Chapter 211: The Thousand-Star Forge — The Xianzhou Zhuming

After helping the two curious visitors from Penacony...

And watching them leave...

A faint smile appeared on Evan’s face.

As expected.

The moment Aha had set His sights on him...

Everything had already been decided.

There was no denying it anymore.

His personality had become increasingly mischievous, perfectly in line with the Path of Elation.

Otherwise...

Why would the Aeon of Elation take such a long-term interest in him?

Excellent.

Elation Cultivation Plan: Progress +1.

"Look."

Dan Heng gestured ahead.

"Yanqing’s already here."

Evan noticed the helpless look Dan Heng was giving him and shrugged.

Honestly...

Dan Heng really was too serious.

No wonder he was both a descendant of Permanence and a Nameless Trailblazer.

The man simply had no sense of fun.

Unlike March and Stelle.

Those two were born comedians.

And poor Dan Heng...

At such a young age, he’d already become the team’s overworked caretaker.

He really should learn from Evan.

"You’re right!"

March immediately brightened.

"Let’s go meet him!"

At the Loom in Starskiff Haven...

A young swordsman had already been waiting patiently.

In fact...

Yanqing had arrived long before Evan finished giving sightseeing recommendations to the Penacony tourists.

The problem was...

Ever since Evan had mentioned "testing his progress," Yanqing had been feeling increasingly nervous.

Truthfully...

He hadn’t slacked off for even a single day during the past few months.

His mastery of Taixuan Swordsmanship had improved tremendously.

Even so...

Whenever he imagined facing Evan...

He couldn’t help feeling completely outmatched.

"Mr. Evan."

"And everyone else..."

"It’s been a while."

Standing with one hand on his hip...

Yanqing greeted them with a cheerful smile.

As expected of a young sword prodigy.

His confidence and spirit were obvious at a glance.

Jing Yuan had trained him well.

Blessed with extraordinary talent...

Yanqing learned almost everything astonishingly quickly.

If anyone deserved the phrase Sword Heart Illuminated, it was him.

"It doesn’t feel like we’ve been gone for very long..."

March studied him curiously.

"But..."

"Yanqing..."

"Did you..."

She frowned.

Something seemed different.

His appearance hadn’t changed much.

Yet...

Something definitely wasn’t the same.

Seeing everyone staring at him...

Yanqing blinked in confusion.

"What is it, Miss March?"

"They always say..."

"Kids suddenly shoot up before anyone notices."

She tilted her head.

"...Did you get taller?"

"We’ve only been gone a few months..."

Stelle nodded seriously.

"You definitely got taller."

Even Dan Heng looked him over thoughtfully.

Although they hadn’t spent long at Penacony or Herta Space Station...

Several months had indeed passed.

The Astral Express crossed unimaginable distances in an instant.

But...

Time flowed differently everywhere.

Even Pom-Pom often complained...

That although every stop was officially scheduled for only a week...

None of the Nameless had ever managed to leave on time.

Before Yanqing could react...

Evan suddenly walked over.

Then...

He pinched Yanqing’s cheek.

"H-Hey!"

"Mr. Evan!"

"What are you doing?!"

Yanqing immediately jumped backward.

A Cloud Knight couldn’t just let people pinch his face.

If word got out...

It would be humiliating.

Still...

He scratched his head and quietly observed the four familiar faces.

Evan remained exactly the same.

Impossible to read.

Somehow holding a cup of Bubble Tea, happily chewing through the tapioca pearls.

March stared at him with wide-eyed curiosity.

Stelle...

The moment she saw Evan pinch Yanqing...

Looked dangerously eager to try it herself.

Yanqing instinctively took another two steps backward.

As for Dan Heng...

Although he occasionally glanced over...

Most of his attention remained on the surrounding streets.

That’s Mr. Dan Heng for you.

Always alert.

Always observant.

Yanqing couldn’t help wondering...

Mr. Evan must’ve experienced so much while he was away.

I really want to hear about it.

Among all the stories he’d heard...

Only the Galaxy Rangers seemed comparable to the adventures of the Nameless.

He remembered...

General Jing Yuan had once dreamed of becoming a Galaxy Ranger himself.

Now...

Yanqing felt much the same.

But...

Looking at Evan...

Whose strength remained completely unfathomable...

He couldn’t help asking himself.

How much stronger have I actually become...?

Thunk!

"Ow!"

Yanqing clutched his forehead.

"Mr. Evan!"

"Why’d you hit me?!"

While he had been lost in thought...

Evan had calmly flicked him square on the forehead.

It hurt.

A lot.

There was absolutely no pretending otherwise.

Evan folded his arms.

"So."

"While I was gone..."

"How far have you progressed with Taixuan Swordsmanship?"

"Can you beat Jing Yuan’s Divine Foresight yet?"

"...Huh?"

Yanqing stared at him in disbelief.

"Mr. Evan..."

"Listen to yourself!"

"Beat the General?"

"That’s impossible!"

He shook his head frantically.

If Evan found out...

That he could now survive several exchanges against Jing Yuan without the General getting serious...

He’d definitely receive another round of brutal training.

"Oh?"

"So you’re saying..."

"You haven’t improved at all."

Evan nodded thoughtfully.

"Looks like coming back was the right decision."

"I should train you properly again."

Before Yanqing could react...

Thunk!

Another forehead flick landed.

Once again...

Without the slightest mercy.

Yanqing covered his forehead pitifully.

Why...

Why did Teacher always greet him like this?

March couldn’t help laughing.

"I’ve gotta say..."

"This is the liveliest I’ve ever seen the Luofu."

Despite Evan bullying Yanqing the moment they reunited...

It was still heartwarming to see old friends together again.

Of course...

It would’ve been even better if Evan hadn’t casually released a trace of his Emanator’s pressure while "testing" him.

Yanqing’s knees had nearly buckled under the weight.

Meanwhile...

March continued chatting happily.

Dan Heng nodded.

"I was originally worried."

"The Arbor crisis only ended recently."

"I wondered whether holding the Wardance Ceremony so soon might be premature."

"But judging by Starskiff Haven..."

"The General chose the right timing."

Yanqing smiled.

"That’s right."

"There are residents from every Delve."

"And guests from distant worlds like yourselves."

"With the Wardance Ceremony approaching..."

"The number of visitors has increased dramatically."

"The Cloud Knights have been far busier than usual."

"The General believes..."

"If the Luofu is to fully recover after the disaster..."

"Then the Wardance Ceremony is exactly what’s needed."

"To celebrate martial virtue."

"Restore public confidence."

"Raise morale."

"And strengthen friendships and trade with other civilizations."

He paused.

"Oh, right."

"The Alliance is taking this tournament very seriously."

"Both the Xianzhou Zhuming and the Xianzhou Yaoqing have already sent official delegations."

Before Yanqing even finished speaking...

March quietly pinched Evan’s sleeve.

"...Hey."

She whispered nervously.

"Don’t tell me..."

"You were right again?"

"Something really is going to happen?"

Evan simply smiled.

He didn’t answer.

Instead...

He looked at March thoughtfully.

Something’s going to happen?

March...

You’re the protagonist this time.

She would become Yanqing’s and Yunli’s fellow disciple.

The three of them would fight Hoolay together...

Holding him off until Feixiao arrived.

Among everyone participating in this Wardance Ceremony...

Besides the true mastermind behind the scenes...

March was undoubtedly the main character.

Even Stelle was mostly along for the ride.

"...Hey."

"Say something."

"Don’t scare me."

Evan chuckled.

"Relax."

"This time..."

"You’re definitely the star of the show."

"...What?!"

March immediately grabbed his sleeve.

"No!"

"I don’t want to be!"

The Xianzhou Zhuming was known throughout the galaxy as the Thousand-Star Forge.

More than half of all Cloud Knight weaponry originated there.

The Zhuming had always been famous for its master craftsmen.

Its General...

Huaiyan...

Was regarded as one of the greatest smiths in the Alliance.

Any Xianzhou native fortunate enough to own a weapon personally forged by him...

Would probably smile in their sleep for the rest of their lives.

"So..."

March looked around.

"Where are we going next?"

Yanqing suddenly slapped his forehead.

Only now did he realize...

They’d spent so much time chatting...

That he’d completely forgotten why he’d come.

"Look at me."

"I’ve been talking so much..."

"The General asked me to escort everyone to the Seat of Divine Foresight."

"He hasn’t seen you all in quite a while."

"He’d like to hear how things have been aboard the Astral Express."

"Tch."

March grinned.

"The moment the little grown-up starts talking about something he likes..."

"He immediately turns back into a kid."

"Hehe..."

Just as she laughed...

Evan’s expression suddenly changed.

A familiar presence entered his perception.

ROOOAR!!

A savage howl echoed through the streets behind Yanqing.

"What happened?!"

"Cloud Knights!"

"Form up immediately!"

"Protect the civilians!"

The nearby Cloud Knights instantly mobilized, rushing toward the source of the disturbance.

Yanqing’s face became serious.

"...Borisin."

"This aura..."

"It’s exactly the same as the ones aboard that warship."

Evan smiled.

"See?"

"I told you."

"We were just talking about security..."

"And trouble already found us."

Yanqing immediately drew his sword.

"I’m sorry, Mr. Evan."

"Everyone."

"I have to investigate."

Without another word...

He dashed toward the disturbance.

"Let’s go have a look."

Evan lightly stepped forward.

His figure rose effortlessly above the crowd and landed atop the nearby rooftops.

March and Stelle immediately drew their weapons.

Dan Heng’s grip tightened around Cloud-Piercer.

Ready to strike at any moment.

A Cloud Knight’s shout rang out below.

"Protect the civilians!"

"I’ll handle it!"

"With three feet of water... one can still sever the clouds!"

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