Chapter 818: The Oni's Banquet

Led by Ibuki Suika, the group soon arrived at the plaza within the small town.

Although the Oni present were curious as to why a human was able to attend an Oni banquet, because the person who invited them was one of the Oni Kings, Ibuki Suika, they did not ask further. After all, being acknowledged by an Oni King meant one was qualified to enter this banquet.

After stepping into the plaza, the first thing Lingyun saw was a woman with an extremely intense presence. That woman wore a white training uniform, had straight blonde hair, and her powerful aura was as immovable as a high mountain or a great peak. The red single horn on her head, marked with a five-pointed star, already revealed her identity: one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Oni, Hoshiguma Yuugi.

Besides Hoshiguma Yuugi, there were many other powerful individuals in this plaza; there were at least twenty who had reached the level of Great Youkai. From this point alone, one could see the current prosperity of the Oni.

"Yuugi, Yuugi, I found a very interesting human!" Ibuki Suika darted in front of Hoshiguma Yuugi and said with a grin.

"A human?" Hoshiguma Yuugi couldn't help but be stunned, and the wine cup she was bringing to her lips paused.

One must know that although Ibuki Suika was naive, she possessed an intuition beyond what ordinary people could imagine, and gaining her approval was not an easy thing. Furthermore, the fact that the person she approved of was a human made it even more difficult.

"Is that so? What kind of person could gain your approval, Suika?" Hoshiguma Yuugi put down the wine cup in her hand and asked.

"Look, it's that person!" Ibuki Suika pointed at Lingyun, who was beside Yakumo Yukari.

Seeing Lingyun, Hoshiguma Yuugi's eyes narrowed. This person looked like an ordinary human, but if he were truly an ordinary human, how could he stay in Old Hell safe and sound, and how could he stay beside the Sage of Youkai, Yakumo Yukari, with the two appearing to be equals? Thinking of this, Hoshiguma Yuugi felt even more curiosity toward Lingyun.

"Yukari, where is my gift?" After introducing Lingyun to Hoshiguma Yuugi, Ibuki Suika slipped over to Yakumo Yukari.

"Of course I've prepared it!" Yakumo Yukari said with a smile, taking a wine flask from a Gap. "This is fine wine I found in the Imperial Palace!"

Watching Yakumo Yukari, the corner of Lingyun's mouth twitched, and he also felt some admiration for her abilities. After all, there were probably few people other than Yakumo Yukari who could come and go as they pleased in the heavily guarded Imperial Palace without being discovered.

"By the way, Lingyun has also prepared a gift for this banquet!" A mischievous smile appeared on Yakumo Yukari's face, and she then shifted the topic directly to Lingyun.

"Eh, Lingyun also prepared a gift?" Ibuki Suika blinked her large eyes and looked at Lingyun.

Lingyun sighed helplessly, and with a wave of his hand, several wooden barrels appeared before him.

Seeing this, Hoshiguma Yuugi's eyes narrowed slightly. In that instant just now, she hadn't detected any spatial fluctuations; in other words, this person's mastery of space had likely reached the pinnacle.

"Are these... wine?" As a drunkard, Ibuki Suika felt an irrepressible temptation the moment these barrels appeared.

"That's right." Lingyun reached out and pulled out a wooden stopper, and a wisp of wine aroma drifted leisurely from the barrel.

The moment the aroma drifted out, Lingyun noticed the eyes of the Oni present brighten. Ibuki Suika was even more impatient, grabbing a barrel and pouring it directly into her mouth. In just a few breaths' time, a large barrel of fine wine was drained by Ibuki Suika.

"Hic—truly good wine!" Ibuki Suika let out a hiccup, her eyes shining as she looked at the other barrels.

Just as she reached out toward another wine barrel, Hoshiguma Yuugi's figure appeared beside her, blocking her hand.

"Isn't the most important thing right now to invite the guest to be seated?"

"Hic, that's right!" Ibuki Suika hiccuped again, saying somewhat muddledly.

In the center of the plaza, the banquet had long been set. As Oni, their banquet could naturally not be as refined as that of humans; instead, it was filled with an atmosphere of revelry.

Looking at the banquet filled with the atmosphere of revelry and the Oni who frequently toasted him, Lingyun finally understood why an Oni's toast was something that could not be refused; this was the Oni's respect for their guest. Refusing the wine was no different from trampling the Oni's face into the dirt. Moreover, in such an atmosphere, anyone with a bit of heroic spirit in their heart would certainly not refuse to raise their own cup.

Seeing Lingyun drain the wine in his cup in one gulp, the crowd of Oni cheered in unison; this was Lingyun's response to them, and also his respect for them.

"Good, good, good! Truly worthy of being the person chosen by the Sage of Youkai!" Seeing Lingyun like this, sparks couldn't help but fly in Hoshiguma Yuugi's eyes. "We already know the purpose of your visit. If you can succeed, then for us Oni, it is indeed a dwelling place to yearn for. However, before that, I need to see if you are truly worth the trust of us Oni!"

"Fine!" Lingyun nodded without surprise.

"Come, cheers!" Before he knew when, Ibuki Suika had suddenly appeared beside Lingyun, offering him a wine cup.

Lingyun subconsciously took the cup and drained the wine inside. Only after the wine was down did Lingyun realize that this was Ibuki Suika's irresistible toasting ability.

After three rounds of drinking, Lingyun's expression remained unchanged. This performance caused a trace of respect to appear on the faces of the Oni present. One must know that the wine at this banquet was not ordinary wine, but the Oni's unique brew; as a human, being able to hold up through three rounds of wine was no easy feat.

Seeing this, a flash of understanding crossed Hoshiguma Yuugi's eyes. She stood up and came before Lingyun: "Let's stop the drinking for now. I wonder if you are able to fight now?"

"A fight?" Lingyun opened his eyes abruptly, and his massive Source Power swept out. If he had looked no different from an ordinary person before, he was now like a drawn divine weapon, displaying his majesty.

Before coming here, Lingyun had already known that although the negotiations with the Oni had reached the final stage, whether for the sake of recruitment or to win over the crowd, this battle was absolutely unavoidable. Both Lingyun and the Oni King were well aware of this.

Before the Oni, who worshiped martial power, displaying one's own martial power was the best choice. After all, in this world, if you do not possess sufficient martial power, how can you make people feel at ease entrusting their lives and livelihoods into your hands?