Meanwhile, at the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.
In the imperial study, Xue Ye finished discussing state affairs with his ministers, then turned to Qian Renxue, who stood waiting nearby. Authority shone in his world-weary eyes as he asked her calmly.
"Qinghe, I heard you adopted a child yesterday."
At his words, Qian Renxue stepped forward and bowed to Xue Ye with her hands clasped, explaining gently.
"Yes, Father. I saw that the child possessed extraordinary talent but had no one to rely on. I couldn't bear to leave him, so I decided to adopt him. Please forgive me for failing to inform you sooner."
"It's fine. He's only a child. You may raise as many as you wish."
"But remember, you are no longer merely a prince. You are the crown prince. Every word and deed represents our Heaven Dou Imperial Family. You must not act carelessly."
"Since you've adopted the child, raise him properly. Don't let this be just a passing whim."
Xue Ye admonished Qian Renxue, and she nodded obediently.
Of course she would take good care of such an adorable little fellow.
"Now that the minor matters are settled, let us discuss affairs of state. As crown prince and heir to the empire, you must learn to review official business. I happen to have a memorial here. Tell me what you think..."
Xue Ye nodded in satisfaction, then took out a memorial and began testing Qian Renxue's abilities.
Over two hours later, at the crown prince's residence.
"Young master, the Soul Beast blood you requested is here."
Hongyu carried a small bottle of Soul Elder blood into the little courtyard.
As Meng Chen had requested, it contained ten drops of blood from a Hundred-Year Soul Beast with dragon lineage-and heart's blood at that, its most concentrated essence.
Meng Chen took the bottle. The dragon blood was pale gold, rippling inside.
He asked curiously, "Big Sister Hongyu, what kind of Soul Beast did this blood come from?"
"A Hundred-Year Golden Earth Dragon."
A Golden Earth Dragon!
Meng Chen was astonished. This was no ordinary Soul Beast with dragon blood. Golden Earth Dragons possessed a thin but pure bloodline of light dragons, placing them among the higher ranks of earth dragons.
"Sorry for the trouble, Big Sister Hongyu. You and Big Sister Qingdai can go outside. Please don't let anyone interrupt my body tempering."
Meng Chen then dismissed the two maids. After a moment's hesitation, Qingdai and Hongyu left the bedroom and stood guard outside.
After shutting the doors and windows tightly, Meng Chen first opened the medicinal box containing the hundred-year Blazing Flame Fruit.
The moment the box opened, a wave of scorching heat struck his face, raising the temperature in the bedroom slightly.
Meng Chen looked closely. A crimson fruit lay quietly inside the box, its surface dotted with golden specks of light as it radiated waves of searing heat.
Next, he opened the medicinal box containing the hundred-year Ice Crystal Fruit. A chill immediately spilled out, dispelling the heat from the Blazing Flame Fruit.
The Ice Crystal Fruit was only the size of his thumbnail, its surface emitting a faint blue halo. Yet when it sensed the Blazing Flame Fruit's heat, that blue halo grew stronger, as though competing with the other fruit's radiance.
After confirming that both Spirit Fruits retained their full medicinal potency, just as the beautiful woman in white had said,
Meng Chen took out the metal container Qingdai had prepared and dropped both Spirit Fruits inside.
He then poured the Golden Earth Dragon's heart's blood into the container before securing the lid, sealing it tightly.
In an instant, the Spirit Fruits and dragon blood seemed to undergo some wondrous chemical reaction inside the container, producing a succession of popping bubbles.
An astonishing change also came over the container's surface. First, it turned red and scorching hot. Then the red faded, replaced by a layer of bone-piercing frost. The cycle repeated.
Faintly, Meng Chen even heard a dragon's roar from within the container and sensed energy gestating and surging inside.
Fortunately, this phenomenon did not last long. The red and blue hues on the container gradually faded, and the faint popping noises within subsided.
Only after all movement and sound had ceased did Meng Chen open the lid.
The next moment, a strange odor carrying a faint hint of blood spread through the room. Meng Chen covered his nose and peered inside.
There was a pool of pale golden liquid, still bubbling finely. It looked a little like muddy swamp water and seemed rather difficult to swallow.
"Here goes nothing!"
Meng Chen took a deep breath, resolve in his eyes. Holding his breath, he lifted the metal container and drained it in one gulp without even tasting it. There was nothing worth savoring anyway.
Then he sat cross-legged and focused his mind in meditation, circulating his Soul Power to activate the medicine within his body.
In an instant, the medicinal power contained in the liquid erupted inside Meng Chen.
A searing sensation surged up first, as though it would boil his blood dry and burn his body to ashes. He felt as if he had been thrust into a furnace. Sweat poured off him like rain, and his entire body turned red, like a cooked shrimp!
"Fuck!!!"
Meng Chen let out a low growl, clenching his teeth and desperately enduring the pain. He dared not make too much noise, afraid the maids outside would notice.
At the same time, golden, gridlike markings appeared on his forehead and spread across his entire body, gradually sharpening from faint outlines into clear patterns.
Just as Meng Chen was about to reach his limit and cry out, the scorching sensation receded like a tide. The intense pain vanished with it, leaving him with an unprecedented sense of relief.
Yet that relief barely lasted before a cold current surged from within him. Like the freezing winds of the Far North Ice Plains, it enveloped Meng Chen’s entire body from the inside out, as though burying him in the deepest reaches of the frozen plains!
The redness that had yet to fade from his skin was instantly replaced by a bluish pallor. A thin layer of frost formed, turning Meng Chen into a frost-covered figure.
His body trembled even more violently, while the golden, netlike markings on him grew clearer still.
Under the shift from extreme heat to extreme cold, Meng Chen's clothes were the first to give way. They burst apart inch by inch, crumbling into a pile of fine dust.
But this was only the second trial.
As the extreme cold dissipated, the third trial arrived!
Meng Chen felt as though countless Bullet Ants were burrowing through his body, gnawing at his flesh, organs, limbs, and every bone.
"Aaaaah!!!!"
At that moment, the inhuman torment of being sliced by a thousand blades finally broke Meng Chen's endurance. He wailed aloud as though trying to pour out all his pain, his cries growing louder and more agonized.
Outside the door, Qingdai and Hongyu heard Meng Chen's screams. Their expressions changed drastically, and they whirled around in panic, trying to push the door open.
But the door had been locked from inside, and neither of them was a Soul Master. They could only shout anxiously outside.
"Young master, what's wrong?!"
"Young master, open the door!"
"Aaaaah..."
Listening to the increasingly desperate wails inside, Qingdai and Hongyu exchanged a glance. Qingdai immediately began ramming the door, while Hongyu ran to find help.
At the same time, Qian Renxue returned from the palace.
She had just reached the entrance to her own courtyard when she saw Hongyu rush out of the little courtyard.
With her keen senses, she also heard the wails echoing from within. Her expression shifted, and she immediately raised a hand to stop Hongyu.
"Hongyu, what happened?!"
Seeing the crown prince, Hongyu was both startled and frightened. Not daring to conceal anything, she said, "Your Highness, it's the young master! Something's happened to him!"
"What?! What happened to little Chen?!"
Qian Renxue seized Hongyu's shoulder with such force that Hongyu felt as though it would be crushed, pain twisting her face.
Enduring the pain, Hongyu explained how Meng Chen had bought medicine to temper his body. Shocked and furious, Qian Renxue slapped Hongyu to the ground and shouted harshly.
"This is outrageous! What does a child know about body tempering? You just stood by and let him misuse medicine?! You can't even watch a child properly! What use are you?! Damn you! Damn you all!"
With no time to berate Hongyu further, Qian Renxue rushed into the little courtyard. Seeing Qingdai still ramming the door, she swept her aside with a wave of her hand.
Then she circulated her Soul Power and slammed her palm into the door, forcibly smashing it open.
Beyond the door, Qian Renxue saw Meng Chen, who had already lost consciousness under the assault of the threefold agony. He lay sprawled on the floor like a heap of mud, seemingly without a trace of life, while the golden, netlike markings on his body slowly faded.
"Little Chen!!!"
At the sight, Qian Renxue cried out in overwhelming panic and rushed into the room...
Before you continue