Ye Qinglan glanced at Jelous. The Dark God was powerful, and they did need to unite every force they could against him. But Jelous? Ye Qinglan's lips curved slightly as he said coldly, "You've already given up your claim to the Imperial Succession. What do you have left to offer?"
Jelous: "..." He hadn't expected Ye Qinglan to hit him from such an unexpected angle.
Without a claim to the throne, Jelous no longer held the influence he once had within the Imperial Family. He still commanded the Royal Griffin Legion and held some standing on the Beast Abyss Frontline, but that made him an ordinary officer of the Empire. His influence couldn't compare to that of a prince, especially one with a claim to the throne.
Ye Qinglan's words struck so hard that Jelous took a long while to recover.
When Ye Chuqi returned, she found Ye Qinglan silent and Jelous looking wounded and conflicted. Her own feelings were complicated, too. From what she had pieced together afterward, including accounts from people who knew them, Ye Qinglan and Jelous had been good friends since their youth. Their mothers were friends, so the boys had plenty of chances to meet. At first, they competed to see who was better. Later, they attended the Imperial Capital Academy together, and years of working side by side gave them an excellent understanding of each other.
Even Xiao Bu and Xiao Nuo, the two Lion Owls, were creatures they had encountered while training away from home. Each had brought back an egg, though the hatchlings had turned out worlds apart. Even that hadn't affected their friendship.
That changed after Ye Chuqi was born. Because of her congenital weakness, Ye Qinglan devoted most of his attention to her. Later, when he took her to the