The Tiance Mansion was actually an administrative office, or in simpler terms, the highest military institution of the Dragon Kingdom. Even a minor figure here would be a significant official if they were to venture out to other parts of the Dragon Kingdom.
Especially the five great generals of the Tiance Mansion, they were all top-tier figures for ordinary people, individuals that common folk might not even have the chance to see in their lifetime.
As Xiao Yunlong was about to step inside, six guards armed with live ammunition immediately stopped them.
"Halt! This is a restricted area of the Tiance Mansion. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed entry!"
"Open your eyes and see what this is!" Xiao Yunlong declared, revealing his Northern King Token.
Those assigned as guards at the Tiance Mansion naturally possessed some discernment and would recognize the Northern King Token.
"So it is Your Highness the Northern King. We did not recognize you just now. We beg Your Highness the Northern King for forgiveness!"
The guards at the entrance cupped their fists in salute. However, they continued, "Your Highness the Northern King, according to the laws and regulations of the Dragon Kingdom, a King of a realm requires a Dragon Kingdom directive to enter the Tiance Mansion. May I ask if Your Highness the Northern King has a directive from the Wentian Pavilion, or an invitation from the Tiance Mansion?"
"You scoundrels! His Highness the Northern King was enfeoffed as the Tiance Divine General a year ago! How dare you few mere guards try to block him? Are you seeking death?"
Tu Fu, who had a fiery temper, roared. He clenched his fists, his face full of ferocity, which made the guards exchange nervous glances.
"Step aside. My royal carriage cannot be stopped by you. I will not hold you accountable as you are merely following orders. But if you continue to obstruct me, do not blame me!"
Xiao Yunlong spoke calmly, his tone filled with an unyielding authority and dominance.
The guards exchanged glances, realizing they could not stop him. After all, this Northern King Xiao was someone who dared to kill members of the Wang family, and Wang Youdao of the Wang family was currently the third great general of the Tiance Mansion.
"Your Highness the Northern King, please!" The guards eventually stepped aside, waving their hands to indicate passage.
Xiao Yunlong then led Liu Ruyan across the entrance of the Tiance Mansion. It was his first time visiting the Tiance Mansion, yet his heart was remarkably calm.
After cultivating the Three Thousand Divine Kingdom techniques, especially after achieving some mastery of this Divine Kingdom technique, Xiao Yunlong's demeanor, vision, and perspective had improved by leaps and bounds. He was no longer confined to the small Tiance Mansion, nor even the borders of the Dragon Kingdom.
The sudden arrival of a few people quickly drew the attention of the Tiance Mansion guard force. In an instant, teams of guards converged from various directions.
However, these guards had likely heard that the arrivals were the Northern King Xiao, so they dared not act rashly for the moment. They even kept their distance, merely gathering and surrounding the area from afar.
Xiao Yunlong paid no mind to these guards and walked directly through the front courtyard towards the central Tiance Grand Hall.
The Tiance Grand Hall was originally the office of the Tiance Divine General, a crucial place for military strategy. As the position of Tiance Divine General had been vacant, the Flying Dragon Great General, who was temporarily assuming the powers of the Divine General, had shamelessly occupied it despite opposition from many.
At this moment, many generals on duty were also alerted and rushed over. Seeing the situation, everyone understood that today, this Northern King Xiao was likely here to cause trouble for the Flying Dragon Great General.
The doors of the Tiance Grand Hall were tightly shut, and it appeared there was no one inside.
"Open the door!" Xiao Yunlong waved his hand, and Tu Fu immediately stepped forward to push the door open.
However, just as Xiao Yunlong was about to step into the Tiance Grand Hall, a voice like muffled thunder suddenly came from the side.
"Stop! Your audacity is truly immense. Even if you are the Northern King Xiao, you cannot enter this Tiance Divine Hall. This is clearly an act of overstepping your bounds!"
As the voice sounded, a burly, bearded middle-aged man strode over with a determined gait, followed by several skilled guards.
This person exuded an imposing aura and was none other than the fifth great general of the Tiance Mansion, Chu Kuang!
Xiao Yunlong paused and turned his head slightly to look at him, asking calmly, "So, you believe I am not qualified to enter?"
"You are certainly not qualified!"
The fifth great general, Chu Kuang, snorted disdainfully. "Although the Wentian Pavilion intended to propose you for the position of Tiance Divine General a year ago, that was merely a proposal and was never finalized. Of course, you were not officially enfeoffed, nor did you receive the Tiance Token of the Tiance Divine General. Therefore, you are naturally not qualified to enter!"
Xiao Yunlong looked at him coldly and asked, "So, you are determined to stop me?"
"I am indeed determined to stop you. Everyone says you, Northern King Xiao, are arrogant and presumptuous, but I, Chu Kuang, am not afraid of you. If you are arrogant, am I not also arrogant? Furthermore, what kind of place is the Tiance Mansion? It is not a place for just anyone to trespass. I think I should hang a plaque at the entrance one of these days, stating that dogs and people from the Northern Territories are not allowed entry!"
Chu Kuang let out a cold laugh. He was indeed very arrogant, and his words were even more so.
Tu Fu and the others were instantly enraged and were about to make a move.
"So, you are Chu Kuang, the fifth great general of the Tiance Mansion. I heard you are the lackey of the Flying Dragon General!" Xiao Yunlong said with a faint smile.
"Northern King Xiao, you'd best watch your mouth. This is the Tiance Mansion. Although the Flying Dragon Great General is currently acting as the Divine General, with the Flying Dragon Great General's abilities and methods, he will surely become..."
However, before he could finish, Xiao Yunlong casually drew the long sword from Zhuge Wushuang's hand and then made a lightning-fast slash.
With a *poof*, a red line appeared on Chu Kuang's neck. Chu Kuang froze, likely because everything happened too quickly for him to react.
Soon, blood gushed from Chu Kuang's neck. No matter how he tried to cover it with his hands, it was futile. He finally collapsed to the ground, dead on the spot.
The surrounding onlookers were thrown into a commotion and shock at this scene. However, no one dared to make a move. Although they had heard that the Northern King Xiao was arrogant, they had only truly witnessed and experienced it today.
"A mere fifth general dared to speak disrespectfully to me and challenge my kingly authority. His death is well deserved!"
Xiao Yunlong snorted, returned the sword to Zhuge Wushuang, and then strode directly over Chu Kuang's corpse, heading inside.
No one dared to stop him any further. The surrounding people didn't even dare to breathe heavily, merely watching as Xiao Yunlong and his entourage entered the Tiance Grand Hall.
The hall was spacious and grand, but it also had a sense of desolation. Apart from various office documents, there was nothing particularly noteworthy inside.
"This place is too vast and desolate. It's not as comfortable as my Beiyun Residence. Since Long Feixiong is not here, I will come another day!"
Xiao Yunlong shook his head and turned to leave the hall. He had intended to confront the so-called Flying Dragon Great General today, but the other party was apparently absent. It seemed that this Long Feixiong had chosen to avoid confrontation and not face him directly.
"Master, why don't we go directly to the Long family next? Since Long Feixiong is avoiding us, let's go find him directly," Tu Fu suggested.
"That is indeed a good suggestion. In that case, let us go to the Long family!"
Xiao Yunlong nodded slightly and then stepped out of the Tiance Mansion.
However, as he was walking towards the parking lot, a Long family guard hurried towards Xiao Yunlong. But he was stopped by Tu Fu a few meters away.
"May I ask if you are Your Highness the Zhenbei King?" the Long family guard called out.
"Who are you?" Tu Fu asked coldly.
"I am a Long family guard. Our family head has written a letter and wishes for me to deliver it to Your Highness the Northern King in person!" the guard shouted.
"Let him come closer!" Xiao Yunlong said calmly.
The Long family guard then dared to approach and respectfully handed over a letter with both hands.
"Our family head said that everything he wishes to express is in this letter. Your Highness the Northern King will understand everything once you read it." The Long family guard then turned and left.
Xiao Yunlong then opened the letter and, upon reading it, his sword-like eyebrows immediately twitched slightly.
The letter simply contained a single line: "One month later, outside the capital suburbs, at the foot of Mount Taihang, settle our grievances in a martial arts manner!"
"Master, what does the letter say?" Tu Fu asked.
"You read it yourself!" Xiao Yunlong tossed the letter to him.
After Tu Fu read it, he couldn't help but ask, "What does Long Feixiong mean by this?"
Zhuge Wushuang said, "Can't you tell? Long Feixiong wants to have a martial arts duel with Master in a month's time to resolve their long-standing enmity!"
"I can see that, of course. I just don't understand why it has to be a month later. Can't it be today?" Tu Fu asked.
Zhuge Wushuang sneered, "If you ask me, that old dog Long Feixiong probably saw the incredible combat power Master displayed last night when he destroyed the Wang family. The Long family knows they are no match, so they've agreed to a month later, to use this time to recruit reinforcements and invite powerful enemies!"
"Damn it, so this is a delaying tactic? If you ask me, Master, we should just charge into the Long family and destroy that brute!" Tu Fu snorted.
Xiao Yunlong shook his head and said, "Since the other party sent this letter, it is equivalent to issuing a challenge. Since we have accepted this challenge, it would be unjust to act prematurely. Of course, it is also to my liking that he wishes to resolve it through martial arts, so as to avoid harming too many innocent people!"
In fact, there was a third reason. Although this was a delaying tactic by the Long family, Xiao Yunlong also wanted to use this month or so to improve his cultivation as much as possible.
Last night, he had acquired a saber, a sword, and a wooden staff. These three items contained spiritual energy. Furthermore, Xiao Yunlong had found several old objects containing spiritual energy in the Wang family's secret treasury.
Xiao Yunlong had been worried about not finding time for secluded cultivation. Coincidentally, Long Feixiong proposed a duel in a month, which was perfect.
Although Xiao Yunlong knew that during this period, the Long family would do everything they could to find experts to assist them, Xiao Yunlong did not care about these things.
As long as he absorbed and refined the items he currently possessed, his Three Thousand Divine Kingdom techniques would surely undergo a significant leap. By then, let alone Yin-Yang realm experts, he would likely be able to crush even legendary Divine Dao realm cultivators!
"Let's go, back to Beiyun Residence!" Xiao Yunlong waved his hand and got into the car. The group of cars then sped away.
Upon returning to Beiyun Residence, Xiao Yunlong intended to announce his seclusion directly. However, the Third Sect Master, Jing Ye Li, suddenly paid a visit and said he had something important to discuss with him.
"Something important?" Xiao Yunlong frowned. If the Third Sect Master considered it important, it likely wouldn't be a simple matter.