Volume 1, Chapter 40: A Hero Among the Living, A Hero Among the Dead

As Xiao Aoyu and her companions walked out of the imperial court, Xiao Aoyu could no longer contain herself. She leaped forward and grabbed Lin Wangzhi by the arm.

"Wangzhi, this is wonderful! The Emperor has agreed to grant us even more rewards!"

Their victory in eradicating the mountain bandits was a monumental achievement!

Huo Wangzhi also longed to celebrate wildly, but mindful of their surroundings, he pushed Xiao Aoyu away and said, "In broad daylight, what kind of behavior is this?"

Xiao Aoyu felt not a shred of resentment and lowered her voice to ask, "Wangzhi, what do you think our reward will be?"

"I don't know, but this is a major merit. At the very least, we should be enfeoffed as marquesses!"

Enfeoffed as a marquess!

Xiao Aoyu was instantly overcome with excitement!

Just think how prestigious the Liaoyang Marquis Mansion was, which meant that—

Before this matter could settle, the basketball was intercepted by the substitute power forward of the Three Peaks team. Seeing no one ahead of him, he prepared for a straightforward triple-step slam dunk. Zhang Fei was completely powerless to stop him this time, but the shot was ultimately blocked anyway—this time by Guo Xi, who had just stepped onto the court and rotated from the mismatch at the point guard position to provide help defense.

Faced with the disrespect of the Primordial Universe God Emperor and God Empress toward the Human Emperor Liu Qianlang, they smiled faintly and offered a cold, sarcastic remark.

At this moment of life and death, Xiao Qitian remained true to himself. His mind raced at lightning speed, cycling through thousands of thoughts in the blink of an eye, and within moments, he reached a decisive conclusion.

The commotion earlier had startled Madam Yu and Qian Yuluo. Upon coming over to investigate, they discovered that these people had already tracked them down here. It was only after hearing their one-sided account that they chose not to reveal themselves.

Lin Tao hurried over to help the fat man pull the boat ashore. "Where on earth did you find such a wretched-looking boat?" Lin Tao wiped the sweat from his brow and panted heavily as he spoke.

"The assassination failed. I suspect the man who stopped me was Lin Tao. He was right there at the hospital when I left just now. I am heavily poisoned and need quiet recuperation, so I won't be returning to the stronghold for the time being." After speaking, the person disguised as a doctor abruptly hung up the phone.

The Warmth and Chill Chamber in the West Palace could not compare to the grandeur and luxury of the one in the Central Palace, but its charm lay in being half-open-air and half-spring pool. Even in late autumn, as long as the supply of hot water was sufficient, soaking in the spring pool left one feeling completely warm.

"How... how could you be here?" Haomiao's reaction to Ji Yun was different from that of the other guardians. After all, Ji Yun hailed from the Haomiao Continent that he himself had created; strictly speaking, they were compatriots. Yet, Ji Yun's sudden and immense power left him feeling a trace of panic.

Meanwhile, the crowd exchanged uncertain glances. After a long silence, four individuals stepped forward hesitantly with heavy expressions.

While Li Bufan was deep in thought, let us wind the clock back by one week. After my master, the Peerless One of the Northeast, and Mr. Nanling departed with the Sahai Map and the Soul-Gathering Cup containing the Dragon King's blood, they did not head directly to the base camp of the Spirit-Awakeners.

During the enemy's surprise attack last, though they had suffered a disastrous defeat, the monsters led by the Crimson Flame Wyvern had been almost entirely wiped out.

Some of the laborers helped their intoxicated companions, clutching large bundles of cash, and set off overnight to seek refuge with relatives and friends.

Zhang Tie nodded, tucked the photograph into his inner breast pocket, turned to push open the car door, slipped into the back alley of the grocery store, and gently closed the door behind him.

Having issued his instructions, Chen An raised his binoculars to scan the distance. Just as he was contemplating his next move, a series of urgent beeps suddenly sounded, and he immediately rushed over.

With a smile, he said, "Mr. Clark, you are truly clever. I am most fortunate to have a friend like you. Off I go; I haven't had dinner yet." He gathered the three leather bags into one hand to keep the other free to deal with any potential assassins.

Sure enough, when Fei Bin rolled the man over, he discovered that the man's complexion was bluish-purple and his mouth hung wide open. Reaching out to check, he found no pulse whatsoever.

Yue Laosan was overjoyed and slapped him heavily on the shoulder. The force was enough to make Lin Pingzhi feel as though his bones were about to shatter, yet he still dared not show any anger on his face.

The two grown men clapped each other on the shoulder, and Hu Yidao even landed a punch on Fang Zheng's chest.

Lu Weifeng shrugged, refusing to reveal Qin Miao's true identity to Duan Tingzhi. If he were told, would he choose to kill this savior of his?

The Linshan Theater was the venue chosen by Bai Nian. It held no special significance other than the fact that Bai Nian's career began there. Holding the competition in this place meant that even if Li Zhen wanted to stir up trouble, he would have to think twice about the influential figures backing it.

Within the Qingxu Divine Palace of the Forty-Nine Heavens, the supreme ruler, Qingxu Dao Emperor, also received battle reports from all directions.

Furthermore, their trade was recovering corpses from the water; naturally, they had to earn money when the opportunity arose! Yet after two days, let alone a living person, not even a single floating corpse had been reeled in. With rain threatening to fall at any moment, the others all turned their boats around and headed for the shore. Black Girl and White Dog had originally intended to leave as well, but unexpectedly, it was then that they spotted a floating body.

The mother had not lived to see her son establish a family and a career, leaving her with inevitable regrets, and she could not bear to close her eyes even as she passed away.

She raised her gaze to look at Gu Yan. Because the lighting inside the carriage was dim, his eyes appeared exceptionally bright and clear.

Yet Chen Xuejiu believed that as long as she performed well enough, proved capable enough, and remained loyal enough, there would inevitably come a day when she earned sufficient trust from Yi Anguo, securing a status on par with Zhou Mengdie.

It must be that the food she cooked tasted simply too good—far too wonderful—so she closed the shop early on purpose to avoid discouraging others.

On this day, Yi Anguo visited Li Sisi's residence once again. Recently, Li Sisi's spirits had been rather low, so he carved out as much time as possible to accompany her, hoping to lift her mood and make things a little easier for her.

Tang Xian had no idea who Jiang Chen was, but hearing him speak of such secrets made her clench her fists as a murderous intent welled up within her. Her true background must never be leaked; otherwise, it would spell mortal danger for her.

From the main hall all the way to the entrance of the Yan'an Marquis Mansion, accompanied by festive music, Yan Mingxun finally handed his younger sister over to Gu Yan at the doorway, leaving Gu Yan to assist her into the bridal sedan chair.

However, Zhou Zedong's psychological state was inherently unhealthy, and she did not wish for the child to develop any issues due to her own neglect.

Before the Black Dragon could finish speaking, the Evil Dragon abruptly interrupted him.

"..." Looking at Jiang遥's weary yet smiling face, Liu Qian could not help but inwardly marvel. Who could possibly have guessed that the seemingly lazy youth before her was actually the peerless powerhouse who had effortlessly annihilated two top-tier martial artists just moments ago?

"Push harder!" Lin帆 shouted as he watched Morasion's health bar drop, raising his hand to cast a gale-force wind dragon that swept outward, instantly engulfing Morasion within the raging hurricane.