Volume One, Chapter 74: Rome and the Beasts of Burden

“Your classmate only arrived in Beidahuang last year, and now he’s already come down with this illness?” Grandfather Zeng asked in confusion.

Rather than living as she once did, simply waiting for death, Mingyue still hoped that Consort Hua could have ideals and ambitions, and live the life she truly desired.

“I don’t think it’s very appropriate, since uncle doesn’t seem able to offer protection, Director Grandfather. Why not come to my place instead? At least… there’s enough space.” She didn’t dare say that her husband could keep them safe—after all, she hadn’t asked Jing Rong yet. Glancing back at him, she noticed he nodded, albeit rather reluctantly.

At that moment, hurried footsteps echoed from outside. Ankang sighed; though he didn’t know if the news was good or bad, one thing was certain: he would not be able to sleep again.

That guy, with nothing better to do after eating his fill, was always so intimate with Yan—constantly staring at her. He really deserved a good beating.

Someone wanted to eliminate him, root and branch, so he fled overseas and went into hiding, vanishing for ten thousand years. Only when his nemesis perished in a secret realm expedition did he reappear.

At this time, Lin Ming stepped down from the ring. The greatest shock he felt during the recent battle was the power of the Spirit Manipulation Art.

He was astonished—the treasure of the False God Clan concealed things far beyond their expectations.

Mingyue held the cage stiffly, her lips twitching as she watched him saunter away, free and easy.

In an instant, that imposing young man was sent flying with a slap, no one knew how far. Zhao Renfan hadn’t used lethal force—it was a casual blow.

The Xuanhuang Pearl, which once held an even balance of black and yellow, now showed a marked increase in the proportion of black, with the trend still rising.

The two groups merged and traveled south, reaching the outskirts of Huining City by dusk the next day. From afar, they could see chaos beneath the eastern wall—clear traces of battle. Zhang Yue rode ahead to investigate, finding toppled siege engines and patches of dark red blood attracting swarms of bloodsucking insects swirling in the air.

If one were to compare the surroundings of the Fenrir Wolf at this moment, the contrast would be almost comical. The living Fenrir Wolf, influenced by its own power, made the land around it seem more like the underworld than the Soul-Attracting Tree from the underworld itself.

Luo An, like a child with his most beloved toy, sat in the cockpit, touching here, tapping there, completely absorbed in the marvelous machine.

To the left of the Palace of Light stood an eerie, ghostly structure, sharply contrasting with the radiant palace. Though the air lacked dense demonic energy, this palace felt oppressively sinister, as if one were forever shrouded in darkness.

Yet even legends age. Zhou Yongxing now seemed truly old, the sharpness of the Channing Zhou Taisui of his youth all but gone.

“I don’t want any red envelopes either. You can fight over them. I won’t. I already have plenty of gold, with nowhere to spend it! Life is so uneventful—one hardly needs money in Heaven, so this is just how we live,” said Immortal He.

“And you are?” In the room, a blond, white-skinned man in a blue officer’s uniform, looking no more than twenty-something, asked in puzzlement.

Yet Qin Jianxin’s escape tactics were simply too masterful. Though he was seemingly cornered, he managed to break free at the cost of serious injury. This left Wu Fan feeling somewhat frustrated; after all, it was supposed to have been an inescapable ambush, so how could it have ended like this?

Alicia’s treatment was still unfinished, so Precia naturally couldn’t fully trust Li Xing. Though she postponed her plans against him, she gave no pause to Fate’s mission of gathering the Seeds of the Sacred Stone. The only reason Nanoha hadn’t recognized Fate from afar was the distance.

“So?” The Ice Emperor? Since when did he participate in student exchanges? Although Seiichi Yukimura was curious, he didn’t voice it. In front of his own club members, he still needed to maintain his dignity.

An Xiaoxiao was grateful she wasn’t drinking water, or she would have spit it all over Gu Chen’s windshield.

She hadn’t expected the office to be the same—no eating at your desk? Then where did he usually eat? Did he squat by the door with a bowl?

Meng Guang scoffed. To provoke so many enemies at once and start a melee was the height of foolishness—divide and conquer was the true strategy.

His soft black hair shimmered with flecks of gold in the sunlight, his stunningly handsome, mixed-race features even more radiant. An Xiaoxiao felt as if she were gazing at a god descended from the heavens.

Yan Muheng’s question left Meng Qier puzzled. This man was nothing like she’d imagined. He clearly knew what had happened, so why ask? Her confusion made Meng Qier look up at the scar-faced man before her.

As soon as Genichiro Sanada entered the door, Akaya Kirihara hurried over, eager to share some news he’d just heard.

She instinctively glanced down at her hard-won cleavage and sighed. Comparing oneself to others really was infuriating.

Gu Lan grabbed a boy by the collar, warning him sternly. He was in a foul mood, exuding a menacing aura that kept everyone at bay—except for the boy he held and the clueless Mu Jin beside him.

“Enemies! Enemies!” Perhaps emboldened by their superior numbers, Mo Fa, upon seeing his allies, rushed forward at once.

“Don’t think about it—let’s fight! Show me your strength after passing the ninth stage.” Wang Yiyang spread his arms, making a gesture of invitation.

Randel’s magic flared; the twelve Seabed Pearls on Li Feng’s body flew back to him. With a clap of his hands, Cangdu felt his chest and back cave in with countless dents, blood spurting out madly.

He immediately swung his sword to parry, but with a clash, the blade snapped in two against an iron fist, which continued on its path, landing squarely on his chest.

Then, a sharp light gleamed in Zuo Fengyun’s eyes, and with a wave of his hand, another gray talisman soared into the air and exploded.

With a single sweep of his sleeve, King Zhenwu made two slender jade bottles, each sealed with a golden talisman, appear on the table in a flash of azure light.

Lu Junyi broke through the defensive circle of three, and even with Zhao Qian and the others using the supreme Three Talents Sword Formation, they could not withstand the terrifying might of his peerless guardian spirit.