Windless Inn

Lihuo City.

Windless Inn usually did good business. Its three floors were packed with patrons, with guests moving about everywhere.

Yet today, it was somewhat desolate. There seemed to be only one group of guests on the third floor.

This group was far from ordinary. They were all important figures from Flame Capital's Thunder Lord Manor!

The innkeeper and attendants knew that even the Lihuo City Lord and his wife were personally keeping them company. Lihuo City's officials only dared wait downstairs, which showed just how esteemed these people were.

Within a two-mile radius of Windless Inn, there had originally been many residences, but over the past few days, the City Lord had evacuated them all.

Now, the area was utterly deserted. No one knew why the City Lord and the others had made such a grand display of waiting here.

Driven by curiosity, quite a few idle bystanders had gathered beyond that two-mile radius, though they only dared hide and watch in secret.

Little did they know that the distinguished guests on Windless Inn's third floor were standing together, their gazes fixed on a courtyard not far from the inn.

It was an old courtyard, overgrown with weeds, its walls coated in dust.

In the direction of the courtyard, an old woman lay on a reclining chair with her eyes closed, resting peacefully and sleeping soundly as she savored the final days of her life—she had been doing this every day these past few days.

Li Yanfeng stood on the third floor of Windless Inn. Every now and then, he would unconsciously glance toward the courtyard, only to swiftly look away.

He held Liu Qing's delicate hand, a faint smile maintained on his face.

"It's already the seventh day. That guy still hasn't returned. Could he have died on Fire Silk Mountain?" The young Liu Qianyang sat in his chair, looking somewhat restless.

"He still retains part of the fighting strength he had three years ago. It's unlikely that he died." Beside him sat a girl in blue. She was Jiang Yilin, whom Li Tianming had defeated by the lake.

The seven candidates from Thunder Lord Manor who had gone to compete for the divine source were now all gathered here.

Worthy of being geniuses nurtured by Thunder Lord Manor, every one of them cut a dashing figure.

As local geniuses of Lihuo City, Li Zifeng and Li Xuejiao could only huddle in the corner. Judging by bearing alone, they were already a tier below.

Besides these seven youths, their parents and guardians were here as well, all of them silent and grim-faced.

For the past few days, they had watched the old woman in the courtyard every day. They had long since become thoroughly irritated.

"Li Tianming still hasn't come back. Could the divine source have been refined by his companion beast?" Zhang Zixuan said worriedly from the corner.

"I said long ago that it's absolutely impossible. The companion beast he got through a blood-sacrifice contract is only a First-Order Companion Beast."

"A First-Order Companion Beast's bloodline is too fragile. It simply cannot withstand the power of the divine source. Especially without an elder standing guard over it, even if it wanted to refine the divine source, it would have the heart but lack the strength."

"Li Tianming only has some fighting ability because his former companion beast cultivated it for him." The other youths beside him answered with certainty.

Four of them had never seen Li Tianming, but their elders had already clearly explained that man's characteristics.

"The only troublesome thing about him is Princess Qing's jade pendant. In any case, the Lihuo City Lord won't protect him," Jiang Yilin said.

"I really can't understand why Princess Qing would give a personal jade pendant to trash like him, someone destined to remain in the Beast Pulse Realm for his entire life." Liu Qianyang's gaze was sinister.

The divine source that had been within their grasp had just flown away.

Back at the Wind-Listening Platform in the City Lord's Mansion, he had not even regarded Li Tianming as a person. Who would have thought that he would be such a headache today?

"Didn't Thunder Lord Manor send word? They said that once Li Tianming returns, whoever among us snatches the divine source gets to keep it."

"As long as our parents don't intervene and we young people fight it out, Thunder Lord Manor will help settle things if Princess Qing pursues the matter."

"That's how it should have been in the first place. Our elders discovered this divine source. If Li Tianming wants to snatch it away halfway through, he'll have to rely on real ability."

"As long as our parents and elders don't make a move, Princess Qing will have nothing to say."

"Don't overestimate Li Tianming. What connection could he possibly have with Princess Qing? If he really had one, he wouldn't be in such a miserable state. I'd say that even if he died here, no one would care," Zhang Zixuan sneered.

Hearing this, Li Zifeng and Li Xuejiao, standing off to the side in the distance, exchanged glances and could not help shaking their heads.

The world was cold and fickle. Those who were abandoned were truly pitiful.

These Thunder Lord Manor geniuses were brimming with killing intent, yet Li Yanfeng, his father, seemed to have no reaction at all. He was still wrapped up in tender intimacy with his new wife.

"What I'm afraid of now is that this guy will take the divine source to Flame Capital to find Princess Qing, leaving us waiting here for nothing!" Zhang Zixuan said.

"That's impossible," Liu Qianyang said firmly.

"Why?"

"First, he's a filial son. Second, he wants the Yanhuang Order so he can return to Yanhuang Academy and take revenge on Brother Ting."

"What?"

The seven youths looked at one another, then could not help bursting into laughter.

"Take revenge on Brother Ting?"

"Haha, does he even know what he is? Even three years ago, compared to Brother Ting, he was nothing but a genuine idiot."

"Damn, I'm dying of laughter."

Amid their roaring laughter, Zhang Zixuan's father, Zhang Chong, suddenly stood up, delight flashing in his eyes.

Following his gaze, everyone saw a youth appear at the distant street corner!

The youth had refined features and a slender, elegant build, like a scholarly man full of learning. A Little Yellow Chick stood on his shoulder, chirping away.

"His companion beast really hasn't evolved!" Everyone joyfully reached the conclusion. This meant the divine source had to still be on Li Tianming!

Their days of waiting had finally gained meaning!

The rules set by Thunder Lord Manor now stated that once the seven of them encountered Li Tianming, any one of them could make a move. Whoever seized the divine source first would own it!

Thus, the instant Li Tianming appeared, the horn of battle had practically already sounded!

"The divine source is in his arms!" The youths spotted the bulge in Li Tianming's clothes at a glance.

In truth, that was not the divine source, but the spirit core he had obtained on Fire Silk Mountain.

"What are you standing around for? Go!" Jiang Tao glared at his daughter. This was a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity.

At his command, the seven youths from Thunder Lord Manor said nothing further and leaped directly down from Windless Inn's third floor.

They were collaborators now, but also competitors, so each of them rushed to be first.

Battle was about to erupt!

Ever since that youth had swaggered into view, Li Yanfeng's eyes had narrowed.

Li Tianming was now right outside the courtyard. Only a door separated him from his mother, yet he had already been intercepted by the seven young geniuses from Thunder Lord Manor.

Separated by a single door, the courtyard was peaceful and tranquil. The old woman rested with her eyes closed beneath the sun, while outside that door, her child had fallen into the perilous situation of being surrounded and attacked.

It was quite an evocative scene.

"Brother Feng, can't you bear it?" Liu Qing asked softly with a smile.

"It's all fate. He chose it himself. It has nothing to do with me." Li Yanfeng shook his head.

"Mhm, I'm very happy that you think that way. Once this matter is over, you'll serve concurrently as Lihuo City Lord, then return to Thunder Lord Manor with me. The Thunder Lord has officially accepted you and will grant you a higher position and greater authority."

"Alright." Li Yanfeng nodded.

What he wanted, what he ought to have, had now become reality. As for what should be abandoned and what should have all pretense torn away, there was no need to hesitate any longer.

Li Tianming had already seen the elders on the third floor of Windless Inn.

That included his father, Li Yanfeng, who stood high above, looking down at him with indifferent eyes. The entire sight was laughable.

"So you knew I would return, and set up a checkpoint here to stop me, helping outsiders snatch my divine source?"

He had long since been utterly disappointed in him, so faced with something this ridiculous, he merely sneered. He was already used to it.

The seven Thunder Lord Manor geniuses surrounded him, while his gaze locked onto Liu Qianyang directly ahead!

In fact, he had returned this time precisely to find Liu Qianyang.

The Yanhuang Order he wanted was still in Liu Qianyang's hands, and the one-month deadline had arrived right on time.

The Lightning Leopard beneath Liu Qianyang stared at Li Tianming and could no longer hold back a roar. Immediately afterward, the companion beasts of the other six began to howl as well, threatening and intimidating Li Tianming!

It was expressly forbidden for companion beasts to enter combat state in the center of the city.

Such a commotion, coupled with the evacuation of the residents here, had long since stirred the public's curiosity. Before anyone realized it, rumors had spread, and many people had secretly hidden themselves nearby.

This was only the beginning. There would only be more and more spectators next, and for Li Tianming, that could not have been better!

On the day of the Yanhuang Academy Selection, he had failed to truly prove himself. But now, with seven Thunder Lord Manor geniuses besieging him, the day he had yearned for had finally arrived!

The battle-blood within his body was already boiling. Even his entire dark left arm had begun to grow scorching hot.

Among his opponents, besides Liu Qianyang, who commanded the Lightning Leopard, were Zhang Zixuan with his Blue-Tailed Poison Scorpion and Jiang Yilin with her Six-Eyed Flying Fish.

Thunder Lord Manor truly had immense wealth. The eyes of Zhang Zixuan's Blue-Tailed Poison Scorpion seemed to have recovered somewhat.

Besides them, there were four other companion beasts, basically all Fifth-Order Companion Beasts, on the same level as Jin Yu!