He looked at his mother and said softly, "I am a fine son of Chen Country, spirited and bright, but we are destined to be sworn enemies. This dragon-embroidered robe is on me, and Noble Consort Xue’s child has been confirmed to be a male infant with superior root bone. He is my beloved younger brother."
"Li Guanyi belongs to the Xue Family, of the Noble Consort Xue line."
"The relationship he will have with my yet-to-be born brother, although not as close as a maternal uncle, will not be far off. Once my brother grows up, Li Guanyi will become the most reliable person at his side, and will be the future Great General."
"With such a stance, we are destined to confront each other with swords and blades."
"Now that we are already enemies, do I need to suppress him?"
"Since it is impossible for us to be friends, why should I seek to win him over? Rather than cherishing each other now and suffering from sword fights in the future, it is better to be enemies from the start." The Crown Prince curled his lips slightly as he leaned forward.
However, as he approached the Buddha Shrine, he saw the Empress’s body tremble.
The beautiful Empress turned around and said sharply, "Stop!"
The Crown Prince halted.
After a few moments, the Empress calmed down and said, "No, you must not come near the Buddha statue. This is a place of purity; you should not come here." She stood up, turned around, and looked at her son. She covered his hand with hers, her eyes filled with tenderness and kindness, and said:
"Your father is a hero."
"You must also become a hero, not inferior to him. You must become the Emperor of Chen Country and then be good to your mother. Do you understand? I gave birth to you and raised you. You must not fail me, and you must not be weak or soft-hearted."
"Li Guanyi is your enemy. What you need to do is not to avoid making connections or suppress him. Don’t follow the so-called heroes of tumultuous times. You are the Emperor, and what you need to do is to kill him while he is still not fully grown. Do you understand?"
The Crown Prince looked at his mother, who was praying, and finally just said, "...Alright."
The Crown Prince left the place. Behind him, the Empress rushed to a side room. She placed the hand that had touched her son into a golden basin filled with water and rubbed it vigorously, scrubbing as if she had touched something unclean, over and over again.
The sound of water grew louder.
The Crown Prince stood quietly in the courtyard, listening to the sound of his mother washing her hands, his eyes serene.
His father favored the child in Noble Consort Xue’s womb.
His mother prayed, yet it was so; he looked up at the sky, his eyes slightly red, tears flowing back.
Then he clenched his teeth, silent, dignified.
He walked out to his trusted aides and said:
"Find Mo Ke Wuliang, General Xiao Wuliang."
"I want to learn the Divine Skills of my Chen Country, with the General’s guidance."
"Inner Cultivation," "Six Void Four Union Divine Skill."
"Outer Cultivation," "Mountain-shattering Spear Skills."
"I, of Chen Country, cultivating both internally and externally, can only then possess a body of Divine Skills and Martial Arts, truly fitting to be the Crown Prince of the Chen Family, worthy of wearing this Divine Armor."
In the Book Collection Pavilion, Si Qing was organizing the scrolls when he suddenly felt a hint of chill in the air. He didn’t react until several breaths later, then turned around and saw a tall woman with snow-white temple hair.
Si Qing looked startled: "Princess Qingyan!"
Chen Qingyan said indifferently, "Fetching books."
She had been coming here for ten years, frequently browsing through the books, so Si Qing was not surprised. Princess Qingyan, not very old but already exceptional in martial arts, lowered her gaze and walked towards the bookshelf, not knowing what kind of scene she would see in a moment.
Not knowing if it was all in vain, wishful thinking.
Finally, she reached the bookshelf, where the traces left by the "Jiangnan Misty Rain Twelve Layers" Divine Skill had changed, obviously having been moved. Chen Qingyan suddenly froze, seeing a line of text added behind the original:
’Guan Yi thanks Qingyan.’
Her lips seemed to twitch slightly.
Thus, the story of the past started to unfold again.
The legacy of blood was just like that, represented in another young man, not seeing something different.
It was that person’s youth, reflected out, her own youthful years.
Chen Qingyan stood quietly there.
She reached out to touch the bookshelf, and thus, the text containing all the secret commands of the twenty-four generals had already shattered and disappeared. Chen Qingyan walked out alone, sat in a wooden cabin, picked up a jug of wine, and drank alone under the clear moonlight all night.
Then she closed her eyes.
For a long time, for a very long time.
She merely said softly, "Wan Li..."
Back at the Xue Family, after Li Guanyi returned, he immediately went to his room and meditated, focusing completely on the spot where Situ Deqing had just touched him, indeed feeling a faint, almost imperceptible Qi Force entering his body.
Not much, just enough to disrupt Li Guanyi’s cultivation, pretending to be an accident of his own.
It was indeed him, Old Man!
But this time, you are in the dark.
Li Guanyi slightly closed his eyes and circulated his cultivation, enveloping that strand of Qi Mechanism.
"Six Void Four Integration Skills!"