Chapter 457

Looking back on the past, the "curse" that plagued Xiguang Duke his whole life actually began when he was still young.

From lineage to talent, and even having known each other since childhood, she was the perfect fiancée for him, yet she died mysteriously in an accident.

He grieved for two years over this, but could only, due to his family's arrangements, formally marry another wife who was equally "suitable".

He was a good man, yet for some unknown reason, from beginning to end, from the church to the folk, he consulted countless doctors and tried countless methods.

When his first wife reached forty, she died of a sudden strange illness, and the couple never managed to bear even a single child.

At this point, Xiguang's parents had also passed away; he inherited the ducal title and officially became the master of this great clan that had endured for hundreds of years.

Although one might think it's due to his martial arts practice and abstinence, even in middle age he still looks youthful and handsome, with an extraordinary bearing.

Just his high status, plus the explicit "single" buff, is already enough for him to casually pick another daughter from the aristocratic clans.

But perhaps out of fear, he still used his busy affairs as an excuse, finding various reasons, and stubbornly postponed the matter of taking a concubine for another three years.

Your Excellency, the God-Chosen

Xiguang really had no choice; under the urging of other family members, and even the Sun King himself, he reluctantly sought out another maiden.

Is it "Aminuos i"? Actually, maybe "Aminuos i"? We'll go with "Amionuosi". Let's verify: the characters are read as a mī nuò sī, which without tones yields a-mi-nuo-si, i. e., "Amionuosi".

Because she is a princess who failed her tribulation, a loser in the royal succession struggle.

So overall, she felt she had come out ahead this time, able to continue her affluent life rather than fall into ruin.

But Xiguang Duke considered himself her uncle, felt he had harmed the young lady, and carried this guilt for a long time.

After marriage he treated his wife even better, maxing out every metric of clothing, food, housing, and travel.

Moreover, this time he was fortunate: just one year after marriage, the princess successfully conceived, breaking the increasingly sensational rumors.

——Heaven and earth bear witness, our old Xiguang line finally has an heir!

Then the princess suffered a difficult labor, her condition critical to the point the child died before birth, without even a decent last word.

Hearing this, the Xiguang Duke nearly fainted, but the midwife's next sentence pulled him back.

"Child, child, is there any movement?"

"!!!"

To earn the duke's favor, they ruthlessly increased the reward tenfold at once, and several experienced aunts also went all out.

They expended Herculean effort, even using magic, and managed to save the young master's life.

At least the ill-fated duke got an heir, giving his bumpy life something to look forward to.

Frankly, although the Xiguang Duke carries a curse, the rumor that he is inherently deadly to wives has spread throughout the Royal Capital.

But there is something in this world scarier than death: the fear of losing one's affluent lifestyle forever.

Thus there remain ladies and princesses who yearn to turn the tables, to rise, to keep their luxurious lives, and want to become the duke's second consort.

Even if it means death, I'll enjoy myself first!

But by now Xiguang has become the leader of the Sword and Shield faction, one of the highest-power figures in the Royal Capital, no longer someone outsiders can influence.

So no means no; to this day the Xiguang Duke remains an old bachelor, maintaining his noble single status.

And this son, who escaped death by sheer luck and clung to life, is quite promising.

Not only is he a martial arts prodigy, but like his father he is disciplined and self-respecting, a pure-love warrior through and through.

Everyone says he is likely to succeed his father and become the new leader of the Sword and Shield faction.

——Ah, finally, the ill-fated old Xiguang is about to enjoy blessings!

However, reality proved it was just a dream.

Only three years after his marriage, young Xiguang and his wife, who had just finished giving birth, were slain by mysterious assassins in the family castle.

And it really had just ended, for when the furious old duke rushed from the Royal Capital at top speed, he found in the death-defending son's hidden chamber that his own little grandson still had his mother's blood not yet washed off.

The old man, who had suffered familial hardship his whole life, truly broke down this time; fortunately the Holy Light Archbishop of the nearby church also arrived, and the little grandson's loud cries indeed brought his spirit back.

And after regaining his senses, the furious old duke tore the hidden chamber's door apart as if it were paper.

"Investigate!"

"Investigate for me! I want to see their heads!"

Then came a dragnet-style sweep, from fief to Royal Capital, covering the surrounding, nearby, informed, implicated—everyone was screened.

Even with the king personally helping, they still could not identify the killer, or rather, who exactly did it!

It was during this process that the Arc Light Duke and the Xiguang Duke forged their enmity.

Simply put, as the leader of the purse strings, having means and motive, the Arc Light Duke was inevitably suspected.

Harassed by all sides, he went to personally complain to the king in two sentences, telling the old Xiguang not to go crazy, they were practically losing their minds!

Xiguang: "Arc Duke, I damn you!"

Although the addled Xiguang couldn't have the Arc Light Duke's son killed to make him feel the pain of losing a child,

but as retaliation, striking the Arc Light Duke's holdings with two blows, a single soldier could overturn several of his caravans along with hundreds of guards—still no problem.

Arc Light: "Aminos!"

Unfortunately the retaliatory strikes were useless; to this day he still does not know who ruthlessly killed his son and daughter-in-law.

So it's no wonder the old duke made a special trip; he's old and truly fears that his son's sole surviving line might be cut off again.

And after finishing discussion about the little grandson, Xiguang finally brought the topic back to the main matter.

Who would have thought the first sentence of this main matter would be an apology from the old duke?

"Sorry, Your Excellency the Divine Chosen, someone on our side acted foolishly, feeling good about themselves, and actually reached out to the church……"

Whether true or false, the duke blamed the whole matter of targeting the berries and covertly threatening the Divine Chosen on those newly risen nobles.

Saying they are young and clueless, plus jealous that the girls have started playing cards and can't help mentioning the Divine Chosen, they thought to find a pretext, waving the banner of factional conflict to exact revenge.

But rest assured, he suppressed it at once; the Sword and Shield faction would never push friends away over such a trifle—this is all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!

Ji Ming: "Haha."

Even the old duke has said enough; can the Divine Selection still keep hanging onto this matter?

I can only graciously say I understand—everyone in Sword Shield are good people of Yasaxi, and Vataxi are also good people; good people don't fight good people, so let's all roll sushi together, Minna Sang!

And the Xiguang Duke is also a respectable man; he knows that, on a larger scale, this concerns the distinction between divine authority and royal authority, and it cannot be so simply brushed aside verbally.

So he proactively invited the Divine Selection to join his expedition to the High-level Zone; we have not only experienced guides but also many experts, guaranteeing that his level will be raised crystal‑clear.

This serves as compensation for Ji Ming's whole afternoon of pondering what the old man actually wants, and coincidentally Ji Ming was also thinking about how to improve monster‑farming efficiency after entering the High-level Zone, so he gladly set off again.

But when the Xiguang Duke produced a Royal Hunting Ground Experience Distribution Map—a document that, in theory, shouldn't exist yet somehow does—the situation underwent a subtle shift.

Because if the earlier compensation was meant to push him back to neutrality, now it is essentially trying to yank him over to the Sword Shield side.

But Ji Ming had no intention of meddling in the internal affairs of Radiance, let alone taking sides between Sword Shield and Money Bag.

I came to save the world, to directly confront the Mechanical Moon as the main.

Ending up with this nonsense, what's the difference from humans lying on the ground, using teeth and nails to help the stray dogs downstairs fight?

Naturally, I ate the candy coating and fired the shell back, took a bottle of SpiritGathering Liquid as a return gift, and repaid that "friendship" on the spot.

But to prevent the other side from overthinking, he also hinted that he feels the same toward the Money Bag faction, making it impossible to accept any side's courting.

Moreover, he made it clear that after I finish this semester's courses at Saint Valentine Academy, I will leave the Royal Capital to travel elsewhere.

—You keep on this nonsense, I won't keep you company!

But the Xiguang Duke has seen too many people in his life; for verbal promises like this, he generally tacitly considers them nonbinding.

Nevertheless, he didn't keep dragging on the matter; using the excuse that night was falling and time waits for no one, he set off together with Ji Ming.

As for Uncle Mei Zi…

"I've already sent people to assist him; rest assured, they won't let any mishap occur, not even a little."

He is indeed a very thorough old man!

I have to say, the High-level Zone is the High-level Zone; after passing through the Giant Gate reinforced by magic, the monsters' strength suddenly increased.

Because they hadn't gone far when a scout reported that ahead they had found a lion, just barely adult, yet already over twenty levels, that terrorizes the land.

By the time they reached the lair, the target had already been hammered by the henchmen into a terrified cub, lying sideways on the ground, blood spattering from its mouth.

"Great!"

Unfortunately, the Xiguang family's resident cub lacks the dignity of their older generation.

This kid has been shouting all the way, occasionally throwing sarcastic remarks at Ji Ming, not much different from other troublemakers on campus.

But after a cheer, before he could even reach for the peach, he was stopped by the old duke beside him.

He could only stare blankly at the grandfather, reaching out to signal the Divine Selection.

"Ji Ming, Divine Selection, you are a guest today; this prize—shall you treat?"

"Uh, sure."

Ji Ming didn't hold back; under the mournful gazes of the two cubs, he raised his blade and cleaved off the lion's head.

【Experience 200】

Whoa, that experience is really potent.

Even though the experience needed for his next level has already surpassed six thousand, it still visibly nudged upward a bit.

This feeling of being clearly arranged by others is indeed satisfying; Ji Ming doesn't have to fight at all, just waiting for the henchmen to deliver the prey.

The advantage of the Xiguang Duke's evening departure gradually became apparent; beasts that might roam during the day now mostly stayed obediently in their dens, making it easy to tick them off one by one on the map.

Thus, in just one short night, Ji Ming successfully leveled up, finally reaching the 60th checkpoint, ready for the next advancement.

As for the cub whose level was only a dozen or so, it got a bellyful and jumped four levels in one gulp.

Watching the sunrise gradually climb among the mountains, Ji Ming couldn't help but marvel at how nice it is to have money; leveling up can be that simple.

However, the Royal Hunting Ground shrine received perhaps too many visitors today.

Even if the sect only opens its gates twice a year, the stored porridge simply isn't enough for everyone.

Their wave already got the jump on many prey that might have been eyed by others, thus achieving such a splendid result.

But now, after a night, the easier-to-get resources in the High-level Zone have certainly been swept clean by everyone.

What remains is either decorative empty plates or hard bones that are difficult to gnaw.

The fact is indeed so; they searched several resource points along the map this morning, but most of them were just a mess, clearly already taken.

And the high‑quality monsters that luckily hadn't been spotted by others…

What a joke—they're not protagonists of a feel‑good novel, so of course they didn't find them.

Moreover, in one night so many humans surged into the Falling God Mountains that the peripheral monsters, unless utterly foolish, fled long ago, slipping deeper into the range to hide.

What remains includes some that are thirty or even forty levels high, top predators on the mountain's outskirts, just waiting for humans to deliver takeout for them.

Thus only a very few could be blocked by the Xiguang family's henchmen, becoming tangible spoils.

And among these, most of the experience went straight into Ji Ming's pocket.

There's no way around it; on paper he appears to be in his thirties level, but in reality he's sixty, and with a decent weapon, killing a dying beast is a trivial one‑stroke affair.

But that little cub, even after a hearty meal, is still only about sixteen levels.

Moreover, his chosen class is mage, and he even secretly added charisma, further draining his already scarce stamina.

Thus, even when the monster is on its last legs, sprawled like a dead dog, he can hardly finish it off.

Of course, he could also trouble the henchmen to slice open the monsters' necks or chests, letting him directly saw through their throats and hearts, boosting efficiency.

But a person must have face, a tree must have bark; doing so would be far too shameful!

After all, he's a descendant of the old Xiguang, at least a somewhat stubborn young master, grinding his teeth.

Even if he were like a butcher, standing on it drenched in blood, he still must personally cleave the beast's head today—that's the bottom line!

And that bottom line took about ten minutes; his arms trembled as he painstakingly cut through the thick flesh to reach the organs.

Ji Ming (sweating like a bean).

He had figured it out; this kid was currently immersed in the chuunibyou fantasy typical of youths, competing with himself, whom he thought was his rival.