Time flowed like sand through the fingers—the tighter one grasped, the more mercilessly it slipped away.
All feasts must end eventually.
After setting their one-year agreement, no one brought it up again.
The storyteller's voice still echoed faintly behind them, yet the mood around Li Zhexian and the others had shifted from earlier cheer to quiet solemnity.
There was a sentence…
None of them spoke it aloud.
But it surfaced in everyone's heart all the same.
Tomorrow… they would lead their armies to the border.
All they could hope for was that, one year from now, they could still gather here—this same group—laughing in the evening breeze, arguing about whose roasted meat tasted best tonight, and listening to another night of storytelling.
Just then—
Pa!
The storyteller struck his wooden clapper, announcing the closing words:
"The tale ends here; its echoes drift on.
May next year's breeze blow the same, may the moon remain unchanged.
May everyone present today—
not one be missing… not one lost."
...
Night deepened.
Less than three hours remained before the army marched at dawn.
Li Zhexian sat beneath the Four-Seasons Plum Tree. Blossoms circled around him—blooming, falling, blooming again—cycling endlessly as they flowed with the mysteries of time.
Then—
Swish!
An icy arrow tore through the night, aiming straight for Li Zhexian's brow.
The biting chill scattered the drifting plum blossoms in a panic.
Li Zhexian kept his eyes closed.
At the stir of a thought—
A glazed sword-light condensed in midair and shattered the ice arrow.
The fragments did not fall.
Instead, they reformed into four glowing characters:
Do not go to war.
Li Zhexian's eyes snapped open, his brows tightening.
In the next instant—
The blossoms around him landed softly.
And the youth seated beneath the tree vanished without a sound.
...
At the same time—
Eighty miles outside Heaven Dou City.
"Cough… cough…"
Glowing Feather Douluo covered his mouth, a trace of blood seeping through his fingers.
His body shot across the night sky like an arrow.
Suddenly, the clouds ahead split apart.
A white-robed figure stepped out from within.
"Zhexian greets Senior Glowing Feather."
"You…"
Glowing Feather abruptly halted, staring at the youth before him.
His gaze shifted—shock, confusion, finally a sigh tinged with bitterness and comfort.
"As expected of the monster who dominates his entire generation… even this old man can no longer compare to you."
Li Zhexian's expression darkened.
He could sense Glowing Feather's fading aura.
A healing herb flew out from the pouch at his waist, drifting gently to the elder's hand.
"Senior Glowing Feather is not someone who'd speak such words."
"Heh…"
Glowing Feather shook his head, smiling bitterly, emotion unreadable.
Then his expression turned solemn.
"Li Zhexian. Since you saw the message… you should listen."
"This war—you must not go."
Li Zhexian stayed silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
"Please forgive this junior… I cannot obey."
"Two Limit-Douluo-level monsters.
The Titled Douluo of the Slaughter City.
And the Undead Titled Douluo under Bibi Dong!"
"Li Zhexian, even with your unparalleled talent—
Do you truly think one person can stand against the entire Spirit Empire?!"
Glowing Feather turned away, staring at the broken crescent moon, his voice desolate:
"The Worship Hall…"
"This time… we are destined to stand opposite you."
"After learning the Grand Worship went missing, Xue'er nearly lost herself trying to break into the Angel Divine Trials."
"Bibi Dong used her own divine-trial domain to trap her—half imprisonment, half coercion."
"This battle, for you, is certain death."
"With your talent…"
"You should flee and lie low. When you become a god one day, then come back to settle all debts."
"Xue'er… is imprisoned?"
Li Zhexian's face changed drastically.
Then Glowing Feather's voice followed, colder than before:
"You need not worry about Xue'er's safety for now."
"Bibi Dong knows that the Grand Worship alone is not enough to make the Worship Hall submit, so she moved to imprison Xue'er, intending a double threat."
"As long as the Worship Hall is still useful, Xue'er will not be harmed."
Li Zhexian exhaled softly, though sorrow still clouded his brows.
"Senior Glowing Feather…"
"Heaven Dou carries many of my friends… and twenty years of my joys and grief."
"When I was young I believed the sword in my hand existed only to defeat every enemy beneath the sky."
"Only now do I understand—
A sword drawn for protection… is the sharpest blade of all."
Glowing Feather's back stiffened.
He stood silent for a long time before speaking hoarsely:
"The common folk all say that the Sword Wine's sword is merciless."
"If we meet again on the battlefield, you and I will be enemies. Will you not kill me?"
"This junior hopes that Senior Glowing Feather will be safe."
...
Dawn broke, and the north wind howled.
Heaven Dou's battle banners unfurled like dragons, and tens of thousands of armored soldiers stood in silence, killing intent thick as a tide.
Before the army—
Yu Tianheng, Feng Xiaotian, Huo Wushuang, and countless prodigies from the academies stood in full battle gear, their auras razor-sharp.
Spirit Masters tied white paper charms around their armor belts—the marching talismans of war.
High in the sky—
Several figures hovered, pressure blanketing the heavens.
Li Zhexian, in white, stood at the forefront.
Behind him—
Chen Xin, Gu Rong, Dugu Bo, Feng Bailong, and Yu Yuanzhen lined up in sequence, each a Titled Douluo, each suppressing their aura like deep mountains.
Together with the enormous army below, their presence formed a force that seemed ready to tear open the sky.
The people of Heaven Dou gathered on their own to send them off—
Old men leaning on canes, women wiping their eyes, children staring in confusion.
No one knew who knelt first.
But within moments—
The entire avenue bowed as one:
"Heaven Dou's people thank you all for your protection—
May the heroes return victorious!"
Emperor Xue Ye bowed deeply.
"Heaven Dou is entrusted to all of you!"
Li Zhexian's gaze swept over the people of Heaven Dou. He took a deep breath, and his shout shook the wilderness:
"March!"
War drums thundered.
Sand flew.
The ground trembled.
The army surged north like a roaring tide.
...
One month later.
On the border wall—
Li Zhexian stood atop the ramparts beside Chen Xin, Dugu Bo, and the other Titled Douluo, gazing into the Spirit Empire's territory.
Tens of thousands of Spirit Masters were stationed across the border, momentum overwhelming.
"Something's wrong."
Yu Yuanzhen frowned deeply.
"Heaven Dou's reinforcements took a full month to arrive. The Spirit Empire could have seized a dozen cities by now. Why wait here as if they're waiting for us?"
Gu Rong's voice sank:
"This move defies logic and only increases casualties."
Ning Fengzhi pondered for a long moment.
"Perhaps…"
"They want to avoid siege attrition, and instead force a direct clash with Heaven Dou."
"In such a battle, strategy means nothing."
"From the start, this war was destined to be a grinder of flesh and blood."
Li Zhexian listened quietly, then spoke:
"During the Seven Sects Re-Selection, Bibi Dong completed her Eighth Divine Trial."
"The god she inherits is a pure god of evil.
The resentment born of war and slaughter… may be what she needs to break through to godhood."
Everyone's expressions changed.
But the situation was irreversible.
...
Two days later.
Around two in the morning—
The Spirit Empire's Spirit Master army surged forward like a tidal wave, crashing into Heaven Dou's border.
The Heaven Dou army braced themselves in formation.
In an instant—
War cries shook the sky. Blood splattered across the desolate plains.
Yet Li Zhexian and the Titled Douluo still did not take action.
They stood atop the city in silence, watching the dozen figures standing in the air across the border—
Each one radiating killing intent that blotted out the heavens.
...
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