Chapter 838: What Is Their Intent? (1/10, Request Subscription)

Qing? Qing Qianyang?!

Qing Guo's eldest prince, Qing Qianyang?

Is this guy right here?

Fang Yue widened his eyes, frozen in place, his mind racing.

He never imagined that the first prince he'd meet upon returning to Jingcheng would be this guy.

Qing Qianyang is tied to the Phoenix Organization—what is his purpose in coming here?

"Don't be so tense."

Compared to Fang Yue's taut demeanor, Qing Qianyang clearly appeared relaxed.

Ignoring the guest manager, who was drenched in sweat, he walked to the pavilion in the courtyard, sat down directly, and gestured to Fang Yue.

"The sunset is beautiful—let's enjoy it together?"

"..."

Fang Yue said nothing, gave Lin Ling a glance, then silently walked over to Qing Qianyang's side.

He couldn't tell if this visitor was friend or foe, and he couldn't even gauge Qing Qianyang's strength.

But there was no doubt—he was already at a disadvantage, having lost the initiative to the other side.

Just how much does Qing Qianyang know about me? Does he know the letter has been leaked?

Beneath the setting sun, the boy's refined face carried a hint of frivolity, as if nothing in the world mattered enough to hold his attention.

This guy... is dangerous.

The guest manager, sensing the situation, quickly ordered wine and dishes to be brought up and placed on the stone table.

The wine cups seemed sheathed in gold and jade, carved with dragons entwined with phoenixes, extravagantly lavish, with faint glimmers flowing back and forth across their surfaces.

In Fang Yue's words, that was... upper class.

Another level of upper class—subtle luxury, unassuming and hidden.

Clearly, the guest manager had pulled out his finest treasures for Qing Qianyang's visit.

In terms of guest status, any of the Nine Great Princes was top-tier—no one dared to be careless.

Though the Nine Great Princes seethed with hidden rivalries, on the surface they maintained harmony, never openly tearing each other apart.

Seeing Fang Yue continuously studying him without speaking, Qing Qianyang had wine poured into two cups, raised his small goblet, and smiled: "My sudden visit must confuse you, Brother Ye?"

"I dare not. Your Highness, please speak plainly."

"First, drink a cup—there's much we need to discuss."

After hesitating, Fang Yue raised his cup and clinked it against Qing Qianyang's; only after Qing Qianyang drank did he down his own in one gulp.

"Brother Ye, you're straightforward! I've long admired you. How was your journey to Jingcheng?"

"..."

Fang Yue said nothing—given the eldest prince's intelligence network and ties to the Phoenix Organization, obtaining his information should be no problem.

This question was likely a deliberate provocation.

Yet from the eldest prince's tone, it seemed he'd noticed Fang Yue long ago.

"Your personality differs unexpectedly from the reports. I thought you'd be more talkative. Let me guess—your route to Jingcheng shifted from land to water, leaving you barely scraping in. The journey must've been anything but easy..."

Before the eldest prince finished, Fang Yue suddenly said: "Your Highness, I dislike beating around the bush. Say what you mean directly."

"Fine, direct and to the point. Actually, I came merely to greet you and pass on some information."

"What information?"

Fang Yue felt a flicker of irritation. Were all members of the imperial family this troublesome? Just say it outright.

"When you left Chunuan City, do you know who launched the attack against you?"

Fang Yue had considered this question before, but had no leads.

The Emperor's decree had been issued—who dared to try to kill me? That's outright defiance of imperial command; if the mastermind is uncovered, they won't live to leave Qing Guo!

Seeing Fang Yue fall silent, Qing Qianyang chuckled openly: "It was the You Family."

You? The You Family?!

Fang Yue frowned.

"Impossible. No reason—they had no motive to kill me! I have no connection to them, not even..."

Not even why the Emperor summoned me.

Fang Yue had assumed it was because of his repeated battlefield achievements.

But later, he realized.

Historically, there had been far stronger warriors with far greater accomplishments who were never specially summoned by the Emperor—why was he any different?

Therefore, this summons must carry deeper significance.

"No motive? It seems you know very little about the Four Great Families of Jingcheng. But it doesn't matter—tomorrow, when you meet your father, you'll meet someone. That person will tell you everything. What I want to ask you is something else."

Fang Yue frowned: "What?"

"When you switched to the water route, the one who helped you was Tian Ruichi, disciple of the Sword of Heaven, correct?"

"Yes."

"Do you know his master, the Sword of Heaven, is my fourth brother's man?"

"What's wrong with that?"

"Wrong? Hehehe, you don't know my fourth brother—he wouldn't do anything so kind. Yet you arrived in Jingcheng safely. So I wonder—did something happen during your journey down Han Jiang?"

"..."

"No need to answer. My intelligence can already guess roughly. The Han Jiang waterway is unique; few docks can accommodate Han Jiang giant ships—not because building them is difficult, but because only a few organizations are permitted by Qing Guo to establish them."

Given your starting point, the most logical explanation is that you were originally meant to go to the Flame Sect, which my fourth brother controls.

"Besides you, there is no one special on the ship, so what he wants is most likely you."

"Me? What's so special about me?"

"I don't yet know much about what's special about you, but... the tail is very special!"

The tail?!

Fang Yue's expression shifted slightly.

"Why bring her up?"

"Don't underestimate our prince's intelligence network. From the moment the tail entered our field of vision, we had already thoroughly investigated her background. Clearly, she has no shallow connection to you. Control you, and you can be used to check the tail. And checking the tail is extremely important to whether we can defeat the Extreme Ice Sect."

The tail, the Extreme Ice Sect, the Blazing Fire Sect, Heaven's Sword, the Fourth Prince...

All of it, as if suddenly, connected.

Fang Yue abruptly raised his head, fixing his gaze on the Great Prince.

"So that's how it is! The Fourth Prince wants to use me to threaten the tail, thereby letting the Blazing Fire Sect under his control defeat the Extreme Ice Sect! That's why he seized the chance to have Heaven's Sword send his disciples by water route, delivering us straight into Blazing Fire Sect's territory! But if he operates this way, how does the Fourth Prince plan to handle His Majesty's side?"

"Hahahahaha!"

Hearing this, the Great Prince suddenly burst into laughter.

When the laughter subsided, he said to Fang Yue: "This is precisely where my fourth brother's stupidity lies. He doesn't even know how much weight Father Emperor places on you, yet he dares to make a move on you — he simply has no brains. If you are important enough, and this matter angers Father Emperor, then among us nine siblings, only eight will remain in the race."

Accelerating the sprint, the Jingcheng arc ends; what follows is the briefly introduced Advent arc.

(End of this chapter)