"Right, have you found Little Seven?" Ming Zhaoshu suddenly asked.
Tang Si shook his head. "I couldn't find him. He didn't go to the Crown Prince's Palace at all, so it's possible that he didn't even enter the capital."
Ming Zhaoshu frowned. "Is he dead?"
"Your Highness, he's just an ordinary person. He won't be of much use in the Crown Prince's residence," Tang Si said.
"I know, but it's precisely because he's an ordinary person that it's safer. No one would have thought that I would send an ordinary person into the Crown Prince's residence. He's a scapegoat that I've carefully arranged for someone else. Forget it, if he didn't go, then so be it," Ming Zhaoshu said calmly.
Tang Si stood there quietly, as if he had something to say.
Ming Zhaoshu glanced at him. "What's the matter?"
Tang Si half-knelt. "Your Highness, this subordinate wishes to challenge Li Zimo."
"No, you're too far behind Li Zimo," Ming Zhaoshu rejected him.
Tang Si's expression darkened. "Even so, I still want to personally test the strength of the second on the List of Tempering."
Ming Zhaoshu looked at Tang Si and said in a low voice, "Li Zimo is obsessed with swordsmanship and created a powerful killing technique like the Silent Sword at such a young age. The reason why Crown Prince Ming Hao doesn't want the top ranker to appear is because he wants to get rid of the hidden dangers on the List of Tempering and also to avoid Li Zimo. He's very powerful and can be ranked first in the Martial King Realm."
Tang Si raised his head, his gaze resolute. "Your Highness, this subordinate begs you to agree. Even if I die, I will have no regrets."
Ming Zhaoshu sighed, looked up at the sky, and smiled bitterly. "Ming Hao, you've made the right move with the List of Tempering. So many people on the Shenwu Continent are willing to sell everything they have just to leave their names on the list, and how many experts have you recruited because of it?
I'm impressed. "After sighing, he lowered his head and looked at Tang Si." Alright, I agree. Go ahead. Since you're challenging me, don't leave any regrets. I'll do my best to keep you alive. "
Tang Si was delighted. "Thank you, Your Highness."
The Reverent King's Residence in the Bright City was very large, and it had a specialized training ground.
News of Tang Si's challenge to Li Zimo quickly spread throughout the Reverent King's Residence, and it even spread outside, arousing the curiosity of countless people.
Tang Si was ranked eighth on the List of Tempering, and his spear was invincible. Li Zimo was ranked second on the List of Tempering, and he had created the Silent Sword that even Ming Zhaotian had praised endlessly. He was the leader of the Shenwu Empire's younger generation, and the battle between the two of them was enough to excite anyone. Even the powerhouses on the four peaks were looking over.
Ming Zhaoshu sensed this and looked around. Then, he looked at the arena. "The battle for the List of Tempering is a battle of life and death."
Outside of the drill ground, Lu Yin watched the scene closely. He was very curious. Li Zimo was ranked second on the List of Tempering, which was enough to represent the strength of the Shenwu Continent's younger generation. He was able to suppress all Martial King powerhouses, not just the younger generation.
Li Zimo was still as cold as ever. He held his longsword and quietly looked across.
Tang Si gripped his spear tightly, and his eyes widened. He charged forward at top speed and thrust his spear towards Li Zimo. The tip of the spear caused the void to fluctuate as a sharp aura swept past Li Zimo, tearing through the air. The aftershock caused the ground of the drill ground to crack and sparks to fly. This attack was unstoppable, and even Lu Yin was shocked. This attack was comparable to an attack with three-lined battle force.
Across from him, Li Zimo's eyes flashed with a glimmer of admiration. He gripped his sword, raised it, and chopped down. His body disappeared, and his sword returned to its scabbard. It was as smooth as flowing water, and there was no sound or anything out of the ordinary.
Quite a few people were stupefied, unable to understand.
Ming Zhaoshu's eyes narrowed as he fearfully looked at Li Zimo's back.
With a bang, Tang Si's spear broke, and half of the spear fell to the ground with a crisp sound. His entire body seemed to be frozen in place, and his eyes were filled with extreme unwillingness and admiration.
Lu Yin was shocked. At this moment, Li Zimo's back seemed to overlap with Liu Shaoqiu's. It really did seem like it. That attack was almost exactly the same as the First Sword of the Thirteen Swords. The only difference was that the First Sword did not need to move, and it could cut through the void. Li Zimo's attack, on the other hand, needed to travel a certain distance, but the attack speed was about the same.
This was probably due to the Shenwu Continent's space being abnormally frozen. If this had happened in the normal universe, then this attack might not have needed to move at all, and it would have been almost exactly the same as the First Sword of the Thirteen Swords.
Li Zimo, a native of the Shenwu Continent, had created a sword technique that was comparable to the First Sword of the Thirteen Swords. If the Sword Sect found out about this, they would definitely fight to take him in as a disciple. This was what it meant to be an absolute genius.
Liu Shaoqiu was a genius who had inherited the innate gift of the Thirteen Swords, while Li Zimo was a genius who had created the First Sword. It was hard to say who was stronger, but Lu Yin felt that he was more inclined towards Li Zimo, as this person's talent in the way of the sword was too terrifying. The only thing he lacked was a starting point. If he had been allowed to learn the Thirteen Swords, then his speed might even surpass Liu Shaoqiu's.
Lu Yin had truly witnessed the strength of the Shenwu Continent's younger generation. This Li Zimo was strong enough to enter the top eight of the Astral Combat Tournament, and if that was not his strongest attack, then he should be able to enter the top four and fight with Lu Yin.
This was the second place on the List of Tempering. Lu Yin wondered how strong the first place was.
Before the crowd could recover from their shock, Li Zimo had already left.
The dignified eighth place on the List of Tempering had not even been able to withstand a single attack. This was too shocking.
Tang Si felt bitter and panted heavily as he looked at the broken halves of his spear on the ground. He closed his eyes. Before the challenge, he had hoped to recognize the gap between them and catch up, but now, he no longer had such thoughts. The gap between them was too great.
Ming Zhaoshu walked over to Tang Si. "This is why I did not want you to challenge him. Can you still hold your spear?"
Tang Si gripped his spear tightly and pondered for a moment before looking up. "Yes."
Ming Zhaoshu nodded. "You can challenge him again when you've shaken off the shadow of that sword." Ming Zhaoshu then turned and left.
Lu Yin looked at Tang Si deeply before leaving. He had to guard the door.
"I say, is this really an aboriginal continent?
That guy's sword was too ruthless. It's comparable to the power of our Five Prefects! "the monkey exclaimed.
Lu Yin leaned against the door. "The Shenwu Continent has withstood the Darkmist Weave's attacks for a thousand years, but this continent has given birth to too many experts. There's definitely more than one genius like Li Zimo."
"What a pity. If only this continent belonged to you. I remember that you're King Zishan or something. With this continent's strength, you'll be able to gain a foothold in the Outerverse," the monkey casually commented.
His words made Lu Yin's heart skip a beat, as he had never thought about this before. Yes, it would be great if this continent belonged to him. Unfortunately, he could only dream about it. There were Hunters on this continent, and there was more than one of them. The fact that this continent could withstand the attacks of the entire Darkmist Weave was a testament to its strength. Even the entire Great Yu Empire might not be enough, let alone Lu Yin.
The next few days were very normal, as there were occasional changes to the List of Tempering. In particular, the people who had challenged the top of the list had been removed one by one, which piqued many people's interest. Lu Yin guessed that the person who had removed them was the mysterious leader of the List of Tempering, but this person's identity would change every time.
This person was the reason why Crown Prince Ming Hao had set up the List of Tempering.
The Ming Constables had been mobilized less often, and the Ming Vanguard had mostly been sent to protect important people. However, this was only on the surface, as Crown Prince Ming Hao would never relax his killing spree against the foreigners.
Congratulatory gifts from the various continents arrived, and it was rumored that they filled several drill grounds. The amount of gifts was shocking.
Countless experts gathered in the capital, and the army entered to maintain order. Although the entire city was cheering for the birthday celebration, there was still a sense of tension that even Lu Yin could feel.
Over the next few days, Lu Yin saw Li Zimo very few times. This person was as cold as a block of ice, and he was tasked with guarding the king's residence. Lu Yin rarely spoke with him.
The Reverent King had returned to the capital, and there should have been many visitors. However, over the past few days, no one had come to visit, which surprised Lu Yin. The relationship between Ming Zhaoshu and Crown Prince Ming Hao had deteriorated to such an extent that even the ministers who had pushed Ming Zhaoshu to resist the Crown Prince's overstepping boundaries were avoiding him.
Fireworks bloomed in the sky from time to time, and the entire capital seemed unusually lively.
Li Zimo walked out of the king's residence and looked at Lu Yin. "The princess is going to the Tower of Resonating Light to pray for His Highness and His Majesty. Seven, protect the residence."
Lu Yin bowed. "Yes, Commander."
Not long after, Ming Yan walked out of the residence, followed by a maid and Tang Si. Outside, the army had already lined up neatly, and a carriage had been prepared.
This was the first time Lu Yin had seen Ming Yan since arriving at the Reverent King's residence. Although she was wearing a thin veil, her absolute beauty could not be hidden. Her eyes were like silhouettes, bright and pure. However, her face was slightly pale, which made Lu Yin feel uncomfortable.
Ming Yan walked past the main entrance and was about to board the carriage when she suddenly paused. Her eyes flashed with surprise, and she turned around to look at everyone as if she was searching for something.
Tang Si was puzzled. "Princess, please board the carriage."
Ming Yan's gaze swept across everyone's faces before finally stopping on Lu Yin's face and meeting his gaze.
Lu Yin saw the surprise in Ming Yan's eyes, and his heart skipped a beat. He quickly lowered his head.
Ming Yan's eyes flashed with slyness and shyness. She whispered, "Brother Tang Si, Father's safety is the most important. I already have you to protect me, so I don't need Brother Li anymore. Please protect the residence."
Li Zimo looked up. "Your safety is very important."
Ming Yan pointed at Lu Yin. "Those people are also part of the Ming Vanguard. Let them protect me. Brother Li, protecting Father is more important."
Tang Si hurriedly said, "Princess, His Highness doesn't need to worry. This is the capital, and His Highness is a Martial Emperor. No one would dare to act impudently here."
Ming Yan stubbornly shook her head. "Please stay and protect Father, Brother Li. Otherwise, Yan 'er will feel uneasy."
Tang Si looked at Li Zimo with a troubled expression.
Li Zimo was very straightforward, and he nodded before turning to Lu Yin. "Seven, take a few people with you and protect the princess. Do not slack off in the slightest."
Lu Yin was both surprised and delighted, and he also felt a strange sweetness and anticipation. "Yes, Commander."
Ming Yan lowered her head to hide the faint blush on her face as she hurriedly boarded the carriage.
Lu Yin took a deep breath and walked beside the carriage. He was only one wooden plank away from Ming Yan, and he was even closer to her than Tang Si.
Ming Yan found an excuse to send the maid away, twirling her fingers as she nervously sat in the carriage. From time to time, she would look through the veil at Lu Yin, who was walking outside. Her face was filled with joy.