At the mention of Daoist Master Tinglan, Shilou Yingge’s gaze turned somewhat complicated. After all, she too was from Qi State, and they had known each other in earlier years... Yet he let it pass lightly and said, "Even so, I will still hold the line for you, in case the remnants of the Supreme Yang Dao lineage attempt some trick."

Murong Yan's expression did not change. He nodded and said, "The forces of the various Dao lineages have not yet arrived. For now, we only test the waters."

He dissolved into demonic smoke and vanished, leaving Shilou Yingge sitting alone in the pavilion, the expression on his face gradually settling into calm.

Luoxia acts as if they are washing their hands of the matter. Their attitude is far too ambiguous... Murong Yan says the Majestic Light Dao lineage does not wish to fall into passivity, yet however one looks at it, there is a trace of disdain in it.

And northern interests are tangled beyond measure, which is chaos unto themselves. Even if consensus is reached... there remains enormous room to maneuver. The powers all hold different stances on Li Qianyuan's matter. Some are aggressive, some restrained, and some even show faint goodwill... yet delaying the Wei Emperor's fall is something nearly all quietly agree upon. If the Majestic Light Dao lineage continues to stand aside, the various houses will not stop at merely extracting profit...

He raised his cup. He seemed to bear little resentment toward the Li Family across the river, nor did he show the rumored obsession with restoring the Shilou. Everything he did looked more like political positioning, and in his eyes there was only a faint, chilling coldness.

The Great King may not care... but I cannot afford not to. The future of the Gao Family rests in our hands. Even the Cui Family now seeks only to preserve itself. If we stubbornly cling to this so-called ancestral favor, it will surely drive my Gao Family into the abyss...

My house already lost once in the chaos at the end of Liang... All that remained was outward splendor. If we lose again this time... the Gao Family will cease to exist.

————

The Great River.

Dense demonic qi billowed through the air, turning into gusts of cold wind as the thick-waisted brute emerged. He paused briefly, and the demonic qi transformed into gleaming armor, fastening itself piece by piece onto his body.

Yet there was none of the excitement of impending battle on his face. The eyes set between folds of flesh held none of his earlier recklessness or swagger. They were calm as still water, full of measured thought.

Truly a rare opportunity... 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

He stood above the river, surging demonic qi mingling with colorless, hazy brilliant light as it coiled around him and rose skyward, staining the northern heavens a pale gray.

Thunderous cries rose from below, but Murong Yan's gaze remained fixed straight ahead.

Almost in an instant, a man clad in golden scale armor, the Brilliant Yang King's Axe hanging at his waist, stood atop the towering cliff by the riverbank, gazing at him from afar. Golden pupils pierced across the distance, and a clear smile appeared on Murong Yan's face.

The demonic smoke along the riverbank thickened ever more. He said nothing, only slowly raised his hand and drawing a long weapon from the great void. It resembled a sword, yet above the hilt, shaped like an iron dragon with jaws agape, ran a single solid iron shaft, rounded and hard, jointed like linked white bones. It was about one meter long, longer than an ordinary treasured sword by a full measure.

He waited only a moment before he vanished from where he stood. The rolling demonic smoke along the riverbank answered like a rising tide, surging forth with a howl, and only then did a thunderous voice explode across the sky, "Murong Yan of Yan State comes to seek instruction!"

At the same time, that invisible hazy water rapidly gathered, spreading across the sky in a vast radiance like a curtain of water, flickering in and out of sight.

Divine ability, [Dawnless Deceit]!

Murong Yan was no benevolent man. Even if he judged the other party not to be his match, and even if he held one more divine ability than his opponent, without absolute certainty of overwhelming him, he would show no courtesy from the outset. As his spirit artifact struck, surging divine ability spread out and engulfed the field in an instant.

The radiance between heaven and earth dimmed in an instant. The forces on both banks lifted their heads in thought. Though the blazing sun still hung bright in the sky, its piercing light could no longer reach the earth, and both shores sank into a dull gloom.

But this gloom was not darkness. Everything remained visible through the gray haze, yet all color had faded, drained of brilliance.

Only that pair of golden eyes upon the cliff remained bright. Li Zhouwei, standing within the divine ability, felt its nature more deeply than anyone. In the instant the other struck with full force, the moisture rushing at him had already made everything clear.

[Valley Water]... it is a Valley Water divine ability.

Within that dimmed world, Li Zhouwei felt his divine ability and mana grow sluggish. Valley Water was a manifesting worldly Dao, and his opponent was a direct lineage Purple Mansion Realm cultivator of the Murong Family. This divine ability sealed and suppressed first, seizing the initiative before all else!

The golden-eyed man's invocation of divine ability slowed for a fraction of a moment, and Murong Yan's spirit artifact was already upon him. That strange iron weapon came crashing down, wreathed in rolling demonic smoke, and Li Zhouwei had only enough time to shift slightly and step back once.

Murong Yan was not surprised. His [Dawnless Deceit] was a divine ability built to seize the initiative, and the deeper one fell into his rhythm, the more effective its influence became.

The spirit artifact in his hand did not miss; it was only shifted slightly off target. Yet Li Zhouwei's retreat had not only bought himself time to react. Murong Yan's other hand had already formed an art seal!

But in that same instant, Li Zhouwei halted his retreat, raised a hand, and a great palm pierced through the rolling devil winds, swift as thunder, aimed straight for Murong Yan's throat.

Bold indeed. My devil cultivator body does not fear trading wounds with you!

Color flashed in his eyes. The spell art in his hand halted as he turned his hand into a palm to meet the strike, driving his divine ability even harder. Yet the man before him had already raised his other hand, using his wrist to block the spirit artifact. Bright Light gleamed from within the sleeve armor, and at his wrist sat an unassuming golden ring.

He had not invoked the spirit treasure at all, but met it directly with the true body of the [Dry Yang Bangles]!

Bang!

A muffled clash of spirit artifacts rang out. A point of Bright Light burst forth with sparks, and the spirit treasure, stirred by the impact, released ten thousand rays of brilliant light. The dimmed world flared bright again, and the frozen heavenly light finally resumed its flow.

Li Zhouwei's body scattered and gathered again, now within arm's reach. The devil winds blowing toward him dissipated on their own against his dharma body, and a point of Bright Light had already begun to shine between his brows.

Murong Yan did not pause in the least, nor did he show the slightest surprise. He stared straight into those golden eyes as rolling devil winds blew across his face. A hissing sound came from within his lips and tongue, and one could vaguely see some strange thing stirring inside.

Command!