"Top three in the Hidden Dragon?"
The owner of a certain Pleasant Goat Hot Pot Restaurant put on sunglasses and sat down in a corner, seemingly aloof from everyone, but in reality, his ears were all perked up.
You have to be reasonable; if you take someone's money, you're bound to be obligated.
After eating and drinking for Tian Miao at the Autumn Water Pavilion for so many days, does Tianmiao still have the nerve to call herself the Divine Hammer Little Overlord?
"Big Brother Li?"
Just as Li Mo was about to listen to the chatter of those martial arts enthusiasts, he heard someone call his name from behind. Princess Little Jiang stood behind him with a towel draped over her shoulder and a menu in hand, seemingly ready to take orders from the guests.
"You... what brings you here?"
"Hey, do you like it?"
Li Mo then pulled a pair of sunglasses out of his pocket.
Don't let the small size of these sunglasses fool you; the materials are anything but simple. The frames are made of frost silver and red fire copper, blended together using Hundred Refinements of Divine Treasures method. The lenses were obtained from my master.
Yes, among the statues of Divine Observation that Master shattered, the eyes of several of them were adorned with top-grade black jade, and the inside of the lenses even had inscriptions engraved using some unknown technique.
The effects of the inscriptions vary.
Ultimately, the one that would enhance the princess's dignity and imposing presence was chosen to be given to Princess Little Jiang.
"Waaaah! I..."
Jiang Chulong was overjoyed, and just as she opened her mouth to make a sound of surprise, she saw Li Mo put his index finger to his lips, making a gesture that said there was no need to make a sound.
So she happily took the strip of cloth and put on sunglasses like Big Brother Li.
"How... how is it?"
"Very energetic!"
"Really... really?"
"Well, it's okay if you're afraid to make eye contact with people in the future. When you wear sunglasses, no one will know where you're looking. If someone yells at you, just put your hands on your hips!"
Seeing the timid Little Jiang become so cool for the first time, Li Mo couldn't help but smile, then put his hands on his hips.
Princess Little Jiang followed suit.
Just then, the wandering swordsmen who were chatting there finished their wine and wanted to call the waiter for more. But when they turned around, they saw the arrogant Princess Little Jiang and Li Mo, who were still acting all high and mighty.
And... the gaze behind the glasses seemed to be looking at me?
It's as if it's saying, "What the hell are you looking at?"
"!"
If a waiter is wearing sunglasses and standing with his hands on his hips, would you still ask him to take your order?
So the man turned his head away sullenly and stopped bragging.
"... The sunglasses seem to be too useful; they've silenced all the guests."
"Big Brother Li, what are you listening to?"
"Hearing the Hidden Dragon Ranking, we're about to head to the Imperial Capital. We need to find out who we'll be facing."
Li Mo spoke in a serious tone, implying that it had nothing to do with whether it was a hammer or not.
"Big Brother Li... you're so meticulous."
Jiang Chulong, then said, "Let's wait a little longer, the storyteller will be here soon."
Although the Hidden Dragon Ranking was posted in many places, it was obviously not as interesting as a storyteller recounting it vividly.
"Chulong, do you want to go to the Imperial Capital?"
"I... I don't know yet..."
A moment later, sure enough, a storyteller in a long robe entered the hot pot restaurant, bowed to everyone, took a sip of tea to clear his throat, and then slammed his gavel.
"Um?"
Li Mo looked at the other person and felt that this person looked vaguely familiar.
But he clearly had never seen this old man before.
"Thank you all for your kindness. I'm here to make a living in your esteemed place. As usual, there are a total of one hundred people on the Hidden Dragon Ranking. I would have to talk about them all for three days and three nights, so I'll only focus on the more important ones, with appropriate detail."
The storyteller took out a Hidden Dragon Ranking, hung it on the main pillar, and pointed to it, saying:
"There's not much to say about insignificant figures like Huang Donglai, who's at the bottom of the Hidden Dragon Ranking."
"?"
Li Mo was certain of it without even needing to activate his Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye.
The old storyteller was played by Huang Donglai!
The Flying Poison Two-Faced Turtle has started a side business again; you might as well call yourself a Master of All-Rounds.
"Speaking of something worth mentioning, it's our Great Yu Dynasty's little princess, who has been missing for a long time, has actually made her debut on the list, ranking forty-eighth!"
"Moreover, the list speaks highly of her, saying that she was born with Sword Bone, and that her mother was Shi Sujun, the Shi Sujun, who Hidden Dragon the number one swordswoman in the world thirty years ago and Heavenly Ranking."
"But now, it seems he has lost that Sword Bone."
It's said that people are talking animatedly up there.
Little Li in the corner, seemed lost in thought behind his sunglasses.
Princess Little Jiang is on the list.
This was bound to happen sooner or later, but... it seems to be something many people don't want to see...
Some things are impossible to assess, but once the Hidden Dragon Ranking was released, Chulong was placed on the scale.
"I... I'm not that good."
Princess Little Jiang nervously clutched the hem of her dress, but seeing Big Brother Li deep in thought, she also crossed her arms.
When I'm with Big Brother Li, I can't lose face!
[Name: Jiang Chulong]
[Age: 15]
[Root Bone Innate Sword Fetus: Wild Grass Sword Bone Sprouting.]
[Realm: Three Apertures of Divine Observation.]
[Destiny: Gold with a hint of gray]
[Evaluation: The youngest daughter of the Emperor of Great Yu, born with the body of Innate Sword Fetus. At the age of fourteen, her elder brother, the Crown Prince, took away her Sword Bone. However, the Sword Bone was born because of her, but she was not made by the Sword Bone. If she can cleanse her heart of its clouded nature and mend her own body, she too can become the supreme master of the sword.]
[Recent Encounter: She stayed at the hot pot restaurant, but due to the rebirth of her Sword Bone, the Third Killer of the Drizzle Pavilion headquarters personally intervened and took her away, after which she disappeared without a trace.]
Li Mo's brows furrowed even deeper.
He tentatively opened his mouth:
"Chulong, would you like to go to the Imperial Capital with me?"
"Want to go with Big Brother Li? Sure!"
Princess Little Jiang, who had been hesitating, immediately nodded.
With Big Brother Li, we can go anywhere.
The words had barely left his mouth when his recent experiences changed in the Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye.
[Recent Encounters: Returning to the Imperial Capital with Li Mo, they once again came under the radar of [someone], becoming targets of Jiang Yu. The newly formed Wild Grass Sword Bone was shattered at the Hidden Dragon Assembly; their fate remains uncertain.]
"..."
Li Mo looked at Chulong, who was cautiously smiling, and patted her head.
Having witnessed the revival of Cloud Dream Immortal, he had some guesses. The Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye used a question mark to indicate that perhaps it wasn't that the Heavenly Eye couldn't see it.
Rather, some beings exist in a way that, simply by knowing their names, one becomes entangled in cause and effect with them.
When you gaze intently into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you...
Whether he sticks his neck out or not, he'll still get stabbed; at least if they go to the Imperial Capital, Chulong can be by his side.
"Big Brother Li, why do you look unhappy?"
"Chulong comes from the Imperial Capital, so she must know what good food Imperial Capital is, right? I'll have to trouble you then."
"It's no trouble at all..."
Jiang Chulong's face flushed slightly, her misty eyes filled with longing.
"Of course, the biggest variable in this year's Hidden Dragon Ranking comes from two people from our Purple Sun Prefecture."
At this point, Huang Donglai, who was disguised as a storyteller, paused for a moment.
That suspenseful tone and pauses are so professional, I wonder who he learned them from.
"Why are there still two? Didn't the Divine Hammer Little Overlord perish in the Cloud Dream Underground Palace?"
"Yeah, sigh, I still can't believe it's real."
"Young Hero Li was a good man in his lifetime..."
Some martial arts figures who hadn't even seen the Hidden Dragon Ranking yet, but had only heard rumors about it from a while back, started discussing it.
"Hey, that's a good question, sir."
Storyteller Huang Donglai (referred to as Mr. Huang) raises one finger:
"When I first saw it, I didn't believe it, and I even interrogated... well, questioned a member of the Demon Summoning Cult. The answer I got was that I saw it with my own eyes; the Divine Hammer Little Overlord was beaten down to just one hair."
"That's why I came all this way, ready to find out."
"Who would have thought that when the list of Hidden Dragon was released, not only was he not dead, but he wasn't even injured, and he was still fourth on the Hidden Dragon Ranking!"
"He was down to his last hair, so why didn't he die? What happened behind the scenes? Was it a distortion of human nature, or a decline in morality...?"
At this point, Mr. Huang's tone became excited, full of emotion but lacking any finesse.
"Does the gentleman perhaps know the inside story?" someone asked.
"I don't know." Huang Donglai shook his head.
A chorus of boos erupted from inside the hot pot restaurant.
"But think about it, our Divine Hammer Little Overlord, on the battlefields of the Southern Border thousands of troops are at stake, is a mere Underground Palace nothing to him."
"If you had seen his prowess in the Southern Border, you would never believe he would fall. In fact, I think his nickname should be changed to 'The Indestructible Divine Hammer Little Overlord,' which would be more appropriate."
The words had barely left his mouth.
Huang Donglai felt a chill on the back of his neck, and his keen intuition told him to look to the side.
Then I saw two cool-looking figures wearing sunglasses staring straight at me.
"!"
"As a complete bystander, to be honest, I don't think the Divine Hammer Little Overlord' concept is very reasonable. It's common knowledge that Li Mo's swordsmanship is also quite excellent..."
Mr. Huang became quiet, and then, before anyone could react, he quickly changed the subject.
"By the way, the big changes I mentioned weren't just limited to him."
"Cold Fairy has come from behind to surpass many of the top contenders for Hidden Dragon top three in the Hidden Dragon Academy, including the Demon Summoning Holy Son, the Tian Miao Walker, and the Mysterious Maiden of Penglai, among others! She has secured a place in the top three!"
"Furthermore, not only is she third on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, but she has also risen one place on the Hundred Flowers Beauty Ranking!"
The hot pot restaurant suddenly became noisy; those who had heard it before couldn't help but feel impressed, while those hearing it for the first time were shocked.
"To be fair, the top spot is held by the Empress, so it's somewhat influenced by personal connections. The Hundred Flowers Ranking was also given to her, so it's somewhat influenced by personal connections as well."
"First is the Crown Prince, second is Xie Xuan of Tianshan. How long has it been since either of them made a move?"
"The top three in previous competitions have all Nine Apertures of Divine Observation, or even the half-step into the Inner Scene, but she has only just entered the Seven Apertures."
"Last time she was only slightly inferior to the Divine Hammer Little Overlord; I suspect these two are evenly matched."
"She's been quiet lately, which is quite remarkable, as she's managed to do so without making a sound."
"She must have put in a lot of effort..."
Meanwhile, Clear Abyss Sect.
Autumn Water Pavilion.
[Congratulations, host, you have once again completed the punishment for the loser.]
[This work is 120% complete.]
[Rating: Upper C]
Ying Bing: "?"
Even after everything went like that yesterday, it's still classified as Grade C...
What about Grade A?
[Issuing C+ rating rewards...]
[The reward is: a set of black combat gear, and the opportunity to spar with the winner while wearing the combat gear!]
"Combat gear? Sparring?"
Ying Bing relaxed her brows; thankfully, the system was working a bit better this time.
She's not stupid; she wouldn't actually believe that Li Mo had a hammer in his pocket, would she?
Ying Huang doesn't understand love and has never been in a relationship, but this is treating her way too disrespectfully, like a beast...
But why emphasize that the combat suit is black?