Chapter Thirty-Three: Midnight Knocking

In the bitter chill of the moment, Li Hao sensed something—his instincts warned him that something unknown had silently approached from behind.

But...

He did not turn around, did not look back, for he was afraid, gripped by a paralyzing fear that consumed him entirely.

Wan Ning entered the inner chamber, and Madam Chu exchanged a glance with the stewardess; all the servants in the room quietly left.

Otherwise, if the eagle beasts pulling the chariots were killed in battle, these war chariots would be rendered useless. Without a smooth path, the soldiers could not coordinate to transport these heavy vehicles.

There had been no news of her all along; no one knew how she was faring now. And what of the master and senior sister? Where were they at this moment?

Though the inner seal had yet to be broken, it was already impossible to destroy this hunting ground or create a black hole within it.

Qiu Qiu picked up Da Bai, scratching under his chin. Da Bai purred contentedly, a sound that reminded Qiu Qiu somewhat of a cat.

I was my mother's pride. Later, she was deceived by a man, tricked out of everything, left penniless and destitute. Only then did I realize how harsh and cruel society truly is.

“Rest assured, as long as it cannot be proven that the patient’s illness is not a cerebral hemorrhage, or if the patient cannot be revived, then I admit defeat,” Zhang Lida said lightly, smiling.

In truth, before she saw it, Shi’er had smiled the same way, turning to look at her briefly before facing forward again.

The Shou family grew restless immediately. What was meant to be a proper banquet was disrupted by the Shen family, and now they insisted on using a sedan chair. What kind of person still arrived in such a manner?

Boromo gasped in disbelief. He simply could not believe these were the words spoken by his own father.

This time, it was during their first trial. They said my hands looked pretty, so they beat them with a board until they ended up like this.

“Mu Xue, don’t be impulsive. He’s Chinese—we can’t shoot one of our own. Besides, he can easily dodge your bullets,” Ziyue said, holding up her hand to stop Mu Xue and urging her to lower her gun.

At this moment, the sky was clear without a cloud in sight. Countless stars twinkled unabashedly, and the moonlight flowed over the earth like water in layers. You carefully described Gu Luo’s cheek, filling him with deep contentment.

But when the time of trial came, the tester unconsciously forgot that everything before them was merely a test, becoming deeply engrossed and unable to extricate themselves.

The battlefield fell into silence; no one dared to make a sound. Everyone listened with keen interest to Liu Fan’s speech.

Yet now, an even more pressing issue confronted him: the venerable predecessor of the alchemical path standing before him.

It appeared as if a master craftsman had painstakingly carved it entirely from a single block of ice—each leaf, every branch, even the trunk itself was crystal clear and exquisitely beautiful.

With a flick of the fingers, blue arcs of light danced at the fingertips, and as spiritual energy rose, it transformed into a streak of lightning.

In reality, everything was virtual—there was no military exercise at all. Miland had merely sent them on a pointless run; fortunately, they were prepared and arrived promptly at the designated regrouping point.

“I heard the captain say that the ultimate test in the Battle Secret Realm is unpredictable and perilous... and each test is different... you can never anticipate what you will face...” Dean tapped his fingers aimlessly on the table, muttering to himself.

Feng Tong’s mood had been sour lately, all because of a thorny assignment he had received half a month ago.

By the time Qin Zining hurried back to the Tai Xuan Sect, the sect’s leader and many elders, except for the Grand Elder who was in seclusion, had already gathered in the main hall atop the peak.

She told herself that these were burdens she must bear, for she had once hurt Fang Zeyu.

“I owe you and my mother too much, and I have yet to repay it. You are a good child, but a mother’s wishes are hard to defy. You may go!” Su Yanzhen pressed the acupoint to stop the bleeding, turned around, dragging one arm as if it were about to sever—like a death sentence. Still, he did not disobey his mother’s command.