The group descended and it wasn't long before Ryu, Mae, Aantha and Thera were in a group all to themselves, within a mountain range that was apparently Ryu's now. Aika left after leaving a message that she would like to talk to Ryu about some things after he was finished.
After an awkward moment of silence, Mae realized that it was probably her duty to introduce everyone.
"... Ryu, this is my elder cousin, Thera. She's Aantha's big sister and a genius of our family," the more Mae spoke, the more comfortable she seemed to become. But for some reason, she was still a half step behind Ryu and didn't dare to meet Thera's gaze. Though, this didn't seem to be out of fear, but rather embarrassment.
"You are her elder cousin?" Ryu asked with a frown.
Thera seemed to realize that there was something off with Ryu's tone, though Mae and Aantha were in their own little worlds. Even so, she still nodded, a hint of the arrogance of a Sky God exuding from her. Regardless of how talented Ryu was, there was still a huge gap between them. Plus, she was senior by every metric.
However, none of them could have guessed what Ryu would say next.
"Then how did you fail to protect her? Aren't you a Sky God? You can't protect your own family?"
Ryu didn't raise his voice, but his tone was ice cold. It was clear that he wasn't feigning, he was truly pissed. What if Mae had died?
Thera wasn't greatly outmatched by anyone who had been present, so long as she was willing to risk a little, there was no way Mae would have ended up in such a near death state. His eyes weren't perfect, but it was still enough to see the vague series of events and he realized that all of them had held back and it was Elizaren's sudden shamelessness that caused the problem. But even so, it ultimately boiled down to Thera's negligence and over confidence.
Ryu had thought this many times before and he was absolutely certain. It wasn't bravery if it stemmed from ignorance, and it wasn't confidence if it stepped from an overblown sense of pride. Just judging by how this woman tried to look down on him initially, she was too used to being on top, and that had almost caused the death of her own little cousin.
Thera was so stunned by Ryu's words that she was rendered speechless. In fact, let alone her, Aantha and Mae had their mouths hung open too. It seemed that they had come to understand something else about Ryu in that moment. That temperament of his didn't just come out versus those of the same generation. Most couldn't even meet the gaze of a Sky God, and yet he was boldly scolding one.
"You..." Thera managed to squeeze out these words for but a moment before she realized that she should probably be enraged. "... Watch your tone with me! Even if I wasn't your senior, I'm still a Sky God, and even if I wasn't a Sky God, I'm still a relative of Mae, shouldn't you show some respect?!"
"I'm already giving you respect by talking to you. Do you think anyone else would have such an opportunity? If you weren't a Sky God and Mae's relative, we wouldn't be having this conversation at all, I would be killing you."
The sharp intent in Ryu's gaze seemed to form blades in the air, even Thera somewhat felt her eyes watering. If it wasn't for her pride, she would have blinked a few times without a doubt.
Ryu felt a slight tug at his sleeve. Although he didn't look over, he could guess that it was Mae wearing a slightly pleading expression. But right now, he was pissed.
"Boy! Is it not your fault that she was placed in such a situation to begin with?! If it wasn't for you, do you think anyone would dare to touch a princess of my Dream Asura Race?! Do you know who I am?! Do you know who her father is?!"
Ryu sneered. "If it only takes a Dao Pedestal Realm "junior" to cause the reputation of your Dream Asura Race to be meaningless, then what good was it in the first place? Why are you bringing it up at all? To smack your own face?"
Thera was so infuriated her chest heaved and her face reddened. She had never been scolded like this even by her parents, let alone a junior so many cultivation Realms beneath her. The worst part was that she couldn't even do anything without fear of how Aika would retaliate. That woman treated Ryu far too well.
"Okay! Okay!" Aantha hurriedly got in between them before Ryu could say anything further. "We're family now at the end of the day, right? Right? Let's just let bygones be bygones this one time, big sis will be better in the future."
Rather than calming her down, hearing her own little sister say such things almost made Thera faint with fury. What was "be better in the future" supposed to mean?!
"All I know is that you large Clans and Sects love to trumpet your own superiority while making sure that everyone beneath you never has the chance to rise up. That isn't superiority, nor is it the kind of heart an expert should have."
"A true cultivator shouldn't walk through the world thinking about what next genius might be born in the next generation or the next one after that, they should walk through the world with the confidence of knowing that no one will ever be able to catch up to their steps.
"But instead, you probably grew up expecting everything to just be handed to you, you can't even tell the difference between a truly dangerous situation and one that's not because no one has ever seriously come after your life you first opened your eyes."
"I promise you that in the future, I'll shred your Clan and all Clans like yours to pieces. Before me, you don't have the right to be arrogant because you fear me enough to suppress me!"
All of Ryu's frustration seemed to bubble forth all at once, his even and cold words finally ending in a furious roar.
