Fu Qingyang has cleared the S-rank raid? Fu Qingyang's initial embarrassment evaporates instantly, replaced by excitement and delight. With the Primordial Celestial Sovereign unreachable, the small team of "The Return of the Departed" had lost its core—leaving Xia Hou Aotian merely accompanying Zhai Cai in indulging in fine wines and delicacies, lamenting, "The world is coming to an end, and as the protagonist, I can only humbly enjoy the comforts of life." Now, with Fu Qingyang back in the real world, the team finally has its anchor. As Fu Qingyang returns to the study, his eyes naturally reflect the scene of Xia Hou Aotian in the reception area, and the single-charge knight dressed in a smooth black mink coat. He neither feels surprised nor astonished—calmly glancing over, his composed demeanor remains unshaken, as if even a mountain were to collapse before him, yet his face remains serene. Then he spots his cherished dry white wine and cigars, opens the packaging, removes the cork, and watches them being savored by the two. Xia Hou Ao Tian's eyes flickered, and he quickly poured a cup of wine for the young lord. "To celebrate Fu Elder's successful completion of the S-rank dungeon and his promotion to Ninth-Level Master!" Fu Qingyang took the cup and glanced at the liquid inside. At that moment, Shan Chuan, the knight, approached, holding a cigarette in one hand and a wine cup in the other, smiling. "I'm sorry," he said, "I've been enjoying the house's treasures without seeking your permission. Won't you mind?" Fu Qingyang replied calmly, "It's quite all right." Indeed, it was all right—yet, in truth, Zhai Cai and Xia Hou Ao Tian felt every hair on their bodies stand on end, as if pierced by countless swords. Each pore seemed to be struck by a blade, and with just a subtle shift of the calm knight's gaze, they would be struck by a thousand swords. What calmness? They were absolutely annoyed! Xia Hou Ao Tian thought to himself. At the same time, he was deeply surprised—this newly promoted Ninth-Level Master, Fu Qingyang, exerted a sense of pressure and urgency that even surpassed that of his uncle. To be sure, my uncle is a peak-level master. Though the scholar profession is relatively temperate—unlike the scouts, who are so prominent and assertive—it clearly indicates that Fu Qingyang is no ordinary ninth-level master. He has had a fortunate encounter within an S-tier instance. Seeing both of them rigid with bodies, as if facing a formidable adversary, motionless and hesitant, Fu Qingyang finally took his time to savor a glass of dry white wine, gently pressing his lips together before commenting, "Whenever you're drinking dry white wine, it's best to serve it chilled in a bucket of ice. The wine isn't expensive, but it's quite rare—so if you'd like to enjoy it, please let me know in advance next time!" He set down the glass, settled himself into the high-back chair with regal composure, and regarded Xia Hou Ao Tian with unwavering authority. "The solo-instance challenge turned out more difficult than I anticipated. I've spent considerable time inside, and I haven't managed to complete the instance within the agreed timeframe. What's the current status of Yuan Shǐ now?" From their subtle expressions, he read clear signs of pessimism, gravity, and a growing sense of The competition for the essence of the Sun has already concluded, and you're so cold that even if you eat the leftovers, they're lukewarm—Summer Hou Ao Tian muttered this under his breath, though he certainly wouldn't dare say it aloud. He sighed, "Master Yuan Shishen has now become the sovereign of the Sun. Oh, I'm a failure—my efforts haven't kept pace with his. I suppose I'm still not quite at my own level yet." Immediately, Zhai Cai and Xiahou Aotian informed Fu Qingyang of the events in which the Star Sovereign convened a semi-divine council, compelling the Beauty Goddess and the Void semi-divine to surrender the compass fragments and initiating the battle for the Sun's primordial essence. As for why the Primordial Sovereign was able to enter the realm and become the Sovereign of the Sun, they had no knowledge of these details. Xiahou Aotian sighed, "According to the official announcements from the Five Elements Alliance headquarters and the Taiyuan Sect, the Star Sovereign has betrayed the Order faction and has become our greatest adversary. It's said that he and the Primordial Sovereign will engage in a final battle—we don't know if we'll be able to assist them." Fu Qingyang fully absorbed the information within just two minutes, calmed his inner turmoil, and demonstrated exceptional mental resilience. He calmly asked, "Where is the Primordial Sovereign—has he returned to the real world, or is he still fighting within the realm?" "Zhai Cai replied, 'Last night, he fought with Xiu Luo in the northwest, with the Void Half-Deity present as well—everyone in the entire city was transported to the suburbs of Songhai. The government is now gathering supplies to settle the 'refugees.' Just now, it seems he's fighting again within the Spiritual Realm; our level is too low to participate or even witness the battle.' Xiahou Aotian growled, 'Since Yuanshǐ became the sovereign of the Sun, he's been drifting away, refusing to share information with us. We haven't heard from him at all.' Zhai Cai gave Xiahou Aotian a disapproving glance, saying, 'Don't interrupt me... According to the Void Grand Master, the ultimate goal of the evil faction is to destroy Earth, and the divine beings behind them will intervene.' Fu Qingyang glanced at both of them, coldly remarking, 'So, while the world's end is approaching, you're hiding in my study, quietly drinking my wine?' Zhai Cai shrugged, adopting a carefree attitude, 'Enjoying the moment!' And then he pulled out the same theory he'd mentioned earlier. Fu Qingyang gazed at the solitary knight and said calmly, "Yuanshi is right—you truly are a sponge type." "What does that mean?" "Always itching to fight." "...” After pausing for a few seconds, Fu Qingyang said, "You two go outside—I need to convene the Nine Elders' meeting!" Zhai Cai and Xiahou Aotian each took off a cigar box and a Cognac bottle, and left the study. …… Crayfish City, the Xie family manor. The Master of Zhishi Palace, dressed in a red dress, materialized suddenly in the courtyard. Her silver mask was gone now; her face was delicate and charming, with a touch of playful grace from the tear-shaped freckles near her eyes. Beyond this, a maternal radiance had emerged. She had successfully advanced to the eighth rank and now commands the "Fostering" skill. As the core ability of the eighth-level Fate Master, "Fostering" manifests in three ways: it can force a target to become pregnant, carry a developing fetus, and gradually draw away a portion of the target's spiritual energy and skills. One method involves cultivating a duplicate within oneself—a true being with 70% of the original's strength, possessing the same personality and preferences, and capable of serving as a backup in case the original perishes. The other method entails absorbing the flesh and residual spirit of a recently deceased person into one's own body, using oneself as the nurturing matrix to reanimate them. The revived individual resembles a newborn fetus and retains most of the memories from life, with the core function being the restoration of the residual spirit and the reconstruction of the physical form—this is very much akin to the mother goddess's womb. This final ability is exclusive to female musicians; male musicians cannot perform it, as men lack a uterus. "Xie's elder ancestor sipped a small cup of wine and said, 'Once you accommodate the body of Waha's sovereign, I'll hand you over the Sacred Infant. Raising a child is a woman's affair—he's been a waste here. But if you don't achieve even half-divine status, then the whole matter becomes insignificant...' Seeing that the elder had more to say, the Master of Zhishai Palace slightly furrowed her brows, 'What's wrong?' Like all lawful travelers, she found it hard to believe that the Lord of the Stars had fallen. "Grandancestor, what exactly happened? Please explain in detail," said the Master of Zhishi Palace, settling herself at the stone table. The elder of the She family then recounted the entire struggle for the essence of the Sun from beginning to end. The Master of Zhishi Palace frowned, finally understanding why the elder had previously said that fusing the remains of the Empress Waha made little difference. Unless a half-divine being, it was extremely difficult for any single entity to influence the outcome of the war. The conflict between Yuanshǐ and Taiyuan's Master represented the highest level of competition in the spiritual realm. "If Yuanshǐ's Lord can complete the essence of the Sun, and if the Lord of the Stars simultaneously fuses with the essence of the Moon, then the outcome will be evenly matched—50% each. However, if the Lord of the Stars fails to successfully fuse with the Moon's essence, then Yuanshǐ's Lord will surely prevail," said the elder. "Conversely, if the Lord of the Stars succeeds, then he will surely win. Therefore, both parties are racing against "Master Xie smiled and said, 'I don't know—just wait for the news. Who knows, there might be news right away!' As soon as these words were spoken, a man wearing a silver mask and dressed in a wine-red suit appeared in the courtyard. 'Ah, Yu'er has just emerged!' the Chairman sighed, 'It's perfect timing—right at the climax, though it might turn out to be a tragedy.' The Master of Zhishi Palace furrowed her brows, 'What do you mean?' The Chairman didn't reply; instead, he turned to Master Xie and said, 'Old friend, don't eat the crab anymore. The Sun Sovereign is calling us. Something unpleasant has happened. Ah, our young Sun Sovereign has finally been outwitted by the old fox.'