Solomon stopped looking at the Lion King, instead swaying his head left and right as if searching for something, murmuring, "Are they here yet?"

Thump-thump-thump.

The Lion King's door was knocked upon. A voice, sharp and metallic like a soldier's report, echoed. Zuo Dongting pressed a button beside him, allowing entry. A broad, iron-tower-like middle-aged man with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel stood outside, holding a three-foot-long box. He strode up to Zuo Dongting and stopped.

"General, this is your private express delivery."

The box was perfectly sealed. It was placed gently on the desk before Zuo Dongting. Even without touching it, a Martial Arts Grandmaster could easily detect a faint, acrid scent of blood seeping through even the most flawless sealing.

There are many kinds of bloody smells. This one was easily discernible: human blood! More importantly, it was relatively fresh human blood.

"They should be here, shouldn't they?" Solomon spoke as if to himself, his gaze returning forward. "Did you receive a long box? Open it and take a look; it contains parts of your grandson. For fear that you miss your grandson too much, we specially care for the elderly, so we're mailing you one part first. If you miss your grandson in a few days, I can mail you another part. For instance..."

A minute is neither long nor short, but Zuo Dongting sat on the sofa, experiencing what might have been the longest minute of his life, watching with his own eyes as his grandson's arm was severed by a man whose face was twisted in a thunderous rage.

From the moment the blade struck until the arm was severed and the assailant left, Zuo Dongting noted that the young man who wielded the blade had not spoken a single word. He was silent, always silent, cutting silently, sheathing his blade in silence, and then leaving in silence. That oppressive silence, transmitted through the projection screen, felt like a real, crushing mountain descending upon him.

Zuo Dongting could feel the sheer extent of the young man named Qin Fen's rage in that moment on the projection screen.

"Respected General Zuo."

The image of Xie Wuyi replaced Qin Fen's. His detestable gold-rimmed glasses glittered in the sunlight, immediately provoking a desire to smash them with a single punch. "You are an old veteran of countless battlefields. I am but a newly hatched little fox. Any trickery I use in front of you is like a child’s toy—an insult to your wisdom, and likewise, an insult to my own."

Zuo Dongting’s eyebrows instinctively drew together slightly toward the bridge of his nose. He intensely disliked the self-assured manner in which this young man uttered everything, and even more, he disliked the fact that he found himself momentarily agreeing with the young man's words. "You killed two of Qin Fen’s masters; I assume you won't deny that deed." Xie Wuyi found a chair and sat down, draping his right leg over his left, idly swinging his foot. He leaned back slightly against the chair, the aura of a scion from a powerful lineage subtly emanating from him. "We are young; our considerations are inevitably incomplete. Many times, we don't grasp the concept of prioritizing the bigger picture—for example, internal strife within the Asian Military Region consuming too much strength, allowing military powers from other continents to grow stronger. We don't consider such things. So, the reason I sent you the recording this time, I will state plainly."

Xie Wuyi habitually pushed up his glasses frame, his leaning-back posture slowly straightening as he pressed forward. Two icy, snake-like glares shot out from behind the lenses. A sentence, cold as the dead of winter, drifted from his red lips and white teeth: "We intend to kill you."

Zuo Dongting watched Xie Wuyi’s every move, momentarily stunned. A smile began to creep into his usually stern expression. This was the most audacious statement he had heard since taking this seat! Even the Snake King, when speaking, employed subtlety, delivering veiled threats veiled in softness, yet no one had ever declared their intentions so blatantly.

"Are you laughing, General?" Xie Wuyi gestured toward his own handsome face. "I am laughing too. Does this sound ridiculous? But it is the truth; we are simply being honest, telling you what we plan to do. Of course, even if I didn't say it, you would already know. Everything I am doing now is intended to make you angry, irritable, incapable of maintaining normal emotions, and thus, to kill you."

Zuo Dongting watched Xie Wuyi on the projection gently applaud, his slightly raised chin conveying praise: "Congratulations, you succeeded."

"You are too kind; thank you for your compliment."

Xie Wuyi gave a polite nod, appearing as if he were in a video conference rather than broadcasting a recording.

Zuo Dongting let out a cold snort, a hint of disdain creeping into his tone: "Petty cleverness."

"Petty cleverness," Xie Wuyi echoed the same three words with a smile, looking at Zuo Dongting, whose expression clearly faltered. "Interesting, isn't it? What I enjoy most is guessing people's minds, using the data I can gather to predict their thoughts. There was a sixteen-point-three-seven percent chance you would say that phrase, 'Petty cleverness.' Although the probability was low, I enjoy betting on that specific outcome."

A layer of frost settled on Zuo Dongting's cheek. As a superior, what he prized most was control over others. Yet this detestable young man, since his appearance, had constantly demonstrated his mastery of control, even daring to gamble on odds as small as sixteen percent.

"Alright! Back to the main point!" Xie Wuyi sat up straight. "Whatever assassination plot I devise to kill you, you will likely see through it."

Zuo Dongting confirmed that he truly despised this young man named Xie Wuyi. The only truly unassailable language in the world is one hundred percent truth. Negotiating business is best when both parties are honest, but this was clearly not a business discussion. Beneath the calm, easy conversation pulsed a sharp, lethal intent. The entire situation, controlled by Xie Wuyi’s words, had placed the initiative firmly in his hands.

As a leader of one of the strongest factions in the East Asian military, Zuo Dongting intensely disliked this feeling of having the situation controlled by another.

"Decoys, counter-decoys, hostages, counter-hostages," Xie Wuyi shrugged, spreading his arms wide. "It's all useless! Once you know the opponent's focal point of weakness, by calculating the trump cards of both sides, you can anticipate every move they can make. In such a scenario, using any intricate scheme will only expose more flaws the more complex the scheme is."

Zuo Dongting felt dislike, but also appreciation for Xie Wuyi. Two years in the military, and he could already stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Zuo Lin—or rather, in many aspects, his own grandson paled in comparison to Xie Wuyi. In localized calculations, Zuo Lin might not lose to Xie Wuyi, but this sense of the grand picture, and this candor, were things Zuo Lin entirely lacked.

"If Du Zhanpeng were still here," Zuo Dongting sighed. If Du Zhanpeng were alive, perhaps things would be better? At least with Du Zhanpeng aided by Xie Wuyi, Zuo Lin would never have had a chance to step forward, and thus, Zuo Lin would not have ended up captured alive.

"After all this talk, and all this effort, I only want to tell you one thing: If you want your grandson to live, bring Morad and come to the Sahara Desert yourself. We have set an ambush here. Of course," Xie Wuyi twitched the leg of his glasses, "I will also be waiting for your distinguished presence here. I expect to see you exactly at 1:00 PM, seven days from now. As for the coordinates, see the text appearing on the screen? Oh, yes, we only receive you alone, bringing Morad. If our resources detect a second person accompanying you, don't blame us for terminating the hostage, and then defecting to Du Hen."

Zuo Dongting stared into Xie Wuyi's eyes on the screen for several seconds, knowing the young man was not lying about the drop point or planning to change the location last minute. That was indeed what he intended, and what he had stated.

"Seven days... seven days," Zuo Dongting walked around his office with his hands behind his back. This was clearly a low-grade, clichéd scheme using a hostage to lure a rescuer—the kind often seen in far-fetched police and robber films where brazen criminals entrap the forces of justice.

It lacked technical complexity. But precisely because it lacked technical complexity, it was difficult for others to break using high-tech means. Zuo Dongting had to admire Xie Wuyi’s youthful understanding of when to discard flashiness and when to employ direct tactics.

Against a massive military strategist, against one of the highest-ranking military officials in East Asia with boundless resources, the more intricate the scheme, the easier it was to fail. Zuo Dongting only needed to find one weak link to shatter the entire plot.

Xie Wuyi abandoned all intrigue and conspiracy, opting for a straightforward strategy—an open confrontation! Against an enemy that cannot be manipulated by covert schemes, why not use an open one? So what if you know? Knowing that, can you still refuse to come?

Zuo Dongting knew he had to go! The main objective this time was not to save his grandson, Zuo Lin, but to kill one person: Xie Wuyi!

During the short video, Xie Wuyi had predicted the viewer's reactions multiple times, even calculating the exact timing of when the recipient would receive the package. This was the most terrifying aspect!

A group of young men had swept through four major families in a short time, successfully seizing control of them. While this was surprising, even slightly despicable, it was mostly met with admiration—a new generation surpassing the old.

With the emergence of Xie Wuyi, Zuo Dongting had an instinctive feeling that these young men, who had conquered two continents through sheer ferocity and bloodlust, possessed an exceptionally brilliant mind. All of this seemed designed to tell him, If you don't come, we kill your grandson. But the deeper implication was a show of force!

"If you don't come, then I will live! You should be perfectly clear about the consequences if I remain alive."

Bait! Everything Xie Wuyi had done was to showcase his calculation, his audacity to gamble on even a sixteen percent chance. Paired with these fierce young men, they were bound to achieve great things in the future. If Xie Wuyi wasn't killed now, the Zuo family would have no peace for the rest of their existence! Annihilation wasn't even out of the question! The loss of one Zuo Lin was a price Zuo Dongting could afford! He had more than one grandson; Zuo Lin was just the one he favored and placed the most hope in.

But Xie Wuyi had to die! The final words of the projection sent a clear signal to Zuo Dongting! If Zuo Dongting did not come in seven days to kill him, Xie Wuyi would defect to Du Hen, making him infinitely harder to eliminate later. "Don't forget, General, the value I hold in the eyes of the Snake King is absolutely incomparable to a soldier like Hao Pianzi! Killing me then will be a pipe dream. As long as I live one day, you will live with anxiety every day! I am not worried; I am younger, I can afford to wait! Once I outlive you, your Zuo family deserves to be wiped out."

Seven days later would be the best chance to kill Xie Wuyi! Zuo Dongting inhaled sharply and quickly dialed a string of phone numbers: "Increase defenses over the next few days and be wary of surprise attacks."

Identical orders rapidly disseminated through a vast, invisible network of connections. Simultaneously, personnel from various major families were quickly mobilized, and international arms smuggling groups began to stir.

Shengjing Military Region

Bearded Zhao stood in the Snake King's office, facing Du Lai, who sat in his chair, eyes closed, meditating.

Sunlight streamed through the large window, illuminating Du Hen’s face, yet casting an ethereal shadow that made his true features impossible to discern. Even though Bearded Zhao could see clearly, he couldn't feel an iota of warmth from the intense sunlight.

"You have been standing there for a long time," the Snake King broke the silent atmosphere without opening his eyes.

"General," Bearded Zhao stared at Du Hen with complex eyes. "Why? Why wasn't I informed that Hao Pianzi and the others were going to Saturn on a mission? Why did you approve the military orders from Zuo Dongting's side? Those are your men! It was clearly a suicide mission."

"It was suicide, I know," the Snake King opened his eyes. The room did not warm even with his bright gaze; the air temperature seemed to drop noticeably. His words were laced with icy coldness. "In this world, everyone’s life has a corresponding value. Their deaths achieved something. Accidentally killing Chan Caihe of the Heavenly Gate, a high-level expert of that rank—even sending two masters of the same rank to ambush him, if he managed a desperate escape, killing him would have been extremely difficult. Hao Pianzi and Gun Lao Er, their combined worth isn't equal to one of Lan Caihe's toes. Isn't killing him a profit?"

Bearded Zhao clenched his fists. The Snake King continued calmly, "Their deaths appeased some of Zuo Dongting's anger, temporarily maintaining stability in the Asian Military Region. As for the third point, Qin Fen's rage will also be directed toward the Zuo family. In my view, their deaths were too valuable, exceeding the value they inherently possessed."

"Little Zhao, we are engaged in major undertakings," Du Hen waved his hand dismissively. "When doing big things, what is the big deal about a few deaths causing anger? Qin Fen was discovered by you; talk to him, communicate with him. After this incident concludes, the ownership of Saturn will naturally be his. I trust he knows what is most important." Bearded Zhao’s face was masked with iron frost. "General, perhaps you don't know? Qin Fen isn't taking my calls anymore. Every time I call, it’s Xie Wuyi answering. Would you like to hear how Xie Wuyi responded?"

"Qin Fen asked me to relay three sentences to you. The first: You want to eliminate Zuo Dongting, correct? The second: I will handle this matter as repayment for your cultivation. The third: We are on different paths, so we cannot work together."

Du Hen looked at Xie Wuyi’s elegant departure without expression, a confident, cold smile slowly spreading across his lips. "Different paths, cannot work together? As expected. This is the result I predicted when I made my decision. This Qin Fen is dead set on leaving. He cannot be pulled back."

Bearded Zhao’s body jerked violently, as if shaken by a major earthquake. His large eyes widened to an incredulous size. "General, you actually knew..."

"Qin Fen is not the Divine Beast martial artist of the military. He wasn't before, he isn't now, and he won't be in the future," Du Hen shook his head gently, his expression tinged with regret. "I once thought he was, but through his actions, I realized he wouldn't be. The only two reasons he remains in the army now are: first, he hasn't repaid the kindness you and I showed him; and second, a rather absurd reason—he wants to retire normally and receive his military service bonus."

"Therefore, Qin Fen doesn't hold much affection for the military. He is not like Du Zhanpeng, who deeply loved the army. He would risk his life for those around him, but that isn't his sense of military duty; it stems from his attachment to the people around him. He doesn't truly love the military, and he cannot lead the army toward strength. So," Du Hen’s eyes gleamed with cold light, "let him fight Zuo Dongting! If, by some stroke of luck, he kills Zuo Dongting, we reap the benefits. If he fails, it doesn't matter. At that point, Zuo Dongting will be severely weakened, and we can expand our influence by striking while the iron is hot."

"But... what about the Divine Beast martial artist?" Bearded Zhao stared motionlessly at Du Hen. "Isn't your greatest ambition to have a Divine Beast martial artist command the army?"

"Of course," the Snake King’s eyes shone with ambitious fervor. "Did you think I've been idle for the past two years? Xiao Yu has found many more women. Now, including those born and unborn, there are sixteen more of the Du surname! If I, Du Hen, can cultivate one Zhanpeng, I can cultivate sixteen Zhanpengs! If sixteen Zhanpengs fight and kill each other, won't the last one have a chance to seize the Divine Beast title? It will just take slightly longer than anticipated."

Bearded Zhao looked at Du Hen in astonishment. He hadn't seen Du Yu for a long time and assumed he had retreated behind the scenes to handle major military affairs. He never imagined he was busy playing the stud to produce offspring.

Bearded Zhao returned to his room and sat in his Lieutenant General’s chair, gazing at the sun in the sky. Suddenly, he felt profoundly weary—a fatigue and powerlessness he’d never experienced even amidst countless battles. He even felt an impulse to resign and leave.

The choice made by Yang Lie and the others, demonstrated by their sweep across Europe and America, had reached every corner of the Federation. Important departments like the Shengjing Military Region could not possibly remain ignorant.

Bearded Zhao found himself envying Qin Fen. He had assumed his comrades would abandon him due to orders from their families, but he never expected the final outcome to be this way.

Qin Fen, with the friends who hadn't abandoned him, had rapidly swept through four families in a short span, achieving something that shocked the entire world, pushing the notion of the new generation surpassing the old to its extreme.

"I wonder where they are now," Bearded Zhao sighed softly. After Qin Fen finished certain matters in Australia, he quickly vanished.

Xie Wuyi had traveled to Qin Fen’s location in Australia aboard a massive transport aircraft. Now, according to the military's weapon withdrawal records, when Xie Wuyi applied for that batch of weapons, he had already decided to leave.

The Secret Realm class amphibious stealth combat vessel—it could operate submerged tens of thousands of meters underwater, move rapidly across land, and even fly into space as a small spacecraft capable of carrying thirty-five people.

Xie Wuyi was famous in military circles for his preference for high-tech warfare; he was a soldier Du Hen once praised for being able to utilize high technology to its maximum potential.

With certain tracking components removed, even the military had difficulty finding the whereabouts of such a vessel.

Vaporized from the face of the earth—the smartest choice! Zuo Dongting looked at the intelligence data returned by the system, and his resolve to kill Xie Wuyi intensified another notch. This young man was truly cunning, possessing a very clear understanding of his own value.

Find Xie Wuyi—even if it required barrages of missiles—and kill him! Zuo Dongting had already mentally prepared to provoke the Snake King’s wrath, followed by sacrificing some interests to appease him, only to find that Xie Wuyi had already anticipated that someone would be willing to sacrifice his grandson, Zuo Lin, just to eliminate him.

Where exactly had Qin Fen and the others gone? The Snake King spun the globe, examining every corner of the Earth. Zuo Dongting was similarly scrutinizing globes, searching for potential attack sites.

Desert? Sahara? Zuo Dongting fixed his gaze on the map marked with vast stretches of yellow sand. Could they be hiding in a location there? Otherwise, how could they appear in the Sahara three days from now? If they were anywhere else, activating the Secret Realm once more would lead to their location being detected by fully engaged military satellites, which would immediately shoot down the vessel, killing Xie Wuyi—after all, he wasn't a Martial Arts Master. The North Pole! The coldest ocean on Earth!

Here lay nothing but towering icebergs, vast, boundless ice, the howling, freezing winds and snow, and the occasional frolicking polar bear.

Near the North Pole, an iceberg not particularly large—perhaps better described as a massive block of ice—stood silently amidst the roaring wind and snow.

Within the pure, crystalline ice block, Caesar sat quietly, eyes closed, brow furrowed, perfectly still, much like a hibernating frog.

The North Pole! The land of extreme cold! The perfect place to cultivate the most domineering Yang internal martial arts! Since Solomon's breakthrough, everyone was desperately seeking ways to advance themselves before the impending great battle.

In the blizzard, Yang Lie, clad in thick thermal gear, gasped for breath, struggling to walk through the snow. He had been walking in the snow for three days, barely using any internal energy to ward off the cold—a perfect echo of Qin Fen's trial in the Sahara.

But this place was far more brutal than the Sahara. The Sahara, with its millions of years of history—what about the Arctic? That span couldn't be measured in mere millions of years! Millions of years? They meant nothing here in the Arctic; time itself seemed frozen over. Even the natural conditions were far harsher than what Qin Fen had faced in the Sahara back then.

Yang Lie walked on, one step at a time through the blizzard. He moved with difficulty, yet with deep contentment. To simply walk here in the Arctic, having relinquished all martial power, brought forth such a feeling.

Unity of Heaven and Man! Whether by luck or fate, on the second day of his trek, Yang Lie encountered an unprecedented, raging snowstorm. Against the whiteout, a magnificent aurora flared across the horizon. In that moment...

Yang Lie was utterly stunned. That journey through the Americas had shattered the mental shackles of a martial artist. A heart freed from its bonds, suddenly struck by this spectacle...

Xue Tian was asleep. No matter the time or place, sleeping was never a difficult feat for him. Here, he hadn't even bothered to add thicker layers of clothing before lying directly down on the frozen earth to rest.

Through the driving snow, three men advanced side-by-side. The sleeping Xue Tian suddenly twitched an ear. He sprang from the ground like a leopard, his speed surpassing the fiercest gale, rushing toward the trio.

"You finally came!"

Xue Tian didn't look at Qin Fen, who stood between the other two. He threw a powerful bear hug around Lin Liqiang, who was covered in designer labels. "How did you find this place? Fox said no one on earth could ever calculate where we'd be. How did you manage it?"

Yinzhaluota remained as cold as ever, his expression colder than the surrounding landscape—a chilling cold born of deep anger.

Although Yinzhaluota’s nature was frigid, he was not heartless. During his training days at the Australian recruit camp, although Hao Pianzi often tried to trick him, that gentle camaraderie was silently accepted by Yinzhaluota.

A reserved person rarely finds friends, but once a friend is made, betrayal becomes almost impossible—it becomes a lifelong bond! Hao Pianzi would frequently get drunk, drape an arm over Yinzhaluota’s neck, and tell him amusing stories from his days training Qin Fen, coaxing him into conversation.

Every scene replayed in his mind, yet the reality had utterly changed.

Lin Liqiang managed a strained smile, pointing toward Qin Fen. "The Bio-Beast on him—I developed it personally. As its designer, I could certainly track it down."

"Yours."

Lin Liqiang produced a Bio-Beast Egg that pulsed with a searing crimson light. "Its function is largely the same as Qin Fen's; you can merge with it safely without risk of transformation. The only difference is that the fusion speed here is not entirely uncontrollable like Qin Fen's. This is a newer model, so it’s superior in that regard. If you focus your genuine Qi, the incubation will be instantaneous, completing the first level of fusion immediately."

"You've arrived at the perfect time," Xue Tian snatched the Bio-Beast Egg and shamelessly displayed astonishing power right in front of Qin Fen!

Sixteen-Star Rank! Human Gang Qi! The same Sixteen-Star Rank as Qin Fen! The same Human Gang Qi!

The Bio-Beast transformed into a streak of rainbow light, like a massive, vibrant rainbow dragon, instantly coiling around Xue Tian's entire arm, then spreading over his whole body, enveloping him as if wrapped in a colossal, colorful serpent.

Watching Xue Tian undergo the first-level Bio-Beast fusion, Lin Liqiang stated calmly, "I call this Bio-Beast the 'Raging Howl Blade.'"

The words fell, and Xue Tian felt his very blood surge and expand. The Blade Qi within him churned violently, thousands of strands of sword energy erupting from his body. An irrepressible will to fight burst forth, accompanied by a long, drawn-out cry.

In that instant, the usually mild-mannered Xue Tian shot upwards against the wind. His Iaido sword flashed out, the tangible waves of sword energy tearing the air. He roared to the sky amidst the snowstorm: "A body filled with sword spirit, a heart brimming with pride, waves of a furious ocean strike the mountain passes. Qi moves rivers and peaks, calling to the heavens, standing alone among the white clouds, surveying all directions, unshaken. Blade! Pointing straight to the Ninth Heaven!"

The wind and snow parted; the sword energy erupting from his body flowed back into him. Xue Tian’s True Qi surged again—Seventeen-Star Rank!