Volume 1, Chapter 217 – Heaven’s Chosen

“Weiyang!”

Du Tian’an hurriedly tried to stop him. Just as he was about to send another voice transmission in persuasion, Bai Weiyang spoke first.

“I know my limits.”

Du Tian’an opened his mouth, but swallowed the words when they reached his lips. After letting out a sigh, he said no more.

Wan Yuanwu silently climbed up from the ground, licked the corner of his mouth, swallowed the broken teeth and blood in his mouth, lowered his head, and said thickly, “General… General Bai is right to discipline me. I am willing to accept punishment and return the battle merit at once.”

With that, Wan Yuanwu walked to Bai Weiyang, removed the black Demon-Suppressing Token from his waist, and handed it over.

After taking the Demon-Suppressing Token, Bai Weiyang also took Shi Lan’s token into his hand. Then he removed the pale-gold Demon-Suppressing Token from his own waist and placed it between the other two tokens.

A faint layer of clear light enveloped them. Bai Weiyang closed his eyes to sense for a moment, then opened them and looked at Shi Lan.

“It was an early-stage Heavenly Astral Realm Vajra Demon Ape. Five hundred and forty thousand points of battle merit. Tripled and rounded, let’s call it one million seven hundred thousand. Wan Yuanwu does not have enough battle merit, so I will make up the shortfall for you first.”

Before Shi Lan could say anything, she felt a vague sensation descend upon her, and her battle merit suddenly surged.

This was feedback from the annals of the human race.

At Bai Weiyang’s blunt words, a chorus of sharp intakes of breath rose from all around. The assembled officers all looked at Shi Lan with varying degrees of disbelief.

To defeat, or even kill, an early-stage Heavenly Astral Realm Vajra Demon Ape alone required at least Heavenly Astral Realm strength.

Although there were not many people present with that kind of strength, there were not none, either. But when that level of strength was paired with Shi Lan’s age, it became somewhat terrifying.

“This matter ends here.”

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Bai Weiyang returned the Demon-Suppressing Tokens to their respective owners and turned toward the warship’s hold.

Wan Yuanwu stood where he was. Suddenly, Bai Weiyang’s voice rang beside his ear, and he could not help shivering.

“If you are dissatisfied, you may have your elders come find me and settle it face-to-face. But if I discover that you make a move against Shi Lan in private, then this will not end as simply as it did today.”

Wan Yuanwu stared at the deck, said nothing, silently memorized Shi Lan’s name, and turned to leave.

Shi Lan gathered her Demon-Suppressing Token back and sensed the battle merit inside it, now almost breaking through the four-million mark. For a moment, she fell into thought.

How was she supposed to turn that battle merit into the things she actually needed?

…

Of the one hundred and thirty thousand Demon-Suppressing Army troops, fewer than one hundred thousand returned. More than forty thousand had fallen, while over four hundred thousand demons had been slaughtered.

In a battle fought in the wilderness, that casualty ratio could be called a great victory. And with more than half the troops being new recruits, being able to keep losses at that level was already no easy feat.

Because that golden ape had appeared right beside Shi Lan, the Demon-Suppressing Army troops near her had suffered heavily. Of the more than seven hundred soldiers under her command, nearly three hundred were lost, close to half.

Of the hundred-odd new recruits, sixty to seventy percent had been lost, and the casualties were severe.

But after the battle against the golden ape, the remaining few dozen had unconsciously shed their prejudice toward Shi Lan, and all that remained was admiration.

People always worship strength. When the gap in power was widened without limit, the distinction between male and female gradually began to blur.

…

After returning to Xianwu City, Bai Weiyang gave everyone two days to rest, reorganize the troops, and recover their strength.

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Shi Lan had just changed into fitted clothes and was preparing to go to Nishang Pavilion to retrieve the Yueji Skirt. Before she had even left the drill ground, she ran into Shi Tianlu, who had come looking for her in ordinary clothes.

Shi Tianlu’s face was somewhat pale, and his blood and qi fluctuated. He was clearly injured.

“Come home for dinner tonight.”

Seeing that Shi Lan seemed to have something to do, Shi Tianlu did not ask further. He said his piece and turned to leave.

“Father.”

After a brief hesitation, Shi Lan asked, “Are your injuries serious?”

“My internal organs took some shock. It’s nothing serious.” Shi Tianlu shook his head, then added another reminder. “Remember to come home tonight.”

Shi Lan nodded in acknowledgment and watched Shi Tianlu leave the drill ground. After thinking for a moment, she began rummaging through the Qiankun Bracelet for spirit materials that could be used for healing.

…

In a grand restaurant on the western side of Xianwu City, not far from the drill ground, Wan Yuanwu respectfully filled a teacup for a middle-aged man.

The man looked to be around forty. Divine light shone brilliantly in his eyes, and sharp radiance flickered from them like the blazing sun in the heavens, making him impossible to look at directly.

“Third Uncle, I’ve already investigated Shi Lan’s background thoroughly. She’s nothing more than someone from a barbaric family in the wilds of the Chengtian Domain. The strongest person in that family is only at the Earth Fiend Realm. They can be handled with ease,” Wan Yuanwu said respectfully.

Clack.

Wan Mingxu set down his teacup heavily and sighed. “Yuanwu, when are you ever going to grow up?”

“Third Uncle… what do you mean by that?”

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Wan Yuanwu froze slightly.

“That Shi Lan is nothing more than an insignificant woman from some barbaric backwater in the Chengtian Domain, and yet you want to offend Bai Weiyang over a moment’s anger because of her?”

“Third Uncle, that’s not what I meant…”

Wan Yuanwu hurriedly tried to explain.

“I understand. You want to say you had no intention of killing her, so it would not alarm the Demon-Suppressing Token, nor would Bai Weiyang know. Is that right?”

“Yes…”

Wan Yuanwu silently swallowed the words at the edge of his lips. What he had actually wanted to say was that even if Shi Lan could not be killed, that did not mean her family could not be touched.

“Yuanwu, do you take Bai Weiyang for a fool? I can state with certainty that if I made a move today, Bai Weiyang would come to my door tomorrow!”

Wan Mingxu glared at Wan Yuanwu in disappointment.

“You made an enemy of Shi Lan one moment, and something happens to her the next. Any person could see that something was wrong, much less Bai Weiyang. Why can’t you think things through just a little more?”

“Third Uncle is right to reprimand me…”

Wan Yuanwu lowered his head, still somewhat unwilling to let it go.

“Yuanwu, you must understand: a real man must endure a moment’s anger if he wants to accomplish great things.” Wan Mingxu spoke meaningfully. “That Shi Lan is only some barbarian woman. Whether she can even survive this demonic invasion remains to be seen. In the future, the gap between you and her will be like that between a divine dragon in the highest heavens and an ant on the ground. Do you understand?”

Wan Yuanwu’s gaze flickered, but he said nothing.

“No matter how good her talent is, born in such a barren place and living in such chaotic times, what can she really achieve? Her life hangs by a thread, and she could die young at any moment.”

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Wan Mingxu said with faint disdain, “Without the protection of a powerful force, no matter how monstrous a genius may be, that genius may still fail to grow.”

“You should make your preparations and hurry back with me to the Central Heaven Domain. Avoiding this demon calamity is the important thing.”

Hearing Wan Mingxu’s words, Wan Yuanwu’s face changed drastically, and disbelief filled it. “Third Uncle, you mean… Xianwu City might not be able to hold?”

Xianwu City had been managed by the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect for tens of thousands of years and was already deeply entrenched. The number of Heaven-Man experts within it could not be counted on both hands.

Added to that was the sect-protecting grand formation, the Xianwu Yin-Yang Grand Array, a terrifying formation said to be able to trap even a Human Emperor for three months. Xianwu City had long since seemed impregnable.

Wan Mingxu shook his head and calmly spat out two words.

“It will fall.”

…

After leaving the drill ground, Shi Lan went straight to Nishang Pavilion, retrieved the Yueji Skirt, and then headed directly home.

“The… the Eldest Miss has returned.”

Amid the somewhat flustered greeting of the servants, Shi Lan stepped through the gate.

She had not gone far before she ran headlong into a group of people. On every one of their collars was embroidered the same emblem.

A golden sun wrought in gold thread.