Chapter 115: Chapter 113: Zhao Xinghe’s Nightmare

A flicker of surprise finally appeared in Qin Li’s eyes, giving Wang Chao a sense of satisfaction. ’I thought you didn’t care about anything, kid,’ he thought. ’So there are things that can surprise you after all, huh?’

"Heh, Young Master Qin, was it that you didn’t expect I was with the Second Prince, or that you didn’t expect me to arrive so quickly?" Feeling he had scored a point, Wang Chao asked Qin Li with a grin.

"Neither."

"Hmm? What was it, then?" Wang Chao asked, somewhat surprised.

"Heh, I just didn’t expect you to be so forthcoming about your identity. I thought you’d act all mysterious, point to the sky, and say, ’Don’t be afraid, little brother. You have backing from above!’"

Watching the young man mockingly recite the exact words the Second Prince had instructed him to say, Wang Chao finally realized what a monstrous talent was sitting across from him. He no longer dared to hold even the slightest shred of contempt for him. After adjusting his mindset, Wang Chao felt that this might actually be a good thing.

An old proverb was popular on the continent: It’s not the god-like enemy you should fear, but the pig-like ally!

No matter how powerful an enemy is, there’s always a way to defeat them. But if an ally is a fool, they won’t just drag you down—they might ruin everything completely!

"Heh, Young Master Qin, you jest. I have come this time with the Second Prince’s sincerity. The Second Prince asked me to tell you that there will be no problems from the Daqing Gang’s leader or from General Du Wei. You may continue with your business. The Second Prince thinks very highly of you, Young Master Qin. When he has time, he will grant you a personal audience and speak with you in detail!"

As he spoke, Wang Chao stood up and smiled faintly. "I hope that we can be frank with each other from now on. I believe Young Master Qin’s reckless actions today are related to that incident a few months ago."

Qin Li smiled but did not deny it.

Wang Chao continued, "Frankly, only a fool would think the Second Prince fears the Daqing Gang. How could his grand ambitions be understood by common gossips? Young Master Qin is certainly no ordinary man. You must understand what the Second Prince is planning, right?"

Qin Li just kept smiling and didn’t respond.

Wang Chao nodded in satisfaction and smiled at Qin Li. "A man as intelligent as you, Young Master Qin, will surely achieve even greater heights in the Cyan Dragon Kingdom than you did in the Great Qi Kingdom. Bringing glory to your family will be a simple matter!"

At this, Qin Li said coolly, "I am just a fallen noble with simple desires. All I seek is peace. Therefore, anyone who tries to mess with me had better be prepared to pay the price! The Qin Family may have been in decline for a hundred years, but we still have some wealth. Had I been born in our family’s glorious era, I would have certainly been a prodigy of dazzling talent!"

As he spoke, a faint, blue, spectral light erupted from his body, vanishing in a flash.

The force of it sent Wang Chao stumbling back five or six steps, his back slamming into the wall with a THUD. The immense pressure was so great that for a moment, he felt like he couldn’t breathe.

A look of absolute terror finally appeared on Wang Chao’s face. This time, it was completely genuine.

Blue... Earth Level!

’This kid is actually an Earth Level Martial Artist! Heavens, how old is he? Seventeen? Eighteen? He’s definitely not even twenty, yet he already has the power of an Earth Level expert!’

’No wonder he dared to be so arrogant with the Daqing Gang! No wonder he paid Little General Du no mind! Even if that group today had been stronger, he could have killed them all with one hand!’

’And even if he had killed them, as long as he immediately pledged loyalty to the Royal Family, His Majesty would have surely protected him! An Earth Level Martial Artist under the age of twenty... his future accomplishments are simply limitless!’

’A person like this... I must get him to join the Second Prince’s camp, no matter what!’ A fiery passion surged through Wang Chao. He felt that this time, he had truly struck gold.

"Young Master Qin, you are a great talent! When I return, I will report your wishes to His Highness exactly as you stated. I believe the Second Prince will grant you an audience very soon."

After closing up the shop, Qin Li and Bu Yunyan returned to the third floor. Bu Yunyan asked softly, "How did it go?"

Qin Li smiled faintly. "That group today came at just the right time. I don’t think I’ll need to participate in that tournament after all."

"Ah? You’re not... actually thinking of joining the Second Prince’s camp, are you? Young Master, even though I’m just a woman, I’ve heard how brutal the princes’ fight for the throne can be. Besides... aren’t Qin Feng and Qin Hu also with the Second Prince?" Bu Yunyan’s delicate brows furrowed, showing her concern.

"Who said I was going to join the Second Prince’s camp?" Qin Li shrugged. "He wants to use me as a pawn, to be his vanguard against the Daqing Gang and that damn Little General Du. Why would I join him? Hmph. That Wang Chao is quite the character, agreeing to so much on the spot without batting an eye, but how could I not see his original intentions?"

Qin Li gave a cold smile and continued, "As for Qin Feng and Qin Hu... they’re just two stray dogs. What’s there to fear? I just showed that Wang Chao the power of an Earth Level Martial Artist. Between one Earth Level expert under twenty and two Profound Level experts under twenty, who do you think the Second Prince will choose? Besides, I won’t let them know I’m the Qin Li they despise until the day they die!"

Bu Yunyan giggled. "You really are a bad man. You changed your appearance but insisted on using your old name. I imagine it’s not just Qin Feng and Qin Hu—even the Crown Prince will be furious when he finds out. He’ll be inherently hostile to you because that name carries far too much shame for him!"

Bu Yunyan was exactly right. That evening, Crown Prince Zhao Xinghe received a full report on the matter. When he heard that the young man with the aristocratic Great Qi accent was also named Qin Li, and that an investigation confirmed he was indeed a descendant of a glorious noble family from Great Qi a century ago, Zhao Xinghe reportedly flew into a rage. He smashed several priceless antique vases, overturned an extremely expensive agarwood table, and finally kicked apart a thousand-year-old huanghuali wood chair, cursing furiously before he finally stopped.

Everyone knew the source of the Crown Prince’s obsession: that bastard son Qin Li from the Qin Family of Yellow Sand City. The name had become a nightmare for Zhao Xinghe, causing him sleepless nights. The mere thought of it sent a chill down his spine.

A Celestial Level Tributor!

The master who had taught him since childhood had been brutally tortured and killed. And that thirty-meter-long white cloth, with those few blood-soaked sentences, had devastated Zhao Xinghe so badly that he’d nearly committed suicide.

He refused to believe that Qin Li could have done it himself. Considering the changes in Qin Li before he left Yellow Sand City, almost everyone believed that there had to be a peerless expert backing him—a supreme master capable of even fixing the flaws in the ’Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, Only I am Venerable’ technique!

Some even suspected that Qin Li’s master was more powerful than a supreme expert of the Celestial Shattering Realm. This was because experts of the Celestial Shattering Realm had once studied the ’Only I am Venerable’ technique and found the damage it caused to the user to be incurable. Even if a supreme expert of the Celestial Shattering Realm were to cultivate it, the most optimistic outcome would be merely surviving a few more cycles of Nirvana.

These matters were considered secret even within the Royal Family. Zhao Xinghe’s status as Crown Prince meant he knew more than others, including his younger brother, the Second Prince Zhao Xinghai.

That was why he was afraid. Even his father, the current Emperor Zhao Yuanli, was both shocked and enraged. On one hand, he loathed his son for colluding with a major family behind his back; on the other, he was furious at the humiliation the Royal Family had suffered and swore to capture that Qin Li and have him torn to pieces.

But after that, the little bastard of the Qin Family vanished without a trace, like a drop of water falling into a river.

After such a long time to recover, Zhao Xinghe’s nightmare had finally begun to fade. Furthermore, an apology from the Shangguan Family and personal intervention from Princess Consort Shangguan had rekindled his ambitions. In truth, it wasn’t that he absolutely had to marry Shangguan Shiyu; rather, he coveted the Shangguan Family’s immense wealth and formidable power.

Twenty Celestial Tier experts. Then there was the rumor that Shangguan Shiyu had been taken away as a disciple by a mysterious master. That might not be false. At the time, Zhao Xinghe had chosen to forget about that incident, but while he never spoke of it, he had long since committed it to memory.

Therefore, if he could bind the behemoth that was the Shangguan Family to his war chariot, and with the help of the childless Princess Consort Shangguan in the palace, his position as Crown Prince would be unshakeable.

After his father the Emperor passed away, he would become the new Emperor of this kingdom!

But he never expected that this name—the one that made him jolt awake from nightmares—would appear before him once again. And all the evidence pointed to one fact: this Qin Li was not that Qin Li. A person’s appearance could be changed, but their native accent was the hardest thing to alter. Just look at the merchants from other kingdoms on the bustling streets of Cyan Dragon City; many had lived there for over thirty years, but the moment they opened their mouths, out came their local dialect.

And it was precisely for this reason that Zhao Xinghe felt such extreme fury. ’Damn it,’ he thought, ’does every person named Qin Li have a fucking grudge against me?’

Because the person pulling the strings behind the Daqing Gang was none other than him, Zhao Xinghe.

The leader of the Daqing Gang was merely an Earth Level subordinate that Zhao Xinghe had recruited some years ago. This was hardly a secret among the true elite. Otherwise, why would the Second Prince, Zhao Xinghai, have backed down during that dispute over a woman?

He simply didn’t want to have a complete falling-out with his older brother, the Crown Prince, so early on.

"Anyone named Qin Li is a bastard! An animal!" Zhao Xinghe had locked himself in his room. After venting his rage, he panted heavily and cursed, "Damn you, you little bastard, where the hell are you? Don’t let me find you, or I’ll carve you into a thousand pieces! Aaargh... Damn it all!"