"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
The White Tiger Guards roared as one, their morale soaring to its peak.
With Dai Mobai's fourth Soul Skill bolstering them, the White Tiger Guards' attack power, defense, and Soul Power all increased by twenty percent. By contrast, the Howling Moon Wolves were weakened by twenty percent.
One side gained while the other lost, widening the gap between them by a full forty percent. It was a complete rout.
Shining with golden light, the White Tiger Guards looked like divine soldiers clad in golden armor, their Long Halberds mercilessly reaping the lives of the Howling Moon Wolves.
While the White Tiger Guards killed the Howling Moon Wolves, Dai Mobai didn't stand idle either.
He walked over to Zhu Zhuyun and stopped in front of her, then swept her into his arms.
"I told you, you belong to me."
Dai Mobai lowered his head and spoke beside Zhu Zhuyun's ear, just as he had three years ago.
"Your Highness..."
Zhu Zhuyun murmured softly and wrapped her arms around Dai Mobai in return.
She held him so tightly that she nearly melted into his embrace.
From that moment on, Zhu Zhuyun knew she could never leave Dai Mobai again.
Zhu Zhuqing stood to one side, her bright, limpid eyes fixed on the two of them embracing.
If... if I'd been the one who'd almost been bitten just now... then the person His Highness would be holding would be me...
The thought that surfaced in Zhu Zhuqing's mind startled her.
She hadn't expected herself to have such a thought.
It felt as though she were coveting her own sister's man.
A hard-to-describe sense of guilt welled up inside her.
But at the same time, a different kind of thrill rose within her.
In her heart, she was grateful to her sister for risking her life to save her.
But deeper down, she longed for Dai Mobai to embrace her.
"His Highness—"
Unable to suppress the restless longing in her heart, Zhu Zhuqing reached out and tugged at Dai Mobai's clothes.
Dai Mobai lowered his head, meeting her yearning gaze.
"I want one too..."
Her voice was hesitant, like a cat pleading for affection.
Dai Mobai chuckled and drew Zhu Zhuqing into his arms as well.
Zhu Qing wanted it, and Zhu Qing got it.
The corners of Zhu Zhuqing's mouth rose beyond her control, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
Suddenly, she sensed a gaze coming from above and to her right.
She looked up and met her elder sister's placid gaze.
For no reason she could put her finger on, a trace of panic stirred in her heart.
Zhu Zhuqing instinctively tried to look away, but after shifting her gaze by half an inch, she suddenly stopped.
Wait, I'm His Highness's fiancée just like my sister. Why should I feel guilty?
With that thought, Zhu Zhuqing felt a little more confident.
She stopped avoiding her sister's gaze and met it openly instead.
Though Zhu Zhuyun saw no excess emotion in her younger sister's eyes, she still read three words in them: "I won't yield."
Looking at her sister like that, Zhu Zhuyun couldn't help smiling.
That familiar feeling had returned.
But this time, they weren't fighting over the throne or for their lives. They were fighting for Dai Mobai's affection.
The sisters thought their little exchange had gone unnoticed, but Dai Mobai had seen it all clearly.
He chose not to interfere, and had no intention of stopping them.
After all, competition bred motivation. Besides, no matter how hard the two of them fought for his attention, he would be the one to benefit in the end.
The cries of battle gradually faded.
Dai Mobai released Zhu Zhuyun and Zhu Zhuqing from his embrace, then turned around as the two watched him go with reluctant eyes.
"Your subordinate Chen Hu failed to protect you properly. I beg Your Highness to punish me!"
Chen Hu, who had joined forces with Li Yue to kill the Howling Moon Wolf King, paid no heed to his injuries. He dropped to his knees in front of Dai Mobai like a mountain collapsing.
His rugged face, still spattered with blood, was clouded with shame.
He had seen the Howling Moon Wolves break through the Copper Coin Formation, but the Howling Moon Wolf King had pinned him down, leaving him unable to break away.
If Dai Mobai hadn't arrived in time, Zhu Zhuyun would certainly have died, with unthinkable consequences!
"We beg Your Highness to punish us!"
The White Tiger Guards followed Chen Hu, dropping to their knees in a neat row.
"Since you're asking to be punished, I'll have you deal with the Howling Moon Wolves' corpses and lay the White Tiger Guards' remains to rest. Don't let anything go wrong."
Dai Mobai looked at everyone kneeling before him and spoke in a low voice.
At Dai Mobai's words, the White Tiger Guards—including their commander, Chen Hu—were left completely stunned.
How could that be called a punishment? It wasn't even as bad as being scolded by Dai Mobai.
"What are you all standing around for? Get moving."
Dai Mobai urged them on.
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Coming back to his senses, Chen Hu answered and was the first to get up and start clearing the camp.
While everyone cleaned up the battlefield, Dai Mobai glanced around. His gaze finally settled on a boulder beside the camp.
He measured the boulder's size and nodded in satisfaction. Then the Holy Light White Tiger quietly possessed him.
The Second Soul Ring lit beneath his feet. Holy Light Verdict: Judgment activated, and a pair of radiant wings unfurled behind him, transforming into six blades of light.
Dai Mobai focused his control. The blades of light landed precisely on the boulder, sending stone chips flying.
As time passed, the irregular boulder gradually took shape, lengthening bit by bit and becoming three-dimensional.
"Your Highness, the brothers' remains have been gathered. They're ready to be buried."
Chen Hu came to Dai Mobai's side and bowed.
"Wait a little longer. It's almost done."
Dai Mobai replied as the blades of light continued to dance through the air.
"Yes."
Chen Hu answered and stood quietly to one side without another word.
With the stone chips covering it, he couldn't tell what Dai Mobai was carving.
Another three or five minutes passed before the blades of light flying through the air finally stopped. They transformed back into radiant wings and vanished behind Dai Mobai.
Dai Mobai swept his sleeve, and a surge of Soul Power whipped up a gale.
The heaps of stone chips were swept away, finally revealing the object beneath.
It was a monument—a monument carved from bluestone.
"Your Highness, why did you carve a monument? Could it be..."
Chen Hu froze, and a daring guess came to mind.
"Chen Hu, as their commander, you should remember the names of the White Tiger Guards under your command, right?"
Dai Mobai turned his head to look at Chen Hu.
"I... I do!"
Realizing what Dai Mobai intended to do, Chen Hu nodded firmly, his eyes growing hot.
"Good. Then you can carve their names."
Dai Mobai stepped aside, motioning for Chen Hu to come forward.
"Yes... yes!"
Chen Hu felt as if something were lodged in his chest. His usually booming voice had gone hoarse.
He hurried to the monument, his outstretched fingers trembling.
A moment later, he suppressed his emotions and slowly began to carve, his fingers wrapped in Soul Power.
Stone chips pattered to the ground as one crooked name after another appeared on the monument.
Chen Hu carved nine names in one go before finally stopping.
"Your Highness, I'm done."
Chen Hu turned to look at Dai Mobai, his eyes already bloodshot.
"Raise the monument and give them one final send-off."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Chen Hu circulated his Soul Power and spread his arms. He lifted the ten-foot-tall monument, weighing a thousand pounds, and set it firmly into the grave they had dug for his fallen brothers.