The Dragon Legion has been completely reorganized, with Dragon-Chen Hall as its core, forming the center of power. Three main legions—the Dragon-Chen, Wan-Xiong, and the hidden Dark Legion—have been established, and the orders issued by the Frostbane Dynasty are now treated as nonexistent.
This news, unsurprisingly, spread to every attentive ear in no time, and the very first place it reached was, of course, the Frostbane Dynasty.
In an underground world of blazing fire, Frostbane Holy Emperor Holden Hong gazed at the red-haired men in crimson robes around him and spoke in a low voice,
“That guy really is different from all the others before him... After scheming for so many years, I’m finally on the verge of the most critical step—could he really stop me now?”
“Rest assured, my lord. If Evan Chu dares to act, the moment he does, we’ll reveal ourselves and cut him down on the spot!”
“No. If you show yourselves, your power will be too conspicuous—it’ll draw the attention of the Sacred Lands. Let those wastes below handle it. If they can settle it, great; if not, they must at least buy me some time. My final step is already close at hand.
Hmph! Over all these years, so many geniuses and monsters have emerged from the Frostbane Trial World—Evan Chu isn’t the only one. I played the others to death, so why should he be any exception? Back then, the Second Person nearly broke into the Sacred Emperor Realm, only to be blasted down by a Sacred-Land curse. Just thinking about it is terrifying!
That kind of monstrous talent nearly succeeded—his potential was so overwhelming, even the Sacred-Land curse couldn’t suppress it. Too bad he ran into me... Heh! With my appearance, the Frostbane Dynasty is destined for a complete overhaul, and with everything under my control, no one can compete with me!
What Frostbane trialist? I refuse to accept it! My cultivation and potential are not inferior to theirs—why shouldn’t I stand at the very peak?”
After Holden Hong finished speaking, he fell silent. The six red-robed men beside him remained wordless. On closer inspection, this Holden was actually only his Holy Emperor avatar—not his true body.
But if you looked closely, deep within the churning magma at the heart of this crimson world, another figure sat cross-legged with eyes closed—his appearance identical to Holden Hong.
As for what was happening here, not even Evan Chu knew—nor did Frostbane’s former four Temple Masters and seven Thrones.
The Seven Thrones and Four Temple Masters were nothing like before. The Temple Masters’ authority had been completely hollowed out, and most of the Thrones replaced. Among them, Lord Jun Yang and Mad-Blade Li had it worst: stripped of power and forced to live each day under constant surveillance.
Even their monthly and yearly Starstone stipends were canceled outright, and all their personal belongings confiscated. They were confined in a space where their divine sense was sealed, unable to contact the outside world.
These people had begun to panic. They felt that the Frostbane Dynasty was changing in ways they couldn’t understand, becoming unfamiliar and unrecognizable.
At this very moment, some even felt that the sky itself was about to change...
The Frostbane Dynasty’s transformation was happening from the inside out. For now, none of the other dynasties had noticed, and Evan Chu himself was still unaware of what was unfolding within Frostbane.
Time raced by. The powers and great clans who received Evan’s wedding invitations responded quickly. As for Desmond Mansfield and Lena Lin’s wedding—who would come, and who would refuse?
Just as Evan and Desmond had predicted, far fewer people attended this second wedding banquet than the first.
Desmond had already guessed as much from earlier intelligence and rumors, but the reality still made everyone frown.
This time, not even half as many attended the wedding banquet—barely a quarter, in fact! Most were incomplete sects and families whose strength was just passable. Among true dynastic forces, only a handful showed up, and they were so weak, their standing didn’t even match Flowing-Light Dynasty.
“No more waiting. In two hours, the wedding ceremony begins, and at the same time we’ll officially announce that the Savage Brotherhood has merged into Dragon-Chen Hall as the Wan-Xiong Legion. As for the Dark Legion, keep it secret for now—let outsiders speculate a while.”
“Alright, but Hall Master, you’d better be ready for whatever comes next.”
Desmond Mansfield, already dressed in his red groom’s robe, spoke solemnly.
“Enough. I have my own plans. You just focus on marrying your bride and bringing her home.”
Evan Chu chuckled, and Desmond had no more complaints.
“Fine, do as you see fit. But let me give you a heads-up: this time, less than a quarter of the previous guests are attending in person. However, more than two-thirds have sent heavy gifts, even if they didn’t show up themselves.
And as for those who neither showed up nor sent gifts, that’s a full third.”
“Heh, so they still favor the Frostbane Dynasty, the newly crowned hegemon! They look down on me, Evan Chu? No problem—one day, they’ll realize just how foolish that is. As for those who sent gifts, you should try to win them over. Even if you can’t fully bring them into our camp, we’ll need their support when it matters. How much you can win over depends on your own skill.”
“Got it. I’ve already picked some smart, capable people from the clan and sent them out to handle it.”
“Well done. With you handling this, I’m at ease.”
Evan Chu straightened Desmond’s robe, then casually handed him something. “Give this to Lena Lin as my wedding gift. It’s not all that precious, but it’s a token of my sincerity.”
Desmond nearly fainted when he took it—an ultra-pure Star Crystal!
That’s right. These Star Crystals were a few out of the ten thousand left to Evan by the Ninefold Sacred Emperor. With his current realm, his grasp of Astro-Divination Canon, his mastery of the Starry Void Sigil, and the growth of Lynton’s Star Soul, Evan was finally qualified to try absorbing their energy.
At first, even one Star Crystal’s energy shocked him—it was so powerful that, even now, he’s only managed to absorb a single one. But that single crystal has already swollen his strength to the bursting point; soon, Evan will be unable to hold back and will break through to mid-stage Saint Venerable.
“It’s a great item, but I don’t have many. They’ll be of huge use in the future, but for now, I’m giving this to my new sister-in-law to help her raise her cultivation. Do well and don’t mistreat my wives—otherwise, I’ll have trouble at home!”
But don’t worry—once Dragon-Chen Hall grows stronger, even raiding a few dynastic base star-regions won’t be a problem. When the time comes, you and your wife can pick out treasures as my personal apology. How’s that sound?”
“Hmph! Now that’s more like it!”
Desmond shot Evan a glare—after all the grief he’d suffered lately, his resentment finally eased a little.
A short while later, with all arrangements complete, the grand wedding ceremony for Lena Lin and Desmond Mansfield finally began.