Yi Province · Great Brightness Religious Alliance Headquarters—Dust Palace.

The gray-white stone palace stood silently in the depths of the desert.

As the sun set in the west, the sky was blood-red, and yellow sand flew everywhere, a dense clatter of hooves rapidly approaching from afar.

It was a group of strong men and women dressed in gray-white robes.

They all carried scimitars and bows and arrows on their backs, with simple leather armor beneath their white robes.

Each of their lips was slightly cracked, their expressions weary, and their eyes sunken, evidently from a long journey with no rest.

"We’ve arrived!" Suddenly, the person at the front saw the Dust Palace in the distance and immediately smiled with relief, slowing their horse.

When they were still a hundred meters from the palace, he took a mechanical device from his horse and placed a specially made arrow on it, aiming at the palace.

Whoosh!

The arrow shot out, drawing an elegant arc and landing steadily on the sandy ground before the Dust Palace.

A veiled woman in white gauze quickly leaped out from the palace gate, picked up the arrow, peeled open its shaft, took out a scroll from inside, and turned back into the palace gate.

Inside the spacious white stone palace, there were five large stone pillars, like the outstretched fingers of a giant, protruding from the ground, reaching toward the sky.

Atop each of the five fingers was a tall chair.

At the highest and deepest of these pillars sat a tall figure clad in heavy silver-black armor.

This person wore a helmet like the horns of a triceratops, covering their entire head and face.

A cascade of silver hair, as brilliant as tassels, flowed down from beneath their helmet.

Sitting on the throne, one hand supporting their chin, the other tapping lightly on the armrest, they listened intently to a person speaking on their right.

On the other four stone pillars, there were three other people seated.

Each of these three stood at least two and a half meters tall, and their eyes glowed with a bright, star-like light.

"...If we follow the previous arrangements, not only will we be unable to stop the recording of the secret register, but it will also be a huge obstacle to our future plans. Therefore, I believe our greatest hope now is to fully support King Mu Li. If we help him seize the throne..."

"The throne? King Mu Li alone doesn’t hold much hope, but if we can persuade him to assist another, forming an alliance between two forces, there might be a chance in the future. Now that the Great Dao Teaching is strong, relying on just one side, we can’t hold our ground..."

"The others have the support of Celestial Lock Teaching, Zhenyi Sect, and Western Sect, all of whom are not weak and look down on us. We are like a single tree that cannot support itself and might need to seek external forces.

Even if it could be achieved, I do not advocate forming an alliance with the others; since we are to ally, why not look externally to the white Ten Sect where there’s no conflict of interest...."

"Alright. The latest urgent message has arrived; everyone, take a look." The silver-haired armored man at the highest position spoke softly.

His voice wasn’t loud but exuded a pure, clear quality like water.

The other three immediately fell silent, and soon attendants from different directions brought them letters.

The four of them gently unfolded the papers.

The entire palace fell silent for a moment.

Only the rustling of the paper being turned could be heard.

Each person carefully held the translated and decoded letters, their expressions varied.

"It seems Yue Dewen can’t wait any longer..." the silver-haired armored man said softly.

"Even Master Siya can’t delay anymore?" a middle-aged woman sighed.

"Though Master Siya is highly ranked, he is not a divine general himself... To have delayed this long is already hard-earned." Another elder replied solemnly.

"Well, everyone, abandon the illusions and make final preparations for the decisive battle. Since the retreat has already been prepared, there is nothing more to say. Isn’t that why our alliance sits here?" the silver-haired armored man spoke.

"What Cosimo said is absolutely right. Since it’s a foregone conclusion, facing it directly is the way."

The three nodded in agreement, at this point, there was nothing left but to fight.

The Great Dao Teaching wants to unify the sects of the world, and it must cross over their very bodies to do so.

If they hadn’t sworn allegiance, it would be fine—they could withdraw from the conflict.

But since they have, they must share the same fate, and only a desperate battle remains.

"With Cosimo leading, even if Yue Dewen came personally, we have nothing to fear. Here is Dust Palace, not his Celestial Sincerity Palace!" one person said coldly.

"By the way, where’s Ostend? Why hasn’t he come to this routine gathering?" Cosimo suddenly asked.

"According to his disciple, he’s still dealing with miscellaneous business over in Ze Province, seemingly delayed by something that was discovered unexpectedly." One person replied.

"Is that so? Then...."

"How unfortunate...."

Suddenly, a figure, like a distortion of light, flashed in from outside the palace gate, landing between the five stone pillars.

"I calculated the time and came to visit... Is it really possible that not everyone has arrived?"

The newcomer raised a round face, clad in purple robes with wide sleeves; it was none other than the ever-amiable Sect Leader of Great Dao Teaching—Yue Dewen.

Behind him, entering slowly from outside the palace gate, was a figure in a white dress with a gold belt, it was Jin Yuyan.

"Let’s make this quick. Don’t waste time." Jin Yuyan glanced at Yue Dewen and said coldly.

"Am I not just greeting an old friend when I saw them?" Yue Dewen smiled, looking at Cosimo.

"Long time no see, you’re still as slender as ever... I told you back then to eat more, but you wouldn’t listen."

"You dare come?!" The three on the stone pillars stood up abruptly, shock and anger intertwined as they glared at the two.

Cosimo, however, didn’t show the surprise the other three Grandmasters did.

Instead, he rose slowly, eyes calm.

"I long suspected that in such tedious times, if you were to simply confront, it would require too much time from you.

So your most likely plan is to attack the upper ranks directly. That is, a showdown between masters, not an army’s annihilation."

"And so?" Yue Dewen smiled.

"So...." Cosimo lightly clapped three times.

"So, I have been waiting here for a long time." Suddenly, a tall silhouette emerged from the shadow behind him.

The man’s face was square, with a bushy beard, eyes like bronze bells, dark skin, and a mane of black hair scattered like a lion’s.

He was equipped with three swords and weapons on his back, and wore a simple black outfit.

He looked just like a weapons craftsman.

Upon seeing this person, both Yue Dewen and Jin Yuyan’s expressions subtly changed.

"You’ve gotten involved too?" Jin Yuyan couldn’t help but speak.

"Long time no see, Yu Yan." The black-haired man looked at Jin Yuyan with a faint, indescribable emotion.

"It has been a long time.... I thought you were dead by now." Jin Yuyan’s eyes were cold and stern, "I never expected you’d still be alive, and quite well, I see!"

"Second on the Red List, Tian Gong—Golden Rainbow!" Yue Dewen clapped his hands and laughed, "Impressive.... Back then you led my uncle to the Extreme Realm, and now you dare to appear before her again?"

"Why shouldn’t I dare? Yu Yan’s talent is unmatched through the ages, destined to walk the path of the strongest. And when I roamed the world back then, you Xiaoyue were merely meditating at the Celestial Treasure Palace. Who would’ve thought, after decades, the little pup has become the so-called number one expert in the world." Tian Gong Golden Rainbow chuckled.

"Today I’ve come to learn from you and see if the current number one in the world truly deserves the title."

He slowly unsheathed the outermost red longsword from his back.

"Which is why I find you old dying folks tiresome. You’re nearly in the grave, so why not lie quietly in a coffin waiting for death, instead of coming out to get thrashed!" Yue Dewen let his right hand hang down, a swirl of invisible air currents rotating rapidly around his palm.

*

*

*

At the pinnacle of Linghua Mountain.

Zhang Rongfang and Ostend stood facing each other.

In an instant, the two stepped forward simultaneously, their forms turning into overlapping shadows.

Thud.

A bloody gash appeared on Zhang Rongfang’s right arm.

"Why did I feel your strike wasn’t fast just now, yet it precisely broke my move?" He straightened up and questioned in confusion.

"Did you feel your move had no flaws?" Ostend quickly flicked the blood off his fingertips, to prevent being poisoned.

"That’s right, I went through the process you taught me, refining each of my techniques to perfection. So logically, there shouldn’t be any flaws now." Zhang Rongfang replied.

"That’s because your mind lagged." Ostend answered.

"The mind lagged...."

"You thought I would use that move, but I saw through your mind, and instead, I used a variation of the same move with an additional nuance at the critical moment.

By the time you noticed, it was too late. So when faced with the unknown, presented with new responses and choices, you hesitated." Ostend sighed.

This guy’s martial arts experience is really lacking, feels like he’s been relying too much on brute force.

Yet considering Zhang Ying is not a frequently battling Cultivation of Literature Daoist, it’s understandable.

"Then may I ask, how can I improve my prediction in such situations?" Zhang Rongfang inquired further.

"This is the essence of preemptive countering. You first need lightning-fast responses; only with absolute mental concentration and focus can you achieve this.

Then, having explored various martial paths, you classify them in your own way. Only then can you begin forming your own preemptive countering skills." Ostend advised.

Zhang Rongfang pondered deeply.

Three days had passed in special training atop Linghua Mountain.

In these three days, he had been engaging in sparring with Ostend continuously, gradually gaining a clear understanding of the practical power of a Grandmaster.

In fact, the body, speed, and strength of a Grandmaster were not so much superior.

The key was their masterful control over their own actions.

This mastery allowed them to always strike their opponent at the weakest point with their strongest capability.

While he still couldn’t land a hit on them.

This point was much stronger than a Grandmaster.

A Grandmaster’s martial arts level hadn’t widened the gap in preemptive countering that much, it wasn’t obvious.

But once reaching Grandmaster level, it was completely different.

"Take a rest now, have some food." Ostend’s recent attitude had been quite good, diligently instructing Zhang Rongfang.

Both immediately sat down and picked up various foods brought by Ran Xinyue, starting to feast.

While eating, Zhang Rongfang silently opened the attribute panel.

No longer accumulating points, he thought he could now boost his skills.

Sitting on the ground, chewing food in his mouth, his eyes squinted thoughtfully, as if deliberating on how to improve.

’Martial arts have reached the peak of internal methods, next comes the Three Emptiness. Following the Three Emptiness practice actually lays the foundation for a Grandmaster.

The Three Emptiness involves spiritual cultivation. It includes three stages: the Evil Quality Emptiness, Evil Thought Emptiness, and Evil Qi Emptiness.

These are processes for clearing the impurities in one’s Essence Qi and spirit.’