A military aircraft coming from Northstate flew into Imperia's airspace. The passenger within was Nox. A while later, the aircraft landed at Northriver Military Airport, a place on the outskirts of Imperia.Douglas watched the aircraft land, looking worried. The moment Nox disembarked, he quickly approached Nox. "Lord Nox, the frontlines aren't looking well. You cannot just do as you please! If you had planned on coming back, you shouldn't have challenged Winterosch to a battle! The army needs its commander. "'He's blocking all my exit strategies!'Nox scanned Douglas. "And the nation needs its leader, Mr. Gaia."Douglas gasped. "This is different. I've shown you the emperor's decree. If he were to die, you'd take his place as leader!""Are you trying to say that you're making all the preparations for a change in leadership?"Douglas froze and frowned. "That is not what I said!""Good. I have my reasons for this," Nox said, but he didn't elaborate."Milord, the fleet is waitin
Overall, Nox saw Douglas in a positive light, but he was a politician, and they were known for their game of thrones. They always spoke in riddles, and Nox didn't want to waste time figuring out what Douglas was hiding."The underground chamber was created by the previous administration and built on a Dragon's Vein. It's the cultivation ground of the previous emperor. Because of the shift in land quality, the Dragon's Vein lost its power, and the chamber eventually became a bunker," explained Jaculus.Nox pursed his lips. "Tell me something I don't know.""Very well. There is a demonoid sealed under the underground chamber. Sariel was the one who did it. The demonoid was grievously injured before the sealing, and they should've died a long time ago. However, the tectonic shift a few days ago revitalized the Dragon's Vein, and the demonoid gained a breakthrough."Nox understood what he was trying to say. Quilo was worried that the demonoid might break free, so he wanted to kill the
An abandoned mountain stood about thirty miles away from Imperia. It was hard to imagine that there was undeveloped land in the most developed place in Faeast. Countless nameless graves dotted the place.Ever since the Limerents established the nation, this place was forbidden to all. A Forbidden Army squad was stationed nearby to keep an eye on this spot. The place that was usually deserted was as bright as day now.The Forbidden Army squad had this place on lockdown, the purported reason being military business. Within the forbidden zone, Hidden Dragon Guards stood sentry. Heavy-duty military chopper hovered overhead all day. Nox's fleet entered the forbidden zone.Nox's itinerary was kept under tight wraps. The patrolling squad had no idea that their lord was inside one of those cars. The fleet came to a stop when they arrived at the back of the mountain."We're here, milord." Jaculus got out of the car and opened the door for Nox. Nox came out, but he didn't see an entrance to
Since the guy didn't trust Jaculus, Nox had to speak to him telepathically. "Are you dumb?"The squad leader was pleasantly surprised to hear Nox's voice, and he almost yelled out 'milord'. Nox quickly said, "Shut it. I can't believe you used to work for me closely. This is the self-restraint you have? Keep this to yourself."The squad leader shut up right away, and he nodded, looking like he wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.After the mountain was moved, Nox told Jaculus he was going in. Before Nox could, Jaculus asked, "A question, milord. Just for the sake of this discussion, what if the demonoid has broken through to the next level? Can our obstacles stop him?""If he's a Supreme, yes. If he's a Pinnacle Legend Realm, it would be tough. We don't have to enter the chamber through the original entrance, and the same goes for the exit. Just wait for me. It shouldn't take long." Nox went inside.Nox walked along the crack between the two mountains and traveled down until h
Countless evil entities hid in this underground chamber. They were hunters hiding in the shadows, their eyes set on the only prey around—Nox. "Weird. The violent energy isn't coming from them," Nox muttered.Something rustled in the dark. Because of his divine sense being blocked, he couldn't sense these enemies."This isn't a horror movie, so show yourselves! Eight Techniques, Runic Talisman, Dancing Comets!" Nox drew runes in the air, and they shone crimson. "Go!"The runes split into a downpour of comets, lighting up the underground chamber. Nox could see that the chamber was destroyed, and corpses were everywhere. The comets shone their light on everything in the chamber, including the evil entities.Then, Nox realized these entities were nothing but puppets made with quality metal. There were a thousand of them in the chamber. From the runes imprinted on the puppets, Nox recognized these as the Blackstones' products."Blackstone puppets? Then they're probably not as simple as
At the same time, the other puppets came back to surround Nox. They banded together to cast a Forbidden Art, and a wave of chilling frost enveloped the underground chamber, freezing more than half the place.Nox swung his hand and created a barrier around him. Everything outside the barrier was frozen, but everything within was not affected."Yep, this is a mechanical soul, alright." Nox noticed the multitude of patterns carved on the crystal and the phantom fire flickering in its center. His Divine Sense could not penetrate the crystal to figure out exactly what was inside. He crushed the crystal, and the thing within was revealed to him.The phantom fire morphed into an evil spirit. Its face contorted with rage and agony, and the spirit pounced at Nox."Nothing but an evil spirit. This crystal uses souls as its fuel." Nox held up his hand to contain the evil spirit. He then scanned the spirit to find out its history.A moment later, Nox sighed. These evil spirits were powerful w
Thirteen Needles of the Phantom King was the signature technique of the King of Acupuncture. Nox knew how it was administered, but he never tried to master it because he knew another more powerful technique—Heaven's Thirty-Two.That technique merged acupuncture with celestial ordinance, and it could even change the fate of a patient if used well enough. That kind of technique wasn't something any person could master.That technique involved the power of fate, and using it was akin to casting Forbidden Arts. One wrong move, and the user could suffer a terrible backlash. "The emperor is dying. If I don't use it, he won't survive."Nox said, "Vermilion Bird saved the King of Acupuncture before, so he taught her this closely-guarded technique. It's a perfect fit for her, given her frequent fights with assassins."The job of an assassin didn't always mean they had to rely on weapons. The best assassins were masters of poisons. Thirteen Needles of the Phantom King was a technique that sp
They were man-made life that had sentience. The Legend Realm puppets formed a circle around Nox and used the natural energy within them to create a protective formation.After they were done, Nox finally calmed down and drove all other thoughts out of his head. "Arise!" The needle split into thirty-two, and all the needles, infused with natural energy, started doing their work.If the King of Acupuncture saw Nox controlling thirty-two needles at the same time, he would have the shock of his life. All the needles seeped into Quilo's body. Natural energy was injected into Quilo's flesh, and Nox infused them with a part of his life essence.The tactician was in the play himself. If Nox wanted to save a dead man, he would have to plunge himself into the sea of death himself. He could only save Quilo if he could carry the weight of fate.Nox's technique easily cured the toxins of the Thirteen Needles of the Phantom King. Once the poison was gone, Quilo's life force would leave him fast.
Nox unleashed his divine sense, scanning the entire perimeter of Imperia. The same scene repeated itself everywhere: borders littered with unconscious civilians, numerous car crashes, and many more trapped victims in desperate need of help."It looks like we need to break this damned formation first. Ugh, what a pain. And of course, we've got to locate the core before we can dismantle it," he muttered in frustration.The Soul Maze Formation was powerful—so much so that only those in the Legend Realm could traverse it unscathed. Imperia didn't boast many cultivators at that level, and those few were already occupied along the borders, rescuing civilians.Nox focused his Divine Sense and quickly pinpointed the core of the formation within minutes."There's a Sacred Realm guardian from the path of the ancient divine stationed at the core," Nox said telepathically to Cassian. "Grandpa, you and Kirin should head there. But don't rush—leave the rest to me."Nox's caution was clear—he di
Aphrodite maintained her usual stoic demeanor, but behind the scenes, she said to White Tiger telepathically, "Being enslaved by Nox's soul technique? That's quite the excuse. Surely, you know I'm naturally immune to soul techniques?"White Tiger scoffed and shot back telepathically, "They'd have chopped you into pieces by now if I hadn't done some fast talking! Do me a favor and behave yourself for once, or I'll handle you personally before they could even get the chance."Despite his grumbling, White Tiger couldn't help but feel a mix of envy and frustration over Aphrodite's extraordinary immunity. It was said that if someone's mind was honed to an unparalleled level, they could naturally resist soul techniques. Aphrodite had truly reached such a pinnacle of intellect.Aphrodite assumed command of the Nox Army as Nox's soul technique had seemingly bound her to him. She immediately ordered them and the nearby forces to retreat, leaving only the Sword Sect of Magic Mountain behind
Kirin and White Tiger had already entered Nox's room, only to freeze at the sight of his stormy expression. Trouble was clearly brewing."Milord, what happened?" White Tiger asked cautiously, lowering his head as if trying to shrink out of sight.Could this be about them swindling Aphrodite? But they had lost everything all night long—wasn't that punishment enough?Nox announced, "Imperia has gone dark. I can't reach Azure Dragon or the others. White Tiger, contact the military zone immediately and arrange for a military aircraft. I need to leave for Imperia right now!"White Tiger instantly tensed at the news. Imperia suddenly going dark, combined with Cassian's imminent return to reunite with Penelope, felt too coincidental. Could someone be targeting the Greenshade family?"Damn those scoundrels! Understood, milord. I'll get everything ready!"He rushed off to make the arrangements.Meanwhile, Aphrodite's telepathic voice reached Nox. "Stay calm. It's not as dire as it seems.
Nox felt choked by the sheer emotion he was feeling. Sometimes, even a thousand promises couldn't compare to the simple vow of staying together in life and death."Don't worry. There's no one in this world capable of killing me," he reassured her with a smile. All the talk about ruling the Nine States and Five Domains or becoming the emperor of the world paled in comparison to having the one he loved by his side.The destroyer ship made its way back to Faeast's inner harbor. Nineve eagerly led the group to the largest shopping mall in the area as soon as they disembarked.The marines quickly found themselves acting as her personal attendants, lugging bags upon bags of purchases. The spree lasted the entire day, only stopping when the mall finally closed for the night.Later that evening, Nox was watching a live news broadcast in the hotel.The screen showed an official spokesperson from Faeast addressing the issue of piracy on the high seas. The statement carefully emphasized the
As the Temple Lord of the Beast Temple, Kirin was none other than the auspicious beast Kirin itself.On the other hand, Mufasa, while known as the temple's guardian, was, in cruder terms, little more than a servant to the golden lion. His master, the golden lion, paled in comparison to the Kirin in both cultivation level and bloodline.Simply put, if the golden lion were present, it would have to kneel before Kirin."What now? Why'd you drag me out? Couldn't you deal with it yourself? You're so annoying! I was just having a great chat with my students," Kirin grumbled, clearly irritated.However, he immediately shut his gob after receiving a hard whack on the head from Nox."I called you out to ask if you could gather the beasts of the Beast Temple. Tell them to withdraw from Mystia and return to Faeast for the time being. I foresee a war with the path of the martial brewing soon, and I'll need a fully armed force of sacred beasts," Nox said, his piercing gaze fixed on Kirin."Ca
Faeast's rise was inevitable. This belief was absolute and unshakable!At that moment, Aphrodite came to a realization that so long as she and Nox had no romantic ties, their hearts could truly be in sync.Love brought complications such as resentment and division. But without personal emotions clouding their judgment, everything they did would be for the nation alone. Take this moment, for example. The intricate trap she had laid was no longer just a scheme. Rather, it had become a necessary move to safeguard Faeast. By nightfall, the destroyer arrived at the island where Voltaic resided. Before the ship even came to a stop, Voltaic stepped onto the water, striding across the waves with Mufasa by his side. With effortless grace, he leaped onto the bow, landing before Nox on the deck. "You old bastard, what's your deal? When I tried reaching out before, you acted like you were deaf. Now that I've shown up, you're all smiles and warm welcomes? What's that supposed to mean?" No
Just then, several pirate ships appeared on the horizon. They were from Capwave Island. Now, Nox had every reason to suspect that these pirates were nothing more than pawns, a smokescreen used by the elites of the island nations to cover their tracks. "Milord, those guys have their eyes on us. What's the call?" the captain asked. "My rule is simple. If they make a move, fire. Wipe them out. But you're the captain, so I'll leave the decision to you," Nox said. The university students onboard were all fired up, ready to take action without a second thought. The captain, mindful of the number of civilians on board, decided to attempt communication first. He picked up the radio to send a warning to the pirates.The deafening roar of jet engines ripped through the sky. A sudden transmission cut into their frequency. The voice on the radio was firm and unmistakable. "This is the Faeast Air Force. We have orders to escort your vessel. Stand by." Above them, fighter jets h
Nox first checked on Cassian. After realizing he was fine and had only collapsed out of exhaustion and loss of life essence, Nox turned to lead a group of men toward the port. The mystical artifact sealing off the island had been retrieved. The isolated island would finally see the light of day once more! Nox had just arrived at the port when he was surrounded by a pack of students. Somehow, they found out their savior was Lord Nox of Faeast. They were all insistent on meeting him. "We just knew Faeast would save us!""Our savior is actually Lord Nox! We will surely study hard to repay Faeast!"They were young and impulsive. In their eyes, Nox was sent to rescue them as Faeast knew they were in danger. Hence, they were overwhelmed with emotions. Nox stared at them with a guilty look in his eyes. He had not even known they were kidnapped. Due to that guilt, he agreed to take a group photo with the students even though he disliked appearing before the public eye. The enti
"Zeller, you'll be brought to justice!"With a twist of his fingers, thousands of swords appeared out of thin air and swung at Zeller.Without any techniques he could use, Zeller had to risk his life to block and dodge every blow sent his way. However, his body gave up after a few hundred strikes, and his body was torn apart.Shaken to his very core, Zeller tried to make a retreat."Where are you going? Quintuple Lightning, awaken the divine tempest!"As deafening thunder roared through the sky, countless bolts of lightning struck down at Zeller's dark spirit, killing him.One of the best evil cultivators died just like that.His death also sounded the death knell for the Celestial Ordinance's Abode that had been causing chaos in Faeast for centuries.The Marine Corps gazed at Nox with passionate excitement in their eyes.This was their lord, someone who was stronger than Cassian!Nox turned around to find the remaining elites crying in despair. Some of them had already lost