Before long, the Sky Demoness left the Prince's Mansion. He still had to continue disguising herself as Chu Yuan, so she could not possibly stay here for too long.
Chu Yun sat alone in the room, holding the box Wang Han Cuo and the others had given him—the box that sealed an Evil Infant.
"Ye Tun, are you sure about this?"
"With two Nirvana Realm Evil Infants, you'll be able to successfully evolve to the Venerable level?"
Chu Yun questioned the Evil Infant Ye Tun through his consciousness.
Ye Tun replied respectfully, "Master, this is absolutely true."
"I have remained at the Nirvana Realm Peak for many years and have devoured no fewer than a dozen Nirvana Realm Evil Infants. I have already completed eighty or ninety percent of my transformation into a Venerable-level being."
"If I devour two more Nirvana Realm Evil Infants, I will definitely become a Venerable-level Evil Infant. I will never disappoint you, Master!"
Ye Tun made his pledge with utter conviction.
Chu Yun listened without changing expression. "I hope so."
"If you can reach the Venerable level, you'll be able to take human form. When that time comes, you won't have to keep hiding in my consciousness."
Evil Infants at the Venerable Realm no longer needed to exist in infant form. They could transform freely into other forms, whether human or Demonic Beast; none of it posed any difficulty to them.
Moreover, unless someone's cultivation far surpassed theirs, even Venerables of the same realm would find it difficult to detect an Evil Infant's true form without it making a move.
After putting away the box, Chu Yun brought Luo Feng with him into the Imperial Palace.
There were some matters he intended to discuss with his mother consort and his uncle.
Prime Minister's Residence.
Meng Ruoxue held a list in her hand, her gaze carefully roaming over the names upon it.
The formation she had prepared to deal with Nirvana Realm cultivators had already been set up.
It was located outside the Imperial City, in a place called Crescent Moon Valley.
The place was sparsely populated, silent, and desolate—the most suitable place to lay a scheme.
After carefully reviewing the list, Meng Ruoxue finally fixed her target on one person.
Yan Song, the Yan Family's Grand Elder!
The Yan Family was a local clan of the Imperial City.
Although none of its members held office at court, the Yan Family's foundation could not be underestimated. Its ancestors had once produced a Venerable Realm expert.
Though it had long since lost its former splendor, it could still rank among the top three clans in the entire Imperial City.
Especially the current head of the Yan Family—his talent was not poor. He lacked only a little opportunity before breaking through to the Venerable Realm.
"It'll be him!"
"Yan Song!" Meng Ruoxue confirmed her target.
Upon hearing the name, the beautiful woman thought it over carefully. "Miss, Yan Song holds a rather high seniority within the Yan Family, but he has no descendants and often remains within the Yan Family estate."
"It may be rather difficult to lure him out of the city."
Meng Ruoxue remained calm. "Having no descendants does not mean he has no one he cares about."
"I once heard that Yan Song has kept several young women outside. Follow this lead and investigate it."
The beautiful woman answered, "Yes, Miss."
Within the Imperial Palace.
Chu Yun, Consort Shi, and the Asura Venerable sat together.
"Yun'er, what matter brings you here this time?" Consort Shi asked directly.
"Mother Consort, your son intends to... establish his own web of connections within the Imperial City," Chu Yun said.
Consort Shi and the Asura Venerable could not help exchanging glances. The latter crossed his arms and said calmly, "Go on."
"Alright."
"Uncle, Mother Consort, you surely both know by now that if the Crown Prince's Empress Faction is set aside, the forces and connections surrounding him personally are still the strongest among all of Father Emperor's children."
"Therefore, if we rely only on the Shi Family, two fists cannot defeat four hands. Our strength is far too thin."
"Thus, I want to make myself the foundation and begin building a web of connections that belongs solely to me."
"I came mainly to ask Mother Consort and Uncle: among the forces within the Imperial City, which ones would be suitable to stand on my side?" Chu Yun said seriously.
Naturally, he had thought this through long and hard.
After Consort Shi and the Asura Venerable fell silent for a while, she said, "Yun'er, there are many forces in the Imperial City, and their relationships are rather complicated."
"Among the local forces of the Imperial City, the Crown Prince has won over at least more than half."
"Of those remaining, the only ones worth considering are the Yan Family, Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, Ming Prince's Mansion, and Prime Minister's Residence."
Chu Yun had naturally heard of these forces.
The Yan Family was a local clan whose strength and foundation ranked among the top three in the Imperial City.
There was no need to say much about Prime Minister's Residence. Chancellor Meng, the foremost minister at court, was a genuine Venerable Realm expert!
Even his uncle had to show him a measure of respect.
Ming Prince's Mansion was one of the three great prince's mansions in the Imperial City.
The other two were the Black Iron King and Prince Xuan.
The former had long belonged to the Empress Faction. As for the latter, he had entered closed-door cultivation fifty years ago and had not been seen by anyone since, so he was not worth considering at all.
As for Heavenly Treasure Pavilion—
Before Misty Rain Pavilion entered the Imperial City, Heavenly Treasure Pavilion had been the number one merchant guild of the Great Xia Dynasty, radiant with boundless glory.
But once Misty Rain Pavilion appeared, Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was pressed down at every turn, and its business suffered severe losses.
Its resources, foundation, and even the strength of its upper ranks could not compare with Misty Rain Pavilion.
From then on, Heavenly Treasure Pavilion had been suppressed beneath Misty Rain Pavilion, its former glory gone forever.
By now, it could only open branch pavilions elsewhere in the Great Xia Dynasty to ease the losses suffered by its main pavilion.
Yet though Heavenly Treasure Pavilion could not compare to Misty Rain Pavilion, that did not mean it had completely collapsed and could never rise again.
After all, it had once been the number one merchant guild. A starved camel was still bigger than a horse!
The master of Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was still a Venerable Realm figure.
It was only because of Misty Rain Pavilion's existence that they had no choice but to become extremely low-profile.
"I heard the Crown Prince tried to win over all these forces, but failed in the end."
The Asura Venerable nodded. "Indeed. Chu Rong not only tried to win them over, he even attempted to approach Prince Xuan's Mansion."
"But the people at the helm of these forces are each more shrewd than the last. Rather than throw themselves into the whirlpool of imperial power, what they want more is their own peace and stability."
"After all, in a struggle for imperial power, no side has ever dared claim absolute certainty of victory."
"They are all clever people. They understand the consequences of doing such a thing."
Chu Yun's expression turned solemn. "The main reason they did not accept Chu Rong's overtures, I believe, was still Father Emperor."
The Asura Venerable and Consort Shi looked at him with some surprise. "Yun'er, for you to think of that, your insight is truly extraordinary."
"You are right. The main reason Chancellor Meng and the master of Heavenly Treasure Pavilion refused was because of your Father Emperor."
"The reigning emperor!"
Before you continue