The moment Xuan Yuan Qingya uttered the name Jiang Yifeng, Xuan Yuan Xing’s face instantly sank.
Unbelievable! Shang Yan, the so-called Dragon Lord, hadn’t even given her a proper explanation for what happened in the morning, and by the afternoon, he had already dragged Jiang Yifeng straight into the Xuan Yuan family’s castle!
What did he think the Star Sect was? What did he take the Xuan Yuan family for—his personal playground?
Xuan Yuan Xing lifted her hand ever so slightly, and in that instant, the entire castle stirred to life, like a slumbering beast awakening.
Shang Yan’s rank and experience told him all he needed to know—the frost in Xuan Yuan Xing’s gaze, the deadly possibilities hidden behind that single gesture. His heart skipped, and he quickly stepped forward, speaking in haste:
“Star Lord, please, don’t be rash! Miss Xuan Yuan, hold on—this time I brought Jiang Yifeng not to provoke, but to mediate. The Old Medical Saint once showed kindness to us both. Even if the Young Medical Saint has made mistakes… must things really be driven to such extremes?”
Xuan Yuan Xing’s face never lost its air of regal grace. Even in her fury, she still carried herself with that natural nobility and unshakable pride.
It wasn’t hard to see where Xuan Yuan Qingya had inherited her own arrogance — a good part of it came from Xing herself.
Her eyes swept over Shang Yan, then fell on Jiang Yifeng, who was hiding behind the alias “Qi Yun.” Her voice was steady, but the chill lacing each word could freeze blood.
“Dragon Lord… without my permission, you dared to bring Jiang Yifeng into the Xuan Yuan family castle? And not only that, you cloaked him with a disguise technique. This—this is your idea of mediation?”
Her lips curved into a cold smile. “Today, neither you nor Jiang Yifeng will be leaving. I want to see for myself—what trump cards your Dragon Sect has, to think you can provoke my Star Sect so brazenly!”
With her wrath unleashed, the aura of the woman who had once built the Star Sect single-handedly burst forth.
At a mere gesture from her, countless members of the Star Sect—scattered across foreign lands—had already begun to move. Like a rising tide, they surged toward the borders. Once all of them converged here, it would spell nothing less than a nightmare for the Dragon Sect.
Of course, Shang Yan knew this. The Dragon Sect did not fear the Star Sect outright, but if this really escalated into war, both sides would suffer grievous losses.
His face twitched, eyes narrowing, as he spoke in a deep, grave tone. “Star Lord… since I’ve said I would give you an explanation, then rest assured—I will. Or do you mean to say the title of Dragon Lord carries no weight, not even this much credibility?”
At those words, Xuan Yuan Xing fell silent for a moment.
After a brief pause, she inclined her head ever so slightly.
“Since the Dragon Lord insists… then bring out your explanation. Now.”
Anything more would have been pointless to say.
Shang Yan stepped forward, pointing at Jiang Yifeng as he laid out the truth from beginning to end.
“The Old Medical Saint once showed me great kindness. Because of that debt, I could not stand by and watch Jiang Yifeng fall into danger. Originally, my plan was simple—rescue him, then grant him a stroke of fortune to repay that debt in full.”
“But Jiang Yifeng refused. He swore to me he wanted no fortune, no opportunities—only that I bring him into the Xuan Yuan family’s castle. Before setting out, I made him swear to three rules. And so I assure you, Star Lord—neither I nor the Dragon Sect hold the slightest ill will toward your Xuan Yuan family.”
He paused there, his face turning grave as he continued.
“In the end, the root of this matter is clear. It was Jiang Yifeng’s fault—his scheme to target Miss Qingya. For that, the Dragon Sect is willing to offer up the secrets of the Sixteen Foreign Nations as our atonement. Would that satisfy you, Star Lord?”
“The secrets of the Sixteen Nations?”
For the first time, a flicker of surprise passed through Xuan Yuan Xing’s eyes. Her expression, usually so composed, wavered for just an instant.
The Dragon Sect and the Star Sect had always been two distinct powers. The former ruled within Huaxia’s borders, while the latter held sway beyond them.
In a sense, both were born of the same origin—organizations built by Huaxia’s own people. Though never especially close, they were not complete strangers either. In certain matters, they had even exchanged knowledge and resources.
This delicate balance between the Dragon Sect and the Star Sect had lasted for a long time.
Yet there were certain matters on which the two had never been able to see eye to eye.
Chief among them—intelligence.
For organizations of their scale, intelligence was everything. With precise intelligence, a squad could become a spearhead, striking with deadly accuracy to achieve its strategic goals. Without it, even tens of thousands of armed men would be little more than blunt force—hardly worth mentioning in the face of true great powers.
And it was precisely on this matter of intelligence that the Dragon Sect and the Star Sect clashed the most—especially when it came to secrets from foreign nations.
The Dragon Sect, rooted in Huaxia, had countless opportunities to gather such intelligence. The Star Sect, on the other hand, operated abroad, but that very position left them restrained.
It wasn’t that the Star Sect collected less intelligence. Rather, at the level of grand strategy, their people were too close to the situation. They were “insiders,” and as such, they often lacked the perspective needed to grasp the bigger picture.
This was why Xuan Yuan Xing had ultimately chosen to settle within Huaxia rather than abroad.
Only by pulling oneself out of the board could one clearly see the entire game.
To the Dragon Sect, secrets of foreign nations were of little direct value. At best, they could be used as tools of leverage or coercion. But as for achieving real results with them? With the Dragon Sect’s limited reach outside Huaxia, that was simply impossible.
In the Dragon Sect’s hands, those secrets were little more than scraps of paper.
But if they were handed over to the Star Sect—backed by its overwhelming influence abroad—who could say how much value they might generate in the end?
Over the years, Xuan Yuan Xing had tried countless methods: intelligence exchanges, private negotiations, even theft. Yet no matter what she attempted, the Dragon Sect had never parted with those files.
Now, the Star Sect’s development had reached a bottleneck. To break through, the greatest leverage might very well be these secrets of foreign nations.
Something she once thought untouchable… was now laid right before her eyes. How could she not be tempted?
And yet, this matter concerned her daughter.
Jiang Yifeng had used such vile methods against Xuan Yuan Qingya. If she accepted this offer with nothing more than a stack of confidential files, what would that make her daughter? An insult brushed aside with paper? Content orıginally comes from 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝘯𝘦𝘵
Xuan Yuan Xing fell silent, her lips parting as she prepared to refuse—But before she could speak, a cool, faintly proud voice rose beside her.
“The Dragon Lord’s generosity… the Star Sect will accept it.”
It was Xuan Yuan Qingya. Her eyes held a sharp gleam, her words calm yet commanding.
“But I trust the Dragon Lord won’t try to fob us off with the petty secrets of some minor nations. Otherwise…” She let the sentence linger in the air, sharp as a blade. “This matter will not end here.”
Shang Yan froze, glancing at Xuan Yuan Xing—only to see a trace of surprise on her face as well.
A moment later, something seemed to click in his mind, and a faint smile appeared in his eyes.
“Haha, no problem, no problem. The Dragon Sect’s intelligence will not disappoint Miss Xuan Yuan.”
Since her daughter had spoken, Xuan Yuan Xing didn’t press the matter any further. If Qingya wasn’t going to pursue it, then so be it. Jiang Yifeng could count himself lucky this time.
As everyone was still lost in thought, Xuan Yuan Qingya’s calm but proud voice rang out again.
“As for Jiang Yifeng’s offense against me, the Star Sect can overlook it. But today’s matter… I doubt it’s something the Dragon Lord either expected or truly wants to give an explanation for.”
“Dragon Lord, on behalf of my mother, let me ask—does your Dragon Sect really intend to get involved in this?”
Shang Yan frowned, clearly puzzled as he looked at Qingya.
“Niece Qingya, what do you mean? As Jiang Yifeng said earlier, his only purpose was to heal Master Xuan Yuan’s illness and use that chance to reconcile with your family. Could there really be something more behind this?”
One thing was certain—Shang Yan was not a fool. He was an old fox through and through.