"Your Highness, your grand presence here, and I, an old man, failed to meet you at the gates—truly, a crime unforgivable!" Gongsun Sheng gazed at the man before him, his face etched with apology.

"Heh heh, Brother Sheng, between you and me, why such formalities?" The man sitting opposite Gongsun Sheng chuckled lightly, his words suggesting that heaven and earth were within his grasp. Though his tone was amiable, it carried an air of absolute, solitary dominance.

Unlike Dugu Bacheng’s sheer might, this was an aura of fearlessness, a complete lack of apprehension, as if capable of challenging the entire world.

War!

Yes, it was a fighting spirit, an unyielding will to never surrender.

This man was none other than Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan, the War God of the Tian Yuan Empire!

The masses knew that Xuan Yuan Xue had led the Three Thousand Blood Cavalry and Five Hundred Blood Guards to escort the bride, but no one could have imagined that Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan himself would make the journey.

"Heh heh, I speak too conventionally. But I wonder, Your Highness, what brings you here on this occasion?" Hearing Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan speak thus, Gongsun Sheng naturally ceased his excessive courtesies. However, he knew that with the ongoing conflicts, the current Regent of the Tian Yuan Empire would not travel all this way from Tian Yuan City merely for his son's wedding.

"Naturally, it concerns the front lines. Nanyun and Xichu took advantage of the infighting within our Xuan Yuan family to launch their rebellion, seizing vast territories of the Tian Yuan Empire. Not only do they show no remorse, but they have now joined forces to attack our nation. Such insolence cannot be tolerated! I have come personally this time, using my son's wedding as a pretext to set a grand scheme in motion: to utterly crush the three hundred thousand strong army of the Nanyun Empire and let these rebels understand the might of the Tian Yuan Empire!" Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan stated calmly, his words brimming with profound confidence.

"What about Stormwind City?" Gongsun Sheng's expression clouded with worry. Compared to the Nanyun and Xichu Empires, the Meng Tu Empire outside Stormwind City posed the greatest hidden threat. The Tuoba family could contest the Xuan Yuan family three hundred years ago, and their relentless incursions into the Tian Yuan Empire over the last three centuries had been constant. If not for the appearance of Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan, Stormwind City would likely have fallen, and the entire Jiuzhou would have been occupied.

"That need not concern you. My son, Xuan Yuan Long, is currently defending Stormwind City. Even if they possess a peerless genius like Tuoba Fang Chang, they will never breach Stormwind City. I shall take this opportunity to finally crush the Nanyun and Xichu Empires, and then assist the Emperor in rebuilding the Tian Yuan Empire. Our nation has indeed become somewhat corrupt over the years; this is the perfect chance for a thorough cleansing!" Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan remarked nonchalantly. Facing a pincer attack from the three great empires—Meng Tu, Nanyun, and Xichu—only he could utter such confident words for the Tian Yuan Empire today.

"Then what do you require of this old man?" Gongsun Sheng instinctively trusted Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan’s words. No matter how powerful the Nanyun Empire, how fierce the Meng Tu Empire, or how dominant the Xichu Empire, as long as Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan lived, the Tian Yuan Empire would never truly lose.

He had commanded countless battles throughout his life, yet never suffered a single defeat—truly the foremost War God of this era.

"You only need to..." At this point, Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan lowered his voice, detailing his plan. The look of astonishment on Gongsun Sheng’s face grew deeper as he listened. When Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan finally concluded, Gongsun Sheng raised his thumb in admiration.

"Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! Your Highness, this strategy truly achieves three objectives at once! However, a small unforeseen incident occurred this time!" Following this, Gongsun Sheng recounted his encounter with Ye Jingyu and his party at the Medicine King Valley.

"Brother Sheng, rest assured. The youth you speak of is likely a disciple of Dugu Bacheng. Others may hesitate to touch him, but do I not dare?" Dugu Bacheng spoke coldly, his eyes filled with killing intent.

"Is Your Highness planning to strike personally?" Hearing that Ye Jingyu was Dugu Bacheng's apprentice, Gongsun Sheng's heart shuddered violently. He was lucky he hadn't killed the boy; had he done so, perhaps that fiend would already be at the Gongsun residence.

At his level, he was privy to much secret knowledge unknown to ordinary people, such as the events that transpired at the Bai family a year and a half ago.

"No. He is, after all, a junior. While I do not fear killing him, this is fundamentally a matter for the younger generation. I will not interfere!" Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan shook his head.

"But Your Highness, this child is not only supreme in martial arts but is also a Soul Master who has reached the Soul Immortal realm. Forgive my bluntness, but while His Highness Xue is a renowned general whose command of troops is second only to Your Highness, his personal strength might prove insufficient to deal with that fellow!" Gongsun Sheng showed concern upon learning Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan would not act himself.

Of course, if Ye Jingyu were not Dugu Bacheng’s disciple, then according to his original plan, dispatching the clan’s experts to intercept and kill him would have been simple. But knowing the truth now, how could he recklessly deploy his powerful figures?

After all, the Gongsun family lacked Xuan Yuan Jue, and though Xuan Yuan Jue held a favorable relationship with the Gongsun family, he could not guard them at all times.

"Xue Er might not be a match, but we still have Jing’er!" Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan offered a faint smile.

Gongsun Sheng paused. Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan had nine sons; five had become legendary generals commanding entire regions, Xuan Yuan Xue being one of them. The other four had never joined the army, dedicating themselves instead to rigorous martial practice. The 'Jing’er' Xuan Yuan Xiao Zhan mentioned was his seventh son, Xuan Yuan Jing. Rumor held that his martial talent was the pinnacle of the current Xuan Yuan generation, possessing several times the potential of Bai Jingfei of the Bai family. By the age of eighteen, he had already entered the Grandmaster realm, and his progress thereafter remained obscure. So many years had passed; given his talent and the resources of the Xuan Yuan royal lineage, reaching the Martial Saint realm would surely be effortless.

For others, stepping into the Martial Saint realm was harder than climbing to heaven, but for the Xuan Yuan family, if a direct descendant possessed sufficient talent, entering the Martial Saint realm was exceptionally easy. After all, whether it was martial arts techniques or rare elixirs from heaven and earth, the Xuan Yuan family possessed the absolute best abundance.

Although outwardly, the Xuan Yuan family, like the Bai family, officially boasted only four Martial Saints, no fool would believe that figure. The Xuan Yuan family’s direct population numbered in the tens of thousands, not even counting the collateral branches. With so many people enjoying the world's finest conditions, if they only had four Martial Saints, the nation would have been wiped out long ago. They would not have waited until the previous internal strife before others dared to scheme and launch rebellions.

Knowing that the person in question was the prodigious Xuan Yuan Jing, Gongsun Sheng felt a slight easing of his worry, yet the thought of the numerous experts surrounding Ye Jingyu immediately caused his brow to furrow again.

"But Your Highness, even a skilled individual is hard-pressed against overwhelming numbers. Young Master Jing, although..."