Starting as a Grandmaster, all of my cultivation techniques are at max level.

"Bang!!!"

A metallic clanging sound rang out.

Feng Lin, the Grand Elder who took the initiative, felt as if his palm strike had hit a mine!

A force of recoil suddenly surged back up his arm!

"Click, click-clack—"

A series of clear cracking sounds rang out as the bones of his entire right arm shattered inch by inch in that instant!

"Too weak." Xia Jin finally spoke.

He raised his right hand, his index finger casually pointing forward. It was merely aimed at the High Priest's brow from a distance.

"puff."

A slight thud followed.

A flicker of fear flashed in Grand Elder Feng Lin's eyes, but the light in his eyes quickly vanished, his body swayed, and then he fell straight backward.

Xia Jin's gaze fell on the injured Eunuch Wei, and she couldn't help but frown: "Injured?"

Only then did Eunuch Wei come to his senses. He quickly knelt on one knee, his voice still tinged with excitement: "Don't worry, Master, I only have some superficial injuries, it's nothing serious! I'm incompetent, my plan has been thwarted, and I still need Your Majesty's personal intervention to save me, it's truly..."

"This matter has nothing to do with you, there's no need to blame yourself!" Xia Jin turned around and looked at the capital of Fenglin. "I have already dealt with the five thousand red-clad iron cavalry of the Yuehua Dynasty. It's time to clean up Fenglin as well."

"What?" Upon hearing Xia Jin's words, Eunuch Wei first nodded subconsciously, then suddenly realized what she meant, his face blank with shock. "My lord! You...you mean...the five thousand red-clad iron cavalry of the Moonflower Dynasty...have...have all been dealt with?!"

Those were five thousand red-clad iron cavalry!

The Moonflower Dynasty's formidable spearhead in the Eastern Region!

Seeing Wei Gonggong's dumbfounded expression, Xia Jin lightly tapped his forehead in annoyance: "What? Do you think I would lie to you?"

"I wouldn't dare! This servant would never dare!" Eunuch Wei covered his forehead, his eyes darting around, still unable to believe it.

"Alright, enough with the nonsense. Now that I'm here, come with me to the palace. I also want to see for myself what kind of person this Princess Fenglin is, that she could be noticed by a power like the Xuan Yin Valley in the Central Region and even bring in reinforcements from the Yuehua Dynasty."

"Yes, sir! Then this servant will lead the way for you!" Eunuch Wei perked up and immediately bowed in response.

Xia Jin shook her head and grabbed Eunuch Wei's shoulder.

Wei Gonggong felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and the next moment, the scenery below rushed past.

"I...I'm flying?"

Phoenix descends upon the Imperial Palace, on the Moon-Viewing Terrace in the back garden.

Emperor Fenglin, Jiang Qianjue, sat in the main seat, a rare relaxed smile on his face.

Beside him, a woman dressed in a moon-white palace gown with a cool and aloof demeanor caught his eye. This woman was none other than Princess Fenglin—Jiang Rou.

Below her sat several beautiful concubines, each looking at Jiang Rou with a fawning smile on their faces.

"The border crisis was resolved so quickly thanks to Rou'er!" Jiang Qianjue took a sip of wine, looked at his daughter beside him, and his eyes were full of pride.

"If you hadn't promptly summoned the Red-Clad Iron Cavalry of the Moonlit Dynasty, my Fenglin would likely have been in grave danger of collapse. Truly, my precious daughter!"

Upon hearing Jiang Qianjue's words, the concubines below, though filled with jealousy, dared not show it at this moment, and echoed, "Yes, having the Eldest Princess is truly a blessing for Fenglin!"

"His Majesty is blessed with great fortune, which is why he has such a remarkable daughter as the Eldest Princess to assist him."

Jiang Rou listened quietly, her cool expression unchanged, but a hint of wisdom, incongruous with her appearance, flashed deep in her eyes.

She looked at Jiang Qianjue, but shook her head: "Father, things are not that simple."

"Oh?" Jiang Qianjue put down his wine cup, his brows furrowing slightly. "Rou'er, what makes you say that? The Dayuan border army has already been defeated, even forced to retreat to Tianwan City by the Red-Clad Iron Cavalry. Could there be another unexpected development?"

Jiang Rou nodded: "It's hard to say what the changes will be, but there's definitely something wrong with it! Father, you can think about it. Over the years, although Dayuan and Fenglin have had occasional frictions, they have generally maintained peace. Why would they suddenly mobilize 50,000 border troops to invade Fenglin's border? That's one reason."

She paused, then continued, "Secondly, I also received news that around the time the Dayuan border army was mobilized, the Qingyun Sect, the strongest sect in the country, offended some unknown powerful figure and was wiped out overnight... its entire sect was exterminated."

"What? The Qingyun Sect has been wiped out?" Jiang Qianjue's eyes suddenly narrowed, and the concubines were even more shocked upon hearing this.

The Qingyun Sect held a superior position and wielded enormous influence in Dayuan, so its sudden demise was simply unimaginable.

Jiang Qianjue's face darkened: "Rou'er, do you mean... these two things are related? And... someone else is pulling the strings behind the scenes?"

After a moment of silence, Jiang Rou gave Jiang Qianjue a reassuring look: "I guess that's right. And the mastermind's goal is probably to make me, Fenglin, fight with Dayuan like a clam and a snipe, causing both to be injured, and then... reap the benefits."

"What a bastard!?" Jiang Qianjue clenched his hands involuntarily, and at the same time felt a chill run down his back.

"Rou'er, based on your deduction, who is the mastermind behind this?"

Jiang Rou pointed northeast: "Your subject suspects... perhaps, it is the Great Xia."

"Great Xia?" Jiang Qianjue was taken aback at first, then shook his head. "Impossible! Rou'er, you must be mistaken. In terms of national strength, Great Xia is slightly better than my Fenglin and Dayuan, but only by a limited margin. To annex any country would come at a huge cost. With its strength severely damaged, how can it deal with other neighboring countries that are eyeing it covetously? This is a path to death. The Xia Emperor would not be so unwise."

"Your Majesty is right, Your Highness. Since the new emperor ascended the throne, Great Xia has not expanded its territory in recent years, and the internal situation of Great Xia is not yet stable. How could it have the spare energy to plot against my Fenglin?" A concubine nodded as she looked at Jiang Qianjue.

"Father, gentlemen, perhaps you... underestimate that Emperor Xia. Or rather, you underestimate the Prince Jin, who is known as the 'Son of the Underworld,' behind him."

"This man is extremely ambitious, and his martial arts talent is... unfathomable. Back then, to help Emperor Xia ascend the throne, he dared to intercept and kill that grandmaster of swordsmanship single-handedly! What is there that he wouldn't do?"

Before she could finish speaking, a voice rang out from above, clearly reaching the ears of everyone present: "Continue speaking. I would also like to hear Princess Fenglin's evaluation of me."

The moment the sound rang out, all the Fenglin guards around were on high alert. Jiang Qianjue even stood up abruptly, his expression changed drastically, and his eyes were fixed on the figure above.

The concubines standing nearby were also terrified, their faces turning pale with fright, and they cried out in alarm.

Only Jiang Rou, after a slight tremor, quickly regained her composure.

She looked up and saw two figures slowly descending from above under the moonlight.

The leader, dressed in a black dragon robe, calmly looked down into the distance with his deep eyes.

Xia Jin, the "Emperor of the Underworld" of the Great Xia Dynasty!

Jiang Rou took a deep breath, suppressing the surprise in her heart.

"Your Highness Prince Jin, your presence at my Fenglin Palace is truly a great honor. Jiang Rou... is deeply sorry for not greeting you properly; I hope you will not take offense!"