Chapter 1: Sign-In, Great Grandmaster Realm!

Great Xuan Dynasty, the foremost fortress of the Northern Frontier.

Beimo City.

“By imperial decree, the Seventh Prince has guarded Beimo City for five years, repelling powerful enemies abroad and bringing peace to the people at home. His military merits are outstanding. He is hereby awarded ten thousand taels of gold, one hundred bolts of brocade and silk, and a residence in the capital.

“He is further bestowed three Dragon Pearls and promoted to the rank of Three-Pearl Imperial Prince!”

After finishing the imperial edict, the pale-faced, effeminate eunuch beamed at the man before him. “This servant first offers congratulations on Your Highness' promotion to Imperial Prince. Your Highness, please receive the decree.”

The young man was around twenty years old, with handsome features and an elegant bearing. His tall frame was clad in beast-faced azure armor.

His expression calm, the man gave a slight nod and accepted the imperial edict from the eunuch’s hands.

“Your Highness, this servant has delivered the decree, so I shall take my leave.”

“I also hope that Your Highness will set out as soon as possible and arrive in the capital within one month to receive your formal investiture as Imperial Prince.” After offering that courteous reminder, the eunuch turned and left.

The man’s name was Chu Feng. Twenty years ago, he had accidentally transmigrated into this world and become the Seventh Prince of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

Unfortunately, his mother had been of humble status, nothing more than a palace maid in the imperial harem.

Not long after Chu Feng was born, she passed away.

With no background to rely on, Chu Feng had managed to survive the scheming imperial palace by drawing on the experience he had accumulated from watching palace intrigue dramas in his previous life.

Then, five years ago, just after completing his coming-of-age ceremony at fifteen, Chu Feng was sent to the Northern Frontier by the Emperor.

When Chu Feng learned the news, he did not refuse. On the contrary, he was delighted, believing that from then on he could stay far away from the imperial family’s struggles and live a carefree life.

But only after arriving in the Northern Frontier did he learn how harsh the environment truly was.

As far as the eye could see, the land was covered in yellow sand. It was as hot as summer all year round, and the scorching climate made it impossible to grow grain.

On top of that, enemy nations invaded often, so the people here had long been living in misery.

Chu Feng never claimed to be a saint, yet when he saw those emaciated commoners, he still could not help but feel a trace of compassion.

Over the next five years, under Chu Feng’s rule, the military strength of the Northern Frontier grew increasingly formidable. It came to be known as the hundred thousand tiger-wolf troops of the Northern Frontier, and the people’s lives improved with each passing day...

Half a month ago, the Empress of Great Chu suddenly led a great army to invade, intending to break through the fortress of the Northern Frontier.

When the news spread, it shook the entire court and realm of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

Within the Golden Throne Hall, all the officials of the Great Xuan Dynasty hurriedly discussed strategies for resisting the enemy.

But before they could settle on a plan, a report arrived from the frontier fortress and stunned everyone.

The Empress of Great Chu’s two hundred thousand elite troops had been defeated outside Beimo City!

Those two hundred thousand elite troops had failed to step even a single foot into the Great Xuan Dynasty before the entire army was annihilated.

According to rumors, the Empress of Great Chu had even been captured by Chu Feng and reduced to a prisoner. In the end, however, for reasons unknown, Chu Feng released her.

No one could verify whether that rumor was true, but what truly shocked the officials in the capital was the military strength of Beimo City.

For the first time, the hundred thousand tiger-wolf troops of the Northern Frontier had revealed themselves to the public.

The common people of the Great Xuan Dynasty sang and danced in celebration of the victory, but the officials all harbored ulterior motives and deep wariness, while every faction began to stir in secret...

As Chu Feng watched the eunuch’s departing figure, a cold smile curled at the corner of his lips.

A Three-Pearl Imperial Prince?

Heh. That so-called father of his truly knew how to calculate.

It was a neat trick of promoting him openly while demoting him in truth—using a title with no real authority to take away the hundred thousand tiger-wolf troops he had painstakingly built.

Yet even though Chu Feng understood exactly what that so-called father of his intended, he had no way to defy the imperial decree.

“Sigh... I have been away from the capital for five years. I never thought I would still have to return to that place in the end.” Chu Feng shook his head with a helpless laugh and sighed.

…………

Three days later, Chu Feng changed out of his heavy armor and stepped out of the residence dressed in white, looking every bit a scholar.

The moment he saw the scene outside, his expression froze.

The stone road on both sides outside the residence was packed with people who had come to bid him farewell. They stood there in silence, craning their necks as they looked at Chu Feng, their faces filled with reluctance.

“Your Highness, have a smooth journey!”

“Your Highness, have a smooth journey!”

“...” After one burly man shouted with tears brimming in his eyes, the people all began to cry out in unison.

Chu Feng smiled faintly and waved his hand before stepping into the carriage.

Clop! Clop! Clop!

The horses’ hooves struck the stone road with crisp sounds as the carriage rolled out of Beimo City.

The hundred thousand tiger-wolf troops that had long been waiting outside the city all revealed fervent expressions the moment they saw the carriage.

“Feng! Feng! Feng!”

The hundred thousand soldiers stood ramrod straight and raised their weapons as they shouted in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.

It was the highest salute the army could offer, used to send off the general they held in their hearts.

Chu Feng lifted a corner of the carriage window and looked at the army he had trained with his own hands, his heart filling with mixed emotions.

After today’s farewell, even Chu Feng did not know whether he would ever behold their splendor again.

Just as Chu Feng was sighing with emotion, a mechanical voice suddenly rang out in his mind.

【Ding! System activation complete!】

【System binding... Binding successful!】

【Congratulations, Host, on successfully binding the Divine Sign-In System!】

【Detected that the Host is currently in Beimo City of the Great Xuan Dynasty. Would you like to sign in?】

Hearing that series of notification sounds, excitement appeared on Chu Feng’s face.

The system had been activating ever since he was born. Twenty years had passed, and it had finally activated. At one point, Chu Feng had genuinely begun to suspect that the system had crashed.

After calming his emotions, Chu Feng silently said, “Sign in!”

【Ding! Sign-in successful. Congratulations, Host, on obtaining the cultivation of a Great Grandmaster!】

As the prompt fell, a vast surge of spiritual qi swept through Chu Feng’s entire body. His spiritual sea expanded instantly by thousands of times, and pure spiritual qi transformed into an ocean, nourishing his limbs and marrow without cease.

“Good heavens!” Chu Feng was startled.

He had not expected the system’s reward to be so overwhelming right from the start, directly elevating him into the ranks of the Great Grandmasters.

According to what he knew, the martial realms within the five dynasties, including the Great Xuan Dynasty, were divided into Sixth Rank through First Rank, then Innate, Grandmaster, and Great Grandmaster. Each realm was further divided into the early, middle, and late stages.

Within the five dynasties, a First-Rank expert could found a sect, while Innate and Grandmaster powerhouses could dominate an entire region.

As for Great Grandmasters, they were existences who stood at the peak of the five dynasties.

Their strength had already surpassed ordinary understanding. A single one could easily crush an army of a million!

At present, among all five dynasties, there were only five Great Grandmasters in total. The Great Grandmaster of the Great Xuan Dynasty had remained in the imperial palace and had not shown himself to the world for more than twenty years.

So long as that Great Grandmaster did not make a move, Chu Feng would be invincible within the Great Xuan Dynasty!

Chu Feng clenched his fist and felt the terrifying power within his body, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

Now that he possessed the cultivation of a Great Grandmaster, he no longer had to worry about this journey to the capital.

Under the gaze of the hundred thousand tiger-wolf troops, the carriage gradually disappeared from their sight, yet every soldier remained where he stood for a long time, unwilling to leave.

The general who had come to replace Chu Feng looked at this scene with shock on his face, as though he had never imagined that Chu Feng would hold such prestige in Beimo City.

This was not a good thing. He had to report this matter to his master.