Chapter 5: Where Contradictions Breed, the Natural Site for the Task!

The bustling commercial avenue in the east of the imperial capital.

The buildings here are arranged with elegance and grandeur.

Every brick and tile reveals the craftsman’s exquisite skill and boundless ingenuity.

The towering pagodas pierce the clouds, constantly recounting the glory and splendor of the TianCe Dynasty.

In the past, Li Chen was a prince and knew well how deep the waters of the capital ran; to avoid trouble, he stayed within the palace to cultivate in seclusion.

Now, this was his first time coming here, and he was not very familiar with the place.

That was why he had brought two elderly ministers along—to serve as guides.

But times had changed; now he could fairly say he was inspecting his own domain.

Looking at the crowded streets teeming with people, Li Chen pondered how to complete his task.

The cultivation method in this world begins with the meridians; once the meridians are unblocked, one’s physical condition improves dramatically, allowing the intake and condensation of spiritual energy, followed by gradual advancement in cultivation base.

If the foundation is weak, later cultivation will never reach great heights.

Combat involves activating the meridians to unleash tremendous power.

However, intense combat can damage the meridians.

Most cultivators rest for a period after battle to allow their meridians to recover.

Thus, under normal circumstances, as long as a cultivator does not activate his meridians, no one can know his cultivation base.

This made Li Chen uneasy—everyone looked roughly the same; where was he supposed to find a mid-stage Meridian Opening cultivator to beat up?

Originally, Li Chen thought the task wouldn’t be hard, for he had once heard stories from palace insiders.

The capital was filled with many scions of noble families, and these youths often caused trouble in the capital, clashing with the sons of powerful ministers.

The imperial consorts would then plead for mercy before the late emperor.

Afterwards, the Crown Prince would step in as mediator, turning major incidents into minor ones, and minor ones into nothing—all following a set procedure.

The Crown Prince was certainly eager to handle such matters; he cultivated goodwill everywhere, laying the groundwork for his future ascension to the throne.

Li Chen harbored no resentment toward the Crown Prince, for there was no possibility of conflict between them.

The Crown Prince treated everyone without direct conflict of interest with exceptional kindness.

Even if it was feigned, he at least feigned well.

Having grown accustomed to these tales, Li Chen now observed the more luxurious commercial districts—places with heavy foot traffic and frequent appearances by noble scions.

As soon as he spotted a troublemaker, he would immediately beat him up and complete the task.

But the plan sounded good; yet after wandering for hours, he hadn’t found a single one.

The noble scions he passed along the way didn’t seem nearly as arrogant and domineering as the rumors claimed.

So Li Chen reconsidered—perhaps his approach was wrong.

Most noble scions received excellent education, with strict expectations from their elders.

Those who were ignorant and idle were few; how, then, could he find places where cultivators clashed?

After a moment of thought, Li Chen spoke: “Where in the eastern capital do cultivators gather most?”

In Li Chen’s view, cultivators were often proud and haughty; when mixed together, conflicts naturally arose.

So finding places with many cultivators should be correct. General Guo Po immediately answered: "Your Highness, Master Li, in the eastern capital there are several combat academies that have trained many outstanding talents for our dynasty—those areas have the most cultivators."

Until now, it had been Chancellor Zhao Wenyuan speaking, introducing local customs and scenery; Guo Po had stood like an invisible man, anxiously waiting his turn.

Now that he had finally found a topic to speak on, he wanted to leave a good impression on the new emperor.

As the supreme military commander, he still understood cultivation well.

He had once accompanied the late emperor on secret tours, and seeing Li Chen’s current demeanor, he guessed the new emperor was imitating the late emperor’s inspection of the capital.

That was why he called Li Chen "Master Li"—knowing Li Chen wished to conceal his identity.

Unlike the late emperor, who was accompanied by mysterious palace elites during his secret tours, Guo Po had also deployed numerous covert guards to protect the late emperor’s safety.

As a general, he himself possessed formidable strength, yet it was easier to dodge a spear than a hidden arrow.

Allowing the imperial personage to be startled was his failure.

This new emperor was a Sage Realm cultivator; even the Second Prince, so powerful, had fled in terror. Logically, no one would dare harm him.

But did that mean he didn’t need guards?

Guo Po thought the opposite!

A Sage Realm cultivator was an extraordinary being; if this one lost his temper, to put it kindly, everyone would suffer the consequences; to put it bluntly, rivers would run red with blood.

!

So he had deployed more than three times the number of covert guards than the late emperor had ever had!

Some who appeared to be ordinary passersby were in fact Guo Po’s men, extremely powerful.

Whenever any discordant scene arose within the area Li Chen traveled, they would resolve it beforehand.

For instance, if two cultivators quarreled, or if a ferocious beast lurked nearby.

These covert guards would bind the troublemakers and subdue the beasts, allowing Li Chen to pass through the area unimpeded.

Guo Po’s men, upon hearing they were assigned to guard the new emperor, threw themselves into their duties with frenzied zeal.

That was why, despite wandering for hours through the bustling districts, Li Chen had found so few troublemakers.

When Guo Po mentioned the combat academies, Li Chen immediately became interested.

For he was not the only one who had lived long within the palace; the imperial consorts, maids, and eunuchs were also bored and loved gossiping about capital scandals; Li Chen, with nothing else to do, had heard plenty.

The capital’s combat academies were not few—there were at least three major ones in the eastern district alone, each controlled by different factions.

If one achieved outstanding results and graduated successfully, one could secure a position in the military or local forces.

In short, graduation guaranteed an official post.

Since the number of posts was limited each year, these three academies competed fiercely, and tensions ran high.

Li Chen had often heard that students from the major academies frequently fought publicly, preferring punishment over letting their academy’s honor suffer.

The late emperor turned a blind eye to such incidents; he believed combat academy students must possess spirit and grit—the TianCe Dynasty needed no sycophants.

Moreover, the academies housed many noble scions and gifted commoners alike.

Since ancient times, there had been noble scions and commoner geniuses who got along, trained together, and even became pillars of the state—stories celebrated as legends.

Yet conflicts remained abundant, for noble scions sought official posts to solidify their status within their clans, while commoner geniuses could not let such a chance to leap from carp to dragon slip away.

Anyone who graduated successfully from the capital’s major combat academies with outstanding results was truly a rare, carefully selected talent.

In Li Chen’s view, this was certain—he would surely complete his task in such a breeding ground of conflict!

(End of Chapter)