During the night, Nero passed blood from the remaining corpses he had in Red World to a few bottles. Qi started to come out of the blood as soon as it left Red World, but Nero could still have it if he drank right after he got it.

He drained half of the remaining corpses at night, but he did not obtain good results as he had very little increase in Qi. Sarah said it would be more and more difficult to advance from layer and even more difficult to advance from realms.

Nero would need to drain cultivators from the Martial Warrior Realm or dozens of the Qi Refinement if he wanted to have a good increase in Qi. But even so, he was still drinking the blood he still had in the bottle like liquid vitamins. The group believed what Nero said, so everyone was enjoying breakfast.

“I haven’t seen you carry these bottles before.”

Xun Lan believed Nero’s story but still commented on not seeing anything before. Xiong Zhelan did not know what Nero’s situation was, but he understood that he must have a lot of secrets, so he didn’t want others to question him, but Nero responded quickly.

“My grandfather left a storage ring with me. It has little space, but it serves to store my food. My grandfather told me never to show it to anyone, so I keep it safe.”

“You lie as fast as lightning. If you ever lie to me, I will break your legs!”

Nero was getting better at making up stories, and everyone believed him when he talked about the storage ring. Sarah couldn’t help but comment in his mind on how good a liar he was and made her point clear.

“Do you want anything else? We have a great strawberry cake.”

The group was eating and drinking while they talked about returning to the journey. Nero was trying to be more communicative, and everything was going well until a waitress came to clear the table and asked if they would like anything else.

Of course, that waitress was Qiao Mei, who made a point of giving Nero a seductive look. She wanted to be very discreet, but it was visible to everyone making Xun Lan very angry.

“He’s not going to eat your stupid cake so you can leave.”

“Sorry for any inconvenience.”

As Xun Lan soon denied that they would want anything, and Nero said nothing, Qiao Mei apologized and sadly left. She had no hopes that Nero would marry her or anything as she knew he was a traveler, and what they had together was just one thing for the moment.

But Qiao Mei thought they would at least be friends, but Nero barely looked at her. She couldn’t help but be disappointed because she thought he was a nice guy, but now she thinks he should be the boyfriend of the girl who sent her out and still slept with her.

“You shouldn’t treat her like that because there is no grudge between you and her.”

Nero wanted to talk to Qiao Mei because he thought she was a lovely girl, but he also knew that if he were kind to her, it would make Xun Lan even sadder. Nero understood that Xun Lan liked him, but he didn’t feel the same and didn’t want to hurt her, so he ended up in a situation that he didn’t know what to do and doing nothing he hurt Qiao Mei.

“Did you see how she looked at you? Isn’t that clearly being my rival?”

Xun Lan would not give up what she wanted and would fight anyone who tried to steal what she already considered to be gain. Many people may think she was spoiled, but others would see her as someone very determined.

“Now I have to go and apologize to her. She was so friendly to us, and you maltreated her.”

Nero felt really bad about the way Qiao Mei left. He got up and went over to her to apologize for letting Xun Lan speak to her like that. Xun Lan crossed her arms and made a bad face making it clear that she did not agree.

Qiao Mei had gone towards the inn’s kitchen because she was very upset and wanted to take a break. She just wanted to be friendly to Nero and his group but ended up being so offended. She was from a poor and humble family, but she would never abandon her dignity.

“Mei! Forgive me. I should have stopped her.”

“I didn’t give you permission to call me that!”

Nero came quickly to Qiao Mei and tried to apologize, but she didn’t like him calling her by the first name, and he didn’t know what to do. She kept walking towards the kitchen, making people give Nero strange looks. He felt very sorry to hurt her.

“Please listen to me, Qiao Mei.”

Nero wouldn’t let her out like that, so he ran and stopped in front of her looking her straight in the eyes to beg for forgiveness as it was all his fault. Qiao Mei could see the regret in his eyes, and she didn’t think he was to blame. She knew they would never have anything, but she was still very emotional about losing her virginity to him, so it ended up in this mess.

Qiao Mei just wanted to distance herself from Nero now so as not to get attached to him. But when he called her ‘Mei’ it was so good that she couldn’t help but be moved. Still, she knew he would be gone soon, so she had to stay away from him, or she would just end up hurt.

“You don’t need to apologize because I don’t think badly of you, but I can’t get close to you, or I’ll be sadder when you leave.”

“You are really an amazing girl.”

Qiao Mei already had tears in her eyes while trying to distance herself from Nero, but she was unable to escape because he hugged her and started to wipe the tears that fell while comforting her.

Nero never imagined that he would feel affection for humans, but throughout those few days, he has already made human friends, and now he thought that this waitress he only met for less than a day was really a fantastic person.

Qiao Mei was always a strong girl, but now she was hugging a stranger in the corridor and crying in his chest. She didn’t know how she got attached to him so quickly, but she could only think about how bad it would be when he left.

“QIAO MEI! S-sorry to interrupt you, but it’s urgent.”

While Nero and Qiao Mei had their moment hugging in silence, a boy came running and called her breathing hard.

“What happened!?”

“The tax collectors arrived earlier than expected. They are creating problems for your father.”

Qiao Mei knew the boy as her neighbor, and when he talked about problems with her father, she couldn’t help but be worried.

“I’ll go with you.”

“No! That is my problem, and you don’t have to get into it. Please forgive me.”

Nero did not have to think hard to understand that the boy came to get Qiao Mei’s help to her father, and he would not let her go alone because the situation seemed dangerous.

Nero was never someone who would get into other people’s lives even more strangers, but he couldn’t ignore the time they had together and thought that now they had to be at least good friends. And friends help each other in bad situations.

When Qiao Mei told him not to meddle in the matter, Nero did not look at her but at Xiong Zhelan, who he could see in the hall as the corridor was not very far away. Nero knew that Xiong Zhelan overheard the conversation as they were not speaking softly, and almost everyone at the inn could hear everything.

Xion Zhelan had already understood that Nero somehow befriended the waitress, and when she was in trouble, he saw Nero giving him a determined but also pleading look. Xiong Zhelan was grateful that Nero asked for his permission, as it showed that he respected him.

Xiong Zhelan understood what the girl said about ‘tax collectors’ and could already imagine what the situation would be like. He nodded to Nero in agreement and was prepared to follow him but would not get into the matter unless necessary.

While Nero looked at Xiong Zhelan to ask for his permission Qiao Mei ran off with the boy. When Nero saw Xiong Zhelan nod, he knew he had his consent, so he didn’t waste a second before running after Qiao Mei.