Li Lingyue's Wedding, Bride Snatching

[Year 16, thirty-five years old.]

[On this day, the message flying sword left to you by the Sword Master stirred, transmitting the Sword Master's vigorous and resonant voice.]

["The royal family intends to form a marriage alliance with the North to strengthen bilateral relations, and Li Lingyue has been chosen. I have already joined forces with the Tianji Pavilion to delay the wedding using theories of fate and fortune. If you want to stop it, act quickly."]

[The Tianji Pavilion was also one of the Eight Pillars of the Five Regions, specializing in the art of Eight Trigrams divination. There were not many people in the sect, but every single one of them was eccentric and cryptic.]

["In the blink of an eye, I'm thirty-five again. It's about time I take a trip back to the Five Regions and settle the matters over there."]

[Hearing that you were leaving.]

[The old men of Nine Palaces Island were incredibly reluctant to let you go.]

["Respected Masters, Island Master, my family back in my hometown is in trouble. I am merely going back to deal with it, and I will return."]

[Zhao Hanzhou waved his large hand dismissively.]

["Who dares to touch the family of my Holy Land's disciple?! I'll have those warmongers from Divine Sword Island wipe them out! Then we can bring your family to the Holy Land to enjoy their lives in peace!"]

[You quickly pacified your elderly master, terrified he might become too agitated and lose his breath.]

[Master Zhao was already in his nineties. He was not in the Martial King Realm, so his theoretical lifespan was only a hundred years.]

[However, the living conditions in the Holy Land were excellent, and he had consumed no shortage of heavenly treasures throughout his life. Theoretically, living past a hundred would not be difficult for him.]

["Master, there is no need for that. It is just a minor issue. The Five Regions are too far from the Holy Land, and my family likely wouldn't want to leave their ancestral home. I promise I will be back before the Holy Son finals."]

[Knowing they could not keep you here, your masters began showering you with treasures.]

["Take this medicine with you. If you are poisoned, consuming it will cure you!"]

["Take this mirror. Should a powerful expert attempt a sneak attack, it will give you early warning!"]

["Take this lamp. If you encounter a riot in a forbidden zone, it will illuminate the path for you!"]

["Take this..."]

[The old men shoved all sorts of treasures into your hands.]

[You felt like a child visiting relatives during the New Year, with your elders desperately stuffing you with delicious treats and red envelopes right before you left.]

[Though your mouth kept saying no, you held your storage ring open wider than anyone else.]

["A Star Shuttle?"]

[Among the pile, you spotted a familiar item—a very common mode of transportation in the Star Domain.]

[This was a gift from your head master, Zhao Hanzhou.]

["This is indeed a Star Shuttle, but I have modified the formations within it. Now, it can fly even faster in a terrestrial environment than it normally would in the Star Domain! The Five Regions are in the west, and the Xiaoyao Holy Land is in the east. You will be crossing almost the entire continent. The journey is vast, and this item will allow you to travel much faster!"]

[This was truly an excellent item.]

[Once you left the Holy Land, you would no longer need to conceal your true cultivation. Although flying at full speed with a Martial King Realm cultivation was incredibly fast, you would still get tired. Your true qi would eventually deplete, and you would inevitably need time to recover.]

[With this modified Star Shuttle, you could truly travel day and night without rest.]

[Xie Guihong then handed you another item—a golden medallion.]

["This is the Xiaoyao Token. No matter where you are in the Human Realm, as long as you stain it with your blood, the Holy Land will sense it and instantly know your location."]

[This was also a fantastic item. In case of any unforeseen accidents, this would serve as your ultimate trump card.]

[A few of the masters laughed and said,]

["Chen Dong, do you realize that in our Xiaoyao Holy Land, only those at the rank of Island Master and above are qualified to possess a Xiaoyao Token?"]

["Island Master Xie only had this single token, and now he has given it to you!"]

["You had better not leave and never return! If that happens, us old folks will die of heartbreak!"]

[Although you had kept some secrets when you entered the Holy Land,]

[And had not confessed everything upon joining Nine Palaces Island,]

[The care and devotion these seniors had shown you was truly as weighty as a mountain.]

[You solemnly kowtowed and bowed deeply to these figures, who had treated you like their own grandson.]

["Rest assured, seniors. Chen Dong is by no means an ungrateful wretch. Once the matters in the Five Regions are settled, I shall definitely return!"]

[Xie Guihong threw his head back and laughed heartily.]

["Excellent! Once you return, we shall teach you the most profound secret of Nine Palaces Island's inheritance—the Heart-Mind Formation! To this day, we have only grasped the mere surface of this technique, but I believe you will definitely achieve great mastery in it!"]

[You departed.]

[Carrying a body full of treasures gifted by the esteemed elders of Nine Palaces Island.]

[Year 17, thirty-six years old.]

[Drawing destiny traits...]

[Draw successful!]

[Fragrant Concubine Physique (Green Rare): Your body naturally emits a mysterious fragrance that can attract bees.]

[Do you wish to adjust your traits?]

[You selected yes.]

[You replaced Formation Master with Treasure-Snatching Nose.]

[You replaced Pretending to be a Pig to Eat a Tiger with Ageless Handsome God.]

[You replaced Veteran Tomato User with Dragon Teasing the Phoenix.]

[You replaced Bad News in the Martial World with Asian Witchcraft.]

To find Li Lingyue, the Treasure-Snatching Nose was absolutely necessary.

Even now, it remained unclear exactly why Li Lingyue emitted the scent of a supreme treasure.

Chen Yi had once assumed it was because of her Incense Holy Physique.

However, after encountering many other individuals with special physiques, he noticed that the Treasure-Snatching Nose never reacted to them.

This point remained a mystery to this day.

["Tooot—"]

["Tooot—"]

["Tooot—"]

[The blaring horns of the wedding procession echoed throughout the capital.]

[In order to strengthen their cooperative relations with the North, the Great Qian imperial court had chosen Li Lingyue to enter a marriage alliance with an adopted son of the current King of the North.]

[The reason they didn't choose a biological son was simply because this King of the North didn't have any; he only had over two hundred adopted sons.]

[However, Li Lingyue's situation was not particularly unique.]

[Over twenty of the King of the North's adopted sons had already formed marriage alliances with the Great Qian Dynasty.]

[It was just that Li Lingyue had now blossomed into the number one unparalleled beauty of the Five Regions, making this particular marriage alliance highly conspicuous and the most grandiose one yet.]

[The wedding procession was so immensely long that the vanguard had already been marching for a day and a night, yet the rear guard was only just now leaving the city gates.]

[Within this sprawling procession, a crimson palanquin drawn by eight magnificent white horses served as the wedding carriage for the Hundred Flowers Princess, Li Lingyue.]

[Inside the carriage, dressed in her bridal gown and draped with a red veil, Li Lingyue's face was brimming with sorrow.]

["Sigh..."]

[Even though the adopted son of the King of the North whom she was meant to marry was not some repulsive creep like the King of the Dashi Kingdom, and could even be described as dignified, handsome, and awe-inspiring.]

[Li Lingyue had even heard from her royal sisters who had previously married into the North that their lives there were quite comfortable and free.]

[They spent their days herding sheep and riding horses under blue skies and white clouds. The green grasslands stretched endlessly, allowing one's heart to soar freely.]

[However, this was not the life Li Lingyue sought.]

[She wanted to practice martial arts!]

[Alas, she possessed no martial bone!]

[Li Lingyue refused to accept her fate. She had constantly been utilizing the royal family's connections and resources to search for methods to cultivate without a martial bone, or ways to acquire one.]

[Unfortunately, her destiny was not hers to control.]

[A daughter of the royal family who could not walk the path of martial arts was inevitably reduced to a political tool.]

["Xiaoru, I will absolutely not marry someone I have never even met. I have to escape..."]

[Xiaoru was one of Li Lingyue's personal maids.]

[Hearing these words, Xiaoru whispered back.]

"Rest assured, Princess. Your loyal servants will never stand by and watch you sacrifice your lifelong happiness. We have already made preparations."

"What preparations?"