Xue Beng's lackeys usually threw their weight around, abusing the prince's name wherever they went. They had never seen a scene like this.
The standardized armor worn by the Spirit Hall guards gleamed with a cold metallic light. Their movements were crisp and decisive, and every spear pointed forward in unison, their murderous air bearing down on the crowd.
At the first clash, the hangers-on were swiftly overwhelmed by the guards who surged forward and pinned them to the ground. Their cries for help rang out all at once.
Xue Beng's face turned deathly pale. Two guards seized him by the arms and lifted him off the ground.
The sensation of his feet leaving the earth sent him into a full-blown panic.
"Let me go! Do you know who I am?"
Xue Beng struggled with all his might, his voice shrill and grating.
"I'm the fourth prince of the Heaven Dou Empire! You dare lay a hand on me? Do you want your entire clan exterminated?"
Some of the townspeople who had poked their heads out at the commotion saw Xue Beng's lavish princely robes and hurriedly ducked back inside.
In Heaven Dou City, a prince was as good as the heavens themselves.
Yet the guards holding him remained expressionless, their grip not loosening in the slightest.
Dugu Yan folded her arms and watched with leisurely amusement, the corner of her lips curving as if she were enjoying a good show.
She loved seeing bullies who relied on their power brought low.
Ye Lingling stood beside her. Her face was hidden beneath a black veil, but the worry and fear in her clear eyes had faded, replaced by a sense of security and reassurance.
She gazed quietly at the figure standing at the very front, broad-shouldered and upright, sheltering her and her mother beneath a piece of sky.
Ye Shutang stood behind her daughter. She had weathered more storms than her daughter had, and still maintained her gentle, composed demeanor. But her hands, clasped tightly before her, betrayed her inner turmoil.
Could things really be resolved this easily?
The other party was a prince, after all.
"The fourth prince?"
Qin Yao finally turned around and walked slowly over to Xue Beng, who was held aloft by the guards.
His voice was calm, giving nothing away.
"I am Qin Yao, Holy Son of Spirit Hall."
His casual words exploded in Xue Beng's mind.
The Holy Son of Spirit Hall?
Though he was a wastrel, he wasn't entirely ignorant.
He knew exactly what the Holy Son of Spirit Hall represented.
He was the person most likely to take control of Spirit Hall in the future, and his status far surpassed that of Salas, the Platinum Bishop in Heaven Dou City.
Xue Beng stopped struggling. He stared at the boy before him, who was several years younger than himself, unable to believe what he was hearing.
He was the Holy Son of Spirit Hall!
Qin Yao paid no heed to his shock and continued:
"Ye Shutang is now a Red-Clad Archbishop of Spirit Hall. Ye Lingling is also one of us."
The second revelation made Xue Beng's head ring. His thoughts nearly ground to a halt.
A Red-Clad Archbishop?
The gentle, seemingly fragile owner of the medical clinic was actually a Red-Clad Archbishop of Spirit Hall?
He had always assumed the Nine Heart Begonia Family was dwindling and had long since lost its backing. That was why he had dared to pressure them so brazenly.
So, after all that, he had set his sights on a high-ranking member of Spirit Hall?
Cold sweat trickled down Xue Beng's temples.
"Even though you are the fourth prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, today you will still have to give Spirit Hall an explanation."
Qin Yao's voice remained calm, but the weight of his words pressed down on Xue Beng until he could barely breathe.
He had just turned a personal dispute into a clash between two great powers.
Xue Beng was thoroughly terrified.
He knew that if this reached his father, Xue Ye, or his elder brother, Xue Qinghe, who had never thought much of him, he would be in for a world of trouble.
All this, just to provoke the Holy Son of Spirit Hall and a Red-Clad Archbishop over a woman?
His father would break his legs for sure!
"You... you..."
Xue Beng's voice trembled. He turned toward the guard they had deliberately left behind to carry the message and screamed with all his might.
"Quick! Go to Prince Xue Xing's Manor! Find my royal uncle! Hurry!"
It was his only lifeline.
The guard was relieved beyond measure. He scrambled out of the encirclement and sprinted toward Prince Xue Xing's Manor.
Qin Yao didn't stop him. He even signaled for the guards to open a path.
He was waiting for Prince Xue Xing to arrive.
It was time to establish the authority of the Holy Son of Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou City.
Besides, how could he make a big enough scene to get Emperor Xue Ye to hand over the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud otherwise?
Heaven Dou City, Prince Xue Xing's Manor.
Prince Xue Xing was leisurely sipping a newly arrived fragrant tea as he listened to his servants report on various trifles around the city.
As Emperor Xue Ye's younger brother, his position in Heaven Dou City was beyond question. Apart from the emperor and the crown prince, he could afford to deny anyone else a favor.
Just then, a servant rushed in, flustered.
"Your Highness! This is terrible! His Highness, the fourth prince... His Highness the fourth prince has been detained!"
Prince Xue Xing's hand paused around his teacup, and he furrowed his brows.
"What are you panicking for? Explain yourself. What happened?"
That troublesome Xue Beng had gotten himself into trouble in the city again, hadn't he?
"Y-Your Highness's guard is outside the manor. He says he has something extremely urgent to report!"
"Let him in!"
Soon, the guard who had escaped from the medical clinic was brought in. The moment he saw Prince Xue Xing, he dropped to his knees with a thud and cried out:
"Your Highness! Please, go save the prince! He... he's been arrested by people from Spirit Hall!"
"Spirit Hall?"
Prince Xue Xing set his teacup down hard on the table, splashing tea everywhere.
"Has Salas gone mad? He dares lay hands on a prince?"
"N-No, it wasn't Bishop Salas,"
the guard stammered, trying to explain.
"It was... it was Spirit Hall's Holy Son! He said Ye Shutang from the Ye Family Medical Clinic is a Red-Clad Archbishop of Spirit Hall. The prince... the prince showed disrespect to Miss Ye, and the Holy Son seized him on the spot!"
"What!" Prince Xue Xing shot to his feet, his face full of disbelief.
The Holy Son of Spirit Hall?
Ye Shutang was a Red-Clad Archbishop?
The string of revelations left him reeling.
On the one hand, he was furious with that idiot Xue Beng. How could he have provoked the Holy Son of Spirit Hall? The Holy Son was a treasured darling of the Worship Hall faction!
On the other hand, anger surged up from the depths of his heart.
Spirit Hall, how brazen!
And that Holy Son, too!
Even if Xue Beng had been in the wrong, he was still a prince of the Heaven Dou Empire! Detaining a prince in the middle of the street was tantamount to grinding the dignity of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family into the dirt!
"Outrageous!"
Prince Xue Xing roared, his voice echoing through the hall.
"This is too much!"
Of course, he knew that if this matter reached Emperor Xue Ye, Xue Beng would certainly be punished. But as Xue Beng's only backer, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.
The dignity of the imperial family could not be challenged!
"Guards!"
Prince Xue Xing issued his order in a low voice.
"Gather the Prince's Mansion Guard and come with me. Let's see which ignorant fool dares lay a hand on my nephew in Heaven Dou City!"
But that still wasn't enough to reassure him. Prince Xue Xing continued:
"Then go to Dugu Manor and invite Dugu Bo, the Poison Douluo, to come!"
Before you continue