"Boring."
Dai Mubai drained the wine in his cup and slammed it heavily onto the table.
With a bang, he interrupted Yu Xiaogang's endless chatter.
Yu Xiaogang's expression stiffened as he was just about to scold him.
But Dai Mubai did not even look at him. He stood up directly and adjusted the luxurious white brocade robes he wore.
"I'm going outside for some air."
"I haven't properly experienced the prosperity of Chang'an City yet."
With that, he ignored Yu Xiaogang's ugly expression and strode straight out of the hall.
In the shadowy place on the other side.
Zhu Zhuqing's cold figure also moved.
She did not even bother saying goodbye before turning around and returning to her room.
She had no interest in listening to Yu Xiaogang's meaningless bragging.
In this world where strength reigned supreme, Great Tang had proven the truth with its fists, while Yu Xiaogang was still trying to whitewash peace with his mouth.
The difference between them was obvious.
Inside the bedchamber of the Great Tang Imperial Palace.
The noise outside seemed to have been cut off by an invisible barrier.
The hall was resplendent in gold and jade, with fragrant incense curling through the air.
Li Xin reclined against a broad couch, wearing a loose mysterious black robe with its collar slightly open, revealing a toned expanse of chest.
At his side, the Empress Wu Zetian, whose majesty commanded the world, had shed her courtly authority at this moment.
She wore a bright yellow gauze palace dress, her long hair casually pinned up. She had lost some of her sharpness and gained more of a woman's soft charm.
A pair of long, straight jade-like legs extended from the slit in her gauze dress, their skin fairer than snow and as delicate as the finest White Jade.
Li Xin's palm rested casually on her calf, his fingertips gently stroking her smooth skin.
Wu Zetian showed no displeasure. Instead, she slightly narrowed her phoenix eyes, enjoying this rare tranquility and intimacy.
"Old Man Golden Crocodile has rather good luck."
Li Xin looked at the image on the Heavenly Curtain, his tone lazy and completely devoid of the reverence others showed toward top experts.
Wu Zetian's red lips parted slightly, her voice carrying a lazy, magnetic quality:
"It is merely some insignificant cultivation."
"If you like, I'll issue an order at once and have someone capture that crocodile to guard your home."
If those words spread, they would likely scare the entire Soul Master World to death.
A dignified Level Ninety-Eight peak Douluo was, in the Empress's mouth, nothing more than a beast for guarding the house.
Li Xin smiled, his fingers sliding upward along her calf.
"That won't be necessary."
"Compared to that, Mei Niang's legs are far more pleasing to look at."
Wu Zetian's pretty face flushed slightly as she cast him a coquettish glare. That look alone was enough to melt any man's bones.
Just as the atmosphere between them was perfect and they were about to further explore the so-called Yin Yang Great Dao.
A playful figure suddenly hopped in from outside the hall.
"Brother Xin!"
"Stop being all lovey-dovey in here!"
The newcomer was Gongsun Li.
She wore her signature rabbit-ear outfit, held a Flower Umbrella in her hand, and had a youthful, vibrant smile on her face.
Seeing the scene inside the hall, Ali did not avoid it in the slightest. Instead, she stepped forward, grabbed Li Xin's arm, and began shaking it.
"Brother Li Bai and Sister Yuhuan are waiting outside."
"They heard you had come out of seclusion and insisted on getting together with you."
"They've already prepared the wine at Taibai Restaurant, the largest restaurant in Chang'an. That's one of Wonderful Sound Workshop's strongholds!"
Li Xin sat up helplessly and looked at Wu Zetian beside him.
Wu Zetian was quite magnanimous. She gracefully adjusted her skirt, covering the alluring spring scenery.
"Go."
"You've been cooped up in the palace with me every day. You must be bored too."
"But remember to come back early."
Li Xin planted a kiss on the Empress's smooth forehead before standing up.
"Then I'll be back soon."
Gongsun Li had long since run out of patience. She grabbed Li Xin and ran outside, like a cheerful rabbit.
While Li Xin was on his way to the restaurant.
The image on the Heavenly Curtain changed once more.
Golden Crocodile Douluo's lingering might had yet to fade when a new ranking appeared.
[Martial Soul Ranking, Nineteenth Place!] [Name: Shui Yue'er!] [Affiliated power: Haiyue Empire (Skywater Palace).] [Martial Soul: Jade Dolphin.]
As the name appeared, the scene shifted.
No longer was it a swamp filled with murderous intent, but a vast, deep blue sea.
The surface of the sea shimmered with rippling light.
A young girl in a blue dress walked upon the waves.
She had long water-blue hair and a clear, refined beauty. Her lively eyes in particular seemed to hold the entire ocean within them.
Behind her, the phantom of a dolphin, crystal-clear from head to toe as though carved from sapphire, leaped about joyfully.
Each time the dolphin burst from the water, it sent up sprays like ice crystals, and the surrounding air instantly froze into frost.
[Character Introduction: Former Skywater Academy student, exceptionally gifted. Later joined the Haiyue Empire and was accepted as the personal disciple of Empress Haiyue. After being baptized by a deep sea secret treasure bestowed by her master, her martial soul underwent a qualitative transformation.]
Upon seeing this name, many people across the continent were stunned.
"Shui Yue'er? Wasn't she that little girl from the Soul Master Tournament back then?"
"Someone from Skywater Academy? How did she end up in the Haiyue Empire?"
"Empress Haiyue's personal disciple... no wonder she made the ranking!"
Heaven Dou City, Tang Sect.
Tang San, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them.
Two cold rays shot from his Purple Demon Eyes.
"Haiyue Empire..."
Tang San chewed over those four words, his voice deep and terrifying.
Naturally, he remembered the name Shui Yue'er.
During the Soul Master Tournament back then, Skywater Academy had left quite an impression on him.
But he had never expected her to pledge allegiance to that mysterious Haiyue Empire.
A Jade Dolphin martial soul was considered high-grade, but it absolutely should not have been capable of entering the top twenty.
Even Golden Crocodile Douluo was only twentieth. What gave Shui Yue'er the right to rank above him?
"Looks like that Empress Haiyue is behind this again."
Tang San stood and walked to the window, gazing toward the distant sea.
Ever since accepting the Sea God's inheritance, he had regarded the sea as his own backyard.
The Sea God was the ruler of the sea.
All aquatic races and all oceanic powers in this world should submit beneath the Sea God's feet.
Yet a Haiyue Empire had emerged, wielding a strange technology known as Cloud Butterfly and establishing a massive power in the ocean.
To Tang San, this was an utterly blatant provocation.
It was theft.
They were stealing the faith and territory that should have belonged to him.
"What a Haiyue. What a Skywater Palace."
"The day I become a God will be the day of your destruction."
"There can only be one voice in this sea, and that is the voice of me, Tang San."
Tang San clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
As he watched the joyful dolphin on the Heavenly Curtain, his heart filled with disgust.
To him, a ranking raised through external help was worthless.
Only someone like him, blessed by heaven with Twin Martial Souls, truly deserved his reputation.
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