Chapter 117: Imperial Court of Yunyang Country
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Donghuang, are you speaking the truth?” Lin Lan asked seriously.
“Mm.” Zhou Donghuang nodded.
“Which family is she from?” asked Lin Lan anxiously. “Is she a lady from a reputable family? Or just an ordinary family? You are already eighteen and an adult who can get married. If the two of you love each other, can I visit her family someday? After that, you can marry her on a favorable day.” Lin Lan seemed anxious to marry Zhou Donghuang off so that she may hold a grandchild soon.
“Mother, she is not from this planet,” answered Zhou Donghuang, shaking his head sadly.
“What do you mean?” replied Lin Lan with a frown.
“I meant that she is not from Ziyun planet,” said Zhou Donghuang.
“Not from this planet? You mean she is from another planet?” Lin Lan’s eyes narrowed. “From what I know, only magnificent pract.i.tioners who have achieved Primal Core stage can leave the planet. Are you trying to tell me… she is someone like that?”
“Yes,” answered Zhou Donghuang, nodding seriously.
“Donghuang, your power… could it be from her?” Lin Lan breathed in sharply as she asked.
Zhou Donghuang was stunned: he had never imagined that his mother would link his power with Luo Qinghan. But soon, he realized. From his current performance, it was indeed unusual, but if he had gotten into contact with a magnificent pract.i.tioner, his power would make more sense.
“Yes,” he nodded.
Lin Lan’s brows furrowed. “Donghuang, since she is a magnificent pract.i.tioner who has entered the Primal Core stage, how old is she? As far as I know, on Ziyun planet, magnificent pract.i.tioners who have achieved the Primal Core stage are all at least a hundred years old. The younger ones are all almost a hundred years old. Although they may live up to three centuries… but at such an old age, won’t it affect their fertility?”
“Mother,” responded Zhou Donghuang, laughing. “She is not that old, at most just two or three years older.”
“Just two or three years older than you but achieving the Primal Core stage? You think I’m stupid?” Lin Lan clearly did not believe him.
“Mother, just two days ago in Tianxiu City, you told me… there is always someone better. There are some planets out there with twenty-year-old adepts achieving the Primal Core, some even younger than that,” replied Zhou Donghuang.
Quickly, using practice as his excuse, Zhou Donghuang escaped to his room and sat cross-legged on the bed frame, but he could not calm himself. Towards Luo Qinghan, even he was unsure of what he felt towards her.
Was it responsibility? Or had he really fallen for her? The former was acceptable, but the latter was simply unimaginable because they had only met once and did not know each other at all. As someone who had been single for a whole millennium, Zhou Donghuang was still clueless about relations.h.i.+ps.
…
Yunyang country was ruled by the imperial court, the Jiang family. For a country like Yunyang, the innermost city was the imperial city, while the imperial city of Yunyang country was named the Yunyang imperial city.
The palace of the imperial court was found within the imperial city. As the ruler of the country, the Jiang family was so high in status that even the royal households of the big ridges meant nothing to them.
And now, the atmosphere was tense in the imperial court. This was all caused by someone’s sudden appearance.
From the Chu royal city of the Western Chu Ridge, the second elder of the Chu royal household, Xiang Donghua had finally reached the imperial city of Yunyang country. Xiang Donghua was a Petty Consummate adept, but standing in the imperial court, he was afraid to even breathe. Every person in there, including the man sitting on the throne, were Great Consummate adepts. Before these people, his petty consummation of the Qi-Gathering meant nothing. In fact, any of them could easily kill him.
“I understand everything that you just said.” The man sitting on the throne was clad in a long robe embroidered with nine golden dragons. His appearance was fearsome, his thick brows completing his cold look. He was none other than the emperor of Yunyang country and chief of the imperial Jiang family, Jiang Tianchen. He was also one of the many Great Consummate adepts in the imperial family.
“Commander Xiao,” said Jiang Tianchen, his eyes landing on a man in golden armor. The man looked almost sixty years of age, half of his hair was white, yet his eyes were ferocious. He was none other than the commander of the imperial guard, Xiao Jiancheng. He was also a famous Great Consummate adept in Yunyang country.
“I remember… four years ago, I ordered you to go to the Lost Forest and kill those two golden-crowned eagles. But then, not only did you fail, but many of those with you also perished.” Jiang Tianchen looked at Xiao Jiancheng and said, “I also heard that in the past four years you have been working on your bow and arrow skills, even going to the second elder from the Valley of Medicine Masters to pick up the second-grade arrow technique ‘Guanhong Arrow.’ Are you confident of shooting down those two golden-crowned eagles?”
Second-grade technique? Hearing this, not only Xiang Donghua, but everyone else present also turned to look at Xiao Jiancheng.
“Commander Xiao, you even went to learn a second-grade technique from the Valley of Medicine Masters? And an arrow technique? Looks like what happened four years ago really affected you!”
“Second-grade technique… Commander Xiao, even if you had some ties with that second elder from the Valley, it must have taken a lot to exchange for that technique?”
“Commander Xiao, I’ve never heard you mention this at all… you really hid it well!”
…
The other Great Consummate adepts in the court all burst into a discussion. Clearly, they had just found out about this.
“Based on Commander Xiao’s strength, with the second-grade technique ‘Guanhong Arrow.’ The two golden-crowned eagles should not pose any problem.” Xiang Donghua, the second elder of the Chu royal household, looked at Xiao Jiancheng as if he could already imagine the two eagles being killed by him.
“Your Majesty,” said Xiao Jiancheng, his expression dark. “I do not dare to boast in front of you. With my current ability with the arrow, even with the second-grade technique, I am only half-confident of handling those two eagles. If you give me a few more years…”
Jiang Tianchen interrupted him, “We don’t have that much time.” He smiled sadly. “If I lend you the Cloud Condor… how confident will you be?”
“Cloud Condor?” Xiao Jiancheng’s eyes lit up and cried, “Your Majesty, with the Cloud Condor, I am fully confident of killing those two golden-crowned eagles!”
The Cloud Condor was a flying beast trained by the imperial family and was a Petty Consummate demon like the golden-crowned eagle. Its speed was similar to the eagle, but if the two beasts were put to a fight, any of the eagles could easily kill it. The golden-crowned eagle hailed from the Lost Forest and was wild and used to killing. However, the condor was just like a flower in a greenhouse. Based on speed, it was not slower, but it was not the eagle’s match when it came to killing.
“With the Cloud Condor’s speed and Commander Xiao’s power, the two eagles will be no problem!”
“So what if the young man achieved Great Consummation of the Qi-Gathering? Can he be stronger than Commander Xiao, who reached that stage ten years ago?”
“Commander Xiao and the Cloud Condor will definitely triumph!”
The other people in the court also seemed to envision the triumphant scene.
Xiang Donghua, who was standing at the side, was similarly excited. With Commander Xiao and the Cloud Condor together, wouldn’t it be simple to defeat both Zhou Donghuang and the two golden-crowned eagles?
“Commander Xiao.” Hearing Xiao Jiancheng’s confidence, Jiang Tianchen nodded with satisfaction and added, “That young man called ‘Zhou Donghuang,’ if he really is someone from an inferior prefecture… try your best to keep him alive and bring him back here. He could really have gotten the essence from a magnificent pract.i.tioner of the Primal Core stage.”
Jiang Tianchen’s eyes s.h.i.+mmered. If he could gain that essence, their Jiang family could even be more powerful than the Valley of Medicine Masters!