The slums of Silver City looked particularly eerie during the night of the lunar eclipse. The narrow alleys were filled with the smell of decay and rust, and shadows crawled over the dilapidated walls, as if they would turn into sharp claws and pounce at any time.

Ryan Morningstar…or rather, Ye Qingzhou…walked slowly on the stone road, his black robe swaying slightly in the night breeze. His fingers gently rested on the hilt of the sword at his waist, and the Morning Star hummed in its sheath, warning of the murderous intent lurking around.

“Sure enough, it’s here.”

He stopped in the middle of a dead end street.

The moonlight was obscured by dark clouds and darkness surged in like a tide.

swoosh~
The first crossbow arrow flew through the air, aiming at his back.

Ye Qingzhou didn’t even turn his head. The scabbard of his sword shook slightly, and the crossbow arrow suddenly stopped three inches away from him, and then burned to ashes with a “hiss”.

“Come out.”

The tone was calm, neither hurried nor slow, elegant and calm, but there was a hint of boredom in the voice: “I smell the scent of dragon blood poison – brother.”

A chuckle came from the rooftop.

Kane Morningstar slowly stood up, the moonlight shone on his handsome face, his long golden hair was blown by the night wind. In his hand, he held the dragon lance “Red Scar”, and the tip of the lance was shining with a cold light.

“Lian, my dear brother.”

Kane’s voice was filled with uncontrollable pride, like a hunter who was sure of victory and was observing the prey that fell into the trap: “You are still so naive. You stepped into a place like this alone just for the missing cases of a few poor people.”

Ye Qingzhou raised his eyes, his gaze like a sword: “So, you arranged all this?”

“certainly.”

Kane smiled, tightened his five fingers, and pointed his gun directly at Ye Qingzhou: “You want justice, then I will let you die as a hero.”

Before he finished his words, the shadows around him suddenly twisted, and twelve assassins emerged silently.

They were dressed in black leather armor, with faceless masks on their faces, and the daggers in their hands were emitting a dark green poisonous light.

The leader was the mid-level assassin of the Thieves Guild – “Blood Eagle”.

Ye Qingzhou glanced around, then returned his gaze to Kane. The corners of his mouth raised slightly, revealing a scornful smile.

“Justice? Are you mistaken?”

While whispering, Ye Qingzhou slowly drew out the Morning Glory Sword, the blade shone with a cold silver glow under the moonlight: “My foolish brother, your conspiracy is so childish that it makes people laugh in my eyes.”

Kane’s smile froze.

“I came here tonight…”

Ye Qingzhou’s face was covered with frost, and his voice was cold: “Just to take your life.”

The battle broke out in an instant.

The Blood Eagle’s figure flickers like a ghost. His “shadow” bloodline allows him to move freely in the darkness, and every appearance is accompanied by a deadly poison blade.

swoosh~
The dagger passed by Ye Qingzhou’s neck, but only cut a strand of loose black hair.

Ye Qingzhou turned sideways, and the sword blade drew an arc of light, but the figure of the Blood Eagle had already merged into the shadows and disappeared again.

“Intermediate assassin…”

Ye Qingzhou calmly analyzed in his mind: “The strong people in this world are divided into primary, intermediate, advanced, master and legendary. Above the legendary level is the realm of gods.”

“The Blood Eagle’s professional level should be at the peak of the intermediate level. Combined with the Shadow Bloodline, it is indeed difficult to deal with.”

But he was not at all flustered.

The blood eagle pounced out from the shadows again, and stabbed Ye Qingzhou’s heart with its dagger.

This time, Ye Qingzhou did not dodge.

His wrist shook slightly, and the fighting spirit in his body poured into the sword blade at a specific rhythm. The sword edge suddenly emitted a high-frequency vibration, and the air seemed to be cut into countless pieces.

“Sword skill, super shock slash.”

snort~
The sword flashed like lightning, and Blood Eagle’s dagger shattered the moment it came into contact, followed by his arm, shoulder, and finally his entire upper body.

Blood splattered as the assassin’s body was cut in half by the sword and fell heavily to the ground.

There was dead silence in the dead end.

The remaining assassins froze in place, their pupils beneath their masks shrinking violently.

In a flash, Ye Qingzhou killed the strongest blood eagle. His figure was like a ghost in the darkness. The humming sound of the Morning Glory Sword meant the death of a life with every cry.

Ye Qingzhou shook off the blood on the sword and walked slowly towards Kane.

Kane’s face was pale, and the dragon lance “Red Scar” was trembling slightly in his hand.

“No… Impossible…”

He murmured, “Blood Eagle is the top killer among the mid-level assassins. How could you possibly…”

Ye Qingzhou did not answer, but continued to move forward.

“Stop him! Kill him!”

Kane suddenly roared, but he subconsciously stepped back.

In this world’s power system, the strong are all the superposition of bloodline and profession, among which bloodline is the source of power, and profession is the skill of using power.

Kane is the second-ranked student in the academy. His profession is a dragon knight, and his level is intermediate. If it weren’t for his mount, he might not even be a match for the Blood Eagle.

Ye Qingzhou can kill the Blood Eagle in seconds, which means he can also kill him in seconds!
The remaining assassins gritted their teeth and rushed forward, but their movements were ridiculously slow in Ye Qingzhou’s eyes.

The sword flashed again.

Chi~chi~chi~
Heads flew up one after another, and blood splattered all over the walls.

Ye Qingzhou did not stop until he stood in front of Kane.

Despair finally appeared in Kane’s eyes.

“You…you can’t kill me…”

He stepped back tremblingly, his heart almost jumping out of his throat, and he was trembling all over: “I am the heir of the Morning Star Family! Father will not let you go!”

Ye Qingzhou looked at him coldly: “You made a gamble of fate, I hope you can accept the loss.”

Kane’s pupils suddenly shrank, and Ye Qingzhou raised the tip of his sword and pressed it against Kane’s throat.

“Good night, brother.”

The sword flashed and blood gushed out.

Kane’s body fell down, and the blood on his neck squirmed like a living thing, then broke with a “snap” and dissipated into the air.

Ye Qingzhou sheathed his sword, looked up at the bell tower in the distance, then turned and left.

The dark clouds dispersed, the lunar eclipse ended, and the silver light once again fell on the earth.

At the top of the clock tower, in the shadow of the building, a pair of blood-red eyes slowly closed.

“What an interesting prey…”

Then, the whispers disappeared in the night wind along with hundreds of bats taking off into the sky.

…………

The Morningstar Manor in Frostiron City was shrouded in dark clouds.

Black veils were hung in front of every window, and the servants walked quickly with their heads down, for fear of disturbing their master’s grief.

In the main hall of the manor, Kane Morningstar’s body was placed in an ice crystal coffin, his pale face still frozen with the shock of death, the fatal sword wound on his neck was carefully stitched with silver thread, but one could still see how sharp the sword was – so fast that he didn’t even have time to feel the pain.

Sheriff Horn took off his hat and bowed deeply to Aurelian Morningstar. “Your Excellency, we have blocked off the old town of Silver City. All the bases of the Thieves Guild will be thoroughly investigated.”

Ye Qingzhou stood beside Aurelian, his black robe cuffs embroidered with silver mourning patterns.

He lowered his eyes, as if immersed in sorrow, but in fact he was watching this farce coldly.

“My son died in the filthy slums!”

Aurelian slammed his fist on the oak table, and frost instantly formed on the surface. “Are all you people in the Sheriff’s Office useless?”

Horn’s forehead was covered with cold sweat: “There are traces of shadow magic at the scene. It is very likely the work of the ‘Blood Vulture’ of the Thieves Guild…” “Blood Vulture?”

Mother Serena suddenly looked up, her icy blue eyes sharp as a knife: “Can a mid-level assassin kill a mid-level dragon knight of the Morning Star bloodline?”

Ye Qingzhou’s fingertips trembled slightly.

“According to the investigation…”

Horn wiped his sweat and handed over the parchment scroll: “Lord Kane has recently… secretly contacted the black market.”

The hall suddenly fell silent.

Aurelian grabbed the file, which clearly recorded:

Three days before the lunar eclipse, Kane, in disguise, was spending money at the Rusty Tavern.

Rumors of “nobles killing their parents” spread within the Thieves Guild
The body of the Blood Eagle was found in a dead end, with the breath of dragon flame remaining on its wounds.
“This idiot!”

Aurelian threw the file to the ground, and the ice crystal coffin exploded: “He actually wanted to murder his own brother?!”

Ye Qingzhou showed a look of shock at the right moment: “Father, this is impossible…”

“The evidence is irrefutable!”

Serena picked up the file and froze when her fingertips touched a line of handwriting – it was the record of Kane’s purchase of “Dragon Blood Poison”. She looked at her second son deeply, but said nothing.

Eldest sister Iris burst into tears: “So that’s why he went to the old town alone… to silence someone?”

At this point, a perfect logical closed loop is completely formed.

All the clues that Kane cleared up now became ironclad evidence to prove his guilt, while Ye Qingzhou was successfully excluded.

At dusk after the funeral, Aurelian stopped Ye Qingzhou in front of the dragon stable.

“Kane’s mount…”

He pushed open the heavy iron door, and the heat wave hit him in the face: “It’s yours now.”

The blazing flying dragon, which was as tall as a three-story building, was restrained by seven black iron chains, and a lava-like luster flowed under its red scales.

When it saw Ye Qingzhou, it suddenly spewed out a column of fire in anger – the beast remembered the sword energy that killed its master.

“But it only obeys the strong.”

Aurelian threw the dragon crystal key to Ye Qingzhou: “Go and tame it yourself.”

Iris stepped forward in a hurry: “Father! Ryan hasn’t learned the Dragon Language Contract yet…”

“No need.”

Ye Qingzhou chuckled and stopped his sister: “This is a test for me, and I can only complete it myself.”

A look of relief flashed in Aurelian’s eyes. Although he lost his eldest son, the calmness and confidence shown by his second son were exactly what the family needed most.

That night, Ye Qingzhou stood alone in the center of the dragon stable.

“I know you recognize me.”

He let the dragon flames brush through his hair: “But you should recognize this more.”

A ray of Sun Divine Fire ignited in the palm of his hand. The pupils of the Blazing Dragon suddenly contracted – this was a higher-level flame origin than Dragon Breath.

“Choose.”

Ye Qingzhou inserted the key into the chain: “Use it for me, or…”

The moment the chain broke, the dragon did not attack. It slowly lowered its head and placed its hideous skull in front of the young man’s feet.

Aurelian, who was watching from the dark, finally turned and left, saying to his wife in the shadows: “Prepare for the awakening ceremony of the Sun Bloodline, the Morning Star Family…it’s time to stand at the top of the kingdom.

Ye Qingzhou stroked the dragon scales, but his eyes were looking up at the starry sky.

The bloody mark on Kane’s broken neck, the curse mark hidden on his father’s cuffs, and his mother’s meaningful glance – the family may not have suspected that he was the murderer.

But family interests are above all else. Kane is already a dead man, and he sought death on his own initiative. Therefore, both Aurelian and Selena will turn a blind eye to this matter – they cannot afford to lose a second son.

What’s more, Ye Qingzhou is far superior to Kane in terms of talent and personal strength, and he is the most suitable person to inherit the family.

Although it is cruel and ruthless, this is the law of survival in the North – only the strong can survive.

…………

The morning of the Silver Royal Swordsman Academy was torn apart by the roar of a dragon.

When the 20-meter-wide flaming dragon flew over the bell tower, the entire campus was instantly in an uproar. Students swarmed out of the dormitories, training grounds, and libraries, looking up at the huge creature with gleaming red scales slowly landing in the central square.

“That’s…Senior Kane’s dragon!”

“How did it end up in Ryan’s hands?”

Amidst whispers, Ye Qingzhou jumped off the dragon’s back.

He was still wearing the plain academy uniform, but on his left chest was the silver sword badge of the direct heir of the Morningstar family.

The action of the Blazing Dragon lowering its head and gently rubbing his shoulder put an abrupt end to all the doubts.

Dietrich von Krauss in the crowd looked pale. The breakfast bread in his hand fell to the ground, and the butter stained his shiny boots without him noticing.

“Kane is dead…”

He stepped back tremblingly: “Then last night Gray Owl and the others…”

At noon on the training ground, Sirius Lanyi frowned as he listened to Dietrich’s crying.

“So you sent someone to assist in the murder, and now you’re afraid of being silenced?”

The silver-haired young man’s fingertips flickered with lightning: “Stupid.”

“But I am the last pure blood of the Lanyi branch!”

Dietrich grabbed his sleeve and said, “For the sake of the master of the house—”

Sirius shook off his hand and walked towards Ye Qingzhou who was feeding the dragon. The crowd of onlookers retreated like a tide, leaving an open space with a diameter of ten meters.

“Ryan.”

Sirius’ voice was filled with the depression before a thunderstorm: “Dietrich has returned to the master’s house.”

Ye Qingzhou threw a piece of meteorite steel to the dragon without even turning his head: “So?”

“He’s my man.”

Amid the harsh sound of the dragon gnawing on metal, Ye Qingzhou finally turned around.

He looked at Sirius’s tense jawline and suddenly laughed: “The Thunderbeak of the Lanyi family wants to protect this waste?”

The training ground fell silent for a moment. Dietrich’s sword fell to the ground with a clang.

Sirius’ eyes flashed with lightning. He was jealous of the power of the Sun Bloodline, and now he was completely enraged by the contemptuous attitude.

“I want you to take that back.”

He drew out the “Flashing” sword from his waist with his backhand, and the blade was wrapped in leaping lightning: “Now.”

Ye Qingzhou took down an ordinary wooden sword from the weapon rack and made a sword flower with his hand: “Let’s go together.”

“you!”

“If you can beat me, I can spare his life.”

After saying this, Ye Qingzhou pointed his wooden sword at the ground, his eyes cold and cold: “If you lose, get out of my sight.”

The furious Sirius no longer cared about aristocratic etiquette, and the Flashing Sword turned into lightning and pierced straight into the throat!
Seeing this, Dietrich gritted his teeth and drew his sword. His Fengbu bloodline allowed him to instantly get behind Ye Qingzhou and attack him from both sides.

slap~
The moment the wooden sword collided with the flashing sword, Sirius’s knuckles exploded.

He watched in disbelief as his legendary weapon flew out of his hand and stuck in an oak tree ten meters away, buzzing and vibrating.

Dietrich’s sneak attack was even more ridiculous – he had just extended his sword halfway when Ye Qingzhou hit his wrist with the hilt of his sword, and his entire arm was instantly paralyzed! (End of this chapter)