[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-grand-return-system":3,"chapter-grand-return-system-grand-return-system-chapter-165":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Grand Return System",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1080235,1397,"Chapter 165: The Weight of Glory","grand-return-system-chapter-165",165,"\u003Cp>The Weight of Glory\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon merely smiled, as if the storm those simple words stirred around him had nothing to do with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Keep it. It may be useful someday,\" he said, calm and unquestionable. \"Rias doesn’t need weapons. The Inferno Lotus Art is already her sharpest blade.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Selena lowered her gaze toward the Ariel Blossom Pin resting in her palm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It shimmered faintly beneath the arena lights, thin as silver petals touched by moonlight, deceptively fragile, almost ornamental.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>something about it carried a quiet lethality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The kind hidden in beauty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a brief moment, her fingers paused over it, as though sensing some mystery sleeping within the treasure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she closed her hand around it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She nodded and accepted it without further resistance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though she did not see how it could serve her, she would not reject anything Leon entrusted to her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not out of submission.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not out of duty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But trust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Complete, unquestioning trust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Leon said it should be kept, then one day it would matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That alone was enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A strange warmth stirred in Selena’s chest as she tucked the Ariel Blossom Pin away. She said nothing, but the softness in her usually composed eyes betrayed more than words could.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Below the stage, many students had witnessed the exchange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And their expressions became... complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some were stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some resentful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some simply bitter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Envy spread through the crowd like sparks finding dry grass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To be honest...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A male student let out a long breath, eyes fixed on Leon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m jealous.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That one sentence seemed to break whatever restraint remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You call that jealousy? I’m dying of envy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That treasure would be fought over by elite disciples, and he just hands it to her like a casual gift...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One student sighed, staring at the supreme-grade treasure in Selena’s hand as if his soul had left his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another groaned dramatically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are the students of Amethyst Summit Division all treated so well? They can even receive supreme-grade treasures.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone beside him muttered bitterly,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"At this point, I want to switch divisions...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Laughter rippled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But beneath the humor—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Real envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sigh, when will I be able to meet such a good teacher?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone sighed with emotion and envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were not students of Amethyst Summit Division.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some of them could not even be considered students of the Seven Division.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were merely ordinary labor students.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those words carried more weight than complaint.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it was true.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some spent years unseen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some would never receive a personal teaching.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet Selena—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was handed treasures by a teacher who treated her almost like family.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could they not envy that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearby, a young student whispered,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No wonder Amethyst Summit Division rose... with a teacher like that, even stones could become dragons.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one refuted him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the crowd, Cassie stood silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His face held none of the arrogance he once wore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a quiet storm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cassie looked at the beautiful figure in the arena with all sorts of emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This honor that should have belonged to him belonged to another person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this person—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was the student who entered the sect with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The one everyone once despised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The one he had once looked down upon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fingers curled unconsciously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could not figure out why he had lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where had it begun?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At talent?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Effort?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fate?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being a genius with innate Bones did not bring him much honor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It became his greatest humiliation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because talent alone had not carried him to where she stood now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had both entered the sect together, but his starting point was countless times better than Selena.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the other party had already become an existence that he could only look up to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That truth stung more than open defeat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps this was fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or perhaps...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had misunderstood what truly made a genius.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only him—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sana also watched quietly, disappointment hidden behind her composed face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She also wanted to stand there like Selena and enjoy the respectful gazes of her fellow students.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be admired.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be seen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But reality was cruel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had the same encounter, but with a completely different fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From now on, she and Selena might be people from two different worlds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That thought struck hardest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Selena was a favored child of the heavens who was the focus of everyone’s attention, but she could only be unknown and could not make a name for herself in her life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her eyes dimmed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet somewhere inside—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A spark remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because seeing Selena rise also meant...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if she did not yet dare believe it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A soft laugh suddenly broke the shifting emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fellow Cultivator, congratulations, haha...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tobias approached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His sleeves moved in the breeze, expression genial, yet his eyes carried unmistakable seriousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was no casual praise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was recognition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivator Tobias greeted him politely and continued,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m lucky to be able to see such a shocking sword technique today. It was not in vain that I came to Celestis Academy this time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused, looking toward Selena.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even now, traces of awe lingered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fellow Cultivator’s student is like a divine bird in the Nine Heavens. She will definitely spread her wings and soar in the future. Her future is limitless.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was no empty flattery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was evaluation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And from a figure like Tobias—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It meant much.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But said nothing immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His silence was almost habitual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet inwardly, he was amused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Divine bird in the Nine Heavens?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not bad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He accepted that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would not let it show.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At last he gave a faint nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You flatter her too much.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tobias laughed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, I fear I praise too little.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their eyes met.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both understood what was unspoken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strength recognized strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Tobias’ expression turned slightly more formal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m prepared to return to the sect after this matter is settled.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His tone softened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If there’s a chance, Fellow Cultivator can come to the Supreme Paradise Sect as a guest. I’ll definitely welcome you and treat you as a VIP.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not merely courtesy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An invitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An alliance offered beneath polite words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivator Tobias had the intention to befriend Leon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And why wouldn’t he?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was a peerless expert who was not old yet was not weaker than him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would have to be crazy if he did not befriend him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Forsaken Domain was currently in turmoil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sects and factions were complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Storms gathered beneath calm waters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To gain a powerful ally—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was never a bad thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon naturally understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His purple eyes flickered thoughtfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes. How could I dare to refuse since you invited me? When I’m free another day, I’ll definitely go up the mountain to visit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1126,"2026-06-03T10:40:08.788Z","2026-06-03T10:40:17.095Z",1,"novelbin.me","a351db81a69013bd2b27807f7942429dfeecced4a7bfb74d24245d20249603fe","grand-return-system-chapter-166","grand-return-system-chapter-164",234,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fgrand-return-system-cover.jpg"]