Inside the inner palace of the Flower Kingdom, in the Longevity Hall, the two old ladies—Withered and Flourishing—sat high upon their thrones, while someone knelt on the ground below.
"Reporting to Your Graces, the Four Matrons have sent an urgent secret message!"
"Speak."
"Yes! Your Graces, the Four Matrons have arrived at the South Wasteland desert and are tracking the treasure. It’s said that the Jade Duster, stolen from Heavenly Dragon Temple a few days ago, has now appeared in the South Wasteland. All the major powers have caught wind of this and are scrambling to get it. The Four Matrons are forming alliances and maneuvering to seize it."
"Hmm." Granny Flourishing slowly nodded. "According to the ancient texts, the South Wasteland Temple is an absolute deathtrap, full of unimaginable mechanisms. To enter, one must possess a South Wasteland ritual artifact. Wang Lianhua’s rare jade was crafted by a master to imitate such an artifact—it must be acquired. Anything else?"
"According to the Four Matrons, although all the major powers in the martial world are on the move, most of those who’ve made it so far are local sects within our borders because the journey is long and arduous. The Wedding Dress Divine Skill is tempting, but few top experts are truly interested. As for the assassin who killed Ouyezi, their identity is still unknown. It’s speculated that anyone who could escape from the Hidden Blade King must be an Innate-level master at most—not higher."
"Naturally," Granny Flourishing snorted. "This Wedding Dress Divine Skill may have gotten a big reputation lately, but it’s just hype among the lesser martial artists. True top experts have their own ways—they don’t need something like the Wedding Dress Divine Skill. Only rough types like the Golden Blade King would go for it." She spoke with clear disdain for the skill. In her eyes, with the Flower Kingdom’s long legacy, why would they bother with the Wedding Dress Divine Skill?
"Our Flower Kingdom is uniquely positioned—we must not let others get ahead of us. As for the so-called divine weapons in the treasure, who knows how much is left after a hundred years, but the gold and silver must be ours. They cannot end up in the hands of wandering martial artists." Granny Flourishing ordered, "Send word to Princess Flower Shifter—she’s to move at full speed. No one in the South Wasteland can match her. She must not fail."
"Uh..." The kneeling person hesitated awkwardly, then knelt even lower. "I was just about to report on that. According to the Four Matrons, Princess Flower Shifter has... vanished..."
"Hmm?" Granny Withered opened her lifeless eyes, and a heavy, oppressive air filled the palace. "What do you mean?"
"A-According to the Four Matrons, after Princess Flower Shifter passed Wind Cry Pass, she left the group and went alone. Now... her whereabouts are unknown, and we can’t reach her!" The messenger was sweating bullets—these two old ladies were infamous for their bad tempers, and when displeased, they’d either beat or kill. The number of servants who died at their hands was countless.
But after Withered and Flourishing exchanged glances, strangely, they didn’t lose their tempers. Granny Flourishing asked, "Is the Immortal Pavilion still the same as ever?"
The person answered immediately, "Still the same! According to our shadow sentries, nothing unusual in the Immortal Pavilion. Princess Moonshadow and Princess Starshine often go there to play. Princess Embroidered Jade stays deep in the palace and rarely appears, though sometimes you can hear her playing the zither—and occasionally... uh, screams. As for the Four Brothers, they still haven’t been released."
"Good, very good!" Granny Flourishing gave a villainous, sly grin. "The Four Heroes of the Dust? Well done! After all that carousing in the Eight Directions City brothel, that wild man should have disappointed that girl by now. Hmph, a wild man is always a wild man—never fit for polite company. Toss him into the martial world and he shows his true colors. Good, this is good! If Princess Flower Shifter’s left the group, it makes our job easier—also a good thing!"
Granny Withered ordered, "Keep watching the Immortal Pavilion—don’t slack off! Report any changes immediately! Also, send word to the Four Matrons: 'Act as you see fit.'"
"Yes!" The person retreated at once, though it was hard to see how Princess Flower Shifter leaving the group made things any easier, or what the Four Matrons were supposed to do now. One thing was clear: the two old ladies’ take on the South Wasteland situation was way off. They thought no top experts would come treasure hunting, that the Golden Blade King was the strongest after the Wedding Dress Divine Skill, and that the Black Masked Assassin who killed Ouyezi was only a bit better than the Hidden Blade King.
But the information they’d received was distorted—at the very least, incomplete and missing key details. If they really knew what was going on, they’d realize how wrong they were!
For example, just how skilled the Black Masked Assassin really was.
South Wasteland, Three Star Spring. The roar of the Heavenly Dragon Descends continued, while in the palm grove, the three-way battle reached its peak again.
The Black Masked Assassin finally revealed his ultimate technique—a bizarre move that silently sliced through everything, impossible to defend against. Yang Qi was fully focused, but couldn’t spot a single clue. Except for some mysterious sixth sense, there was no way to sense how that strange move came or went. At this moment, Princess Flower Shifter’s deep reserves as a Heavenly King-level expert truly showed.