Jiang Wenhuan led four hundred thousand elite troops straight for Youhun Pass, while E Shun mobilized two hundred thousand armored soldiers to besiege Sanshan Pass. In an instant, four hundred of the eight hundred Vassal Lords switched sides.
Li Jing was swept up in this overwhelming military momentum as well. He spent his days appointing generals and drilling troops, patrolling the pass and guarding its strongholds. Without realizing it, he gradually relaxed his supervision of Nezha.
Time flew by, and seven years passed in the blink of an eye. Nezha had grown into a seven-year-old boy, already six chi tall. It was the height of summer, the fifth month, with the sun blazing like fire and waves of heat scorching everything. Restless and irritated, he walked alone to Willow Forest to escape the heat, only to find a river stretching across his path. Its waters were clear, its jade-green waves churned, and the hot wind only made him more agitated.
Without a second thought, the little fellow stripped off his outer garment, grabbed the seven-foot Hun Tian Ling, crouched by the bank, and dipped it in the water to wipe himself down. He had no idea that this river was Nine-Bend River, which flowed directly into the East Sea Dragon Palace. Hun Tian Ling was a treasure of Qianyuan Mountain. The moment it touched the water, its treasure aura blazed, and the entire river instantly glowed blood-red.
The spirit treasure contained the Might of Heaven and Earth. Nezha had disturbed it unintentionally, yet the treasure aura pierced through the water and burst forth. The surface appeared calm and still, but beneath it, hidden currents surged violently, shaking the foundations of the East Sea Dragon Palace. In an instant, the palace rocked as if the earth had split apart, its beams