Volume 1, Chapter 58: A Mutual Contest of Wits

Although the color remained the same timeless black, and a single blood-red rose still bloomed against the wind upon the hem of the robe, the altered cut naturally exuded a leisure and backbone quite different from the past.

Bullets burst forth like a torrential rain, and the brothers of Emperor Xiong cried out in agonizing pain. In an instant, no fewer than fifty men stationed at the front collapsed to the ground.

The Fat Man and Shadow, who were deep in lively conversation, were abruptly interrupted by Aotian, casting a pair of "aggrieved" glances at him.

Suddenly, every colleague in the office seemed to exhale a tightly wound breath, casting grateful looks toward Chu Qiao. Had she not returned, Yellow Tiger might very well have continued his endless lecturing! With the big boss gone, the previously huddled colleagues scattered like frightened beasts, each returning to their own tasks.

"Look at this, Big Brother. We men truly have it pitiful; we aren't even allowed to speak the truth," Shangguan Ao said with a helpless sigh.

Seeing the giant python's slacking behavior, Aotian was completely speechless. He had seen lazy people often enough, but a giant python as lazy as this was a first for him. Feeling utterly depressed, Aotian hurled a massive Fireball Spell directly into the creature's gaping mouth.

As he uttered these words, he instinctively glanced at Nie Yukun, who still wore the serene expression of a smiling Buddha.

"Young Master Yi, do you know where the Silver-Faced Man has hidden the current emperor's child?" Luo Yan asked.

Divine Emperor Xin Tianquan, his imperial composure just barely regained, suddenly changed countenance in profound shock. With a reverse swipe of his palm, eight luminous characters vanished with a resounding roar. The Wuji Diagram snapped shut with a sharp click, hurtling toward Kuang Yitian's glabella, where it hovered leisurely up and down on its own accord.

"I simply don't understand you young people." The old village chief shook his head and walked away leaning on his cane.

Tiansheng stood firmly in place. Although he still concealed his aura, he was fully prepared to strike at a moment's notice. In this unfamiliar world that did not belong to humankind, he dared not lower his guard in the slightest.

Dongling felt a jolt of alarm and whipped her head around, hurriedly scrambling up to step forward. Ye Yulin guided Mu Chonghao into the main hall and casually shut the heavy doors behind them.

To put it bluntly, she had simply given up and decided to let things break as they may. Besides, she had a strong intuition that the system would not allow her to die; otherwise, it wouldn't have helped her snatch survival from the jaws of death on previous occasions.

"What are you thinking about?" Mu Chonghao asked, noticing that she had remained silent for so long and seemed completely lost in thought.

Cecil's words carried a subtle power capable of easily swaying the emotions of those around him. Just as many people excelled at infusing their abilities into weapons, his forte lay in channeling his mental prowess fully into his speech—he was a born persuader.

"Where is Keigo?" Ian casually grabbed a servant, eager to find out Atobe's whereabouts, as he hadn't laid eyes on him all day.

Just as his voice trailed off, the cell phone in his pocket began to ring. He pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID, his expression shifting slightly. Without hesitation, he switched the phone to silent, ignored the call entirely, and tucked it back into his pocket.

"Very good. Once I take a look at the grain later, I'll go place the custom order," Yuan Muxheng said, agreeing with Lu Xiang'er that while the invitation was passable among peers, presenting it to someone of higher status would likely invite ridicule.

"My absolute favorite is scalded Chinese cabbage, and the meatballs are delicious too," Su Yi said excitedly, feeling she simply could not wait a moment longer.

"There's nothing wrong with the restaurant; the problem lies with the people who go there to eat—excluding us, of course," Meng Li said with a cheerful smile.

One must realize that transitioning the illusory into reality and the real into illusion is not a matter of playing the princess; it relies not only on your strength but also on your sincerity. Lacking spiritual energy or genuine intent, you are turned away directly at the door, given not even a chance to try.

Yet Lanluo, possessing merely the cultivation of the Mysterious Terrace Realm, had already achieved the preliminary fusion of the two most difficult laws, thereby generating a domain where time and space were perfectly blended. Even Xintian's true physical form fell far short of this feat.

Late in the night, Nanfeng awoke. He had been bitten awake by a rat. Upon coming to, he clutched his injured ear and chased after the culprit. Not knowing precisely who the assailant was, he condemned its entire nine familial generations—wiping out every single rat, numbering more than a dozen in total.

Tonight, both Chen Xin and Chen Xu had meticulously dressed up. Combined with their already striking appearances, they instantly captivated the attention of everyone present.

"Drink slowly, there's no rush; there's plenty of this soup," Mu Ziwei said gently, watching the two devour their food ravenously.

"Why three nights? Why not four or five, or perhaps one or two, or even more?" Instead of asking what these three nights signified, Yinge simply smiled and spoke in a soft tone.

"Ah, what a coincidence! What are you doing here?" Hanke flashed a grin and asked, feigning ignorance.

This instinctively generated vigilance caused them to raise their heads in unison at that exact moment, gazing up at the sky.

A childish voice, not yet devoid of its youthful ring, echoed through the air. Tracing the sound to its source, it emanated from that glowing orb of light. To their astonishment, not only could it move, but it could actually speak.

The force field of this spatial barrier was manifold more complex. Shi Yu reckoned that without several months of contemplation and research, breaking through this barrier was utterly out of the question.

Precisely for this reason, the spiritual energy of the entire spiritual vein had long been forcibly drained to near-exhaustion. Aside from a thin layer of iridescent brilliance shimmering on the surface, the interior of the peak was now completely hollowed out.

"My Lord! This fiend comes in the dead of night; there is bound to be some treachery afoot, so we must not act rashly. Let us wait until dawn, when we shall lead a grand army into the mountain, wash the fiend's nest in blood, and vent our Prince's anger!" Long Huan advised.

Upon learning that the third candidate had actually gone to the Sword Graveyard—and proved to be such a scoundrel—Yun Xiao felt that the swordsmanship manual he had left behind years ago was a match made in heaven for the fellow, practically tailor-made for him.

Observing the surrounding sword lords, the faction loyal to Taishi had nearly completed their withdrawal. Having tangled with Supreme Master Shangguan for a thousand moves, Luowei smiled faintly. "Supreme Master Shangguan, I'm done playing. Farewell, let us play again if the chance arises." Refusing to spar any further, he vanished with a swoosh, leaving Supreme Master Shangguan boiling with rage.