Chapter 274: Lips Gone, Teeth Feel the Cold (Requesting Monthly Votes)

Star River Marshal's Mansion Realm.

Eighteen hours remain until the end of the Lou Gong War, and it was once again time for the Star Spirit to announce the new rankings and points.

The last time the rankings were announced, the major Star Temples had nearly been overtaken by Chen Guo.

Especially the third-place Cangming Star Temple and the fourth-place Zhen'e Star Temple, who now felt nothing but relief.

Fortunately, during the rule-making phase, Cheng Yuexiao had insisted on amending the clause that increased tribute if the first-place score exceeded the fourth-place score by double.

Otherwise, the Zhen'e Star Lord would be crying right now.

Because if the rule had remained, Zhen'e Star Temple's points would already have been doubled by Chen Guo, triggering an additional half-percent tribute.

Zhen'e Star Temple already ranked last, meaning it had to pay an extra half-percent tribute compared to previous years; adding another half-percent would mean countless barbarians would starve over the next three years.

Originally, under Cheng Yuexiao's insistence, tribute increased by half-percent only if the first-place score exceeded the fourth-place score by double—currently, that seems impossible.

Now it appeared Cheng Yuexiao's stubbornness had protected Zhen'e Star Temple.

Though the Cangming Star Lord and the Da Chu Emperor had no such concerns, they were still deeply displeased.

Because Da Chu's ranking had dropped from second to third.

At this rate, surpassing Da Hong in second place was impossible, let alone overtaking first-place Chen Guo.

Paying an extra half-percent tribute this year was now certain.

The most furious faces belonged to the Da Hong Emperor and the Tianyang Star Lord.

They weren't troubled by the extra half-percent tribute—Tianyang Star Temple and Da Hong were wealthy and powerful, and could easily absorb that loss.

But losing the unshakable first-place ranking was what truly gnawed at them.

The implications ran far deeper.

Because it signaled that Tianyang Star Temple was on a downward trajectory.

This was a very bad omen.

More critically, six hours ago, the Star Spirit's points update showed Chen Guo's score was nearly double that of Tianyang Star Temple.

If Chen Guo truly surpassed them, it wouldn't just be humiliating—Da Hong would also have to shoulder half the tribute Chen Guo owed.

This one decrease and one increase would widen the gap dramatically.

Hence, though not the final moment of the Lou Gong War, this was still critical—so the Tianyang Star Lord and Da Hong Emperor had both come.

Moreover, they arrived early for another reason.

Suddenly, a flash of starlight appeared, and Chen Guo's State Master, Cheng Yuexiao, took his seat.

As he sat down, the Tianyang Star Lord spoke at once: "State Master Cheng, Chen Guo's momentum is fierce."

"Nothing special," Cheng Yuexiao replied with a calm smile, feigning modesty—but it only made the Tianyang Star Lord's teeth grind.

"Heh, Chen Guo has emerged as a complete dark horse! It's as if their strength suddenly doubled. This makes me think of one possibility."

"What possibility? Star Lord, please speak."

"I suspect the mystery of the genius who plucked six golden stars in a row is about to be revealed."

"Plucked six in a row?" the Tianyang Star Lord said.

As he finished, the Da Hong Emperor had already been primed to strike; the Cangming Star Lord and Da Chu Emperor, having coordinated beforehand, all turned their gazes toward Cheng Yuexiao—this time, they would force the truth about the genius who plucked six golden stars out of him.

Under the watchful eyes of all, Cheng Yuexiao suddenly spread his hands, then raised his thumb toward the Tianyang Star Lord. "Star Lord, wise indeed. The genius who plucked six golden stars in a row is indeed my Chen Guo's autumn champion this year—Xu Jin."

He comprehended two sixth-rank star runes, using them to pluck six golden stars in succession, then pressed forward to push Chen Guo's fire star rune system all the way to seventh-rank middle.

He has single-handedly boosted Chen Guo's strength by a tremendous margin!

My Chen Guo National Dao Academy's Chief Scholar, Kou Jing, also broke through to seventh-rank thanks to this seventh-rank middle fire-source star rune."

He admitted it.

No more pretense!

Cheng Yuexiao's candid admission left the others in the room choking back rage.

They had prepared for verbal duels, gathered evidence, and planned to pressure Cheng Yuexiao into confession.

But no one expected that the moment the Tianyang Star Lord spoke, Cheng Yuexiao simply confessed outright.

It felt like punching a sack of cotton.

Instantly, the atmosphere in the realm grew suffocating.

Found him!

He admitted it!

So what now?

Plucking golden stars wasn't a capital crime, was it?

Could they force Cheng Yuexiao to execute Xu Jin?

Bam!

The next instant, the Da Hong Emperor slammed his fist on the table and leapt to his feet, roaring at Cheng Yuexiao: "State Master Cheng, why didn't you admit this earlier? You've stirred up all this chaos!"

Cheng Yuexiao glared at the Da Hong Emperor. "Admit? Am I stupid?"

"If I hadn't denied it, your Tianyang Star Temple and Cangming Star Temple would've sent assassins to kill my Chen Guo's genius disciple!"

"If I admitted it, would you have let me sit idly while you wiped out my Chen Guo's genius disciples one after another?"

"What, is plucking golden stars a crime?"

"And, Emperor, shall I show you the evidence of the assassination attempts?"

Bam!

Cheng Yuexiao slapped a jade tablet onto the table.

The meaning was crystal clear: keep pushing this, and we'll tear everything apart.

The Da Hong Emperor's face darkened instantly.

Morally speaking, this matter couldn't be contested.

"Heh, the Emperor didn't mean it that way—just a bit overexcited," the Tianyang Star Lord chuckled, smoothing things over. The Da Hong Emperor sat back down.

In truth, the Da Hong Emperor wasn't this foolish—he was merely acting as the Tianyang Star Lord's pawn, doing something unwise on his behalf.

"Plucking golden stars is a good thing—a benefit to all of humanity."

Suddenly, the Cangming Star Lord spoke: "State Master Cheng, I'm curious—I'd like to know, did Xu Jin use up all six golden stars?"

"How could he use them all?"

Cheng Yuexiao's frank admission made everyone in the room nod in approval—this was reasonable.

Pushing a seventh-rank middle fire-source star rune wouldn't require six golden stars; otherwise, they'd be lying to ghosts.

"State Master Cheng, how many golden stars does Xu Jin still have left?"

Hearing this, Cheng Yuexiao sighed. "I was too eager to convert the golden stars into immediate gains. Otherwise, had I waited for Xu Jin to fully mature and thoroughly study the fire-star rune system before attempting advancement, the golden stars' effectiveness would've been maximized.

But I didn't have the time.

So I let him use them directly.

It took five golden stars just to push this boy's fire-source star rune to seventh-rank middle.

It's also given many of Chen Guo's sixth-rank experts a new path for breakthrough.

Currently, only one remains."

The others exchanged glances, cross-checking this information against their own intelligence.

The Tianyang Star Lord's side had also concluded that the Qi Tian Da Sheng in the Third-Rank Dueling Realm was Xu Jin.

If so, then yes—the six golden stars were indeed used up.

But to fully believe Cheng Yuexiao would be foolish.

According to intelligence, Xu Jin only achieved star-pointing in August this year—just three or four months of cultivation so far.

Cultivation base can be boosted with pills, but studying star runes is tedious and difficult—it cannot be rushed.

Given Xu Jin's level, one or two golden stars could never have pushed Chen Guo's sixth-rank fire-source star rune to seventh-rank middle; three or four was most plausible.

Five? Absolutely impossible.

This old fox Cheng Yuexiao is hiding something.

Xu Jin likely still has one or two golden stars left.

The threat isn't immediate.

But if those two golden stars are saved for ten or more years, once Xu Jin matures and accumulates experience, Chen Guo's seventh-rank middle fire-source star rune might advance to seventh-rank upper—or even eighth-rank lower.

Instantly, the Tianyang Star Lord made his decision: Xu Jin must not be allowed to live.

Chen Guo gaining one more seventh-rank fire-source rune isn't a major threat—but an eighth-rank fire-source rune would be catastrophic.

It would mean Chen Guo could produce an eighth-rank fire expert. Action must be taken.

And then—Càn Star!

Did Xu Jin obtain the Càn Star?

If he didn't, fine.

But if he did…

In that instant, the Cangming Star Lord, Zhen'e Star Lord, Da Hong Emperor, and Da Chu Emperor all shared similar thoughts.

Cheng Yuexiao's gaze swept over them all, and he quietly exhaled in relief.

His sole reason for confessing today was to divert pressure away from Xu Jin.

He wanted to spread the rumor that Xu Jin had already consumed most of the six golden stars.

Of course, Cheng Yuexiao never expected the Star Temples to abandon targeting Xu Jin because of this rumor.

Impossible.

But because of this news, Tianyang and Cangming Star Palace's moves against Xu Jin won't be so urgent!

They won't spare any cost.

Not even to the point of sending seventh-rank experts.

Cheng Yuexiao said this merely to trade honesty for time.

To buy time for Xu Jin's rapid growth.

As long as Xu Jin grows quickly and strengthens his own cultivation, he can filter out most risks.

"Enough idle talk. You're all busy people—let's look at the rankings."

Zhen'e Star Jun suddenly spoke, "Star Spirit, announce the rankings."

"Immediately."

In the next instant, within the Star River Marshal's Mansion's secret realm, starlight flashed rapidly, and four lines of text appeared swiftly.

The moment they appeared, the faces of Tianyang Star Jun, Cangming Star Jun, Da Hong Di Jun, and Da Chu Di Jun all changed instantly.

【First Place, Da Chen Empire, Score: 39, 60】

【Second Place, Da Hong Empire, Score: 19, 35】

【Third Place, Da Chu Empire, Score: 17, 86】

【Fourth Place, Zhen'e Star Palace, Score: 16, 96】

Doubled!

Previously, Da Chen's score was high but still hadn't exceeded Da Hong's by double; now it had.

Da Chen's score had surpassed Da Hong's by more than double.

This instantly made Tianyang Star Jun and Da Hong Di Jun's faces turn grim.

This meant Da Hong now had to pay half a percent of tribute on Da Chen's behalf.

According to rankings, Da Chen originally paid one and a half percent; now it paid one percent. Da Hong, formerly second, originally paid two percent; now it paid two and a half percent.

Compared to last year's Xinglou tribute, it had doubled.

And the humiliation!

Cangming Star Jun, Da Chu Di Jun, and Zhen'e Star Jun were all startled by Da Chen's explosive score growth.

But only startled.

More than anything, they were mere spectators.

Because the blow hadn't landed on them.

With one and a half days left until the end of the Loubian War, it was still difficult for first-place Da Chen to surpass their scores by double.

A few breaths later, Tianyang Star Jun, his face dark, looked at Cheng Yuexiao.

"It seems Da Chen's extraordinary genius, Xu Jin, possesses even more formidable combat power—reaching peak third-rank ninth layer, he shattered a fourth-rank star domain. Impressive!"

With that, Tianyang Star Jun swept his sleeve and left.

But Tianyang Star Jun's remark made Cangming Star Jun and Zhen'e Star Jun fall into deep thought.

If Xu Jin truly shattered a fourth-rank star domain while at peak third-rank ninth layer, he wasn't just an extraordinary genius—he was likely an extraordinary monster!

If such a monster grew fully,

Cheng Yuexiao's face froze instantly.

How did Tianyang Star Jun know Xu Jin had shattered a fourth-rank star domain?

This news was known to barely anyone within Da Chen.

How could it have leaked?

In the next instant, Cheng Yuexiao suddenly realized a possible source.

He instantly left the Star River Marshal's Mansion's secret realm and appeared on the second floor of Xinglou, greeting Dai Guanwen of Xumi Palace.

They exchanged a few indifferent words.

Then Cheng Yuexiao returned to Danxia Palace.

His face had turned extremely grim.

If Xu Jin's shattering of the fourth-rank star domain had indeed leaked, the only possible source was Dai Guanwen, the fourth prince of Xumi Palace!

"That Dai Guanwen deserves to die!" Cheng Yuexiao muttered darkly inside Danxia Palace.

Left Sacrificial Officer Meng Yanhui smiled bitterly beside him. "State Master, we cannot move against Xumi Palace yet! Not only Xumi Palace—we must remind you, State Master, that Xu Jin must now control his score."

"Control the score?" Cheng Yuexiao frowned.

"State Master, Da Chen's rise has been too fast and too drastic—jumping straight from fourth to first.

And our score has already surpassed Da Hong's by more than double.

Under these circumstances, angering Tianyang Star Palace to death is acceptable.

But if our score surges further, surpassing Cangming Star Palace and Zhen'e Star Palace by double,

then trouble will come.

According to the rules, all three will each shoulder half a percent of Da Chen's tribute, meaning Da Chen will pay zero percent for the next three years.

From the outcome, it's excellent!

But State Master, have you considered the possibility that these three might unite and overturn the table?" Meng Yanhui said.

At these words, Cheng Yuexiao's face changed instantly.

He paced back and forth in Danxia Palace, hands clasped behind his back.

His expression grew increasingly grim.

If these three suffered massive losses to their interests, they truly might unite.

Because the Xinglou tribute split could not be altered.

The total amount would remain unchanged.

If Da Chen paid nothing, these three might, in rage, unite and spare no cost to conquer Da Chen.

Then extract tribute from the conquered lands.

Wouldn't that be an indirect way of forcing Da Chen to pay tribute again?

Such a possibility truly existed!

If the three united,

"You're truly wise and prudent, Yanhui. I've been too fortunate lately and nearly ruined everything. We must indeed cap the score to buy Da Chen time," Cheng Yuexiao muttered, cold sweat dripping down his back.

Only now, upon reflection, did he realize Da Chen stood on the brink of survival or destruction.

"State Master, we must not only cap the score—we must also ally with Zhen'e Star Palace as soon as possible. State Master, shall I go to Zhen'e Star Palace myself?" Meng Yanhui volunteered.

"What will you say?"

"Lips gone, teeth feel the cold," Meng Yanhui smiled.

"Good!"

Cheng Yuexiao immediately nodded. "Also, you may decide on your own to offer Zhen'e Star Palace certain benefits—strengthen trade, exchange urgently needed elixirs and talismans, and grain."

"Yes. I'll prepare immediately and depart later."

Inside the main hall of Tianyang Star Palace, Tianyang Star Jun returned in low spirits, furious that Da Chen's score had doubled his.

Suddenly, Grand Elder Wang Kan hurried in, bowing with a smile. "Star Jun, good news—just received excellent news."

Hearing this, Tianyang Star Jun glanced over.

(End of Chapter)