Warhammer, I really didn't intend to form a second empire!

His body was more than half again as tall as any of the Fenrisians present. His broad shoulders were wrapped in a fur cloak trimmed with wolf fur, and the muscle lines of his shoulder blades were clearly visible through the outline of the animal skin.

His right hand was pressed on the table, and the rough wooden board beneath his palm had been shaken by his palm, leaving a thin crack.

"Who are you? How did you get in? Didn't the people outside stop you?"

Ruth's voice wasn't loud, but it was full of ambition, and his eyes held a hint of cunning and seriousness.

The emperor did not answer immediately, but took a step forward and stood at the edge of the campfire's glow.

His face was soft and serene in the firelight, his golden eyes staring directly into Russ's gaze.

“I’ve come to find you, Riemann. You are stronger than I thought.”

Ruth narrowed his eyes slightly, and his fingers tightened their grip on the axe handle.

"You know me?"

“I know everything about you, Leman Ruth, King Ruth, Lord Fenris. You are my son, and I am your father.”

The emperor extended his right hand and spoke sincerely.

“Come back to me, my son, and join me on a great expedition to save humanity.”

For a moment, everyone was at a loss. Who exactly was this person? Wasn't the Wolf Lord's father the Wolf Lord Tengjir?

But this thin and short man possessed a strange power, and the Fenris warriors present all believed his words; he was the father of Lord Ruth the Wolf.

But Rus glanced at the Emperor, then at Zhao Zheng, who was much taller than him, and suddenly grinned.

"You? You want to be my father? You're not worthy."

Chapter Forty-Six: The Empire's Number One Good-for-Nothing

The atmosphere inside the stone hall tensed up the moment Russ uttered that provocative remark.

The Fenris warriors had just recovered from the Emperor's psychic charm when they heard their wolf lord say something to this thin, unidentified man, and everyone froze.

Some people were still holding wine glasses, some were bending down to pick up meat bones that had fallen to the ground, and some subconsciously took a half step back.

But no matter what they did, they all focused their attention on the Emperor, waiting to see how the man who had been provoked by the Wolf Lord would respond.

The bonfire crackled in the center of the stone hall, its flames dancing on the emperor's face, casting shimmering light and shadow upon his serene countenance.

He showed no displeasure at Ruth's words; his golden eyes remained fixed on Ruth's direction, his gaze gentle.

At this time, the emperor had not yet lost all his emotions as he would later do. After all, time was not yet so pressing, so he was willing to give his offspring some time and patience.

Whether you're a good match or not isn't up to you to decide.

The Emperor's voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of every Fenris warrior present.

Zhao Zheng stood near the entrance, his arms crossed in front of his chest, his body slightly leaning against the edge of the door frame, watching the scene before him with great interest.

He actually understood why Russ reacted that way. This brother had lived in the isolated, icy world of Fenris for nearly twenty years, defeating all his opponents with his fists and wildness before finally sitting on the throne.

One day, a stranger he had never seen before appeared in the center of his territory, charmed his people with psychic powers, and then told him, "I am your father, come with me."

If Ruth can tolerate this, then he has no right to be the wolf lord and king.

No matter how familiar the emperor felt to him, or how intense the pressure from the two men was, Ruth's pride did not allow him to bow down to someone he had just met.

Moreover, Ruth was born a person who admired strength. A wolf raised in a pack would never bow down to a skinny, frail person.

Therefore, the most effective way to persuade Ruth is never through reasoning.

"You say you're my father, fine, then produce the proof."

Ruth took a step forward, his figure appearing even more imposing in the firelight.

His gaze swept over Zhao Zheng, who was standing against the wall behind the emperor, his eyes filled with deep apprehension, before returning to the emperor's unremarkable face, a slightly amused smile playing on his lips.

"If you can prove that you are truly worthy of being my father, then it's no big deal for me to acknowledge you as my dad."

"But if you can't prove it, don't blame me for being impolite. This is my territory after all. You say you're my father, how am I supposed to know if you're one of those damned wizard leaders?"

The emperor's lips curved almost imperceptibly, his gaze remained calm, and his voice carried a sense of composure.

Zhao Zheng could sense that the emperor was also interested at this moment.

"How do you want me to prove it?"

Ruth stretched out his right hand and raised three thick fingers.

"Three matches. If you can beat me in any one of them, I will admit that you may really be my father."

"If you win both matches against me, then I'll listen to you from now on and go with you on your so-called Great Expedition. If you say go east, I'll never go west."

"But if you lose all three matches, then go back to where you came from and never set foot in Fenris again."

"Oh, right, remember to crawl between my legs when you leave! This is your punishment for challenging the Wolf Lord, King Ruth."

Was Ruth this strong before his return?

Zhao Zheng couldn't help but secretly give his brother a thumbs up. As expected of the Wolf King, Fenris is a tough guy with guts!

For some reason, Zhao Zheng felt like shouting something at that moment.

Well done! Cheer up, Ruth! We must defeat this weasel!

But Zhao Zheng did nothing; he just leaned against the door and watched the two of them, the smile on his lips impossible to hide.

This trip to Fenris was definitely worthwhile.

The Emperor's gaze lingered on those three fingers for a moment, then he raised his eyes and met Russ's gaze again.

Which three matches?

"Wine, meat, and fists."

When Ruth uttered those three words, his tone carried a confident, even somewhat disdainful, certainty; he was absolutely confident in this matter.

“The men of Fenris are never afraid of drinking, eating meat, or fighting. I have never lost to anyone here.”

"If you can beat me in any one of your matches, or even twice, then I might acknowledge your identity."

After listening to Ruth's words, the Emperor nodded slightly, his tone quite natural.

"Then let's do it your way."

Rus smiled, turned around, and waved towards the side of the stone hall.

"Go and bring out all the mead from the cellar, and roast and serve those Icefield cattle I hunted!"

The Fenris warriors immediately sprang into action. Some ran towards the wine cellar through the rear passage, while others began to deal with the carcasses of the Ice Bulls. The stone hall quickly became lively.

The Fenris warriors carrying the wine carried a huge wooden barrel through the stone hall and arranged the barrels one by one on the open ground next to the long table.

The barrels were quite large, each more than half a person's height, reinforced with thick iron hoops, and exuded a strong fermented honey aroma. A rough count indicated there were nearly a hundred barrels.

The warriors who roasted the meat followed closely behind, carrying several whole roasted animal legs that had just been taken off the grill. The meat glistened in the firelight, the skin was roasted to a crispy brown, and the fat dripped onto the stone ground with a soft sizzling sound.

They piled the meat at the other end of the long table, with huge wooden platters stacked with cut pieces of meat, and a whole roasted wild deer piled up next to them.

As Zhao Zheng watched the wine barrels and meat platters being placed one by one on the long table, he stood by the door frame without moving, but the corners of his mouth curved upwards even more.

He turned his head and glanced at the Emperor, wanting to know what the Emperor thought.

Zhao Zheng knew that as long as the emperor wanted to, he had no chance of losing; he just didn't know if the emperor would give him a handicap.

The first competition began soon afterward.

Ruth walked to one end of the long table, picked up a wooden goblet about half her height, and uncorked one of the barrels of mead. The black liquid poured into the goblet along the rim of the barrel, making a dull gurgling sound.

Then he picked up the enormous, custom-made wooden cup, which was almost twice the size of his head, and gulped it down in one go.

From lifting the glass to putting it down, there was no pause whatsoever; it was incredibly smooth.

A little wine spilled from the corner of his mouth, dripping down the contours of his chin onto the wolf fur of his shawl, but he didn't care.

He slammed the empty glass down on the table with a heavy thud, then turned his head to look at the Emperor.

The Emperor stood at the other end of the long table, picked up a wine glass, which was quite normal, much smaller than Ruth's.

Moreover, the Emperor drank very steadily, without the bold and unrestrained style of Ruth, but he did indeed continue drinking.

However, Zhao Zheng could clearly feel that the veins on the emperor's neck and forehead were bulging slightly.

There is no wine in Fenris!

This mead is essentially a highly concentrated poison, and an extremely unpleasant one at that, the kind that can even make a Space Marine dizzy.

This "wine" is not for human consumption. Only the Fenris people can drink this poison like wine. Anyone else who likes to drink it is either a pica sufferer or a masochist.

Sure enough, just as the Emperor finished one cup and was about to drink his second, Ruth, not satisfied with just one cup, picked up the barrel and started chugging it down.

The Emperor had just finished his second cup when Ruth had already downed three barrels. When the Emperor was drinking his seventh cup, he wanted to drink some more, but he found that even the barrels on his side had been moved over by the Fenris and Ruth had finished them all.

The first match ended quickly. Zhao Zheng couldn't believe how Ru Si could drink that stuff so fast.

There were over a hundred barrels of this mead. Zhao Zheng probably couldn't drink a single drop, but he finished it all in less than half an hour.

The emperor held the wooden wine glass, the rim of which was pressed against his lips, his gaze passing over the edge of the glass and landing on the other end of the long table.

Ruth had already put down what seemed to be the umpteenth empty barrel in his hand. The bottom of the barrel hit the stone ground with a dull thud. He wiped the wine that had spilled from the corner of his mouth, then let out a huge burp and turned to look at the Emperor.

Ruth's face was already flushed.

Zhao Zheng leaned against the door frame, his arms crossed in front of his chest. He could clearly sense the high-speed circulation of spiritual energy within the emperor's body, breaking down the high-concentration venom layer by layer.

This is no longer drinking alcohol; it's drinking a high concentration of biological poison, which the Fenris people actually call mead.

The emperor sighed, put down his wine glass, and the bottom of the glass made a slight clinking sound on the table.

"I lost."

Ruth grinned, a hint of smugness flashing in his pale white eyes.

He kicked the empty barrel aside, reached at the end of the long table, grabbed a roasted leg of beef from the Icefield, tore off a large piece of meat, chewed it, and mumbled something indistinctly.

"You lost the first match, there are still two more matches to go."

The Fenris warriors in the stone hall let out a low chuckle and cheers, some slamming their fists on the table, others shouting for Russ.

The second competition began just as quickly.

Several tundra cattle had been roasting over the fire for a long time, their skins charred and crispy, and the fat dripping from the iron racks onto the fire, making a sizzling sound. The aroma of the meat filled the stone hall, mixing with the scent of mead to create a rich and intense fragrance that was almost palpable.

Ruth didn't stand up. He reached out and grabbed a whole roasted beef leg from the wooden plate, tearing into it bone and all.

The teeth made a crisp sound as they cut into the crispy crust. He chewed twice and swallowed, then took another big bite.

He ate very quickly, like a wolf hunting in the wild, precisely cutting off large chunks of meat with each bite, chewing for very short periods with almost no pause.

Ruth looks wild when she tears food, or to put it bluntly, she looks uncultured, but in Fenris, this is quite common.

If Ruth hadn't done that, the Fenris would have looked down on their king, saying he had no wildness at all and yet wanted to be king and wolf lord.

The emperor sat across the long table, with a large plate of whole pieces of roasted meat in front of him.

He wasn't as wild as Ruth, but he humbled himself, tearing chunks of meat with his hands and slowly chewing them.

However, Zhao Zheng noticed that the emperor was swallowing more slowly. He wasn't using his spiritual energy, which seemed to be to save face for Russ.

By the time the Emperor finished his second plate, Ruth had already devoured the skeleton of the second cow. There was almost no meat left on the bones, and he had even chewed up and swallowed the cartilage in the joints.

He wiped the grease off his hands on the table, then picked up the third roasted beef leg, his gaze sweeping across the long table toward the Emperor, a hint of disdain on his lips.

Zhao Zheng stood up straight by the door; the outcome of this match was no longer in doubt.

While Ruth was eating this beef leg, the Emperor was even worrying about his third piece of roast meat. The difference was too great; they were no longer on the same level.

The Fenrisians nearby were also cheering for Ruth, after all, the Emperor's performance was really too poor, even a random little child would be better than the Emperor.

Regardless of their initial impression of the Emperor, at least at this moment, they did not consider the Emperor to be the Wolf Lord's father.

By the time the Emperor had barely managed to stuff down his third piece of roast meat, Ruth had already devoured nine cows and was looking at the Emperor with a rosy complexion and a teasing glint in his eyes.

"Hahaha, you lost again!"

The Fenrisians cheered even louder, but the emperor's face remained largely expressionless.

The cheers in the stone palace reached their peak after Russ announced his second victory.