Chapter 873: Frenzied Courting

Ye Liuyun helped Yuan Datou back and gave him the Healing Elixir to take.

Ye Liuyun took off the Storage Rings of those two people and gave them to Yuan Datou. He tossed the corpse to the Magic Vine to absorb.

"If anyone comes looking for trouble later, don't stand your ground against them, lest you get hurt!" Ye Liuyun warned Yuan Datou.

"These bastards strike as soon as they come up! There's no sense of justice!" Yuan Datou shouted in displeasure.

"Save your effort! There's no justice here; where there's strength, there is reason!" Ye Liuyun advised him. "Hurry to break through the Zao Hua Realm. Once you're strong enough, they won't dare to come!"

Ling Shuang and Liang Xinyu, standing nearby, both knit their brows.

"You're too impulsive! Heavenly Pride Hall was founded by the Crown Prince. How could you kill their people!" Liang Xinyu complained to Ye Liuyun.

"If it were any of you, I would have acted! No matter who they are, harming my friends is unacceptable!" Ye Liuyun showed no remorse.

Ling Shuang heard this, glanced at Ye Liuyun, and said nothing.

"You killed a disciple of Heavenly Pride Hall; the Crown Prince probably won't let you off! Why not join a gang and find a patron?" Liang Xinyu urged Ye Liuyun.

"Indeed! I suggest you quickly find a powerful gang to join, so Heavenly Pride Hall won't retaliate against you." Ling Shuang also thought the method was good.

"We'll talk when they come knocking!" Ye Liuyun truly didn't want to join any gang.

The Qian Long Academy's gang has already gone sour, becoming merely a tool for princes' power struggles; he doesn't want to get entangled in such disputes.

"Even a single noble‑ranked beast can overwhelm you; you can't fend off Heavenly Pride Hall's retaliation. Many of their strong ones also have noble‑ranked beast assistants!" Liang Xinyu still thought Ye Liuyun relied on the Ghost Butterfly for fearlessness.

Ling Shuang seemed to understand Ye Liuyun's concerns and suggested, "The Ninth Princess's gang doesn't involve the dynasty's power struggles; you could consider it!"

Ye Liuyun, hearing this, looked up at Ling Shuang, nodded, and said, "If that's the case, I will consider it."

"Of course it's true! I can speak up; I'll go ask right now." After speaking, Ling Shuang hurried out.

"The Fourth Prince even invited you; don't you want to consider? The Fourth Prince's influence is actually quite sizable!" Liang Xinyu whispered, "The dynasty's current stance toward the Crown Prince isn't very clear either!"

"I simply don't want to get involved in the various factions' battles, which is why I refuse to join the gangs the princes have founded!" Ye Liuyun said outright.

"But you hold a title; you probably can't avoid it!" Liang Xinyu whispered.

"Hmm, what you say does make sense. Yet even choosing a side now is too early!"

Ye Liuyun also thought Liang Xinyu's words had some merit.

However, he didn't want to pick a side too early, lest he cling to the wrong thigh and be secretly sold out.

Ling Shuang's suggestion did intrigue him a bit. After all, the Ninth Princess is a woman, has no chance to rule the dynasty, and likely isn't too keen on power struggles.

But his current realm is too low; the Ninth Princess doesn't know his strength, so she might not regard him highly.

Moreover, he doesn't know the Ninth Princess's character. If she's a shrewd princess, he wouldn't want to be her henchman.

"We'll talk when the chance arises!"

Since he still didn't understand these gangs' situations, Ye Liuyun simply stopped pondering. After settling Yuan Datou, he returned to continue cultivation in the Cultivation Room.

"Dominant! That's a real man!" Su Manning whispered in admiration.

"How can he act like nothing's wrong, not realizing the huge trouble he's caused!" Liang Xinyu stamped her foot impatiently.

Wei Pangzi could only stare dumbfounded, unable to interject.

Ye Liuyun forcefully exterminated two Sixth Layer Zao Hua disciples of Heavenly Pride Hall, instantly causing a massive uproar as the news spread rapidly.

"Did you hear? Ye Liuyun wiped out two Heavenly Pride Hall disciples!"

"That kid is still a rookie, doesn't know the depth! Even the Crown Prince is someone he can provoke?"

The academy's crowd murmured, all doubting Ye Liuyun's future.

Within the Qian Long Academy, offending these princes or the gangs they founded is essentially a dead end!

Ye Liuyun had just returned to cultivate for a short while when a powerful aura surged, charging straight at the courtyard where he was. Without a greeting, it delivered a palm strike toward Ye Liuyun's Cultivation Room.

"Boom—" a thunderous roar rang, the entire courtyard collapsed under the palm, dust billowing.

Even the nearby residences of Liang Xinyu, Yuan Datou and others were affected, and they all leapt out of their rooms.

Fortunately, the academy's Cultivation Room was built solidly and remained intact. Ye Liuyun immediately burst out, forming a strict formation.

"Did you kill our Heavenly Pride Hall disciples?" the newcomer asked Ye Liuyun coldly.

"Heavenly Pride Hall members arrived so quickly! And they're at the Eighth Layer!" Ye Liuyun assessed the middle‑aged man opposite him.

The man didn't wait for Ye Liuyun to speak and prepared to strike again.

"Who do you think caused such a commotion? Turns out it's just a dog from Heavenly Pride Hall!"

A mocking voice rang out as several Eighth and Ninth Layer Martial Cultivators surrounded a youth and walked over.

The middle‑aged man who had just struck frowned, but then halted, bowed and said, "Seventh Prince!"

The newcomer was the Seventh Prince, Xia Tianyu.

Xia Tianyu ignored the middle‑aged man, stared directly at Ye Liuyun, and said, "Give me the Token of the Qian Long Pool, join my Ten Thousand Dragons Society, and I can protect you!"

"Seventh Brother! You're still that blunt, don't scare the rookie!"

The Fourth Prince, Xia Tian Yuan, also arrived promptly with several subordinates.

"Fourth Brother, you also have your eyes on the Token of the Qian Long Pool?" the Seventh Prince asked directly.

"Those are all worldly possessions!" Xia Tian Yuan chuckled, loudly telling them, "Ye brother and I felt an instant kinship; I already invited him to join our Near Abyss Hall. So none of you may touch him!"

After speaking, he glanced at the middle‑aged man.

"Fourth Prince!" the middle‑aged man shivered, his spine cold, and hurriedly bowed.

He was merely a minor head of Heavenly Pride Hall; the Seventh and Fourth Princes could kill him with a flick of a finger. The Crown Prince wouldn't avenge him either.

"Since he's a follower of the Fourth Prince, I'll leave at once!" the middle‑aged man said respectfully.

"I doubt it! Fourth Brother, you yourself said it's just recruitment; he hasn't even agreed yet, how can you claim he's yours!" the Seventh Prince retorted, unmoved.

The Token of the Qian Long Pool was about to be in hand; he wouldn't give it up easily.

"How delightful, two imperial brothers!" a lady approached gracefully, with Ling Shuang by her side.