Jiang Yu's opponent in this match was Zhong Zhenyue. Without even lifting a finger, Jiang Yu hovered mid-air, a divine sword clenched between his teeth, while a golden dragon coiled above the imperial city, bathed in the sun’s radiance. His overwhelming majesty surged like a tidal wave, pressing down on all sides.
Li Mo watched as Zhong Zhenyue struggled even to stand, as if an invisible force compelled him to kneel. To resist the pressure, he clenched his teeth so hard they drew blood.
"The Crown Prince’s majesty has grown even more profound..."
"The divine intent within his soul is that of an emperor’s bearing—perhaps even rivaling that of the Martial Emperor the Great Ancestor."
"Here in the capital, the entire imperial city is his support... the city itself is like his inner realm."
At this moment, those witnessing Jiang Yu’s power for the first time trembled in fear, their hearts filled with dread.
What cultivator in the Hidden Dragon Ranking could possibly defeat him?
No wonder no one ever questioned whether the top spot on the Hidden Dragon Ranking could ever change hands...
The imperial descendants, who had suffered consecutive defeats, had been crestfallen earlier.
But now, seeing Jiang Yu’s dominance, even the Fourth Prince—who had never practiced martial arts, had long been weakened by indulgence, and had just lost everything in a bet—puffed out his chest with pride.
"Big Brother Crown Prince must be the greatest in the Hidden Dragon Ranking across all dynasties," Princess Yuyang declared, her pride restored.
The Fourth Prince flicked open his fan, leisurely observing the kneeling martial artists and commoners below.
"So what if I lost? I dare to give, but does the 'Divine Hammer Little Tyrant' dare to take?"
"Zhong Zhenyue spoke recklessly earlier. Who knew he’d face Eldest Brother today? Serves him right—let this be a lesson."
The Eighth Prince shook his head regretfully.
"He could’ve at least had a chance to strike. But alas, how can one who has long enjoyed the emperor’s grace dare to rebel?"
......
The crowd around them fell to their knees in waves, even those on the Hidden Dragon Ranking finding their legs weak and unsteady.
Even the top ten on the ranking seemed unable to resist.
"Why don’t I feel anything?"
Li Mo, on the other hand, realized the pressure he felt was weaker than when he had encountered Jiang Yu in the hotpot restaurant.
In truth, even back then, he hadn’t sensed the so-called "imperial majesty"—only the oppressive weight of Jiang Yu’s cultivation.
It wasn’t just because of his Great Sage divine intent...
He recalled the statues in the Blood Phoenix Secret Realm. One of them depicted the Martial Emperor the Great Ancestor, exuding overwhelming imperial might. While others had been forced to their knees, Li Mo had felt nothing then either.
"You and Ying Bing have special constitutions."
The voice, accompanied by a crisp chime, belonged to Tian Miao.
"Huh? When did you get here?" Li Mo blinked in surprise.
Tian Miao paused before replying, "Is it possible that I’m also on the ranking?"
"I didn’t see you on stage earlier."
"The Yantian Sect exists beyond worldly affairs. We don’t participate in ranking battles."
Tian Miao gazed at the stage and shook her head.
"If Zhong Zhenyue keeps pushing himself like this, he’ll only injure himself further."
"He’s under even greater pressure?"
Li Mo noticed it too.
It seemed the deeper one’s ties to the Great Yu imperial family, the heavier the weight of the imperial majesty.
Those long residing in the capital—whether commoners or martial artists—were now prostrate on the ground.
Even Xie Xuan’s face had paled, while Huang Donglai and Xiao Qin fared slightly better.
As for Chu Long...
Princess Little Jiang was barely holding on, relying on her "head-patting divine technique" to maintain her composure.
Tian Miao nodded. "The Son of Heaven herds his subjects like cattle in the wild. If the ruler demands death, the subject has no choice but to obey."
"Well, that’s convenient. My Great Sage divine intent thrives the more authoritative my opponent is..." Li Mo mused silently.
Right now, his Great Sage divine intent was practically burning, as if eager to burst forth.
Kinda like how Hammer Treasure always wanted to smash something?
On the stage.
"Drop your weapon."
Jiang Yu’s voice was soft, yet his tone carried the unyielding weight of an imperial decree.
The Zhong family guarded the southern borders, and the Southern Suppressing King was watching from above. Whatever happened behind the scenes, appearances had to be maintained.
Wouldn’t it be better for ruler and subject to show mutual respect?
If not for Zhong Zhenyue’s defiance, Jiang Yu wouldn’t have even needed to unleash his divine intent.
"Respect between ruler and subject must be upheld. But this subject has a question—one I must ask the Crown Prince to his face!"
Zhong Zhenyue gritted his teeth, his gaze fixed on Jiang Yu.
The southern border affair had left him seething, but he had no right to question the Crown Prince or the Emperor in court.
But Brother Li was watching from below. If even Brother Li hadn’t retreated in the southern border, how could he back down now without a fight?
Noticing Zhong Zhenyue’s blazing stare, Jiang Yu maintained his faint smile. He saw no need to explain further.
With his hands clasped behind his back, the weight of imperial authority suddenly intensified.
What had been a mountain suspended in the sky now came crashing down.
If you have a question, ask it after you’ve reached me.
Rip—
Zhong Zhenyue’s armor shattered, blood vessels rupturing under the pressure.
His knees buckled, but the divine intent behind him refused to fade—as if someone had awakened within, pushing him forward.
With each step, fresh blood seeped from his body. In moments, he was drenched, leaving a trail of crimson footprints behind.
"......"
Jiang Yu watched coldly but did not strike. He couldn’t.
He had set the tone—this was about propriety between ruler and subject. To attack would undermine his own majesty.
Step—
Leaving a path of bloody footprints, Zhong Zhenyue, now covered in his own blood, finally stood before Jiang Yu.
Yet just as the crowd held their breath in stunned silence—
Thud.
He collapsed face-first onto the ground.
"Tell Brother Li... I wasn’t a coward."
Zhong Zhenyue lost consciousness.
"Heh..."
After the judges declared his victory, Jiang Yu glanced down at the audience—only to freeze in surprise.
Someone had completely ignored his imperial majesty, rushing onto the stage at lightning speed.
"I saw it. I saw everything."
Li Mo swiftly pulled out medicinal supplies.
"Ouch... Brother Li, be gentler! It hurts! Where’s my halberd?"
"Halberd’s right here. Here, the hilt... There, there, it won’t hurt."
"......"
Zhong Zhenyue passed out.
As Li Mo carried him off the stage, he noticed Jiang Yu staring at him in shock.
Well, it wasn’t just Jiang Yu—everyone in front of the stage was dumbfounded.
Seriously? The Crown Prince was busy flaunting his dominance, and everyone else could barely stand straight—yet here you were, casually hauling someone off the stage?
Did Jiang Yu’s dignity mean nothing?
Li Mo jumped down with Zhong Zhenyue on his back, muttering under his breath:
"Tsk... Those double pupils look like cataracts. Since when do disabled people act so high and mighty?"
"???"
The spectators and nobles collectively recoiled.
What kind of nonsense was this? What absolute nonsense!
Double pupils were the mark of a born emperor, a path to invincibility—even the Martial Emperor had been born with them!
Don’t spout nonsense if you don’t understand!
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
m back to his original world. In the end, he realized he had overthought things. [Hey, why is Shen Manni, the female lead, acting strange? Shouldn't she be fawning over the male lead at this point?] [Zhou Qiaoqiao, are you sick? Weren't you supposed to break off your engagement today?] [Damn it! An Youyi, please do your job as an undercover agent and sell my information to the protagonist, you idiot!] ... At this moment, Xu Mo himself didn't know that these female leads had already heard his inner thoughts. Then they decided not to play by the rules. Xu Mo: Please respect my profession as the big villain!
esick Sect? Well, at least it's considered a respectable orthodox sect. Wait a minute— What kind of vibe are you all giving off? Shouldn’t this be a love-struck, romance-obsessed sect? Why does everyone here sound more like demonic cultivators? "Master, today he’s getting married. This disciple wishes to descend the mountain and crash the wedding, then toy with him to death right in front of his wife..." "Elder, I only got into your sect through connections, so why won’t you teach me anything?" "Because I also became an elder through connections." Thankfully, Su Ji was just an outer sect labor disciple. Surely, nothing too crazy would— "Junior Brother, you’ve broken through to Qi Refining. Once you sever your useless spiritual root, you can officially become an outer sect disciple." "The Great Dao is merciless. Don’t let a worthless spiritual root waste your essence and spirit, hindering your cultivation." Is this really the Lovesick Sect? ... Three years later, Su Ji sat in the seat of the Lovesick Sect’s sect master, sighing with emotion. His rise to this position all started when his junior sister adamantly insisted on preserving his "spiritual root." "Mmm... Senior Brother, what’s our relationship now?" "Stop talking. Keep going." "By the way, that newly promoted top-tier sect—didn’t they come to buy our Love Beans?" "One top-grade spirit stone per Love Bean—is that really so expensive?" "I suspect they’ve eaten too many Love Beans." "Now they’re lovesick." Well, this really is the Lovesick Sect after all.
【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)
