Morning light cascaded like a waterfall, the girl across from him had hair like flowing starlight, her radiant eyes brimming with an otherworldly divinity as always.
An inexplicable fury suddenly rose in Jiang Yu’s heart.
Li Mo’s gaze at him was one of challenge and fighting spirit, but she was different—she stood atop a mountain peak, her eyes sweeping past him without the slightest pause.
At that very moment—
Whoosh!
A sword gleam, condensed like moonlight, abruptly materialized before his eyes, faster than thought itself.
Almost simultaneously, a dragon-scale-adorned longsword, warned by his innate Sword Bone, swept upward from below, its draconic might shaking the heavens.
Yet the two blades did not clash as expected.
The sword gleam before him suddenly dispersed—illusory, not real—while Ying Bing, without making another move, sent a sharp, piercing sensation stabbing from the right flank.
Only those of higher cultivation could faintly catch that hazy lunar shadow.In her past life, Ying Bing had perfected the Nine Apertures of the Lunar Soul Intent, entered the Inner Scenery, and glimpsed the moon’s hidden yin before comprehending this move—hence naming it Moon’s Hidden Yin.
Divine light coiled around the Sword Bone in Jiang Yu’s chest, and a sharp edge burst forth, but it was too hasty.
Clang!
The divine radiance clashed with the lunar shadow.
Ying Bing’s figure remained ethereal and untouchable.
Jiang Yu, however, was left numb, a bone-chilling cold spreading from his meridians to his limbs, as if his soul were freezing solid.
The earlier debates over whether the "Frost Fairy" could defeat the strong with the weak fell silent.
They seemed to have mistaken who the challenger was.
In a single exchange, Jiang Yu had suffered a crushing defeat!
"How could this happen?"
This was the shock and disbelief in everyone’s hearts, amplified by the purple-robed eunuch’s voice echoing through the conch-shell amplifiers across the inner and outer cities.
"She, like Su Jun, is a true prodigy," Du Wufeng remarked, uncharacteristically solemn.
Xie Yiding, however, fell silent, lost in thought or perhaps dazed, before finally shaking his head:
"We were probably mistaken."
"She can’t simply be called a prodigy."
To borrow Li Mo’s words from his past life, it was more like—Holy shit, she’s cheating!
But the only one who remained unfazed, young Li Mo himself, might find the phrasing inadequate.
Because he was the one who actually had cheats.
"The higher the realm, the wider the gap between the ice block and her peers..."
Li Mo likened it to a PhD student solving elementary school problems—scoring full marks didn’t mean that was their limit.
Faced with "1+1=2," they might instead write a formal axiomatic proof.
So, if it had been him just now, how would he have countered?
First, abandon all illusions—discard the sword...
If he maintained his state of Harmony with Heaven and Earth, he might have sensed that sword in time, at least giving him a chance to activate his Indestructible Vajra Body.
Ying Bing’s delicate brows furrowed slightly. The fact that Jiang Yu had parried that strike meant he was indeed stronger than in his past life.
This referred to their relative strength at the same realm. Back then, even wielding the Imperial Dao as the Son of Heaven, Jiang Yu had been middling at best in the Seventh Realm.
Now, he could be considered her match.
Yet later, after ascending the throne and ruling the Nine Provinces and Ten Lands, why had he grown weaker?
A wisp of national fortune descended upon Jiang Yu, the sky darkening as if mirroring his expression.
Those below the Observation Divine Realm—even Inner Scenery cultivators—lost their five senses, unable to perceive their surroundings. Were it not for the unbroken projection of the Rivers and Mountains Scroll, they wouldn’t have known what was happening.
A golden dragon, resplendent in imperial yellow, swept down from the heavens.
At the same time, a bright moon rose—pure, dazzling, cold, and profound.
As the moonlight shifted, an ethereal sound, like a silver vase shattering, reverberated in countless hearts.
Ying Bing had broken through.
"Observation Divine Realm, Nine Apertures."
Li Mo looked up at the moon, his initial helplessness giving way to a bright, hearty laugh.
Just moments ago, it had been hard to say who was stronger between him and the ice block.
Now, it seemed clear.
Shortly after, Jiang Yu stepped down from the platform without a word. Strangely, his condition was better than after his last all-out battle.
"Elder Brother Crown Prince, you..." Princess Yuyang was still indignant. She knew Jiang Yu had held back some killing moves.
"No need," Jiang Yu murmured, his voice hollow.
If facing a close rival, he might have fought to the bitter end, or lain awake at night agonizing over his loss—Why didn’t I use that move?
That was why his defeat to Li Mo had haunted him for so long.
But from the moment Ying Bing broke through, his True Dragon Body and Sword Bone instincts told him one thing:
There was only one way not to lose to her.
And that was to slit his own throat before she struck.
He couldn’t understand it, but it was the truth.
"Is it over?"
"Probably..."
"I didn’t even see how Jiang Yu lost! What exactly did she do to win?"
"How shallow, to not even grasp that."
A mocking voice cut in from the side.
The criticized man frowned. "And what profound insight do you have?"
The woman spat out a melon seed shell, her expression smug.
"Do you even understand the weight of a Wife-Blessing Combat Soul?"
"Besides, if not for losing to Li Mo, she’d probably be the Hidden Dragon Ranking’s number one."
"Her mood right now must be... complicated."
As the battles on other stages concluded, the final round of the Hidden Dragon Tournament came to an end. Though the official rankings hadn’t been announced, everyone already knew the results.
Yet the voice that next rang out wasn’t the purple-robed eunuch’s.
It was Emperor Jingtai’s.
"The top three of this Hidden Dragon Tournament are Li Mo, Ying Bing, and Jiang Yu."
"Each generation brings forth its own talents—proof that our Great Yu is blessed by heaven and earth."
The emperor’s tone was calm, but none could miss the suppressed excitement beneath.
Cheers erupted uncontrollably across the inner and outer cities, the Rivers and Mountains Scroll radiating auspicious light, enveloping the imperial capital in celebration.
Hmm...
When Li Mo led Ying Bing onto the stage, he noticed the sea of spectators below was conspicuously short on cheers.
The nobility were obvious—their imperial family’s strongest contender had placed third. That they hadn’t stormed out in protest was already a miracle.
The common folk and martial artists all seemed dazed, still processing what they’d witnessed.
"Brother Li, you’re insane!"
"I hereby declare this place Little Overlord Square from now on!"
Only Murong Xiao, Huang Donglai, and Xiao Qin were whooping like wild dogs off their leashes.
So where were those thunderous roars coming from?
Li Mo glanced up at the Rivers and Mountains Scroll.
Ah.
So it was all special effects.
"Attendants, We shall personally confer their awards."
Emperor Jingtai descended, giving Jiang Yu a perfunctory acknowledgment before stopping before Ying Bing.
"As this tournament’s third rank, do you have any words, young lady?"
‘At least I’m not second—‘Li, the Third Rank’ just sounds weird...’
Li Mo squeezed Ying Bing’s slender hand, whispering:
"Your line, say your line."
Distracted, Ying Bing blurted out:
"I hope to beat him at night too."
...