On the chariot stood two rows of soldiers in shining golden armor, and judging from their aura, they were all Martial Masters.
A group of people slowly walked down the bronze deck. The leading man had a folding fan in his hand, and there was a hint of arrogance on his smiling face, as if he acknowledged no one on the platform.
“You are here at last, Young Master Yushan!” Qin Yang hurriedly went over and greeted the man. He looked so excited as if he had just met his greatest savior. “Lord Yangbiao is not here with you?” the prince glanced up at the chariots.
Zhou Yushan frowned and put away the folding fan in his hand. A hint of unhappy look crept up his face as he said coldly, “Does such a small matter require my father’s personal attention?”
Qin Yang quickly bowed and said, “No, there’s no need. I’m confident that Young Master Yushan alone can settle this matter.”
Zhou Yushan snorted, as if his arrival alone was already a great honor for Qin Yang. He stepped on the platform and glanced around from the corner of his eye, and when he saw everyone wearing respect and fear on their faces, he smiled triumphantly and felt satisfied.
Suddenly, he sensed several indifferent glances, which made him extremely uncomfortable. ‘How could someone look at me like that?’ His eyes grew cold as he turned to look at the few people. But, what he saw made his eyelids twitch instantly. “Yuan…Master Yuan Hao! Why are you here?”
In addition to Yuan Hao, he knew Wang Chen as well, who was staring at him with a sneer. Although he did not know the others beside them, he could tell they were alchemists from their demeanor. ‘Why are so many alchemists here?’
Yuan Hao smiled and said, “Well met, Young Master Yushan! I’m here on business.”
“Business?” Zhou Yushan frowned. Yuan Hao’s so-called business should be something related to the alchemist association. Although he had a high status and was usually arrogant, he did not dare to show disrespect to the alchemist association. So, he said in a friendly tone, “I’m also here for some small matter, and I’ll leave once I’m done. I will not disturb you and your friends.”
He turned and glanced at the courtiers of Tianshui, and then rested his eyes on Qin Zheng. With a hint of a mocking smile on the corner of his lip, he held his head high and said proudly, “Qin Zheng.”
The tone in his voice was like a superior calling a lowly servant.
A trace of anger flashed through Qin Zheng’s eyes, but he dared not show it on his face. “What is it, Young Master Yushan?” he said in a deep voice.
“What is it?” Zhou Yushan cocked his head and smiled. “No one except His Majesty the Emperor of the Firecrow Empire dares to talk to me like that! However, considering that you are old, I will forgive you. I’m here today for the appointment of Tianshui’s crown prince. Qin Yang is a good man, so he will be the crown prince!”
Qin Zheng’s chest heaved with fury. He gave Qin Yang a cold look before saying, “Young Master Yushan, the appointment of the crown prince is an internal affair of Tianshui, and I don’t think you should intervene. Besides, I’ve already decided who the crown prince is—my son Qin Yue!”
Under Zhou Yushan’s cold gaze, he stood up trembling and cried out in the loudest voice possible, “I hereby announce that Qin Yue is the crown prince of the state of Tianshui, and I am now officially abdicating the throne. The enthronement ceremony will be held in three days!”
“Long live Your Majesty the Emperor! Long live Prince Qin Yue!”
The hundreds of thousands of soldiers cried out at the same time, their voices towering into the clouds and ringing across the world!
Extremely excited, Qin Yue dropped to his knees and wept. “Father! I… I…”
With a smile, Qin Zheng patted him on the head and said, “Stand up! You will be the emperor of the state of Tianshui in three days, so how can you show such a weak look?” After that, he lifted his eyes and shot a fierce look at Qin Yang, who was as pale as a sheet. “I was originally more optimistic about you, but you have disappointed me. I can’t believe you colluded with outsiders to interfere in the internal affairs of our state, which I absolutely cannot allow!”
Zhou Yushan felt he was almost turned deaf by the loud cries of the army. He pointed at Qin Zheng and growled, “Old codger, how dare you disobey me!”
Staring at him coldly, Qin Zheng scoffed, “The future of Tianshui will be decided by me! If your father were here, I might show him some respect. But you? Hmph! You may leave now!”
“You…! Old codger!” Zhou Yushan trembled with rage, and his voice was thick with killing intent. “Fine! Since you insist to go on your own way, let’s see who will be the new crown prince when your current one is dead!”
It was a blatant threat, and Qin Zheng flew into a rage. He could not believe that someone dared to threaten to kill the crown prince in front of all eight hundred thousand soldiers of the state!
Suddenly a discordant voice rang out, “Who is this guy? He looks like he’s quite something.”
“Who is it? Who’s talking!” Zhou Yushan turned back abruptly and shouted in fury.
“Hah!” Wang Chen laughed. “He’s the eldest son of the Zhou Family of the Firecrow Empire. Because of his prominent family background, he usually behaves like this. Don’t be offended, Young Master Yun.”
“Oh, so he’s the son of some official? No wonder his nostrils are pointing at the sky. Is he not afraid that water will fall into them when it rains?”
“Haha!” Wang Chen clapped his hands and burst out laughing. “You do have a good sense of humor, Young Master Yun! But you’re right. Every time I see him, his nostrils are always pointing upward, so I don’t know if there’s any water in them.”
Yunxiao smiled and said, “Well, I don’t know if there’s water in his nostrils, but I’m sure that his head is filled with water 1.”
“Hahaha!” Wang Chen roared with laughter and stared mockingly at Zhou Yushan. It seemed that there was resentment between them in the past.
“Wang Chen!” Zhou Yushan’s nostrils flared, then he turned his eyes to Yunxiao and growled, “And you, little bast*rd! How dare you laugh at me! You’re digging your own grave!”
He made a dash, and he was in front of Yunxiao in the next instant, swinging his folding fan down toward the latter’s head. There was a long streak of fire in the air where the fan passed, looking like a flaming dragon descending from the sky.
That gave Li Chunyang, who was standing to the side, a shock. But, he saw a figure bolt over when he was about to strike, and in the blink of an eye, a huge axe appeared in the air, hacking down hard at the folding fan and sending sparks flying in all directions.
The folding fan was clearly not some ordinary item, as it did not break under the great axe’s powerful strike. Zhou Yushan’s pupils constricted, and he retreated in a hurry, looking at the beautiful figure who fell from the sky and stood before Yunxiao with an axe in hand.
Zhou Yushan was taken aback, and he stared blankly at the face for a moment. Although his attack was blocked, it was the first time he did not get angry. Instead, he said in shock, “You…Who are you? A five-stars Martial Lord!”
Luo Yunshang transformed the axe in her hand into its miniature form and put it away. “I’m a teacher from Jialan Academy,” she said coldly.
“Jialan Academy? I’ve heard of it. What’s your name? Why are you protecting this guy? Do you know that to oppose me is to die?”
Luo Yunshang frowned. She felt this guy was especially annoying, so she simply ignored him. She turned to Yunxiao and asked, “Are you all right, Yunxiao?”
“I’m fine!” Yunxiao answered with a smile. “Although this fella is also a Martial Lord, it will not be so easy for him to hurt me.” He might be no match for Zhou Yushan, but he would have no problem dodging the attack.
Luo Yunshang nodded and said, “Good!”
The cold shoulder they gave Zhou Yushan instantly made his face turn dark with rage. “Hey boy, if you have the balls, stop hiding behind a lady!” he bellowed. “Step forward and fight me one-on-one!”
“Fight you one-on-one?” A mocking smile brushed Yunxiao’s lips as he said, “You, a five-stars Martial Lord, are challenging me, a three-stars Martial Master, for a one-on-one fight? Brother Yushan, your face is so thick that it can be used to build the city wall.”
Zhou Yushan blushed a little, then he gave a cold snort and unfolded his fan, putting on the air of a gentleman. “If you don’t have the balls, just say it! Well, I can spare your life as long as you kneel in front of me and kowtow until I’m satisfied.”
“I’m not afraid of a one-on-one fight,” Yunxiao sneered. “But, I fear that your face is too thick for me to punch. Wouldn’t that make you invincible?”
“Haha!” Wang Chen burst into laughter once again. “Young Master Yun, you really got to the point. It seems that I’ll have to be on guard against this when I fight him in the future. I think this guy probably has the strongest facial defense in the entire Firecrow Empire. Haha!”
Zhou Yushan finally exploded, and he screamed while pointing at Yunxiao, “Kill this boy!”
“Understood!”
A faint voice rang out from behind him, and then a man dressed in black stepped out and flew toward Yunxiao like a ghost. Luo Yunshang’s pupils constricted. Suddenly, she struck out her axe, but it shrunk back to its miniature form when the man just lightly slapped it with a hand.
“A Martial King!”
Shocked, Luo Yunshang threw out her palms, but then she saw something flash before her eyes. In the next instant, both her shoulders were slapped by the man. She felt all her strength leave her arms, and they fell feebly down.
“Hmph! You have to step over my dead body before you can hurt my grandson!” Li Chunyang roared as his aura exploded and he took a step forward, shaking the whole platform. Then, he waved his fists, throwing two fireballs toward the black-clad man.
“A mere one-star Martial King! Back off!” The man gave a contemptuous snort and pushed out his palms. Two jets of air pierced through the void and stopped the fireballs, knocking them back.
In consternation Li Chunyang twisted his body and dodged the fireballs, which then smashed straight onto the platform, collapsing half of it instantly. The flames that fell under the platform began to lick and crawl up the supporting structure.
Xiao Qingwang had been watching quietly beneath the platform. Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes and gave the horseback a light slap before jumping up into the air and flying toward the platform. As soon as he landed, he punched out eight jets of air that roared like dragons as they rushed at the black-clad man.
“An eight-stars Martial King? Xiao Qingwang!”
The man was shocked. Not daring to be careless, he quickly drew a circle in front of his chest with both hands, causing beams of golden light to shot out of his fists toward the jets of air.
Bam!
The attacks collided and created an explosion on the platform, throwing many courtiers to the ground. For a moment, the air rang with screams and shrieks. Meanwhile, teams of warriors rushed over and stood before Qin Zheng and others, protecting them from any possible assaults. However, in the face of a battle between two Martial Kings, they all looked horrified, fearing that they would be slain just by random attacks.
On the chariot stood two rows of soldiers in shining golden armor, and judging from their aura, they were all Martial Masters.
A group of people slowly walked down the bronze deck. The leading man had a folding fan in his hand, and there was a hint of arrogance on his smiling face, as if he acknowledged no one on the platform.
“You are here at last, Young Master Yushan!” Qin Yang hurriedly went over and greeted the man. He looked so excited as if he had just met his greatest savior. “Lord Yangbiao is not here with you?” the prince glanced up at the chariots.
Zhou Yushan frowned and put away the folding fan in his hand. A hint of unhappy look crept up his face as he said coldly, “Does such a small matter require my father’s personal attention?”
Qin Yang quickly bowed and said, “No, there’s no need. I’m confident that Young Master Yushan alone can settle this matter.”
Zhou Yushan snorted, as if his arrival alone was already a great honor for Qin Yang. He stepped on the platform and glanced around from the corner of his eye, and when he saw everyone wearing respect and fear on their faces, he smiled triumphantly and felt satisfied.
Suddenly, he sensed several indifferent glances, which made him extremely uncomfortable. ‘How could someone look at me like that?’ His eyes grew cold as he turned to look at the few people. But, what he saw made his eyelids twitch instantly. “Yuan…Master Yuan Hao! Why are you here?”
In addition to Yuan Hao, he knew Wang Chen as well, who was staring at him with a sneer. Although he did not know the others beside them, he could tell they were alchemists from their demeanor. ‘Why are so many alchemists here?’
Yuan Hao smiled and said, “Well met, Young Master Yushan! I’m here on business.”
“Business?” Zhou Yushan frowned. Yuan Hao’s so-called business should be something related to the alchemist association. Although he had a high status and was usually arrogant, he did not dare to show disrespect to the alchemist association. So, he said in a friendly tone, “I’m also here for some small matter, and I’ll leave once I’m done. I will not disturb you and your friends.”
He turned and glanced at the courtiers of Tianshui, and then rested his eyes on Qin Zheng. With a hint of a mocking smile on the corner of his lip, he held his head high and said proudly, “Qin Zheng.”
The tone in his voice was like a superior calling a lowly servant.
A trace of anger flashed through Qin Zheng’s eyes, but he dared not show it on his face. “What is it, Young Master Yushan?” he said in a deep voice.
“What is it?” Zhou Yushan cocked his head and smiled. “No one except His Majesty the Emperor of the Firecrow Empire dares to talk to me like that! However, considering that you are old, I will forgive you. I’m here today for the appointment of Tianshui’s crown prince. Qin Yang is a good man, so he will be the crown prince!”
Qin Zheng’s chest heaved with fury. He gave Qin Yang a cold look before saying, “Young Master Yushan, the appointment of the crown prince is an internal affair of Tianshui, and I don’t think you should intervene. Besides, I’ve already decided who the crown prince is—my son Qin Yue!”
Under Zhou Yushan’s cold gaze, he stood up trembling and cried out in the loudest voice possible, “I hereby announce that Qin Yue is the crown prince of the state of Tianshui, and I am now officially abdicating the throne. The enthronement ceremony will be held in three days!”
“Long live Your Majesty the Emperor! Long live Prince Qin Yue!”
The hundreds of thousands of soldiers cried out at the same time, their voices towering into the clouds and ringing across the world!
Extremely excited, Qin Yue dropped to his knees and wept. “Father! I… I…”
With a smile, Qin Zheng patted him on the head and said, “Stand up! You will be the emperor of the state of Tianshui in three days, so how can you show such a weak look?” After that, he lifted his eyes and shot a fierce look at Qin Yang, who was as pale as a sheet. “I was originally more optimistic about you, but you have disappointed me. I can’t believe you colluded with outsiders to interfere in the internal affairs of our state, which I absolutely cannot allow!”
Zhou Yushan felt he was almost turned deaf by the loud cries of the army. He pointed at Qin Zheng and growled, “Old codger, how dare you disobey me!”
Staring at him coldly, Qin Zheng scoffed, “The future of Tianshui will be decided by me! If your father were here, I might show him some respect. But you? Hmph! You may leave now!”
“You…! Old codger!” Zhou Yushan trembled with rage, and his voice was thick with killing intent. “Fine! Since you insist to go on your own way, let’s see who will be the new crown prince when your current one is dead!”
It was a blatant threat, and Qin Zheng flew into a rage. He could not believe that someone dared to threaten to kill the crown prince in front of all eight hundred thousand soldiers of the state!
Suddenly a discordant voice rang out, “Who is this guy? He looks like he’s quite something.”
“Who is it? Who’s talking!” Zhou Yushan turned back abruptly and shouted in fury.
“Hah!” Wang Chen laughed. “He’s the eldest son of the Zhou Family of the Firecrow Empire. Because of his prominent family background, he usually behaves like this. Don’t be offended, Young Master Yun.”
“Oh, so he’s the son of some official? No wonder his nostrils are pointing at the sky. Is he not afraid that water will fall into them when it rains?”
“Haha!” Wang Chen clapped his hands and burst out laughing. “You do have a good sense of humor, Young Master Yun! But you’re right. Every time I see him, his nostrils are always pointing upward, so I don’t know if there’s any water in them.”
Yunxiao smiled and said, “Well, I don’t know if there’s water in his nostrils, but I’m sure that his head is filled with water 1.”
“Hahaha!” Wang Chen roared with laughter and stared mockingly at Zhou Yushan. It seemed that there was resentment between them in the past.
“Wang Chen!” Zhou Yushan’s nostrils flared, then he turned his eyes to Yunxiao and growled, “And you, little bast*rd! How dare you laugh at me! You’re digging your own grave!”
He made a dash, and he was in front of Yunxiao in the next instant, swinging his folding fan down toward the latter’s head. There was a long streak of fire in the air where the fan passed, looking like a flaming dragon descending from the sky.
That gave Li Chunyang, who was standing to the side, a shock. But, he saw a figure bolt over when he was about to strike, and in the blink of an eye, a huge axe appeared in the air, hacking down hard at the folding fan and sending sparks flying in all directions.
The folding fan was clearly not some ordinary item, as it did not break under the great axe’s powerful strike. Zhou Yushan’s pupils constricted, and he retreated in a hurry, looking at the beautiful figure who fell from the sky and stood before Yunxiao with an axe in hand.
Zhou Yushan was taken aback, and he stared blankly at the face for a moment. Although his attack was blocked, it was the first time he did not get angry. Instead, he said in shock, “You…Who are you? A five-stars Martial Lord!”
Luo Yunshang transformed the axe in her hand into its miniature form and put it away. “I’m a teacher from Jialan Academy,” she said coldly.
“Jialan Academy? I’ve heard of it. What’s your name? Why are you protecting this guy? Do you know that to oppose me is to die?”
Luo Yunshang frowned. She felt this guy was especially annoying, so she simply ignored him. She turned to Yunxiao and asked, “Are you all right, Yunxiao?”
“I’m fine!” Yunxiao answered with a smile. “Although this fella is also a Martial Lord, it will not be so easy for him to hurt me.” He might be no match for Zhou Yushan, but he would have no problem dodging the attack.
Luo Yunshang nodded and said, “Good!”
The cold shoulder they gave Zhou Yushan instantly made his face turn dark with rage. “Hey boy, if you have the balls, stop hiding behind a lady!” he bellowed. “Step forward and fight me one-on-one!”
“Fight you one-on-one?” A mocking smile brushed Yunxiao’s lips as he said, “You, a five-stars Martial Lord, are challenging me, a three-stars Martial Master, for a one-on-one fight? Brother Yushan, your face is so thick that it can be used to build the city wall.”
Zhou Yushan blushed a little, then he gave a cold snort and unfolded his fan, putting on the air of a gentleman. “If you don’t have the balls, just say it! Well, I can spare your life as long as you kneel in front of me and kowtow until I’m satisfied.”
“I’m not afraid of a one-on-one fight,” Yunxiao sneered. “But, I fear that your face is too thick for me to punch. Wouldn’t that make you invincible?”
“Haha!” Wang Chen burst into laughter once again. “Young Master Yun, you really got to the point. It seems that I’ll have to be on guard against this when I fight him in the future. I think this guy probably has the strongest facial defense in the entire Firecrow Empire. Haha!”
Zhou Yushan finally exploded, and he screamed while pointing at Yunxiao, “Kill this boy!”
“Understood!”
A faint voice rang out from behind him, and then a man dressed in black stepped out and flew toward Yunxiao like a ghost. Luo Yunshang’s pupils constricted. Suddenly, she struck out her axe, but it shrunk back to its miniature form when the man just lightly slapped it with a hand.
“A Martial King!”
Shocked, Luo Yunshang threw out her palms, but then she saw something flash before her eyes. In the next instant, both her shoulders were slapped by the man. She felt all her strength leave her arms, and they fell feebly down.
“Hmph! You have to step over my dead body before you can hurt my grandson!” Li Chunyang roared as his aura exploded and he took a step forward, shaking the whole platform. Then, he waved his fists, throwing two fireballs toward the black-clad man.
“A mere one-star Martial King! Back off!” The man gave a contemptuous snort and pushed out his palms. Two jets of air pierced through the void and stopped the fireballs, knocking them back.
In consternation Li Chunyang twisted his body and dodged the fireballs, which then smashed straight onto the platform, collapsing half of it instantly. The flames that fell under the platform began to lick and crawl up the supporting structure.
Xiao Qingwang had been watching quietly beneath the platform. Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes and gave the horseback a light slap before jumping up into the air and flying toward the platform. As soon as he landed, he punched out eight jets of air that roared like dragons as they rushed at the black-clad man.
“An eight-stars Martial King? Xiao Qingwang!”
The man was shocked. Not daring to be careless, he quickly drew a circle in front of his chest with both hands, causing beams of golden light to shot out of his fists toward the jets of air.
Bam!
The attacks collided and created an explosion on the platform, throwing many courtiers to the ground. For a moment, the air rang with screams and shrieks. Meanwhile, teams of warriors rushed over and stood before Qin Zheng and others, protecting them from any possible assaults. However, in the face of a battle between two Martial Kings, they all looked horrified, fearing that they would be slain just by random attacks.
