[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens":3,"chapter-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-74":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Heir to the Kingdom of 1.4 Billion Citizens",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2270949,4434,"Chapter 74: I Never Thought You Were Guilty","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-74",74,"\u003Cp>In the dungeon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hearing Benson’s words, the slaves in the dungeon exchanged uneasy glances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the giant lying motionless on the ground, a few bold slaves exchanged glances, picked up stones from the floor, and slowly approached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stop!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as they were about to smash the stones against the giant’s head, a figure appeared before them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m protecting this man,” the man growled, his fists cracking with tension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was Hol, the fighter from the arena; as a Transcendent-tier warrior, he was unquestionably the strongest in this dungeon, filled mostly with useless slaves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Big Brother Hol, you heard it too—if we don’t kill him, once he recovers he’ll kill us!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One slave, unable to bear the obstruction, spoke up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He won’t do that,” Hol said, his expression complex.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If he truly intended to, he wouldn’t have been sent here!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you know what he did in the arena? He gave up fighting, let us strike him without mercy, and defied Simon’s orders to shout at everyone that he would never harm the innocent!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He spared my life—I’ll spare his.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you want to kill him, first get past my fists!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, Hol raised both fists; the words “Warrior” in emerald green above his head stood out sharply in the dim dungeon light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, every muscle on his body swelled, making him look an entire size larger than before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Muscle Enhancement: Temporarily increases the strength of all muscles, but consumes massive physical energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faced with this intimidating display, the slaves stood in tense standoff with Hol for a long while, then finally retreated and hid again in the shadows of the dungeon corners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t hold it against them—they’re only trying to survive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hol turned and pulled a small, hard lump of black bread from his rough clothing, placing it before the giant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sorry, I only have this little food—eat something, at least.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hol sighed, set down the bread, and turned to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As lowly slaves, they received only enough black bread—stuffed with wood shavings—to barely fill their stomachs; this small portion was all he’d managed to save over time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he turned, a hoarse voice came from behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hol’s lips curled slightly, but he said nothing and walked away in silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A lion wounded only licks its own wounds silently—it needs no one’s comfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crunch. Crunch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen struggled to pick up the black bread, then swallowed it whole in one bite, chewing slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This meager food gave him a faint surge of Qi; though his wounds were horrific, to him they were merely “superficial”—only Simon’s blow had truly shaken his internal organs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After eating, under the wary and fearful eyes of the slaves, Thirteen rolled over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having gone without sleep for two nights, a crushing wave of drowsiness now washed over him, and soon his consciousness began to blur.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hall of Starfire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the crystal dome above, artillery rained down; warriors marched forward with death in their hearts, their flesh and blood staining the soil red—yet not a single cry of pain, only forward! Forward! Forward!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So I’ve returned here again…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen stood in the great hall, gazing up at the ceiling dome with a complex expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past, he could never understand why those warriors on the dome, with such frail bodies, could fight fearlessly, like heroes, unmoved by death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One person, maybe—but everyone? That was simply unbelievable!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, after the Prince’s teachings, he was beginning to understand: the reason was only two words—belief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how strong his body became, without those two words, he could never be a true warrior.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tap. Tap. Tap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen walked to the long table, sat on his bronze seat, and picked up the tattered literacy book, beginning to study again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He studied with intense focus, almost reverent; his thick fingers carefully turned the thin pages, afraid of damaging them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, this would likely be his final time studying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, Xia Mingyu arrived.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching the giant hunched over the table like a schoolboy, earnestly studying, a smile crept onto his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Long time no see, Thirteen—I haven’t seen you in two full nights.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Mingyu walked over and patted the giant’s rock-hard shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Highness… I’m sorry, I’ve been having insomnia lately. Thank you for worrying.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen smiled, but the expression was terrifying beneath his scarred face—fit to play a slasher villain in Saw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After so many days of study, he no longer needed to follow Tamellaran around shouting “Me too!” like before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By the way, Your Highness, where’s Tamellaran?” Thirteen suddenly asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s been assigned night patrol duty recently, so he hasn’t been able to come these past few days,” Xia Mingyu explained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I see… A flicker of regret crossed Thirteen’s face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On his final night, he still wanted to thank that Holy Knight one last time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, he was the first person to ever apologize to a slave like him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Highness, could I ask you a favor?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course—if I can do it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen’s massive frame bowed, kneeling on one knee before Xia Mingyu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Could you place your hand on my head and say you forgive me?” Thirteen asked carefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the Prince, who rules over 1.4 billion subjects, forgave him, then perhaps when he reached the Underworld, he wouldn’t carry his sins anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hahahaha!” Xia Mingyu froze, then burst into laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sorry, I refuse.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course—he didn’t deserve forgiveness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flicker of disappointment passed through Thirteen’s eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then a hand gently rested on his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve never thought you guilty, so I cannot say I forgive you,” Xia Mingyu said calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ugh, this hair’s like steel needles—so prickly!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen: “.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly felt the urge to burst into tears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But alas—it was all too late.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Highness, could you give me a sheet of white paper and a pen?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Certainly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Mingyu manifested a sheet of white paper and a quill, handing them to Thirteen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen then took the quill and laboriously scribbled on the paper.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he had learned to read and write, writing was still difficult for a beginner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This guy’s afraid I’ll peek…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Thirteen write while shielding the paper with his hand, Xia Mingyu felt a helpless, almost amused exasperation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within this hall, he was nearly a god—if he wished to see, even Thirteen’s best concealment would be useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, he would respect privacy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Highness, could you give me an envelope too?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a long while, Thirteen finished writing the letter and asked again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A blank envelope appeared on the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thirteen carefully folded the paper, slipped it into the envelope, and placed the envelope in the corner between a black obsidian pillar and its lamp stand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your Highness, please open this envelope after noon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xia Mingyu nodded slightly, then took two books from the shelf: Hercules and Spartacus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Since you’ve learned to read and write, now it’s time to read. I believe these two books suit you well.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rest of the time passed quietly as the two read together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1176,"2026-06-19T22:18:43.340Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","64f6704b258a46fce0ee9766deabd77376b2ea63fc5ed85064a1e4bf12c0b480","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-75","heir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-chapter-73",186,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fheir-to-the-kingdom-of-1-4-billion-citizens-cover.jpg"]