"Phew..."
Tendrils of smoke curled from Li Mo's body as the thick, tallic scent of blood filled the air. He exhaled a white breath.
His body was riddled with bloody holes—his ridians had ruptured. Never before had he channeled the power of the world through himself for so long.
Most of the enemy forces had already scattered, too terrified to even glance back.
But so disaster beasts, sharp as they were, sensed his weakness.
Weakness? At this point, he barely felt like his body belonged to him anymore.
The only thing he could register clearly...
The winters in the southern borderlands were bitterly cold.
Li Mo swayed, his legs giving out as he started to fall backward. Yet, instead of the hard ground, the back of his head t sothing unexpectedly...
Soft and springy.
Sensing the shift, Li Mo tilted his head up.
There she was—Ying Bing, her face frosty, her gaze icy and profound as it locked onto the malicious eyes lurking in the chaos of battle.
Her expression was unreadable, yet the pressure she exuded was overwhelming.
But lying in her arms, his head cushioned against her, he couldn’t deny the warmth and softness enveloping him.
Damn this sense of security.
Blinking wearily, Li Mo muttered with forced seriousness,
"Ice block, you might as well have let hit the ground."
Ying Bing wiped the blood from his face, her brows knitting slightly.
"Uncomfortable?"
"Too comfortable. Feels so good I might just pass out."
"Then sleep."
She pulled out her jade hairpin, letting her silky black hair cascade down. The pin, after all, was just an ordinary trinket—fragile.
Li Mo: "......?"
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
In the stories he’d read, when the mood reached this point, shouldn’t she be slapping his face in a panic, begging him not to close his eyes, terrified he’d never wake again?
Well, even if she slapped his handso face swollen now, it wouldn’t stop him from drifting off.
His thoughts grew heavier, dragging his eyelids down with them.
Faintly, he heard the city gates behind him burst open—the sound of soldiers charging out in formation.
The last thing he saw before darkness took him was a single feather.
It looked like the most exquisite creation in the world, the kind of thing you’d rember forever.
Even a phoenix’s feather couldn’t compare, could it?
......
Southern Pass, Prince of Zhennan’s residence.
A figure on horseback skidded to a dusty, frantic stop at the gates. Without hesitation, he shoved the doors open.
Had it been anyone else, the guards would’ve restrained them imdiately. But they didn’t dare stop him.
"Where’s my father?!" Zhong Zhenyue bellowed at the steward.
"His Highness was summoned to the imperial capital days ago by His Majesty’s decree. He’s long since left the residence," the steward replied, wiping sweat from his brow.
"Impossible!" Zhong Zhenyue’s eyes widened.
The steward sighed. "It’s the truth. How could I lie to you?"
Zhong Zhenyue already knew the answer—he just refused to accept it. He stord into his father’s courtyard, only to find a lone mulberry tree standing bleakly in the winter wind.
He and Zhong Ling searched everywhere, but the towering figure he idolized was nowhere to be found.
"Father really left... for the capital?"
Zhong Zhenyue’s face paled.
"Commander Qu... lied to us?" Zhong Ling bit her lip hard enough to draw blood.
Under what circumstances would Qu Sheng deceive them?
Without their father’s reinforcents, how could Qingmu City hold against the disaster beasts and the allied armies?
They’d be lucky to last seven days!
Zhong Zhenyue couldn’t bear to think further.
"Zhenyue, what are you doing?"
"I’m going back to Qingmu City—to stand with Li Mo and the others!"
"What good will that do? Throw your life away? The priority is catching up to Father and telling him about Qingmu’s situation!"
......
Qingyuan Sect, Main Peak Hall.
The crackling of beast-fat charcoal echoed hollowly through the grand hall, amplifying the oppressive silence.
The elders sat in a circle, none speaking.
"If the Southern Pass falls, the flas of war will spread to the Eastern Wasteland Domain. You all know why."
"Stay or leave—we must decide together."
Shangguan Wencang broke the silence, puffing on his pipe.
"Our roots are here. Without Qingyuan, can we still call ourselves the Qingyuan Sect?"
Qian Bufan sighed, chewing absentmindedly on a at-stuffed bun, his expression lost.
Purple Sun Prefecture was a fief granted by the imperial court.
Leaving sounded simple, but if they abandoned it, they couldn’t just set up shop elsewhere—those lands belonged to others.
Unless they fled north to the frozen borders or overseas, where no one ruled.
But that would an the sect existed in na only.
"I say we fight those damned beasts! If we die, we die on our own land!"
Elder Han He slamd his fist down, furious.
"Han He, old man, I like the way you think!"
Shang Wu thumped her gourd of wine and gave a thumbs-up:
"When I ascend the throne, I’ll na you crown prince, and Elder Qian can be my grand heir."
The beauty of a master had clearly entered battle mode—her opening move was the classic "Start a Fight" technique.
As the inventor of the technique, she was a natural.
One sentence, two people offended.
Qian Bufan: "?"
Han He: "?"
Even if the Great Shang Dynasty hadn’t fallen, the throne wouldn’t be yours to claim.
"I think we should gather our most valuable resources first and observe how things unfold," Xue Jing interjected, his face lined with worry.
He tried to reassure them:
"Isn’t the Prince of Zhennan still here? He’s a Divine General. If Qingmu City can hold out long enough for his reinforcents, it won’t co to the worst."
The elders nodded, but their unease didn’t fade.
Two of their sect’s most treasured disciples were still in Qingmu City.
But those two were already peerless among their generation. Surely they could hold out until help arrived...
Right? It couldn’t be the worst-case scenario...
Just then, Xiao Qin burst in, panting heavily—his usual composure shattered.
"What’s wrong? Weren’t you out training?"
"I saw a contingent in the Eastern Wasteland Domain! They ca from the southern border!"
"And they flew the Prince of Zhennan’s banner!"
??!
The elders’ faces drained of color.
If the Prince of Zhennan wasn’t in the south but here in the Eastern Wasteland...
Then who would save Qingmu City?
Clang—
Shang Wu’s wine gourd hit the floor. The usually carefree master of Qunyu Peak looked shaken for the first ti.
That idiot wouldn’t actually stay behind in Qingmu City, would he? Ready to die with it?
He couldn’t be that stupid... He couldn’t...
Shang Wu frantically shook the Harmony Bell.
But no matter how long she waited, there was no answer.
"Shang Wu! Where are you going?"
"He’s under my protection! Let’s see which bastard dares touch my disciple!"
"Are you insane? By the ti you get there, it’ll be too late! You’re just throwing your life away!"
"Junior Sister, calm down! We’ll figure sothing out. First, we confirm Li Mo and Ying Bing’s safety, then plan an extraction..."
The hall descended into chaos.
anwhile...
Yantian Sect.
Tian Miao ascended the steps as she had done the day before, climbing to the summit of the towering Star Observation Platform—a place only a select few, including her master and fellow disciples, were permitted to reach.
Before long, she caught sight of her master standing motionless, seemingly lost in thought.
"Master, what troubles you?"
Tian Miao hurriedly reached for blood-restoring elixirs.
But the elderly woman shook her head, remaining silent. Puzzled, Tian Miao leaned closer and noticed her master holding a jade slip inscribed with azure veins.
Upon it was written in bold strokes:
"Li Mo, the Wife-Fortune Battle Soul, entered the battlefield with the might of one against ten thousand. Amidst the enemy legions, he slew Han Zhen in single combat."
"Ying Bing, the Frost Fairy, aided the fray with her zither’s lody before manifesting a True Phoenix, driving back high-tier calamity beasts and slaying thousands of them. Her presence alone forced tens of thousands of enemy troops from the Southern Border into retreat."
Tian Miao’s lips parted, but no sound escaped.
She wondered if she was still dreaming.
Could these truly be feats worthy of the Hidden Dragon Ranking?
Even if placed on the Human Ranking or Earth Ranking, such achievents would seem exaggerated!
Yet the nas Li Mo and Ying Bing were undeniably there.
How was this possible?
"Master, should this be sent to the Dragon Gate... to be published?"
"Unprecedented in all of history, it deserves to be known across the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths."
Tian Miao took the report, her astonishnt growing with each word she read.
This might very well be the most extraordinary record in the entire history of the Hidden Dragon Ranking—a feat that would overshadow even the most illustrious nas ever inscribed upon it.
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