The Duke

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the next day.

Early in the morning, after Leian finished breakfast, he prepared to head to the palace for his appointment. Only when he stepped out of the courtyard gate did he realize that the royal family had already arranged for a luxuriously decorated carriage to wait for him.

Although it was a simple gesture, it truly made Leian feel their sincere intentions.

The carriage traveled along the road and soon arrived at the palace gates. Leian had expected to get off and walk from there, but to his surprise, the carriage drove straight through the gatehouse and did not stop until it reached a courtyard.

"Lord Leian, please disembark!"

Outside the carriage, the attendant's voice arrived right on cue.

Leian followed the instruction and stepped out of the carriage, then, led by the attendant, he walked toward the depths of the palace.

The palace grounds were vast, and the deeper they went, the tighter the security became. There was a sentry every five paces and a guard post every ten. As Leian walked, he noticed that the lowest-ranked knights he saw were level six warriors, and there were even many experts hidden in the shadows.

However, Leian did not pay much attention to these guards; he spent most of his time admiring the palace architecture. Before long, the two stopped in front of a quaint and elegant study.

"Your Majesty, Lord Leian has arrived."

The attendant did not make Leian wait outside but instead announced his arrival in a loud voice.

"Oh? Quick, quickly let Mr. Leian in."

Inside the study, the Emperor's delighted voice immediately rang out.

Leian smiled slightly and walked forward with a calm expression. Passing through the doors, a burly, imposing middle-aged man immediately came into view.

This person was none other than the current Emperor!

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Leian bowed slightly. He did not know much about this imperial ruler, only that his name was Joyce, that he had inherited the throne over a hundred years ago, and that he was also a level eight warrior.

"Mr. Leian, there is no need for such formalities. I have long heard of your great reputation, and seeing you today, you are even younger than I imagined."

Joyce did not put on the airs of an emperor, keeping a smile on his face throughout. As he said this, he asked with a look of curiosity:

"If I may be so bold, I heard that Mr. Leian reached the level of a level nine warrior at the age of thirty. I wonder if you have any insights you could teach me."

Although the path of warrior cultivation was largely the same, everyone had their own little secrets. Normally, such a direct inquiry would be considered very rude, but since Joyce was an emperor and was adopting the posture of a student, it did not seem particularly abrupt.

Furthermore, combined with his strength as a level eight warrior, it easily gave the impression of an emperor who had not forgotten the importance of hard training.

For a true practitioner, this image was very easy to gain favor with.

Clearly, Emperor Joyce had thoroughly investigated Leian's history and had even analyzed parts of Leian's personality based on it.

However, Leian did not overthink it. In his view, since the Byron royal family had an ancestor in the Saint Realm, there shouldn't be any secrets regarding warrior cultivation. Joyce was likely asking this mostly to flatter him and build rapport.

Thinking of this, Leian played along and replied:

"Your Majesty is too kind. You should know my background; I fear my knowledge is far from as comprehensive as yours."

"However, since Your Majesty is interested, I am willing to share. I hope it might be of some use to your cultivation."

After speaking, Leian organized his thoughts and began to explain the three realms of warrior cultivation in a measured tone.

Of course, Leian was well aware that knowledge of the three realms was likely no secret in a family with a Saint Realm heritage.

Therefore, during this process, Leian also appropriately shared some of his own cultivation methods, such as the alternating use of light and heavy swords, or the progressive comprehension of the "momentum" realm, and so on.

Originally, Joyce had only been feigning interest, but as these substantial insights were revealed, he couldn't help but tremble involuntarily, and his eyes immediately lit up.

When Leian finished speaking, Joyce grabbed his arm and praised him with genuine sincerity:

"Mr. Leian is truly worthy of the title of genius. With these words today, I have truly benefited immensely!"

Leian smiled, accepting Joyce's praise with peace of mind.

However, at that moment, a voice suddenly came from behind a magnificent screen at the back of the study.

"Listening to Mr. Leian, it seems you have already comprehended the realm of 'momentum'?"

As the voice faded, a middle-aged man dressed in warrior gear walked out from behind the screen. Behind this man was an elderly man with gray hair wearing silver robes.

Just by looking at their attire, one could tell the former was a warrior and the latter was a grand magus.

Leian felt no surprise at the sudden appearance of the two. With his mastery over the momentum of heaven and earth, he had sensed the two people hiding behind the screen the moment he stepped into the study, he just hadn't exposed them.

Joyce, however, worried that Leian might misunderstand, took the initiative to explain: "These two are my personal bodyguards, the level nine warrior Mr. Tailun, and the grand magus Mr. Vincent."

Upon hearing this, Leian nodded at the two as a greeting, then, with an indifferent smile, he said:

"After years of hard training, I did indeed fully comprehend the momentum of heaven and earth not long ago."

"Oh?"

The middle-aged man, Tailun, raised his thick eyebrows, seemingly skeptical. As his gaze swept over Leian, he let out a loud laugh:

"Hearing Mr. Leian say this, my hands are truly itching. I wonder if Mr. Leian would dare to spar with me!"

Dare?

Leian shook his head and chuckled inwardly. He had thought this would just be a standard meeting, but it seemed there were always people lining up to be his stepping stones.

Since that was the case, he wouldn't hold back.

Thinking of this, he flipped his right hand, and the black longsword he usually carried instantly appeared in his grasp.

He hadn't carried his sword on his back earlier, considering he was coming to the imperial palace, but just in case, he hadn't left it at home either, keeping it in his spatial ring instead.

Given his current status and strength, he didn't need to worry about anyone coveting it.

"Come on!"

At this moment, Leian pointed his long sword diagonally, his tone incredibly calm.

"Here?"

Tailun looked stunned; although the study was quite large, it was impossible to accommodate a battle between two ninth-rank warriors.

Leian's tone remained just as flat, "This is enough. Don't worry, there won't be much of a commotion."

"You?"

Tailun's eyes widened; by now, how could he not see that Leian didn't take him seriously at all?

Thinking of this, he no longer cared about damaging Emperor Joyce's study, and without another word, he drew the long saber from his back and slashed it toward Leian.

"Swoosh!"

The light on the long saber surged, carrying immense power as it tore through the air, striking directly at Leian amidst a piercing whistle.

The moment Tailun made his move, Leian saw through his realm; he had merely grasped the initial mysteries of wielding heavy objects as if they were light.

To defeat someone like this, one move was enough!

As this thought crossed his mind, he casually thrust his sword.

However, this simple, straightforward strike completely dominated Tailun's field of vision. At that moment, Tailun felt as if the surrounding space had been completely locked down.

"Clang!"

Before Tailun could react, the dark sword tip had already pierced through his momentum and struck the blade of his saber.

Instantly, Tailun felt a massive force, like a river bursting its banks, surge into his chest with unstoppable momentum, and the next moment, his entire body was sent flying backward uncontrollably.

Bang!

With a loud crash, Tailun's body smashed four or five huge cracks directly into the wall at the back of the study.

"Cough, cough..."

Amidst the swirling dust, Tailun leaned on his long saber and slowly climbed to his feet. At this moment, the look in his eyes as he gazed at Leian held no trace of arrogance.

Leian did not stay in the imperial palace for long; after defeating Tailun with a single strike, he took his leave.

Shortly after he stepped into his own small courtyard, Joyce's rewards arrived right on his heels.

When Joyce learned from Tailun that Leian only needed to accumulate enough battle qi to enter the Saint Realm, he did not hesitate to bestow the highest level of rewards:

He appointed Leian as a Duke of the Empire!

At the same time, there was a ducal mansion located in the eastern district of the imperial capital, an estate in the eastern suburbs, and the corresponding maids and guards.

Originally, because of his new younger brother and sister, Leian had intended to buy a larger house, but now that was no longer necessary.

Leian did not refuse Joyce's gifts and accepted them entirely; furthermore, he moved into the estate in the eastern suburbs that very afternoon.

It was a vast estate covering tens of thousands of square meters, and in addition to sufficient rooms, it had a corresponding training ground, which perfectly met Leian's expectations.

On the other side, Leian's personal information spread throughout the entire empire in the shortest possible time via the imperial gazette, and as time passed, it gradually spread across the entire Youquan Continent.

[Born a commoner, reaching the ninth-rank realm at thirty—what an inspiring story!]

Everyone who knew of Leian felt a sense of admiration and took him as their role model and goal.

For a time, Leian's name was in its ascendancy across the entire Youquan Continent.