Chapter 1 Central City, Empress's Ancient Castle

Dawn was approaching. Outside the ancient castle's attic, the night was yet to break, and everything appeared still and tranquil. A gentle breeze rustled, and faint fluorescent light danced from the grass, bringing light even earlier than the dawn.

These fluorescent lights were not fireflies, but pure, translucent light particles.

The Legion Commander sat inside the ancient castle's hall, feeling the warm breeze on her face, sipping tea, and waiting patiently.

She had just received a temporary notice that the castle was welcoming a distinguished guest.

The distant light particles moved with the wind, gradually converging towards her location.

A faint sound of conversation and laughter drifted in.

She could make out the voice of Grand Duke Zhuxue: "Long time no see, Miss Meng's grace surpasses even what I remember."

And the other voice...

It was gentle, like the warm breeze blowing through the hall.

"Mr. Zhuxue overpraises me."

The Legion Commander slowly looked up. The two figures walking together gradually entered her line of sight. Zhuxue cast a subtle glance her way, then bowed, stopping in front of the hall, and smiled, "Goddess Meng, Zhuxue has official duties to attend to, so I'll leave you here for tonight."

"You're too kind, sir."

There was only one Goddess Meng in this world.

Meng Xizhou, from the West Continent.

The hall was not dark to begin with, but the arrival of this graceful figure made it even brighter. Light particles from all directions converged like streams from afar... These were the "lights" contained in the transcendent source substance, sensing their master's summoning and flying here.

Meng Xizhou respectfully bowed to the Legion Commander.

Her etiquette was as impeccable as that of the ancient families of Changye, leaving no room for criticism.

Who could dislike such a woman?

Bright, upright, magnanimous, warm… It was as if all the perfect qualities in the world were combined in her.

The title of Goddess.

She deserved it.

People might not dislike such a flawless person, but they would find it difficult to "like" her from the bottom of their hearts. Light that was too intense was destined to hang high in the sky, like the sun. Everyone could look up and see it, but if they got too close, they would be blinded, their hands burned. Even closer, they would be burned to ashes.

People or things that were too perfect could only be admired from afar.

"Goddess Meng."

The Legion Commander's brow gradually relaxed. She gently inhaled the light-filled air, feeling her previously gloomy spirit become much more at ease.

"I dare not accept the title of Goddess... Legion Commander, you can just call me Xiao Meng."

Meng Xizhou could only offer a helpless smile.

It wasn't a humble remark. She had never wanted the title of Goddess, but there were too many believers in Light City who called her that, and so it spread throughout the five continents.

"I'm not here today to disturb Her Majesty."

The Empress was on the second floor.

Meng Xizhou knew that she was only a few dozen meters away from that great Empress.

If she went up to the attic and walked a little further, she could have an "audience."

"Regarding the engagement... I wanted to personally come and apologize to Her Majesty." Meng Xizhou said earnestly, "I have no other intentions in this trip…"

The Empress had been staying in the attic for a long time.

This matter had already attracted the attention of many Divine Seats from other continents... At this critical moment, even if the Goddess stated in advance that she had no other intentions, no one would believe her.

The Legion Commander remained composed, speaking calmly, "Miss Meng should know that Her Majesty does not usually receive guests… Even if you have a distinguished status, you need to make an appointment in advance to meet her. I'm afraid I can't grant your wish if you come unannounced like this today."

"I... I came out of Light City without their knowledge."

Helplessly.

Meng Xizhou sighed softly.

She said sincerely, "Since the annulment of the engagement, I have been confined in Light City... I don't know how long I can hide this trip from them. Perhaps I will have to return after tonight."

"I'm very sorry."

The Legion Commander shook her head, "If you are just here to express your apology, then there is no need to go upstairs… Moreover, you are traveling privately this time, arriving in the Northern Continent. Your words and actions do not represent Light City."

Meng Xizhou paused for a second.

"... I was being presumptuous."

She bowed, "It doesn't matter if I can't meet Her Majesty. Lady Ziyu, I heard that my 'fiancé' is currently in Central City. I would like to meet him…"

The Legion Commander smiled upon hearing this.

"It's really bad timing."

She raised her head, pointed to the distant iron dome through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, and said softly, "If you had come half a day earlier, you might have had a chance. But now... I imagine Lin Lin has already left the Northern Continent. Although it's almost dawn, judging by the shining stars in the sky, he should be on one of them."

"I'm too late…"

Meng Xizhou looked regretful, "What about my brother?"

"It's really unfortunate, your brother, the hereditary Zhenyue Duke, is also up there."

The Legion Commander said blandly, "Also, Goddess, I need to remind you that although Light City has denied the annulment of the engagement, everyone in Central City knows what you're thinking… Since it's just the two of us here tonight, let's just put away the words 'fiancé'."

……

……

The Northern Continent's long-planned "Restart Mission" used a total of fifteen airships. These airships were not large, consisting of fourteen teams, each with its own airship.

Leading these teams was the "Command Airship" where Osmond was stationed.

The famous Third Legion's Eye, along with his adjutant, would simultaneously link fourteen captains in the "spiritual network" built in the Doru River disaster zone to conduct overall strategic command.

The biggest goal that the fourteen captains needed to accomplish in this "Restart Mission" was to find the "Door" in the disaster zone!

In addition, due to the heavy losses after the subjugation mission, and the fact that the disaster zone's interior had not been clearly explored, they needed to deploy as much 【Deep Sea】 hardware as possible to maintain the stability of the spiritual network.

The danger of the disaster zone had been eliminated.

What they needed to do was "reclaim"!

At this moment, there was a lot of discussion on the airship that Zhong Yuan was on.

"The captain has been in the gravity room for six hours. Eleven times the gravity… That's not something a normal person can endure."

In addition to Yuan Yuan, there were six other members in Zhong Yuan's team.

These transcendents were elites selected through the Generals' Conference, with excellent physical qualities and talent. Their ages were not much different from Zhong Yuan, but their strength… was much lower.

"We're about to arrive at the Doru River. If he trains so hard, will the captain's stamina hold up?"

These team members were all elites!

Before arriving at Central City, each of them considered themselves "cultivation fanatics," but after seeing Zhong Yuan, they realized how far they were from a true genius!

Yuan Yuan held his sword, looking out at the flowing clouds and the rising dawn, and said calmly, "Don't worry… If he could be affected by this level of training, how could he be called 'Captain'?"

He was the most familiar with Zhong Yuan in this team.

After saying that, he paused.

"For a strength-based transcendent, this is just a warm-up. What's a little sweat in the gravity room?"

Yuan Yuan looked to the side and said with some emotion, "Someone like Mr. Gu is the real 'maniac'."

The team members looked at each other.

The muffled sound of sandbags could be heard from the gravity room from time to time, which was quite noticeable, so that they had forgotten the quietest figure in the corner for a moment.

The person who enjoyed the highest privilege in this restart mission!

Gu Shen!

Due to Her Majesty's special permission, Gu Shen was not under anyone's command and did not need to listen to anyone's advice… He only needed to follow the airship and be responsible for landing in the Doru River.

Therefore, he had not shown his face during the intensive training and special training these past few days.

In the training ground, many transcendents were eager to compete with this "East Continent S-Class"... They had made a good calculation, but unfortunately, they did not see Gu Shen's figure when the mission began.

Gu Shen had never left his room!

For a time, news spread in the training ground, and most people thought that Gu Shen was scared and deliberately stayed in his room… After all, the Zhenyue Duke, who also had exclusive privileges, would bring his team members to the training ground for a walk every day.

Who was the hunter and who was the prey was clear at a glance.

However… thinking about it carefully, this was also a wise move.

Gu Shen had come all the way from the East Continent and was all alone. Could he really go head-to-head with the Zhenyue Duke?

So, at the beginning of the mission.

Gu Shen directly boarded Zhong Yuan's airship.

Having privileges meant being despised… During the days of seclusion, rumors about him being afraid of Zhenyue spread everywhere, and he was despised. If he traveled with other unfamiliar people, he would inevitably cause unnecessary trouble.

He had dealt with Zhong Yuan before, and there was an old acquaintance, Yuan Yuan, in this team. Gu Shen had also read the information of the remaining team members in advance. They were all upright and honest people, so at least they would not cause him trouble during the journey.

So after boarding the airship, he began his spiritual cultivation in peace, trying to break through the unbreakable "golden headband."

As the airship sailed, advancing towards the distant sky.

The pendant would occasionally emit a burst of urgent spiritual rhythm.

On the way to Doru River… it sensed unease…

This meant that this mission was really dangerous.

Gu Shen naturally noticed it, but he completely ignored the rhythm coming from the pendant at this moment.

Doru River… he had to go no matter what, and no matter how uneasy this pendant was, it could only accompany him on his journey.

……

……

On the command airship.

Osmond, who seemed to be resting with his eyes closed, suddenly said, "Don't you think it's been a little too quiet these days…"

【Deep Sea】was piloting the command airship.

Lin Lin didn't have any important tasks at the moment. He was concentrating on his spiritual cultivation, but the efficiency was not high.

This was a rare large-scale mission for the Northern Continent, and every selected member of the Restart Team was feeling uneasy at the moment. As the "commander" who coordinated the overall situation, Lin Lin seemed calm, but his mind was actually fluctuating.

For some reason, he felt that there were faint waves rising in his heart.

"Your Excellency, what do you mean by that?"

Since he had nothing to do and could not concentrate on his spiritual cultivation, Lin Lin put aside those trivial thoughts and chatted with Osmond.

"Although I'm old and don't participate in young people's affairs, I've still heard some of the rumors that have been rampant recently." Osmond squinted his one eye and smiled meaningfully, "Your friend surnamed Gu used to have a good reputation, but now it's not so good… Northerners don't like deserters, even if they lose, they should have a fair fight."

Lin Lin shook his head, "Your Excellency is mistaken."

Osmond raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"If I were him, I wouldn't go out to fight either."

Lin Lin sat up straight. When he talked about this, his impetuous and restless mood slowly calmed down, "For such a big event as the Restart Mission, the Zhenyue Duke was actually allowed to abuse his power… directly deciding on an entire team? It would be fine if they were all conquerors from the borders of the Northern Continent, but he also brought followers from Light City!"

"Private power… every captain has private power, but Zhenyue is the most greedy and willing to spend." Osmond said with a soft laugh, "He even brought the help of Light City, how could Central City refuse such a generous person?"

"Yes, Central City has always liked to pick up bargains, no matter big or small, they will pick them up when they see them, but doing so often leads to picking up sesame seeds and losing watermelons."

Lin Lin sarcastically said in a lukewarm tone, and then said, "With such an elite team, if Zhenyue encounters Gu Shen, is it really just as simple as 'sparring'? Once they meet, the situation will change. Zhenyue was able to abandon his face and launch a sneak attack at the banquet before. If they meet in the training ground this time, he will definitely take the initiative to fight and make Gu Shen suffer a big loss. At that time, it will not be the unimportant impact of a worsening reputation."

Osmond was a little surprised and asked, "I don't understand young people nowadays… After all, he is the heir to the name of Zhenyue. Is Meng Xiao really so unsportsmanlike that he will start fighting directly after meeting? Also, is a worsening reputation really an unimportant impact now?"

"It doesn't matter, Your Excellency Osmond, the times have changed."

Lin Lin said lightly, "As long as we can reach the final goal, what does it matter if we are unsportsmanlike? Zhenyue is not the only one who is unsportsmanlike, and there are many people who don't care about their reputation…"

Osmond's eyes were a little complicated.

Thinking back to those years… when he and the previous Zhenyue fought to the death, they had entrusted their backs to each other, but the children of the old people had characters that were different from what he had expected.

"According to what you said, Gu Shen's avoidance is actually the best policy."

Osmond said, "You just said that there are many people who don't care about their reputation. Nowadays, in the legion, I see many loyal and righteous people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the Northern Continent…"

"Your Excellency, the times have really changed."

Lin Lin had no intention of sarcasm. He said very seriously, while looking blankly at the central control screen, that the command airship was about to arrive at its final destination, "Do you know where those who care about their reputation gather the most?"

"It's the grave."

Osmond was stunned.

"Your former comrades, your former brothers-in-arms… many have already died in battle. They gained fame, but lost the sunshine forever." Lin Lin said softly, "As far as I know, those transcendents outside the Northern Continent want to live more than they want fame. On the battlefield, you control everything and plan everything, and you must include 'people's hearts' in it, because now, losing your reputation… is no longer a big deal."