Qingzhou, True Dragon Academy. The famed Wushuang Marquis was surrounded by streaks of thunder dragons. He held on briefly, but in the end, couldn't withstand the pressure and was blasted into the ground—leaving behind a large crater. It took a long moment before he managed to climb out. Seeing Fang Chen standing with a long spear in hand, the marquis cupped his hands respectfully. "Brother Fang , your spear technique is divine. I admit defeat." Fang Chen returned the gesture with a smile. "Thank you for letting me win." True Dragon Academy encouraged sparring between students. The stronger one's cultivation, the higher up they could live on Wangtian Peak—and the better the resources they received. When Fang Luo, Fang Chen, and Fang Qiufeng had first entered the academy, they started at the very bottom. Fresh chapters posted on n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net After ten years of effort, they barely climbed halfway up the mountain. Now, another twenty years later, they were finally near the summit. Though not quite at the very top, they were already among the first-tier elites. The Wushuang Marquis had once ranked first on Lizhou's Heaven's Chosen List. He had even challenged Fang Ting back then—though he was instantly defeated, his strength was undeniable. The three Fang brothers had chased his shadow for years, and only now had they caught up. Looking at Fang Chen, Wushuang Marquis felt a swirl of mixed emotions. Back then, Fang Chen had looked up to him. He had once dared challenge Fang Ting. Now, that same youth had grown strong enough to stand as his equal—alongside Fang Luo and Fang Qiufeng, both just as terrifying. Anyone who didn't know the context would think he had stagnated—but in truth, he'd trained relentlessly. It was just that the Fang trio's growth was too monstrous. "The Fang Clan is clearly blessed by the heavens." A hundred miles away— Fang Luo had just finished defeating his own opponent: the Holy Son of Ziyuan Sacred Ground in Qingzhou. Qingzhou ranked roughly 100th among over a thousand provinces. The Ziyuan Holy Son held the top spot in his province's Heaven's Chosen List. This meant that aside from the top twenty provinces, there were very few peers of his generation left who could defeat Fang Luo. With both Fang Chen and Fang Luo defeating their opponents, even those watching from afar were stunned. "Damn… these two are insane. They're both a whole realm lower than their opponents, and they still won." "Yeah, usually they're the ones challenging across realms—today they were the ones challenged… and they still won." "Don't forget Fang Qiufeng. The three of them may have different strengths, but to us, they're all freaks." "Right. I still remember when they entered—complete nobodies. Now they've hit the top tier. That growth is terrifying." "If you ask me, the scariest thing isn't them—it's the Fang Clan. They produced three of these monsters in one go." "And rumor has it their clan leader is even scarier." "I heard the Myriad Treasures Pavilion will soon hold a grand auction. Maybe we'll get a chance to see Fang Ting in person." The battles ended, and onlookers gradually dispersed. Wangtian Peak fell silent once again. Challenges like these were routine. The Fang brothers had climbed their way up this mountain fight by fight. Now gathered near the mountaintop, they no longer had to look up—from here on, they could only look downward. "There are still a few better spots than ours," Fang Qiufeng sighed. "But with a few more years, we could reach the true summit." "No need," Fang Chen replied calmly. "We won't be coming back anyway." Fang Luo added with a composed look: "Pity that the Emperor-level inheritances of the academy can't be taken back to the clan." Only first-tier elites at the summit of Wangtian Peak were allowed to access such techniques. This was a major reason why many top prodigies came to True Dragon Academy. The Fang trio had already chosen suitable inheritances—but they were for personal use only. That was the academy's rule. "No big deal," Fang Chen said. "We'll just find Emperor-level inheritances elsewhere and bring those home." The Fang Clan already had a few Emperor-grade inheritances—gifts from Princess Jiang Hongye of the Great Zhou Dynasty—but they were limited in number. And different cultivators needed different techniques based on their bodies, temperaments, and spiritual alignments. The more inheritances, the better. Fang Luo exhaled slowly. "Let's go. It's time to move on." They had come to the academy for three things: Emperor-level inheritances, Battles with top prodigies, And new opportunities. Now that all three had been achieved, there was no reason to linger. They flew from the academy, gave it a final glance, and then vanished. All three understood—this was just one stop on their cultivation journey. There was no time for nostalgia—only forward momentum. After returning, they visited their families and greeted Fang Ting, handing over some valuable resources they had gathered but no longer needed. Especially Fang Chen—famous for his treasure-sniffing ability—had amassed many rare items. As cultivators progressed, some items became obsolete. Rather than letting them sit unused, they were better off given to clan members who could benefit more. By coincidence, this was also the day of a Fang clan meeting, and the three brothers—along with Fang Chu—attended. The purpose was to hear updates on the clan's expansion and development. The Sixth Elder reported: "Currently, Drunken Immortal Pavilion and Myriad Treasures Pavilion have branches throughout Cangzhou. Even in the Northern and Western Regions, we've established presences—only Sacred City and the Southern Region remain." "We've also opened branches in over twenty provinces surrounding Cangzhou." Everyone knew why those last two regions remained untouched: Sacred City belonged to the Three Great Sacred Grounds, The Southern Region was controlled by the Five Great Demon Sects. Both factions were hostile toward the Fang family, making expansion difficult. While the others already knew this, the three Fang brothers were hearing it for the first time and nodded coolly. "We'll settle scores with the Three Sacred Grounds and the Five Demon Sects sooner or later." The six forces that once suppressed the Fang clan were: The Three Sacred Grounds, The Jiuli Imperial Dynasty, And the Broken Mountain City. Broken Mountain City had been taken over by Tu Jiuming, who was friendly to the Fang clan. The Jiuli Dynasty had backed off and was actively trying to mend ties. The Duan Clan had not yet extended goodwill but no longer dared provoke the Fang family. Only the Three Sacred Grounds continued to oppose them. And in the future, they would also settle scores with the Five Demon Sects, who had tried to profit from Fang Clan's potential destruction during the palace standoff. If the Fang clan could eliminate the Five Sects and absorb the Southern Region into the Great Qian Dynasty, combined with their control of the Eight Ancient Kingdoms, they could form the strongest imperial power in all of Cangzhou. "How is Xiao Kong doing over in the Eight Ancient Kingdoms?" The Third Elder replied: "The entire Eight Kingdoms are under Fang clan control. The only thing left is a pretext to unify them officially—like discovering a Heaven-tier spiritual vein to found a new imperial capital." Unfortunately, all Heaven-tier spiritual veins in Cangzhou were already seized by powerful factions. You couldn't buy one—so they had to wait. Next, the Fifth Elder—responsible for aptitude evaluation and managing the Hidden Dragon Guards—spoke: "Currently, we have 605 Hidden Dragon Guards. Among them, 390 possess Five-Element Spiritual Bodies, and seven have Five-Element Divine Physiques." Despite continuous efforts to purchase five-elemental spiritual materials, the upgraded versions remained rare. Thus, the Hidden Dragon Guards only had seven Divine Physiques. Adding Fang Luo, Fang Qiufeng, and Fang Chu, the total was ten. Once Myriad Treasures Pavilion opened more branches, the efficiency of collecting resources would skyrocket—allowing for rapid expansion in elite physiques. Their short-term goal was: "All Hidden Dragon Guards possess Five-Element Spiritual Bodies." Their long-term goal was: "All possess Five-Element Divine Physiques." And their ultimate goal? "The entire Fang Clan—every single member—possessing Five-Element Divine Physiques."