Wang Yan felt uneasy when they returned to the courtyard. He didn’t dare to look at Qin Yu’s face. Suddenly, Qin Yu noticed a black-robed elder emerging from the shadows. The black-robed elder respectfully stood behind the crown prince.

For a moment, Wang Yan was filled with horror. Was this old man here the whole time? He hadn’t noticed the old man at all. Then again, it made sense that an expert would be protecting the crown prince.

“Your Highness…” greeted the old man.

The crown prince waved his hand and said, “Just tell me, how confident are you in facing that old man?”

“I’m fifty percent confident...but it’s even less than that if there are other experts around,” said the black-robed old man.

The crown prince’s face changed when he heard the lack of confidence. However, he wasn’t too surprised because he already guessed that the grey-robed old man was very powerful. Otherwise, why would Qin Yu agree to stay in the Princess Manor for a few more days?

“It has been five years since you showed up and gave me a display of your strength. However, it looks like she has almost recovered from her injuries and she’s determined to go against me.” Qin Yu’s face was dark. No one knew what was going through in his mind.

“Hmph!” Qin Yu raised his head. He looked at Wang Yan and said, “Wang Yan, I’ll leave this matter to you.”

“H-h-how can I possibly fight Xin Jue? He’ll kill me with one palm!” Wang Yan stuttered out of fear. He had seen Xin Jue’s strength during the banquet, so he could tell that not even someone in the Violet Palace Realm would be certain of beating Xin Jue.

Xin Jue definitely had the strength comparable to the eight titles, so Wang Yan facing Xin Jue was equivalent to throwing an egg at a boulder.

“Of course you’re not his opponent,” cursed Qin Yu. He continued, “I want you to discuss this matter with your father and to use the Wang Clan’s strength. Do you understand me now?”

“B-but this will give the Sword Firmament Pavilion an excuse to take action against the Wang Clan.” Wang Yan was completely terrified when he heard this. There was no way the Wang Clan could compare to the Sword Firmament Pavilion.

The Sword Firmament Pavilion was colossal, so wouldn’t the Wang Clan be courting death if they killed a disciple on the Heaven Ranking?

Qin Yu sat on the wooden chair and tapped his finger on the armrest. He smiled, “The Wang Clan naturally needs to contribute if you guys want to have the highest contribution among the four clans and to follow me after I’m crowned. I’ll repay you guys ten-fold when I ascend to the throne. You don’t have to make the decision. Just let your father know about this, he’ll make the decision.”

“But why aren’t you making a move yourself? With Your Highness’ strength, killing Xin Jue would be easy,” retorted Wang Yan.

“What a fool,” cursed Qin Yu. He asked, “Can’t you look at the current situation? The woman who shined brightly in the empire five years ago is back. Tonight was her warning to me. She will definitely try to hold me back. I have to get first in the Dragon Gate Competition no matter what. Xin Jue has to die or that woman won’t give up.”

……

Lin Yun woke up from being intoxicated when the light of dawn peered into the room. Drifting Goblet was nowhere seen when he opened his eyes. Lin Yun smiled because it looked like Drifting Goblet wasn’t really drunk last night. On the other hand, he had been intoxicated by the Monkey Wine.

But he felt refreshed after he woke up. He could feel a surge of warmness throughout his body that made him feel satisfied. All famous wines were beneficial to cultivators and the best ones could even increase cultivation. Naturally, this meant that they were expensive.

Above the ninth grade were the divine and celestial wines. It was rumored that they could extend one’s lifespan, improve one’s aptitude, and increase one’s comprehension. The Phoenixstand Wine was a seventh grade wine. So one could imagine how much it was worth.

At the very least, there were only two in the Great Qin Empire. Even throughout the Ancient Southern Domain, it was an extremely precious wine. After Lin Yun washed himself, he made preparations to return to the Sword Firmament Pavilion.

Six horses lined up together as they made their journey back. The princess’ birthday was an unquestionably grand event. Many people felt that this trip wasn’t in vain.

Riding on the Dragon Blooded Horse, Lin Yun exclaimed in joy. He never imagined that his strength would be ranked so highly. Even someone who he had to look up to in the past was evenly matched with him when they exchanged cups.

But he still couldn’t afford to let his guard down. After all, Bai Lixuan would possess the Saint Physique when he comes out of seclusion. Lin Yun couldn’t imagine how powerful Bai Lixuan would become when he came out. His grudge with Bai Lixuan wasn’t something that he could resolve so easily like Situ Yi.

He would still go after Bai Lixuan even if the latter didn’t come after him. Suddenly, aside from Lin Yun’s horse, the rest of the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s horses became restless.

“Tsk tsk. The Sword Firmament Pavilion can’t even find a decent horse?” snorted Wen Yanbo as he rode on his horse. The demonic aura from his horse was powerful and he was charging towards the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s party with it.

The Black Qilin Horse contained a trace of the Qilin’s bloodline and could be considered a descendant. It might be faint, but it still had the connection of a sacred beast’s descendant. Therefore, there was also a hint of sacred aura hidden in its demonic aura.

The Black Qilin Horses were the reason why the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s horses were afraid. Looking at Luo Feng, Wen Yanbo smiled, “Weren’t you acting high and mighty yesterday? Why is your mount looking so unstable today when you see me?”

“Hahaha!”

The Primal Origin Sect’s disciples all laughed. The Sword Firmament Pavilion might have taken all the limelight yesterday, so it wasn’t bad that they had a chance to ridicule them today. After all, the Princess Manor’s entrance had high traffic and they could show others how the Sword Firmament Pavilion embarrassed themselves.

Lin Yun didn’t utter a single word. He merely patted on the Dragon Blooded Horse’s neck lightly. Suddenly, there was an outburst of demonic aura that came from the Dragon Blooded Horse. This aura that made even cultivators fearful was directed at the Black Qilin Horses.

There was no way the Black Qilin Horses could compare to the Dragon Blooded Horse. It was just like how cats and dogs would tremble in fear when they looked at a tiger. In that split second, the Black Qilin Horses suddenly became anxious with fear in their eyes.

“What’s going on?” Wen Yanbo was shocked. He grabbed onto the ropes tightly and tried to calm down the Black Qilin Horse.

Suddenly, an ominous light flickered in the Dragon Blooded Horse’s eyes as lightning faintly crackled on its horn. Taking a step forward, the Dragon Blooded Horse roared. Under the golden sunlight, the Dragon Blooded Horse’s fur radiated with crimson brilliance.

The Black Qilin Horses dropped to the ground, while their riders from the Primal Origin Sect were still mounted. This caused Wen Yanbo and everyone else to be thrown to the ground. Although they didn’t suffer any injuries due to their cultivation, they had thoroughly embarrassed themselves.

No matter what they did, none of the Black Qilin Horses dared to get back on their feets. The Primal Origin Sect disciples were shocked by this.

But that wasn’t enough for the Dragon Blooded Horse. It even started shaking its butt at the Black Qilin Horses. This made the faces of Wen Yanbo and everyone else grow darker. A lowly horse from the Sword Firmament Pavilion was laughing at them?!

“What’s going on? Why aren’t the horses moving?”

“I bet you don’t have the inside scoop. The Primal Origin Sect tried to compete against the Sword Firmament Pavilion with their horses and lost. Did you see the Dragon Blooded Horse that Lin Yun was riding? It scared the eight Black Qilin Horses by itself.”

“Wow, but what’s going on with this horse? Is it laughing right now?”

“Holy shit, the horse is actually laughing. Hahaha! This is too funny! A horse actually looks so despicable when it laughs.”

“Hahaha! My eyes have been opened today. I bet the party from the Primal Origin Sect probably wants to die. They’re actually being humiliated by a mere horse. I wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t witness it personally.”

“How did Lin Yun get such a horse for himself? This is too funny.”

The surrounding disciples laughed when they looked at the Dragon Blooded Horse. Luo Feng patted his horse and trotted to the front with a smile, “Wen Yanbo, the Primal Origin Sect might have been overshadowed by my Sword Firmament Pavilion yesterday, but there’s no need for you guys to be so polite and even give us these Black Qilin Horses. Let’s go. We can’t accept this gift. Hahaha!”

The Sword Firmament Pavilion laughed as they left.

“Get lost! What are you guys looking at?!”

“What are you laughing about? I’ll slaughter you if you continue laughing!” The Primal Origin Sect’s disciples barked when they saw everyone laughing at them. The Primal Origin Sect was ultimately one of the four prestigious sects, so everyone instantly stopped laughing at them.

However, the Primal Origin Sect had thoroughly embarrassed themselves. They knew that this story would definitely spread throughout the Great Qin Empire. An elder of the Primal Origin Sect was actually laughed at…

Wen Yanbo’s face was dark. Looking at the Sword Firmament Pavilion’s party, his eyes flashed with dense murderous aura. He balled his fists together, “I’ll let you guys laugh for now!”