Requesting votes at the end of the month.

"Auntie, I just came back after completing a mission. How has your health been recently?" Lu Yan asked with genuine concern.

Meanwhile, Chun Yu gave the order to rest and reorganize for the night, setting off early the next morning toward the Emerald Sea Coast.

Discovering a fleet in this region meant there were only two possibilities: either forces from the border battlefield, or the current enemy—the fleet of the Reaper Legion.

Guo Ziming slumped defeatedly into his chair, gazing blankly at Bu Qianhuai. The recent clash had made him painfully aware that Bu Qianhuai's current strength was completely beyond his match. Bu Qianhuai hadn't even unleashed his strongest assets, the Evil Dragon Arm and the Celestial Lute, yet Guo Ziming had already failed to withstand three moves.

The sword Qi was razor-sharp. Whether it was flying swords or other spiritual treasures, they shattered into scrap metal the moment they touched the sword aura. Simultaneously, the destruction of each spiritual treasure was accompanied by a dying shriek—the sound of Ye Feng's Heaven-Slaying Sword Qi piercing straight through their glabellae.

"Aside from those items, there is also this one. Could I trouble you to give it to her as well?" Zi Qingyang acted as though they had already agreed. She withdrew her hand from her storage pouch and produced another object from her waist.

Mo spoke, and Xing Zeyuan nodded in agreement. For Gansu, every step forward was a step further away from a place of heartache. As for Pining, he was a child of the mountains born and raised; the great mountains and forests were his protective deities.

No matter what was said to him, he felt it was of no consequence, and whatever others wished to share with him, he would always listen attentively. Even if it was something beyond his capabilities, he would try his utmost to accomplish it, simply to avoid leaving himself with any regrets.

"These challengers are probably just here for the experience," Chen Jing guessed, and her assumption was indeed correct. Federal regulations stipulated that eligible citizens could participate in a challenge at the same gymnasium for free once a year, while subsequent attempts required a fee.

"But they went too far! They actually demanded that we submit to their sect, hmph!" Liu Qing'er said with an indignant expression on her face.

"Yes, Sect Master..." Seeing the Sect Master fly into a rage, the red-haired old man turned pale with fright, hurriedly acknowledged the command, and prepared to fly outside.

A jolt of shock went through his heart. Wasn't today the day his eldest brother was taking her into the household? Why had she run all the way here? Looking around and finding no trace of anyone else, his confusion deepened. Recalling how she had once claimed she would rather marry him than his brother, his brow furrowed deeply. Could it be that she had escaped on her own?

Suddenly, a buzzing sound echoed as several powerful searchlights pierced the darkness, casting their beams across the island. Before long, a helicopter touched down on the plaza with a deafening roar, disgorging two squads of fully armed soldiers. The leader, clad in a leather jacket, strode forward.

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty was a devout Buddhist, leading a nationwide boom in temple construction. Upon the completion of each temple, the renowned master painter Zhang Sengyou was invited to create murals. Once, at the Anle Temple in Jinling, the master painted four golden dragons on the wall. They were so lifelike that onlookers clicked their tongues in wonder, yet the sole flaw was that the four dragons lacked eyes.

As mentioned earlier, I have been assimilated by this world—my Zanpakuto, my magic, my physical body, my mask... and beyond those, there is one more thing that has also been assimilated.

The old man let out a melancholy sigh, but unexpectedly, he turned around and raised Li Chenghuan to his feet with both hands.

The final outcome could be deduced without asking: failure. The path of cultivation was inherently an act of defiance against the heavens; there was no room for victory or defeat, only life and death.