The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

I wasn't sure what the new mutated variety of Corn Grass was.

On the way, Liszt had been contemplating the industrial transfer of Fresh Flower Town. Even without the prompts from the Smoke Mission, the idea of industrial relocation had crossed his mind.

The future would certainly revolve around the development of Black Horse Island.

His vision for Fresh Flower Town was clear: it was to serve as a trade hub for Coral Island and a location for cooperative industries.

He planned to relocate some industries with advanced intellectual property to Black Horse Island, within his own sovereign territory.

Once he roughly mapped out his plan,

he had arrived at Tulip Castle and soon met his cousin, Meioubao Taro. After exchanging pleasantries, he learned the reason for Meioubao's visit—his engagement to Angela Sapphire, the youngest daughter of the Grand Duke, had been set for August 17th, which also happened to be Angela's nineteenth birthday.

"Congratulations, Cousin," Liszt offered his good wishes.

Meioubao smiled, "Actually, there's not much to congratulate. After shedding singlehood, longing for the life I have now will not be easy."

"Indeed, especially since the other party is the Little Princess."

"Now that I'm engaged, your brother Levis also engaged to Marquis Roderick's daughter, it leaves only Li Vera and you... Now that you've become a Viscount, it's time to consider a Viscountess," Meioubao's matchmaking tendencies were still not subdued, even after arriving at Tulip Castle and taking such concerns to heart.

"I'm not in a hurry; time is on my side," Liszt interrupted promptly. He genuinely had no thoughts of marriage or children at present. He planned to wait until he was at least twenty-five or twenty-six before considering such matters.

"True, you are in the ascendant phase of knighthood's glory, and your future looks very bright. Do you know what Grandfather said about you three, father, and sons?"

"Oh, what did Grandfather say?"

"Grandfather said Uncle could become the new Marquis in the Grand Duchy." Meioubao glanced around, making sure no one was eavesdropping, "He said Levis could barely hold on to his achievements, but you... you might become the new glory of the Grand Duchy's younger generation if your strength can improve faster."

"I only advanced to Earth Knight after becoming an adult. Although I've now become an Elite Earth Knight, does Grandfather really think so highly of me?" Liszt felt curious.

His performance was extraordinary, but it still paled in comparison to real geniuses.

After all, those geniuses became Earth Knights before reaching adulthood.

Meioubao shrugged, "Grandfather said that he saw a strong confidence in your eyes, not the conceit common to geniuses but a calm confidence that you believe you can achieve greatness through effort. Honestly, I admit your eyes are bright, but not as bright as mine."

"Confidence and how bright someone's eyes look aren't quite the same thing, are they?"

By then Levis had come over, "Meioubao, Liszt, what are you two discussing?"

Liszt replied with a smile, "Cousin and I are comparing whose eyes are brighter, which shows who has more confidence."

"Hmm, is that so? Well, then I'm definitely in first place," Levis declared with an air of self-evidence, "Liszt can be second. As for Meioubao, after marrying the Little Princess, he's likely to live a dim and unilluminated life... Angela is not easy to deal with."

"I won't bring shame to the Long Taro Family. Just you watch; once Angela moves into Long Taro Castle, she will only be the lady of the house, and I... I will be the absolute master of Long Taro Castle."

Regarding this,

Liszt harbored doubts in his heart—he wasn't the kind to maliciously speculate about others' characters, but Angela Sapphire's reputation was truly poor.

Looking at Meioubao, who was still caught in the joy of his impending marriage to the princess, he silently prayed, "I hope Cousin Meioubao's hat doesn't turn green."

...

Meioubao had no plans to stay long in Tulip Castle, as many nobles still awaited his personal invitations; therefore, on the next day, July 25th, he left Coral Island.

"Angela is very sociable, she keeps in touch with many daughters of the great Nobles, don't worry, I will keep an eye out for you and strive to introduce you to a suitable noble lady to help you manage the castle," he said before leaving, still not forgetting to continue playing the role of matchmaker.

"Thank you."

Liszt said thanks, but inwardly he was speechless—dare he marry a noble lady introduced by Angela!

Birds of a feather flock together; Given Angela's open lifestyle, it was hard to believe that the noble ladies who socialized with her were very conservative.

After seeing off Meioubao,

Liszt soon received his reward for the Smoke Mission—the previous reward had been the Advanced Dou Qi Manual "Rising Sun Blaze".

This Advanced Dou Qi Manual was, in fact, brought over by Meioubao; the Earl's so-called trade of manuscripts meant trading with Long Taro Castle.

"Don't set your sights too high, Liszt, keep this Advanced Dou Qi Manual safe, and in a few years when you've advanced to a Sky Knight, then study it. At this stage, what you need is to earnestly consolidate your foundations... Right, I've been meaning to ask, when did you advance to an Elite Earth Knight?" the Earl queried in the study, speaking to Liszt alone.

This secret couldn't be kept—probably exposed during the battle at Iron Hoof Island, as his valiant fighting style, overpowering strength, clearly weren't things a Common Earth Knight could achieve.

"About a few months ago," Liszt replied humbly, "After exterminating the forces at Thorn Ridge, I gained a large amount of Magical Beast Meat, enough for me to engage in Dou Qi Cultivation. Moreover, I feel like my talent has begun to unfold, and perhaps I can make a push to surpass everyone and become the first Sky Knight."

The Earl's mouth hung open.

It took a moment before he said, "Your talent is indeed different from ordinary people. Seventeen-year-old Elite Earth Knight, a year earlier than your brother, maybe you really do have a chance to be the first to advance to a Sky Knight... However, I hope that between father and son, we can have more communication."

Liszt smiled awkwardly.

Perhaps he had been too overly cautious, treating the family of this body with wariness; in fact, he could afford to be more capricious—adopting the unreasonable stance of "my talent is unique".

He wanted to make amends.

So he said, "Maybe I've been holding my breath; I couldn't beat my brother or sister when I was younger. Now I want to achieve surpassing them to prove myself... Becoming a Sky Knight faster is the way to prove that my talent is not inferior to theirs."

"I understand. Maybe in the past, the pressure I put on you was too much, not only did it not help you, it may have suppressed your talent," the Earl, led by Liszt's words, began to find reasons in himself, "Fortunately, assigning you to Fresh Flower Town, the impoverished environment unleashed your talent."

"Arriving at Fresh Flower Town indeed gave me a new perspective."

"Now that you've become Viscount Black Horse Island, work hard on managing your own industries. The trade of Fresh Flower Brew, supported by Tulip Castle, should suffice for your daily expenses... I believe you can surpass Levis and become a Sky Knight earlier, after all, you carry the noble bloodline of Melissa and me!"