Delivering the News

The next day.

Huangfu Ji came to the restroom and stood beside the toilet, looking up at the window above. At that moment, he realized he had overlooked a problem—how was he supposed to get up there?

"This is awkward."

Yesterday, he had been so caught up in his excitement that he had completely forgotten he was currently a six-year-old child. He could not reach the window. If he stood on the toilet and jumped, the people outside would immediately hear the commotion and come in.

Once he was discovered, he would be in trouble.

Looking at the paper ball he had prepared, Huangfu Ji felt utterly depressed.

After lingering for a while, he turned and left. The moment he was gone, the guards came to inspect the room.

This time, they found something suspicious.

Huangfu Ji had not relieved himself at all. He had only come to urinate, yet he had stayed inside for far too long—especially since he had not drunk much water that morning.

"I think the Grand Duke is getting a little restless," one guard said.

The other guards nodded in agreement.

That guard turned around and said, "Go get some boards. Seal up the window."

They immediately got to work. Before long, they brought over tools and sealed shut the already small window. Huangfu Ji saw everything.

"They're keeping a close watch on me."

He had no other options. Sending a message out through the restroom window was no longer possible. Throwing it directly outside would be too easy to detect, and wherever he went, someone followed him.

Suppressing his frustration, he simply went to the library and found a book to read. The moment he sat down by the windowsill, Huangfu Ji froze.

Smack!

A crisp slap rang out, and a red handprint appeared on his cheek.

"I'm an idiot."

"This place works too."

He suddenly remembered that this place was not all that far from outside the mansion. Although it was a little farther than the restroom window, he could still send a message out from here. There was a garden beneath the window, so no one could stand there, and there were trees nearby that could conveniently block the view.

Looking through the window at the bustling street outside, Huangfu Ji made some simple calculations in his head.

With his current strength, he could not throw anything outside using only his arm strength. Even if he barely managed it, others would notice.

Putting down his book, he began searching through the library. He remembered that there was a Slingshot his father had left behind from his childhood. Before long, he found it. Although several decades had passed, it had not been damaged because it was made from special materials.

After wiping away the dust, Huangfu Ji smiled.

"Dad, if your spirit is watching over me, you have to bless your son. And Mom, you have to bless your son too."

"Whether I live or die depends on this."

He tore off a piece of paper and wrote down the message. Then he found a small splinter of wood.

Holding the Slingshot, he walked to the window and slowly opened it. He stuck his head out and looked around. Once he confirmed that no one was nearby, he fixed his gaze on a peddler selling Candied Hawthorn.

He drew back the Slingshot and aimed at his target.

Whoosh—!

The paper ball wrapped around the wood splinter flew out.

"Ow!"

The peddler, who had been calling out to attract customers, was suddenly struck and cried out in pain.

"Who was that? Who's throwing things around?"

After confirming the hit, Huangfu Ji immediately shut the window, returned the Slingshot, cleaned up all traces, and then resumed reading as though nothing had happened.

The Candied Hawthorn peddler looked around, trying to find whoever had hit him. However, after searching for a while, he found no suspicious target. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly noticed the paper ball on the ground.

"What's this?"

Driven by curiosity, he picked up the paper ball and unfolded it. The moment he saw its contents, his eyes widened.

"Innate Full Soul Power!"

The people nearby immediately looked over.

The peddler instinctively covered his mouth and looked toward the Duke's Mansion, beginning to panic.

Seeing everyone around him staring at him, he threw away the note and fled as fast as he could.

"Why did he run?"

"What Innate Full Soul Power?"

The moment he ran, the people around him grew curious as well. Someone stepped forward and picked up the paper.

There was only one sentence written on it: [Grand Duke Qingyang Huangfu Ji has undergone Martial Soul Awakening and possesses Innate Full Soul Power.]

Everyone's eyes widened. Then, as though by unspoken agreement, they all looked toward the Duke's Mansion. They shared the same thought: the current Grand Duke Qingyang was a peerless genius, and Qingyang Duchy was about to produce a Titled Douluo.

Before long, the news spread throughout all of Qingyang City.

Across the streets and alleys, men and women, young and old, all knew that Grand Duke Qingyang, Huangfu Ji, was a genius with Innate Full Soul Power.

Everyone in the city knew, and Yuan Hao and the members of the Loyalty Faction naturally knew as well.

Those loyal to the Huangfu Family were exhilarated, but Yuan Hao was in no such wonderful mood.

"Can anyone tell me how he got the news out?"

Looking at the few people before him, Yuan Hao's expression was incomparably grim. He had surrounded the Duke's Mansion so tightly that not even a fly could get out, yet Huangfu Ji had still managed to send the news out.

Several subordinates remained silent.

At that moment, a middle-aged man stepped forward. "Prime Minister, now isn't the time to investigate this. The entire city knows about Huangfu Ji's Innate Full Soul Power. Those remnants still loyal to the Huangfu Family will surely make something of it."

"We need to respond."

Yuan Hao had a headache.

"If I were a Soul Douluo, I'd just kill them all and be done with it."

"Those remnants are like cockroaches—tenacious to the extreme."

Although he had a Soul Douluo-level Soul Master by his side, and although he had close ties with Spirit Hall, even after gaining control over the entire Duchy, there were still some people loyal to the Huangfu Family whom he could not eliminate.

The reason was simple: they had a Soul Douluo on their side as well—the Dean of Qingyang Senior Soul Master Academy. He had once been Huangfu Yunhe's friend despite their age difference, and had broken through to become a Level 81 Soul Douluo just last year.

Yuan Hao could not move against him lightly.

That Dean's breakthrough had given the remaining Loyalty Faction a pillar to rally around.

In the end, Yuan Hao had simply been in power for too short a time. Two years was far too little; there were too many things to do, which had allowed those people room to breathe.

Still, they posed no threat for now. As long as Huangfu Ji remained in his hands, it would be useless no matter how united they were.

"I'll deal with those people myself."

Yuan Hao stared at them. "What you need to do now is make sure Huangfu Ji doesn't send out another scrap of information."

The moment he finished speaking, someone ran in.

"Prime Minister, outside..."

"What happened outside?" Yuan Hao asked.

The man said, "People outside are spreading rumors that you have confined the Grand Duke, prevented him from obtaining Soul Rings, and refused to let him study."

"What?!" Yuan Hao immediately lost his composure.

Though he wanted to usurp the throne, he still had to keep up appearances. As for Huangfu Ji, he had always used the excuse that the boy was only six years old and needed protection. To placate outsiders, he had also constantly claimed that the Grand Duke was being well educated.

In any case, no one could get in contact with him. Whatever Yuan Hao said went.

And now, Huangfu Ji had sent out another message.

Originally, after revealing that he possessed Innate Full Soul Power, Huangfu Ji had not intended to take the next step. But after thinking it over, he worried that the response might not be strong enough, or that something unexpected might happen. So he sent out word that Yuan Hao had confined him and would not allow him to learn Soul Master knowledge or obtain Soul Rings.

The Huangfu Family had governed the Duchy for four hundred years, so they still had some popular support.

Sure enough, once the news spread, the outside world erupted in uproar.