Jin Youxi ultimately obtained the Vermilion Fruit.
She was then escorted back by men sent by Grandpa Jin.
The future of the Jin family now rested entirely on this granddaughter.
And it was clear that her heart leaned toward Great Xia.
If she could establish herself in Great Xia, it would be infinitely better than staying in the peninsula.
Especially now.
The peninsula was already in crisis.
This time, during the opening of Kunlun Mountain, the peninsula had acted dishonorably.
Swayed by the Western Continent, they had also meddled in the affair.
Once Kunlun Mountain sealed its gates, they would likely face the wrath of Great Xia.
As for the marriage arrangement with the Park family—well, apologies.
Grandpa Jin had ten thousand unreasonable excuses.
And the Park family found every single one of them perfectly reasonable.
Kunlun City.
Jin Youxi arrived at the hotel where Liu Weiwei was staying, carrying the Vermilion Fruit.
"Junior Sister, this is the legendary Vermilion Fruit," she said.
"My grandfather said that eating it directly will heal your leg immediately."
Liu Weiwei gazed at the fruit, warmth filling her heart.
"Thank you, Senior Sister!"
Standing on one leg, she hugged Jin Youxi tightly, tears slowly streaming down her face.
"Let’s save it for now, okay?"
"I’m afraid that if Master comes out injured, he might need the Vermilion Fruit too."
Jin Youxi returned the embrace, her expression turning sorrowful.
"Okay."
Western Continent.
Alliance Parliament.
The governors of the Southern and Northern Continents had gathered here.
"The operation at Kunlun Mountain was a success."
"Though we don’t know if the Dragon-Slaying Nail was successfully planted."
"With so many people storming the Dragon Vein, it must have worked."
"No need to worry. The combined forces of our three continents outnumbered Great Xia’s by several times."
"But why hasn’t the main force returned yet?"
"Don’t panic. Great Xia hasn’t had anyone come out either."
"Just wait. There are still three days left. Everyone who’s supposed to return will."
On the surface, the governors of the three continents appeared calm.
But inwardly, they were anxious.
Their nations couldn’t compare to Great Xia.
Great Xia had a thriving population, with nearly one-fifth being martial artists.
Though their combined numbers were greater, their martial artists lacked quality.
This time, they had forcibly sent almost all their top-tier martial artists into Kunlun.
If too many were lost,
it could lead to a generational gap in their martial world.
The Western Continent governor was also uneasy.
Out of the many who had entered, only tens of thousands had returned in the early stages.
A third were injured, while the rest had unearthed treasures.
But in the past half-month, no one else had come back.
It was deeply unsettling.
The Southern Continent governor looked the most troubled.
This operation had faced heavy opposition initially.
He had pushed it through despite the objections.
Later, to maintain his position,
he had continuously publicized every piece of good news.
Every returnee who had found treasures
was glorified in the media.
Now, with Kunlun’s gates about to close, the people of the Southern Continent were preparing grand celebrations to welcome their heroes.
A parade was even planned for the day Kunlun sealed.
The Southern Continent governor prayed silently.
He needed as many people as possible to return.
If the numbers were too low,
his position as governor would be in jeopardy.
With only two days left before Kunlun’s sealing,
and everyone growing restless,
over nine thousand people finally began emerging from Kunlun Mountain.
Great Xia was immediately thrown into an uproar.
Western Continent spies relayed the news at once.
Relief washed over the Western Continent.
If Great Xia’s people were coming out, theirs should be too.
But Great Xia’s numbers were worryingly low.
The Grand President of the Martial Arts Association felt his heart sink when he saw how few had returned.
He quickly ordered a thorough debriefing.
Each returnee was assigned a specialist
to gather detailed information about Kunlun’s interior and the Dragon Vein.
As the reports came together,
his expression grew increasingly grave.
There was only one piece of good news:
The Dragon Vein was unharmed.
But the bad news piled up.
First, many had died.
The immortal Zhang Bowen was still alive and had appeared in Kunlun.
Some escapees recalled hearing Chen Feng shout something about the Dragon Vein being fake
in the chaos of their retreat.
But no one paid it much mind.
No one doubted the Dragon Vein’s authenticity.
Only three recording devices had captured the final moments.
The footage played on the conference room’s projector.
Chen Feng’s final battle left everyone stunned.
Yang Honghui sighed.
"Such a prodigy, yet he crossed paths with Zhang Bowen. We never should have let him enter Kunlun."
The Grand President and the branch presidents shared his regret.
Chen Feng’s monstrous talent had exceeded all expectations.
He had nearly matched Zhang Bowen in combat.
Back then, capturing Zhang Bowen had required three Martial Saints.
Yet the operation failed.
Zhang Bowen not only escaped but killed one Martial Saint and crippled another.
The loss to Great Xia was immeasurable.
Though Kunlun suppressed qi and cultivation, martial techniques and experience remained.
Zhang Bowen’s techniques could counter almost any martial art.
His speed, offense, defense, and qi eruption were all peerless.
Every technique he used had reached the terrifying pinnacle of mastery.
"This Chen Feng is extraordinary. To hold his own against Zhang Bowen—even if he ultimately lost."
"There was no helping it. Zhang Bowen drew the Red Sky Sword and unleashed the world’s greatest sword technique."
"Chen Feng’s attacks were devastating, almost on par with a Martial Master or even a Grandmaster."
"Especially that mysterious sonic technique. Unheard of."
"His repertoire is beyond anything we imagined."
"Doesn’t he remind you of someone?"
The room fell silent at the question.
After a long pause, the Grand President spoke.
"He’s like a second Zhang Bowen."
The silence deepened.
An endless array of supreme techniques.
From what they knew,
Chen Feng had entered Kunlun with three top-tier techniques:
Dragon-Subduing Eighteen Palms, Buddha’s Palm, and Crippled Foot.
Inside Kunlun,
he had revealed the Star-Swallowing Art and now this sonic technique.
The most baffling part? No one had heard of any of these.
A branch president said,
"Are you suggesting Chen Feng might be like Zhang Bowen?"
"A hybrid of Kunlun’s ancient bloodline and Great Xia’s people?"
"His ability to master techniques at the pinnacle as a mere Martial Disciple—could it be due to the Kunlun bloodline’s Everlasting Spring Art?"
His words voiced what everyone was thinking.
If true,
all of Chen Feng’s mysteries would make sense.
An ancient being who had cultivated for countless years, mastering every technique to its peak—
it was only logical.
After all, Zhang Bowen had set the precedent.
Yang Honghui, the Jiangcheng City branch president, added,
"Whether he's of mixed Kunlun descent or not, one thing is certain—Chen Feng and Zhang Bowen are sworn enemies."
"Chen Feng has taught disciples in Great Xia, imparting those formidable cultivation techniques. This has only benefited Great Xia."
"And we can be almost certain that Chen Feng definitely isn't a member of the Devouring Sky Club."
"The only pity is, now that he's encountered Zhang Bowen, he likely won't be coming back."
This statement met with unanimous agreement from the group.
The Grandmaster of the Martial Arts Association turned to his assistant and ordered:
"Release the footage to the public, along with our speculations about Chen Feng's origins."
"As for those protesters at the Holy Capital Guild headquarters—if they keep causing trouble, arrest Xu Lan immediately."

lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.

for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?

lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...

grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)