The Attention Sparked by a Book

The conversation between Luan Feng and Crown Prince Yan when Luanfeng left was still vivid in his mind, but for Crown Prince Yan, it was really too difficult to do what Luan Feng said.

One was Conferred Saint in the Yan State, and the other was the prime minister of the Yan State. The two, one a civil official and the other a military leader, represented the most powerful figures in the entire Yan State. As the King Yan, Crown Prince Yan hoped to use their abilities to stabilize the country and make Yan State prosper under his leadership. How could he possibly kill them?

"I suppose this is why Luan Feng wants to leave me," Crown Prince Yan sighed softly, a bitter smile playing on his lips.

I know my own personality very well. To put it nicely, I'm indecisive; to put it bluntly, I lack my own opinions and am timid.

This kind of personality is not suited to be a ruler. If he hadn't read the book "Han Feizi" from the Mysterious Bookstore and gained the Emperor's Aura, enabling him to activate the national treasure of Yan State, and with the help of Luan Feng, he would never have been able to sit on this throne.

To put it bluntly, his throne was given to him by the Mysterious Bookstore; it had nothing to do with him personally.

Even Luanfeng, his childhood Luan Feng, helped him only because the owner of the Mysterious Bookstore promised to write her a military treatise, not out of any affection between them.

Take the present as an example. Ever since Crown Prince Yan, Prime Minister Yuwen has been claiming illness and staying at home; even the Sage Yan is physically present but mentally absent, refusing to offer any help whatsoever.

Crown Prince Yan felt that if it weren't for his ability to use that national treasure, even with the help of the Luan Feng, he might not have been able to successfully ascend to the throne of the King Yan!

Thinking of this, Crown Prince Yan stretched out his hand, and a faint aura appeared in his palm, faint and shimmering with golden light.

Sage Yan subconsciously glanced at the wisp of breath on Crown Prince Yan's palm, a hint of Earthquake in his eyes.

He was all too familiar with that aura— the Emperor's Aura of a monarch.

It is also the only source capable of activating the Yan State's national treasure.

"Could he be trying to kill me?" Sage Yan was secretly alarmed, but he calmly withdrew his gaze, pondering this possibility.

The Sage Yan was more surprised than anyone else by the sudden appearance of the Crown Prince Yan with Emperor's Aura. Throughout the five thousand years of Yan State, there have only been two monarchs who possessed Emperor's Aura: the founding King Yan of Yan and the deceased King Yan.

Crown Prince Yan was the third monarch in the five thousand years of Yan State to comprehend the Emperor's Aura. In fact, it was precisely because Crown Prince Yan suddenly comprehended the Emperor's Aura that he was able to turn the tide and regain the throne of King Yan.

Otherwise, Luan Feng and her 50,000 Luanfeng Army alone would definitely not be enough. At least in front of Sage Yan, 50,000 Luanfeng Army is nothing and can be wiped out in the blink of an eye.

However, possessing the Emperor's Aura means being able to use the national treasure of the Yan State; this treasure, which gathers the entire national fortune of the Yan State, is so powerful that even the Sage Yan cannot withstand it once it is used.

"Whoosh~"

As Sage Yan pondered, Crown Prince Yan had already withdrawn the aura in his hand, gave Sage Yan a meaningful look, and then got up and left.

Sage Yan watched Crown Prince Yan's departing figure silently, his eyes gleaming, lost in thought.

The residence of Prime Minister Yuwen.

Yuwen Hongdu sat high in his Grand Tutor Chair, savoring the freshly brewed tea with a look of pure enjoyment on his face.

Since the new emperor ascended the throne, he had resigned from his position as Yan State under the pretext of illness, and stayed at home, no longer concerning himself with court affairs.

Outsiders believed this was due to the new emperor's suppression, since Yuwen Hongdu's daughter was Yan Xun's wife, so Yuwen Hongdu and Yan Xun were on the same side; now that Yan Xun had abdicated the throne and Crown Prince Yan had ascended the Crown Prince Yan, he naturally wouldn't let Yuwen Hongdu hold power anymore.

In reality, all of this was simply Yuwen Hongdu's own idea.

"Thump, thump, thump~" The sound of hurried footsteps rang out, and the steward rushed in, saying, "Master, there's news."

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Hongdu paused, stopping his tea-drinking motion, and said calmly, "Speak."

"According to the information just sent back by our spies, Crown Prince Yan once visited Dubian Town in the Chu Kingdom and stayed there for a period of time; and coincidentally, the God of War Luan Feng also stayed in Dubian Town for more than a month," the steward said in a low voice.

"Chu Kingdom's Dubian Town? What are they doing there?" Yuwen Hongdu frowned slightly and asked.

The butler looked somewhat surprised and cupped his hands, saying, "Master, you may not know this, but according to our spies, there's a magical little shop in Dubian Town called the Mysterious Bookstore! It's said that if you go inside and read Mysterious Bookstore books, you can comprehend all sorts of amazing abilities within the books, and even obtain divine artifacts!"

"A divine artifact?!" Yuwen Hongdu's face showed shock. He put down his teacup and stared at the steward, saying in a deep voice, "Is the information true?"

The butler nodded and replied, "It's absolutely true. More than ten days ago, a book called 'The Lotus Lantern' in the Mysterious Bookstore produced tens of thousands of various spiritual artifacts and high-level cultivation techniques and martial arts skills. Among them, the daughter of King Qi Wen obtained a semi-divine artifact, and the owner of the Mysterious Bookstore obtained a divine artifact. Now the news has spread throughout the entire Azure Dragon Continent, and everyone in the streets and alleys outside the capital is talking about it."

Yuwen Hongdu listened quietly to the steward's words, then said with some surprise, "Such a magical little shop exists in the world? It can even obtain divine artifacts from books?"

The butler hesitated for a moment, then continued, "Master, that Bookstore not only offers divine artifacts from its books, but according to our spies, the God of War Luan Feng achieved Transcendent to Saint because she read a book called 'The Art of War' in that Mysterious Bookstore and directly broke through from the Ninth Stage Spirit Venerable to the Transcendent to Saint."

Yuwen Hongdu frowned, looked at the steward, and asked in a low voice, "Why are you only telling me such an important matter now?"

Upon hearing this, the steward was so frightened that he immediately knelt down and bowed, saying, "Master, please forgive me. Yan State is too far from the Chu Kingdom, and information is not easily disseminated. In addition, all our spies were recently sent to Qin State and the Northern Liang Northern Liang Grassland to spy on Qin State movements, so we simply cannot keep track of information from the Chu Kingdom as well."

Yuwen Hongdu's face was expressionless; he remained silent, and the hall was eerily quiet except for the sound of the steward's heartbeat, clearly indicating that he was terrified.

"What connection does this have with Crown Prince Yan?" After a moment, Yuwen Hongdu finally spoke.

The steward breathed a sigh of relief, not even daring to wipe the sweat from his brow, and knelt on the ground, saying, "According to reliable information, the reason why Crown Prince Yan was able to suddenly possess the Emperor's Aura is because he comprehended a book from Mysterious Bookstore, and gained insights from it."

"What!" This time, Yuwen Hongdu finally couldn't sit still anymore. He stood up and looked at the steward in disbelief.

The Emperor's Aura is generally something one carries from the moment of birth; a prince possessing this Emperor's Aura is designated as the next heir to the throne from the moment of birth.

For 30,000 years on the Azure Dragon Continent, no one has ever been able to acquire the Emperor's Aura through acquired enlightenment. Even though Crown Prince Yan suddenly possessed the Emperor's Aura, both Yuwen Hongdu and Sage Yan believed that the Emperor's Aura must have been sealed within Crown Prince Yan's body for some reason and was only recently released.

But the news that has just come out is that Crown Prince Yan's Emperor's Aura was comprehended from a book, which is simply breaking a rule that has been in place for 30,000 years on the Azure Dragon Continent.

"The Emperor's Aura can actually be comprehended later in life..." Yuwen Hongdu muttered to himself, sitting down in a daze, his hands gripping the Grand Tutor Chair, the veins on his hands bulging.

After a long while, Yuwen Hongdu regained his composure, looked outside the hall, and said in a calm tone, "Pack up."

The butler was taken aback and subconsciously asked, "Is the master going out?"

"Smack~"

A gust of wind blew, and the butler was blown out of the hall.

"Go to the Chu Kingdom!"