In the capital, at the Altar of Heaven for the Heaven Worship Ceremony, the altar stood nine zhang tall, built of white jade.
Chu Yunfei, dressed in a black Dragon Robe, wearing a twelve-stringed Mian crown, and holding a jade gui, slowly ascended the steps.
Behind him, besides the civil and military officials, representatives from various Sects also came to observe the ceremony.
Chu Yunfei's steps were steady; he ascended the steps one by one, each step seemingly measured as he walked to the front of the altar.
Minister of Rites Liu Zongyuan loudly proclaimed, "Kneel!"
The civil and military officials knelt in unison below the altar, their foreheads touching the ground.
Standing at the top of the altar, Chu Yunfei seemed to sense something and looked up at the sky, his gaze narrowing as he spotted Elder Mo Qing of Tianji Pavilion, floating high above in the clouds, hidden among the sea of clouds.
Chu Yunfei raised his jade gui and walked to his position, just about to speak, when he suddenly heard the rapid sound of horse hooves.
"Imperial Father! You cannot kneel!"
Chu Yunfei turned to look, only to see Sixth Prince Chu An riding his horse, its hooves clattering crisply on the white jade steps.
Behind him, Chief Eunuch Wu and a group of young eunuchs chased after Chu An, "Oh, my young ancestor, today is the Heaven Worship Ceremony, you cannot enter."
"How dare you! How can a rootless person be present at the Heaven Worship Ceremony! Eunuch, get out of the Altar of Heaven immediately!" Liu Zongyuan glared at Chief Eunuch Wu and the eunuchs, roaring.
"My dear Minister Liu, calm your anger." Chu Yunfei soothed Liu Zongyuan, then instructed Chief Eunuch Wu, who was behind Chu An, "My dear friend, please leave quickly."
Chief Eunuch Wu wiped the sweat from his forehead, panting as he bowed, "This old servant will leave now, will leave now." Then, he led the young eunuchs, backing out of the Altar of Heaven.
Chu Yunfei looked at Chu An, who dismounted his horse.
He was dressed in a moon-white fitted outfit, with an amber bracelet on his wrist, inside which a foxtail grass was sealed, standing out strikingly.
A long sword was tucked at his waist, and his hair was tied high, making him look exceptionally heroic and imposing.
"Presumptuous!" Minister of Rites Liu Zongyuan looked at the damaged white jade floor tiles and sternly shouted, "During the sacrificial ceremony, Sixth Prince rode his horse, damaging the ritual, he should issue a decree of self-reproach!"
"Is it a sacrificial ceremony or a tribute ceremony!" Chu An glared angrily at Liu Zongyuan, who was beside him, then walked in front of Chu Yunfei, looking at him with burning eyes, "Imperial Father, you cannot kneel, especially not to these land barnacles!"
As he spoke, he drew his sword and pointed it at the Sect members observing the ceremony.
At these words, the entire court erupted in an uproar.
Chu Yunfei's face darkened, his hand gripping the jade gui trembled slightly; he was about to reprimand him, but Qing Xuzi of Tianyan Sect, who was observing from the side, could no longer hold back.
"Ignorant child!" Qing Xuzi's beard and hair bristled, his sleeves flapped without wind, "My Tianyan Sect is a renowned Righteous Path Sect, established for a thousand years, always a model of the Righteous Path in subduing demons and devils, how dare you spout nonsense here!"
He swung the long sword in his hand, and a Sword Qi shot straight towards Chu An's face.
Just as the Sword Qi was about to strike him, a red light flashed, dispersing the Sword Qi.
"Old fellow, how dare you harm my Lord!"
Lu Xiaobu, holding a Fangtian Halberd, stood in front of Chu An.
He was not wearing armor today, only a black fitted outfit.
His eight-foot height made his posture appear even more upright.
The Fangtian Halberd was as light as nothing in his hand, its tip pointing directly at Qing Xuzi.
Qing Xuzi sneered, "No manners, it seems I must teach this wild dog a lesson on behalf of your master."
After he finished speaking, a green light emanated from his body, and the pressure of the Nascent Soul Realm swept over.
Lu Xiaobu, however, was not afraid in the slightest.
He twirled his halberd, bringing forth a bloody whirlwind that swept the incoming pressure aside.
"Solidified bloody Killing Intent." Qing Xuzi's face changed; one would need to slaughter at least ten thousand people to possess such Killing Intent.
Qing Xuzi activated his Spiritual Qi, and a Sword Qi went straight for Lu Xiaobu's throat.
Lu Xiaobu was prepared, sweeping his halberd horizontally, once again shattering the Sword Qi.
The two fought back and forth beside the Altar of Heaven.
Chu An ignored the two fighting behind him and looked directly into Chu Yunfei's eyes, saying, "Imperial Father, if you kneel, you will never stand up again.
For these past decades, my Great Chu has paid tribute to the Sects every year, yet the common people are displaced, the lower classes suffer unspeakably, and their lives are miserable.
These land barnacles neither produce nor trade, they merely consume the resources and Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth for their own use, high above.
The common people even have to pay their life's savings to ask them to subdue demons and devils.
How is this different from the barnacles attached to a Kunpeng?
Imperial Father, since you could eradicate Buddhism, why can't you eradicate all the Sects in this world?
Your son believes that instead of begging these Sects for help in protecting Great Chu, it would be better to use these resources to cultivate the army, treat the common people kindly, open up wasteland, increase production, and encourage trade.
Only then can we strive for good governance and self-reliance!"
Chu Yunfei looked at this son, who resembled him the most, his heart filled with mixed emotions: "An'er, the Sects are not as simple as you think..."
Before he could finish, the entire altar suddenly shook with a rumble.
"Rise!"
It turned out that Lu Xiaobu had directly lifted the sacrificial bronze cauldron with his Fangtian Halberd, his feet sinking into the white jade ground, leaving two footprints.
The bronze cauldron was directly thrown into the air and smashed towards Qing Xuzi.
"Petty tricks!"
Qing Xuzi's sword art suddenly changed, and the green jade sword in his hand instantly transformed into twelve Flying Swords, forming a Sword Array.
The Sword Array swirled like a tornado, directly grinding the incoming bronze cauldron into dust.
The civil and military officials retreated in panic, and Minister of Rites Liu Zongyuan's official hat was even sliced in half by the Sword Qi, leaving him slumped on the ground, trembling.
"Not good! Tianyan Twelve Flying Sword Array!" Chu An was forced to close his eyes by the strong wind.
"Ha!"
Lu Xiaobu let out a long roar, and a crimson Protective Aura rose around his body.
He did not retreat but advanced, stepping forward to meet the Sword Array, swinging the Fangtian Halberd in his hand in a full-moon arc.
The tip of the Fangtian Halberd collided with the Flying Swords, sparking tiny stars.
Each clash exploded into visible circular Qi waves in the air.
"How daring! Drunken laughter three thousand, flowers flying all over the building, take this!"
Qing Xuzi's fingertips glowed intensely with green light, and the twelve Flying Swords suddenly merged into one.
A thirty-foot-long green jade sword, accompanied by the sound of wind and thunder, slashed down from the sky.
Before the sword even arrived, the altar ground had already cracked, forming a three-inch wide gully.
Lu Xiaobu's hair-bound Golden Crown exploded, his black hair wildly dancing, his eyes bloodshot as he looked at the giant sword forming in the air.
"This halberd is named Fangtian! Break for me!"
The Fangtian Halberd in Lu Xiaobu's hand transformed into a crimson Swimming Dragon, soaring into the sky.
The moment the giant sword collided with the Swimming Dragon, there was a "boom" and it exploded, the Qi wave knocking the onlookers to the ground.
Lu Xiaobu had blood at the corner of his mouth, kneeling on one knee, his halberd deeply embedded in the altar.
The sleeve of his right arm was completely torn, and spiderweb-like bloodlines snaked across his exposed skin.
Qing Xuzi retreated seven steps, the green jade sword in his hand drawing a crack on the ground, and blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth stained his white beard.
"Enough!" Chu Yunfei suddenly roared, his jade gui striking the ground heavily, and a Luck Golden Dragon soared from behind him, pushing the two back dozens of steps.
Qing Xuzi stared at the faintly visible Chiyou tattoo on Lu Xiaobu's arm, exposed by his torn sleeve.
His fingertips trembled slightly as he sheathed his sword.
This Golden Core Realm martial general had limitless potential in the future.
Chu Yunfei turned to look at Chu An's stubborn figure, and in a trance, he seemed to see the woman who had knelt outside the Imperial Study twenty years ago.
She was also so stubborn, kneeling in the rain all night just to request provisions for the border guards.
"You are also an adult now." Chu Yunfei's voice suddenly became weary, "It's time to go to your fiefdom in Southern Xinjiang."
Lu Xiaobu suddenly looked up, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Southern Xinjiang, connected to Southern Jambudvipa, was the most remote territory of Great Chu.
The Chu Emperor was exiling His Highness.
"Your son accepts the decree." Chu An bowed deeply, his forehead touching the cold white jade ground.
He remembered his mother holding his hand before she died, saying, "An'er, do not resent your Imperial Father.
His life has been like treading on thin ice.
If he cannot reach the other shore, you must help him walk the path he has not completed."
Lu Xiaobu propped himself up with the Fangtian Halberd, tying his hair into a messy ponytail.
His clothes were tattered, but his back remained perfectly straight.
Chu An supported his arm, feeling the chaotic Qi and blood within him.
In that battle just now, Lu Xiaobu seemed to have the upper hand, but he was actually overdrawing his life force, and his Meridians were severely damaged at this moment.
"Your Highness..." Lu Xiaobu whispered, "Southern Xinjiang is remote..."
"It's fine." Chu An interrupted him, "My Great Chu's territory is nothing but barren."
As the two turned to leave, Chu Yunfei looked at the amber bracelet on Chu An's right hand, the foxtail grass inside was so conspicuous.
She was just a maid, was it worth making you an enemy of all the Sects in the world?
Chu Yunfei looked at the departing Chu An and murmured, "An'er, a Buddhist kingdom in West Niuhe Continent has already nearly exhausted all of Great Chu's foundation.
We must plan slowly."
Qing Xuzi stared at the retreating figures of Chu An and Lu Xiaobu, a cold glint in his eyes.
If you are sensible, then we will not interfere with each other, and this old man might not be unwilling to give you a way out.
Chu An helped Lu Xiaobu walk out of the Altar of Heaven.
Chief Eunuch Wu quickly called for imperial physicians to come forward and bandage Lu Xiaobu's wounds.
Lu Xiaobu was about to refuse but was stopped by a look from Chu An.
From a distance, the sound of horse hooves came, and Xiao Shun, leading a troop of cavalry, galloped closer.
"Your Highness, as you instructed, everything is ready." Xiao Shun dismounted and whispered, "Over at Tianfu City, our people have already made arrangements."
Chu An nodded.
Southern Xinjiang was his fiefdom, and he had long anticipated this day.
These years, he had secretly cultivated influence within the court, precisely to minimize trouble when this day came: "We are not going to Tianfu City."
"Not going to Tianfu City? Then where are we going?" Lu Xiaobu and Xiao Shun were both surprised.
At this moment, the imperial physician had finished bandaging Lu Xiaobu, and Chief Eunuch Wu quickly motioned for the imperial physicians, eunuchs, and palace maids to step away.
Chu An toyed with the amber bracelet in his hand: "The Sect Competition is about to begin, we will go directly to Hero Sect to observe the ceremony after reaching Southern Xinjiang."
Xiao Shun and Lu Xiaobu exchanged glances, both seeing a hint of confusion in each other's eyes, and both cupped their fists in a bow, saying, "As you command!"