~~~

“Are you mad?!”

Feng Zhi’s angry voice echoes throughout the Storm Dragon Palace. Despite its mighty size, the place is nearly empty. Only those who were absolutely essential were allowed to remain before the structure took flight.

Like Qing Guo.

The young man stumbles back in fear as Feng Zhi shouts, almost tripping and falling on his ass. The display is so pathetic that Feng Zhi once again finds himself doubting whether this man is related to Qing Jin.

“It wasn’t my idea,” Qing Guo says, hurrying to get his words out. “This is all him. I’m just doing what I was told.”

Beside him, the ugliest dog Feng Zhi has ever seen nods in agreement and barks a few times in what seems to be an attempt at an explanation. Alas, Feng Zhi does not speak dog, and he does not care to.

“It is as the Young Prince says,” Ye Zheyu says. “We are merely enacting Emperor Qing Jin’s plan… a plan which, admittedly, had to be changed several times over the course of the tournament.”

Much like Shi Qingxia, Ye Zheyu is someone who is supposed to be dead, but by now, Feng Zhi is not even a little surprised that Qing Jin has been keeping secrets. What is surprising is the way Ye Zheyu stands next to Qing Guo. Far, but not too far. Ready to act in case Feng Zhi tries anything, not that Feng Zhi would ever do so.

He’d be a fool to try anything against a Qing inside the Storm Dragon Palace.

“That doesn’t make things better!” Feng Zhi snaps at him. “If anything, it makes them worse!”

“Will you stop your bellyaching already?” Shi Qingxia asks him. The young woman looks bored as she leans against a pillar. “We saved your brother, didn’t we? Look how happy he is! Why can’t you Fengs be more like him?”

Feng Zhi’s eyebrow twitches. It is not the first time he has been unfavorably compared to his brother, but the context makes it uniquely irritating this time. What’s worse is that Feng Hao does seem to be enjoying himself. His brother is running around the throne room with eyes shining with excitement.

“I always wanted to come here!” Feng Zhi hears him say. “Look at these murals! Look at that throne! It’s so much more menacing than cousin Feng Zhuo made it sound!”

Why is it a good thing that it is menacing? No, that’s not the point!

However, before Feng Zhi can say anything, a low cackle breaks into the throne room.

“So this is the place, eh?” an old woman says as she enters. The tap of her cane accompanies her every step. “They say the palace of the Storm Dragon matches the current Emperor. I wonder. What does such a menacing visage say about him?”

“I assure you that he means no harm,” Yong Zhunyi says, walking beside her. The traitorous disciple seems to be the one who brought her here.

“Oh, he certainly means harm,” the old woman says. “This would not be happening otherwise.”

Yong Zhunyi inclines his head in acknowledgement.

“As you say, Lady Zhao.”

“Huh, a proper one, aren’t you?” the old lady says before tapping her cane against the floor thrice. Each tap sends a light tremor through the throne room. “What a pity that there is nothing proper about what is happening. I stand here to bring you the words of the Crimson Cloud.”

She clears her throat.

“You are trespassers on the territory of the Crimson Cloud. Worse still, you are thieves that have taken that which belongs to the Crimson Cloud.”

She lifts her cane and points it at Feng Hao. Feng Zhi immediately places himself between his brother and the old lady. To his surprise, so does Shi Qingxia.

“The child has been chosen. The Crimson Cloud wants him back.”

Because the Crimson Cloud cannot take him here, Feng Zhi realizes. The Storm Dragon Palace is the domain of the Storm Dragon. Even though the Crimson Cloud wants Feng Hao, its influence cannot enter this territory. As long as Feng Hao is here, neither the Crimson Cloud nor the Eternal Flame can use him for their own ends.

“It is not the wish of the Emperor to offend the Crimson Cloud,” Qing Guo says. It surprises Feng Zhi that it is he who does instead of the three disciples, but it really shouldn’t have.

Qing Guo is the prince. The other three are lackeys.

Even if Qing Jin’s cousin has very little presence.

“Nevertheless, the Emperor is in trouble, and the Storm Dragon Palace has been summoned to protect him. Should the Crimson Cloud pass its power to someone, it would only add needless chaos to an already chaotic situation. We cannot possibly allow that,” Qing Guo says in a contrite voice before adding, “Of course, if the Crimson Cloud would help us ensure the safety of the Emperor, the delivery of its successor could be arranged.”

The old lady cackles, but Feng Zhi sees red.

“This is exactly what I mean!” His voice has become an angry growl that makes Qing Guo flinch. He points his finger at them all. “You say you are saving my brother, but you’re just using him as a hostage against the Crimson Cloud!”

In the aftermath of his words, a small silence falls over the throne room. Feng Hao looks more uncertain than before.

Shi Qingxia breaks it.

“Would you rather your brother be outside and already in the Crimson Cloud’s clutches? That’s what would have happened if not for us.”

“I’d rather my brother not be used at all!”

“Foreign as this might sound to a Feng, we cannot always have what we want,” Shi Qingxia replies. “The original plan did not involve saving your brother. He tried to find a way to make it work.”

In the most maddening and annoying way possible, naturally. Because Qing Jin cannot do things in any other way.

“The angry child does bring a good point. You are using the Cloud’s chosen as a hostage,” Old Lady Zhao says. “In that case, would the Young Emperor not count as a hostage against you? If you do not return the child at once, who knows what might happen to the Young Emperor? After all, he is in the Crimson Cloud’s territory right now.”

Feng Zhi and Feng Hao’s faces darken at the threat, but the other people in the throne room are not moved.

“Lady Zhao, it is as you said before. The state of the Storm Dragon Palace reflects the current Emperor. Neither I nor my father can make the palace fly,” Qing Guo explains with a solemn face. “Should the Emperor die, the Storm Dragon Palace will return to its previous state.”

Feng Zhi pales.

If the Storm Dragon Palace becomes an old, decrepit building that cannot fly at all…

“We are currently above the capital,” Qing Guo continued. “We will not stop until we are directly above the arena. Should we fall, the crash will unleash the energy of the Storm Dragon on this land. We may lose it forever, but I do not believe the Crimson Cloud will survive either.”

And neither would the people in the city or even those in neighboring cities. At best, the Emperors would get away in time and take their disciples with them.

“Why?” It is not Feng Zhi but Feng Hao who asks the question. “Why are you going this far?”

No one answers him, yet the way they trade looks immediately tells Feng Zhi they all know something.

“Why don’t you ask him that next time you see him?” Shi Qingxia suggests, before her gaze shifts to Old Lady Zhao. “If there is a next time.”

The old lady chuckles.

“I do not decide what the Crimson Cloud does. I merely act as an intermediary. Your arguments are certainly… persuasive, and I will be sure to relay them to the Crimson Cloud. However, I cannot guarantee its reaction,” Old Lady Zhao says. “An offense like this will not be easily forgotten.”

“That is quite all right, Lady Zhao,” Yong Zhunyi says. “Offending others is something that simply comes naturally to the Emperor.”

~~~

The situation has escalated in ways Ruan Haoran never expected, yet there is one thing he is certain about.

They cannot allow Art of the Roaming Thief to reach the palace.

If the brat enters the palace, they won’t be able to capture him. It would be a complete failure on their part. The Peerless Heavenly Sword Peak would be forced to send someone to do the job. Ruan Haoran cannot let that happen. No matter what, he needs to take the brat before the palace reaches the arena.

“Ruan Chenshu!” He yells, his Qi rising as he does, conveying all the words he does not have time to say.

A shockwave slams into the city as he flies towards Dai Jie. The speed at which Qi flows through his meridians increases exponentially, forcing his body to move well beyond its limits. His blood vessels explode, and his muscles tear themselves apart. Usually, his regeneration would fix the damage, but it doesn't this time. He cannot afford to waste any energy. Dai Jie’s eyes widen as she realizes how seriously he is taking this. Her own Qi rises in preparation.

And just as he’s mere yards away from her, Ruan Haoran turns right.

The motion is so sudden that Dai Jie is left staring at the empty spot Ruan Haoran used to occupy. Panic grows inside her as she realizes she was never Ruan Haoran’s target. It was always the ring. Dai Jie immediately starts chasing after him.

Ruan Chenshu gets in her way.

He will not last against Dai Jie, but he does not need to. Even a ten-thousandth of a second will do. That is all the time Ruan Haoran needs. He senses the others in the arena turning towards him, but it is too late.

Time stutters.

Ruan Haoran’s soul roars.

Reality trembles around the man as his soul asserts itself over it, preventing anyone from manipulating him. His dantian quiver from the strain, yet he does not stop. Unlike everyone else, Ruan Haoran is truly putting everything he is on the line.

Dai Jie’s Qi rises as she launches an attack at his back, but it does not matter. Ruan Chenshu should be strong enough to defend against it. All that matters is reaching the ring. He’s so close now. The Art of the Roaming Thief will die.

His chest is torn open.

Sharp ice breaks through his ribcage and expands, creating a huge hole in Ruan Haoran’s chest and damaging his already fragile body. His meridians explode as the cold spreads through them, and the damage even reaches his dantian due to the strain he has placed them under.

Ruan Haoran does not understand.

Ruan Chenshu should have blocked that attack, so there was no need for him to worry about it.

So why…

Why did Ruan Chenshu move out of the way?!

~~~

As Ruan Haoran falls, the many warring energies within the arena begin to destabilize the domes of fire and ice on the ring. This only grows worse as the Storm Dragon Palace grows closer at an uncomfortably swift pace.

The domes shatter.

Several things happen at once. Meng Yue and Feng Gui strike each other, forfeiting the possibility of reaching the ring in favor of stopping the other from doing so. The Storm Dragon Palace positions itself directly above the Crimson Cloud Arena, and with a sound like thunder, a beam of light shoots out from it and falls on the ring. Every Emperor immediately realizes that is no longer a territory they can enter.

However, that doesn’t mean Liu Jin and Xiao Shuang are alone in the ring.

Someone has been there from the beginning, waiting for the right time. The creature that emerges in the ring looks like neither human nor beast. Liu Jin knows it is a corpse, but even that classification feels wrong. Its legs and arms are ivory bones in the shape of large crescent blades. Its main body is a thick rod of red muscles twisted around each other to bind its four limbs together. Its head is flat and pointed like the tip of a spear with no eyes, nose, or ears. It is just a faceless mask of bone.

An odd silence falls over the arena as they all look at the strange white and red creature. Its head turns towards Liu Jin and Xiao Shuang, and the rest of its body turns with it.

The final match of the Crimson Cloud Tournament begins.

The creature dashes towards the two. Its oddly shaped legs do not rise and fall. Instead, they cut and slide over the surface of the ring with speed that dwarfs that of any other competitor in the tournament.

Xiao Shuang immediately unleashes a wave of cold on the creature. Ice grows over the creature’s legs, but they are so sharp that they simply cut through the ice by moving.

[Ground Contraction]

Purple lightning roars around Liu Jin as he brings his fist against the flat side of the creature’s blade. However, even as the lightning blackens its body, the creature turns its blade and swings it against Liu Jin.

[Path to the Frozen Hells]

Spikes of ice rise, blocking the blow and forcing the creature away from Liu Jin. Its body begins twisting in circles as its blades spin, cutting down the ice as it moves.

[White Venom Fist]

A white snake falls on the monster from above, swallowing it whole and drenching its body with poison, but just like with the ice, the creature’s spinning blades let it cut its way out before the poison can start working on it.

Xiao Shuang is already on it.

Cold rage is the only emotion in the girl’s eyes as her fists strike the monster without pause. Each blow unleashes the pure might of winter on the creature, freezing it as soon as it cuts its way out. There is no pause. There is no mercy. Xiao Shuang burns through her Qi without a care.

The monster’s body morphs. Two blades become a sharp spike of bone rushing towards Xiao Shuang’s head.

[Art of the Roaming Thief]

It never reaches her.

Using the ice as cover, Liu Jin reaches the creature’s blind spot. One of its blades misses him by a hair’s breadth as his hand reaches the twisting mass of muscles that is its back. His Qi immediately attunes itself with the beast as his fingers dig into its muscle fibers, absorbing and analyzing its inner workings. Sharp, durable, and without waste. This thing was undoubtedly made to capture him, even if that meant only half of him was taken back.

More importantly, Liu Jin feels the cultivator on the other side of this beast. The two clash for dominance with countless exchanges taking place in a fraction of a second. Liu Jin feels their skill. He feels their power. He feels their experience.

However, a faceless, nameless foe cannot claim victory on stage like this.

The monster explodes into a thousand pieces

Liu Jin and Xiao Shuang stand triumphant amidst several Emperors.

As if to celebrate them, crimson light rises from the Imperial Palace. For the first time, everyone in the city feels the power the Crimson Cloud had acquired over the past few millennia. They wonder if they are about to witness a clash between Inheritances, and they wonder what are they to do if that is the case.

The moment passes. Instead of warring against each other, the two lights harmonize. A thrum of power echoes across the city as Liu Jin and Xiao Shuang rise into the air towards the Storm Dragon Palace.

The Crimson Cloud and the Storm Dragon have made their wills known.

Before the might of two Inheritances, all those present can only submit.

~~~