The Third Imperial Prince had thought at first that his earnest and well-meaning advice would have successfully persuaded Ling Han, but never thought that the latter would completely disregard his words. Thus, he could not help but be angry.
If it had been anyone else, he would have definitely rebuked him harshly, or even possibly thrown a harsh slap at him. But when he recalled that there were the two Big Bosses of alchemy standing behind Ling Han, he could only suppress the flames of rage burning in his heart and say, “Ling Han, what capability do you have to oppose Feng Yan? Putting aside the fact that you are not strong enough to oppose him, the Liu Clan would only have to send out a Spiritual Ocean clansman, and that would be enough to prevent you from even stepping in through their doors!”
Ling Han smiled and said, “I never thought that Your Imperial Highness would be so worried about me!”
The Third Imperial Prince of course knew that this was sarcasm, and instantly, his face darkened as he said, “Ling Han, don’t lose your senses because of women. Don’t forget, we are men who have great goals to aspire to!”
Ling Han shook his head internally. He realized that the Third Imperial Prince must have had no idea that he was already a Black Grade high level alchemist himself. Otherwise, the former would naturally have much more confidence in him, and would definitely not dare to speak to him in such a way.
In truth, he did not have any intention to deliberately conceal this matter. Thus, it was actually very easy to find out that that he had already gained the status of a Black Grade high level alchemist—at least, the Spirit Treasures Pavilion found out very early on, but for the one and only Third Imperial Prince, how could his information be so outdated?
Then, it must have been someone who had done something, which led to the Third Imperial Prince being still ignorant of this matter.
In the Imperial City, the only one who had the power to achieve this was… the Rain Emperor!
Everyone said that the current Rain Emperor was greatly skilled and a master of strategy, and was possibly the ruler who had the broadest vision since the establishment of Rain Country. Then, how could the Rain Emperor be completely unaware when his sons were all moving in secret and forming their own alliances?
Even if he was aware, he did not interfere or make any move to stop them. Obviously, the Rain Emperor wanted to see which of his sons was the most brilliant before he would pass on the throne. This could also be considered as a test of skill for the Imperial Princes.
Unfortunately, the Eldest Imperial Prince and Third Imperial Prince were completely unaware of this and thought that their actions were extremely secret, having no idea that the Rain Emperor was aware of everything they did.
Ling Han sighed. Most likely, the Third Imperial Prince had not passed the test.
If he was determined to put all his effort into supporting the Third Imperial Prince, then with the power in his hands, no matter how weak the Third Imperial Prince was, he could still somehow push him up to the throne, but who asked the Third Imperial Prince to cut off this path himself?
“Your Imperial Highness, Yu Tong is my friend, and I am definitely not one to give up on my friends!” Ling Han declared.
The Third Imperial Prince was practically about to explode in fury. He had advised him so patiently and earnestly, but why did Ling Han take no heed of his words? He said angrily, “Don’t pretend to be so noble and virtuous. If you want beautiful women, I can give you a thousand, or ten thousand! I can even give Zi Yan to you!”
In his heart, even Zi Yan was merely a tool he could manipulate. As long as she could help him ascend to the throne, he could discard her at any time.
Ling Han shook his head, and said, “People who walk different paths cannot make plans together. Please leave, Your Imperial Highness!”
The Third Imperial Prince’s face darkened, and he said, “Ling Han, have you forgotten about the Eye of Truth? Anyone who covets the secret treasure of the country would not be given a light punishment!”
“Is Your Imperial Highness threatening me?” Ling Han asked with a smile.
“Then you’re on your own!” the Third Imperial Prince humphed and left with a flourish of his robes.
What a hot temper!
Ling Han could not help but smile. If this guy knew that he was now already a Black Grade high level alchemist, what kind of expression would he have on his face? Would he be so overwhelmed with regret that he wanted to smash his head into a wall?
Not too long after, another person arrived.
The Eldest Imperial Prince.
Similar to the Third Imperial Prince, he was also trying to persuade Ling Han not to attend the wedding tomorrow. His attitude was much more forceful than the Third Imperial Prince, but the final result was the same. His efforts were all in vain, and he even slammed his hand onto the table in fury before leaving in a rage.
Ling Han sighed. This was obviously his personal business, but why were they all trying to bend him to their will, and upon his refusal, looked like they were the ones wronged? What kind of logic was that?
“Is Young Master Ling here?” At this moment, a knock once again was heard from the front doors.
He really had a lot of visitors today. If it was not for the fact that he had sent Hu Niu to rest in the Black Tower early on, most likely the little girl would have been awakened by the commotion quite a few times by now, and most probably would have jumped out in fury to bite the people who had disturbed her slumber.
Ling Han went over to open the door and saw there was a tall, slender young man standing at the doorway. He was quite handsome, and though his attire was quite casual, he carried on him a certain innate aura making him seem powerful even though he was completely calm.
“I am Qi Chang Yue. Please do not be angered by my disturbing you at such a late time tonight!” This young man looked to be about twenty years old and was at the ninth layer of the Element Gathering Tier. Among the younger generation of the Imperial City, he was not the least bit outstanding.
Another with the surname Qi.
Ling Han smiled faintly and said, “So it was you, Your Imperial Highness, the Seventh Imperial Highness.”
Right, he was really quite popular, wasn’t he? Now, all the three Imperial Princes who had the right to actually compete for the throne had all paid him a visit. However, he did not know if the Seventh Imperial Prince was also here to persuade him to not attend the wedding tomorrow.
The Seventh Imperial Prince also smiled, and said, “Young Master Ling must definitely be going to attend the wedding tomorrow, right?”
“So what Your Imperial Highness means to say is that it is best that I don’t go?”
“No!” The Seventh Imperial Prince shook his head, a sliver of anger appearing on his face. He said, “This is the land of the Rain Country, yet Feng Yan used the Winter Moon Sect as a threat in order to forcibly marry one of our women! If I was the Emperor, I would definitely have punched him so hard he would fly out of the country. I do not think that the Winter Moon Sect would dare to oppose the Rain Country just because of one little disciple. If they really did, then they would really become a joke to the whole Northern region.”
As someone who had lived two lives, Ling Han naturally had sharp eyes. He could tell that although there was a bit of pretense in the Seventh Imperial Prince’s words, that was really how he felt. However, as an Imperial Prince, his actions and words would always be a bit exaggerated.
“And so Your Imperial Highness is here to support me, then?”
The Seventh Imperial Prince nodded and said, “Just do as you wish tomorrow, Young Master Ling. I am willing to become your sturdy backer!”
Ling Han could not help but smile. “Why does Your Imperial Highness have such confidence in me? The Liu Clan has a powerful member of the Spiritual Pedestal Tier on standby, and with my limited ability… most likely, I wouldn’t even be able to step in through the doors, right?”
These words were what the Eldest and the Third Imperial Princes had used to try to persuade him, but now he was using them to test the Seventh Imperial Prince. He did not believe that a man who was capable of competing for the throne was a hot-headed man. Moreover, they had not even met before, so why would the Seventh Imperial Prince come to offer his support?
The Seventh Imperial Prince laughed heartily, and said, “A straightforward person does not resort to insinuations. To tell you the truth, I have done my investigation and discovered that Young Master Ling is someone who has gained three silver plaques. In Rain Country, not even my Imperial Father would dare do anything too harsh to Young Master Ling. At most, he would most possibly have you captured and chase you out of our borders.”
Indeed, this guy knew that he had become a Black Grade high level alchemist, and that was why he had come so full-heartedly to support him.
Ling Han considered for a moment, then asked, “What kind of support are you intending to offer me, Your Imperial Highness?”
The Seventh Imperial Prince could not help but be delighted. He knew that Ling Han had already accepted him. If not, he would not possibly ask him such a question. He said quickly, “Though I do not have too much power, I am willing to give my support to you and offer you the assistance of two elites of Spiritual Ocean Tier.”
Ling Han was surprised. Spiritual Pedestal Tier was the highest tier of power in Rain Country. Even the Rain Emperor himself was only able to ask for their help, and could not command them. Thus, the Seventh Imperial Prince being able to command the power of Spiritual Ocean Tier elites was something very impressive.
One had to understand that even Ling Han had only just managed to con a Spiritual Ocean Tier elite into becoming his bodyguard. Moreover, this bodyguard had not yet been tested.
“Then I shall gratefully accept Your Imperial Highness’s aid, thank you!” he said, smiling.