Chapter 297 - Give me 10 years!
Zhou Donghuang was not at all interested in meeting with the seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty.
However, so as not to put He Jin in a difficult position, he eventually followed He Jin to find the Lightning Sword Sect Leader, Yu Yucheng.
“Zhou Donghuang, this representative of the Qi Dynasty is different from the one who visited before. Although they are biological brothers, however, their status within the Qi Dynasty is different… That is why I felt awkward to reject his proposal to meet with you.”
Yu Yucheng smiled bitterly. “Of course, regardless of whether he wants you to follow him to the Qi Dynasty or whether he is interested in your Sky Sun fruit, you can also reject him.
“You just have to meet with him, this…”
Before Yu Yucheng could complete with his sentence, Zhou Donghuang had already interrupted him. “Sect Leader, just bring me to see him. I would like to complete this as quickly as possible so that I could return to my training.”
“Sure.”
After hearing Zhou Donghuang’s frustrated tone, Yu Yucheng felt annoyed as well. If this visitor had been that same 14th prince of the Qi Dynasty, he would definitely help Zhou Donghuang reject him. However, this time, the visitor was the seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty!
As for the seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty, his status in the Qi Dynasty was akin to that of the Dongfang elder of the Guangling Academy who had visited the sect previously.
…
“Seventh Prince, this man here is our disciple of the Lightning Sword Sect, Zhou Donghuang.
“Zhou Donghuang, this is the Seventh Prince of the Qi Dynasty, Prince Qi Feng.”
Yu Yucheng brought Zhou Donghuang to meet the Seventh Prince of the Qi Dynasty and took the initiative to introduce them.
Zhou Donghuang glanced lightly at Qi Feng and observed that this seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty was a lot humbler than the Qi Dynasty’s 14th prince, who was of lower status in the Qi Dynasty. When he looked at Qi Feng, he was smiling warmly and gave someone a feeling of being in spring, unlike the 14th prince, who had been domineering.
Behind Qi Feng, there was also another old man. This old man was extremely skinny. When he stood beside Qi Feng, who was really tall, he seemed to almost disappear in terms of size.
However, as the old man stood silently, he gave off an aura of mystery and authority.
Zhou Donghuang could almost confirm that this old man was definitely a Divine Transformation adept.
“This is the eighth elder of the Qi Dynasty, Elder Qi Yuankai.”
Yu Yucheng then turned to introduce the old man standing behind Qi Feng. The old man also opened his eyes and glanced at Zhou Donghuang with a smoldering gaze. A normal Dharma adept would have been shocked by such an intense look, but Zhou Donghuang was unmovable and maintained his neutral expression.
“Elder Yuankai is also a Divine Transformation adept.”
Yu Yucheng mentioned the old man’s level of practice, and it was exactly as Zhou Donghuang had predicted.
“Mm.”
Even so, when facing this Divine Transformation adept, Zhou Donghuang still had on an impassive look, as if it would be impossible to shake him up. This caused Elder Qi Yuankai’s eyes to fill with a shocked look.
“Please speak directly as I would like to return back to my residence to train.”
Zhou Donghuang casually looked at Qi Feng and spoke without any hesitation despite knowing that the person he was addressing was the highly esteemed seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty.
Zhou Donghuang had travelled across the infinite universe over the past thousands of years. Be it a prince of the Qi Dynasty of the Hengliu galaxy or even the princes of dynasties of the top cities in the universe, no one would be able to force him to grovel in front of them.
“Brother Donghuang is truly a training addict. No wonder you are able to be at where you are at this young age!”
If this were to be the 14th prince of the Qi Dynasty, Qi Rui, seeing Zhou Donghuang’s attitude, he would definitely go crazy. However, for the seventh prince of the Qi Dynasty, Qi Feng, he maintained a friendly attitude and his smile was still bright.
“Brother Donghuang, I’m here on behalf of my father, King Qi, and we would like to personally invite you to visit the Qi Dynasty.”
Qi Feng spoke directly without beating around the bush. “My father has said that as long as you are willing to follow us, you will receive the most preferential treatment an elite and talented disciple can have in the Qi Dynasty. King Qi is willing to give in to all your demands and will not be stingy simply because you do not have Qi blood.
“Furthermore… my father has personally mentioned that he is willing to adopt you as a step-son!”
Qi Feng’s first few sentences were rather typical and Yu Yucheng was not surprised at all. However, the last part of Qi Feng’s proposal scared him greatly.
That top member of society of the Qi Dynasty had actually personally claimed to want to accept Zhou Donghuang as his step-son?
Who was King Qi?
He was someone who stood at the peak of the Hengliu galaxy and who was one of the two strongest men in the entire Hengliu galaxy.
Such a figure was actually willing to adopt Zhou Donghuang as a step-son!?
If Zhou Donghuang had already grown up and was mature enough to take on responsibilities concerning the entire Hengliu galaxy, it would make a little more sense… The problem was, although Zhou Donghuang had indeed demonstrated much talent, he was still not fully grown.
After sighing coldly to himself, Yu Yucheng glanced at Zhou Donghuang meaningfully with a look of worry and uncertainty.
He knew that if he were to be in Zhou Donghuang’s shoes, he would definitely be swayed by Qi Feng’s words.
As one of the step-sons of the top figure of the Qi Dynasty, not only could Zhou Donghuang roam the Hengliu galaxy freely, the Qi Dynasty could thoroughly develop his skills, and he would enjoy the best training resources and training environment they could offer.
Now, he was truly worried that Zhou Donghuang would be snatched away.
However, in the next instant, as Zhou Donghuang spoke, Yu Yucheng felt completely relieved. At the same time, he was shocked as he realized that despite his age, he was still unable to fully understand a mere youth of 20 years old.
“I’m not interested.”
Zhou Donghuang rejected Qi Feng without an ounce of hesitation.
“Brother Donghuang, will you not even consider the offer?”
Qi Feng’s eyes narrowed slightly, and the smile on his face dimmed a little as well. Of course, if one was not observant, they would not notice this slight change.
“If you become my father’s step-son, your position in the Qi Dynasty will be similar to my royal status as a prince. The resources we can offer you for training purposes far outweigh those of the Lightning Sword Sect as well.”
Qi Feng continued his attempts to persuade Zhou Donghuang.
“Be on the same level as you?”
Zhou Donghuang smiled, and his eyes sparkled. “Does that mean that I would also have a shot at becoming the next king of the Qi Dynasty and be able to control the whole Qi Dynasty?”
“Zhou Donghuang!”
Yu Yucheng’s facial expression changed greatly. He had not expected that Zhou Donghuang would utter such a phrase, and such a ludicrous and taboo phrase at that!
The smile on Qi Feng’s face froze with shock now.
“What audacity!”
The old man behind Qi Feng, Qi Yuankai, now barked out an indignant reply, and his inner core shook the area surrounding him, as if he could and would strike a blow against Zhou Donghuang right there and then.
Seeing this, Yu Yucheng immediately shielded Zhou Donghuang and stared steely at the old man, prepared to exchange blows with him.
Qi Feng raised a hand to stop the old man. At the same time, he looked deeply at Zhou Donghuang. “Brother Donghuang, I’m afraid that will not be possible…. The Qi Dynasty has strict rules that only those of royal blood can ascend the throne. All kings of the past were of Qi blood.
“In this case, despite your talents, you cannot become the next king of the Qi Dynasty.
“Previously, Kaishan of the Guangling Academy had also been frighteningly talented, and I could daresay that he was more talented than the entire batch of ancestors of the Qi Dynasty… Even so, due to the constraints of lineage, he was unable to become the next King Qi and that was why he left the Qi Dynasty to create his own Guangling Academy.”
As Qi Feng mentioned this story, he had a faraway gaze in his eyes which was both stony and cold.
“Hm?”
Zhou Donghuang’s previously neutral expression was now finally changing as he was curious at the fact that the Guangling Academy’s founder had originated from the Qi Dynasty.
The Guangling Academy of today could be said to be the only organization that could compete with the Qi Dynasty in the entire Hengliu galaxy.
In the Hengliu galaxy, there were three top organizations: the Qi Dynasty, the Guangling Academy and the Alliance.
As for the various sects of the Alliance, they were considered the top elite sects of the Alliance, but alone, they were still unable to fight against the two Transcendental Forces of the Qi Dynasty and the Guangling Academy
“You actually believed what I said?”
Zhou Donghuang smiled lightly. “Even if all the people of the Qi Dynasty begged me to go over to be the next king, I would not be interested as well… What is the point of standing at the peak of the Hengliu galaxy? The Hengliu galaxy is but one of the average galaxies in the entire infinite universe.
“Even if I were to be the next king of the Qi Dynasty, although I would have more power, if you give me ten more years, I am sure I can become more powerful than your king!”
When Zhou Donghuang spoke, he appeared to spare no thought for the prestigious status of King Qi at all.
“How dare you!”
The elder behind Qi Feng, Qi Yuankai, was angered till he raged once again. In the end, he only cooled down slightly after Qi Feng shook his head subtly.
“Brother Donghuang is indeed ambitious, and I admire that… However, having ambitions does not mean you will succeed. I’ll be watching in anticipation.”
At this point, Qi Feng’s smile had diminished greatly to a cordial one and he finished his conversation bluntly with Zhou Donghuang before saying some courteous farewells to Yu Yucheng. Afterwards, Qi Feng brought the elder with him and left quickly.
As for Yu Yucheng, after he had recovered from his shock at Zhou Donghuang’s words, he began to consider them in his head.
Zhou Donghuang intended to exceed King Qi in a mere timespan of ten years?
This was surely too arrogant and ambitious of him!
That was all Yu Yucheng could think of.
Although it was true that Zhou Donghuang was talented and could be one of the strongest of the entire Hengliu galaxy, where his talents were slightly wasted… Nevertheless, to be able to be stronger than King Qi after only ten years was almost impossible!
King Qi was still one of the two strongest men in the entire Hengliu galaxy, and he was at least at the late Divine Transformation stage. At this point, he was at the end of the stage where he was close to the ultimate Divine Transformation stage.
There were even rumors that the king of the Qi Dynasty or the head of the Guangling Academy could possibly already be ultimate Divine Transformation adepts. It was just that neither had shown their true powers, and everyone thus assumed they were still at the late Divine Transformation stage at this point.
Of course, these were just rumors and it was uncertain as to whether they were true or not.
“Sect Leader, I’ll take my leave.”
As Zhou Donghuang bade farewell to Yu Yucheng and returned to the Autumn Valley, the two representatives of the Qi Dynasty had also left the grounds of the Lightning Sword Sect and were nearing the most convenient galaxy teleporter.
“Seventh Prince, that boy is really too arrogant. He is a mere youngster and yet he claims to want to overtake King Qi within the next ten years. This means that he does not respect King Qi’s status and position at all!” Qi Yuankai fumed aloud. “You should not have stopped me from attacking him!”
“Attacking him?”
Qi Feng turned to give a stern look to Qi Yuankai. “Eighth elder, do you actually have confidence in defeating that Yu Yucheng?”
Hearing this, Qi Yuankai first froze before shaking his head, speechless.