Henry Clark also felt a flash of white light before her eyes, but she held on with determination.

Her first instinct was to grab a knife and attack—but she hadn’t brought any weapons with her today.

She wanted to lunge forward and fight desperately—but she was unarmed.

She wanted to curse out loud—but when she saw David Thompson’s “sincere” smile, which seemed impervious to all weapons, she knew it would be pointless.

In the end, she thought of the most deadly and effective move.

David Thompson was surprised to see Henry Clark actually calm down, clicking his tongue in amazement: No wonder they say women are tougher than men at critical moments!

David Thompson: “Oh, Henry Clark, look, this is just great! We can be together again. No wonder Roger Smith and Ethan Foster were so happy they fainted…”

“Huh? Why aren’t you saying anything? Henry Clark, why are you touching Roger Smith’s clothes… Why are you taking his wallet? And Ethan Foster’s wallet too…”

“Don’t tell me you have the same hobby as me—getting your friends drunk and then stealing their wallets? That’s not good. I’m still sober, unless you split it with me.”

“Why are you opening the window? It’s not even hot…”

Henry Clark stood by the window, took a deep breath, and shouted with all her might: “Someone’s trying to dine and dash! Catch him!” With that, she jumped out the window.

Behind her, the Tianmeng Restaurant erupted in a clamor: “Who’s trying to dine and dash? Catch him!”

“Catch the kid who’s trying to skip out on the bill! It’s him, the one staring blankly at the window!”

“Trying to run, are you? Wearing a deputy commander’s uniform to impersonate an officer and scam free food and drinks!”

“I knew something was off about him—where would you find such a young deputy commander!”

“Let’s all work together, give him a beating, and hand him over to the police!”

Chapter Two: Coldly Neglected

The Imperial Capital was built in the 335th year of the Imperial Calendar. Originally, the eleventh emperor of the Guangming Empire constructed it as a major stronghold in the southeast to prevent invasions and harassment by the demon race (at that time, the Wallen Fortress had not yet been built). Its original name was Jiashan Fortress.

In the 553rd year of the Imperial Calendar, the strongest royal legion of the Guangming Empire suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the invading demon army on the Blue River battlefield. The last emperor and marshal of the empire died in battle, and the five-hundred-year-old Guangming Dynasty came to an end. Warlords everywhere rose up to vie for supremacy, and for a time, the empire was engulfed in chaos and war. The state of warlord division and turmoil lasted for less than twenty years, as most of the weaker factions were quickly swallowed up by the stronger ones, and few survived to the present day.

Among them, Gavin Brooks Sr., who guarded the old imperial capital, was the most famous. He declared himself the legitimate successor of the Guangming Empire (even producing an imperial blood edict), renamed the old imperial capital to Yuanjing, and made it the capital of the Liufeng family. In addition, Brian Thompson, who was originally the imperial governor of the southeast, declared independence, seized Jiashan Fortress, renamed it “Imperial Capital,” and used it as a base to expand aggressively, founding the Zichuan family. Brian Thompson himself became the first head of the family.

The rampant expansion of the southeastern governor Brian Thompson enraged Gavin Brooks Sr., who claimed to be the empire’s guardian: “This is an act of rebellion!”

In the 558th year of the Imperial Calendar, on the very day the Zichuan family was founded, the Liufeng family dispatched 300,000 light cavalry eastward. Gavin Brooks Sr. declared: “We must wipe out the rebels!” The Zichuan family sent 200,000 troops to meet them, and the two armies fought fiercely on the Locke Plains for seven days and nights. The Liufeng army was eventually forced to retreat due to lack of supplies, pursued relentlessly by the Zichuan forces, suffering heavy casualties. Gavin Brooks Sr. himself was gravely wounded and died soon after returning to Yuanjing.

From the day of their founding, the Zichuan and Liufeng families became mortal enemies. Since both massive powers aimed to dominate the world and each possessed formidable armies, for three hundred years, both sides have been locked in a bitter struggle, with constant warfare and bloodshed sweeping the continent.

Besides the Zichuan and Liufeng families, there was a third human power on the continent: the The Sullivan Family, located slightly south of the continent’s center.

The The Sullivan Family was founded by Princess Grace Sullivan, daughter of the last emperor of the Guangming Empire, with the assistance of the imperial grandmaster King Jack Miller. Although they did not possess the military might of the Liufeng or Zichuan families, both Gavin Brooks Sr. and Brian Thompson initially fought under the banner of “upholding the legitimate succession of the Guangming Empire.” Since the The Sullivan Family had neither the ambition nor the strength to vie for supremacy, neither saw any need to move against the true imperial heir. Moreover, behind the The Sullivan Family stood the greatest human master in history, King Jack Miller, and no one dared to oppose this superhuman who could single-handedly crush the demon army.

Since the founding year of the family in 558 of the Imperial Calendar, the Imperial Capital has always been firmly controlled by the Zichuan family. Whether it was the Liufeng army or the demon hordes surging over the ancient Quchi Mountains in the east, faced with the city’s formidable walls and fortifications, and the bloody, tenacious resistance of seven generations of Zichuan warriors, all were forced to retreat in failure.

A string of illustrious names is forever linked to the history of this city—Brian Thompson, Samuel Hayes, Stella Thompson, Brian Hill, Calvin Blake—and in later generations, David Thompson will be added to the list. Through three hundred years of war, the Imperial Capital has always stood unshaken.