The news that the Twenty-third Prince had returned to the Imperial Capital had spread throughout the entire Imperial Capital overnight. However, the atmosphere of the Imperial Capital was already tense. So, this news didn’t cause a huge sensation. However, the undercurrent had become even more intense.

The three individuals had returned to the Twenty-third Prince’s mansion. People of many sects and Twenty-third Prince’s faction had arrived in quick succession after they got the news of his return. The Twenty-third Prince was also several hundred years old, and had been operating these forces since then. His forces had been destroyed from the outside. However, he had another huge force hidden in the shadows.

However, the strength of the internal forces must be transferred to the external force since the external force had been destroyed.

Twenty-third Prince’s faction looked dead a brief while ago. However, it had reorganized in one day. Experts of different ranks had gathered in a group.

That group had an expert of the initial stage of the sage realm and several experts of the semi-sage realm. It seemed that the Twenty-third Prince wasn’t that ordinary either. It was such a waste that he had secretly concealed this kind of a force. However, he at least didn’t rule out this force, and ultimately decided to use it at this time.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty has escaped the disaster!"

"Yeah! Congratulations, Your Highness. The Fourth Prince is so cruel!"

Many experts congratulated the Twenty-third Prince one-after-another. But, he didn’t smile unnecessarily. Rather, he looked courteous towards the loyalty of the people of his faction.

That sage expert among these fighters was a middle-aged man. He had a somewhat gloomy face. He was coldly standing at one place. But, he had an enigmatic air about him. It had been said that this sage expert was known as Old Ancestor Gong Yang. He was ‘a(chǎn) random cultivator with no background’. The Twenty-third Prince had requested a sage to come help him with great difficulty. He was also his biggest trump card in this contest for the title of Emperor.

Not even one-tenth of the total princes could invite a sage realm consecrate. And, only the princes who had invited a sage realm consecrate were eligible to compete for the title of Emperor.

The Twenty-third Prince had another consecrate expert in his faction apart from the experts of the Northern Dipper Organization. However, he had died in the sudden attack that was made by the Fourth Prince.

Such a high-handed Twenty-third Prince had been forced to run away and leave this place in the past. However, that was because several of the most promising princes had joined hands against him.

Ye Xiwen and Wood Dragon were standing in a corner. They didn’t wish to go out and grab the limelight in front of these people.

"Your Majesty, you shouldn’t be so impulsive. You should’ve returned quietly. You mustn’t have made such a big noise when you returned. We may have attracted the attention of several forces because of this. And, we may consequently become an eyesore for several of princes!" the enigmatic looking Old Ancestor Gong Yang gave a serious lesson in a chiding manner.

"He he!" Ye Xiwen laughed out loud and spoke-up, "What’s the use of remaining hidden? Aren’t the other forces’ spies present everywhere in this city? So, what’s the use of returning quietly? You must show the strength of your stance if you wish to conquer people’s heart. What do you think this is...? This is a contest for the throne."

Ye Xiwen had finally spoken up at this time. He wanted the Twenty-third Prince to assume a strong stance. What was the Twenty-third Prince in the past? He was far from being the most popular one among the princes. In fact, he appeared like a trash when set-off.

How could such trash have the charisma to gain support of the powerful individuals? This was the necessary requirement to climb up to the throne. Having enough power and support was the real requirement to be the Emperor.

Only showing one’s robust and high-profile attitude was the way to attract the forces that were waiting and watching to become supporters. ‘To increase the strength of one’s own force’ was the general trend. The so-called ‘general trend’ was making one’s own force stronger and stronger.

This was the demand of present time, and not like before when the old Emperors used to strongly control the Empire. Meanwhile, a prince would remain low-key, and would wait for the contention among princes to be over. Then, he’d integrate the entire Empire’s forces. But, would people wish such a person to obtain the position of the Emperor?

Obtaining an advantage from the disputes of two parties was a very good idea. However, it wasn’t like only they could think of obtaining such advantage. Couldn’t other powerful princes think of that as well? The Twenty-third Prince had been chased down once before. That was an attempt to clear him out. This was the best proof.

"Do you wish to put His Highness in trouble? His Highness is under the influence of your witchcraft! And, that’s why he lost self-control and acted like this!" The Old Ancestor Gong Yang pointed a finger at Ye Xiwen.

He could sense that the Twenty-third Prince thought very highly of Ye Xiwen and the ‘Wood Dragon’. And, this had left him to feel somewhat threatened. In fact, he felt a threat to his position.

One must know that the Twenty-third Prince had only two sage realm experts by his side in the past. However, they still wanted to get rid of each other. So, he believed that it was his time to acquire the top position since the other sage expert had died. However, two mysterious experts had arrived at this time.

And, this could possibly destabilize his position. So, he was quite hostile towards them even though they hadn’t spoken anything.

"Trouble? How can there be no danger if you wish to acquire the position of the Emperor?" Ye Xiwen coldly laughed and said, "Which place is completely safe in this world? A stone may fall on you even if you are walking on the road. One mustn’t bother about small things in a big matter. One must advance courageously with hope!"

"What if the spies of other princes’ factions sent experts to kill His Highness? Can you take this responsibility?" Old Ancestor Gong Yang became angry. He berated Ye Xiwen as he assumed a loyal and caring expression on his face.

"I will kill all of them if that happens!" Ye Xiwen replied in a casual manner, "And, I will keep killing them until nobody dares to take the position of the Emperor!"

The prince’s mansion had suddenly turned quiet. In fact, there was a pin drop silence. And, cold breeze had begun to blow.

Everyone was left dumbstruck since they hadn’t expected that Ye Xiwen would say such a thing. Nobody could believe their ears. They thought that Ye Xiwen was insane. Did he even know how many sage experts were behind these powerful princes?

Even a weak prince like the Twenty-third Prince had the support of two sage experts behind him even though he could only be considered as a ‘trash’ in this contest for the imperial throne. Nobody could imagine how many sage experts were behind those powerful princes...

However, Ye Xiwen had dared to claim that he would kill all of them.

I will keep killing them until nobody dares to take the position of the Emperor! Such words had left everyone to believe that he was insane. Even the Wood Dragon was looking at him in a shock since he hadn’t expected that Ye Xiwen would actually say such a thing.

This statement might make other people think that Ye Xiwen was crazy, but Wood Dragon didn’t think so...

The entire world might call Ye Xiwen ‘insane’, but he wouldn’t. And, that was because he could sense the burning confidence in his words.

This wasn’t arrogance. This was self-confidence! It seemed as if every enemy was insignificant in front of him. He could kill all of them. He would keep killing them until nobody in this world dared to take the position of the Emperor.

The Wood Dragon didn’t fall behind in praising him.

Many of those semi-sage experts were watching this dispute between both sides. Old Ancestor Gong Yang clearly had a very big status in the hearts of these people. However, it seemed as if Ye Xiwen wasn’t a person to be trifled with either. They had heard that he had saved His Highness. Therefore, two powerful individuals were colliding with each other at this time. So, these people would certainly get to watch a good show.

However, everyone had taken the Old Ancestor Gong Yang’s side. They didn’t have good relations with him on ordinary days. However, he was still one of them. However, these two individuals of unknown origins had put on strange masks. Their dresses made it seem as if they belonged to some force. However, they were still outsiders at the end of the day.

They wouldn’t be afraid if there were only one person to deal with... just like the Old Ancestor Gong Yang. How ferocious was he alone? However, they were very fearful since Ye Xiwen had the support of an entire force. One must have incredible strength if one had to face a lot of people at once.

Everyone criticized Ye Xiwen. Some people called him egoistic, while others called him arrogant and so on... In short, nobody spoke any words of praise for him.

"He’s egoistic! Your Highness, this man is a lunatic. Maybe he’s a spy of some other force’s faction who wants to put Your Highness in trouble!" Old Ancestor Gong Yang looked at Ye Xiwen in a bitter manner and said. A loyal and caring expression appeared on his face.

He believed that one must maintain a low profile and a fair amount of strength in order to compete for the title of the Emperor. They mustn’t be extravagant. He couldn’t fathom that a person who endured patiently could never become a good ruler of a country.

However, Ye Xiwen’s opinion was completely different. The so-called ‘maintaining a low profile’ and ‘being sophisticated’ were the excuses of the people who didn’t have enough strength. One must kill those who try to block one’s path if one possesses enough strength. Whoever jumps in the way... must be killed! And then, one shall see who dares to jump in.

Ye Xiwen had been following the overbearing method from the beginning when he had chosen the blade skill. And, he had been like that since then. He would go all out. He didn’t know any other method. Therefore, he was very familiar with using power to overwhelm people. Nothing was impossible as long as one possessed enough strength.

"Do you think that you can compete for the imperial throne by relying on such people?" Ye Xiwen looked at the Twenty-third Prince. He sneered and said, "They are just a bunch of goons!"

The Twenty-third Prince looked at both sides with a bit of embarrassment. Wouldn’t he have known that it was impossible to compete with the entire world by depending on Old Ancestor Gong Yang and these people? That sudden attack from the fourth prince had defeated his forces in a flash. And, that had been a huge setback for him. He had been operating his force since a long time. However, it had collapsed at the first blow. It didn’t matter how much he had been jumping around up till now. He could only be a ‘trash’ for other people.

His only hope was to depend on the support of the Northern Dipper Organization. He didn’t have a clear idea regarding this mysterious organization. However, this organization had revealed only the tip of the iceberg, and even that was enough to make him tremble with fear.

He might perhaps fight with the Northern Dipper Organization after he had taken the authority of the Empire in his hands. However, he wasn’t thinking about this at present.

Old Ancestor Gong Yang and other people weren’t inferior. However, such strength wouldn’t have any major effect on those powerful princes!

"You..." Old Ancestor Gong Yang glared at Ye Xiwen. He opened his eyes wide. In fact, it seemed as if he wanted to break open. After all, he was a senior sage expert in his own merit. However, Ye Xiwen had evaluated them as a ‘goons’. And, he was obviously included among them!

Goon...? Nobody had ever called him that!

One doesn’t get extremely angry by verbal humiliation. However, this happens when someone disregards them in their entirety.