Li Mo earnestly recalled the teachings of his ice-cold mentor while carefully observing the practical demonstration Xie Xuan was showing him, completely tuning out the surrounding commotion.
He focused intently on connecting with the sword resonance within the Celestial Divine Sword.
Perhaps the world he perceived was different from Ying Bing and the others—he could only sense faint, indistinct fluctuations of sword energy.
Every sword technique he had practiced, now mastered to a proficient level, responded to him in this moment.
Not enough...
Just a bit more...
And so, Li Mo continued, simultaneously attuning to the sword resonance while searching for an opening to strike.
Across from him, Xie Xuan, already frustrated by the prolonged stalemate, grew increasingly agitated as the purple-robed eunuch droned on:
"Enough! This is ridiculous!"
A crack appeared in Xie Xuan’s focus.
"Perfect timing!"
Li Mo’s eyes snapped open.
Hum—
The aloof Celestial Divine Sword finally responded to him with a faint resonance.
A brilliant sword shadow erupted from his spiritual intent—direct, unrestrained, and brimming with the same straightforward, heroic spirit as the swordsmanship he had learned.
"Damn it!"
Xie Xuan stiffened, caught off guard by the precision and suddenness of Li Mo’s counterattack.
The uncomplicated yet decisive slash tore through the intricate web of mental sword energy Xie Xuan had woven.
By the time he reacted, hastily raising his ancestral wooden sword to parry, his mind was already struck as if by a hammer—vision darkening, balance faltering.
Staggering back, Xie Xuan dropped to one knee, bracing himself with his sword.
That strike had landed squarely on his spiritual essence.
Unlike Li Mo, whose mental fortitude was monstrous, Xie Xuan felt a suffocating pressure in his chest.
"So it’s true—you’ve comprehended the third layer of the Celestial Divine Sword’s resonance. I never fully believed it before."
Shaking his head, Xie Xuan clasped his hands in concession. "I yield."
Li Mo chuckled. "You just lost the initiative in a mental clash. If you’d pressed on, the outcome might’ve been different. Why concede so quickly?"
"You didn’t even use your hammer," Xie Xuan replied bluntly. "Beating me with a sword strike counts as your win."
A hush fell over the arena.
"That kid just unleashed a mental sword strike—and Xie Xuan couldn’t block it? He actually won?!"
Du Wufeng’s eyes bulged as he leaned back slightly.
Defeating Xie Xuan wasn’t the same as defeating just anyone.
On the Hidden Dragon Ranking, Xie Xuan was still the undisputed top swordsman of their generation. If Li Mo could beat him, would this kid grow even more obsessed with the sword path?
"This is what happens when you hand Eunuch Chen that ridiculous book to recite," Xie Yiding grumbled. Had Xie Xuan not been distracted by the storytelling, he wouldn’t have left an opening.
"I’ve been a fool!" Du Wufeng slapped his thigh in regret.
"Ah, his recklessness is his own doing. No one else is to blame." Xie Yiding sighed silently, watching his adopted son.
"Wait, he won just like that?"
"What the hell happened? I didn’t even see them fight!"
Most of the imperial citizens and martial artists in the crowd were baffled. They’d barely caught any action—just a random storytelling session—before Xie Xuan suddenly staggered back and surrendered.
"Xie Xuan lost a mental exchange, so he conceded."
"If Li Mo defeated him, does that mean the Hidden Dragon Ranking’s second spot is changing hands?"
"Something’s off. This can’t be a fixed match, right?"
"I remember now—I saw them together at Fengyue Pavilion a few days ago!"
"By the way, what was that story the judge was reciting earlier? I kinda liked it... Where can I buy a copy?"
Clearly, the sales of The Tyrannical Empress Falls for Me were about to skyrocket...
---
Under the golden imperial canopy, Zhong Zhenyue rose to his feet, applauding as he watched Li Mo and Xie Xuan step down from the stage.
"Grasping sword intent mid-battle—impressive!"
Amid the stunned silence of the nobles, Zhong Zhenyue glanced to his side.
Jiang Yu, however, showed no surprise. Instead, he seemed relaxed.
"Elder Brother, how is Li Mo’s swordsmanship also this formidable?" Princess Yuyang asked, her expression conflicted.
"Passable, I suppose." Jiang Yu took a sip of tea, having confirmed one thing.
In a battle of spiritual wills, he could perceive things even more clearly.
Jiang Chulong’s sword arts couldn’t have been taught by Li Mo—his skill was at best as displayed, with no hidden depths.
Which meant, for this Hidden Dragon Tournament, there was still only one person he needed to focus on.
Ying Bing!
Amid the murmurs of his peers on the Hidden Dragon Ranking, the young swordsman Li Mo descended from the stage.
"Xie Xuan lost a mental clash and conceded?"
"Wasn’t his swordsmanship taught by the Frost Fairy?"
"Obviously!"
"Damn... The Frost Fairy’s martial prowess is terrifying. Even someone she taught can best Xie Xuan in swordsmanship."
"The ‘Wife-Blessing Battle Soul’ nickname—I never got it before, but now I’m starting to see it."
"The Frost Fairy’s beauty outshines even the Flower Ranking’s top contender, and her martial talent is peerless. What does she see in Li Mo? His wife-blessing aura?"
Damn it all.
Li Mo sighed inwardly. He hadn’t even used his hammer—but since he hadn’t drawn his sword earlier, who could argue?
"Li Mo, you’ve learned well."
Ying Bing wore her usual sacred, ice-cold mentor expression:
"But Xie Xuan didn’t go all out. To secure a spot in the top three, you must remain diligent."
"What about planting strawberries?"
Li Mo hadn’t just been studying the sword lately.
He wasn’t stupid—he’d realized Ying Bing seemed to be teaching him something beyond mere swordsmanship...
"That... you’ve already mastered sufficiently."
Her hand ruffling his hair sped up slightly.
---
As dusk settled, the day’s Hidden Dragon Tournament concluded after multiple rounds, dividing the competitors into a winners’ bracket (25) and a losers’ bracket (25), with fifty eliminated outright.
Broadly speaking, those advancing to the winners’ bracket were the Hidden Dragon Ranking’s top fifty, with few upsets.
The Yantian Sect’s rankings had proven remarkably accurate.
The dark horses who’d defeated higher-ranked opponents were all familiar faces...
Huang Donglai had refined poison into his martial intent. Opponents, even those stronger, couldn’t catch him.
Thus, the typical scene on his stage was:
He flees! They chase! He flees effortlessly! They chase until foaming at the mouth!
Three wins straight!
But he wasn’t the strangest contender.
Murong Xiao had somehow learned the Buddhist Lion’s Roar. Though not yet refined enough to harm with sound waves, his sheer volume sufficed.
So on his stage:
A bald monk sat cross-legged, hurling insults like blooming lotuses. His opponents rapidly flushed crimson, launched desperate attacks—and ended up striking themselves.
The Shaolin monks below the stage wished they could vanish, too ashamed to claim him as one of their disciples.
Two wins, one draw!
Xiao Qin was the most conventional, engaging in thrilling, evenly matched duels.
One win, one loss, one draw.
Of course, Li Mo paid closest attention to the Hidden Dragon prodigies wielding divine weapons.
If he fought them with a sword, every battle would be grueling...
"Jiang Yu’s taking the stage," Ying Bing murmured.
Li Mo focused.
BOOM—
The moment the Golden Dragon Sword’s imperial-suppressing aura unfurled, an overwhelming pressure surged like a tidal wave.
It felt as if the entire imperial capital trembled in faint resonance.
Even among the onlookers, those at the Fourth Realm of Inner Scenery felt the overwhelming pressure bearing down like a torrential rain, leaving them breathless.
"He hasn't even used the Eight Desolates and Six Harmonies Seal yet, and he's already this powerful?"
Though his cultivation realm hadn't advanced, he was several times stronger than before!
Li Mo furrowed his brows.
Could it be... because they were in the Imperial Capital?
........
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
rowess are unmatched, commanding a million-strong army! Yet, the Emperor wants to depose him for the sake of a false prince? Hold on, are you throwing me into some female-oriented romance plot? How can I tolerate this? With a grand wave of his hand—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! Slander the Emperor? Very well, all of you shall die! ... The False Prince: "Although I am not the biological son, Father and Mother love me more. The throne should be mine!" The Female Lead: "Qin Xiao, you are the Emperor, and I am a commoner. If you wish to marry me, you must abdicate. Otherwise, you will never have me!" The Empress: "After we divorce, you must give me half the empire!" The Transmigrator Consort: "You worthless Emperor, why should I kneel to you? All men are equal—I advise you to be kind!" The Great General: "The enemy general is my childhood sweetheart. For her sake, I willingly abandon the frontier defenses!" The Retired Emperor: "Although Yu'er was adopted, I prefer him. Qin Xiao, you should abdicate and let him become Emperor!" ... Very well! So this is how you want to play? Facing this twisted world of female-oriented tropes, Qin Xiao grins and raises his hand to unleash—the Nine Clan Extraction Technique! I am the Emperor. Why would I bother reasoning with you? Seal the gates! Leave none alive!
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
