Chapter 1049: Swearing an Oath of Alliance

"Jade Leaf King?" Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

This was the formidable figure ranked third among the Upper Five Kings; he hadn't expected him to come as well.

A single Stone Leaf King had nearly wiped them out, and now an even stronger one had arrived—he had no idea how to deal with it.

However, his current identity was Purple Leaf King, so he couldn't refuse. Besides, since he knew the other was coming, it was better to meet him face to face than to hide in the shadows, allowing him to devise a better countermeasure.

"He's nearby. I'll have him come over now..."

With a flick of his wrist, a communication jade token appeared in Stone Leaf King's palm. He tapped it casually, sending a message. After doing this, he looked back at Zhang Xuan, a hint of doubt in his eyes. "Since he's a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher, how could he possibly come here, and how did you discover him?"

Clearly, he was still uneasy about the man before him.

No wonder. This Purple Leaf King had disappeared for over half a month, suddenly reappeared, and had previously disguised himself as a human and attacked him—it was impossible not to be suspicious.

Moreover, Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teachers were extremely rare. If one truly appeared, they would surely be under the strictest protection of the Master Teacher Pavilion, with no information allowed to leak. How could he have easily discovered one and even tricked him into coming here?

"As it happens, this Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher didn't appear in a sage clan or the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters, but in an insignificant little kingdom, rising step by step..."

Zhang Xuan's expression remained unchanged as he smiled lightly. "To prevent others from discovering him and causing unnecessary trouble, he has been hiding his identity. That is to say, the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters doesn't know of his existence. I only discovered him by chance while investigating the Poison Hall in Jingyuan City, when I happened to witness him being acknowledged by the heavens, which is how I confirmed it..."

"You mean... you saw him being acknowledged by the heavens?"

Stone Leaf King was startled, hardly daring to believe it.

"Indeed!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

"What... was that like?" Stone Leaf King asked curiously.

"It's simple. The heavens descend a special aura that envelops him. Any master teacher would feel immense pressure and involuntarily acknowledge his identity and status... Additionally, the Master Teacher Pavilion would have ten thousand bells ringing simultaneously, and many strange phenomena would occur..."

Zhang Xuan smiled.

As for Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teachers, he had experienced it three times himself, so he knew exactly what would happen and could speak of it offhand.

"It seems he really is a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher..." After hearing the description, Stone Leaf King nodded.

Although he had never witnessed such a grand scene, he had heard various legends and read corresponding books, and the situation described by this Purple Leaf King was not far off.

It seemed that the one lying on the ground, even if not a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher, was certainly closely connected to one.

"Capturing a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher and handing him over to the royal family would bring immense merit, beyond measure..."

A gleam flashed in Stone Leaf King's eyes as he pondered.

The importance of a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher was beyond doubt. If this news were true, the entire Spirit Tribe would be shocked.

With this, he could earn the respect of the Elders' Council. Even if he couldn't advance to royal bloodline, exchanging it for various cultivation techniques and resources to help himself become a peak Saint domain expert was still achievable!

However, if the merit belonged to him alone, obtaining these would be easy. But if it belonged to the other party, and he was merely helping, he would get almost nothing.

After all, this Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher was only captured because Purple Leaf King had tricked him and brought him here.

"If worst comes to worst, I'll kill this guy. Then no one will know. He's been missing for so long anyway; who knows if he betrayed the Spirit Tribe? As long as I act quickly and destroy the evidence, no one should suspect..."

A gleam flashed in his eyes as he secretly glanced at the nearby Purple Leaf King. Although they were both among the Ten Kings, they had no real bond; on the contrary, there was intense competition.

The Qingtian Royal Family always distributed resources based on merit. In recent years, with too many claimants and too little reward, they had long wished for the deaths of other kings.

For this reason, when they heard of other kings being killed, they felt no sympathy or sorrow, nor did they bother to investigate the murderer; instead, they were secretly pleased!

"I brought this guy here and know everything about him. He has already regarded me as a true friend... If you kill me, not only will you fail to make him submit, but it might backfire!"

Seeing the murderous intent in the other's eyes, Zhang Xuan smiled lightly.

He knew the relationships among the Ten Kings from Purple Leaf King. The spirit beings were cold and heartless; faced with such a great merit as a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher, the other clearly wanted to monopolize it.

"What are you saying, Purple Leaf King... This man was discovered and brought here by you, so the merit naturally belongs to you. How could I possibly harm you..."

With a dry laugh, Stone Leaf King hid the murderous gleam in his eyes, his hand gripping the Thunder Origin Pearl as if ready to strike at any moment.

"There's no need for pretense between us. If I were stronger, I wouldn't be wasting words with you, nor would I have told you his identity..."

Zhang Xuan shook his head. "However, I advise you not to act rashly. If this guy dies, his identity can't be confirmed, and even if you send him back to the tribe, it will be all for nothing."

"This..."

Hearing this, Stone Leaf King paused, then released his grip. "You're right. Rest assured, I won't harm you."

What this guy said was true. Whether the other was a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher wasn't for them to decide; it required verification. Once the man died, there would be no way to confirm it, and no matter how well they spoke, it would be worthless.

"Not harm me? I don't believe you, unless you swear an oath to the Spirit God!" Zhang Xuan shook his head.

"Swear an oath?" Stone Leaf King frowned.

"Exactly. As long as you dare to swear not to harm me, when reporting the merit, I will say that we discovered and captured him together."

Zhang Xuan said.

"Oh?" Stone Leaf King found this strange.

Such merit was best monopolized; having another person meant sharing the spoils.

"My strength is nothing among the Ten Kings. If someone covets the merit, I wouldn't be able to resist even if I wanted to. Moreover, the merit of a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher is too great for me to enjoy alone. Having someone to look out for each other would make things much safer... Why not?"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

"This..." Stone Leaf King pondered.

What the other said was true. The merit of a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher was indeed immense. With this guy's strength alone, monopolizing it would be impossible.

By allying with him, he could ensure greater safety.

Of course, the key point was that with his strength, once the tribe confirmed the news and granted rewards, he could easily deal with this guy later.

"What must I do for you to trust me?" After a short pause, Stone Leaf King understood and looked over.

"Simple. I have wine here. Let us swear an oath of alliance with blood, vowing to the Spirit God that neither of us will harm the other. Then I will naturally trust you!"

With a flick of his wrist, a flask of fine wine appeared in his palm. Zhang Xuan looked over.

"Swear an oath of alliance with blood?" Stone Leaf King hesitated.

"Indeed. I advise you to decide quickly. Once Jade Leaf King arrives and learns of his identity, I fear he may develop murderous intent and strike at both of us..."

Zhang Xuan said.

Wealth moves men's hearts; even master teachers are not immune, let alone spirit beings who have no principles.

If this Jade Leaf King learned that the man before them was a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher, he would likely try to monopolize the merit and kill them both.

Most crucially... if this guy defected to the other side, he would be the one isolated.

"Fine, I agree!" With a gleam in his eyes, Stone Leaf King made his decision.

He knew the temperaments of the Ten Kings well, especially this Jade Leaf King, who was greedy and ruthless, and might indeed commit fratricide.

Given his strength, even the two of them together might not be able to contend with him.

"Then let's begin!"

Seeing his agreement, Zhang Xuan said no more. He took out some blood, dripped it into the wine flask, and tossed it over with a flick of his wrist.

Catching it casually, Stone Leaf King quietly probed it with his spiritual sense. Confirming it was indeed fine wine with nothing added, he relaxed, bit his finger, and dripped a drop of blood into it.

"Drink!"

After the blood oath was complete, Zhang Xuan gestured.

"Alright!" Stone Leaf King raised the flask, but just as he was about to drink, he paused, his eyes shifting. "You first!"

Glancing at him, Zhang Xuan knew what he was worried about. Too lazy to argue, he took the flask and drank two large gulps.

Seeing him drink without any apparent issue, Stone Leaf King finally relaxed. He took the flask, drank a few mouthfuls, and raised his hand to swear to the heavens.

"I, Stone Leaf King, swear to the Spirit God that I am willing to form an alliance with Purple Leaf King, henceforth helping each other, forever brothers, with no second thoughts..."

"I, Purple Leaf King, also swear to the Spirit God that I am willing to form an alliance with Stone Leaf King..."

Seeing him make the oath, Zhang Xuan followed suit.

After all, he was swearing in the name of Purple Leaf King, which had nothing to do with him personally.

"Now that we are allied, if Jade Leaf King harbors other intentions, I hope we can unite against him..." Zhang Xuan looked over.

"Rest assured!" Stone Leaf King nodded.

Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teachers were extremely rare, and only Jade Leaf King had the method to verify them. Otherwise, he would never have called him over.

Later, once it was confirmed to be true, if the latter had no other intentions, fine; but if he did, he wouldn't hesitate to kill him!

"So, once we confirm that this man is indeed a Heaven's Acknowledged Master Teacher, if Jade Leaf King has other intentions, watch my signal..."

After a moment of thought, Stone Leaf King looked over.

Having sworn an oath of alliance with blood and pledged to the Spirit God, he couldn't fully trust the man before him, but he leaned more toward him.

"Good!"

Zhang Xuan nodded. "Later, after confirming his identity, I will test him. If he says nothing, fine; but if he intends to kill... I hope Stone Leaf King will act swiftly and decisively! We are now in the same boat, sharing honor and disgrace."

"Mm!"

Stone Leaf King nodded. Just as they were about to speak further, they heard a sharp roar in the air, and a tall figure flew over.

"Stone Leaf King, don't you know I have more important matters to attend to? Why are you calling me so urgently?"

Whoosh!

A powerful spirit being landed on the ground.