THE NEXT MORNING, everyone was awakened by the sound of continuous trumpets and the bang of a gong; and the capital square was soon filled up with common people and nobles alike, all intrigued and confused by the sudden commotion.
Lily, who had been forcibly awakened from her precious sleep, was among the crowd. Her expression was ghastly, and she radiated such a fierce and dangerous aura that no one dared to come near her. Her presence naturally cleared a space around her.
"This better be something important," she muttered under her breath, her tone laced with irritation. "Or else, I swear, I'll set the palace on fire!" Being woken up in the middle of a sweet, much-needed slumber was an unforgivable offense! Especially when she hadn't been getting enough sleep lately!
"How about you return to the estate and go back to sleep, Young Miss?" Ji Lei suggested, her tone a mixture of concern and exhaustion. Like her mistress, she too was suffering from a lack of rest. Her twin sister, Ji Mei, had wisely stayed back in the estate to continue sleeping.
"What's the point?" Lily clicked her tongue in annoyance. She unfurled her silver metal fan and began fanning herself, trying to cool the mounting heat. "Didn't you notice that the noise stopped the moment I arrived?"
"It did?" Ji Lei furrowed her brows and tried to recall what had happened. She realized Lily might be right. For three hours straight, the imperial guards had been relentlessly blowing their trumpets and banging their gongs. But they came to an immediate halt the moment Lily showed up. "Why do you think that is?"
"Who knows," Lily sneered. "These people must think I have all the time in the world just like they do. Hah! My time is precious. I don't have the luxury of wasting it like this!"
Not long after, the imperial family arrived in full, extravagant display. The emperor and Elder Leo led the procession, followed closely by Empress Yen, the Crown Prince, Olivia, and the rest of the imperial children.
Lily rolled her eyes at the sight. Disturbing everyone's peace with such a grandiose appearance—typical of the imperial family!
"When, exactly, did Miss Olivia become a member of the Imperial Family?" Ji Lei asked in confusion.
"She didn't," Lily replied while still fanning herself. "She's only there because she's now Elder Leo's disciple. Didn't the old man make that announcement during the banquet?"
Ah, look at that sweet little act Olivia was putting on. The Young Miss Carna kept giving gentle, blushing smiles to the crowd, casting shy glances at the Crown Prince. He, in turn, gazed back at her with adoration.
Ugh.
Lily hoped they would hurry up and get married.
Seriously.
They should get on with their wedding night and spend enough time with each other to get sick of the romance. Then, the Crown Prince would begin wandering, looking for other women to 'experience.' That's what it meant to marry into the imperial family. You might earn your most desired title, but you'd have to constantly defend it. There would be no happiness—just endless scheming, bitter rivalries, and emotional ruin.
Elder Leo and the rest of the Medicine Sect wouldn't last long, anyway. They'd leave or be driven out eventually. So poor little Olivia wouldn't be able to enjoy the imperial family's 'generous' treatment for very long. That was, of course, assuming Elder Leo was foolish enough to offend her grandfather.
Now that Lily was no longer dying, she wondered if her grandfather would move to exterminate the sect, or if he had something more sinister in store. She was curious to see how it would unfold.
"Thank you, everyone, for coming!" Elder Leo began, his voice loud and filled with purpose.
Lily puffed out her cheeks and exhaled through her nose. They were so obnoxiously loud earlier—who wouldn't come out to see what was going on?
"We called you here today," Elder Leo continued, addressing the assembled crowd, "because we have a very important announcement to make—"
It better be important. Lily wasn't joking when she said she'd burn down the palace.
"—Our Medicine Sect has high hopes for the Empire of the Immortal Dragon. Therefore, we have chosen to establish ourselves here and officially make this empire a part of our dominion."
The crowd erupted into commotion. Gasps of surprise, murmurs of awe and doubt, and even delighted exclamations rippled through the masses.
Lily rolled her eyes internally. Didn't the emperor already name Elder Leo his Imperial Preceptor? That decree alone was enough evidence that the Medicine Sect had practically swallowed the empire.
She could understand the commoners' shock; they were naive and uninformed about the deeper political games. All they wanted was to see their empire flourish. Most likely, they had only just learned of Elder Leo's true identity.
But the nobles? To see them feigning ignorance made Lily sick. She had to hide her grimace behind her metallic fan to conceal her expression.
Elder Leo cleared his throat before continuing, "As you all know, the gate to the Earth Realm is about to open, granting talented mortals the chance to enter such a magnificent and legendary land!"
The crowd instantly quieted, every pair of eyes focused on him. Lily also perked up, suddenly alert. Now this—this was worth her attention. Forget about setting the palace on fire. This was the kind of announcement she'd been waiting for.
"We gathered you here not only to share this news," Elder Leo continued, "but to inform everyone that you are all welcome to enter the upcoming competition!"
The crowd broke out into cheers.
"We will not limit participation to the noble families. As long as you are a citizen of this empire and you possess potential, you are eligible to join!"
This sparked another wave of excited voices. Some nobles frowned, while others remained silent and watchful. Whether they liked it or not, they had no power to protest. The Medicine Sect had made its decision—this wasn't the emperor's doing. They had no right to argue.
Lily raised an eyebrow, her gaze narrowing at the ever-smiling Elder Leo.
'Oh?'
Now that was clever.
This old man wasn't playing around. He was clearly serious about extracting the best of the best. Just because someone was born into a high-ranking family didn't mean they had talent—or the ability to wield magic.
Who knew? Maybe the true genius the Medicine Sect was seeking was just an ordinary person from the crowd. It was the same in the Earth Realm. You'd never know who held real potential unless you broadened your perspective.
Unfortunately for him…
Lily snapped her metallic fan closed and slapped it gently against her palm.
She already had the best.
That poor, forgotten prince would be hers, no matter what. She needed to move quickly and put her plans into motion. The competition was going to accelerate everything.
Too bad for the imperial family—she still had every intention of burning their beloved palace to the ground.
"Ji Lei," she called.
Ji Lei turned to her immediately. "Yes, Young Miss?"
"Let's head back to the estate," Lily said as she slid the metallic fan back into her sleeve. "I'm going to need all the rest I can get. The future's going to be exhausting."
Without waiting, she turned on her heels and walked away, Ji Lei close behind.
---
"The competition will be held here?" Duke Pei asked in surprise, his hand frozen mid-motion over the chessboard. He hesitated only a moment longer before setting his piece in place.
"The Spirit Sword Sect agreed to the location change," the purple-haired woman replied with a half-smile. Her amber eyes, however, were devoid of amusement. "They don't mind. Just because the competition is held here doesn't guarantee the Immortal Dragon Empire will win." She made her move calmly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
Duke Pei snorted softly. He stroked his beard while contemplating his next play. "Are the sects trying to recruit talents," he asked, "or are they just competing to see which empire produces the strongest people?"
"The latter," the woman replied coolly, sipping her tea. "The era of actively recruiting from the secular world has passed. Now that they've started adopting empires into their dominion, they treat these events like a contest—one where pride is on the line."
"And you?" Duke Pei glanced up at her. "Is your sect participating to recruit… or just to compete?"
Her expression didn't change. "The latter, of course," she said. "Like I told you before—hobbies never change. The three major sects will never see eye to eye. That has always been the case, and it always will be."
Duke Pei gave a thoughtful nod. "How about taking Lily into your sect?"
"I thought Lily already refused to enter the Earth Realm?" she asked, brows arching slightly.
"Who knows," Duke Pei sighed. "That girl's far too moody. She even broke off her engagement with the Crown Prince."
The woman laughed derisively. "Good! That stupid, ugly Crown Prince of yours was never good enough for her anyway." She gave Duke Pei a sharp look. "I told you over and over again in the past to break that engagement, but you always hesitated. Lily was too lazy to end it herself back then, but at least she's learned her lesson now. It's about time she listened to me."
Duke Pei sneezed loudly. "I admit it now," he muttered, rubbing his nose. "Engaging Lily to someone like him was a mistake. I regret it deeply."
"Lily is already at the right age to choose her own path," the woman said, moving her queen piece across the board. "If she wants to enter the Earth Realm on her own, without help from her elders, then let her. She wants to explore, so support her. She needs to stand on her own now. It's time."
Duke Pei took a long, deep breath. He had raised Lily since the day she was born. The idea of letting her go was painfully difficult. But the woman was right.
He had to let her go.
Otherwise… what would she do once he was gone?