832 14.108 Last Violet Star – (Past) Golden Core
Wen Hong made a remark regarding Bai Wuan and Yun Xiajie’s relationship, but they weren’t outraged by it; instead, they nodded in agreement.
Holding his husband’s hand, Bai Wuan inquired, “Can I ask why a member of the direct lineage of the Royal Family suddenly emerged in such a lowly inn?”
Bai Wuan made Wen Hong and his sworn brother uncomfortable with this question. The latter in particular took a position in front of his older brother and took a cautious glance at the young man with the silver hair.
“Who the hell are you?!”
With such a callous attitude toward his sweetheart, Yun Xiajie scowled. This time, he drew his blade and gave the two adults a chilly stare. At the same moment, as Wen Hong stopped his sworn brother from attacking, Bai Wuan stopped his husband from doing so.
Wen Hong said to his brother, who was stunned by the situation, “Calm down. We can’t beat them,” and then he made a nice attempt to not approach the young couple. He is clearly aware that if he approaches them, the young man in the white robe will savagely cut him.
“Please pardon my younger brother’s foolishness. I hope you forgive us,” said Wen Hing as he lowered his head.
Until he was certain that the man in front of them wasn’t trying to provoke a fight, Yun Xiajie regarded him with wary eyes. While withdrawing his sword from its sheath, the Second Young Master Yun warned them.
Yun Xiajie warned the people in front of them, “Don’t get any closer. I’ll cut you if you do,” and then he checked on Bai Wuan to see whether he was hurt in any way. “Jing’er, are you all right?”
.....
“Don’t worry. I don’t care about them,” said Bai Wuan with a smile as he squeezed his lover’s arm. The two were once again flirting without any care for their surroundings.
“Nice to meet you. I have formerly been surnamed Wen and named Hong. As this young man in blue had said, I am indeed someone from the royal family. Though this old man had left the Imperial Palace for years. My brother and I were rogue cultivators and not connected to any sect or clan. The reason we return to the capital is...”
“You were summoned back. The fight for the throne. The reigning Emperor is dying...” said Bai Wuan.
Smiling, Wen Hong said, “As expected. Young man, you either work for an intelligence force or... you own one. Can I ask how you recognized this old man?”
“Red hair is something only those with the pure bloodline of the royal family possess. This is because their main element is fire and this regal lineage is loved by flames. Your hair is even a deeper shade than the Emperor in his prime. You are obviously one with a thicker lineage. How come you didn’t sit on the throne yourself? Is it because of your family? Or something else...” questioned Bai Wuan.
Yun Xiajie frowned and asked, “He is really from the Royal family?”
“Um. The younger brother of the current emperor. He must be called back because none of the current princes and princesses are worthy of the throne. All of them are useless, greedy, and corrupt. Just after the current Emperor had been bedridden for his sickness they immediately started eliminating their rivals. Right now there is only the Crown Prince, third prince, Second Princess, and the youngest princess still alive.”
“The Youngest Princess is the Empress’s beloved daughter. She is doing her best to protect her only daughter. She is also the Crown Prince’s biological sister so he chooses not to eliminate her”
“The Second Princess is not interested in the throne and she had been married to one of the young generals, General Long. So the Crown Prince was hesitant to move her. The Third Prince was able to rival the Crown Prince’s influence and half of the court-martials were on his side including the Prime Minister. But this might change as the Crown Prince plans to get the Xie Clan to become involved.”
“I was skeptical why the Crown Prince would risk getting involved with the Xie Family. Now that this person is here then things can be understood...”
“A Spy,” said Yun Xiajie.
Bai Wuan said, “Yes. It is even hiding in the Main Palace where the Emperor lives. So the moment the most loyal subordinate of the Emperor moved, the crown prince’s plan had changed as well.”
Yun Xiajie glance at Wen Hong and asked, “Jing’er, do you think he is suitable?”
“I don’t know. But compared to the others he is more competent than the rest. It’s better if he took over. I don’t want to make a move if he doesn’t agree to sit on that throne,” said Bai Wuan.
Wen Hong is a smart man in his own right. He could decipher the underlying messages that the man with silver hair is attempting to convey through his remarks. At this point, he also adopted a serious expression as he posed a specific inquiry.
“What would you do if there aren’t any living people suitable to sit on the throne?” asked Wen Hong. “Would you be so kind as to give me an honest answer.?”
A mischievous smile appeared on Bai Wuan’s face and answered, “If a certain thing is deemed useless and cannot be replaced then... Is there a need for it to exist?”
Wen Hong and his brother recoiled in dread at this type of response. Even Yun Xiajie was compelled to wince at such a notion. According to Bai Wuan, the only way to put an end to the anarchy in the Capital is to destroy the Imperial Family. There would be no struggle for the throne and no motive for the cultivation world to become engaged in mortal life if the royal family had perished.
Wen Hong said, “Kid, you are a lot crueler than you look. I know that the Bai Lengshui Sect is one of the great sects but... Can you eradicate the royal family with just one Sect alone?”
“You are wrong. It is not one Sect. I only need to assassinate those with royal blood using a bloodline curse and you... wouldn’t even know who killed you or how you die,” said Bai Wuan as he showed them that he could control someone’s blood. He is someone who is able to use Blood elements as his power.
Wei Hong and his sworn brother saw this event and concluded that the young man in front of them is not at all kidding. With a curse, he could undoubtedly murder every member of his family’s nine generations, erasing them from existence after death. This was the first time Wen Hong, this combat fanatic, lacked the courage to challenge the handsome young man to a duel while being aware of his overwhelming strength.
Since battling Bai Wuan is a battle for life and death rather than a brawl, it cannot be labeled a fight. This little devil here is a person who is born intelligent yet has no feelings for anybody except his family and close friends. Bai Wuan and Yun Xiajie were at last recognized by Wei Hong’s sworn brother. He gazed at Bai Wuan with an uneasy expression on his face and almost yelled.
Yelp!
“I remember now. I know who you are! You are the Infamous Ice Demon of the Bai Lengshui Sect. One who is well-known for his overprotectiveness toward his siblings and cruelty toward his enemies. That’s you right?”
“Hm~ what a weird nickname,” murmured Yun Xiajie.
Cough. Cough.
Wen Hong whispered to his brother, “You... shut up for a moment.”
Bewildered, “Did I say something wrong?” asked the Future Prime Minister.
Wen Hong said, “Everything this young man here has said is correct. I am indeed the younger brother of the current king. Can I please know your names?” He asked politely.
“Surname Bai, named Wuan.”
“Yun Jieye.”
The Future Prime Minister said, “I’m Cao Junya.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Young Masters,” said Wen Hong.
Bai Wuan said, “Please just use Daoist and our surnames.”
“Okay, Daoist Bai and Daoist Yun. Would it be rude to ask for your assistance and escort us to the Imperial Palace to meet my brother? As you’ve said, the Xie Clan has been involved in the battle for the throne and it is no longer the problem of the mortals but also the Cultivation World. If I am not acceptable as the next Emperor I would be willing to help you choose the right successor. Would you please help us or at least the sects behind you?” asked Wen Hong.
Bai Wuan said, “You don’t like the throne do you?”
“Honestly speaking. I do not,” said Wen Hong with a helpless smile. “But I also couldn’t let it fall to someone unworthy.”
“Unfortunately, only you fit that role. Give up,” said Bai Wuan.
Cao Junya said, “Come on~ mince your words a bit.”
“No way,” said Bai Wuan.
Yun Xiajie spoke, “For now, I suggest we change our location. At least, somewhere we can seat together.”
“A guest room upstairs should suffice. You three should go ahead. I will clean up here for a bit,” said Cao Junya.
The three accepted Cao Junya’s suggestion, and they went up to the second level where they picked a large area to congregate in. Cao Junya stayed behind to clean up the corpses at the inn’s reception area.
Bai Wuan provided tea and pastries from his space store inside one of the inn’s rooms. He only served his tea with milk since he liked it sweet, and he poured plain tea into the other two cups who weren’t fond of drinking sweet tea. Everything in his storage is of the finest quality, including the tea leaves that acted similarly to a Qi Gathering Pill.
Wen Hong commented, “Good tea!”
“Drink more. As we talk about the plans, what should be done when we enter the Imperial Palace,” said Bai Wuan.
Wen Hong asked, “Are there any suggestions of what should be done?”
“We will eliminate the cultivators involved. You can focus on your royal descendants,” said Yun Xiajie.
Bai Wuan said, “Here is another suggestion. Create a sect affiliated with the royal family. Whether it is small or not, you can decide. You and Cao Junya were cultivators yourself. You know the hidden rules of the sects right?”
“Other sects had no right to get involved with the problem of another sect. If this rule is broken the great sects would get involved to solve the core of the problem,” said Wen Hong.
Bai Wuan said, “Correct. If you create a sect under your name, the cultivation world is not allowed to get involved in future battles for the throne. At the same time, if things had gotten out of hand like the current situation. The Great Sects would have to get involved to help solve the problem.”
“Of course, there is a downside. Human nature is greedy after all. But I guess you don’t have much choice in this right now. After all, among the people the Xie Clan had sent, one of them is a Golden Core Cultivator. Unfortunately, you cannot handle one at Mid rank,” said Bai Wuan.
In those five days, while he and his beloved took their time traveling to the capital, Bai Wuan dispatched a couple of his specialized people to look into the issues here in the capital. As soon as he and his husband arrived in the city, he was given the report right away. Choosing this inn is also because he is aware of the existence of the man in front of him and speculated that he would stay in such a place.
“So, what do you think of my suggestion?” asked Bai Wuan.
Wen Hong asked, “Pardon me for asking but... How sure are you of defeating the Golden Core from the other side?”
“100%”
Their present Cultivations were abruptly released by Bai Wuan and Yun Xiajie. Both of them have reached the Golden Core stage. With the Second Young Master at Peak level. Although he assumed that these two young men weren’t simple, Wen Hong was astonished and stared at them in awe. Who would have believed that they were both at the Golden Core Stage at such a young age?
“Peak... Golden Core Stage!?”