In front of the Main Peak Great Hall of the Qingyuan Sect, elders and all the true disciples stood anxiously on the steps, silent as the grave.
Thanks to a certain God Hammer Little Overlord, their rewards could easily turn into a beating today.
Da Yu indeed governed the world alongside the sect, with no master-servant relationship in name, and even during the last few thousand years of Da Yu’s founding, the sect had once raised the flag of rebellion.
Truth be told, there was still a lingering respect for the royal family.
“Our ancestors survived the chaos when the grand buildings fell; surely it’s not the end of the world now.”
Sovereign Wencang glanced across the gathered elders, gravely delivering his remark.
He then looked up at the sky, mentally calculating the time.
“The Crown Prince should be arriving soon… Oh, right.”
“Where are Li Mo and Ying Bing?”
Now that you mentioned it, these two little rascals were the real elite—Jiang Yu didn’t come to check on this “small door and small household” known as Qingyuan Sect.
…….
The next morning.
Gone was the icy chill, replaced instead with a drifting, cool fragrance.
Ying Bing opened her eyes in bed, instinctively glancing at the empty space beside her.
Normally, the first thing she did upon waking was to check if her long sword was still there, but somehow, that habit had changed without her realizing.
“Forty-nine forms…”
Ying Bing stored away her Jade Phoenix Divine.
Now her hundred birds and phoenix form had just begun to catch up with the Taiyin Divine Intent, meaning the two were starting to complement each other.
While she was still in Observation Realm, her Consciousness Soul had made significant progress compared to yesterday.
“Before entering the inner scene, I need to merge these two divine intents into one… only then can I reveal the vision of the Taiyin Moon Phoenix.”
Merging divine intents was a difficult and treacherous path that many notable individuals had attempted before.
That included the top of the Qianlong List, the Crown Prince of Da Yu.
As far as she knew, throughout history, there had only been one person capable of accommodating the divine forms of the Great Dao—herself.
Suddenly, that annoying system chimed in:
【Alert: System hasn’t opened the rankings for over a year, Host, have you somehow forgotten me?】
“It hasn’t been a year.”
【A year has indeed passed! And just now, I detected fluctuations in your emotional state, Host.】
Oh, the magical algorithm of the system.
Ying Bing had been pondering whether she should activate the rankings again.
She wrinkled her nose slightly, considering, before deciding to put that thought aside for now.
Let’s wait until after visiting the Ruins of the Chess Mountain.
Her sword energy had reached its peak from her last life when the top talents gathered in the Imperial Capital; she prepared to walk that path again.
“I must win against him fairly, just once…”
“Hey, Ice Chunk.”
At that moment, Li Mo’s voice floated in from outside.
“We’re about to set off.”
“Mm-hm.”
The slender, tall figure of Ying Bing donned her attire, the dress of the Taiyin Leaving Immortal obscuring the outline of her delicate outfit, transforming her beauty into something serene and ethereal.
She opened the door and found Li Mo standing outside, clad in that pure Yang robe.
Weirdly enough, they seemed to have a couple’s… um, training outfit vibe going on.
As they left Qiushui Pavilion, Li Mo stole a glance at his master’s room; hold your horses! The upright gentleman Li was no peeping Tom!
Well, he did indeed flaunt two bottles of Immortal Drunk. His master was sprawled out, snoring without a care in the world—looking quite peaceful, really.
Phew~
“It’s a bit chilly today.”
Li Mo fidgeted, feeling a bit lost, so he found himself scratching at his neck, inadvertently leaving some red marks.
The God Hammer Little Overlord’s temper was quite fiery!
Those red marks reflecting in Ying Bing’s eyes were slightly startling…
A girl cuddling against a guy like she was about to devour him, the stormy bites on his neck left a similar impression. Of course, the shapes were a bit different…
What am I thinking?
Ying Bing’s serene gaze quivered slightly as she lowered her hand.
Suddenly, Li Mo felt something cool and delicate slip into his hand.
“I told you it’s cold; your hands are freezing.”
“…Mm, they are a bit.”
Ice Chunk fell silent for a few seconds, then nodded gently.
“Right? Besides, based on my professional knowledge, cold starts from the feet, so if your hands are chilly, your feet probably aren’t toasty either.”
Li Mo said this with utmost seriousness, sounding quite knowledgeable.
As he spoke, he let go of her hand, seemingly about to test his theory.
After all, practice is the only standard of truth!
How would you know if Schrödinger’s cat was alive or dead if you didn’t open the box?
How would you know if…
“?”
Catching the unusually somber look in Ying Bing’s eyes, the young technician coughed lightly, his expression instantly turning pure as he gazed into the distance, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.
However, just then they passed through the mountain gate.
Looking far away, they spotted two colorful figures, riding cloud-colored steeds, flanked by attendants.
Those cloud-colored steeds looked just like the ones led by Qu Sheng, their bloodline divine and extraordinary.
Moreover, being pure white, only the Da Yu royal family or the Heavenly House could bestow them; they were never found in the common folk and were known in the martial world as ‘Celestial Horses.’
In her past life, that would be like a limited edition Rolls-Royce.
The opposing party came in with great force, stepping into the mountain gate as though they planned to gallop straight toward the main hall—not looking like they were here to give accolades, but rather like a war cry was about to ensue.
The girl in the pink dress, atop her heavenly horse, spotted the duo preparing to head up.
“Li Mo… Ying Bing?”
The Crown Prince hadn’t shown up himself and sent his two maidens instead.
The girl in the pink dress knew this carried a hint of intimidation, especially since she had just been injured yesterday; she had quite the grudge to settle.
Even high-ranking powerhouses from large sects treated them with courtesy, so she had never faced such an affront!
Unexpectedly, before she could ascend the mountain, she ran straight into Li Mo—the sprightly little overlord who had stood up for the little princess yesterday.
Before she could speak, Li Mo frowned first:
“No riding in the mountain gate.”
“The land beneath the heavens is the king’s turf. Do you dare to stop me from delivering the Crown Prince’s orders?”
Dan Hong’s expression suddenly turned fierce; today, Jiang Yu hadn’t restrained her from unleashing her full power, and as an inner scene cultivator, she was far superior to anyone merely in Observation Realm.
With a swift motion, she drew the whip from her waist, the wind cutting through the air, aiming to strike Li Mo’s face with deadly precision.
Crack—
The whip cracked through the air but veered off course, instead slamming into the nearby stone steps and shattering them.
“Rampant fool! Dare to dodge?”
She summoned her treasured weapon, the internal scene realm’s domain faintly spilling out.
But the next moment, a flash of moonlight-like sword brilliance erupted.
Ying Bing stepped forward, grasping Tian Shuang, her eyes a cold glare of authority.
“Uh-oh… esteemed guests, please hold your horses! Ice junior sister…”
Ouyang, who came down to greet them, felt his soul nearly flee at the sight.
Dear heavens, Li junior brother just offended someone yesterday! Now Ice junior sister too? Were these two in cahoots?
Clearly, neither side paid Ouyang any mind.
The girl in the green attire, Qing Que, also dismounted her horse and said to him:
“The Crown Prince has asked us sisters to teach you two Privileged Dragon’s top martial arts, so let’s settle this at the mountain gate, shall we?”
Hearing her say that, Ouyang could only stomp his foot in frustration, turning to rush toward the Main Peak Great Hall to deliver the news.
Qing Que glanced at the sword-wielding chilly maiden, an inexplicable sense washing over her, reminiscent of a stunning figure from the Tianshan Sword Villa that had dazzled the entire martial world in the past.
Could it be…
At that moment, Ying Bing’s gaze shifted toward her, lightly saying:
“You two, come at me together.”
