# Chapter 133: Xun Guihai
Staring at Duanmu Xingling's graceful retreating figure, Zhang Ruochen showed a hint of confusion and silently followed her.
A faint, delicate fragrance lingered in the air where Duanmu Xingling had passed.
Under Duanmu Xingling's lead, the two walked past a series of halls and arrived at the base of a cliff in the western courtyard. Below the cliff was a waterside pavilion with a three-story tower, elegantly situated.
Zhang Ruochen looked toward the distant three-story tower and saw a familiar, beautiful figure. A surprised expression crossed his face. "Senior Sister Huang? What is she doing here?"
He turned to Duanmu Xingling.
"Just wait for the show," Duanmu Xingling said with a charming smile.
Huang Yanchen stood atop the tower, holding a precious sword in her arms. Her sapphire-blue hair fluttered in the wind, giving her an exceptionally pure and beautiful appearance.
A handsome young man, around twenty years old, stood below the tower, seemingly conversing with Huang Yanchen.
"It's him."
Zhang Ruochen recognized the man below the tower. He had seen him during the day—a top expert among the senior students of the Eastern Courtyard, with formidable cultivation.
Duanmu Xingling placed her jade hand on Zhang Ruochen's shoulder, leaning closer, and whispered, "He's the number one expert of the Eastern Courtyard, Xun Guihai, ranked fourteenth on the Xuan Ranking. Among all four courtyards of the Martial Market Academy, only Senior Sister Luo can surpass him."
Zhang Ruochen rubbed his chin and chuckled. "Why are they meeting in secret here? Are he and Senior Sister Huang in a romantic relationship?"
"Impossible."
Duanmu Xingling shot Zhang Ruochen a glare. "Xun Guihai is a prince of the medium-sized Qian Kingdom. The Qian Kingdom has long sought a marriage alliance with the Qianshui Kingdom, hoping to use the Qianshui Kingdom's power to unify the nine commanderies east of the ridge."
"The Qianshui Kingdom is also interested in forming a marriage alliance with the Qian Kingdom to strengthen its control over those nine commanderies."
Zhang Ruochen understood and said thoughtfully, "So the Qian Kingdom has chosen Senior Sister Huang? And the Qianshui Kingdom has set its sights on Xun Guihai?"
"That seems to be the case."
Duanmu Xingling extended her tongue and licked her lips, staring at the man and woman in the distance with an expression of eager anticipation.
Zhang Ruochen said, "But today at the training ground, the two were at odds. It didn't look like they were about to form a marriage alliance."
Duanmu Xingling laughed. "That's because Xun Guihai only found out tonight that Sister Chen is the princess of the Qianshui Kingdom."
"How did he find out?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
"I told him," Duanmu Xingling said.
"Why would you do that?"
"If I hadn't told him, would we be watching a show now? Besides, if Xun Guihai really marries Senior Sister Huang, wouldn't that save you a lot of trouble?"
Zhang Ruochen was even more confused. "What trouble would it save me?"
"You know very well yourself!" Duanmu Xingling shot Zhang Ruochen another glare. Suddenly, she made a shushing gesture. "Don't talk. Let's listen to what they're saying."
In the distance, Xun Guihai stood below the tower, dressed in white robes. He was extraordinarily handsome, with a refined and elegant demeanor. In his hands, he held a golden box. "Princess Yanchen, I apologize for my rudeness earlier today. Please don't take it to heart. I've come specifically to offer my apologies and hope you can forgive my recklessness. This is a Dan Chen Pearl, priceless and invaluable. Consider it my gift of apology."
Huang Yanchen stood atop the tower, stepping on the eaves, and glanced downward. Her voice was cold and sharp. "I'm not very familiar with you. Why are you apologizing to me? If you truly want to apologize, then fight me."
Xun Guihai smiled. "There's no need for a fight. Tomorrow, I'll announce to everyone that I lost to you. From now on, you'll be ranked fourteenth on the Xuan Ranking."
"Are you insulting me?" Huang Yanchen showed no gratitude; instead, her expression grew even colder.
"I would never dare. Before Princess Yanchen, I willingly accept defeat." Xun Guihai spoke with impeccable courtesy.
Huang Yanchen said arrogantly, "Xun Guihai, I know why you've come, but I won't agree to a marriage alliance with you. If the Qian Kingdom truly wants to form an alliance with the Qianshui Kingdom through marriage, then go marry one of my younger or older sisters. I have thirty-six sisters in total. Pick any one you like."
"Whoosh!"
With that, Huang Yanchen spread her arms, riding the wind, and traced a beautiful silhouette as she flew to the top of a distant vermilion hall. Her figure flickered once more and disappeared into the night.
Xun Guihai stood below the tower, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips. He muttered to himself, "Huang Yanchen, since you're the princess of the Qianshui Kingdom, I will definitely marry you. Which other princess could compare to even a tenth of you?"
Clutching the golden box, Xun Guihai also departed.
"Sigh! I thought we'd see a good show. How disappointing." Duanmu Xingling sighed, a hint of regret in her voice.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Let's go. Let's head back. A woman like Senior Sister Huang—no one can tame her. If Xun Guihai really marries her, he'll definitely regret it. Whoever marries her is in for misfortune."
Duanmu Xingling said, "You're wrong. Xun Guihai will definitely go to great lengths to propose to the Qianshui King, and he has an eighty to ninety percent chance of succeeding."
"Why?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Duanmu Xingling said, "First, Xun Guihai is indeed a top-tier prodigy. Ranked fourteenth on the Xuan Ranking, he's far beyond the reach of countless geniuses."
"Second, although the Qian Kingdom is a medium-sized kingdom, it has a Half-Saint-level ancestor. Out of respect for that Half-Saint, the Qianshui King will likely agree to the marriage alliance between Xun Guihai and Sister Chen."
"The Qian Kingdom has a Half-Saint?" Zhang Ruochen was somewhat shocked.
Duanmu Xingling said, "Indeed, there is one. He's Xun Guihai's ancestor. However, that Half-Saint is not in the Qian Kingdom. He went to a distant human battlefield and hasn't returned in sixty years. He may have already fallen."
"Still, with the deterrence of that Half-Saint, the Qian Kingdom maintains a transcendent status among the thirty-six kingdoms of the Demon Ridge. Its comprehensive national power ranks first among the thirty-six."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Either way, it's none of our business. If anyone should worry, it's Senior Sister Huang herself. We need to get back. The quarterly assessment should be over by now."
The quarterly assessment continued until late at night before finally concluding.
In his second challenge, Mo Qinglong defeated Cai Chen to become the eighth-ranked student of the Western Courtyard.
Sikong Shu defeated Ju Hailan to become the sixth-ranked student of the Western Courtyard.
Ju Hailan dropped to seventh place.
Because Zhang Ruochen had previously defeated Sikong Shu, he automatically became the fifth-ranked student of the Western Courtyard.
Thus, the latest ranking of the Western Courtyard's top ten was: Luo Shuihan, Huang Yanchen, Duanmu Xingling, Tuo Muzi, Zhang Ruochen, Sikong Shu, Ju Hailan, Mo Qinglong, Cai Chen, and Zi Qian.
These ten would represent the Martial Market Academy in two months, entering the intermediate ruins for the exploration examination.
Additionally, as members of the Western Courtyard's top ten, each could receive two drops of Half-Saint True Liquid per quarter.
Today was precisely the day for distributing the Half-Saint True Liquid. Thus, Zhang Ruochen received another two drops.
The Half-Saint True Liquid Zhang Ruochen had on him now totaled twenty-seven drops.
With the quarterly assessment concluded, Zhang Ruochen returned to the Dragon Martial Hall and temporarily resided in the Xuanzi Number One room.
Two months remained until the intermediate ruins exploration examination. Time was extremely tight. Every bit of cultivation improvement would increase his survival rate in the intermediate ruins.
Although the intermediate ruins was a place of great opportunity, it was also extremely dangerous. Even Xuan Ranking martial artists could die inside.
After cultivating for two days inside the Time-Space Crystal, Zhang Ruochen found himself restless and unable to calm down. His mind kept drifting to his mother, far away in the Yunwu Commandery, worrying about her situation.
"No good. If I keep cultivating like this, I'll end up with a demonic deviation. I have to return to the Yunwu Commandery. I need to bring my mother to the Martial Market Academy." Zhang Ruochen opened his eyes and let out a long sigh.
He muttered to himself, "I wonder if the war between the Four Directions Commandery and the Yunwu Commandery has started yet?"
"Xiao Hei, come with me to the Yunwu Commandery." Zhang Ruochen's heart was filled with worry. He couldn't set aside his family ties and resolved to go back.
No matter how precious time was, it couldn't compare to the safety of his loved ones.
"Alright! Wait for me for an hour. I need to borrow more books from the library." Xiao Hei transformed into a black shadow and darted away.
"I need to see Fourth Brother first. Come find me at his residence."
Zhang Ruochen left the Dragon Martial Hall, bid farewell to Duanmu Xingling, and went straight to Zhang Shaochu's dormitory.
When Duanmu Xingling learned that Zhang Ruochen was returning to the Yunwu Commandery, a strange glint flickered in her beautiful eyes. However, she didn't say much, merely nodding gently and telling Zhang Ruochen to return early and not miss the intermediate ruins exploration examination in two months.
When Zhang Shaochu saw Zhang Ruochen, he immediately closed the door, a worried expression on his face. "Ninth Brother, did you kill Prince Huo Xing?"
Zhang Ruochen remained very calm. He sat down on a chair, poured a cup of plain water, and took a light sip. "What happened?"
Zhang Shaochu, who was like a mountain of flesh, sat across from Zhang Ruochen and said gravely, "Of course something huge happened. The Four Directions Commandery has declared war on the Yunwu Commandery."
"I received the latest news. In just ten days, the Four Directions Commandery captured twelve border cities of the Yunwu Commandery, slaughtered one hundred thousand Yunwu soldiers, and took over three million civilians as prisoners. Those captured soldiers and commoners have all become slaves of the enemy. Sigh! Just thinking about it makes me furious. I wish I were on the battlefield, fighting to the death with them."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes darkened. "Wasn't the war supposed to start at the beginning of next year?"
Zhang Shaochu said, "That was a trick by the Four Directions Commandery to mislead the generals of the Yunwu Commandery."
"In reality, they launched their attack on the Yunwu Commandery ten nights ago. Under the surprise assault of the Four Directions Commandery's army, three border cities of the Yunwu Commandery fell in a single night. When the news reached the royal capital, the entire court was shaken, and panic spread everywhere."
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