“Your Majesty, we have a situation here. Seventh Princess is in secluded cultivation. She can’t take a bumpy flight. Thus, we can only travel at a low speed. It will still take us some days before we get back.”
“You have seven days. Don’t try to test my patience.”
With that said, the King of Elemental Elves directly hung up.
His attitude already made it very clear that he was indeed angry.
As for why he was angry, there was only one possible answer—the pressure from the Tiger Talisman Royal Family.
Hu Bin’s and Hu Zhiqiang’s death filled the Tiger Talisman Royal Family with rage. All kinds of their large-scale fleets had gone on the rampage, as tough venting their spleen, as well as warning others. At this time, no one could get in touch with the higher-ups of the Tiger Talisman Royal Family. What were they plotting? There was no way to find out.
Li Mu, on the other hand, had been staying with his fleet and studying the Highest Clouds Sketch these days.
“So this is what it is.”
“I was on the wrong track before.”
“This is the real Highest Clouds Sketch!”
“Now that I have gained the initial understanding of the Highest Clouds Sketch, it’s time to cultivate in seclusion and advance to the Yuan Ying Realm.”
With an excited look on his face, Li Mu ordered, “From this moment on, I will begin my secluded cultivation. After we arrive in the Cloud Star Area, just roam about for a while. We’ll return to the Cloud Shadow Sky after I make my breakthrough.”
Li Mu’s breakthrough came very fast.
After all, he had already stayed at the Peak-Stage of the Elixir Realm for some time.
It took him a total of 13 days before he made it to the Yuan Ying Realm.
Wisps of explosive aura swept across his room.
The dining table, bed, wine glass, and all the other things in the room were smashed by the aura. Fortunately, the wall emitted a great deal of defensive energy to appease this wild aura.
“Young Master, you’ve made the breakthrough?”
About seven people rushed into the room. When they saw Li Mu, who was otherworldly-looking and wrapped by a violently surging aura, they knew that Young Master Li had made it!
“Go back to Cloud Shadow Sky.”
Li Mu waved his hand, his majestic aura pouring out.
“We are already in the Cloud Shadow Sky,” one of his subordinates replied in a timid voice.
Li Mu was instantly bemused.
He hurriedly spun around and looked out the window. To his astonishment, the building outside was precisely the main palace of the Cloud Shadow Sky.
“Didn’t I tell you that we wouldn’t go back until I made the breakthrough?” Li Mu demanded. His face darkened.
Before he could fly into a rage, one of his subordinates hastily explained, “It’s not that we wanted to defy your order and come back early. It’s, it’s just that we ran into Madam’s fleet. She went out shopping and met us on the way back. She ordered us to bring you back without delay. We didn’t dare to disobey Madam, so…”
“We ran into my mother?”
Li Mu scowled at that subordinate disgruntledly. Yet, he couldn’t do anything about it. Resignedly, he headed out of the aircraft.
Outside, an enormous palace stretched as far as the eye could see. Its size was comparable to a large city. This was the main palace of the Cloud Shadow Sky.
This place was packed. As a large force, the Cloud Shadow Sky had a large number of members.
As Li Mu and his men walked to the palace where Li Mu’s family lived, many people on the road greeted them respectfully.
“Greetings, Young Master Li.”
Li Mu didn’t respond to these greetings. If he had to nod at every person who hailed him, he would have no time to do anything else for the rest of the day.
He quickly returned to the palace to meet his father, Li Hao. At this moment, Li Hao was drinking tea with his three wives.
“Father, I’m back.”
Li Mu cupped his hands at Li Hao.
“You made a breakthrough?” A smile immediately spread across Li Hao’s face.
He nodded with satisfaction.
“Yes, I did. I originally wanted to come back triumphantly after I had the breakthrough outside. But when I was done, I found I accomplished that right at home.” Li Mu’s tone carried strong discontent.
“It doesn’t matter where the breakthrough occurred.”
Li Hao gave a soft laugh, then said to the subordinate at the door, “Tell everyone that Li Mu has broken through to Yuan Ying Realm and the Cloud Shadow Sky will celebrate for three days.”
“Yes!”
The subordinate at the door looked thrilled at once.
Now that Li Hao said there would be a three-day celebration, many rare delicacies that one would not normally get to eat would be served during the next three days. What was more, the dishes would not only be palatable but also contain quite a number of spiritual herbs. The meals they would have during these three days would enhance their strength no less than a month of tough cultivation.
This was a very grand celebration for the sect.
Also, the sect would spread the news out. Then, those big shots in the Cloud Star Area would come to congratulate the sect. The value of the gifts that they would present to the sect would far surpass the cost of the celebration banquet.
“I’ll leave now. Enjoy the tea,” Li Hao said to his three wives.
He then turned toward Li Mu and said, “Come with me.”
The two of them walked across the palace into the backyard. There was a towering mountain in the backyard. After passing three checkpoints, they finally arrived at the bottom of a cliff.
“Our Cloud Shadow Heaven’s three greatest secret skills were originally inscribed on this cliff. However, our sect had already undergone a great battle. Of the three secret techniques, only 70 percent of the Highest Clouds Sketch has been preserved. The incomplete version is extremely difficult to comprehend,” Li Hao said with a sigh.
“When you get the complete Highest Clouds Sketch, you’ll have a totally different kind of understanding,” Li Mu said in a low voice.
Then, his entire body shuddered, and an enormous amount of spiritual force seeped out of his body, revealing the complete Highest Clouds Sketch to Li Hao.
“It’s really the complete Highest Clouds Sketch,” Li Hao remarked. He didn’t look as surprised as Li Mu had pictured. His face was just cool. He patted Li Mu on the shoulder with gratification, saying, “You’ve made a great contribution this time.”
“It’s what I should do. Father, the Highest Clouds Sketch is not the only secret skill Senior Zhang Hanyang can perform, he also knows the Dragon Shadow. I saw it with my own eyes. He displayed the Dragon Shadow effortlessly. It’s another great secret skill of our Cloud Shadow Sky!” Speaking of this, Li Mu looked a little excited.
“He can also perform the Dragon Shadow?”
Li Hao showed an astounding look. But he soon knitted his brows and said, “Looks like he does have something to do with the seniors of the Cloud Shadow Sky.”
“Father, was there ever an Elder Bai in our Cloud Shadow Sky?” Li Mu asked.
“Yes, Elder Bai was a legendary figure.”
Li Hao’s expression was instantly full of reverence. “The Cloud Shadow Sky has existed for thousands of years. In the Sea Dragon Star Area, it has had its moment as well as its downturn. Its most glorious days were about a thousand years ago. At that time, the Cloud Shadow Sky dominated the Sea Dragon Star Area. In those days, there were only eight elders in the sect, and each of them was a God Transformation Realm cultivator. The sect leader’s strength was even more inconceivably powerful. The Sea Dragon Star Area was too small for them to exercise their powers. Staying here became meaningless to them. Therefore, all of them left the Sea Dragon Star Area. Decades later, war broke out in the Sea Dragon Star Area. The Cloud Shadow Sky fell into decline overnight. Three hundred years after that, I joined the Cloud Shadow Sky and became Elder Lou’s personal disciple. Then, I went out and traveled over 10 years, obtaining many opportunities. When I came back, I became a protector, who was then promoted to be an elder, and eventually the sect leader. As of today, the Cloud Shadow Sky has grown considerably stronger. Yet, it is still a far cry from what it was in its heyday.”
After saying this, Li Hao heaved a heavy sigh.
“It’s a pity that the legacy of the three greatest secret skills of the Cloud Shadow Sky has been lost. I found some clues in the old sect location, which was the remainders of the Highest Clouds Sketch. It took me many years’ comprehension before I finally sorted them out and restored 70 percent of it. At that time, I thought I would be able to draw the entire Highest Clouds Sketch. However, to my surprise, this secret skill turned out to be extremely wonderful and abstruse. It’s surely worthy of being called the three great secret skills of Cloud Shadow Sky. To master, it requires exceptional comprehension ability. Now that you’ve obtained the Highest Clouds Sketch, you’ve actually given the sect a big help.”
“It’s nothing. I’ll draw the complete Highest Clouds Sketch right now.”
Li Mu’s soul sense fluttered out of his body and engraved the complete Highest Clouds Sketch on the cliff.
“Huh? Why is it different? Why does it look completely different?” Li Hao was slightly startled.
“Father, this is the complete Highest Clouds Sketch,” Li Mu confirmed, “I tried to cultivate with this method for a few days. As my comprehension deepened, the power of this skill multiplied. Senior Zhang Hanyang once launched an attack with this Highest Clouds Sketch and scared away many Yuan Ying Realm strange beasts. I still clearly remember how powerful that attack was. It was simply horrifying. Senior Zhang has definitely comprehended the Highest Clouds Sketch very thoroughly!”
In fact, to gain a thorough comprehension was merely step one. The three secret skills—the cloud, shadow, and sky—were the gifts that Zhang Han gave to the Cloud Shadow Sky after he became a Tribulation Stage master. He had invented them based on several different secret skills.
“This is wonderful, elegant, and amazing!”
Li Hao’s eyes grew brighter. At last, he threw his head back in laughter. “Good, good, good!”
“Father, Senior Zhang is, well, with all due respect, an extremely formidable figure for sure. But generally, he is very easygoing. Er, Senior Zhang’s father, grandfather, and many friends like fine wine. When we were on the Lost Continent, I offered them all the wine I had. I’ve promised him that in the next half a year, I will go collect all kinds of special wine in the Sea Dragon Star Area and let them have a taste on their next visit to our Cloud Shadow Sky.”
“They will come to visit us?” asked Li Hao.
“Yes. Senior Zhang’s daughter is quite close with the Elemental Elf Clan’s Seventh Princess. They said that when Princess Nina held her Coming of Age Ceremony, they would come to our Star Area again,” said Li Mu.
“They have a close relationship with the Elemental Elf Clan’s Seventh Princess?”
“Yes. Senior Zhang and his people seemed very rich. They spent about a hundred million crystal stones just on clothes and some useless souvenirs,” Li Mu added, “all of them have sixth-tier treasures. It was exactly because Hu Bin coveted the sixth-tier treasures that he let his greed get the better of him and ordered them to stay. As a result, he was killed by Senior Zhang.
“They went to the tribal land. By the way, there were about a hundred participants who came from their place. The trial on the Lost Continent seemed to be held especially for them. There was a weird old man who was super-mighty. He had a treasure that could cross the void in the universe. On the eastern part of the river on the Lost Continent, there was a small lake and a stone tablet. Every participant was allowed to go up and take the test given by the stone tablet. The one who passed the test could get some important legacy…”
Li Mu told his father everything that had happened.
Li Hao was stunned when he heard those things. He had heard some news before, and he had also learned some information from Yi Hou, who came back earlier. But no one provided him such comprehensive information as Li Mu did. After all, Li Mu had accompanied Zhang Han during the last few days of the trial at all hours.
After Li Mu was done, Li Hao remained silent for five seconds before saying, “Recently, the situation the Elemental Elf Clan is facing isn’t very optimistic. The Tiger Talisman Royal Family has sent their fleet to the Roland Star. They probably won’t wage a war for the time being. Well, I plan to send someone over to investigate the situation. We don’t need to do anything yet, just wait and see how things will go. If the Tiger Talisman Royal Family really makes a move against the Roland Star, we will send people over to stop them. At the very least, we have to stall them until the Seventh Princess’ Coming of Age Ceremony. You should focus on your cultivation and solidifying your strength. When it is the Coming of Age Ceremony of the Elemental Elf Clan’s Seventh Princess, you can attend the ceremony as our representative.”
“Yes, father.”
As a matter of fact, the situation the Elemental Elf Clan was facing was really quite gloomy.
“Mo Wen and the others still haven’t come back?”
The King of Elemental Elves was sitting on his throne, looking down at dozens of his subordinates. He said calmly, “How is the battle on the Ruby Star?”
“It’s not going well,” one of his subordinates reported, “three parties, including the Scorpion Hall, are determined to seize the Ruby Star. Our army can’t stop them unless we send more reinforcements there.”
“Any news from the Tiger Talisman Royal Family?” the King of Elves asked again.
“Yes, there is.”
A young elf scurried over to the King of Elves’ side. He leaned in and whispered a long speech into the King of Elves’ ear.
A trace of gloom flashed across the King of Elves’ handsome face. But he quickly regained his calmness and remained silent for a long while.
The hall was unnervingly quiet.
Five minutes later, the King of Elves opened his mouth and spoke, “Send this message to the world… Our Seventh Princess will pick a man as her fiance on her Coming of Age Ceremony.”
After saying those words, the King of Elves’ figure disappeared in a flash.
Those in the hall burst into an uproar.
“What?”
“I must’ve heard it wrong, haven’t I?”
“How can we let this happen? The Elf Clan has never done this before.”
“It’s the king’s decision. Well…”
Yet, it wasn’t that the Elf Clan had never married a princess off to another force. In the history of Elemental Elves, there had been several such instances. Other than the very few who eloped, those princesses were married off in disgrace to make peace with other forces.
“Has the current situation really become this dangerous?”
Mo Wen and the others were totally unaware of this. It was not until late that very night that someone notified Mo Wen about the change.
Upon hearing this, Mo Wen’s face fell.
“Nina has to choose her fiance at the Coming of Age Ceremony? That’s simply…”
“But Nina is still very young!”
“How can our king do this to her?”
“God!”
Mo Wen’s looked extremely distressed and kind of at a loss. Although his status amongst the Elemental Elves was relatively high, he did not dare to question the decision of the King of Elves.
He had also guessed that their clan might be facing the extremely heavy pressure imposed by the Tiger Talisman Royal Family.
“Even so, His Majesty shouldn’t have given Nina away just because of the great pressure. If the one who passed the selection turned out to be someone she didn’t like, wouldn’t the rest of her life be spent in misery?”
“What should I do?”
Mo Wen forcibly yanked his beard in desperation.
Ten days later.
In the room where Nina was cultivating in seclusion.
“Boom!”
A wave of energy surged.
She had made the breakthrough!
Nina had officially become a Yuan Ying Realm cultivator
“Uncle Mo Wen, I made it!”
“Good. Well done!” Mo Wen’s sullen face finally showed a trace of a smile.
After Nina rejoiced over the success for five minutes, Mo Wen told her everything.
“Our clansmen have probably been under too much pressure. As a result… Our Majesty has sent out a message, saying that during your Coming of Age Ceremony, you would choose a man as your fiance.”
“Clap!”
The news struck Nina like a bolt from the blue.
She was stupefied.
She just stared unblinkingly at Mo Wen.
One second, two seconds, three seconds… 10 seconds passed.
Splatter!
Tears streamed down her cheeks in an instant. Next, Nina whipped around and ran back to her room.
“Alas…”
Mo Wen sighed heavily.
He did not know how to comfort her. He had thought about whether he should keep this from Nina and let her have a few more happy days. However, he knew that Nina had to face it sooner or later. If that was the case, it was better for her to know about it sooner, so she could be prepared for it. She would also have time to look for a solution on the way back.
As for what the solution might be, Mo Wen had no idea.
“Go back to the Roland Star.”
Mo Wen’s mind energy spread out to inform the other elves. Like that, they embarked on the return journey.
In a few days, the news that the Elemental Elf Clan’s Seventh Princess would choose her fiance at her Coming of Age Ceremony swiftly bandied about.
It caused a lot of discussion among various forces.
“Elemental Elves are going to marry another princess off in exchange for peace? This is already the second time the current King of Elves has decided to marry a princess off to another force. He is really something.”
“Their Seventh Princess is Nina, right? I heard she is a beauty, the prettiest amongst all their princesses. I was just wondering why our Fifth Prince was in such high spirits earlier. He must want to marry Nina. There are many benefits of marrying a beauty from the Elemental Elf Clan.”
“…”
Soon, most forces in the Sea Dragon Star Area had learned of the matter.
When the Tiger Talisman Royal Family heard this news, it stopped making trouble. Many people guessed that they were actually brewing an even bigger storm.
Some even stated with assurance that the King of Elves did this just to marry Nina to a prince of the Tiger Talisman Royal Family and appease their anger.
In the Cloud Shadow Sky.
“Father, have you heard of the news about the Elemental Elf Clan?” Li Mu asked.
“Yeah, I heard…” Li Hao replied, “this matter shouldn’t be that simple. The Elemental Elf Clan’s Seventh Princess is a beauty. I’m afraid many men will be tempted to marry her. The crisis created by the Tiger Talisman Royal Family might develop differently. Before her Coming of Age Ceremony, there shouldn’t be any big conflicts. Of course, if you are interested in her, you can go and have a try.”
“Me? I… I think I’ll pass.” Li Mu was a little tempted at the thought at first. However, thinking of Mengmeng, who didn’t like him a bit, he shook his head repeatedly and said, “I don’t want my friendship with them to end due to this matter. I’ve worked so hard to gain their trust. And Senior Zhang’s daughter cares about Princess Nina very much.”
“Really?”
Li Hao suddenly laughed and said, “Actually, I also wanted to go and take a look at Nina’s Coming of Age Ceremony. Something fun may occur on that occasion. Sadly, it’s not convenient for me to go there in person. When the ceremony comes, you should bring more people with you there.”
“Yes.”
Many forces were discussing this matter. Some even speculated that this news contained extraordinary implications.
As for Nina, she didn’t come out of her room until the next day. Her face was all calm, as though nothing had happened.
All the way back to the Roland Star, she didn’t express her view on the matter. It was just that she seemed more depressed than ever.
When she arrived home and met the King of Elves, the two looked at each other for three seconds. Yet, Nina still said nothing.
At last, the King of Elves said, “Go and rest.”
That was all the conversation they had.
Peace was restored to the Sea Dragon Star Area.
On Mount New Moon.
It was still as lively as before. On one weekend, Mengmeng went on a two-day outing with Zhang Han and Zi Yan.
Recently, Dahei and Little Hei had become much more well-behaved. They had been slowly absorbing the two balls of energy that Yue Wuwei had given them. Tiny Tot slept whenever it could, except for the time when there was meat for it and the other two to eat.
It had had too much to eat back on the Lost Continent. It needed some time to digest the energy.
As for the others, they cultivated like usual. Some of them made breakthroughs. It seemed that there was no place in the whole world that they couldn’t go. Mu Xue, Jiang Yanlan, Zhao Feng, Xu Yong, and Chen Changqing went out several times and made a name for themselves during battles in the South, North, and West Domain of the Kunlun Immortal World.
They hadn’t killed anyone but friendly sparred with others.
Mount New Moon became more and more famous.
In the past, when people mentioned Mount New Moon, they would say it was a force patronized by the Heavenly Knights Sect.
Now, when somebody brought up Mount New Moon, everyone would say, “Mount New Moon was Zhang Hanyang’s territory. Its influence has spread afar. The Deep Valley in the Kunlun Immortal World, the Heavenly Knights Sect, the Luo Fu Sword sect, the Shuiyun Sect, and many other forces in the world lets, as well as the Lord of Dragon Scale City and Lord Nan Shan in the Ancient Mine, are all Mount New Moon’s allies.”
It is the most terrifying force the world has ever had in a thousand years.
And Moon Empress is Zhang Hanyang’s wife. Their family has risen above every force in the world.
That was already public knowledge.
Unfortunately, many people in the King’s Domain did not think so.
In the Dark Shadow Clan, strength mattered more.
“No matter how powerful Zhang Hanyang and Moon Empress are, they don’t even dare to come to the King’s Domain once. Is it because they’re afraid of our moguls?”
This was what many in the King’s Domain believed.
The Dark Shadow Clan, the ones favored by the Saint Warrior Planet, seemed to have unique confidence.
One day, at noon…
Zhang Han was sitting cross-legged in the practice room.
Rumble!
A piece of music, which seemed to be composed of thunderclaps, suddenly rang in Zhang Han’s body.
The music was faint. At the same time, indistinct electric currents appeared on Zhang Han’s body.
If one looked carefully, one would discover that the tiny electric currents were bolts of lightning that had been shrunk by many times. The energy they contained was incredibly oppressing.
Two minutes later.
“Phew…”
Zhang Han let out a long breath.
He opened his eyes, and a jet of bright light fleeted across them.
