We arrived at the Falling Heaven Pavilion, the most famous restaurant in the capital. Legend says Heaven once "fell" here, which sounds romantic until you realize it probably just meant a very large cultivator crashed through the roof.

  The atmosphere was electric. Cultivators from the Six Great Sects of the Lu Empire—from the Hidden Dragon Sect to the Silent Sword Sect—were gathered here.

  "Oh, look!" Lu Chenyi said, feigning total surprise. "There's a martial arts competition for youths under twenty happening right now! What a coincidence!"

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  I squinted at him. "Brother, your acting is worse than a B-movie extra. You're literally wearing a 'Staff' badge under your cloak."

  "Nonsense!" Chenyi laughed. "But look at the prize, Xian-er! It’s the True Immortal Grade: Dragon-Heart Elixir! I heard it was donated by a 'mysterious benefactor.'"

  I recognized that bottle. That was from the private collection of my 2nd brother, Jianfeng. They weren't even trying to hide it anymore. This was a setup.

  "I'm not going up there," I said, sitting down and grabbing a menu. "I am a humble Body Tempering 8th Stage child. Those teenagers are in the Qi Gathering Realm. I would be crushed. Oh, the tragedy."

  In reality, I was already in the Qi Condensation Realm. I had been compressing my Qi into liquid form while pretending to nap. But I wasn't about to tell them that.