"Martial Khan? Senior Overmountain is really that famous in the Wild Di Kingdom!" Quinn Shepherd couldn’t help but marvel inwardly.
Lynn Ling quickly asked, "Teacher, are you an expert in Battle Skills?"
Libationer Barrett nodded, smiling: "Back then I followed my master to train in blade arts. Later, my master vanished, and my blade skills stagnated for a long time. Then, with the reforms led by the Imperial Preceptor, I came to the Everpeace Empire to study spells and sword arts, hoping to break my bottleneck by learning from others. But truth be told, my greatest strength isn't Battle Skills—it's Battle-Methods."
Lynn Ling felt a jolt in her heart. All along the way, Libationer Barrett had taught them daoist arts and divine abilities, lectured on classic scriptures—she’d always assumed his greatest mastery lay in spells and sword arts. She never imagined he was actually a Battle Skills lineage inheritor. What a surprise!
Even more surprising was that Libationer Barrett actually held the title of Martial Khan in the Wild Di Kingdom and was highly respected there.
That’s the highest honor a foreigner can earn in the Wild Di Kingdom!
The Wild Di general led the group inside the pass and said, "Martial Khan, what brings you to our country? Ever since you joined the Everpeace Empire, all the heroes of the grasslands have looked down on you. They want to reclaim the Martial Khan title."
Libationer Barrett laughed, "My Academy disciples want to retrace my old path and meet the young heroes of the Witch-Cult."
The Wild Di general’s body gave a slight shudder. He glanced at Quinn and Lynn Ling, then sneered, "Just them?"
Lynn Ling grew excited, shot Quinn a look, and chuckled softly, "We’re really going to meet the Witch-Cult’s young heroes."
Libationer Barrett replied, "Just them. This time, I’m heading for the steppe’s sacred ground—Loulan Golden Palace. I’ll sit at its gate and block the entrance. That’s how I earned the Martial Khan title back then: by blocking Loulan Golden Palace’s door."
The Wild Di general’s facial muscles twitched. He sneered, "Back then you had the Heavenly Khan with you—only then could you block the gate. How does your strength compare to the Heavenly Khan now?"
"I may be inferior, but not by much."
The Wild Di general’s face darkened. He barked to a soldier, "Release the eagle-wolves—notify Loulan Golden Palace that Martial Khan is coming to block their gate!"
The Di soldier hurried to obey. Moments later, giant winged wolves soared into the sky, flapping toward the depths of the steppe.
The Wild Di general looked at Libationer Barrett, then bowed respectfully: "Martial Khan, the road ahead is rough. Please, go on!"
Libationer Barrett laughed heartily and led Quinn and the others onto the grasslands.
Lynn Ling asked, "Master Barrett, who was that Di man’s 'Heavenly Khan' he mentioned just now?"
"My master—Heavenblade."
Libationer Barrett looked up at the sky and said calmly, "Back then he brought me to Loulan Golden Palace to block the gate—he was revered as the Frontier Heavenly Emperor."
"So Grandpa Butcher was once that formidable?" Quinn nearly jumped in shock.
Butcher’s explosive temper, that look of perpetual annoyance at everyone, and then going to Grandma Temple to sell meat, brandishing two cleavers with his face full of fierce muscle and a menacing glare—he’s scared plenty of Great Ruins girls into tears.
Who would have thought he once had such a legendary title?
Heavenly Khan is just another name for Frontier Heavenly Emperor. That title is awe-inspiring—how could it be used just to scare little girls?
Quinn really couldn’t imagine what kind of dominance Butcher had back in those days.
Lina the Spirit Fox piped up, "Frontier Martial Emperor, Frontier Heavenly Emperor—such grandeur..."
The grasslands stretched wide and empty; sometimes you could walk half a day without seeing a single village. The sky above was endless, green merging into blue at the horizon—a sight that made the heart soar.
Libationer Barrett was rough and imposing, as tall as a horse and big as a mountain, with a wild air about him. He resembled the men of the steppe, and whenever they passed a village, the herders would come up to offer him wine, always with great enthusiasm.
"Everpeace has three great sects: Dao Gate is the first of the orthodox paths, Great Thunderclap Temple is the foremost of the Buddhist sects, and the Heavenly Demon Cult leads the demonic ways."
At night, they arrived at a village and settled by a blazing bonfire. Libationer Barrett sat beside the flames and said, "But on the grasslands, the number one sacred place is Loulan Golden Palace—the greatest Witch-Cult. The high witches of Loulan hold supreme authority here; every khan on the steppe receives their mandate from the palace. When an old khan dies, his heir must travel to Loulan Golden Palace to request the witches’ blessing before inheriting the throne."
Lynn Ling said, "It used to be the same in Everpeace. My father once told me that in the early years, Everpeace was just a fraction of its current size and was a vassal state of Longevity Gate. Back then, our Ling clan wasn’t even royalty. Later, the Longevity Gate’s master got tired of the reigning emperor and simply threw him out, choosing my ancestor as the new emperor and changing dynasties overnight. Afterward, our Ling clan worked hard, quietly developing, until we finally overthrew Longevity Gate and secured our rule."
Quinn was a little stunned; he hadn’t known Everpeace had such a history.
Libationer Barrett took a drink, set down his wine gourd, and said, "The territory of Everpeace used to be split into more than thirty small kingdoms, each with its own emperor, all controlled by different sects. These sects lived off tribute from the states, and every emperor had to offer annual gifts to their sect. Now the sects have become vassals of the state, so naturally they’re unhappy and rebel whenever they get the chance. Beyond the frontier, there are plenty of sects too, but the strongest by far is Loulan Golden Palace. All kingdoms and khans bow to it; no other sect can rival Loulan."
Quinn asked, "Senior, how does Loulan Golden Palace compare to the three great sects?"
Libationer Barrett replied calmly, "About the same."
Quinn’s eyes lit up. To blockade Loulan Golden Palace was like blockading Dao Gate or Great Thunderclap Temple itself—the difficulty could be imagined!
"But this time we’re going to Loulan Golden Palace not just to blockade the gate, but to steal something."
Libationer Barrett chuckled, "Quinn, Princess, you two will sit at the gate and blockade it, while I sneak into the palace and steal the goods. Once I’ve got them, we leave immediately. Princess, in the next few days I’ll be grinding your foundations hard, so you can bring out the full power of the imperial Nine-Dragon Emperor Art!"
Lynn Ling felt a little nervous.
The next day, the group set out again, but this time Libationer Barrett made them walk. As they traveled, Lynn Ling had to keep casting her arts.
Libationer Barrett’s gaze was sharp and merciless; any flaw in Lynn Ling’s technique, he spotted instantly and ordered her to correct it, making her train again and again until she was thoroughly worn out.
It was the first time Lynn Ling had suffered such hardship. She’d always been clever and diligent in her studies, but that was due to royal education. When it came to martial arts and cultivation, she’d never put her heart into it.
This time, Libationer Barrett was ruthlessly grinding her basics, making her train hard and diligently, so the power of the Nine-Dragon Emperor Art could fully manifest.
The Nine-Dragon Emperor Art is the imperial clan’s top-tier technique. After improvements by the court and occupying the dragon-vein nexus, its qi coils around the imperial city, giving the royal children a huge advantage in cultivating this art.
Lynn Ling’s cultivation wasn’t weak; what she lacked was a solid foundation.
After more than ten days, she’d been honed by Libationer Barrett until she was like a different person—her strength had soared.
"The Nine-Dragon Emperor Art is a spell-type battle method; its strength lies in explosive power, like the Flame God technique."
Libationer Barrett extended a finger, and a fireball shot out, flying a hundred feet before exploding. The fireball was only the size of a fist, but when it detonated, raging flames ballooned thousands of times larger, incinerating a dozen yards of grassland and charring the earth. Even the rocks at the blast center were left scorched and melted.
"The Nine-Dragon Emperor Art is incredibly deep in spell arts. Some say spell and battle-skill lineages are opposites, but in truth, they can be fused."
Libationer Barrett borrowed Lynn Ling’s giant iron hammer and said, "Princess, watch closely. Quinn, come spar with me."
Quinn gathered his yuanqi, drew the Grand Guardian’s Sword, and lunged at Libationer Barrett.
Libationer Barrett swung the hammer—the same giant iron hammer Quinn had given to Lynn Ling. Now, flames surged from its head as it clashed with the Grand Guardian’s Sword.
Boom—
A violent explosion erupted from the hammer’s head, blasting the Grand Guardian’s Sword away.
Libationer Barrett stood in a ring of blazing fire; only the patch of grass beneath his feet remained untouched and lush.
Lynn Ling jumped in surprise, immediately spotting the key: Libationer Barrett had hidden the Flame God spell inside the hammer, so every time the Grand Guardian’s Sword struck it, the spell exploded, blasting the sword away.
Quinn’s yuanqi became as fine as silk, wrapping around the Grand Guardian’s Sword. Its blade flashed as he attacked Libationer Barrett again.
The two were farther apart now. Libationer Barrett swung the iron hammer, flipping it up and down; every strike blocked the Grand Guardian’s Sword, followed by another booming explosion, waves of fire rolling out—an astonishing spectacle.
Lynn Ling’s heart raced—Libationer Barrett was demonstrating a way of fighting she’d never imagined, perfectly merging battle skills and spell arts with unmatched dominance!
Quinn’s Grand Guardian’s Sword was blasted away again and again; he couldn’t help but admire Barrett. Barrett had first studied blade arts under Butcher, then entered Everpeace to learn spell arts, and finally forged his own path!
Libationer Barrett’s demonstration of spell and battle-skill fusion pointed Quinn toward a new path!
The title ‘Martial Emperor’ was well-deserved!
By merging two different cultivation methods, Barrett may not match Butcher’s extremity, but he’s still worthy of being called a master!
Barrett put away the hammer and handed the still-glowing iron head back to Lynn Ling, saying, "I trained in blade arts, but I could never reach Master’s level of perfection. So I had to find my own path. Master’s blade could split heaven and earth, shatter the vault of the sky, break through any spell or divine art in the world. I can’t do that. So when the Imperial Preceptor started changing the system, I entered the Academy to study spell arts, hoping to break through. Lynn Ling, with your Nine-Dragon Emperor Art as a foundation, you should walk this path too."
Lynn Ling was thoroughly convinced and sincerely sought guidance. Barrett made her train even harder, and she didn’t complain.
Quinn couldn’t resist temptation either; he kept asking Barrett for advice, and Barrett answered every question in detail, even letting Lina the Spirit Fox and the Jadehide Ox benefit as well.
They traveled deeper into the grasslands, practicing fused battle-methods along the way. Lynn Ling had begun to master the technique, and her sparring with Quinn grew fierce—both were soon drenched in sweat.
During a break, Quinn pulled out a scented handkerchief to wipe his sweat. Lynn Ling laughed, "Imperial Scholar, let me help you with that." She snatched it from his hand and gently dabbed his forehead.
Quinn saw sweat beading on her brow too. "You’re sweating as well—let me wipe it for you."
Lynn Ling blushed and handed him the handkerchief. Suddenly, Barrett’s expression changed drastically. He raised both hands and thrust them forward, shouting, "Heavenly Gang Absolute Wall!"
—End of the fourth update. Don’t go away, the fifth update will be out in ten minutes!