"Brother Jiang, you were too impulsive." Tian Shao watched the First Prince's group leave and let out a sigh. "You shouldn't have agreed to the duel."
"Jiang Chen, this Xin Wudao is one of the Dragon Tooth Guard's Ten Commanders, and his personal cultivation ranks among the very top of those ten. The man has had remarkable fortuitous encounters on the martial path, and he's already broken through to the Spirit Realm. Among the younger generation in the Royal Capital, he's one of the acknowledged powerhouses." Ye Rong looked rather worried. "If he throws down a challenge later, I'll find some excuse to dodge it. A gentleman's revenge is never too late — ten years is nothing."
"Ten years?" Jiang Chen shook his head. "A gentleman can't be bullied just because he plays by the rules. I'm no gentleman, but I do know one thing — I never let a grudge survive the night. Revenge in ten years? I can't wait that long."
"Brother Jiang, this is obviously a trap they set up, just waiting for you to walk into it." Tian Shao still tried to talk Jiang Chen out of accepting the duel.
"The difference between a genius and a mediocrity is this: a genius, knowing full well it's a pit, jumps in without hesitation, while a mediocre person cowers and hangs back. Jiang Chen, are you a genius or a mediocrity? That's your choice to make." Ling Qianli, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up.
"Oh? Brother Ling, and what would you choose?" Jiang Chen asked with interest.
Ling Qianli replied with lofty pride: "You're asking a stupid question."
"I can answer that one for Qianli," said Fourth Prince Ye Rong, chiming in. "When it comes to the martial path, Qianli is an extremely stubborn man. He never leaves himself a way to retreat."
"Haha, not bad at all. Even the Fourth Prince says so — Ling Qianli, I'm starting to appreciate you a little." Jiang Chen laughed.
As they talked, Jiang Chen and the others had followed Prince Ye Rong into the inner courtyard.
This was where the birthday banquet was truly being held. In the spacious inner courtyard, the banquet tables had been laid out perfectly, waiting for the talented young men and women of the Tiangui Kingdom to take their seats.
A banquet of this caliber would have been meticulously arranged well in advance. Every invitation sent out corresponded to a specific seating arrangement, and each person's place was preassigned.
So there was no possibility of anyone scrambling for seats.
Ye Rong was a member of the royal family, fourth among the princes in order of birth. Consequently, his assigned seat was in the zone nearest the center of honor.
The banquet tables were long, narrow platforms arranged in two parallel rows.
The two seats at the front of each row naturally belonged to First Prince Ye Dai and Second Prince Ye Qiao.
Ye Rong was placed in the second row. Third Prince Ye Zheng sat on the left, while Ye Rong was on the right, across from him at a distance.
Once everyone had taken their seats, Consort Dan gracefully ascended to the stage. Her apricot eyes swept over the crowd, and her flawless, porcelain skin glowed enchantingly in the candlelight, making her look utterly captivating.
Her pearly teeth glinted as she smiled. "Every year on this day, Consort Dan is overjoyed to see the talented young people of our Tiangui Kingdom gathered together. Each year, I witness your growth and transformation — watching you change from inexperienced youths into the remarkable young leaders you are today. Grand Tutor Ye has long since risen above worldly competition; he has long since seen through the affairs of the world. So why does he still celebrate his birthday each year? It's not because he enjoys the bustle — it's because he wants to see each new generation surpass the last. He wants to see the young people of Tiangui Kingdom grow stronger with each passing generation. When the youth are strong, the kingdom has hope."
Consort Dan's words rang with power, yet carried a hint of her uniquely soft, honeyed allure that set every young man below thrumming with excitement.
All the young people present had, to varying degrees, received Grand Tutor Ye's guidance at some point. Some, with less fortunate connections, had fewer opportunities than others — unlike the royal princes, who could receive the Grand Tutor's personal instruction every day.
Being granted Grand Tutor Ye's counsel was indeed the dream-come-true honor these young men coveted. But there was another crucial point: in the Grand Tutor's presence, they could be near Consort Dan — a woman who filled every young man's fantasies and sent their hormones racing wild.
Watching the reactions below, Consort Dan smiled faintly, though she wasn't offended. A woman as clever as she was — how could she not read the thoughts of these boys?
"Alright, everyone quiet down. The Grand Tutor has arrived."
Consort Dan stepped slightly to the side and called out respectfully: "My lord."
An elderly man with hair and beard as white as snow strode in wearing loose robes. His features carried an air of transcendence, like the immortals of legend — ethereal and otherworldly, giving anyone who beheld him the sense of someone who had risen far above the mortal realm.
This old man was none other than the living icon of the Tiangui Kingdom: Ye Chonglou, Grand Tutor Ye.
Ye Chonglou's pace was not particularly fast, yet with every step he took, Jiang Chen had the uncanny sensation that a mountain had sprouted legs and was pressing closer, one earth-shaking stride at a time.
"Boom… boom… boom…"
In that instant, Jiang Chen's Wind-listening Ear actually heard sounds like war drums thundering — and the rhythm was growing faster and more urgent with every passing moment.
These were clearly not the sounds of drums, but heartbeats.
With every step Grand Tutor Ye took, the heartbeats of everyone nearby surged faster.
"He didn't deliberately unleash a qi field, nor did he press down with overwhelming spiritual energy! This Grand Tutor merely used the rhythm of his footsteps, yet he can generate such oppressive force and affect everyone's heartbeat!" Jiang Chen was genuinely startled. He had originally felt little one way or the other about the Grand Tutor, but now he suddenly understood why every level of the Tiangui Kingdom treated this old man as a figure of totemic stature.
Forget about martial artists like Yang Can and Xin Wudao at the first level of the Spirit Realm — even Chu Xinghan from before would likely have been unable to resist this old man's interference under these conditions.
This was the moment when the Heart of Rock, which Jiang Chen had cultivated, truly came into play. He struggled to still the churning thoughts in his mind, clamping down on them, becoming like a block of bedrock — motionless as a mountain.
No matter how magical the Grand Tutor's footsteps might be, no matter how violently the heartbeats thundered around him, he simply strove for one thing: to remain as immovable as a mountain.