Chapter 155: If You Want to Challenge Me, Defeat My Puppet First [Seeking Monthly Votes]-Becoming a Saint by Cultivating the Fruits of Time(Li Hongtian)

Young Emperor Yuan had no idea that An Le did not belong to this era.

Being defeated by An Le dealt a massive blow to his state of mind. Young Emperor Yuan desired to be invincible within the Five Realms, to become the true supreme figure of the lower five realms. Such a mindset was somewhat akin to gathering invincible momentum.

However, Young Emperor Yuan was not treading the path of gathering invincible momentum. Throughout his growth, he had also tasted defeat. In the early days, when tribes on the grasslands slaughtered one another, his cultivation techniques were not profound. Later on, through various opportunities encountered in battle and the teachings of mighty experts, he gradually stepped onto the path of invincibility in the lower five realms.

His trajectory of growth was far from smooth; he rose amidst a gauntlet of trials and hardships.

Yet, one must admit that Young Emperor Yuan had indeed dazzled an entire era, refining both his cultivation techniques and combat skills to true perfection within the lower five realms.

Had it not been for the battle puppet space and his relentless honing within it, An Le would truly have had little hope of crushing the fifth-realm Young Emperor Yuan.

Everything before his eyes began to gradually dissipate. Young Emperor Yuan vanished, and the heavily scarred, ravined grasslands disappeared as well.

It was akin to a scene of bygone years ignited and formed by the aura of time.

The battle puppet space transformed into a vast, gray expanse of dread. Young Emperor Yuan stood quietly, carrying a profound iron greatbow and a bifurcated spear, with a curved saber strapped to his waist, resembling a sculpture.

Before An Le's eyes, text materialized on a light screen.

【Won battle puppet; the battle puppet can be summoned to assist in combat.】

As the azure characters emerged, An Le's understanding of the battle puppet gradually became clear in his mind.

A look of pleasant surprise could not help but well up in An Le's eyes.

The battle puppet was akin to an avatar possessing self-awareness in its actions, and An Le could also control it with his primordial spirit.

The combat power currently possessed by the battle puppet was identical to that of Young Emperor Yuan. If An Le broke through to the sixth realm, it would also drive an increase in the battle puppet's combat power.

Should the battle puppet be shattered, it would return to the battle puppet space to be reshaped, during which time it could not be summoned.

A smile curved the corners of An Le's lips. In other words, he, An Le, had obtained an assistant that was as obedient as his own limbs, possessed the combat power of a double-fifth-realm peak, and was capable of slaying the seventh realm.

At critical moments, the battle puppet could even be used to block a fatal blow.

Furthermore, within the battle puppet space, An Le could even utilize the battle puppet to hone his swordsmanship, combat skills, the circulation of cultivation techniques, and so on...

Although the battle puppet was not a powerful method for large-scale destruction like the 【Blood Guanyin】, nor was it a method like the 【Heroic Qi Summoning】 that allowed one to borrow the power of heroic qi to fight across realms, it was nevertheless an assistant that could grow alongside An Le continuously.

If An Le were to step into the ninth realm in the future, it would be equivalent to having a ninth-realm assistant of heavenly pride caliber.

Stepping into the tenth realm... would mean having the assistance of a Yuanmeng Emperor.

It could be said that the 【Battle Puppet】 Dao fruit was a growth-type Dao fruit!

The future was full of promise!

......

Lin'an was prone to rain. A fine drizzle drifted faintly through the hazy sky, resembling rolled-up pearl curtains swaying gently in the human world.

Taimiao Lane.

In the small courtyard.

Li Qingchuan's brows were tightly knitted, his heart hanging in suspense. An Le had entered a peculiar state for a full two days, and for much of that time, his brows had been furrowed. The density of the aura of death between his eyebrows made Li Qingchuan's heart palpitate with lingering fear, terrified that An Le's mind would be destroyed by the death qi and that he would suddenly drop dead.

As a Dao-servant of the Glazed Lamp, whose life was intertwined with An Le's, if An Le were to drop dead, he too would perish. Naturally, his heart was filled with anxiety.

The Sixth Mountain Master, Zhao Huangting, and the others had long since finished viewing the painting. Having waited for a day without seeing An Le wake up, they marveled at his state.

Naturally, they knew nothing of the battle puppet Dao fruit, and thus could not judge the situation An Le was encountering, but they had faith in An Le and did not believe anything would happen to him.

Therefore, after waiting for a day, the Sixth Mountain Master, Zhao Huangting, and others left holding the Sword Bamboo Scroll, going into Lin'an City to visit old friends.

Two days felt like the water vapor on a mere ripple casually kicked up across the long river of time.

For the small courtyard, two days amounted to nothing.

Yet these two days transformed the entire city of Lin'an into a place of incomparable bustle.

The geniuses of the Yuanmeng Empire's Falcon Ranking all headed south. In order to demonstrate the attitude of the Great Zhao's friendliness, Qin Lishi even formed a welcoming party to greet them at the city gates.

With great pomp and splendor, he ushered the Yuanmeng Empire's geniuses into Lin'an, personally hosting a banquet and arranging for them to stay at the Drunken Dragon Pavilion.

The geniuses of the Xiliang Kingdom and the Dali Kingdom received the same treatment and were also lodged at the Drunken Dragon Pavilion. As for the Xiliang and Dali geniuses, Qin Lishi's attitude was not only warm and enthusiastic, but the First Prince even came out personally to welcome them, truly revealing his identity as the hidden master behind the Drunken Dragon Pavilion.

The First Prince had been in his element these past few days. The death of the Second Prince Zhao Pei was a source of supreme joy to him. Originally, in the struggle for the crown prince's seat, the First Prince did not actually hold the advantage; after all, Zhao Pei possessed supreme talent, and moreover had the Heavenly Master's Mansion backing him, with quite a few officials in the imperial court standing on his side.

Had the First Prince not bound himself tightly to Qin Lishi and humbly sought instruction from Pang Ji, the Second Scholar of the Academy of Letters, he might long have been crushed breathless by the Second Prince Zhao Pei.

Now that the Second Prince Zhao Pei had been slain by An Le, that mountain-like pressure vanished without a trace.

The smile on the First Prince's face grew significantly richer, and the crown prince's seat could be said to be securely within his grasp. Of course, out of caution, the First Prince did not show himself regarding the geniuses of the Yuanmeng Falcon Ranking.

However, as for the geniuses of the Dali Kingdom and Xiliang Kingdom, the First Prince was determined to win them over; after all, there was still a possibility of Dali and Xiliang joining forces.

The high-profile banquets and welcomes hosted by the First Prince and Prime Minister Qin Lishi made all the cultivators throughout Lin'an aware of the Great Zhao imperial court's attitude toward these geniuses.

Such a scene caused quite a few cultivators within Lin'an Prefecture to suppress a breath of stifled frustration.

It was precisely because of the contrast that they felt such reluctance and indignation.

An Le was the true local genius of Great Zhao, yet local talents were repeatedly targeted. The Emperor of Great Zhao even issued an order for the Dali Temple and the Black Yamen to issue arrest warrants across Great Zhao for An Le.

In contrast, the geniuses dispatched by the Yuanmeng Empire—who should rightfully have been hostile—were treated with utmost importance by the imperial court. How many soldiers at the border had fought the iron cavalry of the Yuanmeng Empire, wrapping their horse hides around their corpses and bleeding upon the sands...

When An Le entered the city, the army stood with weapons ready in stern and murderous array, even deploying ninth-realm experts in an attempt to capture him.

Yet when the geniuses of Mongolia, Xiliang, and Dali entered Lin'an, the Ministry of Rites' ceremonial procession was deployed, and the Prime Minister himself went out to welcome them into the city...

On one side was Great Zhao's own genius, the heaven-gifted figure who ascended to the summit of the Lesser Saint Ranking; on the other side were the enemy geniuses whom the borders were still shouting to kill and slaughter.

Such contrasting treatment indeed chilled many hearts, filling them with contempt and fury toward the Zhao family's imperial court.

Of course, An Le had killed the Second Prince Zhao Pei and angered the Zhao family's emperor... which could perhaps be considered somewhat excusable.

Yet earlier on, what An Le did had done no wrong; everything was the result of the Great Zhao imperial court pushing him step by step. Viewed through this stark comparison, scholars and literati all felt a surge of righteous indignation.

Over these two days, as these geniuses entered Lin'an, the atmosphere of the entire city changed.

Because too many geniuses had gathered, and they belonged to different countries and sects, it naturally stirred up numerous storms.

The head of the Dali Kingdom's Star Ranking was Lu Ziwei, and she was also responsible for leading the team this time. Lu Ziwei had dealings with An Le in the Sword Pool Palace. A woman of cold disposition, she led the Dali royal family and the Star Ranking's geniuses, maintaining a fairly disciplined demeanor within Lin'an.

However, the Yuanmeng geniuses and the Xiliang Kingdom geniuses were quite different.

Needless to say, the geniuses of the Yuanmeng Falcon Ranking were nurtured by the Central Plains dragon veins, and Great Zhao had migrated south out of fear of the Yuanmeng Emperor, so from the bottom of their hearts they looked down upon Great Zhao. Their actions were arrogant and tyrannical.

Even while in Lin'an, they had not the slightest concern for their own safety, continuing to act as they pleased.

And needless to say regarding the geniuses of the Xiliang Kingdom's Demon-Inquiring Ranking, hailing from Xiliang—a nation whose state religion was the Underworld Mansion—each of them acted bizarrely, with unpredictable temperaments.

The head of the Xiliang Demon-Inquiring Ranking, a genius hailed as one of the Underworld Mansion's reserve ghost messengers and a double-fifth-realm peak cultivator named Meng Po, set his sights on the Lesser Saint Ranking, naming and challenging the Great Zhao geniuses upon it.

Originally, Meng Po, the head of the Demon-Inquiring Ranking, intended to seek out An Le; defeating An Le would truly make one famous throughout the world.

The Demon-Inquiring Ranking was, by its very nature, a ranking of Xiliang cultivators who had fallen into demonic paths; the higher the rank, the deeper the demonic corruption, and every single one of them was utterly unhinged and unscrupulous.

As the number one on the Demon-Inquiring Ranking, Meng Po was naturally frenzied.

An Le's relationship with the Underworld Mansion was far from good. On the Canglang River, while slaying the ninth-realm Eunuch Tong, An Le had also relied on the power of the Blood Guanyin to inadvertently affect the Underworld Mansion cultivators who had ridden malevolent ghosts to launch an assassination attempt against him.

Among them was even an Underworld Mansion ghost messenger.

Therefore, as the number one on the Demon-Inquiring Ranking, Meng Po most desired to clash with An Le, hoping to suppress him and step upon this Master An—who had earned the qualification to converse with the Sage—to achieve worldwide renown.

However, over these two days, An Le remained in his residence in Taimiao Lane, keeping his doors closed and refusing to step outside.

The numerous challenge letters issued by Meng Po sank like stones into the sea; An Le did not respond to him at all.

Coupled with the presence of powerful ninth-realm figures like the Sixth Mountain Master and Su Muzhe within the residence, Meng Po did not dare to approach and stir up trouble.

However, he thought of another method: challenging the geniuses on the Lesser Saint Ranking, just as An Le had done.

Because An Le had ascended to the summit of the Lesser Saint Ranking, and Zhao Pei had been removed from the ranking due to his death, Sima Pudu maintained his position at fifth on the Lesser Saint Ranking. Naturally, the double-fifth-realm Sima Pudu became the first Lesser Saint Ranking genius challenged by Meng Po.

Sima Pudu did not accept the challenge, nor did he deign to accept it. As a genius on the Academy of Letters' Literary Melody Ranking, he felt utter disgust toward the cultivators from that demon-corrupted nation of Xiliang and disdained fighting one of them.

However, on his way to the Academy of Letters, Sima Pudu was intercepted and attacked by Meng Po.

That battle left Sima Pudu filled with furious rage; he tried his utmost, but the ultimate end was that he was heavily injured, both arms and legs completely shattered, his dantian sea of qi even blasted open with a large hole, and his primordial spirit polluted by evil, baleful power.

Had Pang Ji, the Second Scholar of the Academy of Letters, not stepped out and routed Xiliang's ninth-realm guardian, Meng Po—who was addicted to the fight—might truly have dared to sever Sima Pudu's head and tie it to his waist as a trophy.

This was the style of the Xiliang Kingdom. The Xiliang Demon-Inquiring Ranking frequently shifted precisely because its mortality rate was too high; geniuses among them fought to kill, employing all kinds of methods—evil arts, ghost arts, assassinations, sneak attacks... As long as one could kill the opponent, one could ascend the ranking and receive resource rewards from Xiliang's mad-demon emperor.

"Bah! So this is a genius of the Academy of Letters? A total piece of trash. Weren't they saying the Academy of Letters possesses righteous qi? Righteous qi is supposed to specialize in subduing the Underworld Mansion. Now it seems, they're nothing much."

Meng Po stood carrying a blood-stained saber, sneering coldly.

Sima Pudu lay on the ground with lifeless eyes, his body and mind both suffering a severe blow.

Both his legs and hands had been snapped, and had the Second Scholar not emerged to save him, his head might already have been severed to become Meng Po's trophy.

Meng Po's words quickly spread throughout Lin'an Prefecture. Aside from some people intentionally adding fuel to the fire, it was also because the impact of this incident was truly immense—even more shocking than An Le's earlier feat of slaying the Prime Minister's young master.

Sima Pudu was unlike Qin Qianqiu; he was a true genius of the Academy of Letters, hanging high on the Literary Melody Ranking, a star of the Academy with the potential to channel righteous qi.

In the hearts of scholars and literati across the world, Sima Pudu held a pivotal position.

Yet such a genius of the Academy of Letters... had been ruined just like that.

Sima Pudu's dantian was shattered, his mind polluted. Setting aside whether his cultivation could ever recover, even if it truly did, he would likely find it difficult ever again to reclaim his past glory.

This was entirely different from Luo Qingchen's mental state collapsing previously. When Luo Qingchen challenged the legendary top scholar Li You'an, he was merely defeated, and his physical injuries were not severe; it was solely due to his tofu-like state of mind that he stagnated.

Sima Pudu, however, had been left with root ailments by the ruthless methods of Meng Po, the head of the Demon-Inquiring Ranking, effectively severing his path of cultivation. The severity of the two cases could simply not be mentioned in the same breath.

For a time, the atmosphere in Lin'an Prefecture became solemn in the extreme, dominated largely by suppressed anger.

Every single arrogant provocation by the Xiliang Kingdom's geniuses was a stamp upon the face of Lin'an's cultivation world.

On the second day, Meng Po shouldered his bloody saber and headed toward the noble Wang family, naming and challenging the Qilin child of the Wang family.

Wang Qilin did not ignore the challenge the way Sima Pudu had; naturally aware of Sima Pudu's fate, he accepted the challenge with a cold face.

The two arranged to fight upon the West Lake.

Qin Huanan had dropped to fourth on the Lesser Saint Ranking due to the blow he suffered at the palace examinations, while Wang Qilin had ascended to third on the Lesser Saint Ranking. Ahead of him were Ye Wenxi of the Ye estate and An Le at the summit.

Consequently, a massive crowd turned out to observe this battle.

......

atop the Lake-Viewing Pavilion, the geniuses of the Yuanmeng Empire's Falcon Ranking occupied the prime viewing floors. Tielie, Wotai, Tuzhen, Boqi, and other top-tier prodigies of the Falcon Ranking watched with considerable relish.

The lively young girl Ge Xiao'e draped herself over the railing, bathing in the breeze blowing across the West Lake, her large eyes sparkling brightly.

"Brother Tielie, who do you think will win this fight?"

Ge Xiao'e's silver-bell-like voice chimed in harmony with the West Lake breeze.

Tielie carried a greatbow on his back, sipping the Drunken Flowing Mist—imperial tribute wine personally sent by order of Qin Lishi. A smile curved the corners of his lips: "Wang Qilin is bound to lose without a doubt. When Meng Po fought Sima Pudu, he used at most sixty percent of his true cultivation. Furthermore, Meng Po's refinement in cultivation techniques and combat skills is quite rare among the fifth realm."

"Moreover, Meng Po grew up in that frenzied, demon-corrupted nation of Xiliang, facing death at any moment. He is extremely professional when it comes to killing people, and the harsher and more dangerous the environment, the easier it is to nurture a vicious wolf."

"Wang Qilin can rank third on the Lesser Saint Ranking, so his talent is naturally acceptable. However, Lin'an—this city of sensual pleasures—is truly far too corrosive to one's willpower. When facing crisis, Wang Qilin falls far short of Meng Po."

Tielie took a sip of wine and chuckled softly: "Meng Po's true target is An Le, who sits at number one on the Lesser Saint Ranking."

"However, by challenging the Lesser Saint Ranking one by one, aside from building momentum, he also harbors the intention of making Great Zhao lose face, and conveys a message through his actions to the Sacred Mountain."

"Actually, Ye Wenxi would be capable of fighting Meng Po, and even have a chance of winning. Unfortunately, Ye Wenxi is not in Lin'an."

"The Lesser Saint Ranking... was always just a favor bestowed by the Sacred Mountain upon the Central Plains imperial court. The geniuses on the Lesser Saint Ranking... honestly, are just so-so. Placed in an intoxicating, bone-corroding place like Lin'an, no true heavenly prides can be produced."

The other Falcon Ranking geniuses seated in chairs, partaking in fine food and fine wine, all chuckled.

Over these two days, they had truly witnessed the prosperity of Lin'an Prefecture.

Even compared to Yuanmeng's capital, the intoxicating opulence of Lin'an Prefecture was truly a difference as vast as heaven and earth.

Aside from the Yuanmeng geniuses, the geniuses of the Dali Kingdom were also observing the battle from the Lake-Viewing Pavilion.

Down below, on the white jade steps, scholars, literati, and cultivators of Lin'an Prefecture were packed densely like fish scales. A stifled breath filled every one of their chests; they desperately wanted Wang Qilin to thoroughly blunt the arrogant sharp edge of Meng Po, the head of the Demon-Inquiring Ranking!

The battle erupted amidst the fine mist of rain.

Wang Qilin's face was stern and filled with fighting spirit. Gripping his long spear, he unleashed thunderous methods right from the start.

He had been waiting for An Le's challenge all along, but never expected that because An Le killed Zhao Pei, he suddenly soared to the summit of the Lesser Saint Ranking and even gained the opportunity to converse with the Sage.

This caused the battle he had longed for to come to nothing. Now that Meng Po had come to challenge him, he naturally poured out his entire reservoir of fighting spirit meant for An Le.

This battle was intense. The waters of the West Lake churned unceasingly, resembling boiling water as droplets leaped continuously.

The painted boats that normally drifted endlessly across the lake all hugged the shore, not daring to meddle in this battle.

However, the final outcome left the cultivators of the entire Lin'an Prefecture with dazed eyes, while the countless scholars and literati who had placed their hopes in the Wang family's Qilin child—desiring him to avenge Sima Pudu—wore expressions of utter grief.

Wang Qilin lost. Not only did he lose, but he had one of his arms severed and half his face disfigured.

His body was knocked down into the depths of the lake, failing to float back up for a long time.

Yet Meng Po had not had an easy time of it in this battle either, sustaining injuries on his body and spilling quite a bit of blood. But to Meng Po, who faced life-and-death crises year in and year out, such bloodshed was merely child's play.

"Third on the Lesser Saint Ranking... is this really it?"

"Slightly better than that trash Sima Pudu, but... he still cannot shake the name of trash."

Meng Po stood atop the calmed, azure ripples of the lake, shouldering his blood-stained jagged saber as he swept his gaze across the surrounding scholars, literati, and Great Zhao cultivators. His mocking words echoed unceasingly.

"The third on the Lesser Saint Ranking has already been easily crushed by me. Next remain only the second and first. Since the second on the Lesser Saint Ranking is not in Lin'an, I will naturally challenge the number one on the Lesser Saint Ranking, An Le. I hope this renowned Master An will no longer hide away like a turtle with its head pulled in and refuse to show himself."

"Had Master An not continuously refused to accept the challenge, I wouldn't have bothered picking on Sima Pudu and Wang Qilin for amusement."

Meng Po stepped off the West Lake, spreading his hands with a mocking laugh.

The wind and rain of Lin'an Prefecture suddenly grew fierce and torrential.

The hearts of every cultivator were chilled to the bone by the biting wind.

Yet Meng Po's words caused a spark of hope to ignite within the hearts of the scholars and literati in Lin'an Prefecture; they began to anticipate that An Le would engage Meng Po in battle and emerge victorious.

Having defeated Wang Qilin, Meng Po once again dispatched a challenge letter personally to the small courtyard in Taimiao Lane.

An Le had just concluded his trials against the Young Emperor Yuan battle puppet, so Li Qingchuan did not bat the challenge letter away. Instead, he respectfully presented it to An Le, who was slowly opening his eyes beneath the old locust tree.

When An Le opened his eyes, Li Qingchuan—a ninth-realm expert—felt his heart give a jolt, inexplicably sensing pressure radiating from An Le's body.

That was an aura exuded by the rock-solid, consummate foundation of the lower five realms!

Li Qingchuan drew a sharp breath, finding it somewhat unimaginable to what extent An Le had progressed within the fifth realm.

"Young Master, during the two days of your closed-door seclusion, geniuses from Yuanmeng, Xiliang, Dali, and various Jianghu factions all entered Lin'an. The head of Xiliang's Demon-Inquiring Ranking successively defeated Sima Pudu and Wang Qilin, and issued challenge letters to you numerous times. Because you were in seclusion, I batted them all away over the past few days," Li Qingchuan reported respectfully.

"Now, he has sent another challenge letter. Would the Young Master care to take a look?"

An Le had just concluded his clash with Young Emperor Yuan and currently had not the slightest shred of interest in challenges.

"Bat this challenge letter back. It's boring."

An Le stretched lazily, a series of crackling explosions resounding throughout his body—the collision of qi and blood within his meridians.

Li Qingchuan smiled, not particularly surprised by this: "Understood."

With a flick of his finger, Li Qingchuan sent the challenge letter piercing through the air, hurtling directly toward the Drunken Dragon Pavilion.

An expert from the Xiliang Kingdom released their aura to catch the challenge letter, which exploded into shredded fragments high above the Drunken Dragon Pavilion.

With his mouth stuffed full of delicacies from the Drunken Dragon Pavilion, Meng Po walked over to the railing holding a wine cup, squinting his eyes as he looked at the shattered challenge letter. He did not mind in the least; draining his cup of wine in one gulp, a grim, sinister smile curved the corners of his lips.

Did Sima Pudu not refuse to accept the challenge as well?

And in the end, wasn't he crippled by him anyway?

Unless you, An Le, intend to hide in that small courtyard for the rest of your life, sooner or later... he, Meng Po, would find an opening.

Consecutively defeating Sima Pudu and Wang Qilin made Meng Po feel increasingly disdainful toward the Lesser Saint Ranking. Hearing that the Lesser Saint Ranking tokens could be acquired by Great Zhao nobles expending sufficient resources, it now seemed indeed to be the Sacred Mountain's preferential treatment toward the former Central Plains imperial court of Great Zhao.

Now that the Yuanmeng Emperor was refining the Central Plains dragon veins, Great Zhao's preferential treatment would soon be revoked by the Sacred Mountain. When that time came, the Lesser Saint Ranking would perhaps truly become a ranking for genuine heavenly pride struggles.

Therefore, the current Lesser Saint Ranking naturally amounted to nothing.

Consequently, Meng Po's wariness toward An Le seemed to have diminished quite a bit.

Of course, Meng Po's wariness had only decreased, not vanished entirely. After all, on the Canglang River, An Le had utilized the methods of Ganye Temple to summon a blood-drenched Guanyin, slaying a ninth-realm expert and an Underworld Mansion ghost messenger...

Such a shocking combat record had long since resounded across all nations of the world.

Although that Blood Guanyin was not representative of An Le's own personal strength level, Meng Po still did not dare to underestimate him.

Soft footsteps rang out. Beside Meng Po, two slender figures clad in luxurious garments appeared.

One was handsome, the other bewitching—they were the twin children of the Xiliang Crown Prince, the Eldest Imperial Grandson Gu Huangquan and Princess Gu Nainai.

"Greetings, Your Highnesses."

As the number one on the Demon-Inquiring Ranking, Meng Po was arrogant, but before these two, he could not manage any arrogance at all.

Princess Gu Nainai possessed a voluptuous and fiery figure. She pressed close to Meng Po, her red lips charming and vivid as she exhaled a fragrant breath, whispering softly into his ear: "Meng Gongzi must exert himself. After all, An Le is only in the fifth realm. Both my brother and I have already entered the sixth realm and it is inconvenient for us to make a move, lest we provoke the Sacred Mountain's taboos. But Meng Gongzi, who shares the fifth realm, has no such concerns."

"If Meng Gongzi can kill An Le, it will inevitably win renown for our Xiliang, and Grandfather Emperor will surely be overjoyed... At that time... perhaps Meng Gongzi could forge a wonderful bond with this sister of mine."

Gu Nainai's charming eyes were like silk, her words scratching at Meng Po until his heart itched unbearably and his throat felt dry.

Princess Gu Nainai was renowned throughout Xiliang for her beauty; if he had the opportunity to taste her charms and become the Prince Consort, he would undoubtedly soar straight to the clouds in the future.

"Rest assured, Meng Po will do his utmost." Meng Po licked his lips.

Hearing this, Princess Gu Nainai smiled and leaned in to kiss him directly.

Eldest Imperial Grandson Gu Huangquan stood calmly to the side, his expression completely ordinary.

......

Misty smoke and rain.

Over the course of two days, An Le concluded his honing within the battle puppet space.

The Ancient-Beast Five-Aves technique had reached perfection, and his Red Heart and Rivers-and-Mountains sword intents were mastered with increasing proficiency. Although his cultivation had not yet broken into the sixth realm, his overall combat power had undergone a comprehensive baptism and enhancement.

An Le changed into a clean white robe. He did not choose to carry his sword case; Ink Pool and Returning Swallow still pierced the old locust tree, while the second-grade treasured saber Wind-Calming leaned to the side.

He only wore the Green Mountain sword at his waist, hoisted an oiled-paper umbrella, and left the small courtyard.

Li Qingchuan was assigned by him to guard the courtyard.

Stepping out of Taimiao Lane, An Le headed straight for Yanchun Alley. Having spent two days in seclusion, his palate was craving a taste for aged yellow wine.

"Boss Lady, bring a pot of aged yellow wine."

An Le folded his oiled-paper umbrella, shook off the raindrops, and called out toward the tavern, where the Boss Lady was hunched over the counter clicking an abacus.

Inside, however, the Boss Lady snapped to alertness, preparing to answer, when she abruptly felt a chill wrap around her. Every wine guest inside the tavern simultaneously felt as though their hearts were being gripped by an invisible hand.

Then, they saw wisps of black fog rising from the bluestone pavement of the alleyway in Yanchun Alley, gradually condensing into a heavily blurred figure.

"Master An... after turtling up for so long, you've finally shown your face."

A cold and hoarse voice carried a trace of ravenous hunger and madness.

The blurred figure gradually solidified, forming the shape of Meng Po wrapped in black leather attire.

Meng Po's eyes stared gloomily at An Le.

"The challenge letters I sent you, you repeatedly rejected..."

"I wonder if today—using the lives of everyone in this tavern as a challenge letter—you will still refuse?"

Meng Po cracked a grin, emitting a hoarse chuckle.

If An Le refused to fight once more, Meng Po dared to immediately end the lives of everyone in the tavern.

A bunch of mortals, anyway—in Meng Po's eyes, the lives of mortals... were simply not lives at all.

An Le stood in his fluttering white robes, glancing sideways at Meng Po, who stood in the rain shrouded in black qi and threatening everyone in the tavern with their lives. A faint trace of murderous intent surged through his eyes.

He raised a hand and tapped lightly.

Inside the tavern, everyone, including the Boss Lady, instantly felt the crisis of death vanish completely.

Meng Po's murderous aura was instantly shattered by An Le.

An Le snapped his fingers, and the battle puppet Young Emperor Yuan, wrapped in black robes and wearing a silver mask, materialized his form, his robust physique blocking the doorway.

"I won't bully you either. If you want to challenge me, defeat my puppet first."

Having spoken, An Le ignored him entirely, stepped into the tavern, found an empty table by the window, and seated himself leisurely.

"Boss Lady, bring the wine."

(End of Chapter)