Emperor Xue Ye was overjoyed upon hearing the good news brought to him by Xue Qinghe, throwing his head back and laughing heartily.
Though doing so somewhat lacked royal dignity, for a potential future Titled Douluo-level combat talent, a bit of royal dignity was nothing—if it was lost, then it was lost.
"Qinghe, you have done very well."
"Your dedication over all these years has not gone unnoticed by your father; you truly are a good crown prince."
"You must cultivate this Yun Chen well."
"Pay attention to his disposition and guide him properly, so that he may offer his loyalty to the empire."
"After all, he can become your future right-hand man."
As Emperor Xue Ye spoke these words, a trace of involuntary gentleness welled up in his gaze. Looking at Xue Qinghe, his eyes held both gratification and a hint of imperceptible pain.
"Yes, Father. Rest assured, Your Son will certainly accomplish this."
Xue Qinghe bowed deeply with elegant poise, and subsequently took his leave from the imperial bedchamber.
Emperor Xue Ye watched Xue Qinghe's departing back and remained silent for a long while. The joy of just having acquired a genius subsided somewhat, replaced by an unstoppable complexity within his eyes.
In his view, this son of his was good at everything—possessing both ability and means—only that he was far too cold-blooded.
His several older brothers had all fallen at his hands, something Emperor Xue Ye had witnessed with his own eyes.
Yet he did not harbor resentment toward Xue Qinghe because of this; after all, royal successions had always been cruel. Being able to eliminate his older brothers proved that Xue Qinghe possessed sufficient capability to shoulder the burdens of the Heaven Dou Empire.
"Your Majesty, this subject ventures to speak."
An elderly man with weathered features and snow-white hair slowly walked in, dropped to one knee, and offered counsel to Emperor Xue Ye.
"Elder Yuan? Speak."
"This subject believes that His Highness the Crown Prince's influence is expanding too rapidly and poses a grave threat to the imperial authority."
"Audacious! Elder Yuan! As the current chancellor, how dare you wildly discuss the crown prince like this?"
Elder Yuan still kept his head lowered, but a complex look flashed in his eyes, along with helplessness, resignation, and pain.
He understood Emperor Xue Ye's thoughts; he had no other candidates left, and now that the crown prince had already proven his strength and means, what could be done even if there was a threat?
When all was said and done, His Highness the Crown Prince was still a member of the Xue family.
And which monarch's succession was not accompanied by a bloody storm? Even though the transfer of power in the Heaven Dou Empire had always been relatively mild, that was only in comparison to the Star Luo Empire.
Back then, didn't Xue Ye's ascension also involve killing several brothers and leaving only Xue Xing behind?
Yet the crown prince's political voice in the imperial court was already on the verge of rivaling the emperor's.
The two had barely managed to maintain a brief balance.
And now Xue Qinghe had recruited yet another genius at the Innate Full Soul Power level. A genius of this caliber was practically a massive boost for Xue Qinghe.
Without a doubt, in the future court, some neutral factions would consequently lean toward Xue Qinghe.
After all, the appearance of a Titled Douluo was no small matter; which of the major noble families wouldn't want to get closer to a Titled Douluo?
"Your Majesty, we must secure that genius into our hands as much as possible."
"Otherwise, with the crown prince growing too powerful... we must guard against the unexpected..."
Hearing this, Xue Ye fell silent as well. How could he fail to understand such logic?
A genius of the Titled Douluo level defecting to the Crown Prince's Residence was viewed by the various nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire entirely as a future pillar of support for the empire.
Who wouldn't want to step forward and curry favor? Who wouldn't know that His Highness the Crown Prince's position would only become more secure?
This contest in the undercurrents had already begun the moment this information was released.
"Elder Yuan, what you say makes sense."
"But since the child was brought by Qinghe, it is not easy for us to intervene."
Who would have thought that upon hearing this, Elder Yuan merely chuckled before speaking.
"Your Majesty, when all is said and down, that genius is only a child."
"The resources provided by the Crown Prince's Residence are truly limited. What do you think if we were able to provide him with even better resources?"
Emperor Xue Ye's eyes lit up as well, and he nodded repeatedly. After all, when it came to wealth, no one was wealthier than the Heaven Dou Empire—not even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect could compare.
Moreover, on the Douluo Continent, many things simply could not be bought with money alone.
"In that case, you can also bestow upon him status and position."
"A child coming from an orphanage, receiving such high regard—since his status and position are given by you, how could he not be grateful?"
"Hhahahaha, good! Let's do it just like that!"
"Elder She, Elder Ci, there are no issues with this child's background, right?"
Inside Qian Renxue's study, a woman of peerless beauty sat in the primary seat.
Her skin was whiter than snow, her nose straight, and her phoenix eyes slightly slender. Her appearance carried a somewhat chilly, breathtaking beauty, ethereal like an immortal descending to the mortal realm.
It was precisely Qian Renxue, having removed her disguise.
She Long and Ci Xue stood quietly before her, reporting in low voices.
Yun Chen had already been settled into a side room of the Crown Prince's Residence and was resting.
"There are no problems. The two of us have checked with our soul power; this child is indeed human."
"That is good. Indeed, I never expected that such a super soul beast could become a human's martial soul."
She Long and Ci Xue exchanged glances, both seeing the astonishment in each other's eyes. They hadn't expected it either, followed by a long silence.
Although they hadn't anticipated that a super soul beast could become a human's martial soul, they could already imagine how powerful a soul master possessing such a super martial soul would be.
"Elder She, how did the letter I gave you for my grandfather go?"
"Milady, rest assured, I have already delivered the letter back."
"However, I also caught wind of some rumors in Spirit City; the Hall of the Pope might send people over."
"The purpose is most likely for the child, Yun Chen."
With a crisp snap, the pencil Qian Renxue held in her hand broke. Her gaze suddenly turned icy; if this were an animated world, fire would be spouting from Qian Renxue's head right now.
She Long and Ci Xue kept their eyes on their noses and their noses on their hearts, lowering their heads with tacit understanding.
Clearly, their young miss was angry.
"Alright, I understand."
"You two elders may step down and rest first."
"By the way, check some records. Yun Chen's soul ring will probably need to be hunted in the next couple of days, so make preparations to select the best one for him."
"Yes, Milady. Leave it to me, you can rest easy."
She Long spoke first, taking charge of the matter.
His martial soul belonged to a state that was half-beast and half-tool martial soul, and thus his exposure to beast martial souls was also extremely extensive.
Coupled with the fact that his talent wasn't particularly great, reaching the Titled Douluo realm was entirely due to carving out a correct path for himself through his own contemplation.
He had successfully changed the slight disadvantages of his martial soul through the attachment of soul rings.
Therefore, She Long considered himself to have a considerable degree of research regarding soul beasts.
Moreover, the strength of the Golden-Haired Lion Mastiff was right there, so there was no need to overthink the route of using soul rings to influence the martial soul.
It would suffice to simply pick soul beasts with similar attributes, alongside high innate soul beast bloodline and strength.
"Alright, Elder She, this matter is left to you."
"Tomorrow, I must first take him to see Emperor Xue Ye, and we'll discuss the rest then."
The night was chilly, the moonlight like frost.
Qian Renxue strolled through the pavilions of the Crown Prince's Residence. Moonlight spilled onto her face, reflecting her golden hair like glazed crystal, translucent and pure, rendering her even more sacred and noble.
Perhaps due to a chaotic train of thought, Qian Renxue unconsciously walked to the side room where Yun Chen was located.
Thinking of this cute little fellow once more, she couldn't help but curve her lips into a smile. Ever since she came to the Heaven Dou Empire to lurk, very few people had ever praised her appearance.
First, others didn't know she was a great beauty, and second, those who knew didn't dare to praise her due to her status—or rather, didn't want to.
Yun Chen is the first person to say my eyes are pretty.
A child's innocent praise was always delightful and could make one forget quite a few sorrows.
Qian Renxue raised her head to gaze at the sky, her smile gradually fading, replaced by an unresolvable sorrow and melancholy.
"Grandfather, Father..."
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