Chapter 243: Mortals Cannot Bear It

Inside the palace, the news spread rapidly like an invisible lightning bolt.

"The Second Prince Eric has been executed! Right at the city gate!"

"His Highness's wizard friend has arrived, and he made people's heads explode without any effort!"

"No one saw him make a move, and even the carriage door didn't open..."

These words drifted like ghosts into every corner of the palace, silently weaving a web of fear.

Servants walked quickly with their heads lowered, fearing that an accidental glance would be regarded as disrespect;

Guards held their weapons, their knuckles white, but clearly knew that the steel regarded as a symbol of power in the mortal world was just a child's toy in front of true extraordinary power;

Even those nobles who prided themselves on noble bloodlines were now hiding in their respective corners like mice, fearing to be involved in this vortex of power beyond their understanding.

In the east wing of the palace, inside a spacious hall wrapped in white marble, the old Prince August Faluo took the message sent by the attendant with trembling hands.

This high-stage apprentice, nearly eighty years old, still maintained a tall posture and sharp gaze despite his advanced age.

His wrinkled face was covered with the traces of time, and his silver-white long beard hung down to his chest, looking majestic and vicissitudinous.

"Are you sure that is Luo En Ralph? Andre's friend?"

The old prince's voice was slightly hoarse.

"Absolutely certain, my lord."

The attendant lowered his head, his voice trembling slightly due to fear,

"When the Second Prince Eric tried to escape from the city gate, that wizard lord didn't even appear from the carriage, and made the heads of six people explode at the same time. Blood splashed more than three zhang, and even the city gate stone slabs were stained red."

A burst of ecstasy suddenly bloomed on the old prince's originally gloomy face, and those eyes, slightly turbid due to age, now radiated a brilliance that only young people could have.

His clenched fists trembled slightly, not because of fear, but because of uncontrollable excitement.

"Hahaha! Great!"

The old prince burst into a laugh, the laughter echoing in the spacious hall, carrying a hint of madness:

"A real formal wizard! And he is Andre's ally! Now the status of the Faluo royal family is completely stabilized!"

The attendants looked at each other, not daring to look directly at the old man's near-unseemly performance, who was usually calm and serious.

August himself didn't care at all, his eyes radiating light that almost turned into substance, and the arc of his mouth stretched wider and wider.

His thoughts were like a wild horse, running fast.

From the death of that rebellious Second Prince Eric, to the arrival of this mysterious wizard, and then to the expansion of the royal family's power in the future...

Every link outlined a magnificent blueprint in his mind.

"Hurry up and prepare the royal suite in the east wing!"

The old prince almost shouted the order, his voice hard to hide his excitement:

"That is where we receive our most distinguished guests!"

His gaze swept over everyone present, as if wanting to pass his enthusiasm to them:

"Activate all maintenance arrays, change to newly refined magic crystal lamps, and prepare the most precious spiritual energy mattress! The soundproofing runes on the walls must be re-engraved to ensure absolute privacy!"

August paced back and forth, his heavy boots stepping on the marble floor, making a rhythmic sound.

He suddenly stopped, a cunning light flashing in his eyes, and a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"By the way, I heard that when this Lord Luo En was in the kingdom before, he was a famous romantic playboy..."

He lowered his voice and leaned toward the royal steward beside him, his tone carrying a hint of ambiguity:

"Do you remember? The fifth son of the Ralph family who often frequented the East City District of the kingdom a few years ago, spending his days with beautiful maids, and even several of the most noble ladies in the Royal Capital were..."

The royal steward thought for a moment, then revealed a look of sudden realization:

"Is the lord talking about that dissolute son? Rumor has it that he spent a huge sum of money to rebuild the 'Rose Hall' just to please an exotic dancer?"

"Exactly!" August's eyes flashed with strange light, his voice trembling with excitement:

"No matter what he has become now, a man's nature will not change. Immediately select ten of the most outstanding virgins from the city, with first-class appearance and dancing skills, especially those girls who know some special soothing techniques."

A flash of hesitation crossed the steward's eyes, but it was soon suppressed by the old prince's majesty.

He bowed his head respectfully, indicating that he would arrange this immediately.

August nodded with satisfaction and continued to issue orders:

"Go and take the crystal cup set I treasure in the cellar, as well as the three-hundred-year-old Ice Flame Wine. That wine is a treasure I brought back from my investigation in the Northland, brewed with the essence of ice-element creatures. It should be enough to please this distinguished guest!"

Just as August was immersed in his own world, looking forward to the upcoming glorious future, a steady and powerful footstep came from outside the door, interrupting his thoughts.

Andre walked slowly into the hall, his golden vertical pupils flashing with cold light in the dim light of the room.

His recent changes were surprising.

Since returning to the kingdom, especially after successfully seizing power, this once humble and polite Thirteenth Prince seemed to have been reborn.

What was most frightening was his pair of golden vertical pupils—the most direct proof of the awakening of the Red Blood Flying Dragon bloodline.

That was not a feature that ordinary people could possess; whenever he stared at someone, the other party would feel a fear of being locked on by a beast.

"Grandfather, what are you doing?"

Andre's voice was low, but carried a power that could not be ignored.

His gaze swept across the hall and quickly understood the situation.

August turned around, his face still glowing with excitement:

"Andre! Good news! Your wizard friend has arrived! I am arranging the reception. The royal suite in the east wing, Ice Flame Wine, and the most beautiful and moving women in the city..."

His voice became more excited as he spoke, his hands gesturing constantly, like a child looking forward to a feast.

However, Andre's expression did not change at all.

He still maintained that kind of near-indifferent calmness, but the golden light in his eyes seemed to become sharper.

"Don't be meddlesome."

As soon as this sentence came out, August's endless chatter instantly stuck in his throat.

"These are all meaningless superficial efforts."

Andre walked forward slowly, the light in his pupils piercing like substance:

"Grandfather, have you been away from the school for too long and forgotten the essence of a formal wizard?"

August was startled by this sudden questioning, the smile on his face frozen at the corner of his mouth, a flash of confusion in his eyes.

"Have you forgotten?" Andre's voice was colder, carrying a hint of imperceptible sarcasm:

"There is a fundamental gap between a formal wizard and a mortal; that is a leap in life level."

Every word of his was like a heavy hammer, beating in everyone's heart:

"Mortal women simply cannot bear the radiation field of a formal wizard, even short-term closeness is difficult to achieve.

Do you still remember in the school, how those apprentices dodged when a formal wizard walked by, even if they stood far away, they would feel difficulty breathing?"

August's expression changed slightly, the excitement in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a kind of sudden realization of fear.

Yes, he remembered.

Those high-and-mighty formal wizards were always cold and distant; an ordinary apprentice couldn't even get close to their laboratory.

Otherwise, they would feel an invisible pressure, as if their breathing was bound, light ones feeling dizzy, heavy ones fainting on the spot.

This was the natural exclusion brought about by the difference in life levels, a chasm that no human means could bridge.

"Moreover, Luo En is no longer the playboy he was back then."

Andre continued, his voice colder, carrying a hint of imperceptible mockery:

"According to the intelligence from the Black Fog School, he became a Primordial Wizard through a special path; this process changed his spiritual structure and soul essence. Those so-called beauties you sent people to find are not even as good as dust in his eyes."

For anyone who knew some occult knowledge, the four words "Primordial Wizard" were enough to make their blood freeze.

That was a path full of unknown dangers, an abyss where countless geniuses died; there were few successful ones, but every one of them was an existence that shocked the world.

Even a high-stage apprentice like August had only read a few words about this kind of higher-level wizard in ancient classics.

He had never thought he would meet a wizard who had been promoted through this special way in his lifetime.

"Andre, you mean..."

August's voice trembled, revealing a hint of disbelief: "He really..."

"Yes, Grandfather." Andre nodded, his tone carrying a hint of imperceptible pride:

"Luo En is an extremely rare Primordial Wizard."

August only felt a burst of dizziness and had to hold onto the table beside him to stand firm.

A Primordial Wizard was an existence even rarer and more powerful than an ordinary formal wizard.

It is said that they can directly establish contact with certain great existences and obtain power beyond ordinary people's imagination.

"Then..." The old prince took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady:

"How should we receive this distinguished guest? Why did he come to the kingdom?"

Andre's gaze became deeper, as if he could see through every thought of the old man:

"Luo En came here for the final inheritance of the 'Sun Crown Breathing Method'."

"What?"

August's face changed drastically, his voice suddenly raised, full of shock and disbelief:

"'Sun Crown Breathing Method'? How is this possible! This is the foundation of our Faluo royal family!"

His expression became agitated, his eyes flashing with a complex emotion mixed with fear and anger:

"The core secret method passed down from generation to generation, how can it be easily given to outsiders? Even if it is your friend, it..."

"Outsider?"

Andre's voice suddenly became abnormally cold, and those golden vertical pupils contracted into a thin line, like two sharp blades, piercing into the old man's soul:

"You seem to have forgotten, who helped me awaken the Red Blood Flying Dragon bloodline? Who saved me, allowing me to have a chance to escape from Cynthia's clutches? Who gave me the capital to compete with my brothers?"

His voice got lower and lower, but colder and colder, like the cold wind in deep winter, bone-chilling and sharp:

"Without Luo En, would you still be able to sit here and issue orders? Or would you have been placed under house arrest by your brothers long ago?"

August's face turned pale, and a flash of fear appeared in those eyes that had seen many vicissitudes.

He had never seen this gentle and polite grandson so tough.

That kind of coldness and decisiveness reminded him of the iron-blooded Faluo II back then—Andre's great-grandfather, a tyrant who defended the kingdom with iron and blood.

But he still had hesitation in his heart.

The "Sun Crown Breathing Method" was not only the core inheritance of the royal family but also an important trump card for the entire kingdom's aristocratic class to resist surrounding countries.

Easily handing it to an outsider would have unimaginable consequences.

"Andre, I understand your gratitude..."

August tried to save some situation, his voice carrying a hint of hesitation:

"But the 'Sun Crown Breathing Method' relates to the future of the entire royal family, especially the cultivation method of the highest realm 【Sun Crown Knight】, which is the true core secret of our royal family..."

"Grandfather."

Andre suddenly interrupted the old man's words, his voice like the cold wind on the far north ice sheet, bone-chilling and sharp:

"What are you still hesitating about?"

Every step he took forward, the pressure on him increased by a point.

The coldness emanating from those golden vertical pupils was suffocating like substance:

"Taking the initiative to offer the treasure early might make Luo En look at our previous friendship and show mercy, or even return some things in exchange."

Andre's voice got colder and colder, and the golden light in his eyes almost turned into real flames:

"If he is angered, he will strike directly, and then nothing will be left, including all our lives!"

Every word was like a heavy hammer hitting August's heart, making him feel a suffocating fear.

"Do you think..."

Andre continued, cold light flashing in his eyes:

"Those magic puppets in our palace that can only imitate the movements of our ancestors can resist the anger of a formal wizard?

Those things might be enough to deal with high-stage apprentices, but in front of a real wizard, they are just toys that can be turned into scrap iron at will!"

August's face became paler and paler, and sweat slowly flowed down his wrinkled forehead.

He felt an unprecedented sense of frustration.

Not only because of facing a possible disaster, but also because this once-docile grandson had now completely exceeded his control.

"Perhaps..." The old prince finally spoke, his voice hoarse and tired:

"You are right, Andre. We really shouldn't risk angering a formal wizard."

He sighed long, his shoulders collapsing as if crushed by an invisible weight, his originally tall posture seeming to have aged ten years all at once:

"Since that's the case, I will prepare to open the royal treasury and welcome this... distinguished guest."

Andre's expression softened slightly, and the golden light in his eyes dimmed a bit:

"This is the wise decision, Grandfather."

Just then, a subtle energy fluctuation suddenly spread from the direction of the city gate, like a huge stone thrown into a calm lake, stirring up continuous ripples.

That feeling was so strong that everyone in the palace could clearly feel it.

A heavy and oppressive aura, like substance, shrouded the entire space, making breathing difficult and thinking sluggish.

August looked up abruptly, the blood color on his face disappearing in an instant.

As a high-stage apprentice, he could feel the essence of this energy fluctuation better than ordinary people.

It was a pure and powerful magical power radiation; only a formal wizard could emit such an aura.

But even the formal wizards he had seen before were far from reaching the suffocating feeling of the present moment.

It was a deeper, more original power, as if coming directly from some existence in the depths of the universe.

"He... he is here..."

The old prince muttered to himself.

In those eyes that had seen many vicissitudes, only pure awe and fear remained.

Andre also felt that pressure, but compared to his grandfather, his reaction was much calmer.

Perhaps because he had already experienced it, or perhaps because of the resistance improvement brought about by the activation of the bloodline.

"Yes, Wizard Luo En has arrived."

Complex emotions flashed in Andre's eyes:

"Let's go and welcome him."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 244 =====