"It worked!"
Xiao Yang was overcome with excitement. His fate had finally changed!
Golden Feather Bath Tribulation, then transform into a Roc!
It was the legendary divine beast, the Kunpeng.
In the Northern Darkness, there was a fish called Kun. It transformed into a bird called Peng.
The Kunpeng was also the bane of dragons. It usually fed on them, and legend had it that in ancient times, it ate one great dragon king and five hundred lesser dragons every day.
He still remembered Xiao Junlin's fate: Azure Scale Dragon Transformation.
Xiao Junlin hadn't even transformed into a dragon yet. Even if he did, he would still be a step beneath Xiao Yang's Golden Wings Transforming into Roc fate, naturally countered by it.
"I am a great roc soaring through the clouds. I only regret that the sky is too low to let me fly!"
"From this day on, I, Xiao Yang, will soar to the heavens and rise ninety thousand li!"
"Hahaha..."
Xingyan Tao laughed up at the sky.
In the unseen realm, the Imperial Might of one destined to vie for dominion over the land enveloped him.
Eldest Prince's Estate.
"Pfft!"
Xiao Junlin had been cultivating when a sudden pain shot through his chest. He spat out blood, and even the Supreme Bone in his back dimmed.
"Your Highness, are you all right...?"
The adviser Lu Xu hurried over, his voice full of concern.
"Something may have gone wrong with my cultivation! Strange. Why do I feel like a part of my fortune was just taken away?" Xiao Junlin furrowed his brow.
"Impossible!"
Lu Xu shook his head. "Your Highness, you possess the fate of the Nine-Five Supreme. Your nobility is beyond compare; even the princes of the imperial family can't match you! Anyone who could take your fortune away probably hasn't even been born yet!"
"Haha, you're right. I must have imagined it!"
Xiao Junlin nodded and closed his eyes to resume cultivating.
The imperial capital of Central Province.
The Imperial Observatory, Star Gazing Tower.
The tallest building in the imperial capital was not the palace, but this Star Gazing Tower.
It had nine stories and stood a hundred meters high.
Ordinarily, such a building would have been against the rules. But the tower belonged to the Director, a Daoist Ninth Rank expert and Great Xia's Guardian God. They said he had lived for over two hundred years.
The Director's word was the law.
Even the current Emperor Xia, a foolish and immoral man who devoted himself to cultivating in pursuit of immortality, didn't dare offend him. He treated the Director with the utmost respect.
The ninth floor of Star Gazing Tower.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Suddenly, a white-haired old man in a dark Daoist robe snapped his eyes open. His pupils seemed to hold mountains and dragon veins.
He stared north, his aged face filling with unprecedented solemnity.
"The north again..."
"First came the Nine Types of Heaven and Earth Phenomena, then a great scholar establishing his doctrine, and today a Dragon Devourer fate has been born! He will be a wise ruler in an age of peace and a hero in an age of chaos!"
"A great upheaval the likes of which hasn't been seen in a thousand years! Even with my star divination compass, I can't deduce the heavenly secrets!"
"Could it be that Great Xia's realm is beyond saving after all?"
The white-haired old man shook his head and sighed.
"Tap, tap, tap!"
Suddenly, a series of skipping footsteps sounded outside.
A young girl walked in!
She had a naturally youthful face and delicate features, but her figure was far more mature than her age suggested, impossible to conceal even beneath her loose dress.
She held a chicken leg in one hand and a candied hawthorn skewer in the other. Her mouth was stuffed full, so she could only mumble.
"M-Master, Eunuch Cao came by just now... He said that the old emperor wants you to preside over next month's Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai!"
"I refuse!"
The Director flicked his sleeve and rejected the request outright. "Tell him I've gone into seclusion. From now on, I'm seeing no visitors! Youwei, go to the Northern Territory at once. Your opportunity lies there!"
"Yes, Master!"
The girl nodded, though her heart stirred with anticipation.
Her name was Yu Youwei, and her nickname was Little Fish.
She was the Director's youngest disciple and the youngest Seventh Grade expert in all of Great Xia!
A Daoist Seventh Rank expert was known as a True Man.
Floating on the Void, Universe in the Sleeve, Dragon Seeking Pulse Finding, Heaven's Secrets Deduction... These were the abilities of a True Man!
Meanwhile, at King Zhenbei's Mansion.
Xiao Yang had no idea that swallowing the True Dragon Pearl and defying fate had drawn the attention of the legendary Director.
The next morning, he got up and washed.
Huangli came in to attend to him, then looked surprised. "Young Master, you seem... different again!"
"What is it?" Xiao Yang asked.
Huangli explained, "You were already handsome enough to charm countless women. But now you seem to have gained a little more authority, as if I were standing before the prince!"
"Is that so?"
Xiao Yang knew it was probably a side effect of his changed fate.
With a thought, he reined in the invisible Dragon Might of the imperial way, and his radiance dimmed.
"Phew..."
Huangli felt the pressure lift and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Huangli, get Guard Zhao in a moment. We're going to collect a debt!" Xiao Yang said with a smile.
Collect a debt?
Huangli was puzzled, but she wouldn't dare disobey her young master's orders.
Then Xiao Yang brought Zhao Changkong and Huangli to the Eldest Prince's Estate, swaggering all the way.
"Bang!"
He kicked the gate open. His voice, laced with Internal Energy, rang through the entire estate like a lion's roar.
"Eldest Brother, I've come to collect what you owe me!!!"
Before long, Xiao Junlin strode out, his face livid, looking as if he'd swallowed a fly.
"Ninth Brother, you're getting more and more outrageous. You dare cause a scene at my estate!" he said through gritted teeth.
Xiao Yang replied proudly, "Eldest Brother, we made a wager at the Autumn Hunt! You owe me Cloud Top Heavenly Palace and a hundred elixirs from Medicine King Valley, but you still haven't paid up. Are you trying to welch on your debt?"
"Why the hurry? I'll give you what I owe!"
With a dark expression, Xiao Junlin took out a deed. His heart bled as he handed it to Xiao Yang.
"Here's the deed to Cloud Top Heavenly Palace. Take it!"
Then he had a servant bring over a medicine box and added, "There are a hundred elixirs inside. They're yours too!"
"Eldest Brother, thank you!"
Xiao Yang accepted them, beaming. "If you ever want to make another wager, be sure to come to me! I heard Medicine King Valley has a Nine-Leaf Golden Lotus, a truly extraordinary treasure. Why not put that up as the stake?"
"In your dreams!"
Xiao Junlin was furious, trembling with rage.
What a joke!
The Nine-Leaf Golden Lotus was Medicine King Valley's most treasured possession. Even he, a grandson of the valley's master, wasn't allowed to use it, let alone its young master! Ninth Brother was unbelievably greedy!
And what did Ninth Brother mean by that? Did he think he was sure to win?
Xiao Junlin was beside himself with anger, but he had spat blood while cultivating the day before and was still recovering. All he could do was storm off.
Xiao Yang had gotten the deed and the elixirs, so he couldn't be bothered to trade insults any longer.
"Guard Zhao, this elixir is your reward!"
He took out the medicine box, removed one pill, and tossed it to Zhao Changkong.
"Your Highness, an elixir from Medicine King Valley is worth a thousand gold. Changkong hardly deserves it!"
Zhao Changkong longed for it, but still felt embarrassed to accept.
"Don't be so fussy. I'm giving it to you, so take it!"
Xiao Yang forced the elixir into his hands, then added, "I have no use for pills of this grade! You're already at the Third Grade. Break through to the Fourth Grade as soon as you can after taking it—that's the least you can do to make this worth my while!"
"Thank you, Your Highness! Changkong will cultivate day and night and won't let you down!"
Zhao Changkong's eyes brimmed with tears. He was deeply moved.
"Thud, thud, thud!"
Suddenly, Huangli came running over again, looking flustered. "Young Master, the imperial envoy for your engagement banquet with Miss Ning has arrived!"
"Who is it?" Xiao Yang asked curiously.
This marriage had been decreed by His Majesty, so the imperial envoy was likely someone important—perhaps even a member of the imperial family.
"It's... Princess Fuyao..."
Huangli's voice trembled, as if she were naming something terrifying.
At the sound of that name, Xiao Yang's expression changed too.
"How could it be her?!"
Before you continue