「Impossible! How could he possibly know my true identity... and the power backing me?!」
「Rallying his father's old subordinates... So the deposed Crown Prince Chen Xuan really did leave him a network of hidden loyalists. Master was telling the truth—there's more than just the Sun family...」
Liu Yue's face froze as she processed your arrogant words. Far from anger, she was completely stunned by the abrupt, drastic shift in your demeanor.
Your earlier exploits had already shaken her deeply—and with the amplified effects of your upgraded Purple-tier talent Silver Tongue, her doubts vanished in an instant.
Even though she seethed at your audacity to compare her powerful faction to mere dogs, she found herself instinctively believing every word you said.
「You really intend to go back and fight for the throne?」 Liu Yue bit her lip, her voice trembling slightly.
Events had spiraled far beyond her expectations. You were supposed to be nothing more than a pawn in everyone else's schemes—and yet here you were, ready to break free from the board and become the player.
「Fence-sitters who blow whichever way the wind blows always get burned in the end. I haven't even settled the score with you for plotting against me.」 You let out a cold laugh, reaching out to slap her face hard—leaving bright red marks in the wake of your palm.
The people behind Liu Yue wanted to eliminate your father and keep you alive—partly to replicate the Supreme Imperial Bone, but more importantly, to groom you into a puppet ruler they could control.
Whether Liu Yue was acting against her will or not didn't matter. This was a fate you would never accept.
As your hand made contact with her face, you noticed something odd about her. Her cultivation base didn't seem to match the power of a Celestial Realm cultivator she'd displayed earlier—and her personality was surprisingly timid for someone of her supposed status.
A Fifth-Rank Celestial at barely twenty years old? Even Chen Tai, hailed as the imperial family's top prodigy, couldn't compare to that.
But you didn't have time to dig deeper into her secrets. Ignoring her stunned, blank expression, you turned on your heel and strode toward the exit of the secret realm.
「Remember this—you only get one chance.」
Liu Yue watched your retreating figure, her expression a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. The aura of cultivation around her flickered erratically, as if two souls were warring for control of her body.
In the end, she didn't dare make a move to stop you. A nameless premonition gnawed at her—if she raised a hand against you, she would die.
....
You exited the secret realm and slipped silently to the outside of the Century Hotel.
At that moment, the hotel was under a ferocious siege, the sounds of clashing steel and exploding spiritual energy ringing out violently. But the Ghost Physician Venerable, cloaked and masked, hadn't joined the fray yet.
Behind him stood two figures: the Patriarch of the Li family and Shen Zhong.
Thanks to the orders you'd sent ahead, Sun Zhong had thrown open the hotel gates without resistance, letting the assassins storm in—and kill your decoy, Su Meng.
「It's done!」 The Ghost Physician Venerable heard the cheers erupt from the hotel and threw back his head in triumphant laughter.
You activated the You Can't See Me talisman, rendering yourself invisible as you closed in silently. You drew the Soul Devouring Demon Blade and struck twice in quick succession—slash! slash!
The Patriarch of the Li family and Shen Zhong fell instantly, their souls and a hundred years of lifespan consumed by the blade, temporarily merging with your own. You burned the stolen lifespan without hesitation, triggering the Undying Blade Spirit State.
「Who's there?!」 True to his reputation as a Celestial Realm powerhouse, the Ghost Physician Venerable caught a whiff of blood and tensed, his body bristling with killing intent as he reached for his weapon.
「Insolent dog! Bow before your prince!」 Your voice rang out like a clap of thunder, sharp and commanding.
The Purple-tier Silver Tongue talent unleashed its full power—ten, a hundred times stronger than its Green-tier form.
A look of dazed confusion flashed across the Ghost Physician Venerable's eyes, followed swiftly by abject terror. His knees buckled involuntarily, and he dropped to the ground with a thud. 「Your Highness, please spare—」
Splat!
A streak of blood-red light flashed. His head went flying, his eyes still wide with bewilderment as it tumbled through the air.
You'd slain the Ghost Physician Venerable—a Third-Rank Celestial—without even using the Nine Steps to the Heavens.
「Silver Tongue just keeps getting more terrifying.」 You murmured in awe, staring down at the fallen powerhouse.
This man, who'd pushed you to the brink of death multiple times in your simulations, was now nothing more than a corpse at your feet—weaker than a stray dog.
With the Ghost Physician Venerable eliminated, the biggest threat was gone. The Li family patriarch and Shen Zhong were dead too. The remaining assassins were nothing but lambs to the slaughter.
Moments later, Sun Zhong reappeared out of thin air, his Seventh-Rank Saint Realm cultivation bursting forth as he cut down every last assassin in the hotel.
「First, we kill a few dogs to collect interest. Next stop—the imperial capital.」 You turned and walked away, channeling your talisman mastery to condense a Rank 6 Talisman Boat, ready to depart.
This time, you chose not to contact Su Mei. You were about to step into a high-stakes game in the imperial capital—and a Su Mei who hadn't yet grown into her power would be nothing more than a liability, not an ally.
....
「Word of what happened in the Demon Capital won't stay hidden for long. The imperial capital will find out soon enough.」
「But not soon enough to beat me there.」
You piloted the Rank 6 Talisman Boat, which soared through the sky at a speed far surpassing any ordinary warship. In a matter of hours, you reached your destination.
Dusk had fallen, painting the sky in shades of hazy gray. You activated the Illusion Form talisman to alter your appearance, then slipped silently into the imperial capital's borders.
No one knew that the imperial capital's former number one playboy had returned.
As you wandered the streets, you heard no whispers of the Demon Capital incident—proof that you'd outrun the news.
Instead, you caught wind of something far more disturbing.
「Did you hear? The Sun family's Patriarch is in trouble! They say he was ambushed by monstrous clans in a secret realm, gravely wounded. He barely made it back alive, but now he's unconscious and clinging to life...」
「A few days ago, something stirred at the empire's Beast Seal Pass. According to Qianyuan law, every Celestial Realm family has to send a powerhouse to guard the pass. The Sun family's current head—a First-Rank Celestial—went personally... and he never came back.」
「....」
「Now the Sun family, one of the great Celestial clans, is falling apart. Their strongest fighters are dead, crippled, or comatose. They've even put Sun Shou in charge of the family affairs!」
「The Sun family must've pissed off someone powerful. How else could they suffer so many 'accidents' in such a short time?」
「They're so weak now... I heard the Gu family went to their mansion a few days ago and humiliated Sun Shou to his face. Times really have changed.」
「....」
Your face darkened with rage as you listened to the hushed conversations around you. You'd known the Sun family was in trouble—but you'd never imagined it was this bad.
The entire clan was being targeted deliberately. Their patriarch was comatose, their current head was dead, and every other Celestial Realm cultivator in the family had met with misfortune.
In the end, the burden of holding the family together had fallen to Sun Shou—a mere Seventh-Rank Saint Realm cultivator. You could only imagine the crushing pressure he'd been under these past few days.
「Sigh, enough about those unlucky souls. Did you hear? Tomorrow's the Gu family's Patriarch's birthday banquet...」