The atmosphere in Cloud Mist City had shifted. While the commoners were still bathed in the scent of the golden lotus petals from the Heavenly Bell's ringing, a cold, predatory chill settled over the City Lord's district. Lu Chen stood at the gates of the Blue Lotus Estate, his Architectural God-Interface pulsing with a violent purple dot.
The dot was Su Lan. She was being held in the deepest subterranean dungeon of the City Lord's Mansion.
"Master, we are ready!" Han Feng roared. His wooden sword was no longer a mere toy; wrapped in his awakened Sword Intent, it hummed with the sharpness of a divine blade.
Yue Qi and the newly recovered Mo Xiao stood behind Lu Chen, their faces set in grim determination. Lu Chen flicked his wrist, and the Heavenly Lightning King cub leaped from his shoulder. In mid-air, the beast roared, its body expanding until it was the size of a small house, lightning crackling between its silver fangs.
"Mount up," Lu Chen commanded, his voice as cold as a tombstone. "Today, the world learns that when an Architect is angered, he does not just tear down buildings. He erases lineages."
The Siege of the Sovereign
The City Lord's Mansion was a fortress of Rank-2 defensive formations, designed to withstand a siege from a small army. To Lu Chen's Sovereign Eye, however, it was a house of cards.
"Master Teacher Lu Chen! Halt!" The City Lord's son—the same bully who had been scorched at the auction—stood atop the high stone battlements. "You dare bring a beast to my father's gates? We have five hundred elite guards and three Stage-5 experts! Turn back, or you will be executed for treason!"
Lu Chen didn't even look up. He pulled out the Origin Spirit Pen and drew a massive, glowing 'X' in the air.
[Architectural God-Interface: Analyzing Defensive Array...]
[Detection: Triple-Layered Earth Shield. Flaw Found: Energy Node #4 is unstable. Overload initiated.]
"Deconstruct," Lu Chen whispered.
BOOM!
The 'invincible' shield shattered like a glass bowl hit by a hammer. The shockwave was so violent that half the guards on the battlements were blown backward, their armor dented by the sheer pressure.
"Han Feng, Mo Xiao—take the front gate. Yue Qi, neutralize their internal formations. I am going for Su Lan," Lu Chen ordered.
The three students moved like a localized hurricane. Han Feng's sword was a blur, cutting through the spears of the guards before they could even scream. Mo Xiao, using his newly thawed Qi, froze the ground beneath the dushmano (enemies), turning the courtyard into a chaotic slide of ice and blood.
The Shadow in the Deep
Lu Chen reached the basement of the mansion. The air here was putrid, thick with Abyssal Energy. At the end of a long corridor stood a black door sealed with an ancient blood-lock—a lock that could only be opened by a specific, royal bloodline. Su Lan's bloodline.
A withered man in black robes, bearing the mark of the Shadow Sect, stood before the door. Su Lan lay unconscious on a stone altar, a small vial of her golden blood already extracted.
"Teacher Lu... you are late," the man hissed, his voice sounding like dry leaves on a grave. "We have the catalyst. The power of the 'Xun'er' clan will finally be ours to command."
Lu Chen's eyes turned a blinding, metallic gold. He infused his Holy Origin Qi into the Spirit Pen, and it elongated, transforming into a Supreme Spear of pure light.
"You chose to touch the one person who was forbidden," Lu Chen said. His Sovereign Architect's Pressure flared so intensely that the stone walls began to crack and crumble.
The Shadow Sect expert lunged, his body turning into a flickering silhouette. But Lu Chen didn't even blink. He caught the expert's wrist with a single finger, stopping a Stage-5 strike dead in its tracks.
[Target: Shadow Servant]
[Flaw: Heart Core is exposed for 0.01 seconds during the 'Shadow Step'.]
Lu Chen thrust the spear once. It wasn't a complex move, but it was perfect. The expert didn't even have time to scream before he disintegrated into white ash. Lu Chen gathered Su Lan into his arms. He noticed a new mark glowing on her neck—a tiny, crimson 'Flame Dragon'.
[System Notification: Hostess Su Lan's Bloodline partially awakened.]
[Hidden Data: She is the lost princess of the 'Ancient God Domain'.]
The Erasure
When Lu Chen emerged from the mansion, the courtyard was silent. The City Lord lay on his knees, his crown discarded in the mud.
"Lu Chen! Please! Mercy!" the City Lord wailed. "I was forced by the Shadow Sect! Take my stones, my gold, my title—just spare my life!"
Lu Chen looked at the man, then at the corrupted mansion. "An Architect does not repair a building infested with rot. He levels the ground and starts anew."
Lu Chen raised his pen to the sky and drew a perfect, closing circle.
[Ability Used: Structural Erasure!]
The ground groaned. Within seconds, the City Lord's Mansion—its towers, its walls, and the corruption within—imploded into a pile of fine dust. Only Lu Chen and his students stood untouched in the center of the ruins.
The New Disciples and the Omen
As the dust settled, two figures stepped out from the stunned crowd of onlookers. One was a burly youth carrying a massive, rusted hammer; the other was a blind girl clutching a zither to her chest.
They both knelt before Lu Chen.
"We heard that you can turn trash into Sovereigns," the boy with the hammer said, his voice deep. "We wish to join the All Path."
[System Notification: Disciple #4 (The Blacksmith Genius) and Disciple #5 (The Sound Master) found!]
Lu Chen looked at them, then at Su Lan's sleeping face. "The Blue Lotus Estate is becoming too small. It is time we look toward the Rank-3 Territories."
But as he spoke, a shadow fell over the city. A massive, golden flying ship, bearing the crest of the Ancient God Domain, descended from the clouds. Su Lan's family had finally arrived to take their princess back.