Zhao Jundu’s figure emerged slowly from the misty region. Unable to adapt to the sunlight of the Qin Continent, he narrowed his eyes as he glanced at the fortress.

This casual glance caused everyone in the fortress to feel their hearts tighten, almost as though an invisible hand had gripped them. An old general went pale and clasped his chest, muttering, “This suppressive might feels almost like a heavenly monarch!”

Zhao Jundu’s killing intent had receded, but his body was shrouded in dark green origin power that resembled flames. This blaze was extremely tyrannical, turning an area dozens of meters around him into a land of death. No one dared approach.

Zhao Jundu looked up at the fortress, saying, “I’m injured, so I need to suppress it with origin power.”

An old man with white hair said, “It’s fine! Sire Jundu is a pillar of the Empire. You must take care of your physical condition.”

Zhao Jundu nodded and flew away over the horizon, leaving a trail of dark green in the air.

A middle-aged general looked up at the trail, then whispered, “General Zhang, do you think Zhao Jundu… has cultivated darkness origin power?”

The old man snorted. “Nonsense! He’s refining himself in fire and forcibly changing his fate, that’s something everyone knows.”

“But just look at it, it looks more like an evil art than true gold being refined in fire. Besides, isn’t that a claim made by the Zhao clan? Also… the way he was acting just now feels more like a show of force rather than suppressing his wounds!”

The old man’s eyes twitched. “I can’t protect you if the Zhao clan somehow hears of what you’re saying.”

The middle-aged man said hurriedly, “That’s why I’m only discussing this with you.”

The Imperial Capital. The Zhao residence’s gates were shut tight, and everything inside was silent. All of a sudden, a clap of thunder erupted from the place and all lights dimmed down. The servants, however, simply went about their business as though they were used to this.

Zhao Jundu entered his study and took a seat at the desk. Immediately, a maid delivered tea, refreshments, and a clean robe. “Sire, the medicinal bath has been prepared. Do you want to bathe and change first?”

“Very well. Is anything up recently?”

“There’s a letter from Fort Continent.”

Zhao Jundu was already heading toward the bathroom, but he came to an immediate halt. “Bring it to me.”

The aide ran back and forth at full speed. Zhao Jundu’s expression turned dark as he went through the contents of the letter. “Prepare my armor, I’m heading to the military department.”

Not daring to disobey, the subordinate headed out to perform her duties. A certain person walked out from the corridor. “What are you going to do at the military department?”

This person was Duke You, Zhao Xuanji. Zhao Jundu said with a bow, “Of course, I’m going to see who else dares to target our Zhao clan after the Longevity Monarch.”

Zhao Xuanji frowned deeply as he gazed at the dark energy surrounding Zhao Jundu. “Isn’t your refinement in fire too fierce?”

Zhao Jundu said, “I find myself growing impatient, but things are still under control.”

Zhao Xuanji pointed at the lingering black energy. “What is this, then? Our Zhao clan doesn’t have anything like this.”

Zhao Jundu said calmly, “Extremes of violet yields azure, then what of the extremes of azure? The extreme of any color is black.”

“Is this darkness origin power?”

“Not just darkness origin power but also enmity, killing intent, flesh, and blood. It’s a result of everything mixed into my azure energy.”

Zhao Xuanji glanced deeply at him. “This isn’t the right path.”

“The right path leads to a dead end.”

Zhao Jundu’s words contained a dual meaning. The duke could only sigh. “You’d better not go to the military department in your current state.”

Zhao Jundu’s lips curled into a strange smile. “I turned this way because I killed too many dark races. Does anyone have complaints?”

Zhao Xuanji sighed. “Come with me, we haven’t had tea together in a good while.”

“We’ve never had tea together.”

Zhao Xuanji shook his head helplessly. “You people from the Duke Chengen residence are all the same. No wonder Gaoyi always ends up cleaning after the mess.”

Zhao Jundu’s dark energy receded somewhat at the mention of his mother’s name. He followed Zhao Xuanji into the tearoom where the latter carefully fished out some tea leaves from a small wooden box. He then boiled some water and began the brewing process in utmost concentration.

Zhao Jundu waited quietly, making neither sound nor movement. It was easy to see from the flickering black energy that sitting still in this manner was no easy task for him.

Moments later, Zhao Xuanji passed him the tea he had finished brewing. The dark energy around Zhao Jundu melted away like snow as he finished the drink in one gulp.

Zhao Jundu bowed deeply and expressed his gratitude.

Zhao Xuanji waved his hand, saying, “You and I might be of different seniority, but our status is now the same. Besides, the Zhao clan has never been too focused on secular formalities, there’s no need to be too polite.”

Once the black energy was gone, blood began to seep out from Zhao Jundu’s robes. He looked down and pressed a ball of origin power into the wound, stopping the bleeding. “These impurities really do help with the fight.”

“It’s not wise to take on great harm for small advantages.” With that, Zhao Xuanji’s expression turned solemn. “Are you going there for the military tax?”

“What else?”

“This is a rule with precedence. Otherwise, it’ll be terrible if the aristocratic families start smuggling supplies out for sale.”

Zhao Jundu replied, “That I know, but Fort Continent is the only major shipment destination. The Imperial Guard didn’t go anywhere else and were only waiting on that route, you understand what they’re playing at, don’t you?”

Zhao Xuanji said calmly, “But they have the justification.”

“There are many ways to reason with them.” Zhao Jundu smiled coldly.

Zhao Xuanji stroked his beard. “We’ve already done the reasoning.”

“Oh, how so?”

Zhao Xuanji said calmly, “The mandate will arrive in a few days, granting you the title of Duke Rong [1].”

Zhao Jundu’s brows rose sharply. “Surprising title!”

The title of Duke Rong could be considered extremely glorious, evident from the word itself. It was even more evident if one were to compare it to Zhao Weihuang’s title.

According to custom, all duke titles were hereditary. As long as the family could maintain their territory, there was room for negotiation even if the bearer’s accomplishments were somewhat inferior. Duke Wei Song Zhongnian was such an example. [2]

The title of Duke Rong was fairly deserved. This meant that the Zhao clan now sported four dukes in a single clan, no different from the Zhang. The only difference was Prince Greensun.

Although Zhao Jundu had advanced to the divine champion realm, he had injured his foundations, and his path forward was blocked. The usual method was to grant a non-hereditary duke title or a marshal rank, tasking the person with leading troops into battle. After he had reached old age, his descendant would be granted a hereditary marquis title.

This was the normal treatment for a divine champion with no future.

How intelligent was Zhao Jundu? After some thought, he sneered. “So it’s a trade! Is Fort Continent that attractive now?”

Zhao Xuanji sighed. “There was no choice. The other party holds the moral high-ground and ample reasoning.”

“Whose reasoning is it? Qianye has been suppressing the Moorland werewolves on his own, isn’t that a great contribution?”

“The Moorland werewolves are right beside him. He has to fight them anyway, that’s not a viable term for negotiation.”

“Aren’t they afraid of losing their supply chain? Without a steady stream of holy tree sap from him, we wouldn’t have been able to amass an army that can rival the dark races’. We wouldn’t be able to produce the results we have today, either!”

Zhao Xuanji sighed. “Amassing the army is just one of the factors. The command skills you and Song Zining displayed brought victory after victory for the army. Even I think that you guys played a bigger role.”

Without waiting for Zhao Jundu to interrupt, Zhao Xuanji shook his head and said, “No matter what they do, you two have contributed greatly to the Empire, so there’s always some room for negotiation.”

Zhao Jundu snorted. “They seem to have calculated well! But did they think clearly about their fate after the war is over?”

“What do you think?”

“Who exactly are they?”

Zhao Xuanji said, “The proposal was delivered to the Pointer Monarch’s residence before this decision was made. His elderly grace said: ‘Prioritize whatever benefits the Empire and the greater good.’”

Zhao Jundu was surprised. “The Pointer Monarch? Why would he…”

Zhao Xuanji said, “Many people know that the elder prince and Qianye share a special relationship. Perhaps that was why they sought a decision from him.”

Zhao Jundu remained silent for a good while. “Do you think this is the elder prince’s will?”

“Consolidating central power while weakening the branches, it isn’t unreasonable,” Zhao Xuanji said meaningfully.

Zhao Jundu’s momentum receded slowly. “If that’s the case, I won’t be going to the military department now.”

Zhao Xuanji asked as he got up, “Where are you going?”

“I’m going back to the new world. I won’t be able to swallow this if I don’t uproot the demonkin fortress.”

Zhao Xuanji didn’t stop him. “Fine, I’ll send word to the Pointer Monarch’s residence.”

Moments later, Zhao Jundu boarded the airship after donning his armor and flew back to the door.

At this moment, the Pointer Monarch was sipping tea in his study, listening to his aide’s report about recent matters. He said after some thought, “That little fellow must’ve guessed some things, that’s why he’s being so ruthless. Nevermind, this old bag of bones has been idle for too long. It’ll be nice to see some old friends.”

He stood up and gave some instructions to the aide before leaving the residence.

Several days later, a certain piece of news shook the entire Empire.

Zhao Jundu and Song Zining had led the Imperial army to a decisive victory against the demonkin forces. They broke the Masefield fortress and drove a famed demonkin clan out of the new world. The Masefield clan lord attacked to salvage the situation but was duly intercepted by the Pointer Monarch.

The two top experts initiated the first fight between heavenly monarchs in the new world. In the end, the battle attracted the retaliation of the malicious intent and both monarchs ended up with injuries.

The fight between the Pointer Monarch and the Masefield clan lord wasn’t conclusive, but having an entire clan driven out of the new world was a terrible loss.

Zhao Jundu’s name shook the Empire once again after this battle, and his popularity rose to unparalleled heights.

[1] "Rong" means Glory.

[2] This Duke Wei is not the one we know. The characters are different.