Dongyang Prefecture,

  Qiannu Palace.

  In the newly built palace, the Empress sat with light makeup, brows furrowed, red lips pressed tight as she stared at the Go board before her.

  Black and white stones crisscrossed the board in seeming chaos, yet hidden patterns and profound mysteries lurked beneath.

  Across from her sat an elegant female official in formal robes and tall hat.

  “Your Majesty, it’s your move.”

  The official gently reminded her.

  The Empress waved her hand in irritation.

  “No more today.”

  She had wanted to master Go, to share at least one hobby with Brother Lu.

  Brother Lu loved the game, and his skill was terrifyingly high—she knew that well.

  Hadn’t Du Longyang gained enlightenment from just one match against him, and was now in life-or-death seclusion assaulting the Yin Spirit realm?

  So the Empress had started learning too.

  But now it was clear: her talent was mediocre. She was still galaxies away from playing against Brother Lu.

  This female official was a national-level Go master, yet every time they played, the Empress was utterly crushed.

  “Go requires a calm heart,” the official said with a smile. “Your Majesty’s heart is not still.”

  The Empress rolled her beautiful eyes. “That’s enough for today.”

  The official rose gracefully, bowed, and left with small, measured steps.

  Leaning against the railing, the Empress poured herself a cup of fruit wine and took a delicate sip.

  The warm, sweet-tart liquid slowly soothed her frustration.

  Suddenly,

  Her reflection in the cup rippled without wind.

  Hm?

  A feeling stirred in her heart.

  She set the cup down and vanished from the balcony.

  ---

  Above Dongyang Prefecture,

  The four Nascent Soul experts from the Holy Lands turned ashen as terrifying auras converged from every direction.

  “It’s the demoness of Buzhou Peak!”

  One stared in horror at the blindfolded Zhulong.

  Little Yinglong stood mountain-sized, wings spread wide enough to blot out the sky.

  Heavenly dragons from all eight Dragon Gates had answered his call.

  So many dragons gathered—the four Nascent Souls instantly lost all will to fight.

  Fight? Against what?

  Just the demoness who slaughtered Nascent Souls without blinking was enough to make them despair, never mind the dragons—Blue Dragon alone could trade blows with perfected Nascent Souls.

  The four dropped to the ground, reining in every wisp of aura, afraid that the slightest movement would provoke annihilation.

  Little Yinglong raised his draconic head proudly—he was the Dragon King summoning his legions!

  This was the prestige of the Young Master’s favorite dragon cub!

  Four Nascent Souls?

  He could take a hundred!

  Ni Yu’s eyes sparkled.

  Zhulong had soloed twenty-seven Nascent Souls at Buzhou Peak and carved her name into legend. In Ni Yu’s heart, Big Sis Zhulong now sat upon an unreachable throne.

  She was officially Zhulong’s little fangirl.

  Seeing her idol descend filled her with giddy joy.

  BOOM!

  Blue Dragon landed, dark-golden eyes sweeping the area. Killing intent rippled outward.

  The four Tianyuan Nascent Souls didn’t dare breathe.

  Hidden spectators from various sects trembled in their boots.

  Zhulong drifted down gracefully, long lashes fluttering though her eyes remained closed.

  She turned her lovely face toward Ni Yu and Little Yinglong.

  “Dad’s not here?”

  Her brows knitted slightly.

  Noticing Little Yinglong’s smug posture, she vanished and reappeared right in front of his mountain-sized snout.

  A delicate hand swung.

  SMACK!

  A thunderous slap rang out.

  Little Yinglong’s massive head jerked sideways, utterly stunned.

  Big Sis, give me some face in public!

  “I asked you a question.”

  Zhulong said coolly, eyes still closed.

  Little Yinglong deflated, shrinking back to pocket size with a wronged expression.

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  He landed on her shoulder and grumbled in dragon tongue.

  “The Young Master sent us to oversee the wager between Great Xuan and Western Liang…”

  Ni Yu quickly explained from below.

  Zhulong nodded lightly and descended.

  Ni Yu’s big eyes blinked rapidly. She dug out a sugar-coated pill and offered it up.

  “Big Sis, candy!”

  Zhulong hesitated—she recognized Ni Yu as Dad’s little maid.

  She accepted the pill and popped it into her mouth.

  The surrounding heavenly dragons radiated menace.

  Still sucking on the candy, Zhulong grabbed Little Yinglong by the scruff of his neck.

  “I thought Dad came.”

  “Don’t cry wolf next time.”

  Little Yinglong pouted.

  In the distance,

  The four Tianyuan Nascent Souls were shaking.

  From the conversation, they realized—this girl and this dragon were that terrifying existence’s maid and pet!

  They had attacked that lord’s maid and pet!

  Rumor said the lord’s heart was smaller than a sesame seed. If he found out, their entire sects would be erased—even Holy Land masters couldn’t save them.

  BOOM!

  A fearsome aura tore through the heavens.

  Crimson robes fluttered.

  A breathtaking, regal figure in red descended like a phoenix.

  Zhulong’s closed eyes trembled. Terrifying energy surged around her; a milky-white thread coiled silently around her slender finger.

  But when she sensed who it was, the pressure vanished.

  The Empress landed beside Ni Yu, eyes lighting up like stars.

  “Little Ni Yu! Little dumb dragon!”

  She laughed brightly.

  The four Nascent Souls had hoped the Empress would take their side.

  Instead… she was with them?

  Their hearts sank into darkness.

  War, mercifully, did not erupt.

  The Empress’s arrival dissolved the tension instantly.

  Blue Dragon, Red Dragon, and the rest returned through their gates.

  Zhulong—ever aloof—had only come because she thought Dad was here. Discovering it was just Little Yinglong showing off, she vanished in a streak of shadow back to Buzhou Peak.

  Ni Yu and Little Yinglong were whisked away by the Empress to play at Qiannu Palace.

  ---

  News exploded across the world:

  White Jade Capital’s maid and pet had appeared in Dongyang Prefecture!

  After vanishing for nearly a year, this was White Jade Capital’s first move.

  How could the world not pay attention?

  They said the maid, wielding only a black wok, had smashed countless Tianyuan sects into the ground.

  Wuhuang cultivators grinned from ear to ear—White Jade Capital was their pride, after all.

  But the bigger question: why had Young Lord Lu sent his maid and dragon now?

  Was White Jade Capital returning to the stage?

  Most dismissed the idea—too soon.

  Then the truth spread:

  Ni Yu had come to oversee the one-year wager between Great Xuan and Western Liang.

  The world’s gossip-loving cultivators immediately lost their minds.

  The maid carried Young Lord Lu’s will—she was his official envoy!

  ---

  Mount Tai.

  Dantai Xuan clutched the letter, eyes sharp.

  “So it’s little Ni Yu…”

  “Young Lord Lu sent her personally to witness the duel.”

  He took a deep breath.

  In the small pavilion,

  Mo Beike, Mo Ju, and Jiang Li sat sipping hot tea.

  Mo Beike’s heavy eyelids twitched. He chuckled, “Your Majesty, it seems we cannot treat this contest lightly.”

  “Young Lord Lu is watching. We must show proper respect—and full seriousness.”

  Mo Ju nodded, feather fan swaying. “This is Young Lord Lu examining the fruits of our Great Xuan Academy.”

  “One year is rushed, the results immature… but we must still display our academy’s strengths.”

  Dantai Xuan turned to Jiang Li. “Old Jiang, do we have the advantage against Western Liang’s Xiang Family army?”

  “Slim advantage. Seventy-thirty,” Jiang Li said frankly.

  Then added, “Xiang Family seventy, Academy thirty.”

  Dantai Xuan’s face darkened. “Old Jiang, are you raising the enemy’s morale and crushing our own?”

  The Academy was his baby!

  Jiang Li remained blunt. “The Academy develops well-rounded talent. In pure combat? We can’t match Western Liang’s war machine.”

  “It will come down to the rules Young Lord Lu sets,” Mo Ju said.

  Even he wasn’t optimistic.

  The Xiang Family army was a terrifying cultivation legion. Even the Xuanwu Guards might lose in a straight fight, let alone a bunch of kids.

  Dantai Xuan frowned. “No matter what, this king backs his cubs!”

  ---

  The next day,

  Heavenly Secret Pigeons flapped through the sky, dropping pure white feathers.

  One flew into the small pavilion on Mount Tai.

  One flew into the Western Liang main tent.

  Dantai Xuan and Overlord received the same message from Heavenly Secret Pavilion.

  “Location of the duel… Beiluo.”

  Overlord raised a brow.

  Beiluo—the city etched into his bones.

  He immediately summoned Xu Chu.

  Xu Chu arrived dragging his spiked iron balls. Behind him marched ten young Xiang Family soldiers clad in grim armor, steps shaking the ground.

  Luo Mingsang and the veiled Luo Mingyue followed Overlord out of the tent.

  Seeing the ten soldiers radiating furnace-like vitality, Overlord’s eyes flashed with satisfaction.

  “Heading to Beiluo to face Great Xuan Academy’s students—are you confident?”

  The ten armored youths stared at their king with fanatic eyes.

  “YES, MY LORD!”

  They roared as one.

  Xu Chu grinned proudly. “My king, these ten are the best under twenty I could find. The strongest is Zhao Zixu—he completed his final Internal Organ tempering just yesterday!”

  The named soldier stepped forward, chest high. Spiritual energy surged, condensing into lifelike spirit armor around his body.

  “Peak Internal Organs realm?”

  Overlord’s eyes lit up in genuine surprise.

  Even with the changed heavens making Body Forging easier, reaching the peak so fast was still monstrous talent.

  He remembered how many beatings it had taken him.

  “Good… very good.”

  “Fight well.”

  Overlord walked among them like a general reviewing troops before battle.

  He raised his massive fist.

  One by one, the soldiers met it with their own.

  The moment fists collided, fire ignited in their hearts.

  Their belief in victory burned hotter than ever.

  Overlord turned eastward, hands behind his back.

  He still remembered leaving Beiluo after making that wager.

  Young Lord Lu had favored the Academy.

  But Overlord refused to accept it.

  His soldiers would never be weaker.

  ---

  Meanwhile, at Great Xuan Academy’s training field beneath Mount Tai,

  Lines of students in training robes stood tall as Dantai Xuan rallied them.

  “Building this Academy was no easy feat. You are this king’s hope—Great Xuan’s hope!”

  “You are heaven’s chosen. You are the future!”

  “This will be your first battle, but it is the most important battle of your lives.”

  “The Xuanwu Guards forged this Academy with their blood and lives at the spirit stone mines, dying so you could have resources to cultivate.”

  “Old Mo walked the jianghu alone, risking death to collect every school of cultivation…”

  “For what?”

  “To prove to the world that Great Xuan Academy was the right choice!”

  His voice thundered.

  The students’ blood boiled. Eyes red, fists clenched.

  Dantai Xuan walked among the ten selected champions, patting their shoulders one by one.

  They were Great Xuan’s future.

  They fought for honor—for the Academy!

  ---

  Beiluo City,

  Perched atop towering Beiluo Peak.

  Luo Cheng sat cross-legged before the city gate, aura deep and steady.

  Peak Internal Organs—he had grown even stronger.

  Suddenly he opened his eyes.

  On the horizon, a figure approached at terrifying speed.

  Immense pressure made Luo Cheng’s breath hitch.

  Then he saw the newcomer clearly and relaxed, a smile spreading across his face.

  A woman in fiery red robes stood below the gate, carrying a little girl and a small yellow dragon.

  Long time no see, Ni Yu.

  ---

  The stage was set: Beiluo City.

  The once-world-shaking city became the center of attention once more.

  From Wolong Ridge’s Nine Prisons Secret Realm,

  Many paused their training. Jing Yue with Heaven-Span Sword on his back, Nie Shuang—now brawny and bronze-skinned—strode out with big steps.

  Nie Changqing emerged from seclusion as well.

  Together with Jing Yue and Nie Shuang, they returned to Beiluo.

  Not just them—

  Every major family, every sect, even Tianyuan forces sent experts rushing to Beiluo.

  The city opened its gates wide, welcoming all.

  Even without White Jade Capital overhead, Beiluo’s confidence remained unshakable.

  Lü Mudui arrived, showing his trademark gap-toothed grin.

  Lü Dongxuan, Xie Yunling, and Hua Dongliu—the representatives of the Hundred Schools era—came too. Mo Beike had once sought their legacies; the Academy students now trained in those very arts.

  They had to see this battle.

  After the silence following Buzhou Peak, the world was lively again.

  Three days later.

  Western plains outside Beiluo City—

  Dust clouds rolled.

  Hooves thundered like judgment day.

  Overlord rode at the front on his black-maned steed, mane whipping like dark lightning splitting the earth.

  Behind him: Xu Chu and the ten chosen warriors.

  Further back: hundreds of Western Liang iron riders come to cheer, disciplined and burning with fighting spirit.

  Northern road—

  Carriage wheels creaked with restrained excitement.

  Inside, Academy students in scholarly robes sat in tense silence, awaiting battle.

  Dantai Xuan’s imperial carriage led the way.

  Xuanwu Guards rode escort, no less imposing.

  One from the west, one from the north.

  After one full year,

  Great Xuan Academy and Western Liang Xiang Family army finally collided at Beiluo.

  Even before meeting, their unyielding convictions clashed like invisible sparks across the city—west against north.

  The fire was lit.

  The showdown had come.