Read The Almighty Dominance Novel (Alexander Leonhart and Sophia Lancaster) by Sunshine Updated 2025 -26 - The Almighty Dominance Chapter 605

Alex had hoped—truly hoped—he would lose this fight.

He didn’t want to become the Dao partner of Hou Mei… or Li Qingxue.

Either path was a trap.

His plan had been simple: push Li Qingxue into the spotlight as a Core Disciple, create enough pressure and tension that Hou Mei would be forced to step back on her own.

Clean. Controlled. Effective.

But Li Qingxue…

She had no intention of helping him.

Not even a little.

If anything, she seemed determined to do the exact opposite—crushing his plan without hesitation and leaving him trapped in the very situation he was trying to escape.

“Jun Jiu,” Li Qingxue said coldly, “keep your delusions to yourself. You are not worthy of being my Dao partner. Give it up.”

Before Alex could respond, Hou Mei stepped forward, her tone soft but insistent, almost eager. “Jun Jiu, you heard Miss Li Qingxue. Why keep struggling? Come with me instead. Be my Dao partner.”

Her voice lowered, turning more intimate.

“We can even start now. I promise… I’ll make you happy. Forever.”

Alex would never allow that.

Not under any circumstances.

His entire plan had been built on a fragile illusion—that he and Li Qingxue shared some kind of connection. Just enough to create pressure. Just enough to make Hou Mei hesitate… and walk away.

It was never meant to be real.

But now, Li Qingxue was tearing that illusion apart without hesitation, rejecting him so coldly that there was nothing left for him to stand on.

So he had no choice.

If she refused to play along… then he would make it real himself.

Or at least—

Make it look real.

No matter the cost.

He drew a slow breath and lifted his gaze to her.

“Miss Li Qingxue,” he said, “no matter how many times you reject me… I am still a man who made a vow the moment I first saw you.”

“I swore to the heavens that I would love only you for the rest of my life—and become someone worthy of standing beside you.”

A ripple of murmurs spread through the crowd.

Even under her cold stare, he continued.

“Even if you reject me today… I will never stop loving you.”

Then he turned slightly and bowed to Hou Mei, his expression calm but firm.

“Miss Hou, I’m truly sorry. But I’m not the right person for you. My heart already belongs to someone… and I will never betray it.”

“Jun Jiu!” Li Qingxue’s voice rang out, sharp with anger. “I already told you—I will never accept you as my Dao partner! Get rid of that ridiculous idea!”

Alex met her gaze head-on, right there in front of everyone.

“Li Qingxue!” he shot back, his voice no longer restrained. “You may not have me in your heart—but it’s impossible for me not to have you in mine!”

The crowd fell silent.

“This is my life,” he continued, each word heavy with resolve. “And I’ve already chosen. You are the only one who will ever be in my heart. Even when I grow old… even if I never become your Dao partner… I will die with you still in my heart.”

Li Qingxue stood motionless, her presence alone freezing the air.

She was known to all—beautiful beyond compare, yet colder than winter itself. Countless people had fallen for her, only to be met with that same unfeeling gaze. That was why she was called the Pure Snow Sword Maiden.

And now, that icy gaze sharpened.

“I don’t like people like you liking me,” she said, her voice low and dangerous. “Take it back… or I will kill you.”

The threat hung in the air like a drawn blade.

Alex stood still, his emotions twisting into something tangled and unreadable.

This had never been about love.

Not really.

He had only wanted an escape.

He’d wanted to push Li Qingxue forward as a shield—to create enough distance between himself and Hou Mei so he could walk away.

But now…

Everything had spiraled far beyond his control.

“Can’t you just accept it and say yes?” Alex shouted, his voice raw, almost breaking.

But inside—

He had already sworn the opposite.

He would never chase Li Qingxue. Never disturb that cold, distant woman. Not now. Not ever.

This wasn’t love.

It was a performance.

A carefully constructed illusion—meant to show just how far he was willing to go, how deep his “feelings” ran, how impossible it would be to shake him off.

Because only something that intense…

Could force Hou Mei to step back.

Hou Mei moved quickly, her tone soft but urgent, as if trying to pull him back from the edge. “Jun Jiu, please. Just forget Miss Li Qingxue. She’s far beyond your reach. Her standards are too high for you. Choose me instead… it’s more realistic.”

Alex didn’t even look at her.

He stepped forward, his eyes locked onto Li Qingxue as if the world had narrowed to her alone.

“If you won’t let me love you… then kill me,” he said quietly.

The shift in his voice made it worse.

Because it wasn’t loud anymore.

It was certain.

“Because if I can’t love you… then this life has no meaning for me.”

Shock rippled through the surrounding disciples. Murmurs died mid-breath. No one spoke. No one moved.

All eyes turned to Li Qingxue.

Waiting.

Watching.

Inside, Alex was screaming.

Please… just forget me. I’m not going to chase you. I don’t want any of this.

But none of it showed on his face.

He had to make it real.

The deeper, the stronger, the more desperate his “love” appeared… the faster Hou Mei would let go.

Li Qingxue’s expression darkened, her cold beauty hardening into something dangerous.

“You really want to die,” she said flatly.

In the next instant, her sword was already in her hand.

A flash of steel.

A streak of white.

She moved like a gust of winter wind—fast, precise, merciless.

And then—

She struck.

The blade drove straight into Alex’s chest.

Gasps exploded across the arena.

No one had expected her to actually do it.

Blood surged out immediately, dark and thick, staining his clothes as the sword pierced through him—so deep that the tip emerged from his back.

And yet…

Alex didn’t move.

Didn’t flinch.

Didn’t even look down.

His eyes never left hers.

Li Qingxue had controlled the strike with terrifying precision. The blade missed his vital points by the narrowest margin—enough to wound, enough to threaten… but not enough to kill.

Not yet.

“Take back your words,” she said, her voice colder than the blade in his chest. “Or next time, I won’t stop.”

Alex stared at her, pale but steady.

“You can kill me,” he said, each word slow and deliberate. “But you’ll never kill my love for you… even after I die.”

Their gazes locked.

Cold against cold.

Neither willing to yield.

Then—

“Jun Jiu!” Hou Mei’s voice broke through as she rushed forward, panic finally cracking her composure. “You can’t die!”

But Alex had already moved.

With the last of his strength, his fingers flicked.

Thin, nearly invisible needles shot from his sleeve—fast, silent.

They struck Hou Mei before she could react.

Her body froze mid-step.

Her eyes widened.

Then all strength drained from her as she collapsed into a deep, unnatural sleep.

The crowd gasped again, stunned by the sudden turn.

Alex slowly raised his hand toward Li Qingxue, palm open—as if inviting the inevitable.

“Come,” he said softly.

“Finish it.”

Blood dripped steadily from his chest, soaking into the ground beneath him.

“I’m willing to die by your sword.”

His voice didn’t waver.

“Because living… without being able to love you…”

“…is the worst kind of life.”

He looked straight into her eyes.

“So now… take my life.”

Alex was gambling.

Gaia had already analyzed everything—the smallest shifts in Li Qingxue’s breathing, the angle of her shoulders, the tension in her grip. Every micro-movement pointed to the same conclusion: she had never intended to kill him. The strike had been meant to scare him—to force him to back down.

But human emotion was never that simple.

Push too far… and even someone like Li Qingxue might snap.

And if she snapped—

He would die.

So he chose to gamble.

Li Qingxue studied him in silence, her cold eyes sharp, as if trying to strip him down layer by layer.

“Do you know,” she said at last, her voice low and cutting, “that men are all the same? Betrayers. Unfaithful. Weak.”

Alex met her gaze without hesitation.

“Maybe many men are like that,” he said calmly. “But I’m not.”

“My love for you will be eternal. It will never end.”

Inside, his mind raced.

Gaia fed him possibilities—countless variations of tone, phrasing, expression. Each one calculated. Each one measured against her reactions.

He chose the one with the strongest emotional impact.

“There’s no such thing as eternal love,” Li Qingxue replied, unmoved.

“There is,” Alex said.

He stepped closer, ignoring the pain tearing through his chest.

“There is eternal love. Like mine for you.”

“If you die… I die with you. I’ll follow you into the afterlife—and I’ll still love you there. Because what I feel… what we have… is unbreakable. Not even death can end it.”

For a brief moment, even he hesitated.

Was that too much?

Did I push too far?

Li Qingxue’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“You would never do that,” she said.

“If you never give me the chance,” Alex replied, “you’ll never know.”

Her gaze hardened again.

“You’re too weak,” she said bluntly. “Too weak to be my partner.”

Alex didn’t flinch.

“Give me time,” he said. “I’ll surpass you.”

He had stood at that level once before.

This wasn’t arrogance.

It was certainty.

Li Qingxue held his gaze, reassessing him—recalculating everything.

“Fine,” she said at last.

A ripple moved through the crowd.

“If you can surpass me in ten years… I’ll give you a chance.”

“Five,” Alex said immediately.

The word came without hesitation.

“I only need five years. I’ll surpass you.”

Li Qingxue stared at him.

“You think you can surpass me in five years?” she said, a faint edge entering her voice. “I won’t stay the same. I’ll grow stronger too.”

“If I can’t surpass you in five years,” Alex said, “then I’ll choose death over living a life where I can’t love you.”

The surrounding disciples fell completely silent.

They stared at him as if he had lost his mind.

Or as if they were witnessing something beyond their understanding.

Li Qingxue’s expression shifted—just slightly.

“Your future is long,” she said, quieter now. She knew his talent. His potential—in cultivation, in alchemy, in everything. His path could reach heights few ever touched.

But Alex shook his head.

“Even if my future is long,” he said slowly, choosing each word with precision—following Gaia’s guidance—

“If you’re not in it… then I won’t walk that future at all.”

And this time—

There was no calculation in his eyes.

Only resolve.

A voice suddenly broke through the tension from the outer disciples.

“What a man!” someone shouted. “Miss Li Qingxue, you should give him a chance!”

“Yeah!” another added. “He’ll be loyal to you. You won’t find someone like him again!”

More voices rose—louder, bolder, feeding off one another. Ironically, many of Hou Mei’s supporters were now shouting the loudest, desperate to prevent Jun Jiu from becoming her Dao partner.

“Miss Li Qingxue, please accept Jun Jiu!”

“Accept him!”

“Accept!”

“ACCEPT!”

The chant spread like wildfire.

Hundreds of voices merged into one thunderous demand, echoing across the arena.

“ACCEPT! ACCEPT! ACCEPT!”

Then—

Li Qingxue raised her hand.

Silence fell instantly.

Not gradually.

Completely.

“Fine,” she said.

One word.

Cold. Clear. Absolute.

“I will accept the five-year promise.”

A collective gasp swept through the crowd.

She withdrew her sword from Alex’s chest in one smooth motion. Blood followed as the blade slid free, but she didn’t look back.

Without another word, she turned—

And soared into the sky, vanishing like a streak of white frost.

For a heartbeat, no one moved.

Then—

The arena exploded.

“YESSS!”

“Jun Jiu, you did it!”

“You’re accepted!”

“Jun Jiu!”

“JUN JIU!”

“JUN JIU! JUN JIU!”

Alex stood there, blood soaking his robes, barely able to remain upright.

A disciple shouted, eyes blazing with admiration.

“You see that? You shook her! Even Li Qingxue accepted you!”

Another laughed loudly.

“You’re a legend now! The man who forced the Pure Snow Maiden to agree!”

Alex’s lips parted slightly.

“…Forced?”

“Of course!” someone shouted. “That kind of devotion—who could refuse?!”

More voices piled on.

“You’re the most loyal man in the sect!”

“A man among men!”

“A true cultivator!”

Each word hit harder than the last.

Because none of it was true.

Alex’s hand trembled faintly.

“I…” he started—

Then stopped.

There was nothing he could say.

If he denied it—

Everything would collapse.

If he accepted it—

He would be trapped.

A slow, hollow realization crept in.

“…I can’t get out anymore,” he whispered.

No one heard him.

They were still cheering.

Still celebrating.

Still turning him into something he was never meant to be.

And for the first time—

Alex felt something worse than fear.

He felt trapped.

The cheers crashed like waves—overwhelming, deafening. His name echoed again and again, filled with excitement, disbelief, and awe.

But what none of them saw—

Was Li Qingxue, far above, far away, her cold expression finally softening.

A faint blush touched her cheeks.

And for the briefest moment—

She smiled.

Back in the arena, the referee stepped forward, his voice cutting through the chaos.

“The winner of the top-ranked outer disciple match… is Jun Jiu!”

Another wave of cheers erupted.

“Jun Jiu!”

“Jun Jiu!”

But not everyone celebrated.

A group of disciples—especially Hou Mei’s supporters—pushed forward, anger burning in their eyes.

“This isn’t fair!” one shouted. “The winner should be Hou Mei!”

“Exactly!” another snapped. “Jun Jiu already surrendered! He didn’t even enter the dual cultivation match. That means he lost!”

“No,” someone shot back. “The winner is Jun Jiu! Hou Mei is already down!”

Voices clashed.

Arguments ignited.

Tension snapped.

“How dare you say that?” one disciple barked, shoving another. “You think I’m afraid of you?”

“You’re just Hou Mei’s lapdogs!” the other fired back. “We stand with a real man! You think we’re afraid of you?!”

The insult hit hard.

For a heartbeat, everything held.

Then—

A fist flew.

It cracked across a jaw with a sickening snap.

Blood sprayed.

Another strike followed—then another. A knee drove into someone’s ribs hard enough to fold him in half. A body slammed onto the stone floor. Someone screamed. Someone laughed.

And then it broke.

Completely.

The argument didn’t turn into a fight—

It exploded.

Disciples lunged at each other from every direction. Robes tore. Bones collided. Elbows smashed into faces. A kick sent one man crashing into a row of others, knocking them down like dominoes. Someone grabbed a fistful of hair and slammed a head into the ground again and again until the screams turned wet and choked.

More joined.

More fell.

The noise became unbearable—shouting, roaring, the dull thud of flesh against flesh, the crack of impact, bodies colliding in chaos.

Techniques flared.

Energy burst outward.

One disciple was hurled through the air, crashing into a stone pillar hard enough to fracture it. Another was dragged down by three others, disappearing beneath a storm of fists and boots.

No sides.

No rules.

No restraint.

It wasn’t a match anymore.

It was a riot.

What began as cheers for victory—

Twisted into something savage.

Something violent.

Something completely out of control.