"Great-Grandmother!"
Worried that Ye Xishui might kill Xu Jiujiu outright in a fit of displeasure, Yan Jingchuan hurriedly spoke up to stop her.
He did not particularly care whether Xu Jiujiu lived or died, especially since she was not exactly likable herself.
However, Xu Jiujiu's identity was far too special. As a princess of the Star Luo Empire, she held an extremely high status. Casually killing a princess of a nation would throw the already turbulent situation on the continent into upheaval.
More importantly, Xu Jiujiu would have considerable influence in the future continental war. Keeping her alive would allow Yan Jingchuan to better control the situation using his knowledge from his previous life.
At Yan Jingchuan's shout, Ye Xishui's pressure weakened slightly.
Xu Jiujiu spat out a mouthful of blood. Xingyun Douluo Man Yi, who was still able to move, hurriedly stepped protectively in front of Xu Jiujiu.
"Your Highness, how are you? Are you all right?"
Waving her hand, Xu Jiujiu wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth.
"Senior, we have offended you. What would it take for you to spare us?"
The situation was stronger than the person. Xu Jiujiu was a smart woman and decisively chose to concede.
Ye Xishui did not even glance at them, instead sending a voice transmission to Yan Jingchuan.
"Xiaochuan, what is it? Do you know this little girl?"
"Great-Grandmother, she is a princess of the Star Luo Empire. If you kill her here, the continent's already unstable balance will immediately descend into chaos."
Yan Jingchuan likewise replied through voice transmission. He was not worried that Man Yi would intercept it due to his weak Soul Power.
She was indeed a Rank 94 Titled Douluo, but she could barely protect herself now. If she truly dared intercept Yan Jingchuan's transmission, Ye Xishui would make sure she reached the end of her life at once.
"Then let it fall into chaos. That would be more beneficial to our Holy Church."
Without concealing her killing intent in the slightest, Ye Xishui was completely unafraid of making matters worse.
Yan Jingchuan felt a headache coming on. He had figured out that, for some reason, his great-grandmother was in a bad mood and wanted to go mad again.
Sighing inwardly, his mind raced. Yan Jingchuan did not want to turn the original plot into a complete mess before Huo Yuhao was even born. Otherwise, his advantage of foresight would cease to exist.
"Great-Grandmother, calm down! Now is not the time. If our Holy Church wants to start a war, we still need to borrow the Sun Moon Empire's strength. Our control over the Sun Moon Empire is still far from sufficient."
Yan Jingchuan transmitted rapidly.
"Killing her would indeed throw the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms into chaos, but it would not have any substantive effect on Shrek, our greatest threat. If the continental unrest spreads to the Sun Moon Empire, it may create uncontrollable variables for our plans."
His well-reasoned argument made Ye Xishui fall into thought, though she was not completely persuaded.
Ye Xishui, who wanted to go mad and kill someone, was not so easily dissuaded.
With no other choice, Yan Jingchuan could only add more to the bargain.
"If Great-Grandmother does not want to let her off, then we can use her identity to threaten and exploit her brother, Xu Jiawei. Or we can send her into Shrek to help us complete our infiltration plan."
In that flash of inspiration, Yan Jingchuan suddenly thought of this method. It would both preserve Xu Jiujiu's life and perfectly squeeze out her remaining value.
"What do you mean?"
Ye Xishui was tempted. She cared deeply about the plan to infiltrate Shrek.
"The Shrek Seven Monsters—if even Shrek's public face betrayed Shrek, then..."
Yan Jingchuan did not spell out the rest, but Ye Xishui already understood.
The corner of her lips curled upward. She withdrew her Soul Power pressure, turned, and walked to Yan Jingchuan's side, signaling for him to take the lead in the conversation.
Forced into the role with no choice, Yan Jingchuan stepped forward two paces.
"Princess Jiujiu, I have long heard of your great name. I am Yan Jingchuan."
Upon hearing the name Yan Jingchuan, Xu Jiujiu froze for a moment. It sounded familiar, but she could not recall why.
Man Yi, meanwhile, instantly widened her eyes and stared at Yan Jingchuan in horror.
"You were the one in the Ming Dou Mountains who did that to Dai Hao..."
Realizing she had misspoken, Man Yi hurriedly shut her mouth.
"Grandma Man Yi, could he be...?"
Xu Jiujiu keenly caught the keyword "Ming Dou Mountains" and quickly remembered.
The one who had betrayed Shrek and joined the Sun Moon Empire, annihilated the White Tiger Legion in the Ming Dou Mountains, crippled Dai Hao, and severely wounded Xuan Zi.
Yan Jingchuan's notorious reputation was exceedingly well-known. Xu Jiujiu still remembered the headache her brother had suffered upon receiving that information.
The White Tiger Legion's destruction had stripped the Star Luo Empire of its defenses in the Ming Dou Mountains. Although House Xu had always guarded against the Duke White Tiger's faction, after this chain of blows, Dai Hao was no longer a threat. Yet the stability of the Star Luo Empire had taken a massive hit.
"It seems Princess Jiujiu knows me."
Yan Jingchuan had long expected the Star Luo Empire's upper ranks to possess intelligence about him, so he was not surprised that Xu Jiujiu recognized him.
Looking at Yan Jingchuan's smiling face, Xu Jiujiu shifted her gaze behind him to Long Xiaoyao and Ye Xishui. She could not say a single word.
The shock Ye Xishui had brought her was already profound enough. The man standing alongside her was clearly no ordinary person. Xu Jiujiu's instincts told her that he might also be a Limit Douluo.
According to the information she knew, Yan Jingchuan had been able to command the Sun Moon Empire's Titled Douluo powerhouses in the Ming Dou Mountains and possessed the authority to summon Rank 9 Soul Tools. His status in the Sun Moon Empire was absolutely not low.
And now, while he was in the Star Dou Great Forest, two Limit Douluo accompanied him.
One had to understand that the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms combined could not even produce a Rank 98 Hyper Douluo.
Moreover, from how he had addressed Ye Xishui earlier, Xu Jiujiu now knew that these two were his great-grandfather and great-grandmother.
With such formidable strength and background, this kind of person had actually been driven away by Shrek and forced to side with the Sun Moon Empire, becoming an enemy of the Original Douluo Three Kingdoms. Damn Shrek!
Xu Jiujiu could not help cursing Shrek inwardly. Seeing her young princess lost in thought without speaking for so long, Man Yi grew anxious. Their lives were still in the hands of those across from them—this was not the time to space out.
"Your Highness!"
Man Yi hurriedly called out in a low voice. Xu Jiujiu jolted and came back to her senses.
"May I ask what compensation Brother Yan desires? So long as it is something I can provide, I will not refuse."
Brother Yan? Yan Jingchuan's eye twitched, and his expression became extremely strange.
That one "Brother Yan" nearly made him lose his composure. It was true that people on the Douluo Continent generally matured early, but was this royal descendant not maturing a little too early?
Xu Jiujiu was only a few years older than him, yet she already spoke with such sophistication. Every word carried the polished, shrewd courtesy of a politician.
After steadying himself and suppressing the strange feeling rising in his heart, Yan Jingchuan spoke.
"In that case, I will trouble Princess Jiujiu to take us to the Star Luo Imperial Palace to meet His Majesty the Emperor."
At those words, Xu Jiujiu and Man Yi both went blank.
"There is no need to look at me like that. What we want is something you cannot provide. We need to speak with your emperor personally."
Yan Jingchuan spoke casually, but in Xu Jiujiu and Man Yi's ears, a bad premonition immediately arose.
Bringing the combat power of two Limit Douluo to the imperial palace could not possibly be a good thing.
"Brother Yan, Seniors, I..."
Not wanting to bring danger to the Star Luo Empire, Xu Jiujiu tried to stop them. Two Limit Douluo were simply not opponents the Star Luo Empire could contend with.
However, Yan Jingchuan did not even give her a chance to refuse and mercilessly cut her off.
"Before that, to demonstrate our goodwill, let us first help Princess Jiujiu obtain her Soul Ring. Xingyun Douluo, would you not agree?"
It was easy to guess that Xu Jiujiu needed to acquire a Soul Ring. Why else would they have come to the Star Dou Great Forest if not to hunt Soul Beasts? Surely they had not come here for a vacation.
As a Titled Douluo, Man Yi no longer needed to obtain Soul Rings. That meant Xu Jiujiu was the one who needed a Soul Ring to break through.
Xingyun Douluo Man Yi also wanted to stop the three from heading to Star Luo City, but before she could speak, a single glance from Ye Xishui left her no choice but to obediently nod.
Before you continue