The Luo God Clan's Supreme Imperial Princess

"Tiger Form Fist, Tiger Swallows!"

Without warning, Zhao Tiandu launched his attack, throwing everything he had into it.

With the path ahead cut off, he could only risk it all—face death and find a way to live.

The Zhao family's ancestral fist technique, Tiger Form Fist, had been honed by this direct-line descendant for ten years without pause. Even without spiritual energy to empower it, it still displayed tremendous power.

Roar, roar, roar! Faintly, the sound of a ferocious tiger's bellow echoed through the air.

This was also how the Five Tigers of the Zhao Family got their name.

"A cornered beast's last stand."

Deeply disappointed, Mu Chen no longer hesitated and immediately struck to kill.

His left hand shifted between feints and solid moves. He changed from a staff grip to a palm, carrying the imposing air of Striding Tiger Ascends Mountain.

The second move of the Demon-Subduing Staff Technique: Striding Tiger Ascends Mountain!

With a long weapon, close-quarters combat was a disadvantage, especially against an enemy who fought barehanded and had already closed in.

This staff technique was meant to evade. He used it to pull back and escape, opening up a wide distance.

Zhao Tiandu, whose battle instincts were astonishing, grew frantic.

He had to create an opening for close combat, hoping to land a crippling blow before fleeing. The gap between them was too great; turning the tables was simply impossible.

He was perfectly clearheaded. This was already the most favorable outcome he could have hoped for.

"Tiger Devours!"

Zhao Tiandu stamped both feet hard against the ground. The muscles in his thighs bulged, and he shot toward his enemy like a cannonball suddenly fired from its barrel.

"Great Roc Spreads Its Wings!"

As his opponent leapt into the air, leaving his footing unstable, his previous strength spent and his next move not yet ready, Mu Chen drove off with his right foot and swung the staff forward on a slant, lifting it in a thrust toward his chest.

Thud! Zhao Tiandu was struck by the ancient-looking staff and sent flying.

"Tiger Roar!"

"Tiger Howl!"

"Tiger Air Strike!"

He paid no heed to the qi and blood surging chaotically through his body. Slapping a hand against the ground, he used the rebound that traveled up his arm to spring into the air like a fish leaping from the water, attacking once more.

Before the tiger-shaped force could even take form, the Demon-Subduing Battle Staff smashed it apart.

Even Zhao Tiandu himself took a blow to the left shoulder. His bones shattered.

"Tiger Demon Devours Spirit!"

"Darkness..."

Drenched in blood, Zhao Tiandu gritted his teeth and swung the only arm he had left intact. His eyes bulged with fury as he roared—but his burly body suddenly froze.

He lowered his head and stared at the ancient-looking staff that had pierced his left chest. Bright red blood slowly stained its long shaft, and plump droplets trickled down from time to time.

"Hah... hah..."

A large mouthful of blood spilled from Zhao Tiandu's lips. An indescribable agony surged through his body. Then his vision went black, and he lost consciousness completely, collapsing stiffly to the ground.

A newly risen King—the Fierce Tiger of the Zhao Clan—had fallen!

Mu Chen crouched down and closed Zhao Tiandu's glaring eyes.

The man had been detestable, but he had also been a worthy opponent.

Whether leading the Five Tigers of the Zhao Family in hunting down Luo Li, relentlessly pursuing the Luo God Clan Princess for thirteen days and nights without sleep, or battling Mu Chen until now, his fighting spirit had been commendable.

And so, the infamous Five Tigers of the Zhao Family, whose evil deeds had spread far and wide as they rampaged through the Spirit Road, all found their final rest in the Black Demon Forest. Their bones would lie forever among the dust and fallen leaves.

--

Mu Chen crouched before the silver-haired girl, studying that devastatingly beautiful face. Though she had yet to fully mature, the beauty that would one day bring kingdoms to ruin was already beginning to show.

A faint, tranquil fragrance seeped into his heart, making it itch with an irresistible urge.

"Have you looked enough?"

The girl in the black dress, sitting cross-legged on the ground, suddenly opened her bright, clear eyes, their depths as limpid as glazed glass. Not a trace of emotion showed in her pupils. Neither sorrowful, joyful, nor angry, she was exceptionally calm.

After a brief respite, the Luo God Clan Princess's complexion had finally improved a little. No longer a painful, translucent white, it had regained a hint of color.

Mu Chen paused, looking thoughtful. Then he pulled out a gentle smile capable of captivating thousands of girls and softly replied, "Not yet."

The silver-haired girl didn't dodge his gaze. She met it directly, her eyes clear and untainted.

One sat cross-legged, while the other half-crouched, no more than a foot apart.

They held those strange positions as they gazed at and studied each other, exchanging glances as if trying to imprint the other forever in their hearts.

In the end, the girl was the more bashful one.

The silver-haired girl shifted her gaze a little to the side, then pushed away the annoying fellow before her, creating a comfortable, safe distance between them.

Growing up, she had never been so close to a boy other than her grandfather, Luo Tianshen—let alone at such a dangerous distance.

More than a decade ago, the Blood God Clan, one of the Four Great God Clans of the Lesser Western Heaven Realm, launched a shameless, despicable sneak attack. They first used their Clan-Protecting Divine Artifact, the Blood God Arm, to severely wound her father, Luo Tianhe.

They shattered his Supreme Sea and crippled his cultivation. Just days after returning to his clan, he suddenly passed away.

Her mother, who had given birth to her only shortly before, was consumed by grief and soon followed him.

The Blood God Clan then moved against her grandfather, Luo Tianshen, ambushing him with Blood Demon Poison.

Luo Tianshen had been an Upper Earth Sovereign, but the ambush left him gravely wounded. His realm nearly fell, his life force greatly diminished, and his strength suffered as well.

He endured his injuries, clinging to life and barely holding on with his decaying body.

At present, the fate and honor of the entire Luo God Clan rested on the shoulders of one half-crippled old man.

Luo Li, the sole surviving direct descendant of the Luo God Clan's imperial family, had indisputably become the clan's supreme Imperial Princess. She was destined to ascend the throne one day.

The silver-haired girl had borne the heavy responsibility of reviving the imperial family since childhood. Her thoughts had been devoted to nothing but cultivation, and she had come to the Spirit Road for the same reason: to hone her combat skills.

--

Seeing the jade-like hand extend toward him hesitantly, Mu Chen didn't resist. Following the gentle pressure against his shoulder, he sat down cross-legged as well.

The corner of his mouth twitched, as though he were rather pleased with himself.

Mu Chen settled at a distance that wasn't too close or too far, just enough to make them both comfortable. In a gentle voice, he said, "Supreme Imperial Princess of the Luo God Clan, I'm Mu Chen, from the Hundred Spirit Continent."

"Where have you seen me before?"

The silver-haired girl, whose name was Luo Li, looked at him earnestly, without surprise.

As the supreme Imperial Princess of the Luo God Clan and the imperial family's sole, fated heir, she had appeared in public with her grandfather, Luo Tianshen, on many occasions.

She had been seen by the vassal powers who paid tribute in the Lesser Western Heaven Realm, the superpowers on friendly terms with the Luo God Clan, and the ancient, long-standing noble families.

Even on the Spirit Road, there were at least ten people who knew her identity.

For example, Ji Xuan, the current prodigy of the Ji Clan of the Southern Border.

"I've never set foot on the Western Heaven Continent."

"But I do know the famous Luo God Sword."

Hearing the meaning behind the silver-haired girl's words, Mu Chen immediately shook his head. His gaze fell on the black longsword resting across her knees: the Luo God Sword.

The Luo God Sword was the Luo God Clan's Clan-Protecting Divine Artifact, as famous as the Blood God Clan's Blood God Arm.

Luo Tianshen had bestowed it upon her after setting three seals on it.

This weapon had originally belonged to their clan's ancestor, Luo God, the greatest beauty of the ancient Great Thousand World. It was the personal Spirit Soldier of a Saint Grade Heavenly Sovereign, a renowned Peerless Sacred Artifact of Saint Grade.

After Luo God fell in battle, the original Luo God Sword vanished without a trace.

To honor their ancestor, later generations had commissioned a Spirit Artifact Master to forge a replica. Its grade was only that of a Peerless Divine Artifact, though it neared the level of a Sacred Artifact. The sword before him was that very replica.