Time slowly passed.
At last, today marks the start of the Hidden Dragon Conference.
On July 7th, when the dragon raises its head, is also the day when the Dragon Gate opens for the conference.
Outside the Imperial City.
In a hidden cave.
A young man, clothed in simple attire with disheveled hair, stood holding a crimson long knife, looking with cold eyes at the four or five young men and women before him.
And these four or five young men and women were not in a good state, their breaths were weak, and their hands and feet were bound with specially made shackles, preventing the True Yuan within them from flowing smoothly.
Beneath them, there was a circle of strange and mysterious runes carved onto the ground.
This was a mysterious formation, but its purpose was unknown!
Yet it made people feel extremely uneasy.
Anyone familiar who was present would surely recognize that these four or five young men and women were the strongest descendants of this generation from the Hidden Sects and Super Clans!
They had been kidnapped to this cave.
Who was the one who kidnapped them?
"Chu Xingyun, you actually dared to kidnap us all, once our sects and families find out, you will be dead without doubt!"
"Let us go quickly, we won't argue with you, don't continue down this wrong path of self-harm!"
Knowing that today was the day the Dragon Gate opened, with expressions of unease, several of them began to shout angrily at Chu Xingyun.
It turned out that the one who kidnapped them was that ruthless Chu Xingyun, who sought the One-Sword Manual using extreme methods!
But what was he planning to do today by kidnapping these heirs from Hidden Sects and Super Clans?
Chu Xingyun listened to their insults and gave a cold sneer, saying, "So-called heirs of Hidden Sects and Super Clans, is this all you're capable of? Easily captured by me, and still dare to scorn me like this!"
"If I dared to capture you, naturally I'm prepared to become enemies with the forces behind you, so you might as well save your breath!"
Ignoring their furious curses and desperate screams, Chu Xingyun's expression did not change as he tightened his grip on his knife and then revealed a smile both cruel and seemingly merciful.
"You should have guessed my purpose for capturing you, right? Indeed, I've reached a bottleneck in my cultivation of this sword manual, and in the short term, it's difficult to break through. As heirs of Hidden Sects and Super Clans, you grew up surrounded by Spiritual Medicine, your Essence Blood filled with medicinal properties, which can aid me!"
Upon hearing Chu Xingyun's words, the group was both shocked and angry, shouting, "You wouldn't dare?!"
Chu Xingyun replied with a laugh, "The Dragon Gate will soon open, I won't waste any more time with you. Your participation today makes me deeply grateful. Once I claim the top spot at the Hidden Dragon Conference and become the True Dragon of this Kunlun Ruins, I will strike against your backing forces, eliminate them one by one, so all your peers and family can accompany you below!"
"Slash!"
With that, ignoring their enraged curses and pleas, Chu Xingyun swiftly drew his knife from its sheath, a crimson blade light instantly flashed!
The terror and despair in their eyes were frozen in place!
Splatters of blood sprayed out, dripping onto the formation below them, causing the mysterious ancient runes to emit a brilliant red glow!
In no time, the dark cave was filled with red light!
Followed by Chu Xingyun's wild and rampant laughter!
...
Inside the Dayan Imperial Palace.
Eastern purple qi filled the skies, and above the Imperial City, a golden dragon could vaguely be seen carving through the sky before vanishing into a room within the palace.
There was the sleeping chamber of Ji Yuan, a lord of the Dayan Dynasty, and the top-ranked of the previous Hidden Dragon List.
At that moment, the door to the chamber opened, and a handsome youth clad in a golden python robe stepped out slowly.
Just as he took a few steps, a cold yet somewhat affectionate voice came from behind him.
"Xin, this Hidden Dragon Conference is teeming with monsters, even stronger than the last one I attended alone. Are you confident to claim the top spot and renew another century of Dragon Qi for our Dayan Dynasty?"
The youth in the python robe paused in his steps, his expression confident and composed, "Don't worry, Grandfather, whether it's Gu Rulong of the Dragon Elephant Sect, Lingxiao of the Lingxiao Sword Sect, or Xuanyuan Qianqiu of the Xuanyuan Clan, I have never taken them seriously!"
"This time, I am determined to take the top spot, renewing another hundred years of Dragon Vein for our Dayan Dynasty!"
Ji Changxin's voice echoed with confidence, filled with determination.
And indeed, he had that confidence. Whether it was Gu Rulong, Lingxiao, Xuanyuan Qianqiu, or Chu Xingyun, they were all just at the Seventh Layer of the Fanxu Realm.
He, however, was at the Eighth Level of Fanxu Realm, and had even clashed with experts of the Hedao Realm!
Such a brilliant record was surely enough for him to look down on Heaven's Pride of his generation!
...
In an inn.
Mu Jinyu finished washing up, and after having breakfast with Jian Ruyan and Wen Rou, headed towards the largest square within the Imperial City.
There was the battlefield for the Hidden Dragon Conference!
Just then.
Jian Ruyan abruptly stopped, pulled out two veils, and handed one to Wen Rou, saying, "Xiaorou, put this on."
"Hmm? Why?" Wen Rou was taken aback upon hearing Jian Ruyan's words, then asked puzzledly.
They had never worn veils to conceal themselves when going out, so why did Jian Ruyan now want her to wear one?
Jian Ruyan replied calmly, "I once had some grievances with a few people from the Heavenly Palace. Once the Hidden Dragon Conference begins, members of the Heavenly Palace will be present. I don't know if they still remember me, so to be on the safe side, let's wear veils."
"Oh, then I should just wear a veil. Why do you need to wear one too?" Wen Rou nodded, then asked somewhat curiously.
Jian Ruyan said, "Do you remember when your mother visited Dragon King Hall for you? I seem to recall that Kunlun Ruins has a Super Clan named the Chen Family, I don't know if it's your mother's family. Anyway, the Hidden Dragon Conference is rather chaotic; let's be cautious."
"Oh oh, I understand…"
Upon hearing Jian Ruyan's explanation, Wen Rou's gaze dimmed, then she reached out to take the veil that Jian Ruyan offered and donned it on her "Jian Ruyan" face.
Jian Ruyan then also put a veil on her "Wen Rou" face, to prevent detection by Chen Family People.
Seeing them wearing the veils, Mu Jinyu noticed their graceful figures, ethereal disposition, and the hidden faces beneath mist-like veils that only exposed a pair of starlight-like beautiful eyes, appearing to add a touch of mysterious allure.
He extended his Divine Sense, attempting to see through their veils, catch a glimpse of their true faces, but found it impossible.
Indeed, Jian Ruyan wouldn't use ordinary veils to conceal someone's true identity.
Mu Jinyu thought to himself quietly.
'But is it really just because she had some conflicts with the people of the Heavenly Palace?'
Mu Jinyu thought disbelievingly.
Back when Jian Ruyan was at Dragon King Hall, her strength hadn't even reached the Divinity Transformation Realm, only the weakest Body Refining Realm. Even if the Heavenly Palace had disciples of such strength, their status wouldn't be that high!
And what a crucial event the Hidden Dragon Conference is, how could they possibly come along?
The ones from Heavenly Palace would undeniably be top-tier figures!
Yet Jian Ruyan worried about being recognized.
Recalling the tragic childhood happening at Xiang Mantang's family, and Jian Ruyan being taken away.
Mu Jinyu could deduce that the one who took Jian Ruyan away, must have been from Kunlun Ruins' greatest force, the Heavenly Palace!