Royal Exclusive Supply

Mo Feng kowtowed deeply.

"Master's plans are truly ingenious! This subordinate was foolish!"

"But... what if Su Chen doesn't take the bait? What if he storms into the Prince's Residence and kills Xue Xing outright?"

"If he kills Xue Xing, that would suit me perfectly."

"If the prince dies, the Crown Prince's Residence will become the culprit that murdered its own uncle. The Emperor will never spare the true murderer behind the Prince's Residence."

"No matter what Su Chen chooses, the Holy Church stands to profit from this game."

"Your task is to light the fire. Hide in the shadows and watch it spread."

The black-robed elder's face was filled with fervor.

"This subordinate obeys! I'll head to the Prince's Residence and make arrangements at once!"

"Go."

"Keep it clean. Don't leave behind any trace of the Holy Church."

The ripples on the mirror gradually settled.

The black-robed elder rose to his feet.

He looked at the blood pool in the center of the stone platform, now completely filled.

A cruel smile curled across his lips.

He pulled down his hood, concealing his face.

His body turned into a cloud of bloody mist and silently drifted out through the secret chamber's ventilation shaft.

Prince's Residence, study.

Xue Xing was shut indoors to reflect on his mistakes.

It felt worse than having his head cut off.

A dignified prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, who had wielded power over the court for decades, had now been forced into hiding by a six-year-old child.

His command over the City Defense Army had been stripped away, and the informants he had planted in the Royal Academy had been thoroughly uprooted.

A cold wind swept in from nowhere.

The candles went out.

The surroundings fell into dead silence.

Xue Xing shuddered, and more than half of his drunkenness vanished.

"Guards! Protect me! Bring the lights!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs.

There was no response from outside. Even the sound of wind rustling the leaves had disappeared.

The shadows in the corners seemed to come alive.

They wriggled outward inch by inch.

A black-robed elder slowly emerged, his hood hiding his face while a nauseating stench of blood clung to his body.

The black-robed elder was Mo Feng.

"Finished shouting?"

"The guards outside the Prince's Residence are sleeping soundly right now. Even if this study were torn apart, no one would come in."

Xue Xing's legs went weak, and he knocked over the chair behind him.

He scrambled into the corner on hands and knees.

"Y-you... who are you? Do you want gold? Soul bones? Everything in the residence's treasury is yours!"

"If Xue Qinghe sent you to silence me, please don't act! As long as you spare my life, I'll immediately submit a memorial to the Emperor, surrender all my properties, and retire into the mountains!"

Mo Feng sneered.

His tone was full of contempt.

"Retire into the mountains?"

"With courage like yours, you still dare dream of fighting for imperial power?"

"Open your eyes and look carefully. Who was it that pulled you out of that pile of corpses last night?"

Xue Xing abruptly raised his head.

By the faint moonlight filtering through the clouds,

he saw a trace of scarlet patterning at the edge of the black-robed elder's sleeve.

The spatial rift!

That pale hand that had appeared from thin air and withstood the thunderous sword qi!

His terror instantly turned into wild delight.

He dropped to both knees, smashing his forehead against the blue bricks.

"Senior! You're one of Senior's people!"

"This little prince failed to recognize greatness! Please forgive me!"

Mo Feng walked to the desk and looked down at him from above.

"The master went to great lengths to preserve the Prince's Residence, not so you could drown your sorrows in drink here."

"The great game in Heaven Dou City has only just begun. As a chess piece, you must have the use of a chess piece."

Xue Xing nodded repeatedly.

"You are right! This little prince merely... merely has no troops and no authority left. I truly don't know how to deal with that monster in the Crown Prince's Residence."

"This little prince is truly afraid."

"What use is fear?"

Mo Feng flicked his sleeve.

A small white jade porcelain bottle landed steadily on the edge of the desk.

"If brute force won't work, use your brain."

"Take a look at this."

Xue Xing hunched over and moved closer.

He examined it by moonlight.

"Th-this is medicine?"

"Strengthening Pill."

Mo Feng spoke calmly, as though it were something insignificant.

"After taking it, one's blood and qi will surge, and soul power can increase significantly for a short time. Ordinary people will become strong and healthy after taking it. Low-level soul masters may even break through their bottlenecks directly."

Xue Xing froze.

His face was full of confusion.

"A divine medicine?"

"Senior, are you taking out such divine medicine to curry favor with the Emperor? Or to distribute it throughout the army?"

"What does this have to do with dealing with Su Chen?"

"Just sell it when I tell you to. Why so much nonsense? Don't forget who in Heaven Dou City can still save you."

"Tomorrow morning, stock this batch of Strengthening Pills in every Royal Pharmacies store in Heaven Dou City."

Xue Xing's eyes widened, cold sweat running down his forehead.

"Royal Pharmacies?"

"Those are stores bearing the Heaven Dou Empire royal family's name! They rely entirely on the royal family's prestige to stay in business."

"Not only will they be sold through Royal Pharmacies, they will be sold with great fanfare."

Mo Feng paced slowly.

"Market them as an imperial exclusive supply and keep the price low. Make sure every commoner and low-level soul master in the streets and alleys can afford them."

"Doesn't Su Chen like smashing stalls in the marketplaces and meddling in other people's business?"

"Then send him a problem big enough to choke on."

Xue Xing's mind raced.

Gradually, he understood.

His eyes grew brighter and brighter.

"Senior means... use Royal Pharmacies as a shield?"

"Correct."

Mo Feng stopped walking, his tone carrying icy calculation.

"With the royal name attached to the Strengthening Pills, they become a boon approved for sale by the Heaven Dou Empire."

"This medicine is the vast grace of the imperial family."

"Imagine this: a useless man stuck at level ten for decades takes one pill and breaks through immediately. Then someone comes along and says the medicine is poison and wants to smash the shop selling it. What do you think that useless man would do?"

Xue Xing bared his teeth in a vicious grin.

"He would fight for it with his life! Cutting off a man's source of wealth is like murdering his parents. If someone blocks their shortcut to greater cultivation, those commoners will protect the pharmacy even at the cost of their lives!"

"You catch on quickly."

Mo Feng nodded.

"If Su Chen dares smash a Royal Pharmacies store, he will be openly opposing the Heaven Dou royal family and showing contempt for imperial authority!"

"No matter how much the Emperor favors the Crown Prince's Residence, he will never tolerate an outsider of a child riding roughshod over the royal family and rebelling."

"Not only that, Su Chen will have to face those commoners blinded by greed."

"When the time comes, the Prince's Residence won't need to act. The Imperial Knights Corps, the City Defense Army, and the citizens buying medicine will naturally tear that rebel to pieces."

Xue Xing slapped his thigh in excitement.

Killing with a borrowed knife!

This open scheme was vicious to the extreme!

"What if that brat doesn't dare act? What if he fears the royal family's majesty, fears provoking public outrage, and hides like a turtle?"

"Even better."

Mo Feng sneered.

"If Su Chen doesn't dare interfere, then isn't that a blessing for the people? Everyone can grow stronger. What could be bad about that?"

Xue Xing felt as though the clouds had parted before him.

"Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!"

"The master plans everything from afar. This little prince admires him beyond measure!"

"Rest assured, Senior, this is easy to arrange. I hold leverage over all the chief managers of those Royal Pharmacies stores. As long as I hint at the enormous profits, they'll scramble to sell them!"

Mo Feng extended a shriveled finger and tapped the desk.

"Move quickly."

"It would be best to station some trusted men from the City Defense Army around the pharmacies. The moment Su Chen shows up to wreck the place, convict him on the spot and arrest him."

"Incite the commoners buying medicine to make trouble as well."

"As long as that brat dares draw his sword, brand him a rebel on the spot. Dead or alive, it makes no difference!"

Xue Xing nodded repeatedly, his eyes becoming increasingly venomous.

"Understood. This little prince will arrange it now. I'll find some unfamiliar faces to act as shills in the pharmacies and stir up the atmosphere."

"As long as Su Chen steps even half a foot into a pharmacy, this little prince guarantees that Heaven Dou City will become an execution ground!"

Mo Feng withdrew his gaze in satisfaction.

"Leave no evidence of the Prince's Residence being directly involved. Take a few detours and balance the accounts."

"The master only cares about the outcome."

"If you botch this task again..."

The surrounding air instantly dropped to freezing.

A suffocating Blood Fiend pressure pressed against Xue Xing's neck.

"Not a single living thing in the Prince's Residence will be left breathing."

Xue Xing's body stiffened, and his head repeatedly struck the floor with loud thuds.

"I would never dare! This little prince guarantees it with his life! I will certainly handle it flawlessly!"

There was no response.

The stench of blood gradually faded.

Xue Xing gathered his courage and raised his head.

The study was empty.

He slowly used the edge of the desk to pull himself to his feet.

Xue Xing wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Looking at the porcelain medicine bottle, the corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably in a manic grin.

"Su Chen..."

He grabbed the porcelain bottle and stuffed it into his robe.

"Guards! Prepare an inconspicuous carriage."

"Leave through the back gate! We're going to the South City Merchant Association!"