Before Xue Ye's Banquet

When word of Emperor Xue Ye's banquet reached Blue Tyrant Academy, Bai Jin was asleep on the Training Ground.

More precisely, he was asleep on a tree branch.

Below him, the others were drenched in sweat from the training he had put them through. Dai Mubai, bare-chested, lifted a stone weight. Ma Hongjun ran laps as if he were about to breathe fire. Oscar chased Ning Rongrong with a basket of rocks on his back, still finding breath to shout, "Rongrong, slow down! I'm a Support, not a horse!"

Ning Rongrong did not look back. "Run faster! My boost hasn't worn off yet!"

Bai Jin opened one eye.

"Not bad. The young lady finally knows a Support can torture teammates too."

Ning Rongrong was about to retort when a familiar laugh came from the academy Gate.

"It seems Rongrong is doing well here."

Ning Rongrong whipped around.

Ning Fengzhi stood outside in white, smiling gently. Behind him was the Sword-Browed, Star-Eyed Elder, a longsword on his back. His aura was as keen as a peerless blade resting in its sheath.

"Dad! Grandpa Sword!"

Ning Rongrong instinctively moved to throw herself at them, but stopped short after two steps. She glanced at her training clothes and her dust-covered hands, suddenly embarrassed.

Chen Xin raised an eyebrow. "What, don't you recognize Grandpa Sword?"

Ning Rongrong's eyes stung. She ran over anyway and hugged his arm.

"Of course I do."

Bai Jin flipped down from the tree and greeted him lazily. "Old Sword. You got here fast."

Chen Xin looked at him. "I heard someone drove off a Titan Giant Ape in Heaven Dou. I came to see whether it was all hot air."

"Then take a look."

Bai Jin spread his arms, wearing an insufferable grin.

"Aren't I younger, handsomer, and more promising than you?"

Chen Xin's face did not change. "Your skin is certainly thicker than mine."

Ning Fengzhi could not help laughing.

Tang San watched in quiet astonishment. Sword Douluo Chen Xin was a guardian elder of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, one of the strongest Titled Douluo. Yet he spoke to Bai Jin like an old friend.

Chen Xin was also looking at Tang San.

His gaze passed over the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges at Tang San's waist, then over his fingers. Something shifted in his eyes, but he asked nothing.

"Gu Rong didn't come?" Bai Jin asked.

Chen Xin replied evenly, "If he had, half this Training Ground would be gone."

"What a shame." Bai Jin sighed. "I wanted him to try a new way I've thought up to throw people."

Ning Fengzhi laughed. "If Uncle Bone heard that, he'd probably stuff you straight into the Bone Prison."

"He has," Bai Jin said matter-of-factly. "It didn't hold me."

A trace of amusement finally entered Chen Xin's eyes. Tang San's chest tightened. Bai Jin spoke of Bone Douluo's Bone Prison as casually as sheltering from the rain. Just how many absurd things had this Mr. Bai been through?

Ning Fengzhi addressed the group warmly. "His Majesty Emperor Xue Ye is hosting a banquet tonight, and His Highness the Crown Prince will attend. I was invited, so I came by to see Rongrong on the way."

"On the way?" Bai Jin said with a smile.

Ning Fengzhi answered frankly, "I also wanted to see what sort of mess you've made of Heaven Dou City."

"I've behaved myself."

Chen Xin snorted. "Do you believe that yourself?"

Bai Jin thought about it seriously. "Sometimes."

Ning Rongrong had been delighted, but when her father's gaze settled on her, she straightened her back.

"Dad, I've reached level twenty-eight."

Ning Fengzhi paused.

Surprise flickered in Chen Xin's eyes too.

Ning Rongrong raised a hand, and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda appeared above her palm. Its light was brighter than when she had left home. Her voice was quiet but steady.

"I helped everyone save people and break an Evil Soul Master's formation. Mr. Bai said I can still provide Support if I shout a little less."

Bai Jin added from the side, "Mostly because you used to shout too loudly."

Ning Rongrong glared at him.

But Ning Fengzhi smiled, his gaze gentle.

"Rongrong has grown up."

Those words made Ning Rongrong's nose sting more than any praise could.

She had always hated being called the little princess of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, as though her status was all she had. Now she suddenly felt that the day her father and Grandpa Sword could trust her to guard their backs would be a day truly worth taking pride in.

Bai Jin's smile faded. He tossed the pharmacy Ledger to Ning Fengzhi.

"Tonight's banquet might not be peaceful."

Ning Fengzhi opened the Ledger, his expression growing grave.

"The Old Sacrificial Treasury?"

Sword Intent flashed in Chen Xin's eyes. "Beneath the Imperial City?"

Bai Jin nodded.

"The Gate opens in seven days. Today is the third. People are being transferred through the street behind the Auction House, screened at the pharmacy, and drained of Soul Power in the Old Warehouse. Someone wants to use the old Killing Intent beneath Heaven Dou Imperial City to open a path."

Ning Fengzhi considered this for a moment. "During a royal banquet, security inside the palace is at its tightest. It's also when people are most likely to overlook the Old Canal outside."

Tang San's eyes sharpened. "Their real target may not be the banquet, but what everyone stops watching because of it."

"Smart." Bai Jin glanced at the invitation Xue Qinghe had sent. "So we split into two groups tonight. Sect Master Ning and Old Sword can watch the show at the banquet. I'll take a few youngsters to look at the drains."

Ning Fengzhi closed the Ledger. Beneath his gentle expression was the authority of a sect master.

"If anything happens in the palace, I'll help His Highness the Crown Prince keep matters under control."

Chen Xin tapped a finger lightly against his sword hilt. "If anyone tries to make a move at the banquet, I'll handle them."

"Don't cut too hard," Bai Jin said with a grin. "The palace is expensive to repair."

"That depends on whether they're worth it," Chen Xin replied.

Watching her father and Grandpa Sword, Ning Rongrong suddenly understood why Bai Jin always said being strong meant more than standing above others. When true powerhouses spoke, people could not help believing that even if the sky fell, they would hold it up for a while.

She had always had that protection, but never thought that one day she should stand in front of someone else.

Ma Hongjun looked miserable. "Drains again?"

Oscar patted his shoulder. "At least it's not a warehouse this time."

"Shut up and get ready," Zhu Zhuqing said coldly.

Dai Mubai was already on his feet.

"I'm going."

"So am I," Tang San said.

Xiao Wu said nothing. She simply stepped up beside Tang San.

Ning Rongrong looked toward Ning Fengzhi, as though seeking permission.

Ning Fengzhi smiled. "You're already a member of Shrek. Ask yourself."

Ning Rongrong took a deep breath.

"I'm going too."

Bai Jin glanced at her and smiled.

"All right, little level-twenty-eight Support. Don't let us down tonight."

"You're the one who'll let us down!"

Tang San straightened his cuffs. He put nothing else into his Hidden Weapon pouch, merely letting Blue Silver Grass creep quietly to his feet. Xiao Wu saw it and nudged his shoulder. Neither spoke, but both knew tonight was about more than following clues.

Bai Jin looked at how they had braced themselves as if facing a mortal enemy, then suddenly laughed.

"Don't be nervous. If it really comes crashing down, you still have me."

He said it casually, but everyone's breathing steadied a little.

Dusk deepened.

In the distance, lights were coming on across the Imperial City. A Bell Chime rang long and low, as though drawing back the curtain on a dignified banquet.

Yet at that same moment, deep within Heaven Dou City's Old Canal, the muffled sound of flowing water stopped for a heartbeat.

In the darkness, something woke.