Starting as the heir of a marquis's mansion, I gained access to a summoning system.

The next evening, it was still not completely dark.

Outside the main gate of the Eryue Hall headquarters in Guangling Prefecture, two members on duty were leaning against a gatepost, chatting quietly about the battle of the previous night and the injuries of Hall Master Chai. When they got to the most dangerous part, the man on the left lowered his voice, about to speak, but suddenly stopped.

Because a person was walking towards the end of the street.

The man was dressed in a long black robe, the hem of which was covered in dust from his long journey, but this did not diminish the sharpness that emanated from his very bones.

His long hair cascaded over his shoulders, revealing a sharply defined, cold face as it was lifted by the evening breeze. His brow bones were high and steep, his nose straight as a sword's spine, and his lips were tightly pressed together, revealing no emotion. Yet, his eyes shone with an astonishing light in the twilight—not with a sharp, overt edge, but with a bottomless stillness, as if no storm could stir them up.

The two gang members involuntarily took half a step back before realizing what was happening—it was the Four Dragon Heads.

Li Chenzhou walked between the two men, his eyes fixed straight ahead. The two gang members bowed their heads, not daring to breathe, until the invisible pressure from behind disappeared, only then did they dare to straighten up. They exchanged a glance, both seeing the fine beads of sweat on each other's foreheads and the barely suppressed excitement in each other's eyes—the Four Dragon Heads had arrived, and the good days for those scum across the way were over.

Li Chenzhou entered the main hall of the headquarters.

Shangguan Jin Hong and Chai Yu Guan, whose injuries had not yet healed, had been waiting for a long time. Three lamps were lit in the hall, illuminating the four walls as bright as day.

Chai Yuguan's waist bandages had been replaced, and faint bluish bruises were visible from his collar, but his posture remained upright, and his complexion was normal, showing no sign of illness. Shangguan Jin Hong stood by the window, his hands behind his back, gazing at the twilight-shrouded streets, lost in thought.

As Li Chenzhou entered, Chai Yuguan stood up, his movements steady, the injury to his waist seemingly not affecting his actions. Shangguan Jin Hong also turned around and bowed slightly.

Neither of them spoke; they simply watched as Li Chenzhou walked to the head seat and sat down.

Li Chenzhou sat there, his back ramrod straight, hands clasped on the table. His gaze swept across the two men's faces, and a sharp glint finally appeared in his usually calm eyes—not directed at them, but rather looking through them to those who dared to offend him further away. His voice was as flat as if he were discussing something trivial:

"The Green Wood Sword Sect. Since they don't want to wait, then there's no need to wait."

Shangguan Jin Hong looked up at him. Chai Yu Guan also looked up at him.

Both of them were waiting for his next sentence. Li Chenzhou didn't keep them waiting too long.

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"Pass on a message for me," Li Chenzhou said, his voice not loud, but each word seemed to be carved in stone.

"The four leaders of the Azure Dragon Society will challenge Qingxuan Zhenren to a duel at the foot of Qingmu Peak in Qishan Prefecture in three days."

Chai Yuguan's pupils contracted slightly. Qingxuan Zhenren, the head of the Qingmu Sword Sect, a veteran Grandmaster of the Third Heaven, had been renowned for over thirty years and had never suffered a defeat. In the entire thirteen prefectures of the West, those who could face him head-on could be counted on one hand.

"Three days later?" Chai Yuguan confirmed, his voice devoid of doubt, merely a statement of confirmation.

"Three days later," Li Chenzhou repeated, "Since the other party dares to make a move, I will fight back honorably. If he wants to fight, I will accompany him to the end. I want to see if his sword, Qingxuan Zhenren's sword, can block my path, Li Chenzhou's path."

Li Chenzhou continued, his tone shifting from calm to unwavering decisiveness: "The challenge is in three days. Shangguan will come with me. Hall Master Chai is still recovering from his injuries; he will stay behind to recuperate."

"Yes." Shangguan Jin Hong answered readily, without any further questions or worries. He knew that since Li Chenzhou had spoken, it meant that success was almost certain.

The news spread the following morning. To be precise, it started spreading that very night.

Within a single day, the entire western thirteen prefectures knew about it.

It wasn't through post stations or official messengers, but through the intelligence network laid out by Chai Yuguan of the Er Yue Tang—a network originally established for the Qinglong Society's material distribution and power consolidation, which was extensive and impenetrable.

But when news needed to be spread, it transformed into the fastest, widest, and deepest information channel in the entire west. Overnight, from Pingyang County to Yanmen Prefecture, from Guangling Prefecture to Qishan Prefecture, everyone who needed to know knew. Even wandering martial arts practitioners who shouldn't have known heard the news and discussed it animatedly in teahouses and taverns.

"Li Chenzhou, one of the four leaders of the Azure Dragon Society, has challenged Qingxuan Zhenren, the leader of the Azure Wood Sword Sect, to a duel in three days. Qishan Prefecture, at the foot of Azure Wood Peak."

The various factions reacted differently upon hearing the news, but without exception, they all stopped what they were doing and carefully read the news three times.

The Blood Demon Sect tightened its grip even further. The members who were originally patrolling the border were recalled to their three strongholds overnight, and all the outposts on the perimeter were withdrawn ten miles away, as if they were afraid that the Azure Dragon Society would take advantage of this critical moment to deal with them.

The Iron Blood Hall's offensive in White Wolf Valley immediately slowed down by 20%. The probing attacks that were usually launched every day suddenly stopped, and the leader of the Iron Blood Hall personally ordered a "three-day observation period." The remnants of the Wolf Fang Alliance were even more decisive, retreating thirty miles overnight, abandoning their camps and running faster than rabbits.

No one wanted to provoke the Azure Dragon Society at this moment. Not because they feared Li Chenzhou—at least not entirely—but because everyone sensed a signal: the Azure Dragon Society was about to reveal its trump card. Before that card was revealed, no one wanted to be the one sacrificed.

On Aoki Peak, however, the atmosphere was completely different.

Master Qingxuan was meditating in the Sword Pavilion. The Sword Pavilion was suspended halfway up the mountain, with three sides hanging in the air, and clouds flowing beneath his feet. In the distance were the rolling Qishan Mountains. He had been sitting here for thirty years, and every sword aura he unleashed was imbued with the spiritual energy of this mountain.

Then he heard the news—not from Guangling Prefecture, but from down the mountain.

A patrolling disciple of the Qingmu Sword Sect tumbled and crawled into the sword pavilion, his knees hitting the threshold. He stumbled and fell to the ground, but didn't bother to get up. He knelt on the ground, his voice trembling:

"Sect Leader Li Chenzhou, one of the Four Dragon Leaders of the Azure Dragon Society, challenges you to a duel! Three days later, at the foot of Greenwood Peak, Qishan Prefecture!"

The entire Sword Pavilion was completely silent.

Not only was there complete silence, but even breathing paused for a moment. The Second Elder, who was wiping the sword, stopped; the Third Elder, who was flipping through ancient texts, looked up; and the Fourth Elder, who was instructing his disciples on swordsmanship, suddenly turned around. Everyone looked at Master Qingxuan, then quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at him, but their peripheral vision was fixed on his reaction.

A challenge to a Grandmaster level three.

Everyone knows the weight of those four words. To dare to utter such a challenge, to use the word "challenge" against Qingxuan Zhenren, one must at least be a Grandmaster. Anyone less than a Grandmaster doesn't even have the right to stand beneath Qingmu Peak.

Master Qingxuan remained silent for a long time.

The only sounds in Sword Pavilion were the crackling of candlelight and the whistling of the mountain wind through the cracks in the rocks. Clouds flowed past their feet, shrouding Sword Pavilion in a vast expanse of mist. No one dared to speak, no one dared to move, and even their breathing was deliberately kept still.

After a long while, Master Qingxuan opened his eyes.

"catch."

He only said one word.

Master Qingxuan accepted this challenge not out of spite.

The foundation of the Green Wood Sword Sect is being shaken by the Azure Dragon Society: an elder was beheaded, and his head was displayed on the city gate of Guangling Prefecture for three days.

The three elders of the Sword Pavilion joined forces to kill a hall master, but not only did they return defeated, they also lost two of their own. In the martial world, nothing stays secret forever; these rumors had already spread throughout the thirteen prefectures, each and every one eroding the prestige that the Green Wood Sword Sect had built up over a century.

The group of people who are least likely to bow their heads in the world have been forced to the point where they have no choice but to comply.

If we don't accept, we'll lose all our prestige, and from then on, who in the martial arts world will still respect the Green Wood Sword Sect?

If they accept, at least they still have a fighting chance. If they win, everything will be back, and the Azure Dragon Society's expansion momentum will be cut off by this sword.

Even if he lost—as long as Master Qingxuan survived, the foundation of the Qingmu Sword Sect wouldn't be broken. This was his entire consideration in accepting the challenge; there was no way out, so there was no need to retreat.

The message traveled down from Aoki Peak faster than the wind.

In less than half a day, the entire western thirteen prefectures knew that Master Qingxuan had accepted the challenge.

Everyone's first reaction was the same: the Azure Dragon Society has a Grandmaster.

This is not a guess, but a confirmation. To dare challenge a veteran Grandmaster like Qingxuan Zhenren at the third level, one's strength is at least no less than that of a Grandmaster.

Previously, the Azure Dragon Society didn't have a Grandmaster in charge, at least not openly—they relied on ruthless methods, a tight organization, and Chai Yuguan's strategic planning to carve out a niche in the west. Everyone thought the Azure Dragon Society's potential was limited; without a Grandmaster, they couldn't go much further.

But now we have it.

Moreover, he immediately challenged the leaders of the five top forces without any transition or testing; he went straight for the kill.

This news was like a needle, piercing the nerves of all parties in the west.

The chain reaction it triggered was far more profound than the challenge itself.

Those forces that had been observing, wavering, or sitting on the fence all fell silent overnight. No one dared to make any rash moves, no one dared to take sides; everyone was waiting—waiting for the outcome at the foot of Qingmu Peak three days later.

If Li Chenzhou wins, or even if he loses but survives, the Azure Dragon Society will no longer be an "emerging force," but a behemoth. A behemoth that even a Grandmaster at the third level cannot shake. On that day, choosing sides will no longer be a choice, but a matter of survival.

Three days later, at the foot of Qingmu Peak.

The entire west was waiting for that day. Discussions in teahouses and taverns were more lively than ever, and gambling dens even opened betting odds—three to one for a Li Chenzhou win, one to one for a Qingxuan Zhenren win, and five to one for a draw. People lined up to place bets, piling up copper and silver coins into small mountains. Interestingly, many more people were betting on Li Chenzhou to win than expected.

It wasn't because they thought Li Chenzhou could actually win, but because these people wanted to gamble on a possibility—that the Azure Dragon Society had more cards up its sleeve than anyone imagined.