Second Palace

"This person seems to be the current Fourth Prince, King Lu Xu Tianba."

Reminded by Meng Hongchen, Xiao Hongchen immediately recognized the man from his solid-colored skin, rare even among the current Imperial Family, and quietly warned Chen Ming at his side.

"Which Fourth Prince? Never heard of him," Chen Ming muttered.

Xiao Hongchen wanted to answer, but seeing Fourth Prince Xu Tianba gradually approaching, he merely poked Chen Ming in the side, shook his head, and said nothing more.

Xu Tianba was quite strong. Though they did not know exactly what level he had reached, he was at least above Soul King. If they said too much, he might hear them. Even with their families' influence and strength, they could still invite trouble because of it.

After all, this man's reputation was truly... beyond merely having a bad reputation.

Receiving Xiao Hongchen's subtle warning, Chen Ming raised his already high guard another notch.

He slightly turned his head and glanced aside. Several guards who had secretly followed the three of them ever since they left the gates of Hongchen Mansion were also watching the Fourth Prince warily.

Jing Hongchen's cousin—the chief steward who had previously guided them in Jing Hongchen's stead—stepped out from the shadows and tried to block the Fourth Prince's path.

At the same time, however, a dark-skinned middle-aged man with somewhat similar features emerged from the shadows behind the Fourth Prince and stood before Jing Hongchen's cousin without yielding an inch.

The two sides' auras clashed in secret until Jing Hongchen's cousin let out a muffled grunt and took a step back.

Though they could not sense the other man's aura, anyone who could force a Soul Douluo back a step through sheer presence, leaving him afraid to make a move, was likely a Titled Douluo unless he was some peerless fiend.

Seeing this, the Fourth Prince seemed to relax and slowly approached the three of them.

"Xiao, Mengmeng, it has been a long time. And this must be the genius who emerged from the Dragon Elephant Sect this year—the young Chen Ming, whose Martial Soul is the Vajra Dragon Elephant and who was said to have become the Dragon Elephant Sect's Young Sect Master on the very day his Martial Soul awakened. Meeting you truly surpasses hearing of you."

Generally speaking, when normal people conversed, the smiles they showed were at least bearable to look at. Seasoned schemers could make their expressions so gentle that not a trace of malice could be found, even if they were plotting against each other inside.

Yet for some reason, this Fourth Prince's smile seemed utterly fake and disgusting. Not even his face, black as the bottom of a pot, could hide it.

Paired with his burning gaze, anyone could see his ill intentions.

Meng Hongchen instinctively took a step back, intending to hide behind her brother, Xiao Hongchen.

But after glancing at Xiao Hongchen's height, which might not be enough to shield her, Meng Hongchen darted behind Chen Ming instead, using his massive body to conceal herself.

At this sight, the malice in the Fourth Prince's eyes flickered without any attempt at concealment. Only after a long while did he barely manage to hide a small part of it.

"What business does the Fourth Prince have?" Chen Ming casually shoved Xiao Hongchen behind him as well, stepped forward, clasped his hands in salute, and asked coldly.

"I happened to encounter the three of you while out today, and I feel that we are quite fated. Why not gather at a restaurant together? To have such a young talent as Xiao Ming is a blessing to our Sun Moon Empire. Would you all be willing to grant me this favor?"

"Thank you for your kind intentions, Fourth Prince, but we have matters to attend to today. At the request of our elders, I need to consign an item at the Auction House. Let us speak of gathering another day."

Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen were still young. Even if they were unwilling to accept the Fourth Prince's "invitation," they could not show it directly. But Chen Ming gave the Fourth Prince no such face and very naturally found an excuse to decline.

Seeing someone who gave him so little face, the Fourth Prince froze for a moment before a flash of anger passed through his eyes.

The Imperial Family's princes all had brains. So long as their maternal clans had not fallen into trouble, every prince had received special education. But having a brain and choosing not to use it were not mutually exclusive, and receiving an education did not mean they had truly learned anything.

The Fourth Prince was precisely that sort of person. His mother came from an ancient clan within the Sun Moon Empire, and from the moment of his birth, he had taken a step toward ancestral reversion, possessing pure black skin. Thus, he had received extra favor since birth.

At six years old, his Innate Soul Power had reached an astonishing Rank Nine, while the purity of his Sun Martial Soul ranked among the best in the Imperial Family. Even the previous emperor had been exceedingly fond of this nephew of his.

After his father seized the throne, his status rose even further because of his mother's clan's contributions during the palace coup.

Though he was only the fourth among the princes, because of his skin and his maternal clan's contributions to seizing the throne, his standing among this generation of princes was second only to his third brother, Xu Tianran, who, as the legitimate son, had practically already taken the position of Crown Prince.

Now, even Xu Tianran was unwilling to act too forcefully toward him.

In his own view, it was not impossible for him to establish a Second Palace and compete with that foolish, incompetent Xu Tianran for the position of Crown Prince.

After all, aside from being born a little earlier, having a deceased mother who had been the principal wife, and possessing the rare Purple Blazing Heaven Dragon Martial Soul, what did Xu Tianran have that was better than him?

Everything he did in daily life was for no other reason than to suppress Xu Tianran's arrogance.

Do not think that Xu Tianran, simply because he possessed the Purple Blazing Heaven Dragon Martial Soul, was the strongest fighter among the princes.

Even though his Soul Power was three ranks lower, he still did not fear Xu Tianran in a one-on-one fight.

Though he had never personally dealt with military affairs, based on the books and battle reports he read daily, along with the praise those around him gave his talent, he was confident that he was stronger than Xu Tianran.

In his view, if he had commanded the army, he would have ascended the throne atop Shrek's ruins long ago.

Xu Tianran only had the advantage of legitimacy. As for virtue, Xu Tianran was nothing but a dog!

If there were not still some room for change regarding the position of Crown Prince—

Xu Tianran only looked like he would become Crown Prince; he had yet to receive their father's recognition and become the true Crown Prince.

Otherwise, Xu Tianba would have dearly loved to contact the power closely tied to his family and directly have Xu Tianran physically eliminated.

Two days ago, he had brought lavish gifts to visit the Hall Master of Mingde Hall, Jing Hongchen, in an attempt to gain the support of Mingde Hall and the Hongchen Family.

He had even offered to take Jing Hongchen's granddaughter, Meng Hongchen, as his consort, promising that after he ascended the throne, he would make her an Imperial Noble Consort, and that once Jing Hongchen retired, Xiao Hongchen could continue as the Hall Master of Mingde Hall.

In his eyes, that was already an exceptionally sincere offer.

Meng Hongchen was not only female, rather than the type he liked, but that was one thing. After all, the Sun Moon Empire did not openly support such matters.

But she did not even have thick muscles, dark skin, full thick lips, or dreadlocks carrying a rich sense of history.

Compared to his mother—dark-skinned, full-lipped, muscular, with dreadlocks steeped in a rich sense of history, breathtakingly beautiful and worthy of being called the number one beauty of the Sun Moon Empire—she was simply an incomparably ugly woman.

Under such circumstances, for him to accept such a great grievance, how could his attitude not be considered sincere?

Yet in the end, Jing Hongchen had brushed him off and politely sent him out of the residence. When the gates closed, he could clearly feel them tremble from the force used.

Unwilling to give up, he had people keep watch over the entrance of Hongchen Mansion, preparing a chance "encounter" with Jing Hongchen's grandson and granddaughter.

Chen Ming's appearance was an additional surprise to him, making him think he might be able to win over the Dragon Elephant Sect as well in one stroke.

But Chen Ming's attitude clearly displeased him. He could not help carefully sizing up this audacious fellow.

At first, it was fine when he did not inspect him closely. But when his gaze carefully swept over Chen Ming's well-trained muscles, his bronze skin beneath the sunlight, and his shiny bald head that seemed to gleam faintly in the sun...

The Fourth Prince's originally nasty expression gradually softened, and his entire demeanor became sincere.