Chen Zihang's Inner Thoughts

Qing Xing Courtyard.

Chen Zihang found Feng Ruoxue. She was still dressed as a man. Even though Chen Zihang had said that Qing Xing Courtyard was safe, she still knew to protect herself.

"You heard the commotion yesterday, didn't you?" Chen Zihang spoke calmly, without the slightest emotion in his tone, as though he were merely making casual conversation.

"Chen Cheng came looking for you, but I drove him back," Chen Zihang said.

"Ah?" Feng Ruoxue was first suspicious, then astonished upon hearing his words.

"How did he know I was here?" Feng Ruoxue asked.

Feng Ruoxue had met Chen Cheng only once. What moved her was that, after just that one meeting, Chen Cheng had come to take her away.

"I don't know how he saw through your identity, but the abilities he displayed surprised me. Still, if he thought he could take you away with just a Dou Ling, that was clearly impossible," Chen Zihang explained. He did not care about Feng Ruoxue's thoughts; his attention was instead focused on Chen Cheng.

"What exactly do you want?" Feng Ruoxue asked warily.

In Feng Ruoxue's impression, Chen Zihang was not someone easy to get along with. She was a princess of the empire, while Chen Zihang was a prodigy of the Chen Family. With these two irreconcilable factions brought together, Feng Ruoxue did not think anything good would come of it.

Although Chen Zihang had not restricted Feng Ruoxue's freedom, within Qing Xing Courtyard, she was still practically under house arrest, with only this small area to move about in.

"I have no intention of competing with Chen Cheng for the position of Young Family Head. If he has the ability to lead the Chen Family to glory, I will naturally assist him with all my heart. But if he lacks that ability, I would not mind replacing him." Chen Zihang's tone was exceedingly calm, as if he were discussing some trivial domestic matter.

And this was the first time he had revealed his inner thoughts to an outsider.

"His talent is exceptional. In merely a month, he rose from someone with no cultivation whatsoever to a Five-Star Dou Zhe. Even I must admit that such talent surpasses mine. My Cultivation Method has certain flaws, so at most, I can reach Dou Zong in this lifetime. Chen Cheng is different. He can cultivate the ancestral Cultivation Method, and his upper limit will be far higher than mine," Chen Zihang said.

Yet when Feng Ruoxue heard Chen Zihang speak of Chen Cheng, she too was deeply shocked.

The Chen Family was not as easily infiltrated by outside forces as the Izumo Empire. The imperial family had no covert agents planted within the Chen Family. Therefore, Feng Ruoxue knew nothing about Chen Cheng.

She had always believed that Chen Cheng had lived in the Chen Family all along. With the Chen Family's foundation, a seventeen-year-old Five-Star Dou Zhe could not be considered outstanding. But becoming a Dou Zhe from an ordinary person in just one month was something no one would even dare imagine.

Feng Ruoxue had begun cultivating at the age of six, yet after ten years, she had only just reached Dou Zhi Li Rank 8. Compared to that, the gap was obvious.

From Chen Zihang, Feng Ruoxue also learned another piece of information: Chen Zihang had the potential to become a Dou Zong.

In the entire Izumo Empire, there was only one Dou Zong: Xie Biyan, the former sect master of the Myriad Scorpion Gate. However, Xie Biyan lived in seclusion and would not easily involve himself in the empire's conflicts.

Below Xie Biyan was Chen Ye, a Nine Star Dou Huang.

If Chen Ye's strength as a Nine Star Dou Huang were placed elsewhere, it might not sound as formidable as it did now. But in an environment like the Izumo Empire, Chen Ye's Cultivation Method suppressed poison masters. Even if he encountered a poison master at the Dou Zong level, Chen Ye could remain undefeated.

The Myriad Scorpion Gate secluded itself from the world, while the Chen Family was the foremost power in the Izumo Empire. If the Chen Family produced a true Dou Zong, then even the Myriad Scorpion Gate would no longer be worthy of the Chen Family's attention.

By then, the empire would have no chance of turning things around.

Feng Ruoxue was the empire's princess. Even if she did not care about this country, she still cared about her imperial father and mother.

Feng Ruoxue was in a state of turmoil. Having learned such a secret, she should have escaped the Chen Family and informed her father so that he could make preparations in advance.

But the Chen Family was heavily guarded. As a lone weak woman, she could not even leave Qing Xing Courtyard, much less escape the Chen Family.

Chen Zihang's gaze was not focused on Feng Ruoxue. He merely continued speaking to himself.

For all these years, Chen Zihang had kept his thoughts buried deep inside, not even telling Fang Siyao.

But now, Chen Cheng's return had shown abilities that satisfied him. He could finally cast off those hypocritical pretenses and act according to his true heart.

Chen Zihang needed to pour out all the thoughts in his heart. He needed a quiet listener.

In truth, he did not care who that listener was. So long as the words buried in his heart were spoken aloud, he would feel as though the burden weighing upon him had vanished.

"In ten days, I will leave. The time limit I set for Chen Cheng's test is also ten days. If he can handle this matter properly, then he will be the Chen Family's Young Family Head, and I will not object in the slightest. But if his way of handling matters fails to satisfy me, then I may have to compete with him for that position." Chen Zihang voiced what was in his heart.

In all the world, no one truly understood him. He had always been alone. Since childhood, his wish had been to restore the Chen Family to its former glory.

However, Chen Zihang's constitution was not suited for cultivating Poison Art. His Wind and Lightning Dual System body, coupled with his special constitution, gave him energy that was far too domineering. It was fundamentally unsuited to something as sinister as Poison Art.

The Chen Family's inheritance originated from an Old Ancestor who possessed the Calamity Poison Body. If he could not cultivate Poison Art, then no matter how powerful the Chen Family became, it would not be the Chen Family Chen Zihang envisioned.

Yet among the younger generation of the Chen Family, although there were several geniuses, not one of them satisfied Chen Zihang.

Thus, Chen Zihang had decided to shoulder this responsibility himself.

But Cultivation Methods suited for the Wind and Lightning Dual System were simply too scarce. Chen Zihang had forcibly achieved his current accomplishments by relying on nothing more than a Yellow High-Rank Wind and Lightning Dual System Cultivation Method.

Because of this shortage of Cultivation Methods, even with his special constitution, Chen Zihang's cultivation would eventually come to a halt at a certain stage. Perhaps only in his old age would Chen Zihang have a chance to break through to Dou Zong.

But by then, Chen Zihang would no longer have the time to bring glory to the Chen Family. That would become the regret of his life.

However, Chen Cheng's appearance allowed Chen Zihang to see hope.

Chen Cheng possessed excellent talent and could cultivate the Source of Deadly Poison. Moreover, according to the Chen Family's secret art, a Calamity Poison Body had appeared in the world once more. So long as they found this Calamity Poison Body, killed its owner, and transferred the Calamity Poison Body to Chen Cheng—

With Chen Cheng's extraordinary talent, combined with the Heaven-Rank Source of Deadly Poison, Chen Cheng would reach the heights of that Chen Family Old Ancestor who possessed the Calamity Poison Body, perhaps even surpassing him.

After all, the Old Ancestor had merely created the Source of Deadly Poison. Before he could enjoy the benefits it brought, he was devoured by the backlash of his poison body.

Chen Cheng, meanwhile, possessed within his body the energy passed down through generations of the Chen Family's cultivation of the Source of Deadly Poison. Combined with the perfected version of the Source of Deadly Poison, his upper limit would exceed that of the Old Ancestor.

The Source of Deadly Poison originated from the Calamity Poison Body. Chen Ye, Chen Yuan, and Chen Cheng, who would soon begin cultivating it, would all be restrained by the Calamity Poison Body. But Chen Zihang's Wind and Lightning Dual System would not be. He possessed the ability to kill that Calamity Poison Body before it had fully matured.

Upon hearing Chen Zihang's innermost thoughts, Feng Ruoxue was utterly shocked.

So Chen Zihang had been the one everyone misunderstood all along.

Chen Zihang did not care about other people's opinions. Everything he did had always followed his own heart.

"By the way, let me remind you of something. You and Chen Cheng are not suited for each other. I don't mind telling you this: within six months at the latest, the Chen Family will activate every hidden network they have within the empire and destroy the Chu Yun Royal Family in one stroke. Don't harbor any wishful thoughts, either. With the meager power your Feng Family possesses, my Chen Family could wipe you out without lifting a finger. When that time comes, do you really think you and Chen Cheng can still be together?" Chen Zihang's gaze suddenly fell on Feng Ruoxue.

Chen Zihang did not think much of Feng Ruoxue's status as a princess. A princess of a fallen kingdom was nothing at all.

Perhaps Chen Cheng would not personally take part in destroying the Chu Yun Royal Family. But as the Young Family Head, he would absolutely be unable to distance himself from what the Chen Family did.

And if Feng Ruoxue lived with the Chen Family while still harboring even the slightest thought of revenge, there could be no good outcome between her and Chen Cheng.

Chen Ye had seen this clearly, which was why he had stepped in to persuade Chen Cheng not to fall in love with Feng Ruoxue.

Chen Zihang, likewise, worried that Feng Ruoxue would affect Chen Cheng's state of mind.

As for Chen Yuan, no one knew whether he had seen it as well. But once the family head had made a decision, it was not easy for others to oppose it.

Chen Zihang had so openly revealed such grave news—that the Chen Family would rebel within six months—to Feng Ruoxue, a princess of Chu Yun. He was not worried that Feng Ruoxue would leak the secret; even if the Feng Family learned of it, it would be of no use.

The Chu Yun Royal Family had no ability to resist. They would be left isolated and helpless until they were destroyed.

Upon hearing Chen Zihang say that the Chen Family would destroy the Feng Family, Feng Ruoxue abruptly rose to her feet. She glared at Chen Zihang in agitation and demanded, "What did you say?"

She cared about her imperial father and mother.