The victory over Grandmaster Zhan Hu sent shockwaves through the neighboring domains. The "Trash Librarian" was no longer a joke; he was a shadow that loomed over the hearts of every Sect Leader. But inside the Heavensward Institute, Gaurav was facing a different kind of storm—one that even the Sovereign Archive couldn't easily calculate.
The Sovereign Tower was silent, save for the crackling of the fireplace. Gaurav sat at his desk, but his mind was focused on the two powerful women standing before him.
Empress Mo Rong and Matriarch Zhu Feng were looking at a letter that had arrived via a spirit-eagle. The parchment was stained with blood and smelled of high-grade jasmine—the signature scent of the Blue-Lotus Empire.
"She's coming here, isn't she?" Zhu Feng asked, her voice dangerously calm as a small flame danced on her shoulder.
Gaurav sighed, leaning back in his chair. "The Blue-Lotus Empress, Lady Yue, was betrayed by her husband, the Emperor. He tried to sacrifice her soul to break through to Level 10. She has escaped, but she is heavily wounded and has nowhere else to go."
"And of course, she comes to the 'Master of All Realms'," Mo Rong sneered, her silver eyes glowing with a cold jealousy. "Tell me, Gaurav, is our Academy becoming a sanctuary for every beautiful, married woman in distress? Or are you planning to expand your 'private' student list?"
Gaurav stood up, walking toward his two dominant wives. He took their hands in his, feeling the heat of one and the ice of the other. "She is a Level 9 Peak expert with a broken 'Mirror-Soul' physique. If she falls into the Emperor's hands, he will become a God and destroy everything within ten thousand miles, including this Academy. I am not saving a woman; I am preventing a catastrophe."
"Hmph," Zhu Feng turned her head away, but she didn't pull her hand back. "If she stays, she follows our rules. She might be an Empress, but here, she is just another 'patient' under your care."
[DING!]
[System Alert: Target 'Lady Yue' has entered the Academy's Outer Perimeter.]
[Condition: Critical. Soul-Mirror is 90% shattered.]
The Broken Empress
The gates of the Academy creaked open as a figure stumbled through the violet mist. Lady Yue was the vision of a fallen goddess. Her sapphire robes were torn, and her skin—usually glowing with the light of the Blue-Lotus—was pale and grey.
In her hand, she clutched a shattered silver mirror. Every time a crack appeared on the mirror, a fresh wound opened on her body. This was the curse of the Mirror-Soul—her life was literally tied to her cultivation artifact.
Gaurav arrived at the gate just as she collapsed. Before she hit the mud, he caught her. The Eye of the Sovereign flashed instantly.
[Target: Lady Yue (The Broken Empress)]
[Status: Soul-Bonded Artifact Shattered. Time to Death: 4 hours.]
[Analysis: She is the 'Perfect Administrator.' Potential 5th Wife.]
"Help... me..." she whispered, her eyes fluttering. "He... he is coming."
"Let him come," Gaurav said, his voice cold as he lifted her in his arms. He looked at Old Man Wei, who had hurried down from Cauldron Peak. "Wei! Prepare the Holy-Ice Bath. Liu Fei, I need your purest Holy Energy to stabilize her pulse. Now!"
The Confrontation: The Blue-Lotus Emperor
Gaurav didn't even have time to carry Lady Yue to the infirmary before the sky turned a dark, bruised blue. A massive war-chariot, pulled by nine blue dragons, descended from the heavens.
The Blue-Lotus Emperor, Mu Chen, stood atop the chariot. He was a man of terrifying presence, his Level 9 Peak aura suffocating every student in the courtyard.
"Gaurav!" Mu Chen's voice was like thunder. "Hand over my wife! She is my property, my cultivation catalyst! You have no right to interfere in the internal affairs of the Blue-Lotus Empire!"
Gaurav stopped. He didn't turn around. He handed Lady Yue to Mo Rong, who, despite her jealousy, took the wounded woman with a protective glare.
Gaurav turned to face the Emperor. He looked small standing on the ground, but the Sovereign Archive began to hum, projecting a massive, translucent library behind him that reached into the stratosphere.
"Property?" Gaurav's voice was soft, but it echoed in the souls of everyone present. "In my Academy, there is no property. There are only students, teachers, and those who are about to be corrected."
"You dare?!" Mu Chen roared, drawing a sword that glowed with the power of a dying star. "I am a Level 9 Peak Sovereign! I am a step away from Godhood! You are nothing but a librarian who found a few lucky treasures!"
Mu Chen lunged, his sword-light carving a path of destruction through the air.
Gaurav didn't move. He didn't use a God-Binding Leaf. He didn't even use his Holy or Demonic energy. He used the Archive's Analysis.
"Mu Chen, your 'Blue-Lotus Heart' has 1,200 flaws," Gaurav said, his eyes glowing gold. "Your 43rd meridian is clogged with greed, and your 7th level of the Blue-Lotus technique is built on a foundation of stolen souls. You aren't a God; you are a house of cards waiting for a breeze."
Gaurav simply raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
[Technique Active: Sovereign Nullification — Frequency Overload]
The Blue-Lotus sword-light didn't hit Gaurav. It hit an invisible barrier that reflected the energy back at the Emperor, but at a frequency that targeted the 'Flaws' Gaurav had just identified.
CRACK.
The Emperor's sword shattered. The nine blue dragons turned into mist as their soul-bonds were severed by Gaurav's "Correction." Mu Chen gasped, coughing up blood as his own cultivation began to implode.
"How... how can you break a Level 9 Peak technique with a snap of your fingers?!" Mu Chen screamed, falling from his chariot.
"Because I am the one who wrote the 'Rules' you are trying to break," Gaurav replied, walking toward the fallen Emperor. "You wanted to sacrifice your wife for power? Then you shall spend the rest of your life as a 'Specimen' for my students."
Gaurav looked at Old Man Wei. "Wei, we need a new subject for your 'Immortal-Testing' pills. This Emperor has a very resilient body. Make sure he stays alive... but in constant pain."
"With pleasure, Master!" Wei grinned, his eyes gleaming with a mad-scientist's joy.
The Healing of a Queen
Inside the Sovereign Tower, Gaurav sat beside the Holy-Ice bath where Lady Yue was submerged. Zhu Feng and Mo Rong were also there, watching carefully.
Gaurav placed his hand on Lady Yue's forehead. He began to channel Holy Energy, but this time, he mixed it with the Demonic Essence to create a 'Spirit-Glue' for her shattered mirror.
"Yue," Gaurav whispered. "Your husband is gone. Your Empire is no longer yours. But here... you can be more than a catalyst. You can be a Master of Management. I need someone to handle the 12 Departments while I focus on teaching."
Lady Yue opened her eyes. The sapphire glow returned to her pupils, but it was deeper now, tempered by the Sovereign's power. She looked at Gaurav, then at his two fierce wives. She saw the jealousy, the protection, and the absolute power.
"I have spent my life being a mirror for others," she whispered, her hand reaching out to touch Gaurav's. "If you can fix my soul, I will be the mirror that reflects only your glory."
[System Notification: Lady Yue has been Bound as the 'Sovereign Administrator'.]
[Relationship Level: Devoted Wife (Pending Approval of the First Two).]
Zhu Feng snorted, though her flames were smaller now. "Well, at least she knows how to organize. The library was getting messy anyway."
Mo Rong sighed, her silver eyes softening. "Fine. But she sleeps in the East Wing. Far away from Gaurav's private chambers."
Gaurav smiled, pulling all three women into a group embrace. The Academy was growing, the harem was expanding, and the Grand Academy Competition was drawing closer.
The Hidden Threat: The 5th Disciple
While the Academy celebrated the arrival of the "Administrator," the Archive pulsed with a new notification.
[DING!]
[New Target Located: The 'Slow' Prodigy.]
[Location: The Village of Stone. He is a boy who has been 'punching' a waterfall for 10 years without stopping.]
[Talent: Absolute Physical Supremacy (The Body of the Primal God).]
Gaurav looked toward the distant mountains. "A boy who punches waterfalls? It seems it's time to find my Grandmaster of Body Tempering."