Gu Jianlin glanced at the troublemaker dangling from the streetlamp, and an inexplicable rage began to rise within him.

The aftereffects of his berserk Ghost Transformation state were immense. If he hadn't used the Realm of Freedom to nullify all Extraordinary Abilities in the domain at the last moment, he wouldn't have been able to control himself, and someone would've likely died.

Even after the battle ended, he had silently recited the Great Compassionate Mantra several times to regain his composure.

Amitabha, well done, well done indeed.

This troublemaking brat was truly too hyperactive—and ridiculously strong as well. Naturally, as expected of a Fourth Rank Mad King.

It should be noted that Gu Jianlin himself wasn't just a simple Third-tier Fate Master; he possessed dual-core spiritual attributes, and all his Extraordinary Abilities were essentially doubled in power, further enhanced by the might of the Qilin.

His basic attributes were doubled; his skills were upgraded as well.

He had even grasped the true essence of the Breathing Technique.

Not to mention Lin Wanqiu had preemptively cast Light Protection on him, granting him immunity from physical toxins.

Neither side used Mythical Weapons, either.

No wonder no one had managed to deal with this brat before. The bigwigs, constrained by their status, couldn't go too hard on a child. Among the younger generation, few were a match for her, and even if they were, they feared her background.

Gu Jianlin's carefully crafted image nearly got wrecked by her antics.

But fortunately, he eked out a hard-fought win in the end.

Under the Realm of Freedom, what was supposed to be a battle between two Ascenders boiled down to a seventeen-year-old boy facing off against a twelve-year-old troublemaker. With no use of Extraordinary Abilities, the advantage was clear.

He simply lifted a folding chair and smacked her rear. End of story.

Plus, after activating the Realm of Freedom, even that awful stench got purified along with everything else.

Praise be to the Breathing Technique.

Praise be to the King of Qing.

The parrot stood inside its cage, chirped sarcastically, "Naughty monkey!"

Up on the streetlamp, Ji Xiaoyu was still struggling, but she was on the verge of being paralyzed by the Divine Sacrificial Fire. Without assistance, this Fourth Rank Mad King had lost all her former glory.

At that moment, someone in the crowd stepped forward.

"Oh no, my Little Princess, what happened to you?"

Cheng Youyu was the first to step up, pulling out his phone and frantically recording the scene, tears welling up as he laughed himself silly: "Who did you mess with this time? Just look at yourself, how did you end up like this? Oh dear, this is karma at its finest! Wait, no—this is downright hilarious, haha..."

The onlookers silently watched the chubby man, thinking he was exceedingly bold.

Especially Zhang Cheng and Nie Xiangsi, who were his teammates.

Although the Little Princess was tied up on the streetlamp, her mind was completely clear.

Her gaze practically spewed flames. Obviously, she had made a note of him, the Fatty.

Clearly, in this legendary battle, the Chair-wielding Maniac had soundly defeated the Absolute Poison King.

The invincible legend had finally been put to rest.

But the real question was, how did he win?

On the same level, surpassing tiers to claim victory might be possible.

But for an Extraordinary Level individual to defeat someone at the Superdimensional Level? That was incredibly rare.

At least in the Peak City District, only Thunder had ever managed this—and even then, he relied on a Mythical Weapon.

"I didn't detect any Mythical Weapon activity."

A Great Wizard on the Witch Inheritance Path quietly said, "But I did sense traces of a Spiritual Body."

A Spiritual Body!

So that's the answer. The mystery was solved.

Among all the Inheritance Paths, only the Divine Path had the ability to control Spiritual Bodies.

Moreover, this power was reserved for Fate Masters.

In other words, Gu Jianlin had already broken through to the Third Rank!

Lin Wanqiu's gaze toward the young man grew increasingly intrigued. It seemed his performance in the West Port Forbidden Zone wasn't his limit. No wonder he could face a Fourth Order Tyrant's assassination attempt so calmly.

Even Wan Rentu's Slaughter Domain was ineffective against him, which made perfect sense now.

Meanwhile, on a distant stand, Wan Rentu silently lowered his binoculars, turned, and bellowed, "Did you see that, Old Chen? Did you see that? And you still dare tell me he's not all that amazing? Does your conscience not hurt when you say such things? How could you even say something so absurd? Are you people deliberately trying to screw me over?"

"Even the Little Princess was subdued by him. If that's not amazing, then what is?"

He roared, "This kid is a student of the King of Qing, isn't he? He's definitely one of their clan, here to settle old scores with me. They're just trying to see me make a fool of myself, aren't they? No, I'm going back to train harder—ten times harder!"

Chen Bojun, possessing Eagle Eye, didn't need binoculars to see the distant scene.

He couldn't understand either. How on earth had it been done?

"Third Rank, Fate Master, this early?"

He mumbled, "Could it be that the King of Qing gave him some special treatment? Where did he even get the Spiritual Secret Medicine?"

Even if he'd made it to the Third Rank, the speed at which he'd leveled up was off the charts.

"Stop pretending to be clueless!"

Wan Rentu lamented, "You're all teaming up to mess with me, aren't you!"

Suddenly, Chen Bojun raised a finger and said, "Shh!"

Wan Rentu bellowed, "Shh, my foot! Stop trying to divert the topic—"

But in the next second, he abruptly shut up.

Because Chen Bojun silently pointed in a specific direction.

Under the dim streetlamp, a figure stood in the shadow of the tree. The breeze stirred her golden robe.

She exuded grace and authority.

The Ether Association's upper echelons were very familiar with this silhouette.

If you'd seen her once, you wouldn't forget.

The President!

Chen Bojun and Wan Rentu exchanged glances, stunned that even the President herself had been drawn in by this spectacle!

·

·

Far away, Taihua's lips curled faintly at the corners.

"Heh, you little thing, finally getting your comeuppance."

After a pause, she added, "Huai Yin may be awful at everything he does, but his judgment is surprisingly on point."

An old servant stood respectfully by her side and said, "Madam, Mr. Huai's student is indeed gifted, but his rapid advancement and combat power are highly irregular. Theoretically, based on Mr. Huai's teaching methods, he wouldn't provide resources to students so early on."

Taihua gave him a sidelong glance. "Hmm?"

"What I mean is, there's probably something unusual about Gu Jianlin," the old servant said deferentially. "Especially since he's Gu Ci'an's son. Caution is warranted."

Taihua narrowed her eyes and said indifferently, "I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

The old servant's expression changed, and he quickly lowered his head.

"In this world, how can anyone live without secrets?"

Taihua said flatly, "People without secrets don't live long. Mediocre individuals prefer those they can see through at a glance. But as for me, the more secrets he has, the better."

The old servant hastily replied, "Understood, madam."

"Gu Ci'an's son is intriguing. Let's have Xiaoyu learn from him for a while. If she continues unchecked without proper guidance, she'll be ruined. With luck, she might even learn the Breathing Technique."

Taihua suddenly recalled something, snorted coldly, and said, "Lao Jiu, go fetch my Golden Phoenix Feather for him."

The old servant's face changed slightly. "Understood."

·

·

By the ruins, on the streetlamp, the Little Princess looked like a roast piglet, scorched to the point of delirium by the Divine Sacrificial Fire. Realizing she couldn't break free, she began wailing uncontrollably.

The peanut gallery watching nearby could already foresee tomorrow's headline on the Deep Space Forum.

Gu Jianlin remained seated on the sofa, unmoved.

"Should we let the Little Princess down?" Lin Wanqiu asked quietly. "After all, she is the President's granddaughter. Her Guardian might show up soon."

Gu Jianlin said indifferently, "Leave her up there for two more days."

Two more days!

The rows of underlings standing nearby displayed nothing but abject terror.

At that moment, the crowd parted, and a dignified, stern middle-aged man walked over with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Little Princess!"

Seeing the figure hanging from the streetlamp and her pitiful state, his expression changed dramatically. "Who did this?"

Amid the dead silence, Gu Jianlin, still seated on the sofa, raised his head. "I did."

"You?"

The middle-aged man's face contorted with rage. "Do you even know who she is? How dare you treat her like this? Get her down right now, or I'll report this to the President, and you'll regret it!"

"I refuse."

Gu Jianlin set down his soda and asked impassively, "Are you her father? As the saying goes, a child's misdeeds are the father's fault. If you want me to let her down, you'll have to take responsibility for her mistakes and apologize on her behalf."

The middle-aged man's face froze. Clearly, he knew what kind of person his Little Princess was. Stammering, he said, "I—I'm not her father. I'm her Protector. The Little Princess has no parents, so your argument doesn't apply here!"

Who would dare be the Little Princess's parents? That would be suicidal.

Gu Jianlin blinked in surprise.

At this moment, the parrot squawked, "Then it's their grandparents' fault!"

The crowd's expressions shifted. Wow, he was really dropping hints with that one.

Everyone knew the Little Princess's grandfather had been the previous President, who passed away years ago, and wasn't relevant to this matter.

Which left only one direct blood relative within two generations...

·

·

Far away, Taihua, who was about to leave, halted for just a moment upon hearing this.

[PS: This book is first published on the Qidian Reading App. See you tomorrow at 8:30 PM.]