Seventh Prince

A youth arrived, appearing to be around fifteen or sixteen. He wore a yellow robe and a golden crown, looking quite opulent.

"Greetings, Seventh Prince."

As soon as the youth arrived, everyone hurriedly knelt to pay their respects. Even Shi Feng reluctantly knelt down.

This youth was named Chu Feng, the seventh and youngest son of the current Emperor of the Phoenix Cry Empire, Chu Tiankuo.

Rumor had it that when Chu Feng was just born, Chu Tiankuo had already gone into seclusion and had yet to emerge. Thus, Chu Feng had never seen what his own father looked like.

Long Chen had heard a lot about Chu Feng. He knew that Chu Feng was born to the Empress of the West Palace, had been pampered since childhood, and was arrogant and overbearing. Apart from the Crown Prince, there was almost no one he feared. Long Chen hadn't expected him to show up here today.

However, upon seeing Zhou Yaoyang beside him, Long Chen immediately understood. He figured Chu Feng was here for him again.

According to the etiquette between subjects and royalty, all heirs apparent must bow to princes. Fatty Yu, Shi Feng, and the others all knelt on the ground. Unless they broke through to the Blood Condensation Realm, they could not be exempted.

Long Chen curled his lips. A second-generation brat wants me, Long Chen, to kneel to him? Besides my parents, the person worthy of my kneeling hasn't even been born yet.

The Seventh Prince, Chu Feng, glanced faintly at everyone. When he suddenly saw Long Chen, sitting there boldly like a crane among chickens, his expression couldn't help but darken.

"Audacious Long Chen! The Seventh Prince is here, and you still refuse to pay respects and kneel? Are you trying to rebel?"

Beside the Seventh Prince, Zhou Yaoyang and the others were also surprised. They hadn't expected Long Chen to have the guts to openly oppose the Seventh Prince like this.

Wang Mang, who had been slapped hard by Long Chen back then, saw this and couldn't help but rejoice. Fearing Long Chen would react, he hurriedly shouted, first slapping a major charge onto Long Chen.

The others were also greatly shocked, especially Fatty Yu and the others, who were so scared they started sweating. The disputes between heirs apparent were minor squabbles.

But offending a prince could very well cost one their head. What's more, Long Chen's actions at this moment were clearly treasonous.

A hint of excitement clearly appeared in Zhou Yaoyang's eyes. He had a slight acquaintance with the Seventh Prince and often accompanied this good-for-nothing prince for food and fun.

Today, he suddenly had an idea and brought the Seventh Prince along, hoping to suppress Long Chen. After all, Long Chen's previous victory over Li Hao had made him famous throughout the capital.

Zhou Yaoyang and the others, on the other hand, felt like they had been slapped in the face because they had bet almost all their assets on Li Hao. Now, their entire group was living frugally, and their days of lavish indulgence were gone forever.

What he hadn't expected was that things would turn out to be simpler than he imagined. Without him having to instigate anything, Long Chen had already ignited the Seventh Prince's fury.

Listening to Wang Mang's arrogant roar, Long Chen's lips curved into a sneer. He smiled faintly and asked with feigned concern, "Wang Mang, how did Li Hao's 'egg' taste? Seeing your forehead full and your cheeks plump, it seems that 'egg' was very nourishing."

Wang Mang's face immediately changed drastically, his stomach churning as if in a storm. The incident last time had left him with severe after-effects.

Now, whenever he ate, he would recall that day's events and reflexively vomit nonstop.

He couldn't eat anything now and had lost a lot of weight. Far from being "forehead full and cheeks plump" as Long Chen described, he looked like a walking corpse.

Wang Mang's face turned purple with anger, but he didn't dare say a word, desperately suppressing the turmoil in his stomach. He was afraid that if he opened his mouth, he would vomit.

"Long Chen, you are merely a minor heir apparent, without official rank or scholarly title. Why do you not kneel when you see this Prince?" the Seventh Prince asked angrily, pointing at Long Chen.

The Seventh Prince was accustomed to being arrogant. Even other princes and princesses were unwilling to provoke him. Today, seeing a mere heir apparent dare to treat him as if he were nothing, he was furious.

Looking at the youth whose face still held childish innocence, Long Chen said calmly, "You are still a child. I won't argue with you. Go back where you came from."

"What?"

Everyone's expression changed instantly. Was Long Chen seeking death? How could he dare to say such things? If he had merely refused to kneel before, at most he would have been locked up for a few days and beaten with a board.

But now, Long Chen's words were clearly treasonous. This was a capital offense! Had Long Chen gone mad?

"You... you're courting death! Seize him!"

The Seventh Prince was furious and shouted at the people around him.

Those people were all with Zhou Yaoyang. Hearing the Seventh Prince's command, they were overjoyed. Without a second thought, they lunged at Long Chen.

If it were any other time, they might have hesitated. But now, with the Seventh Prince's order, they had no reservations. With this backer, they wouldn't be held responsible even if they killed Long Chen.

BANG!

As they lunged forward, Long Chen kicked the table in front of him. The table, made of ancient wood as sturdy as iron and incredibly heavy, was sent flying by Long Chen's kick, heading straight for the group.

Zhou Yaoyang, at the forefront, saw the table flying towards him and shouted. He circulated all his strength and punched the table.

With a loud explosion, the sturdy table was shattered by Zhou Yaoyang's punch. He was indeed a cultivator at the seventh level of Qi Gathering, his aura quite formidable.

However, after shattering the table, his movement instinctively paused. At this moment, Wang Mang, who had been beside him, had already bypassed Zhou Yaoyang and became the first "brave warrior" to charge at Long Chen.

Long Chen looked at Wang Mang, who was gritting his teeth and charging at him, like an idiot. A strange smile appeared on his lips, and he casually waved his hand.

Slap!

The movement was incredibly fast. Before anyone could clearly see Long Chen's action, they heard a loud smack. Long Chen's hand had precisely struck Wang Mang's face.

Wang Mang was sent flying directly, describing a beautiful parabolic arc through the air before crashing far away. Most shocking of all, as he flew, over a dozen teeth scattered brilliantly.

CRASH!

Wang Mang's body slammed directly into the wall. His eyes rolled back, and he immediately fainted. However, his still-open mouth clearly told the world that he had become a "wall-hitter" and a "toothless" man.

Zhou Yaoyang, who had just rushed forward, saw Wang Mang being sent flying. His heart trembled slightly. Although Wang Mang's cultivation wasn't impressive, being so easily defeated made him feel uneasy.

However, this was no time to retreat. Zhou Yaoyang shouted, unleashing the aura of a seventh-level Qi Gathering cultivator. Spiritual Energy permeated his body.

"Six Yang Fist!"

As Zhou Yaoyang shouted, he threw a punch. A faint green hue appeared on his fist, a phenomenon unique to battle skills.

Six Yang Fist was one of Zhou Yaoyang's signature moves. Practiced for a long time, each punch carried over a thousand pounds of force, making it unstoppable.

"Slap"

Without any hesitation, Long Chen slapped down on Zhou Yaoyang's fist. The fist and palm met, sending out bursts of energy with a loud explosion.

However, to everyone's astonishment, Zhou Yaoyang's mighty and unyielding punch was casually caught by Long Chen.

"How is that possible?"

Zhou Yaoyang was greatly shocked. He felt as if his punch had hit a mountain. His chest ached from the impact.

On the other side, Long Chen didn't even flinch. A cruel smile appeared on his lips:

"Zhou Yaoyang, it's my turn now."

Zhou Yaoyang's scalp suddenly tingled. He felt as if he were being stared at by a ferocious beast. His heart pounded wildly, and he hurriedly retreated.

But he didn't get his wish. Long Chen's large hand tightly gripped his fist. No matter how he struggled, it was like a dragonfly trying to shake a pillar – completely motionless.

Zhou Yaoyang was terrified. What kind of power was this? Long Chen was like a human monster, relying entirely on brute strength rather than cultivation, completely suppressing him.

"Hoo"

However, Zhou Yaoyang was also a strong individual. He had killed demonic beasts alongside his father's subordinates and was no stranger to bloodshed. He remained calm in the face of danger. Seeing that he couldn't break free from Long Chen's grip, he raised his right foot and aimed straight for Long Chen's lower abdomen.

This was a simple and effective move to attack an opponent's vital point. But Long Chen didn't even glance at Zhou Yaoyang's foot. He exerted force with one hand.

"Rise!"

Long Chen roared, his voice like thunder shaking the heavens, making people's eardrums ache. With Long Chen's shout, Zhou Yaoyang rose into the air.

Under everyone's horrified gazes, Long Chen lifted Zhou Yaoyang and slammed him violently onto the ground.

"Bang!"

A loud explosion echoed, shaking the entire ground. At the same time, the sound of cracking bones was heard, chilling everyone to the bone.

"Pfft... pfft... pfft..."

Zhou Yaoyang, thrown to the ground, spat out three mouthfuls of blood. Mixed within were fragments of internal organs. People clearly noticed that he was much wider than usual, no, flatter. His volume remained the same, but his surface area seemed to have increased significantly.

Looking at Zhou Yaoyang, who was coughing up blood, and then at the cracks in the solid ground beneath him, everyone gasped in unison.

Seeing Zhou Yaoyang struggling to breathe, Long Chen felt a great weight lifted from his chest. He had been holding this breath for a long time.

Over the years, the person he hated most was Zhou Yaoyang. He was like a pervasive nightmare that had tormented Long Chen.

For a moment, the entire hall was silent as a pin drop. Including the Seventh Prince, everyone was stunned. Even the heirs who were ready to rush forward swallowed hard, their bodies trembling involuntarily.

And Long Chen, from beginning to end, maintained a calm expression. But the calmer he was, the more terrifying he became, like a merciless god of slaughter.

Long Chen glanced at Zhou Yaoyang, a smile playing on his lips. He then looked at the Seventh Prince in the distance and slowly walked towards him.

The Seventh Prince, accustomed to a life of privilege, was adept at bullying others but had no experience being bullied. Seeing Long Chen approaching with a wicked grin, his face turned deathly pale.

"What do you want? Don't come any closer!"

The Seventh Prince's voice trembled. He seemed to sense the icy killing intent emanating from Long Chen's eyes. He felt as if a butcher's knife were at his throat, capable of severing his head with a mere thought from Long Chen.

Long Chen remained silent, his terrifying smile still on his face as he slowly approached the Seventh Prince.

Now, everyone was stunned. What did Long Chen intend to do? Did he want to kill the Seventh Prince?

"No... don't come any closer!"

The Seventh Prince retreated continuously, but he had already backed himself into a corner with no escape.

Watching Long Chen draw nearer, the Seventh Prince's eyes were filled with terror. He felt as if he could smell death.

"You shouldn't have forced me. Don't blame me." Long Chen shook his head with pity, his hand slowly reaching into his robes. Suddenly, a large hand shot towards his face.

"No..." The Seventh Prince let out a preemptive scream that echoed throughout the Hall of Literature.