Prelude

If Zhang Lie were to go and abduct Jude directly, leaving aside whether it would succeed, even if it did, Pallid could rightfully snatch Jude back and even use Zhang Lie as a sacrificial offering to establish his own prestige. No wonder Zhang Lie had tried every possible means to approach Pallid through Pratt; without subduing the Camarilla, how could he act with a settled mind?

Enduring her pain, Stella kept her long sword hovering incessantly over Royce's neck, grabbed him with her other hand, and dragged him onto her horse.

Not far away, a tall figure fighting head-on with a lizard looked somewhat familiar to the chubby wizard. Sandro adjusted his spectacles, and a familiar name made the corners of his mouth twitch into a suppressed grin.

Their massive bodies crouched atop the surrounding mountain cliffs, perfectly enclosing the entire valley, with each giant dragon glaring down at the three of them with an expression of fury.

Elder Jiang was Ye Jinmu's maternal grandfather, and Ye Jinmu held deep and affectionate reverence for him, making it impossible for her to tell such a lie.

Of course, Xiao Molan did not yet know that Ye Jinmu was Mu Ye, otherwise, he would have felt an even greater surge of envy, jealousy, and hatred.

"Leader Huang, do you care more about the sentiments of a few so-called old brothers who are cut from the same cloth as He Guangting, or about the thoughts of the thousands of people across this entire island? With He Guangting acting in such a manner, how can he face the Sea Snake Gang brothers who have fought and bled for us, and these dependents?" Jiang Zhuying said in a ringing voice.

Zhou Jian's knowledge of the Amazon rainforest was close to zero; having a jungle hunter to lead the way would greatly increase his chances of success. Most importantly, it would save time. Saving lives was like putting out a fire; his trip to the Amazon was not only for the one-million-dollar reward, but also to rescue Wenren Huiyin's aunt, as Wenren Huiyin was a very important friend to him.

Chen Qingzhi thought to himself, and his aversion to Zhao Fan grew even stronger. If a person could attain such wealth and luxury, how could he not be a corrupt official? Zhao Fan remained completely oblivious to Chen Qingzhi's reaction.

As for the transport vessels carrying supplies in the port, they were also swiftly surrounded and controlled by nearby warships bearing the banners of the Divine Might Army.

It was utterly chaotic, and when she woke from the dream, she had forgotten it all. She only remembered the feelings within the dream: bewilderment, fear, and unease.

Sure enough, at the very last second, Han Qiqi sat up abruptly. "What are you doing?" she asked, her hair a messy tangle, wearing a look of sheer terror with not a trace of sleepiness left on her face.

Having spent her previous life walking daily on the razor's edge of death, Lin Qing operated almost instinctively on the principle of finding a path to survival only through mortal peril.

For a long time, old Fu pondered to himself, his heart skipping a beat as he suddenly thought of a very grim possibility.

The content of the swordsmanship examination was not difficult, requiring students to perform the sword forms learned over the past year. Although Cheng Xue had never attended a swordsmanship class, it did not prevent her from passing.

Liang Mingyue packed her belongings with reddened eyes, and looking at the clothes of both of them in the wardrobe, she could not help hugging her arms and weeping bitterly.

"Does your company recruit just any kind of child? People like this are allowed to be trainees alongside my child? You people bear direct responsibility for my child turning out like this!" Seye's mother cast a cold glance at the group of children around, startling them all into a state of nervous treed.

Ye Qingfeng had also noticed the actions of the two behind him, but regarding all this, he only calmly asked a single question.

He knew that since the other party had even shared the domestic scandals of the Chen family with him, what followed next would undoubtedly be anything but simple.

Upon returning home, preparations began for the upcoming birthday banquet of Chen Youwei of the Chen family. Since Ning Bei had already given his instructions, naturally no one dared to be negligent.

Dan Xiong nodded and turned to look at the ten thousand warriors behind him. These were the elites he had brought all the way from the Qiao family; if they were all to perish here, he would have no way to answer to the Grand Lord when he returned.

The elite forces of Konoha had all set out in pursuit of Sett, and following his berserk state, Naruto was enveloped in a chakra cloak. Although it was tailed beast chakra, Naruto's mental state was not impaired by even a fraction. On the contrary, accompanied by a roar, he forcefully broke free from Hanzo's control and sped off into the distance.

Soldiers clad in iron armor and holding sabers and axes guarded the bed-crossbows, specially selecting soldiers of robust build. Dozens of such stalwart soldiers were assigned to pull each crossbow, beginning to exert all their strength to turn the winch, the veins on their foreheads bulging one by one as they let out muffled roars.

He truly had no idea when that fellow had become so famous as to get mixed up with merchants from the Southern Territory.

Moreover, her figure was truly voluptuous, perhaps related to her age, with skin that was taut yet exuded a fair, tender luminescence.

Just as everyone was filled with puzzlement and doubt, that wind-riding bird indeed returned, and this time it descended straight down.

At that moment, the senior sister's waterfall-like dark hair also cascaded down, dangling over his arm. Looking down, he could see the senior sister's arched neck, those two tender, supporting smooth neck tendons, healthy and vibrant. Though he could not see her exact features, he could well imagine how magnificent they must be.

After months of arduous training, these ordinary soldiers had long since forged bodies of bronze and iron, maintaining strict military discipline. Their equipment was also forged from brand-new dark iron—armor, lances, and foot shields. The foot shield was one point three meters long and half a meter wide, shaped like a swallowtail to facilitate bracing.

On one hand, Senju Tobirama knew this was a method used by Sarutobi Hiruzen to enhance Konoha's cohesion. On the other hand, Tobirama was well aware of just how terrifyingly powerful his older brother was compared to ordinary, so-called "Kage-level" ninjas.

"Let's go. I miss her too. Having never experienced such a grand spectacle, I wonder if she has grown up amidst this baptism of blood. Let's go." As he spoke, the group felt the scenery before their eyes shift, and they had already arrived at the peak of the Demon God Palace.

Even if death awaited, he would fight to the death alongside the great black bull and would never cower in cowardly survival. As he thought this, he felt that although the great black bull was one of the Five Spiritual Beasts, it still lacked the thick-hide resilience of the wolf spider; a head-on collision would definitely result in injury.