Chapter 17: The Second Prince, Chu Xiong

Once her suspicion was confirmed, Su Yanran’s expression immediately turned blank, and her head began to buzz.

There were no shortage of Second Rank experts among these corpses. By a rough count, there had to be seven or eight of them.

Lin Yu had fought so many Second Rank experts alone and killed every one of them?

How was that possible?!

This was far beyond anything Su Yanran could comprehend.

In the small grove, Su Yanran remained trapped in shock for a long while, unable to recover.

At that moment, the curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Chu Feng leaned out to cast a calm glance in the direction of the corpses.

Sensing that faint remnant of savage killing intent still lingering in the air, a trace of complexity flashed across Chu Feng’s face.

“After this battle, Lin Yu stepped into the First Rank.”

“Mm... Mm?!” Su Yanran jolted awake when she heard that. She stared at Chu Feng in utter disbelief, wondering if she had just misheard him.

In less than a day, from the early stage of the Second Rank to the First Rank?

Su Yanran had never even heard of such a speed of breakthrough.

“Let us go.”

Chu Feng shook his head and did not explain further. He withdrew his head and slowly lowered the curtain again.

Since Chu Feng would not say more, Su Yanran did not ask again. She obediently nodded, leapt onto the carriage, and drove it onward.

...

In the Great Xuan Dynasty’s Capital stood a secluded residence.

It sat in the very heart of the Capital, where every estate was worth a fortune. Those who lived there were all high-ranking officials of the Great Xuan Dynasty.

To the left was the residence of the Grand Chancellor, foremost among the civil officials. To the right stood the manor of the old general who held the highest prestige in the army.

As for the master of this residence, he was the Great Xuan Dynasty’s only Six-Pearl Imperial Prince—the Second Prince, Chu Xiong.

At that moment, in a sweltering room deep within the residence, a man with perfectly sculpted muscles stood beside a furnace, his upper body bare and his star-like eyes filled with concentration.

In one hand, he held a block of metal heated until it glowed red. In the other, he gripped a hammer and brought it down again and again.

Amid the steady rhythm of metal striking metal, the glowing block gradually took on the rudimentary shape of a sword.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door, interrupting his rhythm.

The man frowned, a trace of displeasure appearing on his face. He set down the hammer and tossed the sword blank back into the furnace.

“Enter,” he said in a low voice.

The door opened, and a general whose entire body radiated a grim aura of slaughter stepped inside.

“Your Highness, according to the scouts, Lin Yu has begun to move.”

“Today, after killing Ye Yong in Juexia Valley, he slaughtered several hundred more members of the Primordial Yang Sect. His strength has now entered the First Rank,” the general said with a bow.

Chu Xiong picked up the teapot beside him and drained it in one gulp.

After wiping the water from the corner of his mouth, Chu Xiong lifted his eyes. His gaze was deep and unreadable, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

“And my dear younger brother?” Chu Xiong asked as he looked at the general.

“Reporting to Your Highness, the Seventh Prince already encountered Lin Yu in Juexia Valley today. For now, there has been no interaction between them.”

“However, the Seventh Prince is traveling directly behind Lin Yu. It is obvious that he is headed for Shuxia Domain as well,” the general replied truthfully.

“That is good.” Chu Xiong nodded.

The general raised his head, glanced at Chu Xiong, and finally could not hold back any longer. “Your Highness, can Lin Yu alone truly shake the Primordial Yang Sect?”

“With Lin Yu’s potential, this subordinate fears...”

Chu Xiong smiled faintly. “With Lin Yu’s potential alone, naturally he cannot. But is my dear younger brother not there as well?”

The general shuddered inwardly and said in shock, “So Your Highness intends to borrow the Seventh Prince’s hand...”

Chu Xiong raised a hand to cut him off, his expression grave. “Lin Yu is merely a catalyst. To think he alone could clip Chu Jingshan’s wings would be nothing more than a fool’s dream.”

“But if my seventh brother enters the fray, the outcome will be very different.”

The general was shaken by the depth of Chu Xiong’s calculations.

From the very beginning, he had already planned to drag the Seventh Prince into this storm...

Chu Xiong chuckled softly. “Based on what I know of my seventh brother, once he learns the truth behind Lin Yu, he will absolutely not stand idly by.”

“When that time comes, whether it is the Primordial Yang Sect or my seventh brother who loses this game, it will bring me nothing but benefits.”

“Your Highness is wise!” the general said with reverence, bowing deeply.

Chu Xiong walked over to the general, patted him on the shoulder, and said in a heavy tone, “I know Lin Yu is a soldier you personally raised. It is only natural that you harbor some dissatisfaction toward me.”

“You and I both know the truth behind Lin Yu. I did not force him. This was his own choice.”

“I give you my word here and now: if the Primordial Yang Sect survives this ordeal, I will personally kill Lin Yu myself.”

Upon hearing this, the general was so overwhelmed with gratitude that he immediately bowed deeply to Chu Xiong.

After the general left, Chu Xiong returned to the furnace, drew out the block of metal with a pair of tongs, and resumed hammering it.

The measured sound of hammer blows once again echoed through the room...

...

Meanwhile, in the residence of the Third Prince, Chu Jingyun’s subordinates were, as always, reporting to him one by one on the events that had taken place within the Great Xuan Dynasty that day.

When he heard that Lin Yu had slain Ye Yong in Juexia Valley, Chu Jingyun’s interest was slightly piqued.

“If I remember correctly, this Lin Yu only entered the Hidden Dragon Ranking three months ago, did he not?”

“In just three months, he has become capable of killing Ye Yong. His talent is not bad. Is there any possibility of recruiting him for my use?”

“Reporting to Your Highness, this subordinate did try to recruit him in secret, but he refused.”

“Based on this subordinate’s observations, this boy most likely comes from the military,” Chu Jingyun’s subordinate said.

“Oh? From the military?” Chu Jingyun frowned slightly as an inexplicable unease arose in his heart.

He rubbed his chin and sank into thought. Then, very quickly, he seemed to realize something. His eyes instantly turned icy.

“Where is Lin Yu now?”

“In Shuxia Domain.”

“As expected!” A vicious chill surfaced between Chu Jingyun’s brows.

Glancing at his subordinate, Chu Jingyun said coldly, “Go deliver a message to Chu Jingshan for me. Tell him to deal with Lin Yu as quickly as possible.”

“Mother’s birthday is almost here. If this affects Mother’s birthday banquet, I will never let him off lightly!”

“Yes.” The subordinate’s body trembled, and he immediately turned to leave.

After the subordinate departed, the unease in Chu Jingyun’s heart grew even heavier. In his agitation, he smashed the table before him apart with a single palm strike.

The only reason he had kindly sent someone to warn Chu Jingshan was not because they were full brothers.

He simply did not want this matter to implicate their mother in the imperial palace.

“Hah!” Chu Jingyun let out a heavy breath, a cold light blazing in his eyes.

He stepped out of the room and looked toward the imperial palace in the distance.

Among all the princes, only two had power bases of their own within the military.

Those two were the Crown Prince and the Second Prince.

“I just hope that fellow Chu Jingshan can deal with this quickly this time,” Chu Jingyun sighed softly, though he did not truly hold much hope.

He knew those two all too well. When they did not move, they remained still. But once they acted, their moves were shocking.

Before making a move, they would have already prepared everything flawlessly.

This time, Chu Jingshan was in real danger.