"Eleventh Prince, Sixth Princess—doesn't Jiang Ruochén's sudden strength strike you as… odd?"
Qin Qi didn't state her conclusion outright. She tossed the question first.
"Of course it's odd," Jiang Li snapped. "That waste awakened only two days ago and progressed this fast? Impossible."
In two days to reach the power of an elephant—search the entire history of Zhen'nan and you'd hardly find a single case.
"Exactly."
Qin Qi's lips curved as she stepped forward. "Everyone knows he awakened a trash soul. Forget advancing this quickly—basic cultivation should be difficult for him. Yet he just showed one elephant's strength."
She paused, cast a disdainful glance toward the white-clad figure still on the stage, and let out a cold hum. "I'd wager that power isn't his. He used… other means."
"Other means… Xiao Qi, you mean Burst Qi Pills?" Jiang Li asked.
Qin Qi nodded lightly. "Yes. They're rare—only Tanshan Sword Manor can refine them. But don't forget, Consort Wan, she…"
Her words cut off. Whatever came next brushed a taboo, and she left it unsaid.
Jiang Li and the Sixth Princess exchanged bright, knowing looks. They caught her meaning at once—and embraced it eagerly.
Right—how could a waste rise just because he awakened a waste soul? Even the Third Prince, with a seven-star soul, hadn't advanced this fast. Jiang Ruochén doing so? Absurd—unless that "mud loach" soul had somehow turned into a dragon. Otherwise, impossible.
"Qin Miss speaks sense. How could a waste advance so quickly? He must have taken a Burst Qi Pill," a minister's son chimed in.
The Sixth Princess sneered. "Exactly. Second Heaven might be real, but there's no way he opened that many hidden meridians. That strength isn't his."
"That filthy cur," Jiang Li said, feigning outrage while grinning inside. "To use dirty tricks in the arena—if this spreads, the royal face will be lost."
Moments earlier, Jiang Ruochén's display had genuinely shaken him. Now, with Qin Qi's neat explanation, he felt soothed. The waste was still a waste—just… a slightly stronger one.
"Still," Qin Qi added, glancing at Jiang Li, "I didn't expect he could truly open his meridians and begin cultivation. We should report this to Her Majesty."
"Mm. Let's go—I'll seek an audience with Mother at once," Jiang Li said. The group left the arena.
Manager Wang Fu happened to be in Box Seven and heard every word. He snorted inwardly."Truly—dragons beget nine sons, and none alike. Our arena has always been fair. As if we'd let the Fourteenth Prince swallow Burst Qi Pills on stage. These princes and princesses… eyes blind to a true dragon."
He shook his head with a thin smile and headed backstage.
"Fourteenth Prince, you really opened my eyes tonight. I never imagined you possessed one elephant's strength," he said as he met Jiang Ruochén, who had just stepped down from the ring.
The smile was the same; the attitude was not. Power commanded respect.
"My spirit stones?" Jiang Ruochén asked. No small talk—he wanted his resources and a swift exit.
Catching the tone, Wang Fu produced a pouch at once. Jiang counted it, then handed it back."Exchange all of it for Marrow-Washing Pills."
A short while later, he left with twelve top-grade and one mid-grade pill—enough to seclude himself for a good stretch.
"Manager Wang, I'll be going."
"Of course. The Constellation Chamber will always welcome Your Highness," Wang Fu replied, personally seeing him out.
Watching the prince's back, Wang Fu narrowed his eyes and murmured, "Who'd have thought—the Fourteenth Prince is a hidden dragon after all."
Jiang Ruochén hurried back to the Zi Ji Pavilion. He told Consort Wan he would be in seclusion and not to worry, then plunged straight into the God Burial Tower to continue opening hidden meridians.
—
Elsewhere, in the Queen's palace: after a day without any sign of Xiao Cui, Her Majesty finally sensed something amiss. She tracked down the gate guard who'd last dealt with the maid.
From his account, she learned Xiao Cui had gone out to settle scores with Jiang Ruochén.
"When did this happen?" the Queen asked.
The guard knelt, scarcely daring to breathe. "Your Majesty, it was this afternoon—six or seven hours ago."
A flicker of surprise crossed her face, followed by a creeping unease. Xiao Cui was a Second Heaven cultivator. If nothing had gone wrong, roughing up that waste shouldn't take this long.
"Your Majesty… with Xiao Cui gone so long, could something have happened?" came a voice from behind.
The speaker was Feng Luo, one of the Queen's four most trusted armored attendants—each a Qi Sea expert. The others—Hua Luo, Xue Luo, Yue Luo—held comparable strength.
"Impossible. There must be another reason."
The Queen had considered Jiang Ruochén for a heartbeat, then dismissed it. He was a renowned weakling who had only awakened a trash soul two days ago. How could he be a match for Xiao Cui?
"Inform your captain. Search the royal city at once. People do not vanish without cause," she ordered.
"Yes, Your Majesty." The guard hurried out—just as a palace maid entered.
"Your Majesty, Miss Qin and the Eleventh Prince request an audience."
"So late?" The Queen thought for a moment, then sank back onto her phoenix chair. "Let them in."
They came, bowed, and reported everything from the arena.
"What? That waste beat a Fourth Heaven across realms—and unleashed one elephant's strength?" The Queen's face changed color.
Second Heaven and the power of an elephant… how?
"It's true, Mother," Jiang Li said. "He's opened his meridians and started cultivating. As for that 'elephant' strength—it's likely fake, from something like a Burst Qi Pill."
"Burst Qi Pills?" The Queen's eyes narrowed, then a chill smile curved her lips. "No doubt the work of that wretch, Consort Wan. For a few resources, she has no shame."
"Still… Jiang Ruochén surprised me. A trash soul, yet the faintest glimmer of a comeback." She paced, voice cooling further. "Two days to reach Second Heaven… even Jun'er wasn't that fast when he awakened, was he?"
The killing intent in her eyes deepened. She would not allow any prince to outshine her son—in anything. Not even at Second Heaven.
And now, of all times, Xiao Cui had gone missing—just as Jiang Ruochén "found strength." Coincidence? Hardly.
"Feng Luo! It seems Xiao Cui's disappearance truly ties back to that waste. You will handle this—leave no loose ends."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Feng Luo clasped her fist; her figure blurred and vanished from the hall.
Below the dais, Jiang Li and Qin Qi traded uneasy looks. They hadn't expected the Queen to send Feng Luo herself…