“Student Yan Zhen…”
The referee mentor stared fixedly at Yan Zhen’s movements, beads of nervous sweat covering his face.
In the spectator stands, every student and mentor watched Yan Zhen with wide eyes, their hearts pounding fiercely.
Was he going to kill Wen Canglan right in front of everyone?
Huangfu Wenqing, Zi Xunyi, and Long Ying all had taut, lovely faces, their gazes unwilling to leave their beloved even for a moment.
The battle-fueled fervor in the air had fallen so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Yan Zhen’s expression remained impassive as he gripped the blazing gold-and-silver greatsword upside down. Under the watchful eyes of thousands, he thrust it downward with force.
“Aaahhh!”
Wen Canglan let out a shrill howl.
The tip of the Extreme Tyrant Sword had pierced straight through the palm of his right hand. The Gold-Silver Fire continued to scorch the wound, inflicting pain beyond imagination.
Having endured the mental scourge of the Heavenly Dragon Eight Sounds Technique and the Thunder Symbol, Wen Canglan could barely form a coherent thought. Yet he still managed to spit out the most sensible words for the moment.
“I concede! I concede! Grandpa, save me!”
However, Vice Dean Wen Qingshan had been blocked by Elder Yu Yan.
“I originally intended to kill you, but my current strength isn’t enough to overturn the academy rules.” Yan Zhen showed no mercy. “Back then, you used this hand to injure me. Today, I’ll waste this hand of yours!”
With that, Yan Zhen slowly withdrew the Extreme Tyrant Sword and let the greatsword dissipate.
Under the relentless burning of the Gold-Silver Fire, Wen Canglan’s right hand was reduced to little more than charred bone. Even if he later consumed pills that could revive the dead and regrow flesh from bone, full recovery would be nearly impossible.
Payback in kind.
In the script, their conflict had ended with mere rivalry over a woman, so Yan Zhen hadn’t done anything to Wen Canglan after defeating him. But reality was different.
The force of that palm strike had been enough to severely injure a Four-Star Mystic Master and leave behind hidden wounds—how vicious.
This was Yan Zhen’s revenge!
Wen Canglan wailed until he fainted dead away, his glasses shattered across the ground, not a shred of poise left.
The referee mentor breathed a sigh of relief and announced the result.
“In the final round of the Star Plucking Assembly, the winner is Student Yan Zhen!”
The crowd in the spectator stands hadn’t yet processed it. Applause began sparsely, then grew louder and louder until it thundered like an explosion, echoing through the skies.
Vice Dean Wen Qingshan was the first to appear on the arena stage. He scooped up Wen Canglan, fed him a pill to stabilize his injuries, and then lifted his head. His eyes shot toward Yan Zhen like lightning.
“You fiend! How dare you maim a fellow student in public—so ruthless!”
Elder Yu Yan appeared just in time, positioning herself in front of Yan Zhen. She calmly deflected the old man’s aggressive outburst. Her usually squinted eyes cracked open into thin slits, and the amiable smile on her face turned icy as she faced her foe.
“Vice Dean Wen Qingshan, I advise you—and your Wen Family—to save some face. Yan Zhen’s actions didn’t violate any academy rules.”
During the Star Plucking Assembly, even accidental kills or maimings went unpunished. As long as the opponent hadn’t conceded or fallen off the stage, one could reasonably assume they still had the power to fight back, permitting continued attacks.
That said, Yan Zhen’s advantage had been so overwhelming that killing Wen Canglan outright would have been seen as opportunistic revenge—a rules violation.
Crippling one hand or foot, on the other hand, merely neutralized his combat ability and secured the win. Perfectly reasonable.
“Elder Yu Yan, are you going to shield this fiend?”
Before the elder great-aunt could respond, another figure flashed into place in front of Yan Zhen. It was Huangfu Wenqing, her sword already drawn, eyeing Vice Dean Wen Qingshan warily.
Almost simultaneously, a flash of purple light and one of pink leaped from the spectator stands, landing before Yan Zhen to shield him.
Zi Xunyi and Long Ying both radiated the aura of Mystic King powerhouses. Of course, that was just for show—should a real fight break out, they’d dare to clash even with Mystic Ancestors.
“Old hag, have you asked me before trying to bully Yan Zhen Zhen?”
“…”
Wen Qingshan froze, his eyes filled with wariness as he regarded the stern-faced Elder Yu Yan. He knew he couldn’t accomplish anything here. With that, he scooped up Wen Canglan and transformed into a crystalline rainbow of light, departing the Grand Duel Arena.
Elder Yu Yan let out a breath of relief. If Wen Qingshan had lost his temper completely, it would have been a mess. A great elder dueling a vice dean in public would make for a laughingstock—and draw reprimands from the Holy Land.
She turned to Yan Zhen, extending a fair hand from her wide sleeve to pat his head.
“Well done, Little Yan Zhen. Congratulations on claiming the top spot on the General Star List!”
Yan Zhen coughed twice, his face flushing slightly.
“Great Elder, everyone’s watching.”
Elder Yu Yan reverted to her squinting, smiling expression.
“Hehe, feeling shy? What a little cutie.”
Yan Zhen awkwardly scratched his cheek, finally understanding the complicated feelings of the Yu Family Head Mother-in-Law and the Dean Little Aunt.
He turned to the three women and gave a slight smile. Habitually, he reached out to pat Long Ying’s little head—then realized he was doing the exact same thing as the elder great-aunt.
Long Ying, however, seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. She grinned.
“Congratulations, Yan Zhen Zhen.”
Huangfu Wenqing chimed in.
“As expected.”
Zi Xunyi spoke up.
“Great Elder, next comes the award ceremony, right?”
Elder Yu Yan was about to nod when she suddenly sensed a powerful aura. Her eyes snapped wide open as she looked skyward.
She wasn’t the only one. Yan Zhen, the three women, and everyone in the spectator stands, referee seats, and contestant areas all looked up.
A rift suddenly tore open above the Grand Duel Arena. One after another, soldiers clad in silver armor and wielding silver spears stepped out, forming two impeccably neat rows.
Each soldier was at the Mystic Lord Realm or higher—even boasting several Mystic Ancestors. Following them emerged a general clad in golden armor, his aura surpassing all the soldiers. He strode to the front, gazing down imperiously at the people in the arena until his eyes quickly locked onto their exceedingly noble princess.
Yan Zhen, Zi Xunyi, Huangfu Wenqing, and Long Ying all changed color.
The Hundred Battles Legion of the Heavenly God Clan! The Heavenly God Clan had sent people!
The silver-armored, silver-speared warriors of extraordinary strength descended in perfect unison onto the arena stage. Led by the golden-armored general, they dropped to one knee and clasped their fists in salute toward Zi Xunyi.
“Hundred Battles Legion Vice Commander Gu Yan leads the Second Legion to welcome Your Highness Zi Ji back to the clan.”
The entire arena fell deathly silent, but every face expressed maximum shock.
They had known the Purple-Clothed Goddess came from a mysterious and noble background, but none had imagined it was to this degree. Even a young general who might be a Mystic Venerable knelt in salute to her and addressed her as “Your Highness.”
Neither Yan Zhen nor Zi Xunyi had expected the Heavenly God Clan to arrive so swiftly, so unexpectedly.
They had agreed before the tournament that, upon his victory, they would hold a celebration banquet and a farewell feast together.
Zi Xunyi stepped forward and said coolly,
“At ease, soldiers… I still have matters to attend to at the academy, so I can’t leave with you just yet. Wait a moment—we’ll depart tomorrow.”
Gu Yan rose first, his tone aloof.
“The Saint Sovereign commanded this humble general to escort Your Highness Zi Ji back without delay. Any procrastination risks unforeseen changes. Please, Your Highness, do not act willfully.”
