"Fuck!" Caldor cursed.
Weyland’s massive shield hovered before them like a barricade, countering the chilling force radiating from the two young people.
"Let’s call the others," Weyland shouted. Her shouts were already carried by the wind.
"Except Edric....??" Caldar clenched his jaw and shouted back.
She understood his concerns, and she felt them too. With a warm nod, she showed her support.
Edric was best suited for mid-distance protection and assassination. He was needed to safeguard the entire Duke’s manor.
Two more people were then called back, and they ford a periter around the two youths, keeping a good distance.
A joint order was given.
Execute any unauthorized individuals trespassing upon the Duke’s estate.
.......
A couple of miles away from the Duke’s Mansion, in Sundawn, tucked away inside a small inn—
A middle-aged man in Confucian robes stood silently at the window.
He was tall, gaunt, yet emanated an invisible strength, the feather fan in his hand resting motionless.
Behind him, a young swordsman stood respectfully.
"Father," the young man whispered, "when do we make our move?"
The scholar didn’t answer imdiately.
Instead, he watched the Exile’s garden in the distance and the clouds above.
With his cultivation at the peak of the Acquired Mortal phase, he sensed the subtle changes in nature.
After a long pause, he said calmly, "Make a move?"
The young swordsman hesitated. "Aren’t we here to avenge Second Uncle’s death?"
The scholar sighed faintly, still looking out the window.
"I’ve investigated," he said. "Your Second Uncle’s death was deserved. We’ll return ho tomorrow."
The young swordsman was stunned.
"But... Father—"
"No ’buts!’" The scholar said, cutting him off sharply.
"If he were wronged, even if the murderer was the emperor himself, I would’ve fought for justice. But he wasn’t wronged.
"He was greedy, scheming to steal another’s inheritance. His death was karma."
The middle-aged man discreetly tucked his trembling hand into his sleeve, trying to carry on as if nothing had happened.
In the eyes of his son, he was an unstoppable force, the mightiest hero to ever walk the earth, capable of conquering any challenge that dared to stand in his way.
The young swordsman looked down, silent.
But before either of them could speak again, a sudden change caught their attention outside the window.
The moon, once shining brightly, was swallowed by a heavy cloud.
The wind, calm just monts ago, twisted into a furious howl, madly rushing and gathering in a vortex above the Duke’s Mansion in the distance.
A strange, heavy pressure filled the air, crushing down from all sides.
Even the frogs and insects stopped chirping.
The entire night froze.
......
The middle-aged scholar’s eyes sharpened, and clenching his teeth, he muttered.
"This is... ascension to Innate life?" His voice, however, was ’indifferent’.
The young man paled. "Innate?"
He hurried to the window but could see nothing in the dark, only feeling a heavy unease clutching his chest.
Like a suppression of sorts.
The scholar whispered low, almost to himself, "When martial artists step into the innate realm... heaven and earth react."
The martial warriors of the world considered any Heavenly Manifestations, such as these signs of Life, as a sign of Life’s form ascension.
And many people had not ’seen’ the birth of two Divine Bones at the sa ti.
So, without hesitation, even the most doubtful would look at the heavenly phenona and conclude that this is an aspect of Innate Life form.
He narrowed his eyes, looking at the manifestations, only one at the peak of Acquired cultivation could see.
Not one presence... but two.
Under the clouds, two cosmic entities manifest.
One burned with a ferocity that outshone the sun, intense and explosive, yet teeming with life. A Life Bringer.
Another one was like an ancient moon, untouched, silver, and pure, yet it chilled the soul to its core. A Frost Bringer.
The two auras swirled together, weaving into a breathtaking, invisible dance that was so unimaginably noble and grand that even seasoned warriors instinctively bowed their heads.
The scholar’s face turned grim. His body froze. Breath hitched.
"A man and a woman," he thought, "breaking through together?"
.......
anwhile—
Across the City, countless martial artists stiffened in place.
A few veterans who knew of such phenona gasped aloud. Standing in attention.
In the Sundawn Imperial Military office, which is situated adjacent to the Exile’s garden.
Inside the governor’s residence, four Imperial Military elites simultaneously leaped onto the roof, their robes fluttering in the night wind.
Each one had the bearing of a master.
They exchanged quick glances.
"Innate life ascension?"
"From the Duke’s Mansion?"
They frowned.
"House Ashvale bloodline from this border town... hiding this kind of power?"
"Should we report it?"
One of the older elites shook his head.
"Our job is only to protect the governor, not ddle. Don’t involve yourself with the political chaos."
...........
anwhile, deep within the city lord’s compound—
An old woman was just unwrapping bandages from her grandson’s arm when she suddenly stiffened.
Feeling that imnse primal energy rolling through the air, she muttered quietly, "You’re lucky to have survived this ti."
She turned to her grandson.
"Tomorrow," she said aningfully, "send another congratulatory gift. Sothing big."
......
At the sa ti, in countless hos across Comrcial City—
Commoners looked up at the swirling, chaotic skies in confusion.
The faint-hearted trembled without understanding why.
They felt inferior.
So small.
So... insignificant.
.........
In the Nine Dynasties under heaven, the largest sect by sheer numbers was the Beggar Sect.
It spread across many nations, influencing wide swaths of the martial world.
In the Great Ashenvale Dynasty, the Beggar Sect’s main headquarters sat proudly in the North River city, with its current leader known as Gale.
Underneath him were six regional branches.
One of them happened to be moved right here, in the bustling Sundawn Comrcial City.
At that branch, Beggar Bran stood with his hands clasped behind his back, staring at the skies with a deep frown, muttering, "This matter... must be reported to the Sect Leader imdiately."
They had quietly relocated here after the crowning of a new Duke in these lands. Who would have thought excitent would kick in so soon?
.......
A short while later.
The strange celestial phenona — the cloud vortex, the surging yin and yang — finally began to settle.
But the impact was already done.
By then, every noble house and major clan in the Sundawn lands had gotten wind of it: Two Innate martial artists had erged from the Duke of Sundawn’s Residence.
The news spread like wildfire.
Inside the halls of wealthy estates, urgent conversations buzzed nonstop.
"Quick! Prepare a proper gift — sothing grand!"
"I heard the Crown Prince of Sundawn State is still unmarried... Does our house have any daughters at the right age?"
"The fall of the Lockwood family... tsk. Not surprising. They ssed with sothing far bigger than they realized."
"No wonder — a fallen royal branch is still bigger than a local noble house. A dead cal’s still bigger than a horse, after all."
"Heh. This is going to be interesting. The palace won’t react imdiately — saving face and all that — but... let’s see how long they stay quiet."
"And Sundawn Manor’s been real bold lately. Don’t they worry about getting crushed later?"
All kinds of guesses floated through the city like invisible currents stirring the waters.
But back at the pavilion...
The two people at the center of it all — Riven Ashvale and Selene Virelyn — couldn’t give the slightest damn.
Inside the Pavilion, the aftermath of the breakthrough was still lingering.
Above them, at the heart of the cleared sky, a colorful ring in the heavens slowly spun — a shimring world of pure essence, faintly visible through it.
From it, soft but endless streams of pure yin and yang energy continued to pour down, nourishing them as they circulated their cultivation arts.
Around their bodies, the swirling force transford into two lively yin-yang fish — flashing blue and bright gold — dancing around each other, weaving in and out, never separating.
They were stabilizing their new realms.
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