On the other side of the NBN broadcast, the narrative slowed down for a moment of quiet character building.
The character Zoe was chatting with the elegant, white-haired Xander on a moonlit balcony overlooking the tournament grounds. She looked at him with genuine curiosity. "Why are you so wary of Asher Reed? Even if he can cultivate the 'Pure Lightning' with his... uh... 'intact' status, it's not like he can actually threaten your position in the Northern Sect, right?"
Starlight Management Headquarters.
Maya West was also leaning forward, her businessman's brain intrigued by the character dynamics. "That's a good question. Why does Xander act so gentle and saint-like in front of the public, yet he loses his cool the second he sees Asher Reed?"
"Could it be that Asher stole his girlfriend back in middle school? A classic cuckold origin story?" Della Rose teased, her eyes sparkling with mischief.
Then, they learned the truth.
"Stop trying to provoke me," Xander said on screen, his voice heavy with a self-reflective sadness. "I know... I'm just taking my internal anger out on that kid. Years ago, I made a grave mistake with a single, impulsive thought. I chose a path that made me 'imperfect' in the eyes of my sect's traditions."
Xander looked at his own hands, the moonlight reflecting off his white hair. "So, there is no way for me to inherit the 'Pure Lightning', the symbol of a True Successor. Who can I blame? It was my own doing. Now, seeing Asher Reed holding the very thing I lost, I lash out. It only proves my own cultivation isn't deep enough. Perhaps... I really should find an opportunity to apologize to him."
The audience's perception of Xander shifted instantly. He wasn't just a petty antagonist anymore; he was a tragic figure capable of recognizing his own flaws.
But just as the atmosphere became serious and academic...
"We've known each other for so long, Xander," Zoe said, blinking her eyes ingratiatingly. "Just tell me... who took your 'First Blood'? I promise, on my soul, I won't tell a single person in the Sect!"
The first blood mystery?! The global audience was shocked and instantly hooked. They looked at the elegant, "decadent saint" Xander and tried to imagine who could have possibly seduced him.
But on the other side of the mountain, there was another mystery reaching its "explosive" conclusion!
That was... Asher Reed's "Reed Family Assets."
On the screen, Asher Reed, completely drunk and leaning against the massive bonfire rock, had completely let himself go! He wasn't just acting; he was committing to the "Shameless" persona with 200% effort.
His hands moved toward his belt. "You want to see it?! Fine... then let's see it!!"
Asher Reed unbuttoned his pants and let them drop.
VROOOM!
A golden flash of light instantly soared into the night sky, illuminating the entire Appalachian range!
"ROAR~!"
Accompanied by a deafening, cinematic dragon's roar, a bolt of divine lightning flashed across the clouds! A golden, gargantuan dragon manifested within the light, roaring with a power that felt truly terrifying!
The audience watching at home was dumbfounded.
Good lord!
The special effects were too exaggerated! This wasn't a "suggestive joke"; this was a million-dollar VFX sequence for a man's crotch!
The male viewers across the country all unconsciously looked down at their own laps, then back at the screen. Golden Dragon?
The female viewers, meanwhile, were laughing behind their hands, many smiling knowingly. Asher Reed is really brave for this, they thought. But to be fair, in that silhouette... it really is quite impressive.
The delayed laughter finally hit the internet like a tidal wave. The live chat on the NBN app was bombarded with comments like rockets:
[SHOCKED MY MOM FOR FIVE HUNDRED YEARS! Hahahahaha!!! I can't breathe!]
[Asher Reed! I didn't expect you to be a hidden Master, with a literal Divine Dragon hidden in your pants! Is this your ultimate move?!]
[999! That is just damn amazing! I'd like to see anyone look down on Asher from now on. The moment a fight breaks out, he drops his pants, releases the dragon, and the enemy retreats in terror!]
[Asher needs to hire bodyguards when he leaves UCLA now. Some female 'Outcasts' are definitely going to covet that golden dragon!]
[This man actually did this on NBN 1! Leo Vance is worse than a beast for filming this!]
Taohuayuan Town. The "Mountain Retreat" Living Room.
Silence! A heavy, pressurized silence!
It was the kind of silence where you could hear the sweat dripping off Asher Reed's forehead.
Then... Pfft!
Gordon Ramsey was the first to lose it. He had been mid-bite into a cold slice of watermelon. With the sudden laugh, a spray of red fruit and seeds shot across the coffee table.
"Hahahaha!" Gordon waved a hand frantically, his mouth twitching, his whole body almost collapsing off the sofa from laughter. "Oh my god! I can't... I'm dying... Asher, son, you're too good at this! That's 'Masterclass' commitment!"
The laugh was like a trigger. The entire room was instantly filled with joyful, hysterical howling.
Asher Reed had tried to maintain a "professional actor's smile" while watching the TV. After all, the show was currently live-streaming their reactions. But when the laughter started, his smile didn't just disappear, it shifted into a look of absolute "Social Death."
Zane was holding his stomach, shaking on his stool. He looked at the roaring golden dragon on the screen and gave Asher a frantic thumbs up. "Haha... I can't take it anymore, Asher... I'm impressed! You're the King!"
Dakota Fanning, as the "younger sister" of the group, was usually more introverted. Under normal circumstances, she would never laugh at something this crude. But...
"Hahahaha!" Dakota covered her mouth, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons. She swore she didn't mean to, but her gaze unconsciously darted toward Asher's real-life lap for a split second before she looked away, blushing furiously.
Asher Reed saw that gaze. His face instantly turned from pale to charcoal black! Dakota! Not you too! I didn't expect you to be this kind of girl!
But what made Asher feel slightly relieved was that there was still one person who wasn't laughing.
Ryan, the host, was sitting next to him. He was silent.
"Ryan... thank you for being a real one," Asher whispered.
Then he saw it. Two thick, glistening tears were streaming down Ryan's cheeks. His mouth was twitching violently, his face a bright, dangerous shade of purple.
"Ryan? Why are you crying?" Asher asked, terrified.
Actually, it wasn't that Ryan didn't want to laugh. As the ceiling of the hosting world, he had received "Professional Training." He had been holding it back with every fiber of his being, and those two tears were the result of the immense internal pressure.
"Haha..... I'm sorry, Asher," Ryan finally burst out, lying back on the sofa and laughing even louder than Gordon Ramsey. "I disappointed you! I've received professional training, and I usually don't laugh... unless I really, REALLY can't help it!"
He had held it in for too long; the release was explosive.
As the room laughed, Asher Reed actually entered a state of "Sage Mode." His mindset shifted in an instant. He remembered a saying: "Walk your own path, let others talk." Or in this case: "Show your own dragon, let others see."
At least Director Leo didn't let the dragon reveal its 'true' form, Asher thought with a strange, open-minded pride. That's a blessing. And... is being 'Big' really that embarrassing? No. I'm Big, and I'm proud!
A brilliant, confident smile actually appeared on Asher's face in the cabin. He had survived the ultimate social death. He had evolved. His upper limit as an actor had just been raised to the stratosphere.
And at that moment, the scene on the TV reached its "climax."
Asher Reed's display continued. Doghead (the red-haired student) adjusted his glasses, his eyes shining with an academic fervor. "There are symbols composed of Qi vaguely flowing on the scales! But unfortunately... they seem a bit blurry! I can't read the incantation!"
"Can't see clearly?!"
The drunk, red-faced Asher Reed roared on screen. "It's okay! Then I'll mobilize my True Qi! That way, you'll see everything!!"
On the scales and the body of that majestic golden dragon, milky-white, mysterious ancient symbols suddenly manifested. They were exquisite, captivating, and glowed with a holy light that bathed the entire bonfire party.
The audience was silent once more. They realized that this wasn't just a joke. Hidden within the "Bird Stroll" was the key to the entire Reed family legacy. Leo Vance had used the world's most "Shameless" scene to deliver the show's most "Sacred" information.
The "Celestial Peak" era had officially arrived. And everyone was looking at the dragon.