Chapter 824: Chapter 16: Great Celestial Pride Sweeps Across the Imperial City (Part 3)

The residence named "Xing Garden", is the mansion gifted to this direct lineage Great Celestial Pride by Emperor Longchang.

Backyard of Xing Garden.

In a lush garden full of wild charm, a young man is sitting cross-legged on a protruding rock by the pond, his eyes slightly closed, quietly comprehending the Heaven and Earth Laws.

This young man is naturally the owner of Xing Garden, Wu Zhixing.

Behind him, a dragon-shaped shadow with some degree of solidity is slowly swimming, exuding a majestic and magnificent aura.

But unlike the entire cyan-yellow Azure Dragon, this dragon-shaped shadow is cyan. It is not the water-based Cyan Dragon’s turquoise color, but a cyan like the vast sky and white clouds carrying a boundless aura. Under the dragon shadow’s ribs, there is a pair of giant wings, wings that are colorful, exuding a sacred and mystical aura.

As the shadow swims slowly, the wind between heaven and earth seemed to be drawn in, swirling around the youth, forming gusts of wind that inflated and contracted with his breath, as if they had life.

No one knew how long it had been.

Suddenly.

A streak of golden light seemed to flash between the young man’s brows.

In the next instant, the cyan dragon shadow behind him seemed to come alive, its eyes brightening, flapping its wings to let out a long dragon roar into the sky.

Wind.

The chilly wind seemed to receive a command, sweeping through, rolling grass and wood, stirring water waves, then spinning upwards into the sky, roaring faraway.

The cyan dragon shadow flapped its wings once more.

The winds of heaven and earth suddenly changed, gales rose, clouds gathered, the weather transformed from a clear sky to overcast instantly.

Above the courtyard, dark clouds rolled in, accompanied by the rumble of thunder.

Suddenly.

A lightning bolt pierced the sky, thunderous sounds echoed between heaven and earth. Amidst the thunderous noise, rain poured down like a waterfall, yet seemed restrained, only falling within this small courtyard.

Beyond the courtyard wall, the ground remained dry as before, not a single droplet of water visible.

In the heavy rain, the youth still sat cross-legged, eyes slightly closed, his whole being appearing immersed in an indescribable mood, forgetting both self and world.

Raindrops fell on his shoulders and hair, sliding down his collar, yet his clothes remained dry without any trace of moisture.

That is because his surface, his clothes are covered with a thin layer of wind like a film, isolating both rain and heaven and earth.

It was not known how long passed before the dark clouds above the courtyard slowly dispersed.

Clouds vanished, rain cleared.

The youth in the courtyard also slowly opened his eyes.

"Zhixing, my dear grandson, you finally woke up~ I’m getting bored waiting." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Suddenly.

A slightly annoyed voice came from diagonally above.

The youth, Wu Zhixing, looked up, only to find a little girl in a purple dress sitting on a nearby tree.

She had cute double buns, with pretty golden ribbons tied to her hair, her face full of youthful exuberance, looking exceptionally charming and cute.

No one knew how long she had been there; her two legs dangled, clearly a bit bored.

Beside her was a middle-aged beautiful woman in autumn-colored dress attire, dressed as a maid, forming a magical gesture to shield against rain. Upon the man’s gaze, the middle-aged woman nodded slightly and half-bowed.

"Greetings, Grandma Empress Dowager Xue Ning."

Wu Zhixing returned to his senses, quickly stood up, formally and politely saluting the little girl, then returning the salute to the middle-aged woman.

This little girl is an heir of the Imperial Family direct lineage, named "Wu Xue Ning", two generations senior to him. According to the Imperial Family’s rules, even though he is now over ninety years old, he must still address Wu Xue Ning as Grandma Empress Dowager.

The middle-aged beautiful woman beside Wu Xue Ning is naturally her close attendant and guard.

"No need for formalities, rise~"

Wu Xue Ning replied in a mature manner, then leaped gracefully to the ground.

Although she’s only thirteen, her cultivation has reached the Ninth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm, and in more than a year she will be able to ascend to the Spirit Platform Realm. Though her profound skills are not yet proficient due to her age, she already has the appearance of a little expert.

"The outside is in a turmoil, yet you have the mind to calmly cultivate here?" Wu Xue Ning spun around Wu Zhixing with her hands behind her back, her sparkling eyes full of incredulity, "Your determination is quite exceptional~"

Wu Zhixing was puzzled: "Grandma Empress Dowager is referring to..."

"What else? Of course, it’s that matter." Wu Xue Ning recalled, "That... in Qian Bi family’s White Cloud Tower, wasn’t there a Great Celestial Pride named ’Wang Liyao’ who declared open challenges to those under one hundred and fifty? It’s the ’Great Celestial Pride Trial by Combat’ rare in a century."

As she spoke, Wu Xue Ning’s face showed a look of disappointment and frustration, jumping to poke Wu Zhixing’s forehead with her chubby fingers, "She challenged us, yet as one of the Top Ten Outstanding Youth, how can you stand aside? If I weren’t too young and inadequate to fight her, I would’ve gone already."

Although Wu Xue Ning is a Great Celestial Pride, she is indeed too young; she’s strong among her peers but far from ready for the Great Celestial Pride Trial by Combat. If she were to participate, she would be easily crushed.

However, seeing her eager demeanor, if she were really fifty years older, no, not even fifty, even just two or three decades older, she might as well step onto the battlefield.