Chapter 103

“Ye Ting...” From the rift in the void came a voice of surprise and anger from the Yinglong, “Are Itachi going to stop me?”

“This child is a prodigy of Shanhai Pass, and the future pillar of our human race! How could Itachi possibly destroy him!”

Ye Ting’s voice was resolute, his surrounding laws of power counteracting the dragon’s aura, “Do Itachi wish to ignite a holy war?”

“Holy war? This isn’t inside Shanhai Pass—without the Shanhai Order to suppress me, what can Itachi possibly do to me?”

The Yinglong’s voice dripped with contempt, “Hand over this ant, or none of Itachi will leave alive today!”

“Try it!” Ye Ting stood firm, the aura from his dragon-patterned spear raging wildly.

“What if I join in, old man? Do Itachi think your few extra millennia of life give Itachi the right to bully the young? Do Itachi truly believe our human race has no one left?”

A lazy yet domineering voice, like rolling thunder, echoed from the horizon.

The next instant, storm clouds gathered overhead, and a purple figure stepped upon lightning, arriving in an instant from the distant sky above the gorge.

He was not tall, dressed simply in a Night Watchman uniform, gripping a golden blade—but the Thunder Rule radiating from him sent chills down every spine!

It was Lu Wujiao, Commander-in-Chief of the Night Watchmen, revered as the [Lei Di]!

Lu Wujiao glanced at the carnage below, his eyes turning cold as they swept over the Yinglong.

“So? Want to fight? This Emperor will see Itachi through to the end!”

He flicked his finger, sending out a slender purple lightning bolt that instantly exploded into a thunderous purgatory, engulfing the Yinglong’s claw!

“A new human saint?” The Yinglong roared in shock and fury, “Itachi’re merely a newly ascended Saint—just a Law Saint—how dare Itachi provoke me!”

“Itachi dare touch my Night Watchmen’s brats without asking me?” Lu Wujiao held a sphere of lightning in his palm and shot back without mercy.

Yet the beast faction was clearly not limited to just the Yinglong.

The clash between two Saint-level beings caused the entire Shadow Gorge to crack continuously, the spatial rifts expanding further.

But just as tensions reached their peak, another greedy voice cut in.

“Tsk tsk tsk... Yinglong, Ye Ting—what a furious display. This boy’s soul and what’s inside him... I find them quite intriguing.”

From another rift in the void, black mist churned and coalesced into a gaping, bloodied maw—the arrival was none other than Taotie, the other Demon Saint who had slain Zhu Yan.

“Delicious... even more fragrant than Zhu Yan.”

Taotie’s appearance intensified the pressure on Ye Ting and Lu Wujiao.

Ye Ting and Lu Wujiao’s expressions grew grim. They could handle Yinglong alone—but adding Taotie, a Saint renowned for devouring all things, would be disastrous.

“Taotie! Itachi too want a share?” Yinglong growled coldly.

“So many tender, delicious human brats, plus the mysterious aura inside this boy—how could I possibly pass this up?”

Taotie greedily scanned the prodigies below, especially Jiang Xia, whose aura was uniquely distinct—his drool nearly dripped.

Just as the tension reached its breaking point, war imminent—

“Whir!” “Whir!” “Whir!”...

A succession of powerful auras surged skyward from the direction of Shanhai Pass!

One, two, three... five Saint-level pressures crossed space and descended instantly upon the gorge!

As the light faded, five dark figures emerged, each wreathed in complete laws of nature—newly ascended Saints, empowered by the resurgence of Shanhai Pass’s fortune!

“Yinglong, Taotie—this land is unclaimed. Itachi, as Saints, dare attack the young? Do Itachi truly believe our human race has no one left?” The lead dark figure barked.

With the five newly ascended Saints joined by Ye Ting and Lu Wujiao, humanity now had seven Saint-level warriors present!

Seven against two!

Though Yinglong and Taotie were veteran Saints of immense power, they stood no chance against seven peers!

Yinglong’s massive dragon eyes flickered with resentment and fury, locked unblinkingly on Jiang Xia, shielded behind the others.

Taotie also reined in his greed, his expression shifting uncertainly.

After a moment of silence, Yinglong’s grand voice rang out again, cold with lethal intent.

“Fine! Very fine! Human race—Itachi’ve made up your minds to protect him.”

“Shanhai Pass’s fortune has revived, and the Shanhai Order is weakening. Let’s see if Itachi can still protect him when that time comes! We’re leaving!”

With that, the massive dragon eyes fixed one last long look on Jiang Xia, then the dragon aura receded as he shattered through the sky and departed.

Taotie chuckled darkly twice, his form slowly dissolving into the spatial rift until he vanished.

The terrifying Saint-level pressure lifted; the sky cleared, leaving only the ravaged gorge and the shaken survivors.

They had survived!

Everyone exhaled deeply; many collapsed to the ground, their clothes soaked through with cold sweat.

Jiang Xia stared at Ye Ting standing before him and Lu Wujiao in the sky, his desire to grow stronger reaching its peak—strength! He needed greater strength!

Lu Wujiao descended from the air and stepped before Jiang Xia, studying him for a moment, then nodded.

“Good. In just a few months, Itachi’ve grown considerably.”

He turned to Ye Ting and bowed slightly, “General, thank Itachi for your aid.”

Ye Ting waved it off, his expression complex as he glanced at Jiang Xia, then turned to Ye Lingxi approaching them, his tone softening.

“It’s my duty. This place isn’t safe to linger—take the children back.”

Soon, rescue teams from the Demon-Suppressing Army and reinforcements from major factions arrived, beginning to treat the wounded and clear the battlefield.

Though the Shadow Gorge mission had been horrifically brutal—with nearly everyone wounded and entire squads decimated—the surviving prodigies had all achieved massive breakthroughs.

Back in the training camp dormitory, Wang Teng lay on his bed, still shaken: “Old Xia, did we almost die back there?”

Jiang Xia leaned against the headboard and glanced at him: “Yinglong came for me—Itachi guys were probably fine. But Taotie afterward? Not so sure. That fat guy of yours? He’d eat Itachi first.”

Wang Teng shuddered at the thought of Taotie’s maw: “I really need to lose weight—next time I meet one, I don’t want to be the first bite!”

Jiang Xia lay down and yawned: “Sleep. Tomorrow’s graduation ceremony.”

Wang Teng closed his eyes but kept muttering: “Lose weight... gotta lose weight...”

The next day, the solemn graduation and medal-bestowing ceremony was held on the grand plaza before the headquarters building of the Tianmen Garrison.

On the podium, Commander Zhao Gang stood in a crisp general’s ceremonial uniform, the stars on his shoulder epaulets gleaming in the sunlight.

His gaze, sharp as a blade, swept over the young but battle-hardened students below, their eyes now firm with resolve.

“After months of forging, after baptism in blood and fire—Itachi have proven your worth and strength!”

Zhao Gang’s voice, amplified by the sound array, reached every ear: “Today, Itachi officially graduate from the Prodigy Training Camp! Shanhai Pass is proud of Itachi!”

“Based on your performance and comprehensive evaluation, the following military ranks are hereby conferred...”

The list was read from the bottom up; each name called drew a burst of thunderous applause.

When they reached Wang Teng, Ling Zhantian, Wang Shichen—all granted the rank of Major—Wang Teng couldn’t help but shout out in shock.

“...Ye Lingxi, granted the rank of Major!”