Chapter 281: Purpose
The bright moon shone in a brilliant, starry sky. Its hazy light spilled down upon the nation of Tianze, draping the ancient city in what seemed like a gossamer veil.
In the Tianze Imperial Palace, He Qian led Shen Daoxing deep into the grounds, finally stopping before a simple stone house.
Shen Daoxing pushed the door open and saw that the room contained only a bed and a table. The furnishings were simple.
"Young Master Yang, don’t be fooled by its humble appearance. This is the place in the palace closest to the Celestial Essence Ore Vein, where the Primordial Energy is most concentrated," He Qian explained.
Shen Daoxing stepped inside and immediately felt a dense wave of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi, comparable to the energy within Taoyuan Town in the Huangliang Secret Realm.
"You are very thoughtful, Your Highness."
Shen Daoxing gave He Qian a kind nod.
After that, He Qian took her leave and departed, no longer disturbing Shen Daoxing.
Shen Daoxing immediately went to the bed and sat down in a meditative posture. His one hundred and eight acupoints opened at once, rapidly absorbing the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
But after closing his eyes to cultivate for only a moment, Shen Daoxing’s eyes snapped open. He found he couldn’t absorb even a sliver of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi.
Shen Daoxing looked down at himself, stunned.
Just then, the Blood Dragon’s voice echoed in his mind. "Kid, you absorbed that entire Celestial Essence Mine earlier. The Spiritual Power in your body has already reached saturation. The most important thing for you now is to figure out how to integrate this power, not to just blindly absorb more Primordial Energy."
"And the fastest way to integrate this power is to fight against others. This is also your chance to merge the elemental powers within you, achieve the Realm of the Ultimate Way, and attain Seven-Colored Spirit Transformation."
It was true. The Primordial Energy in his body was saturated. Forcibly absorbing more would be useless.
Shen Daoxing nodded in understanding. He didn’t rigidly continue cultivating; instead, for once, he simply lay down on the bed for a good night’s rest.
「The next day.」
Shen Daoxing stretched languidly, sat up, and turned to see that the sky outside the window was already bright.
Shen Daoxing still hadn’t gotten out of bed.
"KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!"
Just then, a knock came from the door.
A little curious, Shen Daoxing stretched out a hand. With a flourish and a turn, his clothes were on. He then opened the door to see a young eunuch standing respectfully at the entrance.
"Young Master Yang, the Eldest Prince requests your presence."
Seeing Shen Daoxing open the door, the eunuch spoke slowly.
’The Eldest Prince again?’ Shen Daoxing was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure and said coolly, "Lead the way."
The young eunuch then gestured for Shen Daoxing to follow.
The two walked onward, making many twists and turns and passing through several palace halls. After walking for quite some time, they finally arrived at the Crown Prince’s living quarters.
The young eunuch then led Shen Daoxing inside, stopping at a study.
"Young Master Yang, please go in by yourself."
The young eunuch said slowly, then backed away and departed.
"CREAK!"
Shen Daoxing pushed the door open. He saw Tianze’s Eldest Prince, clad in embroidered silks and beaded robes cinched with a jade belt, standing before a desk, engrossed in painting.
"Eldest Prince, Your Majesty."
Shen Daoxing stepped forward and said coolly.
Seeing Shen Daoxing enter, He Yu didn’t even look up. He said bluntly, "Yang Xing, what is your objective in getting close to my royal sister?"
"I have no objective."
Shen Daoxing’s reply was direct.
But He Yu chuckled, clearly unconvinced.
"Yang Xing, I don’t care what your objective is or what you’re planning. For the sake of you having saved my royal sister’s life, get the hell out of Tianze right this instant. If you do, I’ll let bygones be bygones."
He Yu’s tone was ice-cold, and he still hadn’t looked up.
Shen Daoxing frowned. "I told you, I don’t have any objective."
He Yu’s expression suddenly turned cold. "Kid, you can do this the easy way or the hard way. Have you taken a good look at your own status? How dare you have designs on my royal sister?"
Clearly, He Yu had misunderstood something.
Shen Daoxing found it laughable. "Eldest Prince, you’re mistaken. I have no interest in the Second Princess!"
He Yu let out a cold laugh. "All the other guys said the same thing. But what happened in the end? Heheheh! I’ll ask you one last time: are you leaving or not?"
He Yu was still clearly unconvinced.
Shen Daoxing shook his head helplessly. "I will not be leaving right now."
Saying this, Shen Daoxing couldn’t be bothered to waste any more words on He Yu and turned to leave.
"Good! Very good! Excellent!"
At that moment, He Yu, who had been painting with his head down the entire time, finally looked up, his face incomparably grim.
"Teacher!"
Suddenly, He Yu shouted.
Following his shout, a middle-aged man with a weathered face suddenly emerged from somewhere within the room.
The weathered man took a single, simple step and was suddenly in front of He Yu, having been behind him a moment before. He was, shockingly, an expert at the Earth Profound Realm.
The weathered man stepped forward, raised his hands, and bowed respectfully. "Your Highness."
"Since this kid is unwilling to leave on his own, we’ll help him leave!"
The brush in He Yu’s hand suddenly pressed down hard.
"RRRIP!"
The painting beneath his brush abruptly tore in two. The figure in the painting was, of all people, Shen Daoxing.
The weathered man hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Your Highness, what if that man truly has no interest in the Princess, and no ill will toward our Tianze nation?"
He Yu shook his head and said abruptly, "None of that matters anymore!"
"And why is that?"
The weathered man asked, confused.
He Yu sighed helplessly. "Teacher, you don’t understand. The way my royal sister looked at this kid today... it was obvious she’s taken with him. That absolutely cannot be allowed to happen. My sister is a member of the imperial family. Under no circumstances can she be with an outsider."
He Yu thought for a moment, then added a reminder, "Oh, and my royal sister must absolutely not find out about this. She is my own sister, after all. How could I bear to see her sad?"
With that, He Yu shook his head and sighed heavily again. ’My foolish sister... why did you have to fall for someone like him?’
"Very well. I will go at once."
The weathered man nodded. Without any perceptible movement, he suddenly vanished from the spot.
「...」
In the Tianze Imperial Palace, Shen Daoxing walked back the way he came, shaking his head. He found the whole thing baffling. ’Tianze’s Eldest Prince seems so cold and ruthless on the surface, but it turns out he’s just a sis-con.’
The Eldest Prince wanted him gone, and frankly, Shen Daoxing wished he could leave right away, too. After all, people from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land were still hunting him.
"Young Master Yang! Young Master Yang!"
As Shen Daoxing was walking back, a pleasant female voice suddenly sounded in his ear.
He looked up and saw He Qian walking quickly toward him from a short distance away.
He Qian gathered her skirts and hurried closer. Seeing that Shen Daoxing was safe and sound, her expression instantly relaxed.
"Your Highness, what are you doing here?"
Shen Daoxing was a bit surprised.