Mid-January, Heaven Realm Battlefield.
A hundred-odd kilometers west of Thunder God Mountain, inside an inconspicuous stone peak.
Yin Yan sat quietly with her back against the stone wall, half a tiger tally clutched in her palm trembling lightly.
She knew that the other half of the tiger tally was rapidly approaching.
"Bzzzt~ bzzz~"
A faint sound of electric current suddenly drifted over. In the blink of an eye, a tall figure had burst into the cave.
The newcomer wore noble purple robes adorned with golden armguards. His expression was solemn, and though he was not angry, he radiated authority.
Whoosh!!
Violent Divine Power fluctuations stirred the gently flowing Mist Sea.
The cave was churned into a hazy fog.
A slightly hoarse female voice lingered through the cave. "Why did it take so long?"
Huangfu brushed aside the mist before him and looked toward the west wall. "Lord Dong Ting suffered a great loss in the war some time ago and flew into a rage. If I wanted to request leave from the divine mountain, I had to find the right opportunity."
Yin Yan snorted coldly. "Heh, Lord Dong Ting."
Clearly, she held quite a grudge against the word "Lord."
Huangfu did not take the bait and continued, "Besides, you had only just visited the divine mountain, and if I left right after you, it would have been too conspicuous."
"Mm." Yin Yan found that reason acceptable enough.
"Why did Ms. Yin call me out?" Huangfu asked.
If this woman had not been his old friend's widow, Huangfu would never have taken such a great risk to come meet her.
Yin Yan remained seated, the thick Mist Sea swallowing her head. Her hoarse female voice came from within. "I met someone—a person truly worthy of being called 'Lord.'"
Huangfu remained outwardly