70 Chapter 1227: Liu Yang’s Crisis 2 (2/2)

At this moment, a young man walked over and greeted him. ”Liu gongzi…”

”You are…” Liu Yang frowned.

From the other party's dress-up, he could tell that the young man was a prince as well. However, his standing within the royal family did not seem to be particularly high, especially considering how Chu Tianxing neglected to introduce him.

”I am Chu Xiang, the 77th Prince of the Qingyuan Empire,” the young man replied with a bitter smile. ”I have met Zhang shi on two separate occasions, so we can be considered acquaintances of one another.”

If Zhang Xuan was there, he would have recognized the other party as none other than the young man he had met at the entrance of the Terpsichore Guild and Blacksmith Guild, Chu gongzi!

Who knew that he was actually a prince of the Qingyuan Empire?

However, this also explained how he could afford to pay a concentrated high-tier spirit stone for an Exclusive Dance from Fairy Zi Yan.

”A friend of my teacher? Pardon my rudeness. It's a pleasure to meet you!” Liu Yang quickly got to his feet and clasped his fist.

”There's no need to be so polite,” Chu Xiang replied with a smile.

The duo chatted for a while. In between their conversation, a few princesses dropped by and offered him a drink. Drunk on the atmosphere, Liu Yang delightfully accepted their toast and drunk a fair bit. Before long, he found his eyelids getting heavier and heavier, and with a clumsy stagger, he collapsed to the ground.

Chu Xiang hurriedly rushed up to check on Liu Yang, but at this moment, Chu Tianxing suddenly appeared. With a sharp glint in his eyes, he bellowed, ”Men, lock him in the underground prison and make sure to seal off all news about this matter!”

”Yes!”

A couple of guards quickly stepped forward to bind the unconscious Liu Yang before dragging him away.

Astonished by the sudden turn of events, Chu Xiang asked, ”Father, what is going on?”

”This is none of your business!” Chu Tianxing waved his hand impatiently.

”But… he's Zhang shi's student! Zhang shi is a genius who has succeeded in crashing our Qingyuan Empire Master Teacher Pavilion, and to apprehend his student like this…” Chu Xiang exclaimed anxiously, only to be interjected halfway through his words.

”Enough! Who do you think you are as to lecture me? If you dare speak another word of this matter, don't blame me for being heartless!”

Paying no heed to Chu Xiang's advice, Chu Tianxing walked away with a livid look on his face.

As the 77th Prince who had come from one of the many concubines in the royal palace, Chu Xiang's standing was not high.

In order to gain his father's favor, he had worked diligently, successfully became a 7-star blacksmith, and advanced his cultivation to Embryonic Soul realm despite his young age… He had thought that he could win the respect of others through his hard work, but who knew that he would only end up being poisoned by others as well, resulting in the impairment of his soul?

It was then that he realized that there was no such thing as kinship within the royal family. There were only relationships of convenience.

Thus, he fell into degeneracy, frequenting brothels to comfort himself in the intimate embrace of women. It might have appeared as if he had given up on himself, but it was actually all a ruse.

If he had not put up a useless front, the other princes who were vying for power would have viewed him as a threat and gotten rid of him.

Furthermore, he had realized that his father was not oblivious to the viciousness of his fellow brothers, choosing only to turn a blind eye to them. This had caused the final shred of expectations he had from kinship to freeze over like a winter's river.

He had thought that his acquaintance with Zhang Xuan might be able to change his father's low opinion of him, but who would have thought that his father would actually capture the latter's direct disciple!

Having met Zhang Xuan twice, Chu Xiang knew how protective the young man was of those around him. If something really happened to Liu Yang, that young man could very well turn the entire Qingyuan City into a living hell!

This won't do! I must inform Zhang shi of this matter this instant… If there is any misunderstanding between Father and him, they should hash it out before things get out of control… Chu Xiang clenched his fists tightly and made up his mind.

He had witnessed the incredible prowess that Zhang Xuan possessed with his own eyes, and he instinctively knew that the latter was the type of person that one should never make an enemy of.

He had no idea why his father had chosen to capture Liu Yang, but from the looks of it, it seemed like there was nothing he could say that would change his father's mind. Since that was the case, he could only deal with this matter from Zhang Xuan's side, and hopefully, it still would not be too late to resolve the conflict between them peacefully.

Thus, Chu Xiang discreetly took his leave from the banquet and returned to his accommodation.

He swiftly changed his clothes before sneaking out of the royal palace to rush to the Combat Master Hall.

A combat master stood in Chu Xiang's way and asked, ”Who are you looking for?”

”I am Zhang shi's acquaintance, and I have some urgent matters for him!” Chu Xiang replied anxiously as he passed a name scroll over.

”You are Zhang shi's acquaintance? Give me a moment.” Noting the anxious look on Chu Xiang's face and hearing that this was a matter relating to Zhang Xuan, the combat master did not dare to waste any time. He quickly took the name scroll and headed in.

Not too long later, the combat master returned with a fatty behind him.

”It's a pleasure to meet you, Chu gongzi. I am Sun Qiang, Zhang shi's butler. May I know the reason behind your visit?” Sun Qiang greeted with a warm smile.

Noting that the person who had come out was not Zhang Xuan, Chu Xiang panicked. ”Pardon me, Butler Sun, but I really do have an urgent matter that I need to report to Zhang shi about, so I must trouble you to inform him of my visit…”

”Chu gongzi, our young master is currently in seclusion, so I fear that it'll be inconvenient to interrupt him at this crucial juncture,” Sun Qiang replied with a conflicted frown. ”If you really do have an urgent matter for our young master, you can feel free to inform me. I'll have it relayed to our young master as soon as he's out of his seclusion!”

”This…” Hearing Sun Qiang's words, Chu Xiang hesitated for a moment. From the looks of it, it seemed like he would not be able to meet Zhang Xuan immediately, so he swiftly set up an isolation barrier and said, ”To be honest with you, Zhang shi's direct disciple, Liu Yang, has been captured by my father…”

”Young Master Liu Yang has been captured?”

Sun Qiang was taken aback for a moment before his eyes slowly narrowed menacingly.