Chapter Forty-One: Reaching the Summit of Mastery

That day, a great wind swept through the Royal Court. Jiang Shang, the legendary martial arts demon king, returned to his peak and transcended it by unleashing the ninth level of the "Three Thousand Broadsword Slashes." He severed the arms of eight powerful King-tier experts, earning back his title as the Great Demon King.

The Royal Court compromised. The King of Humanity, watching the old man suspended in the air with his feet resting on the blades of his swords, lowered his head in resentment. He spoke in the tone and posture of a junior, shouting, "I, Xiao Wanli, King of Humanity, pay my respects to you, Grandmaster. I humbly request that you continue to stand guard over the four corners of the human race!"

Even a figure as powerful as the King of Humanity had to face reality. The reality was that Old Man Jiang had reached a realm beyond the King-tier. The Grandmaster realm was a level of power reserved for the generation of the previous kings. Until today, it had become a myth, and now, Old Man Jiang had become that myth.

High in the sky, Old Man Jiang’s eyes were sharp, yet they harbored endless confusion. He gazed down at the world and asked softly, "And my disciple?"

The King of Humanity immediately replied, "The Royal Court will no longer interfere with Lin Yin!"

Satisfied with the answer, Old Man Jiang stepped off his blades and descended slowly to the ground.

"I implore you, Elder Jiang, to continue protecting the human race!"

"Hmm."

Old Man Jiang did not refuse. He scanned the scene, and all within the Royal Court bowed their heads. From this day forward, the human race would usher in a resurgent golden age. With a Grandmaster-tier expert at the helm, it felt as though the glorious years of the past had returned.

...

As night fell, the eight King-tier academies and the various royal families were all trembling.

"The Grandmaster realm!?" The King of Great Han widened his eyes. "Didn't Old Man Jiang fall from the General-slaying tier? How did he become a Grandmaster instead?!"

The King of Great Yan gazed toward the Royal Court and sighed, "Well, we no longer need to worry about Lin Yin being forced to join the Royal Court. That child will have a Grandmaster standing before him; who in the world would dare to coerce him now?"

The King of Great Xia beamed with joy. "Haha! Doesn't that mean our human race will have a Grandmaster-tier expert guarding us from now on? Excellent! I've been wanting to expand our borders for a long time!"

Great Qi’s Qingtian Academy: "Congratulations to Elder Jiang for ascending to the Grandmaster realm!"

Great Wu’s Northern-Defying King, Xiao Chen: "Congratulations to Elder Jiang for breaking through the shackles!"

...

In the capital of Great Xia, at the Lin family's Martial King Mansion, Lin Zhengyang frowned while watching the video feed from the Royal Court.

"The Grandmaster realm!?" Yang Hui'er looked regretful. "If only we had begged Elder Jiang to take Tianjiao under his wing back then. A Grandmaster!"

Even Lin Zhengyang couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. If they had put aside their pride, could their own child, Tianjiao, have become a disciple of a Grandmaster? Although there was only one rank between the King-tier and the Grandmaster-tier, the difference was as vast as the clouds and the mud. A Grandmaster-tier expert possessed at least one complete Heaven-tier martial technique mastered to perfection, gaining not only a qualitative leap in strength but also an insight into the mysteries of the world, allowing them to wield powerful and enigmatic abilities. Seeing in the video how Elder Jiang could control his blades to fly—that was the power of those mysteries, something Lin Zhengyang desperately craved.

"Mom? Dad? What are you doing?" Lin Tianjiao stood at the doorway, rubbing sleep-heavy eyes.

Unexpectedly, Lin Zhengyang turned a cold face and retorted, "Why are you sleeping so early?"

"Huh?"

"I asked, why are you sleeping so early!" Lin Zhengyang’s voice grew heavy.

"Zhengyang, talk to the child nicely..."

"Talk nicely? Talk nicely about what?" Lin Zhengyang erupted in anger, pointing toward the direction of Tianhe City and glaring at Lin Tianjiao. "Do you realize that Jiang Shang, your brother's teacher, became a Grandmaster today!?"

A Grandmaster!? Lin Tianjiao was stunned.

"With a level-nine martial arts talent and a Grandmaster for a teacher, even if he is at a lower realm than you now, do you think you will still be better than him in a few years? You must understand that comfort leads to death, while hardship leads to growth!"

"Go to sleep? Who said you could sleep? Get to the training room! From today on, your daily training is doubled. You are not allowed to eat or leave the training room until you finish!"

Looking at his father, who seemed both familiar and like a stranger, Lin Tianjiao was at a loss, yet he felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

"Go train!"

"Yes..." Lin Tianjiao gritted his teeth and left, his heart filled with rage. His resentment was naturally directed at the old man who had suddenly become a Grandmaster. *Damn you, Lin Yin, why is your luck so good? It's all because of you! All of it!*

...

At this moment, after the initial shock, the eight royal families and the King-tier academies began to ponder a single question: should they continue to vie for Lin Yin against the Royal Court?

"Internal news says the Royal Court only backed down after Jiang became a Grandmaster."

"But where would we find a Grandmaster?"

"Besides, Elder Jiang severed the arms of eight King-tier experts from the Royal Court. The Court’s pent-up rage cannot be vented on him, so who will they vent it on?"

"Forget it. Trying to win over Lin Yin now would just make us the target, and the Royal Court’s fury would burn us instantly."

"Instead of opposing the Royal Court, we should negotiate with Elder Jiang."

"That's right. The Royal Court has bowed to him, so we just need to contact him directly. Why stick our necks out and provoke the Court? They’re probably looking for a place to vent their anger anyway."

The royal families of the eight nations quickly reached a consensus. Even the most stubborn King of Great Yan chose to back down. He had gambled that the Royal Court would only engage in minor scuffles, but now he dared not risk it. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that the Royal Court was seething from its encounter with Jiang, and anyone who stood out now would be courting their own destruction.

...

"Yin'er!"

Opening the door and seeing that familiar face, Lin Yin breathed a sigh of relief. But before he could ask, Elder Jiang strode in, grabbed Lin Yin, pulled him into the bedroom, and locked the door.

"Hey, old man, what are you doing?"

"Good disciple, why can't I see through you?" Elder Jiang checked the surroundings, confirmed they were safe, and turned to Lin Yin: "Who exactly are you?"

Sensing Elder Jiang's aura, Lin Yin understood. He smiled casually, "You broke through?"

Elder Jiang waved his hand, and a wave of blade energy erupted from his bare palm. "Grandmaster realm," he emphasized. "A Grandmaster-tier that stands above all King-tier experts. Just this breakthrough alone has added at least thirty years to my lifespan!"

"Congratulations, Teacher! You're truly amazing..."

"Don't change the subject!" Elder Jiang sighed, then touched Lin Yin’s head with a smile. "Forget it, I won't press you for answers. Just know that from this day forward, you can walk your path as you wish. Even if a thousand treacherous waters and jagged mountains stand against you, they will have to consider whether they can defeat the old man standing behind you."

Hearing this, Lin Yin laughed heartily. Destiny had completed a perfect loop in this moment. Having received the fruit of his kindness, he was now being nourished in return; surely, even Elder Jiang could not have imagined how miraculous fate could be.

The Royal Court would no longer trouble Lin Yin. Now, he only needed to consider which academy to join. However, the official websites of the major King-tier academies were filled with statements like: "White Deer Academy strictly adheres to the Royal Court's rules and regulations...", "Qingtian Academy firmly centers itself around the Royal Court and Jixia...", and "Demon-Sealing Academy strictly implements all directives from the Royal Court..."

Even the Great Yan Fengtian Academy declared, "Fengtian Academy firmly follows the steps of Jixia and the Royal Court..."

"These people," Lin Yin shook his head. "Truly calculating, swaying with the wind."

Elder Jiang smiled; the world had always been this way. He himself had only ascended by luck; otherwise, he too would have perished within the Royal Court.

"The various nations are all contacting me privately, though."

"Huh? Even if they accept me, won't the Royal Court know?"

"At the end of the day, they still don't dare to confront the Royal Court directly."

"My teacher walked into the Royal Court single-handedly; how could I join an academy with such a spineless spirit?" Lin Yin turned off his computer screen. "Forget it."

"I'll just go local."

"Tianhe Academy? Are you sure? It's only a second-tier school."

"Yeah, that one." Lin Yin shrugged. "You're the old man staying here, and I'm too lazy to run off. Besides, is there any martial arts teacher in the world better than you?"