The transport truck sped across the wilderness, breaking through the mist.

Chen Qing focused entirely on driving, making sharp, drifting turns to evade a barrage of arrows.

"Have we really not been exposed? Why are there so many of them? Are we the masters of order, or are they?" Zhou Yiming stood on the roof of the vehicle, gripping his sword with both hands, unleashing wild bursts of Sword Qi to fend off rockets raining down from above.

Meanwhile, Lu Qingqing had already set up her sniper rifle inside the truck. Each thunderous roar from the gun's barrel was followed by a devastating Arrow of Destruction tearing through defenses, blowing apart the pursuing helicopters overhead.

"The key issue is that these transport trucks are ours. This means several other teams have already been ambushed. Either they've been annihilated, or they've abandoned their vehicles and fled, putting all the pressure squarely on us."

She lay against the cold steel, peering through the scope at the sky, and pulled the trigger!

Boom!

The entire truck shook violently. The windows had long since shattered, and despite wearing alchemy earplugs, everyone still felt the terrifying power of the modified, large-caliber alchemy sniper rifle.

"First Unit lost contact. Fourth Unit lost contact. Sixth Unit lost contact! As for the Eighth Unit, they're holding on but have informed us they're unable to provide any support!"

The two Alchemists, clutching their tablets, shouted in frustration, "What's going on?!"

Gu Jianlin knew exactly what was going on. These were the methods of The Order of the Hidden—an insidious force that infiltrated major organizations like invisible ghosts, effortlessly steering events in their desired direction.

They could even tip the balance between order and chaos at will.

On the surface, the Ether Association seemed stronger when compared to the You Ying Group.

But the real enemy was The Order of the Hidden.

Of course, if The Order of the Hidden wanted someone dead, both the Ether Association and the You Ying Group would help make it happen.

Together, they'd push toward that outcome.

"Stop requesting reinforcements. Right now, we can trust no one," he said after a brief moment of contemplation. "Head straight for the Eastern Front line."

Out here in the isolated wilderness, encountering a traitor meant getting attacked from both front and rear.

But if they could regroup with the main force, their safety would greatly increase.

The two Ancient Martial practitioners from the Lu Family were about to argue but, recalling that without this young man's help their transport truck would have already been blown up, they swallowed their words.

Silently, they concentrated on receiving treatment.

Both were already badly wounded.

"We've been attacked seven times so far," Lin Wanqiu said, wiping the sweat off her face before casting a Holy Light Skill. "We might not even make it to the Eastern Front."

Lu Zijin said expressionlessly, "Follow his instructions."

Gu Jianlin looked up and saw that the illustrious Golden Realm was still looming overhead. This meant that under the current circumstances, he couldn't undergo Ancient God Transformation—its side effects would be devastating.

They didn't need to make it all the way to the Eastern Front.

If they could just escape the area under the Heavenly Person Realm's shroud and create enough chaos—

Then he could transform.

This was his domain, after all.

Boom!

In the distance, three dark figures leaped out of a falling helicopter, cutting through the air.

Suicide attackers!

It was the same tactic used to destroy their other transport truck!

"Die!"

Ji Xiaoyu's wrist-mounted white wolf fang pendant glowed with electric light. Her right hand rapidly morphed, transforming into a claw covered in Dragon Scales. A ferocious eye opened in the center of her palm, from which lightning roared!

Boom!

An intense pillar of thunderous light shot skyward, annihilating the three dark figures!

Duobao Child, indeed!

After unleashing the attack, the Little Princess slumped onto one knee, panting heavily, and tilted her head back to drain a bottle of Blue Blood.

The Spiritual Secret Medicines they used to replenish their spirituality came with limitations.

Overusing them risked losing control.

"We haven't reached the hardest part yet. The Twilight Candidates haven't shown up," Lu Zijin said coldly, crossing her arms. "Right now, they're just relying on sheer numbers to exhaust us. Once they're sure we're completely drained, that's when they'll show themselves."

Gu Jianlin was about to respond when a distant summon once again echoed in his mind.

New intel: The You Ying Group had pinpointed Minister Lu's location.

The Twilight Candidates were already on their way.

"The Twilight Candidates cultivated by the You Ying Group are the equivalent of our Omega Sequence. The Dusk Organization is the throne of the Dark World, and all of its members are unequivocally Evolvers, each at least Seventh-Order Holy Realm or higher," Lu Zijin stated calmly. "Our advantage against them lies in the Breathing Technique. At least for now, their Evolvers seemingly cannot master it. At present, only the Catastrophes and their students can wield both the Breathing Technique and Evolutionary States."

Gu Jianlin thought to himself, So that's how it is. Thunder is one of those who can master both the Breathing Technique and Evolutionary State.

"This is the legacy of the Red King. Every member of the Dusk Organization is their follower. These individuals have the power to topple the world. The only reason they've held back until now is that, in the past, someone nearly annihilated them," Lu Zijin said with a calm expression. "And that someone is well-known to you—Mr. Jing."

Gu Jianlin froze. "Senior Brother?"

That made sense. His Senior Brother always gave him an impression of boundless strength.

Lu Zijin nodded. "Indeed. In fact, the You Ying Group's current combat strength is lacking because, years ago, an entire batch of Twilight Candidates was almost wiped out by someone else."

Gu Jianlin asked, skeptical, "Could it be…?"

"Yes, your late Second Senior Brother," Lu Zijin replied nonchalantly. "Ji Chuan, codename Milo, was also a dazzling genius like you in his time. But he was perpetually plagued by inner demons, much like my younger brother. At that time, your Second Senior Brother was only Third Rank, but he single-handedly almost demolished the entire Twilight Candidate lineup before ultimately perishing at the hands of the Netherworld."

"He was obstinate to the end. He could have escaped," she murmured, a glimmer of remembrance in her eyes. "I miss him."

Gu Jianlin nodded slightly. "I see."

"If your Second Senior Brother had succeeded in eliminating the Twilight Candidates, that girl wouldn't have suffered as much as she did."

Lu Zijin suddenly said.

Gu Jianlin frowned. "What do you mean?"

Lu Zijin was surprised, glancing at him curiously. "You don't know?"

Gu Jianlin stared at her, expressionless.

"Ah," she gasped, covering her lips as her eyes widened in feigned horror. "Oops! Did I let that slip?"

"What's going on?" Gu Jianlin demanded, his tone cold.

Lu Zijin, utterly defenseless against the icy glare of the young boy, sighed and cradled her face. "Oh no, if that little girl finds out I told you, she'll never forgive me! Well, you do know the six directors of the You Ying Group hail from six prominent families of the Dark World, right?"

"These families were originally allies of the Ether Association but rebelled alongside the Red King."

She paused. "Back then, these six families controlled one-third of the world's extraordinary resources. In the mortal realm, they wielded immense influence, holding sway over entire nations' economies and political arteries. Even major world wars bore their fingerprints."

Gu Jianlin contemplated this. "If they rebelled, wouldn't that cause utter chaos?"

"Exactly," Lu Zijin said, pursing her lips. "The Red King intended to establish a great empire with them."

"What happened then?" Gu Jianlin asked.

"Those six families were nearly wiped out by a single individual," Lu Zijin said with a peculiar look in her eyes. "And you know who I'm talking about."

Gu Jianlin nearly choked—undoubtedly, it had to be his teacher.

No wonder everyone kept warning him not to provoke anyone from the Dark World.

It was a matter of a generational blood feud.

"The strongest among those families was the Jiang Family," Lu Zijin added. "The Red King himself came from that clan, taken as a child by the President and his wife to be groomed in the Catastrophe Plan. As for the King of Qing, he wasn't born into any noble line, just a wild Ascender. By the age of four, he was already rampaging through Buzhou Mountain."

She paused. "The Red King was roughly the same caliber."

Four years old.

At four, Gu Jianlin was probably busy peeing into ant nests. "What can a four-year-old even do?"

Lu Zijin replied seriously, "What do you think? Qing and Chi were never normal people. Legend has it your teacher was born awakened, raised on Spiritual Secret Medicines. By four, he was already a Fourth Rank Cloud Lord, advancing a rank a year. The common sense and rules of Ascenders didn't apply to him."

Gu Jianlin was stunned. He had heard that humanity's mental resilience was especially fragile before adulthood.

Advancing to higher ranks was supposed to be nearly impossible.

"The King of Qing was a relaxed individual, uninterested in power. The Red King, however, was far more domineering. After his rise, the Jiang Family began consuming other forces, growing stronger."

Lu Zijin continued, "Even though the Jiang Family was devastated once, they remain powerful today. They value pure bloodlines, attempting to recreate a new king genetically. Their strict rules stem from this belief in their noble lineage, untarnished and exceptional."

"Your girl happens to be a descendant of the Jiang Family," she hinted, giving Gu Jianlin a sidelong glance. "You can figure the rest out yourself."

Gu Jianlin fell silent.

So that's why Youzhu never talked about her lineage.

Her mother was a descendant of the Jiang Family.

All part of the Red King's legacy!

And I became a student of the King of Qing.

What kind of mess is this?

But that wasn't the point.

The point was—Youzhu had been bullied!

Just then, Chen Qing suddenly spoke up. "Urgent update. Wan Rentu, the Omega Sequence's chief instructor, has acquired the Ancient God's Blood and has led several injured Omegas to the Eastern Front. The Eastern Front forces are strong, with the Profound Yin Saint Li Hanting serving as deputy commander."

Lu Zijin spat. "Disgusting!"

Gu Jianlin asked, "The Judgement Court? Should we be worried?"

Before the words even fell from his lips, worse news came.

Chen Qing continued, "Eastern Front Headquarters has already dispatched reinforcements in our direction. Their orders are for us to converge with them and annihilate the You Ying Group's forces."

For Gu Jianlin, this was undoubtedly bad news.

He glanced at the red dots on the tablet, marking the coordinates on the map.

Multiple factions were converging on the wilderness ahead for a large-scale confrontation.

There was no chance for him to undergo Ancient God Transformation.

Suddenly, the Stone Bead on his wrist trembled violently!

This meant the enemy was near.

"Damn it!"

Lin Wanqiu stared out the window. Her lovely face turned pale. "Something's not right. How did it come to this..."