A light flashed across Yunxiao’s forehead, and Black Girl, the great sword, appeared in his hand in the next instant. He grabbed the sword’s hilt with both hands and thrust the blade into the ground while waves of force spread out from all over him. With a look of madness in his eyes, he laughed wildly and said, “Come! Let’s see if it is your Roaring Spear of Dragon and Tiger or my defense that is stronger! Defensive style, Glazed Body!”

　　Under his soaring fighting will, streams of light began to appear and swirl over his skin, and his body seemed to have turned slightly transparent, making him look like a glazed lantern.

　　After cultivating the Tyrant Body Tempering Technique, the strength of the physical body would be divided into three levels: the Glazed Body, the Tyrant Body, and the Indestructible Body. When one cultivated to the last level, one could become a Saint with just the fleshly body, possessing the strength to crumble the mountain and shatter the earth!

　　Bam!

　　Several shadows of dragons and tigers roared and engulfed Yunxiao. Meanwhile, shafts of blinding light shot up into the sky as a huge flower of light seemed to suddenly bloom where Yunxiao stood!

　　“This is insane…This is madness! I can’t believe he made no effort to defend or dodge! He’s my idol!”

　　“He’s a madman! I’m sure he’ll be hurt under such a powerful attack!”

　　“Even if he is seriously wounded, he’ll still be my idol! Li Yunxiao is too cool, too handsome!”

　　Everyone present was aghast, gaping in disbelief as Yunxiao reemerged after the flower of light faded away. To everyone’s surprise, he looked neat and his clothes were dustless!

　　“Haha! The Glazed Body, how interesting!” Yunxiao suddenly threw his head back and laughed, thinking to himself, ‘No wonder Tyrant could resist my Starslash Sword with his Indestructible Body…It is so strong!’

　　Lin Yu sucked in a cold breath, and as if he were greatly shocked, he moved back a few steps while seeming to be at a loss.

　　At this moment, Luo Landuo, who had also signed up for the mission and was standing amidst the crowd in the arena, was staring blankly with mixed emotions at the lone figure in front of her, who was laughing wildly into the sky. She swallowed hard as one scene after another began to flash through her mind.

　　“My husband must be a hero of indomitable spirit, and he will be a Guardian of the State! Despite your distinguished status, you are, after all, a loser who cannot practice martial arts. Unless you can defeat me one day, I won’t give any thought to your proposal.”

　　As she looked at the man who stood in the arena with a mighty air like that of the Martial Sovereign Gu Feiyang, Luo Landuo smiled bitterly. She knew that from then on, the paths of two people under the same sky would never cross again. He would get stronger and go further, and she could only watch him from a great distance as he rode away at great speed.

　　“Brother Lin, let’s join hands!” Suddenly, Bai Chengfeng jumped forward and cried out, “Stop worrying what others will say about us. Only by joining hands can we defeat him!”

　　Yunxiao’s prowess had forced the two heaven’s favored ones to pocket their pride. Their eyes shone with the determination to win as they began their attacks.

　　“Thunderbolt Beads, scatter!”

　　Bai Chengfeng cried as he threw his hands out. Immediately, dozens of tiny beads scattered in the air, all shooting straight toward Yunxiao like a great canopy. Their speed was so fast that they seemed capable of piercing through diamond rocks.

　　When the beads reached in front of Yunxiao, Bai Chengfeng narrowed his eyes and shouted, “Explode!”

　　The dozens of Thunderbolt Beads exploded in an instant, producing waves of blast that slammed at one another and eventually joined into a towering pillar of flame! It was so powerful that even a Great Martial Master would have been killed if he were in the center of the explosion.

　　But, Bai Chengfeng felt that it was not enough. At the moment the beads exploded, he brought his arms together, and then both his vambraces joined into one and transformed into a round stone disk. In the next instant, a shadow of the disk emerged in the sky before swooping down at Yunxiao!

　　“Suppress the enemy, Blue Millstone of Death!”

　　“Take my strongest attack, Roaring Spear of Dragon and Tiger!” Lin Yu was very familiar with Bai Chengfeng, so he caught the right timing and struck together. Under the combined attack of the two geniuses and the dozens of Thunderbolt Beads, Yunxiao could never escape his death even if he were a one-star Great Martial Master!

　　Just when everyone thought the two geniuses had won, shafts of light suddenly broke out from where Yunxiao was, blooming and fading like lotus flowers. On each of the flowers was a mass of light in different colors that looked like a miniature world.

　　“The Song of Blue Lotus Sword!” Yunxiao cried out in a soft voice.

　　It was dreamlike and surreal as he stood there in the center of numerous blue light rings, which stopped all the attacks from getting close and hurting him.

　　“It’s my turn to attack now.”

　　Yunxiao slightly narrowed his eyes as he swung the great sword in his hand. An invisible force spread out of him, and all of the natural Primordial Qi several meters around him was completely drained and compressed on the blade. With a cold grin, he took a light step and said under his breath, “The Song of Blue Lotus Sword, a kill in every ten steps!”

　　Meanwhile, he made a cross-cut with the sword, and the compressed Primordial Qi exploded in an instant, sweeping out with a formidable force!

　　Lin Yu and Bai Chengfeng were startled. The moment they saw Yunxiao appear unhurt under their attacks, they knew they had lost the battle, and their faces fell when they saw his attack come slashing at them, which forced them to quickly retreat.

　　“Trying to run from me? One hundred times gravity force!”

　　Bam! Bam!

　　The two had just jumped up with their feet a few inches away from the ground when the one hundred times gravity force came crashing down on them, throwing them back to the ground and shattering the bluestones bricks. Shocked, they quickly lifted their mystic weapons to defend themselves against the thunderous attack.

　　Bam!

　　The attack hit them, sending rubble flying in all directions as a large hole appeared in the arena. Covered in blood, both geniuses lay motionlessly in it, and no one could tell if they were still alive or not.

　　Every student sucked in a cold breath and quickly backed off, their eyes filled with fear and shock.

　　Even Li Chunyang and Bai Mou were gaping in horror. They could hardly believe Yunxiao’s fighting strength could be so strong. No wonder he could chop off one of Li Yi’s arms. The power of the attack was totally at the level of a Great Martial Master.

　　Although Zhong Lishan was shocked as well, he was somewhat mentally prepared, so he could still accept what he saw. But, he gave Li Chunyang an envious look, and his heart was filled with indignation.

　　Yunxiao put away his sword, then glanced sharply at the students in the arena, over two thousand of them, and said in a cold voice, “Who else refuses to accept me as his or her commander? Step out right now!”

　　All students backed off once again, drawing a great distance from him.

　　Only then did Yunxiao smile in satisfaction. “Although this is a temporary army, you must behave like soldiers! The academy will distribute military supplies to you today, and I hope all of you will arrive on time at the muster roll platform tomorrow!”

　　After the duel, Yunxiao’s image in the minds of all the students reached a great height, and whatever he said was obeyed like military orders!

　　…

　　The muster roll platform was in the southern part of the capital. It was the venue where the emperor reviewed the troops before the army went to war.

　　But obviously, Qin Zheng was not in a good mood today, as he did not show up on the platform, leaving Li Chunyang sitting alone with his eyes closed, his hand holding the military deployment order. Qin Yue, Yunxiao, and a few others stood quietly beneath him.

　　Beneath the platform, in addition to the two thousand students who stood in neat rows and all clad in armor was a stark contrast of a dozen generals and about three thousand soldiers, who were either old, weak, or crippled.

　　These generals were all from Li Family’s faction. Under Qin Zheng’s deliberate arrangements, they were brushed aside in the military. So, although their status was prominent, they did not have any real power in their hands.

　　“What should we do, my lord? It’s past time, and I don’t think there will be any more men coming!” Han Bai’s father, Han Qianfang, said angrily. “In my opinion, even if we don’t have the support of the Central Army, we can still march with just this army of five thousand elite soldiers!”

　　Li Chunyang slightly lifted his eyelids, revealing his cloudy eyes. Turning to a man on the left side of the platform, he said, “Commander Xiao, you may begin.”

　　With his eyes narrowed, Xiao Qingwang leaped onto the platform and looked up at the bright blue sky. Suddenly, he gathered all his Primordial Qi over his dantian, and in the next instant, his voice exploded out of his mouth, spreading across the sky into every corner of the capital and shaking the entire city!

　　“Guardians of the State, assemble beneath the muster roll platform within the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn! Whoever does not arrive on time will be deemed to have disobeyed the order and punished accordingly!”

　　For a moment, everyone in the capital—whether the princes or nobles, peddlers or menial servants—raised their heads in horror and looked up at the sky. The god-like voice made everyone stop what they were doing, striking awe into their hearts.

　　“It’s Xiao Qingwang!” Gao Feng jerked his head up, his eyes filled with fear as he muttered involuntarily, “He has recovered…He has really fully recovered! And his power…it is stronger than before! Li Yunxiao really healed him!”

　　Qin Yang was horrified as well. His face was overcast as he said coldly, “So what if he has recovered? More than ninety percent of the Central Army is under my control. Does he want to assemble the five units of State Guardians to fight the enemy?” Looking at Gao Feng’s frightened face, he frowned and said, “Since you’re so worried, let’s go and see what my brother wants to do this time!”

　　Deep in the imperial palace, Qin Zheng was watching the singing and dancing in front of him through a pair of glazed and cloudy eyes, his expression seeming bored. Suddenly, his hand shook, causing the wine in his glass to spill all over the floor. For a moment, his eyes seemed to become clearer. “Xiao Qingwang, you’re back at last…I can finally feel at ease.” the emperor muttered to himself.

　　In the Prime Minister’s residence, Lan Hong also looked up at the sky with awe on his face.

　　“Dad,” Lan Guang said in surprise, “was that voice just now…”

　　Lan Hong pondered for a moment and then said, “It is indeed Xiao Qingwang! After five years of silence, the number one martial arts warrior of Tianshui has finally come back. It seems that the balance of destiny has begun to tilt this time.”