Li Chen Zhou had just finished regulating his breath. True qi surged within his dantian like the first rising tide, a sign that he had entered the Fifth Rank. Bamboo shadows swayed outside the window when three soft knocks suddenly sounded, like dewdrops falling on green stone.
"Creak—" As the door opened, moonlight poured in like water. Consort Li stood there in plain robes whiter than snow, traces of tears at the corners of her eyes still gleaming beneath the moon.
"Consort Li?" Before Li Chen Zhou could finish speaking, Consort Li had already slipped inside, her gauze sleeves carrying the chilly fragrance of winter plum blossoms.
"Consort Li?" Li Chen Zhou hurriedly stepped aside to make way, catching a faint scent of agarwood from her—the incense his father loved most.
Consort Li strode into the room. As her embroidered shoes crossed the threshold, they stirred a faint breeze. She set the lantern on the Eight Immortals table, its candlelight illuminating the Blood Demon Blade that had yet to be sheathed. Dark red stains still lingered in the blade's blood groove.
"Your father..." Consort Li's fingertips brushed the crimson tassel wrapped around the hilt, and her voice suddenly caught. "To preserve the honor of Duke Zhen's Estate, he chose the path of cultivating both Buddha and demon."
A mass of dark clouds covered the moon outside, and the room instantly dimmed. Li Chen Zhou saw a roll of yellowed hide paper slip from Consort Li's sleeve. When she unfolded it, it proved to be a fragment of the Asura Physique, its corners still stained with blood that had turned black.
"In only three years, he rose from Subordinate Sixth Rank to Grandmaster. The price was suffering the agony of reversed meridians every day." Consort Li's nails scraped several white marks across the tabletop. "Our Nie Family's Ice Heart Mantra... can barely suppress his inner demon any longer."
Li Chen Zhou remained silent. He had long noticed that his father's right hand would tremble unconsciously when drinking tea lately. That was a sign of true qi running wild. The candle suddenly crackled with a burst of wick flame, illuminating his tightly clenched fist—his knuckles had already turned white.
"Do not blame him." Consort Li suddenly seized his hand, her palm icy cold. "Those brothers in the army who followed him through life and death, those disciples and protégés in court who depended on the Li Family... if he fell, all of them would be purged." Her voice grew softer and softer. "After that argument with you, he knelt in the ancestral hall for the entire night..."
A night wind suddenly slammed open the window lattice, making the candle flames on the desk sway violently. As Li Chen Zhou rose to close the window, he caught sight of a black shadow flashing beneath the old locust tree in the corner of the courtyard—it looked like his father's commander of personal guards.
"Half a year..." As Consort Li rose, a mutton-fat jade pendant slipped from her sleeve. Li Chen Zhou bent down to pick it up and found the two characters "Asura" carved on its reverse. Spiderweb-like cracks had already spread across its surface. "If he cannot complete the full Asura Physique, he can hold on for half a year at most."
After seeing Consort Li off, Li Chen Zhou stood beneath the corridor and gazed at the sky. The east had already turned fish-belly white when a line of blood-red words abruptly appeared on the system screen:
"Ding—Emergency mission triggered: Resolve the conflict between Buddha and demon (179 days remaining) Solution technique: Great Sun Tathagata Demon Scripture. Meet the following requirements to unlock rewards: First, court position: Brocade Guard Thousand Household Commander Second, martial world reputation: First place on the Heaven Ranking." "Ding—Side mission triggered: Obtain Shaolin's Buddha Relic and help Li Qing Shan suppress his inner demon. Completion reward: Immoveable Wisdom King Scripture (Brahma Saint True Demon Art body-tempering chapter)."
Upon receiving the system's mission notification, Li Chen Zhou also relaxed slightly inside. With a goal in hand, the rest would be easier to deal with.
At the third watch of the fifth drum, the echoes of the street-clearing drums still reverberated through the wards as twelve Golden Guards ran toward the Nine Gates through the morning dew. The Thousand Household Commander at their head struck a gilded bronze gong heavily, startling a whole treeful of cold crows into flight.
"The imperial proclamation has arrived—"
Before the Chengtian Gate, the bright yellow silk on the vermilion proclamation board snapped loudly in the morning wind. The Vice Minister of Rites personally carried forth the imperial seal and stamped a vivid red mark in the lower-right corner of the silk. The instant sunlight pierced through the clouds, the vermilion imperial writing glowed with an eerie red light:
"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: I have heard that the martial world abounds with outstanding heroes, while the court possesses gifted talents. Therefore, I specially permit martial artists from across the realm to compete in the capital and contend for the rankings, thereby displaying the flourishing prosperity of the martial path. The rules are as follows: First, arenas shall be established at the Meridian Gate Plaza, beginning on the fifteenth day of the third month and ending on the first day of the fourth month; Second, competition shall be divided into the Earth Ranking, Rising Dragon Ranking, and Heaven Ranking: ??Earth Ranking: martial artists below the Fifth Rank shall contend; ??Rising Dragon Ranking: rising talents below thirty years of age shall compete; ??Heaven Ranking: experts of the Lesser Grandmaster realm shall duel; Third, those who enter the rankings shall receive: ??Earth Ranking champion: an official appointment as Brocade Guard Hundred Household Commander, and the complete Celestial Dipper Heart Method; ??Rising Dragon Ranking first place: an Iron Certificate, with permission to enter the imperial armory and choose one divine weapon; ??Top three of the Heaven Ranking: bestowed the title of Thousand Household Marquis, granted one Greater Revitalization Pill, and permitted to choose one secret imperial technique; Fourth, competition rules: ??1. Life and death shall be left to fate, but poison, gu, and hidden weapons are forbidden; ??2. The arenas shall open each day at the hour of the dragon and close at sunset; ??3. A life-and-death waiver must be signed; injury and disability shall each be left to Heaven's will. By Imperial Decree."
Before the imperial proclamation, an old man wearing a bronze mask suddenly sneered. "What a plan to kill three birds with one stone!" The "Heavenly Secrets" jade plaque at his waist gleamed blue-green beneath the rising sun. "It not only makes the martial world slaughter itself, but also allows them to recruit experts, and in the end..." Before he could finish, he broke into a violent coughing fit, black blood seeping through his fingers.
The sword-bearing youth beside him hurriedly supported him and said in a low voice, "Martial Uncle, are these rewards not a little too generous... The imperial armory contains fragments of the Grand Void Sword Scripture!"
"Idiot!" The old man flung away his hand. "Do you think these techniques are handed out for free?" He pointed toward a line of tiny characters in the corner of the proclamation—the words flickered in and out beneath the sunlight: "Those who enter the rankings must swear loyalty to the court for ten years."
Li Chen Zhou stood atop the tallest watchtower of Duke Zhen's Estate, watching the rising sun dye the imperial city blood-red. At some point, the Blood Demon Blade at his waist had drawn itself three inches from its sheath. The dark red patterns on its blade twisted madly, as if thirsting for something.
"Ding—The imperial proclamation has been issued, triggering a limited-time ranking seizure mission. Earth Ranking first-place reward: Indestructible Divine Skill. Earth Ranking rewards below first place: 5 years of internal cultivation. Rising Dragon Ranking first-place reward: Heavenly Frost Fist. Rising Dragon Ranking rewards below first place: 5 years of internal cultivation."
"System," he silently called in his heart.
The screen unfolded:
"Host: Li Chen Zhou Realm: Early Fifth Rank (123/180) Martial arts: Thirteen Guardian Golden Bell Shield (Mastery) Three Abyssal Slashes (Mastery) Soul Absorption Art (Mastery) Divine-grade attribute 20% (Cosmic Shift unlocked) Thousand Faces (Mastery) Soaring Illusionary Steps (Mastery) Hell Soul Exchange Scripture (Mastery) Wind God Kick (Mastery) Internal cultivation: 123 years (calculated according to an ordinary person cultivating a basic technique for one year) Lifespan: 32 years Weapon: Blood Demon Blade (blood-drinking amplification)"
A distant, melodious bell sounded—this was the signal that the Ministry of Rites had begun setting up the arenas.
Li Chen Zhou suddenly leaped from the watchtower. When he landed, two footprints three inches deep were left in the blue bricks he shattered beneath his feet.
"Prepare the horse." He spoke to the personal guards rushing over at the sound. "Let us go meet those 'heroes' of the martial world."
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