“Princess Consort, still no word at all from Guxi since he set out to sea. Should we…”

Yingzi had been keeping close tabs on Guxi’s whereabouts the whole time — first, because that boy was a rare talent, and second, because before he left, he’d said if he completed his mission, he intended to claim Shiliang’s share of the payment as well!

Yingzi had originally been quite certain Guxi would never betray the princess consort the way Shiliang had — but ever since hearing that particular remark, his confidence had begun to waver.

Guxi knew far more than Shiliang ever had. If Guxi harbored even the faintest thought of betrayal, things would grow very troublesome indeed.

Ziqing glanced at him without answering, gazing off toward the distant location of the Bai clan. Beside her, Jun Beiyue was likewise gazing off into the distance — though in the direction of Nanzhao.

“Word just came in — the Prince of Nanzhao dispatched the black shark warriors, heading toward Western Jing. They’re in the desert right now. I’d guess…” Situ Haonan trailed off, hesitant to finish. Ever since Jun Beiyue had deliberately let the Nanzhao royal house catch sight of that emblem, the Prince of Nanzhao had begun searching extensively for descendants of the isolated island, and for remnants of that island unknown even to them.

Situ Haonan had been watching closely — could this group heading toward Western Jing also be making for Mingsha Mountain?

Ziqing had asked Jiao Cha how many relics existed across the Longyuan continent and who guarded them, but he hadn’t known — he and Mu Fusang only knew of each other because they’d both been stationed together on Liuxian Island!

Jun Beiyue only nodded, saying nothing further.

Just then, Ziqing suddenly turned her head. “Beiyue, what if we did this… would it work?”

“How so?” Jun Beiyue asked, arching an eyebrow with a smile. He’d been puzzling over how to handle Liuxian Island — he needed to seize control of it without arousing Nanzhao’s suspicions!

Ziqing’s expression turned serious as she leaned in and murmured something into Jun Beiyue’s ear for a while. He mulled it over for a moment, then agreed readily!

The fires at the Bai and Yu compounds burned for a full four days and four nights before finally going out. Both great clans threw every last person they had into fighting the blaze, and by the time the fires were finally extinguished, their family estates had been reduced to near ruin. Everyone had lost all interest in the newcomers’ ranking tournament by then.

Meanwhile, over these past few days, Ziqing had fashioned the recovered black shark scales into battle armor, distributing a set to each of her six young lieutenants. Clad in the armor, each of them looked utterly transformed — sharp, spirited, and dashing.

Standing atop the mountain peak, Ziqing stood with her hands clasped behind her back, facing the wind, and announced loudly, “From today onward, our mercenary company shall be renamed Reverse Scale! Do you know what a reverse scale is?”

All six of the young men shook their heads. They had no idea — orphans and beggars since childhood, they’d taken up martial training the moment they’d met Ziqing, and not one of them could even read.

“On the underside of a dragon’s neck, there lies a patch of white scale, no bigger than the palm of a hand — that is called the ‘reverse scale.’ No matter how mild-tempered the dragon, the instant that scale is touched, it erupts with boundless draconic fury, like a volcano bursting to life. I want each of you to be this princess consort’s own reverse scale — capable of unleashing boundless fighting power!”

The moment Ziqing finished speaking, all six answered as one, “Understood!”

They had carried out several missions before, working alongside Guxi and Shiliang — but blowing up the Yu and Bai compounds had been their very first mission taken directly from the princess consort herself!

They’d done it superbly — not only leaving behind no trace of evidence, but timing everything with flawless precision, striking back almost the instant the Bai and Yu clans provoked them!

This satisfied Ziqing to no end.

Standing behind Ziqing, Jiao Cha and Mu Fusang made quite the contrast — one wore a face full of watery misery, looking ready to cry, while the other stood silent, head bowed, seemingly lost in a daze.

Han Ziqing had declared that from that day forward, the two of them belonged to her — and this woman had even gone and poisoned them again on top of it. If they ever betrayed her, they’d meet a terrible end.

Jiao Cha eyed the black-scaled armor worn by those six young men, his heart aching at the sight — yet he couldn’t help but feel grateful he’d surrendered early, or else the scales he’d already lost would never have grown back at all!

Where once every great clan had pressed the Gu clan for favors, now fortune had reversed, and it was the Gu clan pressing the other great clans instead!

Neither the Bai clan nor the Yu clan had recovered from their wounds yet, and already they had no choice but to return to the battlefield of the ranking tournament!

After a five-day ceasefire, all the great clans returned to the field once more.

On the Bai side, every face was grim. The moment Jun Beiyue returned, Bai Feiyao snapped angrily, “Father, since we’ve lost our main hall, then in this battle we simply must take Liuxian Mountain for ourselves!”

Whoever claimed first place would gain dominion over everything on Liuxian Mountain!

Mu Fusang had already returned to the Bai clan, sitting behind the Bai clan head as coldly indifferent as ever — yet he heard every word passing between father and daughter with perfect clarity.

The Bai clan felt this way, and the Yu clan head felt exactly the same. Yu Xiao’s face was full of dejection, unable to muster any fighting spirit at all, while his father kept trying to encourage him. “Son, it’s just a compound — what does that matter? Once we take Liuxian Mountain, we’ll have the entire island!”

“Father, our ancestors’ portrait was burned to ashes, and you still have the heart to keep fighting for this!” Yu Xiao said angrily.

“How stubbornly naive of you — how did I ever raise such a foolishly rigid son? A single portrait means nothing! As long as you win first place for the Yu clan, that alone will bring our ancestors glory! What could our ancestors possibly blame you for?” the Yu clan head scolded.

“Father!” Yu Xiao tried to argue further, but the Yu clan head lowered his voice. “You brat, listen well — whether you want to fight or not, you must fight this time, and you must win. You should know full well how much effort I’ve invested in this, and you should know exactly who stands behind us — they are not people to be trifled with!”

At these words from his father, Yu Xiao glanced at him and fell into a resentful silence.

Meanwhile, off to the side, the Hai clan head remained deferential as ever, with his true master Jiao Cha seated right beside him. Without Jiao Cha, the Hai clan could never have risen to their current position. The Hai clan head hung on Jiao Cha’s every word without question — none of today’s competitors were actually disciples of the Hai clan at all, but men Jiao Cha himself had brought along.

Ziqing cast a casual glance at Mu Fusang and Jiao Cha, then let her gaze settle on the judges’ platform, where the two Elders of Qinse now held up bamboo lots high for everyone to see.

Four bamboo lots, containing two pairs of matching numbers — whoever drew a matching number would be paired together as a team!

Given the current situation among the four clans — the Gu clan, the Bai clan, the Yu clan, and the Hai clan — the drawing of lots alone could very well determine the entire outcome!

“Everyone, if there are no objections, the drawing will now begin. Clans drawing the same number will be paired as one group, with both pairs competing simultaneously — free-for-all, then paired combat, then one-on-one duels. Three rounds, best two out of three. The two victorious groups will then face off in the final round — regardless of injury or death, no substitutions permitted!”

Elder Qin spoke gravely. No substitutions permitted, regardless of injury or death — meaning that throughout the coming contest, no team could afford to lose a single fighter to injury or death.

Should anyone be wounded or killed, their team would find itself at a severe disadvantage in the final decisive round!

Such were the rules, and no one raised any objection. The two Elders of Qinse solemnly placed four identical bamboo lots into a massive golden basin at the center of the platform, and instantly, every eye in the arena was fixed upon it.

The heads of all four great clans grew visibly tense — especially the Gu clan head, who knew Jun Beiyue’s plans had changed but had no idea what the current situation truly was, his nerves stretched taut, not daring to let his guard down for even a moment.

What would the drawing of lots ultimately reveal?