Chapter 103

That night.

Duke Zhen’s Mansion, Million Specie Garden.

The bedroom in the night was gently shrouded in moonlight streaming through the window, casting a faint ethereal glow.

Inside, the delicate wood-carved furniture revealed its elegant silhouette in the dim candlelight.

Silk curtains hung quietly, murmuring the room’s secrets and tranquility like verses from an ancient poem.

On the bed, the soft brocade quilt cover complemented the ivory-white sheets, showcasing the exquisite taste of the East.

At the bedhead, a simple porcelain vase held several graceful plum blossoms, their subtle fragrance wafting through the air.

And that unique aroma, like the whispered secret of the night, added an air of mystery to the bedroom.

The three who had just weathered a storm lay sprawled across the jade bed.

Cheng Guang held Qing Luan and Bai Shuxuan in his arms, one to his right and one to his left, as they lay silently, the sound of their breathing clearly audible in the quiet of the night.

The faint blush on the women’s delicate features shone exceptionally beautiful and alluring under the moonlight.

Deep into the night, at midnight.

Cheng Guang slowly opened his eyes as an abrupt and emotionless voice resounded in his mind.

“Zhensheng thirty-fourth year, July twenty-fifth, the nineteenth day of becoming a Sky-Man, successfully restored my true appearance. Although the price was somewhat steep, all of this, in your eyes, is worth it.”

“You stood before the mirror, scrutinizing your face, feeling it is vastly inferior compared to the one you wore before. You didn’t expect your original face to be so repulsive.”

“The joy of regaining your appearance didn’t last long; as you gazed daily at your hideous face, you suddenly began to regret having restored it.”

“Before the transformation, you at least had the image of an incomparably noble Princely Heir, but now, it was as though you had become a common servant without a hint of nobility.”

“This was something you couldn’t accept, at least not immediately.”

“In a rage, you made a plan to head to the Bureau of the Lamp to kill some people to quell the anger in your heart. Upon reaching the Bureau, standing in front of its gates, a wave of melancholy suddenly overcame you.”

“The Great Zhou’s Bureau of the Lamp today is nothing like the institution your father controlled during your childhood; the current Bureau is devoid of dignity, as new generations of its power have nearly ceased, and its tremendous authority is now scorned by all.”

“All this because of that trial your father arranged for you many years ago.”

“When the top students from the Martial Academies of the Great Zhou and Great Wei dynasties gathered for competition, you were simply supposed to go through the motions, investigating and noting the names and strengths of the students from Great Wei.”

“The task was simple—for others difficult, but for you, the esteemed Town-Nation Duke’s Heir, easy. A simple inquiry, and no one dared refuse you.”

“You thought it would just be a formality, a sort of pass for genuinely entering the Bureau of the Lamp. But you didn’t expect that on the day of the competition, powerful seals would be placed over the entire Great Zhou Martial Academy.”

“Countless cultivators found themselves unable to wield their strength, with both internal and external Qi completely sealed, unable to access even a trace of their power and forced to rely solely on physical strength.”

“The seals were formidable, impervious to external interference, and any attempt to break them would obliterate everything inside. Even a Sky-Man would need several hours to break the seal.”

“At the same time, inside the Great Zhou Martial Academy, countless figures clad in black robes appeared, ruthlessly slaughtering the students from both nations.”

“To your shock, these black-robed figures could still use elementary Qi within the sealed space. Although their mastery was only at the level of the Refining Origin Realm, that mere trickle of Qi allowed them to slaughter the helpless Martial Academy students from both nations at will.”

“You had no idea if these black-robed people were connected to those who had cooperated with Bai Shuxuan to assassinate you before, nor what you could do in such a situation—thus, you turned into a perfect coward.”

“Protected by selfless Bureau cultivators, you emerged unscathed, surviving until the seals were lifted.”

“You were saved, but all the Bureau’s strong protectors died. After this battle, the Bureau, once renowned for supervising the world, failed to detect the black-robed assailants. Once the seals were lifted and only corpses remained, most of the assailants vanished without a trace.”

“The Bureau had not only failed in prior detection but even after numerous investigations, their identities remained unknown, tarnishing its reputation.”

“Many talented martial cultivators died tragically in the Great Zhou Dynasty, and Great Wei became hostile towards Great Zhou, leading to an underlying enmity despite the absence of overt confrontation. The Bureau’s status plummeted, and even though people didn’t openly criticize, they looked down upon it.”

“What monitoring of the world? It amounted to nothing.”

“You knew that the Bureau had begun its decline after that incident, and after Cheng Zhihai died, it never recovered, its presence barely felt in the Great Zhou Dynasty.”

“You hadn’t protected the rich inheritance left by your father; you felt immense discomfort and torment. You vowed to find those who were behind it all those years ago and teach them a profound lesson.”