Volume 1, Chapter 44: The Young Master Is Dying

Dong Yuan held his position at Shangyanwu, blocking the retreat routes of the defenders at the north gate of Fuyang City while continuously dispatching reinforcements to the front lines. Barring severed limbs or broken feet, no one was permitted to withdraw. By the twenty-sixth, practically all the troops deployed to Fuyang had been battered to the point of near-annihilation.

Given that Elder Xue was an honorary professor at Capital University, it was hardly strange for him to be introduced simply as a professor. Observing the reactions of Song Yao and Elder Xue, Gu Ming realized that Elder Xue preferred to keep a low profile regarding his true identity, so she obediently kept her mouth shut and said nothing.

Witnessing this scene, the two emperors, Silence and his companion, unwittingly felt a twinge of envy toward Emperor Qishang. Although the fellow had been given a merciless thrashing by Wu Zhenxie, he had at least tasted what it felt like to consume a legendary imperial-grade divine elixir. Taking a beating for that was worth it—a thousand times worth it.

In reality, the comments and wanton mockery from internet users could only serve to fan the flames. What truly ignited the storm of public opinion were those news outlets that had been closely collaborating with Morgan until just recently.

Hearing Li Yundong’s gentle voice felt like a warm current flowing into her heart, naturally evoking a sense of closeness and trust. Emboldened, Song Yuqiao raised her head for a quick glance, only to see the man who had moments before possessed the awe-inspiring majesty of a divine being during the magical duel smiling at her slightly, his gaze as approachable and warm as the April sunlight.

With a slight frown, he peered closely through the hospital gates and saw that there were no other furnishings inside, leading straight instead into the corridor of a main building—a corridor whose end was nowhere in sight, deep, gloomy, and somewhat eerie.

Among the force of thirty-six hundred men, not everyone belonged to the core group. Individuals like Shao Xiangyang and his companions were part of a twenty-odd-man mercenary band who had chosen to risk their lives because the employer's payout was simply too lucrative.

Imperial Physician Wei hastily replied, "That is not the case. Many camellia cultivators know that 'Eight Wonders' is beneficial for the plants, but they lack the proper formula and proportions, at best only using it soaked in water to water the flowers. Since this pertains to the Zhang family's secret horticulture techniques, this subject will say no more."

The area of the Hecheng pastures was by no means smaller than that of Chongzhou County, yet the registered pasture households in the Hecheng registry were less than one-eleventh of Chongzhou County's population, complemented by a thousand salt-laborers. Altogether, the Salt and Iron Office governed over twenty thousand salt-laborers—though, of course, outsiders had no way of knowing how many of those were ghost names collecting unearned rations.

Meanwhile, dragons from other lineages seemed to be stirring as well, preparing to launch an attack on Andreas at any moment.

Though he might not have reached the absolute pinnacle within the Through-Heaven Sea, he could certainly be considered an overlord of a region, his great name resounding across the entire domain.

This battle was fundamentally a contention of destiny. Without role models and exemplary figures to inspire those spineless, good-for-nothing teenage superheroes, even if they were taught martial arts, their lack of inner fortitude would still prevent them from taking to the battlefield. And even if forced onto the front lines, they would inevitably fold under pressure.

This commotion dragged on until noon. Seeing that the displaced refugees had still not dispersed, Li Yan sent someone to interrogate Li Mushian, who replied that the grain carts had only recently departed; fearing the rebel army might renege and pursue them, they intended to scatter once night fell. This left Li Wu fuming, puffing out his beard and glaring in anger, yet utterly helpless.

The Palace Battalion, acting on orders from Chang Yu, engaged in constant harassment around Zhendinting, turning the entire prefecture into a chaotic mess and at one point even striking right outside the prefectural city walls to raid the area. This left the rebel army both enraged and alarmed, yet helpless against their peerless combat prowess and ghostly elusiveness.

Even these fifteen million Moka crystals had been secured only because she personally sought out Shangguan Hong to obtain them.

It was impossible to tell what realizations Foam had achieved in this awakening, or whether he, too, had witnessed a story about their dreams just as she had. But it no longer mattered.

All living beings and myriad things can merge with the Dao, can verify the Dao, can speak of the Dao; yet the Dao is constant yet inexpressible, impartial and unbiased, devoid of sentiment and righteousness, untouched by the suffering of sentient beings.

Luo Feng produced an intricately patterned high-tier spell scroll—a ninth-tier spell from the Forgotten Realms known as "Elminster's Radiant Distillation."

Naturally, Star Rail felt an inner resistance, because if aberrant magic energy could be successfully converted into pure magic, a greater volume of aberrant magic energy would grant him a correspondingly greater pool of magic—the two were directly proportional. To have more than half of it drained away now would have an immeasurably devastating impact on his future strength, wouldn't it?

An unfathomable and mysterious power resided within the Corpse Witch King, forcing Qin Motian to resort to his ultimate trump card, and even then, he was barely holding his ground.

"You guys go ahead and chat, I need to take this call." Shi Jinlei exchanged a glance with Li Dan, then walked off to the side with his phone in hand.

This felt like an insoluble problem in his life, dragging him time and time again into a bottomless quagmire of struggle and self-torture.

The Capital Club was located near the Imperial Palace, where available taxis were pitifully scarce. After futilely attempting to hail a cab with her phone for quite some time, Song Qingchun did not secure a ride; instead, Su Zhinian arrived.

Yu Zhiyang had no idea that Zhiluo was so formidable. It was only after going to see for himself that he truly understood Zhiluo was no ordinary person.

Between heaven and earth, a golden figure as brilliant as the midday sun suddenly materialized at the very moment those dozens of puppets were about to devour him.

The budding thought of a miraculous resurrection had not even fully formed into a confession before it was once again cruelly and mercilessly shattered into nothingness.

"Dandan, you're finally out. You worried us to death." Wei Xinxi was the first to step forward, grabbing Li Dan's hands as tears welled up in her eyes.