Siya looked at Aksai with some disgust, as if she had met with some snake who happened to become her teammate.
However, she controlled her emotions before speaking up.
“Don’t you know the rumors about him?” Siya pointed at Haitin before speaking further. “This man has a habit of playing with women. He… he is known as the worst kind of beast. I’d rather die than marry someone like him?”
Aksai remembered that Siya had always been wary of Haitin ever since she met him three days ago. It seemed that she had heard many things about the demon star in front of her.
That’s why she didn’t want to meet him at Jaishin Lake and instead focused on retreating to Rai City. She feared her own safety.
Who would have thought that not only she would not be able to escape from Haitin’s grasp but also end up getting selected as his future wife.
Haitin leaned back slightly. Her fury and disdain were almost palpable, but Haitin remained calm, not taking her words to heart.
“Those are just rumors about me,” he said, his tone dismissive, though not without a hint of amusement.
“I don’t want to brag, but there are plenty of young scions in the demonic faction who are jealous of me—because of my achievements, maybe even my looks,” he added with a sigh.
“I’ve got countless admirers. Some of them just happen to be the fiancées of these so-called local tyrants in the Wild Devil Lands. That’s where the rumors come from.”
Siya’s expression remained icy, clearly unimpressed with Haitin’s explanation. It didn’t help that, while his words were reasonable, there was an unmistakable air of arrogance about him that made it hard to believe he wasn’t at least partially guilty of the behavior she accused him of.
She folded her arms beneath her chest, her posture defensive. Her gaze, sharp with suspicion, bore into Haitin. “Is that so?” she asked, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Young master Haitin, how many wives and concubines do you have?”
Haitin seemed entirely unfazed by the question. He paused for a moment, as if mentally tallying up the number, before responding nonchalantly. “I have three wives and twelve concubines,” he replied matter-of-factly, as though it was a normal conversation topic.
Haitin felt that it was very common for a man of his status to have so many women. After all, this was how the cultivation world was set. It wasn’t to say that only men had the right to keep multiple partners. Even some powerful women cultivators had multiple husbands and “playthings”.
Power and status were an important currency in Dadangar. Some regular folks practiced monogamy because that’s what they could afford to practice. However, things would start to change after one broke into the Foundation Building realm and further.
For example, Aksai had many personal maids back in Emerald Cove that also served him in bed. This behavior was considered normal even in the eyes of someone like Nuya.
Siya’s eyes widened slightly in disbelief. She turned to Aksai, her expression a mix of anger and incredulity. “Did you hear that? He’s already got 15 women under his belt. And you expect me to marry this… this beast?”
Of course, Siya knew how the world worked. However, she still had many fantasies related to her future husband. She hoped that the person she married would also only marry her and not have anyone else in his life. This type of mindset was also normal. As such, nobody could say that she was completely wrong in setting her own expectations.
Aksai and Haitin exchanged a glance, both at a loss for words for a brief moment. Haitin’s earlier confidence seemed to falter just slightly, while Aksai raised an eyebrow, silently signaling that he would handle the situation.
With a small nod, Haitin stepped back, allowing Aksai to take the lead.
Aksai cleared his throat, his voice taking on a more authoritative tone as he addressed Siya.
“First of all, Siya, let me make one thing perfectly clear—you don’t have a choice in this matter,” he said bluntly, watching as Siya’s face contorted with renewed anger.
“We’re not giving you the option to say yes or no. What we’re offering you is a chance to come to terms with the situation. It would be better for all of us if you accepted it willingly. But if you don’t, that’s fine, too. As long as your father agrees to this arrangement, not even ten of you would be able to stop it from happening.”
Siya’s hands balled into fists, her knuckles white with the intensity of her frustration. She opened her mouth to retort but bit back her words when Aksai’s sharp gaze fell on her.
His presence was commanding, and despite her overwhelming desire to argue, something in his demeanor made her pause.
Aksai pressed on.
“Secondly, let’s not pretend that this is unusual. It has always been the right of the powerful to claim as many beauties as they desire. That’s how this entire world works. Let me ask you this: how many wives and concubines does your father have?”
The question hit Siya like a punch to the gut. Her father, the Sun Ocean Lord, had only one official wife. But his concubines? She swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry.
He had more than a hundred concubines, and she knew it all too well. She was, after all, the daughter of one of those concubines.
And though she had been doted on by her father to some degree, she was hardly the only child born of his numerous relationships. Every few years, another concubine was added to his collection, and with them came more children.
Siya’s silence spoke volumes. Aksai watched her carefully, noting her hesitation before he continued, his tone taking on a sharper edge.
“So, does your father get a free pass just because he’s *your* father? Or because he’s a Core Formation Lord? If it’s the latter, then are you suggesting that brother Haitin should be allowed to do the same once he reaches a similar level of cultivation?”
Aksai’s words hung in the air, a challenge that Siya struggled to respond to. She felt cornered, and her mind raced for a way out of this verbal trap. But there was no denying the truth in what Aksai had said.
The world of cultivation had always operated on the principle of power, and her father’s vast influence was what allowed him to live as he did, unchecked by the very rules that now felt so unfair to her.
Aksai said further.
“You see, Siya,” he said in a softer, almost patronizing tone, “the world doesn’t operate on what’s fair or just. It runs on power and influence. Your father understands that, and so do most of us here.”
Siya’s jaw clenched tightly. She hated how powerless she felt in that moment, how the reality of her world was being laid out before her in such a cold, unfeeling manner.
But deep down, she couldn’t deny the truth. The life she had grown up in was dictated by strength, and the cultivators, be it men or women, who wielded it often had the luxury of bending the rules to their advantage.
Still, she couldn’t bring herself to submit without a fight.
“Just because something is the way it is doesn’t mean it’s right,” she muttered, though her voice lacked the conviction she wished it carried.
Aksai gave a slight nod, acknowledging her point, but his expression remained unchanged.
“Right or wrong doesn’t matter here. What matters is survival. You don’t have to like it. You just have to accept it. Plus, the concepts of rights and wrongs are relative in nature. What is considered right for me might not be right for you and vice versa. Unless you have the strength to enforce your definition in reality, your opinions are of no real value.”
Siya’s voice trembled as she murmured to herself, “Why… Why do I have to suffer because of the dealings between the demonic faction and my father?”
Aksai shook his head. His eyes held no sympathy as he responded, “This… this is what you call suffering?” He let out a small, incredulous laugh. “It seems like you’ve never really known what true suffering is.”
She looked up at him, her brows furrowing in confusion and defiance.
Aksai continued, his voice cold and cutting.
“Ask the teammates I just killed what suffering really is. Their bodies aren’t even cold yet. Perhaps if you ask them nicely and sincerely, they might tell you. They’d give anything to swap places with you right now.”
He gestured toward the bloodied corpses of Rong and Bai, their lifeless forms lying a short distance away.
Siya’s heart skipped a beat as her eyes moved to the bodies. She hadn’t allowed herself to look at them directly until now, perhaps out of fear of fully acknowledging their deaths. But now, she couldn’t avoid it.
The sight of their pale, still forms, the blood slowly pooling around them, sent a shiver down her spine.
It felt like ages since they had died, but in reality, it had only been minutes. The image seared itself into her mind—her companions, once full of life, now motionless, cold.