The Drunkard’s Intention Is Not the Wine

“Always leave a way out—you never know when you’ll meet again! Elder Chu, your proposal is just too ruthless. I can’t agree!” After a long silence, another elder, Elder Bu, suddenly spoke up: “Let’s not even talk about Leon Huang’s potential for now—just look at what he’s done for the military. He helped wipe out six hundred thousand Strongarm Bull Devils! Who else in the world could accomplish that?”

“No amount of merit can outweigh the interests and authority of our military!” Elder Chu retorted sharply.

Elder Bu waved his hand. “Fine, let’s set merit aside for now. Let’s talk about Leon Huang’s potential. He condensed a Heaven-Rank Domain as soon as he entered the Grandmaster realm—and it’s a Five-Element Domain! If he becomes a Martial Saint, he’ll be one of the absolute top Martial Saints!”

“One Martial Saint isn’t enough to change the big picture,” Elder Chu said coolly.

“But what if he becomes a Martial God?” Elder Bu’s tone grew heavier, and he was visibly annoyed.

“A Martial God?”

Elder Chu let out a scornful laugh, every word biting: “Do you think becoming a Martial God is easy? If it were, our Human Race wouldn’t have gone hundreds of years without a single new Martial God!”

Elder Bu’s face hardened. “Even if he doesn’t reach Martial God, he’s still a battle-array master. The three arrays he created on the Blood River Battlefield—after our formation masters studied them, they admitted they couldn’t match him. If those arrays were rolled out to the whole army, our combat power would go up by at least thirty percent!”

Elder Chu ignored all that, sticking to her guns: “So what? His existence already threatens our military’s control. Either he serves us, or we destroy him!”

Bang!

Elder Bu slammed his palm on the table, furious. “You’re being completely unreasonable! A genius like Leon Huang only comes along once in centuries, and you actually want to snuff him out!”

“So what? Anyone who threatens our military’s authority should be destroyed!” Elder Chu said dismissively.

At that, Elder Bu’s face grew so dark it looked like it might drip water. He sneered, “Heh, sounds like you’re just settling a personal score. I heard that if Leon Huang hadn’t stepped in, the Emperor-Rank Martial Soul would’ve ended up with Vanessa Nangong, right?”

Elder Chu finally lost her composure, her expression changing. “Watch your mouth, Elder Bu! Vanessa Nangong may be my grand-disciple, but she’s also the commander of the Martial Soul Army’s reserve unit. If she fused with the Emperor-Rank Martial Soul, that’s still better than letting some outsider have it!”

Elder Bu regained his calm, speaking playfully. “Outsider? Leon Huang is part of the military too!”

“Riding two horses doesn’t make him one of us!” Elder Chu sneered.

“Enough, you two. Let’s get back to the point and discuss how we should handle Leon Huang,” Elder Nian interjected.

As the most senior and oldest, Elder Nian commanded respect from both Elder Bu and Elder Chu, so they immediately fell silent.

Elder Li said, “Both Elder Bu and Elder Chu make good points. How about we send someone to approach Leon Huang? If he’s willing to leave Sanctum Martial Academy and fully join the military, that’s ideal. If not, we’ll figure out another solution.”

“Let me handle this,” Elder Chu volunteered.

Seeing Elder Chu take on the task herself, Elder Bu’s expression darkened—this woman clearly wasn’t going to let things go.

“Very well, let Elder Chu handle it,” Elder Nian nodded.

“I agree!”

“No objections here!”

The others quickly voiced their approval—almost everyone agreed to let Elder Chu take on the mission.

Inside the inn room.

After more than two hours of cultivation, Ian Song’s mental power had fully recovered, making him once again marvel at how effective the Meditation Formula was.

He checked the Emperor-Rank Martial Soul in his sea of consciousness—it was still dormant.

The other two Martial Souls, however, were active.

But now wasn’t the time to test their functions, so he withdrew from his sea of consciousness, opened his eyes, and stood up from the floor.

“Ian, how did it go? Did you successfully fuse?”

The Melody Empress asked.

Ian nodded and bowed to the two elders. “I’ve fused it—thank you both for protecting me!”

“Enough with the formalities, kid. So, what abilities does your Emperor-Rank Martial Soul have?” asked the Venerable Dragon Sword.

Ian shook his head. “Although I’ve fused the Emperor-Rank Martial Soul, it’s still dormant, so for now, I have no idea what abilities it has.”

They chatted for a while longer.

Only then did Ian leave the room.

“Ian, are you alright?”

As soon as he stepped out, Harriet Gu—who had clearly been waiting nearby—came over to greet him.

Thinking of this, Ian felt a warmth in his heart. “I’m fine.”

As they spoke, Ian boldly took Harriet Gu’s soft hands in his own.

“I’m glad you’re alright. I’ll head back and rest now!”

With a hint of shyness, Harriet Gu pulled her hands away and turned to leave.

Not long after Ian returned to his room, there was a knock at the door.

It was Ethan Sun.

The two junior brothers naturally shared a few words of nostalgia.

After all, Drake Long had died in the Martial Soul Hall.

At the same time, Ethan Sun had come to bid Ian farewell—he planned to leave the Holy City that very day and return to the Pristine Way Sect.

After seeing Ethan Sun off, Ian released the Golden Howler and instructed it to secretly escort Ethan Sun.

He also told it to stay at the Pristine Way Sect once it arrived.

After all, he planned to visit the Pristine Way Sect himself before long.

Soon after Ethan Sun left, Ian was preparing to rest when another knock sounded at the door.

He opened the door to find none other than Vanessa Nangong—though this time, she wasn’t wearing her usual black armor, but a clean, fitted outfit of blue, looking sharp and efficient.

“What brings you here?”

Ian asked.

“I’m here to deliver orders from the Military Camp!” Vanessa Nangong replied coldly. Clearly, she still hadn’t let go of what happened in the Martial Soul Hall—she was holding a grudge against Ian!

“Come in.”

Ian invited Vanessa Nangong into the room and poured her a glass of water.

She took the glass but set it aside without drinking.

Ian didn’t mind and sat down beside her. “Miss Nangong, you said you had orders—please go ahead.”

Vanessa Nangong said, “Ian, the Military Camp wants you to leave Sanctum Martial Academy and join the military full time!”

Ian wasn’t surprised. The moment he fused the Emperor-Rank Martial Soul, he knew the military would make this request.

Still, he had his own plans. He shook his head. “I refuse.”

“Don’t be so foolish!” Vanessa Nangong looked at him with a hint of mockery. “I suggest you don’t get cocky just because you’re favored—there’s no good end to that!”

“Thank you for the advice, but my mind is made up,” Ian replied calmly.

“Fine! You’ll regret today’s decision!” Vanessa Nangong said coldly, then turned to leave. As she walked out, a strange smile flickered at her lips.

Her real purpose in coming wasn’t to persuade Ian to leave Sanctum Martial Academy for the military, but to make him refuse. That’s why she’d acted so hostile—she wanted to provoke Ian and make him rebel.