“Your Highness the First Prince, I would like to congratulate you on your engagement. I have often heard that your brilliance and power were without equal, and after today’s events, I would have to agree. My respect for you has only multiplied!”
“Haha… does Your Highness the First Prince still remember this old man? I held you when you were little and taught you the Four Books and Five Classics. It has been so long since we last saw each other, we must swap stories over a glass…”
“First Prince Your Highness, when I first saw the Second Princess, I just knew the two of you would be a perfect match. Now, it looks as if I was right. Hahaha!”
“Your Highness the First Prince, I have a stunning daughter. In fact, she’s standing right over there, the one I’m pointing to now. She would be glad to serve you. If Your Highness wishes, I shall have her delivered to your residence!”
“…”
Xia Yan had barely sat for over two minutes before several officials suddenly swarmed him. With a toast and a smile, they attempted to gain his favor by exploiting the depths of their connections, playing the sentimental card, and by trying to sell off their daughters, hoping one of them might become his concubine.
He managed a smile through it as he had expected this sudden change in attitude. A herd mentality governed these officials. Like most people in the imperial palace, they flocked to whoever they thought could provide them with the most benefit and most protection. At the moment, as the prince with the highest potential and highest chance to inherit the throne, he was that person.
But while he had become a sweet pie in their eyes, they had discarded his brothers off to the side. Not one official had yet attempted to speak to them. Even the officials who had once chosen to support them, now wanted to send him their regards. But because they didn’t think it would be wise to hit the faces of his brothers while in the main hall, they planned to pay him a visit once the banquet was over.
“How long will this group of snobbish old men continue to reveal this shameful appearance?”
“Hahaha, it seems we are the ones who are no longer of use now!”
“Isn’t this bitter experience similar to Big Brother’s? Are we now realizing his past level of distress?”
“Hey, look! The vision of all the beautiful women are now entirely on Big Brother’s body.”
“Okay, Eighth Brother, calm yourself. Your anger is pointless. If you had his skill, you could act as willfully as him, and if you shared his ability, you could defeat him. But since you can’t and you don’t, they will never look at you or us the way they look at him again!”
“…”
Before today, the twelve imperial princes had stood on equal ground. None had been able to gain a foot above the rest and monopolize the entire body of ministers and officials. But the moment Xia Yan revealed his unsurmountable strength, the officials chose to abandon them without hesitation. The twelve imperial princes were unwilling to face this situation. But they could do nothing more than stare, and realize the true pain of indifference and being ignored.
“Well, we are at least fortunate that Big Brother took Northern Wasteland City as his reward. Several city lords would’ve have died in that place if ‘Master Bai’ hadn’t been there to put down the previous rebellion… If Big Brother goes there, I am uncertain whether he will even be able to return alive.”
“Your right. While he goes and asks for trouble, we can sit idle and enjoy the fruits. Though it would be better if he had an accident before the Second Princess’s wedding.”
“Northern Wasteland City… it seems our big brother has spent too much time sheltered behind the walls of the imperial palace. He has already forgotten the immensity of Heaven and Earth. Anyone who can survive in that place is a vicious character. There is also hearsay that a few cultivators are not far from entering the Heavenspan Realm. Once they do, I fear not even Master Bai will be able to suppress them!”
“But isn’t this good news? Under the Heavenspan Realm all people are ants. Big Brother can only blame himself if one of them suddenly butchers him!”
“…”
Thoughts of Northern Wasteland City and Xia Yan’s possible demise, quickly rose the spirits of the twelve princes.
The most dangerous place of the Xia Kingdom was not the Spirit Beast Mountain Range, but Northern Wasteland City. Core, Small Extremity, and Grand Extremity Realm experts were as common as stray dogs. So what did it matter if Xia Yan was better than the Second Prince? To the people of Northern Wasteland City, Xia Yan was no more fearful than a lamb being led to the slaughter. The vicious characters of that place wouldn’t care about his status as the city lord or Emperor’s eldest son. Many of them had already committed numerous crimes. What was one more?
Once their big brother was dead, they would lose the most powerful contender to the throne. They didn’t even need to plan his death. They only needed to peacefully wait for the ‘good news’ to return to the palace.
…
Soon, the banquet ended and the nine-fire phoenix prepared to carry off the Second Princess of Tang.
According to proper law and custom, Xia Yan and the Second Princess would not meet again until the day of the wedding when Xia Yan would escort her back from the Tang Kingdom.
“I await your arrival.”
After Tang Xun’er left behind those four simple words, she mounted the nine-fire phoenix. The great beast flapped its wings and gradually lifted off. Xia Yan watched in silence as her form disappeared into the distance, vanishing among the horizon.
…
The next day, each official assigned a servant to carry the lavish gifts they had prepared for Xia Yan. Today, they planned to visit his residence and congratulate the newly-engaged prince and flatter him while convenient.
“What? He already left?”
The officials stood outside Xia Yan’s residence for quite some time when they were suddenly informed that the prince had already departed.
As they shared a blank stare at the unexpected news, Xia Yan spurred his ten thousand li azure-horned beast into a full gallop in the direction of Northern Wasteland City. If he had a flying mount such as the nine-fire phoenix he could have expected to make the journey within two-three hours. But it would take at least a fortnight with his beast of burden and that was because he had left his retinue behind. Moreover, the ten thousand li azure-horned beast was a symbol of the imperial family. No robber with any sense would dare to stop him and no local city lord would dare not welcome him with open arms.
However, he did not have the time to waste on meaningless pleasantries. The 99-day time limit had flooded him a sense of urgency. So he moved nonstop until the tenth day when he finally arrived at the most dangerous city in the Xia Kingdom, Northern Wasteland City!
“It seems the stories I’ve heard are true… there is nothing but yellow sand and wilderness for miles around. I can barely see any green,” he remarked, feeling as if he had arrived at the area beyond the Great Wall.
“Hmm?”
At this moment, Xia Yan looked up and saw a dark shadow flying in the sky, approaching quickly.
“First Prince Your Highness!”
When the figure was near, Xia Yan could finally make out some details. The person was a white-haired old man in a black robe.
“Master Bai,” he greeted, respectfully bowing his head to this man who was one of the two strongest people in all of Xia!
