Chapter 992: A Reward in Advance

"Call me Big Sister Mei! You're getting bolder these days, not even calling me that anymore," Mei Gongzi said with mock annoyance.

"Alright, dearest Big Sister Mei. Can you promise me one thing?" Tang San said with a grin.

"Let me hear it first," Mei Gongzi eyed him warily, sensing something suspicious in his smile.

Tang San said, "For our happiness and future, during the upcoming matchmaking tournament, if we happen to face each other, I might have to offend you a little. After the tournament ends and you find out who I really was, you must forgive me and not be mad, okay?"

Mei Gongzi gave him a skeptical look. "Why do you sound so guilty?"

Tang San forced a bitter smile. "To avoid revealing my identity in front of the Emperors, I have to act in ways I normally wouldn't. Dearest Big Sister Mei, you must be understanding. This is all for our future. Once we pass this trial, we'll truly be free—like fish in the vast sea or birds soaring through the skies. Once we both become Emperors, none of the other Emperors will be able to restrict us anymore."

Mei Gongzi nodded lightly. "We'll see when the time comes. If you really manage to win the matchmaking tournament and marry me without arousing any suspicion, I won't blame you for whatever identity you used to do it."

Tang San was overjoyed and immediately pulled her into a hug, planting a firm kiss on her lips. "Big Sister Mei, you are the best~"

"Hey, what are you doing now? You haven't won yet. You're not the victor of the tournament yet."

"I'm just grabbing a little reward in advance," Tang San laughed.

Mei Gongzi said, "Wanna see the Shadowfiend Sword? By the way, did you get anything good from the auction?"

Tang San thought to himself,

I got ALL the good stuff. Just can't tell you yet.

"I picked up a few practical things, mostly lucky grabs. We shouldn't check out the Shadowfiend Sword here, though. I'm afraid the aura of the Asura Sword might be too strong to conceal. Let's go back to Kali City, to the seaside."

"Alright. Now?" Mei Gongzi was also eager to test the true effects of the Shadowfiend Sword. The sword was stored within her sea of consciousness, resonating with the Asura Sword's intent. The two seemed to be undergoing some changes. She had held off on testing it because she, too, feared it might trigger too strong a reaction.

"Yes, right now. The auction just ended, and the Emperors are likely busy dividing the spoils. It's the best time to move unnoticed. Let's go."

"Okay!"

The two headed to the second floor transmission array. Tang San raised his right hand, and the Spacetime Lighthouse, radiating with distorted light, appeared in his palm.

The Spacetime Lighthouse looked even more crystal-clear than before. Under the constant nurturing of Tang San's divine consciousness, its effectiveness and abilities were becoming more powerful.

The surrounding space began to distort slightly. As a controller of space, Mei Gongzi felt it most keenly. She clearly sensed that space around them seemed to be slowly shifting, as if cutting away from the original world. It felt like space was rewinding through time, making everything appear illusory.

With divine light flashing in his eyes, Tang San activated the formation. The next moment, their figures vanished completely. The air around the transmission array remained distorted, and the light of the array flickered slowly. The energy fluctuated at an abnormally slow pace.

This kind of energy shift would never result in any leakage. This was the brilliance of the Spacetime Lighthouse. And as Tang San's cultivation grew, so did the Lighthouse's power. Now, if he used it for teleportation, even the White Tiger Demon Emperor wouldn't notice if Tang San chose to hide it. By the time anyone noticed, he and Mei Gongzi were going to be back.

All Mei Gongzi could see was the distortion of light around her. This kind of spatial crossing was the best moment to comprehend the mysteries of space—especially since she didn't have to control the teleportation herself and could focus entirely on sensing the natural laws manifesting themselves around her.

It felt like mere moments before the surroundings cleared up. The nearby scenery still felt slightly distorted, but it gradually returned to normal.

The sound of waves and tides filled the air. Mei Gongzi was stunned. They had reached Crescent Island, the core of the Skytree Realm, without stopping anywhere. A direct ultra-long-range teleportation.

Behind her, Tang San smiled and stowed away the Spacetime Lighthouse.

He had grown stronger again. Mei Gongzi instantly sensed the difference. His control over spacetime was smooth and seamless, clearly a sign of complete mastery, and as she observed this control, her self-confidence took a hit. Though they both used spatial energy, and moreover his bloodline power was derived from hers, his level of control put her to shame.

"Alright, bring out the Shadowfiend Sword. Let me take a look," Tang San said with a smile.

"Okay." Mei Gongzi nodded. Her divine consciousness stirred, and in the next moment, an overwhelming sword intent burst out uncontrollably.

A streak of crimson light shot skyward, followed by a burst of black sword light. In that instant, the sharp aura erupting from Mei Gongzi even made Tang San feel a chill. His defensive bloodline imprints activated reflexively, turning his skin a dark golden color.

Mei Gongzi was also surprised. The Asura Sword's intent was clearly far more active than before. What was more astonishing was that this sword intent seemed to cheer joyfully after emerging, as if it were calling out to something in the sky.

"Calm your mind. Control the sword intent," Tang San reminded her.

Mei Gongzi nodded, then used her divine consciousness to gradually subdue the sword intent. The Asura Sword's aura slowly settled, forming a ten-meter-long crimson light sword that floated in front of her. This sword image was clearly much stronger than it had been before, during her training.

A pitch-black sword was at the center of it, enveloped in that crimson light and vibrating slightly.

Tang San stepped beside her. A subtle fluctuation of divine energy came from his divine seat, and his divine consciousness enveloped the sword. Thanks to his deep connection to the Asura Sword, he was able to observe this divine weapon down to the most minute details.

After a few moments, Tang San's expression turned slightly odd.

Mei Gongzi also sensed something. She turned to him and asked uncertainly, "Why do I feel like the Asura Sword's intent can rely on the Shadowfiend Sword?"

Tang San nodded, a large smile blooming on his face. "My love, you really found a treasure. I was right: This Shadowfiend Sword is more valuable to you than any other item in the entire auction. It's made of an extremely rare material, and I suspect that even the blacksmith who forged it didn't know where the metal came from. It probably arrived on this plane as a meteorite, because it's impossible for this plane to have produced it.

"This metal's special property is that it not only absorbs energy, but it can also contain it perfectly, with no leaks. This explains its invisibility effect, I suppose. But the perfect containment is actually not its greatest strength. No, the most important part is that it can absorb

absolutely any

type of energy, including divine consciousness.

"Your Asura Sword only exists as a seed of sword intent; after all, the actual sword isn't here. So even though it's powerful, it's like a rootless weed. You have to continuously feed it using your divine consciousness, and once you use it, it consumes a great deal of energy, which weakens the seed.

"Meanwhile, the Asura Sword is traveling through space, constantly searching for your presence. In that chaotic cosmic energy, it can only locate you through this seed of sword intent. The stronger your sword intent, the faster it can pinpoint your location, but the more you use it, the more it weakens the seed and the longer it will take the sword to find you.

"But this Shadowfiend Sword can serve as a physical vessel for that seed. In other words, the sword intent can be housed inside the Shadowfiend Sword, which can sustain it practically indefinitely. It's essentially like forging a new Asura Sword."