Chapter 14 - Seventh Prince

The newcomer was a young boy, looking about fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a yellow long robe with a golden crown on his head, appearing very luxurious. "Greetings to the Seventh Prince." As soon as the young boy arrived, everyone hastily knelt in salute, even Shi Feng unwillingly knelt down. The young boy's name was Chu Feng, the seventh and youngest son of Chu Tiankuo, the current emperor of the Fengming Empire. It was said that when Chu Feng was born, Chu Tiankuo was already in seclusion and has not yet emerged; therefore, Chu Feng has never seen what his own father looks like. Long Chen had heard a lot about Chu Feng, knowing he was born to the Empress of the West Palace, raised spoiled and arrogant, fearing almost no one except for the Crown Prince. Little did he expect Chu Feng to come here today. However, seeing Zhou Yaoyang by his side, Long Chen immediately understood; it was likely they were here for him again. According to the etiquette of monarch and ministers, all heirs should kneel when they see a prince, so Yu Pangzi and Shi Feng, along with others, all knelt to the ground. Unless they broke through to the Blood Condensation realm, they could not be exempted. Long Chen curled his lips, "A mere second-generation ancestor wants me, Long Chen, to kneel to you? Besides my parents, no one else is worthy of my kneeling." The Seventh Prince, Chu Feng, glanced at the crowd indifferently and suddenly noticed Long Chen sitting there grandly like a crane amongst chickens, his face darkened. "Bold Long Chen, the Seventh Prince is here, and you dare not salute and kneel? Are you planning a rebellion?" Beside the Seventh Prince, Zhou Yaoyang and others didn't expect Long Chen to be so daring, boldly opposing the Seventh Prince. Wang Mang, who was once slapped hard by Long Chen, was overjoyed at the sight, fearing Long Chen would change his mind, and quickly shouted, trying to put a big hat on Long Chen first. Others were also shocked, especially Yu Pangzi and others, who were scared out of their wits. Disputes among heirs were minor squabbles, but offending the Seventh Prince could very well cost one's head. Moreover, Long Chen's actions were clearly rebellious and treacherous. Zhou Yaoyang's eyes lit up with excitement. He had some connections with the Seventh Prince and often accompanied this foolish prince in eating, drinking, and having fun. Today, a sudden whim brought the Seventh Prince here to see if they could suppress Long Chen. After all, Long Chen's defeat of Li Hao had greatly increased Long Chen's fame in the Imperial Capital. Zhou Yaoyang and others felt as if they had been slapped in the face since they had bet everything on Li Hao, and now their once luxurious lifestyle was gone. To his surprise, things were simpler than he imagined. Without his provocation, Long Chen had already incited the Seventh Prince's anger. Listening to Wang Mang's angry roar, Long Chen's lips curled in disdain, smiling slightly, and asked with concern, "Wang Mang, how was the taste of Li Hao's egg? Seeing your full forehead and round cheeks, it must have been very nourishing." Wang Mang's face changed dramatically, his stomach churning. The incident last time left him with severe aftereffects. Now, whenever he eats, he recalls the scene from that day, reflexively vomiting. He can't eat anything anymore, losing a lot of weight, nowhere near Long Chen's description of "full forehead and rosy cheeks," looking more like a zombie. Wang Mang's face turned purple with anger, yet he didn't dare to say a word, desperately suppressing the urge to vomit, fearing that opening his mouth would make him throw up. "Long Chen, you're just a minor heir with no rank or title. Why don't you kneel before me, the prince?" The Seventh Prince angrily pointed at Long Chen. The Seventh Prince, accustomed to arrogance, even his other royal siblings avoided provoking him. Today, seeing a minor heir daring to ignore him, he was furious. Looking at the boy whose childishness had not yet faded, Long Chen said calmly, "You're just a child; I won't argue with you. Go back to where you came from." "What?" Everyone's face changed at once. Was Long Chen courting death? How could he say such things? If not kneeling was a minor offense, just a few days of imprisonment and a beating would suffice. But Long Chen's words now were clearly treasonous, a capital offense. Was Long Chen mad? "You... courting death, seize him!" The Seventh Prince shouted in anger at the people beside him. Those were all Zhou Yaoyang's people, and hearing the Seventh Prince's order, they were overjoyed, rushing towards Long Chen without hesitation. Under normal circumstances, they might hesitate, but with the Seventh Prince's order, they had no scruples. With this backing, they wouldn't bear any responsibility even if they killed Long Chen. "Bang!" As they rushed over, Long Chen kicked the table in front of him. The table, made of ancient thousand-year-old wood, was as solid as iron and incredibly heavy, yet Long Chen kicked it flying straight at the crowd. Zhou Yaoyang was the first in line. Seeing the table flying over, he shouted, mustering all his strength, and punched the table. With a loud bang, the solid table shattered under his punch, worthy of a master in the Qi Condensation seventh level, his momentum terrifying. But after breaking the table, he instinctively paused, and at this moment, Wang Mang, who was beside him, had already overtaken Zhou Yaoyang, becoming the first "warrior" to charge at Long Chen. Long Chen looked at Wang Mang, who was gritting his teeth, with a strange smile on his lips, casually swinging his hand. "Slap!" The move was so fast that the crowd hadn't even seen Long Chen's action before hearing a loud slap. Long Chen's hand landed tightly on Wang Mang's face. Wang Mang was slapped flying, drawing a graceful parabola in the air, flying towards the distance. The most shocking part was that during his flight, several teeth flew out in a sparkling arc. Bang! Wang Mang's body slammed against the wall, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted immediately. However, his still open mouth clearly indicated to the world that he had become a "toothless" person. Just as Zhou Yaoyang rushed over, he noticed Wang Mang being slapped away, slightly shocked. Although Wang Mang's cultivation wasn't impressive, being so casually slapped away made him uneasy. But now wasn't the time to retreat. Zhou Yaoyang shouted, a Qi Condensation seventh-level aura bursting forth, spiritual energy enveloping his entire body. "Six Yang Fist!" With Zhou Yaoyang's shout, a punch was thrown, a faint blue light appearing on his fist, a unique phenomenon of battle techniques. Six Yang Fist was one of Zhou Yaoyang's special moves, practiced over time, with a punch carrying over a thousand pounds of force, unstoppable. "Slap!" Long Chen didn't hesitate, slapping down on Zhou Yaoyang's fist, palm meeting fist, energy scattering with a loud explosion. What left everyone stunned was that Zhou Yaoyang's powerful punch was effortlessly caught by Long Chen. "How is this possible?" Zhou Yaoyang was shocked, feeling as if his punch had hit a mountain, his chest faintly aching from the recoil. Meanwhile, Long Chen across from him didn't even blink, a fierce look appearing at the corner of his mouth: "Zhou Yaoyang, it's my turn now." Zhou Yaoyang suddenly felt a chill in his scalp, as if he was being stared at by a prehistoric beast, his heart pounding, hurriedly retreating. However, he couldn't as Long Chen's large hand tightly held his fist, no matter how he struggled, it was like an insect shaking a pillar, unmoving. Zhou Yaoyang was terrified. What kind of power was this? Long Chen was like a humanoid monster, suppressing him with sheer brute force. But Zhou Yaoyang was also a warrior. Following his father's subordinates, he had killed demonic beasts before, seen bloodshed, and remained calm in danger. Seeing he couldn't break free from Long Chen's grip, he lifted his right foot, aiming for Long Chen's abdomen. This was a move to force a rescue, simple and effective. But Long Chen didn't even glance at Zhou Yaoyang's foot, exerting a bit of force with his single hand. "Rise!" Long Chen shouted, like spring thunder, hurting people's eardrums. With Long Chen's shout, Zhou Yaoyang was lifted into the air. In the horrified gazes of everyone, Long Chen lifted Zhou Yaoyang and slammed him into the ground. "Bang!" A loud explosion shook the entire ground, accompanied by the sound of broken bones, chilling everyone's hearts. "Puff... puff... puff..." Zhou Yaoyang, slammed into the ground, spat out three mouthfuls of blood, mixed with numerous pieces of internal organs. People clearly noticed he was much larger than usual, no, rather, he was much flatter; his volume hadn't changed, but his surface area seemed much larger. Looking at the continually coughing blood Zhou Yaoyang and the cracks on the solid ground beneath him, everyone gasped. Looking at the barely breathing Zhou Yaoyang, Long Chen felt much relieved. He'd been holding this grudge for a long time. Over the years, Zhou Yaoyang was the person he hated most, like a nightmare tormenting Long Chen. The entire hall fell silent, with even a pin drop audible. Everyone, including the Seventh Prince, was stunned, and even the heirs ready to charge in swallowed hard, their bodies involuntarily trembling. Long Chen remained calm throughout, yet his calmness instilled more fear. He was like an emotionless war god. Long Chen glanced at Zhou Yaoyang, chuckled, and then looked at the distant Seventh Prince, slowly walking towards him. The Seventh Prince, accustomed to a life of luxury, knew how to bully but had no experience being bullied. Seeing Long Chen approaching with a mischievous smile, his face turned deathly pale. "What do you want? Don't come over," the Seventh Prince's voice trembled, sensing the cold killing intent in Long Chen's eyes. It felt like a knife was placed at his neck, ready to decapitate him at any moment. Long Chen didn't speak, maintaining his terrifying smile, approaching the Seventh Prince. Everyone was shocked. What was Long Chen trying to do? Did he intend to kill the Seventh Prince? "No... don't come over," the Seventh Prince retreated continuously but soon found himself cornered with no way back. Watching Long Chen approach, the Seventh Prince's eyes filled with terror, as if smelling death. "You shouldn't have pushed me; don't blame me," Long Chen shook his head sympathetically, reaching into his arms, suddenly a big hand reaching for his face. "No..." The Seventh Prince let out a chilling scream, echoing through the entire literary hall.