Though a Thousand Men Stand in My Way!

With tiger-like eyes brimming with tears, Wu Datou choked out a plea: "My Lady..."

"Say no more. General Wu, you must remember the responsibility you bear!" Lady Shu's face was as cold as frost, utterly heartless.

"Young Master Shu... Second Young Master Shu..." Wu Datou knelt on the ground, his body trembling as he begged the two brothers for help.

Shu Da and Shu Er were already pale as ghosts, panicked and at a loss. Seeing Wu Datou prostrate himself before them, they immediately scrambled to hide behind Lady Shu.

"Mother, Mother..." Each grabbed one of her arms, clutching them tightly as if they had finally found their anchor.

Lady Shu hurriedly comforted them, pulling them into her embrace. While secretly relieved, she couldn't help but complain inwardly: Why hadn't those four Spirit Beast Masters arrived yet? Was killing a mere boy like Chu Yun really such a chore? With them present, the three of them would be far safer.

Sigh, the situation in the All-Star Archipelago is about to change. Taking in the scene before him, the White-Browed Alchemist shook his head and sighed to himself.

Lady Shu is, after all, a woman of limited vision; she fails to see what Shu Tianhao truly means to Shu Family Island. If she were to raise an army to rescue him now, there might still be time. Shu Tianhao is the soul and pillar of Shu Family Island. If the All-Star Fierce Tiger dies, Shu Family Island will have effectively lost half its foundation.

These two sons of Shu Tianhao are incapable of shouldering such a burden. With his death, there will be no successor. With the island leaderless, Lady Shu will surely invite the Ning Family's troops to help garrison the place. Heh, I fear that in the future, Shu Family Island will become nothing more than a satellite island of the Ning Family!

The White-Browed Alchemist possessed a strategic mind, seeing through the developments with crystal clarity. He was already deducing the future trajectory of the political landscape.

The Ning Family is already the wealthiest and most powerful force in the All-Star Archipelago. If they annex Shu Family Island and gain the martial prowess of the Shu army, they will truly become the dominant power in the archipelago.

Lady Shu intends to hold the island to the death, which is the extent of her duty. After all, she is an ordinary person with shallow horizons. Moreover, the opponent is the pirate Remnant Wolf, whose Beacon Smoke Wolf beast is said to have reached 136 years of cultivation. Without powerful spirit beasts to assist, going to the rescue is practically suicide. Sigh, it is simply a pity for all the years of support and persistence Shu Tianhao has poured into this island!

The White-Browed Alchemist lamented.

But it was only a lament; for him to intervene was out of the question.

Since its founding, the Heavenly Song Academy had remained strictly neutral, never wavering. It had never once interfered in the conflicts of the All-Star Archipelago.

It seems Shu Tianhao's death is a foregone conclusion. The change of ownership for Shu Family Island is also all but certain. The balance of the All-Star Archipelago has been broken; I must inform the Academy Master...

As he pondered this, the White-Browed Alchemist suddenly sensed a shift in the atmosphere.

"Chu, Chu Yun, how are you here..." Lady Shu's face turned as white as a sheet of paper. She stared at the entrance in shock, as if she had seen a ghost.

The Spirit Beast Master at the Earth Altar also called out: "Kid Chu Yun! You've finally arrived; you're not late after all. By passing this assessment, you will be the top of the coming-of-age ceremony and enter the Heavenly Song Academy. This gentleman here is a teacher from the Heavenly Song Academy, the renowned White-Browed Alchemist!"

The White-Browed Alchemist looked back and saw a youth and a fox walking toward him.

He felt his eyes brighten, and he couldn't help but praise inwardly: This youth...

Chu Yun was dressed in a simple white robe today, yet the plain attire could not hide his handsome temperament. Thanks to the refinement of the Heavenly Fox's spiritual energy, his lips were red, his teeth white, and his eyes as dark as stars. His posture was straight, radiating a heroic spirit that even a man of the White-Browed Alchemist's stature found unforgettable.

His previous negative impression of Chu Yun immediately dissipated by thirty percent. The White-Browed Alchemist was just expecting Chu Yun to greet him, only to find that Chu Yun didn't even glance at him, walking straight past him.

"Hmm?" He was stunned. As a teacher of the Heavenly Song Academy, which youth at the coming-of-age ceremony didn't treat him with the utmost respect? He had never seen a young man so arrogant!

Instantly, his favor for Chu Yun dropped by twenty percent.

"Young Master Chu Yun..." Wu Datou, eyes streaming with tears, also noticed Chu Yun's arrival.

Chu Yun remained expressionless, turning a deaf ear to the Spirit Beast Master's words. He walked up to Wu Datou, suddenly raised his right foot, and delivered a fierce kick!

Thud.

Caught off guard, Wu Datou was kicked to the ground. He was stunned!

Not only was he stunned, but everyone else present was also frozen in place.

"Wu Datou, you idiot! How long do you intend to keep kneeling!?" Chu Yun barked, "Get up, now!"

"Y-yes." Wu Datou, in a daze, subconsciously scrambled to his feet.

"My father saved your life, and now that he is at death's door, you are just sitting here? What the hell are you doing! Get out there, rally the troops, and follow me to save him!"

Chu Yun's words were like a thunderclap, leaving everyone present completely dumbfounded.

"Y-Young Master Chu Yun..." Wu Datou looked at him in utter disbelief.

"Kid Chu Yun, you absolutely must not. The opponent is one of the three great pirates, the notorious Remnant Wolf! He possesses the Great Spirit Beast, the Beacon Smoke Wolf! Even the Island Master is no match for him; if you go to save him, you're just throwing your life away!" The Spirit Beast Master panicked and hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

"Shut up!!" The usually polite Chu Yun was now sharp as a blade. A single shout over his shoulder forced the Spirit Beast Master to swallow his words.

"My foster father's kindness to me is as heavy as a mountain, a debt of rebirth. Now that he is trapped and in mortal danger, if I, as his son, see him die and do nothing, I would be no better than a beast!"

As Chu Yun spoke, his eyes turned bloodshot, tears welled in his tiger-like eyes, and his body trembled slightly. At this moment, he radiated an aura of righteous brilliance that made it impossible to look away.

The Spirit Beast Master opened his mouth several times, but could not utter a single word.

"Young Master Chu Yun!" Wu Datou's face was drenched in tears and flushed red. His voice trembled, choked with emotion!

What does it mean that a strong wind reveals the sturdy grass, and a chaotic nation reveals the loyal subject?

In the Island Master's hour of crisis, only one person had stepped forward.

That was his foster son—Chu Yun!

"No, Chu Yun, I don't care if you go to your death. But don't you dare incite General Wu! Without the garrison, how are we to protect Shu Family Island!" Lady Shu shrieked.

Shu Da added, "General Wu, Father entrusted you with the defense of the city before he left; this is a military order! You cannot defy it!"

Shu Er chimed in with a sinister tone: "Chu Yun, you must consider the big picture."

"To hell with your big picture." Chu Yun cast a cold glance, and Shu Er shuddered, a bone-chilling coldness rendering him speechless.

"Why are you still standing there? Get out there and do your job!" With a glare, Chu Yun barked at Wu Datou without a shred of courtesy.

"Yes, yes." Though scolded and berated, Wu Datou felt an extreme sense of joy. He hurried out of the Earth Altar.

Lady Shu wanted to stop him, but the words died on her lips, swallowed back down.

It's just as well. Let Chu Yun and Wu Datou go to their deaths. Even if the pirates attack the island, the three of us can just hide in the forest; that will be enough to hold out until the Ning Family army arrives. Let those two fools go and die.

Watching Chu Yun's retreating back, a sinister smile curled the corners of Lady Shu's mouth.

"Young man, wait a moment." The White-Browed Alchemist suddenly spoke up, calling out to Chu Yun.

Lady Shu and her two children felt their hearts tighten instantly.

The White-Browed Alchemist continued, "Young man, I admire your courage. But courage alone cannot always solve problems. I have heard the rumors; you took first place in both assessments. As long as you participate in the third, your admission to Heavenly Song Academy is a certainty. Rather than going to your death now, it would be better to preserve your useful life and avenge Shu Tianhao in the future."

"Lord White-Browed Alchemist speaks the truth, kid Chu Yun, don't let a moment of hot-headedness ruin you!" the Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master hurriedly chimed in. He truly could not bear to watch a young man with such a bright future throw his life away for nothing!

Chu Yun halted his steps, turned to the side, and looked at the White-Browed Alchemist.

Lady Shu and her two children were so tense they could barely breathe, as if waiting for Chu Yun to hear his own verdict.

"You are an outsider, what could you possibly know? Compared to my father, the Heavenly Song Academy... hah." Casting a faint glance at the White-Browed Alchemist, Chu Yun turned away abruptly. A flash of light flickered through his mind as scenes from his past and present lives surged into his heart.

Pain, unwillingness, regret... Now that he had been given a second chance, how could he walk the same old path again?

With a light chuckle, Chu Yun left behind a single sentence and strode forward: "Heavenly Song Academy, what does that even count for at a time like this!"

Heavenly Song Academy would have been a tremendous boost to his grand plans. But compared to the safety of his foster father, Shu Tianhao, it meant nothing at all.

Chu Yun had been reborn out of unwillingness; this life was meant to make up for his regrets. Not entering Heavenly Song Academy in his past life was a regret, but the death of his foster father was a far greater one.

Even if he didn't enter Heavenly Song Academy, at most, his development would simply be a level slower. But if he watched his foster father die, his future life would be filled with nothing but remorse.

The Heavenly Song Academy, famous throughout the All-Star Archipelago... it simply didn't amount to much.

"How dare he!" "Ignorant boy, how arrogant, how arrogant!" The three members of the Shu family were both shocked and delighted, unleashing a barrage of vitriolic curses.

The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master stood frozen on the spot.

The White-Browed Alchemist, being the one addressed, also paused in his expression. He was a man of high cultivation; naturally, he would not feel anger over the impassioned words of a thirteen-year-old boy.

He watched Chu Yun's retreating back—the frail, slender shoulders of a thirteen-year-old boy, yet at this moment, they seemed to be carrying a mountain!

His steps were unwavering. And following closely behind the boy was the mutated Lesser Demon. How insignificant they appeared! Yet, this sight made the White-Browed Alchemist's eyes grow brighter and brighter.

Heavenly Song Academy gathered the most brilliant young geniuses of the All-Star Archipelago. What kind of young talents had the White-Browed Alchemist not seen? Yet, for the first time in many years, he felt a spark of excitement in his heart.

"Courage, great and fearless courage! This boy is interesting, very interesting..."

Stepping out of the Earth Altar, the gloomy sea breeze hit him instantly. Chu Yun looked up at the horizon, seeing thick layers of clouds piling up in the sky, with muffled thunder rumbling within them. It seemed a thunderstorm was brewing.

Chu Yun frowned; the heavens were not being kind. If a torrential rainstorm poured down, what hope was there for a rescue?

Moreover, according to the urgent military report, a significant amount of time had already passed. It was possible it was already too late; nine times out of ten, he would arrive only to face his father's corpse.

However, whether the rescue succeeded was one thing, and whether he went to attempt it was another.

From the moment he arrived at the Earth Altar and unexpectedly heard the military report from Wu Datou, Chu Yun had cast all thoughts of Heavenly Song Academy to the back of his mind. The only thought remaining was to rescue Shu Tianhao.

This determination was unshakable. Even if the sky fell and the earth cracked, nothing could influence it.

His mind was made up.

Even if the heavens stood in his way, even if the enemy was powerful, even if the rescue was hopeless, nothing could stop Chu Yun's stride.

Pressing forward, though there be millions, he would go!

At eight-forty-five, Wu Datou led eighty-eight garrison soldiers to rendezvous with Chu Yun.

"Young Master Chu Yun..." Wu Datou's face was filled with shame. There were over a hundred soldiers in the Shu Family City garrison, but these were the only ones who had followed him.

Chu Yun's expression was cold as he simply said, "Follow me."