On the final night of the Summit, the "Tian Resonance Ceremony" was held. This was when the Tian Lingyue would perform a dance to harmonize the Qi of the continent.
As the music played—a sound that didn't come from instruments but from the vibration of the Dao itself—Lingyue moved through the air like a dream. Every time her foot touched the ground, a new Spirit Flower bloomed.
I was sitting in the back, eating a spirit-peach, when she suddenly stopped in front of me.
The music died down. The entire hall of thousands of people watched in silence.
Lingyue leaned in close to my ear. Her "Heaven-Born" presence was so strong it made my Origin Dao Body hum in a way it never had before. It wasn't a clash; it was a... melody.
"You're not from here," she whispered.
My heart nearly stopped. "What?"
"The 'Shark' isn't a fish from this ocean," she continued, her eyes reflecting the starlight from the ceiling. "But I like your ocean better. It's... quieter. Can I visit your ocean sometimes?"
I looked at this five-year-old girl who could see through my soul. She didn't look like a threat. She looked like someone who was just as lonely at the "Peak" as I was in my past life as a corporate shark.
"My ocean has rubber ducks," I whispered back.
She smiled—a real, genuine smile that made the neon-pink sky outside turn a soft, peaceful white. "Then I'll bring the tea."
She stepped back and finished her dance, but the "Fate" between us had already been locked.
As the Lu Empire carriage prepared to leave the next morning, my father looked at me with a complicated expression.
"Xian-er," he said. "The Tian Emperor just told me that his daughter has requested a permanent 'Spiritual Link' with you. Do you have any idea what that means?"
"It means I have a tea-buddy?" I asked hopefully.
"It means you're basically the 'Prince Consort' of the Supreme Empire," my sister Lingshu squealed, already calculating the dowry. "Xian-er, you're a genius! You've secured the Rank 1 Empire without even trying!"
I leaned my head against the carriage window as we drove away.
I had an enemy who wanted my head (Huo Tuo).
I had a partner who wanted my brain (Xuanye).
I had a rival who wanted my speed (Chenfeng).
And I had a "Spiritual Partner" who wanted my ducks (Lingyue).
"Even a dog won't become an Emperor," I sighed, as my 27% Space-Time Dao triggered a minor breakthrough to the 7th Stage of the Golden Core. "But apparently, the dog is going to have a very, very busy social calendar."