"Borrowing seed to have a child!?"
Meng Hongchen's face was full of astonishment as she looked at Xu Tianran in disbelief. As if at this moment, her inner world was on the verge of collapse.
In response, Xu Tianran acted as if he saw nothing, completely ignoring Meng Hongchen's expression as he continued.
"Once you successfully borrow his seed, we will eliminate him. This way, I can have an heir to inherit the throne, and also cut off any future troubles."
Immediately after, his purple-tinted eyes stared straight at Meng Hongchen.
"What does the Empress think?"
It sounded like a question, but his tone left no room for doubt.
Hearing this, a look of hesitation appeared on Meng Hongchen's face, a hint of struggle flashing in her eyes. She bit her lip and said, "Your Majesty, this matter... is truly too difficult for your subject. The Prince is, after all, your flesh and blood brother, to do such a thing..." She paused slightly, "Furthermore, if this gets out, it will definitely damage the royal family's reputation, and even my chastity will be completely ruined..." With that, tears streamed down her face, like rain on pear blossoms.
Xu Tianran, however, turned a deaf ear to this, and his face immediately sank. The next second, cold and emotionless words came from his mouth, "Empress, you must understand that this is for the sake of the Sun Moon Empire's nation. Since you are the Empress, you ought to share my burdens and think for the Empire. If I have no heir, it will lead to chaos in the Empire, and you will be the sinner of the Empire! If this succeeds, naturally, I will not treat you poorly, nor will I mistreat your Hongchen family. If you stubbornly refuse..."
A massive pot was about to be forced onto her head. Although Xu Tianran didn't finish his sentence at the end, the threatening implication was self-evident.
Meng Hongchen sneered inwardly, but her face still maintained a reluctant facade. She knew Xu Tianran's nature well; if she didn't agree, her entire family might fall into a doom from which there was no return. After hesitating for a long time, Meng Hongchen finally lowered her head. "Your Majesty's decree, I dare not disobey. I am willing to share your burdens."
"Hahaha—Good, good, good."
Once these words were spoken, the weather instantly turned from gloomy to sunny. The change in Xu Tianran's expression at this moment could be described as faster than flipping a page. He smiled in satisfaction and said, "The Empress is understanding of the greater good; I am very pleased. This matter is of great importance; not a single word must be leaked. Go back first and prepare yourself well."
He paused for a moment before adding another sentence, "As for your chastity, I have my own ways to handle it."
Meng Hongchen wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, gave a slight bow, and thanked him again before slowly exiting the Imperial Study. Xu Tianran shot a glance backward, giving a subtle hint. Understanding, Xue Chen immediately followed behind her, leaving together with her.
By the time this vast Imperial Study was left with only Xu Tianran, his expression reverted to indifference. He lifted the blanket covering his legs, looking at his crippled limbs.
Hatred, satisfaction, indignation, disgust... a variety of emotions were mixed within him.
"Resurrection from death..."
A murmur escaped Xu Tianran's lips.
If he had a choice, why would he ever want to borrow a seed to have a child? Even if the seed came from his own royal brother, with close bloodlines and strong future talents, it still wasn't his own son in the end.
A belly full of humiliation made his desire for the Holy Spirit Cult burn even hotter!
At the same time, after walking out of the Imperial Study, Meng Hongchen still looked slightly sad and reluctant on the surface, her steps a bit staggering. However, in her heart, she was filled with disdain and disgust for Xu Tianran.
That Xu Tianran was a cripple and wanted to borrow a seed from Xu Tianhe—she hadn't just found this out now; she had known it all along. Ever since her grandfather visited the palace, she had sensed something was wrong. Later, using the excuse Xu Tianran provided, she met with Xu Tianhe several times to communicate and try to get information from him. Who would have thought that in less than three meetings, Xu Tianhe spilled everything. At least... that's how it was in Meng Hongchen's eyes. Thus, she learned all about Xu Tianran's past, so she had anticipated this so-called "borrowing seed" plan much earlier.
"Xu Tianran, do you think I'll just let you manipulate me?"
Meng Hongchen muttered in her heart, a fierce glint flashing in her eyes. She was no delicate, pampered Empress. She was a woman with the Vermillion Clear Icetoad as her martial soul, the most talented female genius of this generation in the Sun Moon Empire. She had the mindset, just lacking some means.
After returning to her sleeping quarters, Xue Chen also retreated. Dismissing her attendants, she sat alone in the inner room. Next, she needed to find an opportunity to discuss this with Xu Tianhe; after all, Xu Tianran wouldn't give her much time.
Besides that, there was also Grandfather's side...
...
Over a month later.
Dongyang City, a heavy military stronghold in the north of the Sun Moon Empire.
This city was located in the eastern part of the north, less than a thousand kilometers from the border of the Tian Hun Empire. Given this geographical location, its strategic significance went without saying.
Furthermore, because this city was very close to the North Sea, also known as the Ice Sea, many of the troops and Soul Engineers stationed there were meant to defend against sea soul beasts that might emerge from the Ice Sea.
Sea soul beasts capable of surviving in the Ice Sea almost all possessed both ice and water attributes, making them extremely powerful. They occasionally launched attacks, raiding the shores for food and hunting humans. Therefore, aside from its strategic significance relative to the Tian Hun battlefield, it also had the mission of preventing sea soul beasts from coming ashore to wreak havoc.
Sea soul beasts were somewhat different from land soul beasts. Most of them lived in clans, so once they caused trouble, it would be highly problematic. This was also a major reason why Dongyang City was heavily guarded. Dongyang City's walls were thirty meters high, meeting the standard configuration of a major city. The battlements were equipped with various offensive and defensive soul tools. High above, over seventy high-altitude detection soul tools were responsible for scouting thousands of square kilometers of land around the city.
Although Dongyang City was in the north, because it was the largest city in the region, it was exceptionally prosperous. Even during wartime, since the flames of war had not spread to the Sun Moon Empire's mainland, and the coastal cities of the Tian Hun Empire opposite them were controlled by Kong Deming's army, it actually remained quite peaceful here.
At dusk, the number of people at the city gates gradually thinned out. Because they had to guard against sea soul beasts that might appear at any moment, the gates of Dongyang City were closed every night after sunset.
At this moment, inside Dongyang City.
Buzz—
In a rarely visited alley, the void suddenly trembled, and a spatial rift was silently sliced open. Soon, a man and a woman walked out of it. The young man had white hair like snow, sharp eyes, and a striking appearance; the young girl's golden hair looked dazzling in the twilight, her noble and elegant demeanor highlighting her extraordinary nature.
The moment they landed, the young man cast his gaze into the spatial rift. "We'll do it here. We'll meet up at the Dongyang Tavern later."
"Okay."
Several voices replied from within the rift before it promptly healed.
A jade-like arm wrapped around the young man's arm at this moment, causing him to turn his gaze to the girl beside him. "Xiao Tian, let's disguise ourselves a bit so we don't attract the attention of others in the city."
Without a doubt, this couple was Chen Junting and Ning Tian.
Chen Junting waved his sleeve, and numerous array lines appeared out of thin air, landing on their bodies. After a fluctuation of soul power, not only did their appearances and clothes change, but even their innate temperament was completely hidden. As long as they didn't actively expose themselves, probably no one would recognize them.
Soon, they walked out of the alley. At first, they avoided crowded areas, and then slowly made their way to the main street, blending into the passing crowd. Like a drop of water in the ocean, once they merged in, they could no longer be distinguished.
There were quite a few pedestrians coming and going. Although their steps were hurried, very few carried any tense emotions. It was as if this wasn't a military stronghold at all, and people were just going about their daily lives as usual.
Ning Tian's peripheral vision swept the area unnoticed. Using a voice only the two of them could hear, she said to Brother Junting, "No wonder you said we should set up camp in Dongyang City. It really is a good place."
Not to say the security was lax, but it was genuinely unexpected.
According to Chen Junting, to prevent any accidents in the middle, aside from Senior Di Tian and the others from the Great Star Dou Forest who were their external backing, their organized team should ideally depart together. However, given that Chen Junting, Huo Yuhao, and the others still needed to visit the Mermaid clan, they had to find a place to stay first.
The coastal cities of the Tian Hun Empire had all fallen and were right on the front lines. Let alone finding a place to stay, the moment they entered a city, they would probably be conscripted into the army as cannon fodder or dragged up onto the city walls to defend it. By then, they would be completely exposed.
Thus, they had set their sights on Dongyang City. Not only was it hiding in plain sight, but Dongyang City's vigilance was also much more relaxed.
Very quickly, the two arrived at the Dongyang Tavern. By now, the sky had already darkened. As the best down-to-earth tavern in Dongyang City, and with it being dinner time, the tavern could be described as packed to the brim, at about eighty percent capacity.
Just as the two stepped into the tavern, "What would you two like to eat?" a waiter ran over, asking somewhat hurriedly.
"Let's not talk about eating first." Chen Junting looked around. "We have more people coming later. Are there any private rooms that can seat over ten people available today?"
"This..." A look of difficulty flashed in the waiter's eyes. They had come too late; there were no private rooms left.
Just at that moment, "Waiter, the check!" A group of burly men walked down the stairs from the second floor. They were picking their teeth, looking completely satisfied. The waiter's face lit up with joy and called out, "Coming right up!"
He then turned to greet Chen Junting and the other two. "You two guests, we have a spot now. Upstairs—please!"
Under the waiter's guidance, Chen Junting and Ning Tian arrived at a private room on the second floor. Before the waiter could even bring the menu, Chen Junting started ordering, "First, bring us a whole roasted snow pig."
"Right away!" The waiter hurriedly noted it down. "Are you two not from around here?"
A smile tugged at the corner of Chen Junting's mouth. "How can you tell?" Before the other party could reply to his rhetorical question, he added, "The snow pigs here are absolutely top-notch; even out-of-towners have probably heard of them, right."
Obviously, before coming to Dongyang City, Chen Junting and the others had thoroughly investigated the local customs and practices. For the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, whose businesses spread across the Four Great Empires before the war, this was incredibly easy.
For example, the climate here in the north was bitterly cold, so people living here needed to consume a massive amount of thermal energy to survive. Because of this, meat and alcohol were especially popular. The signature dish among the roasted meats—the Snow Pig—was a type of small pig raised in the Dongyang City region. Roasted to seventy percent doneness and dipped in sauces, it paired perfectly with its rich fat and robust flavor.
Mmm—it was incredibly authentic!
"The gentleman has good taste." The waiter praised him, then handed them the Dongyang Tavern's menu. "Go ahead, you two, please order."
Picking up the menu, he selected a few signature dishes that were just about enough to eat and then stopped. "This will be enough for now. Please hurry with the food."
"You got it." The waiter glanced at the menu, instantly committing it to memory. "But would you two gentlemen not like to order something to drink?"
"Oh? Any recommendations?"
"That would definitely be the ale." The waiter bragged, showing he had quite the way with words. "Eating meat without drinking ale cuts the flavor in half."
Chen Junting and Ning Tian exchanged a smile before he spoke up. "Alright. Bring us some ale then."
"Right." Just as the waiter was about to turn and leave, Chen Junting called out to him. "If anyone comes looking for us, lead them up here."
"Understood. Please wait a moment, sirs; the food will be ready shortly." The waiter, moving as swift as the wind, quickly turned and left.
"Life here is really nice." Ning Tian looked at the closed door, a smile on her face. Then, she let out a soft sigh. "It would be great if there were no war."
"Actually, the Sun Moon Empire's intention to unify the continent isn't a bad thing."
With one sentence, the tone of the conversation was set.
Seeing Ning Tian looking at him with an incredulous expression, Chen Junting picked up the teapot and poured two cups of hot water for them. Shrugging his shoulders, he said, "Xiao Tian, don't look at me like that."
"I just find it unbelievable." Recalling her gaze, Ning Tian's tone carried a hint of confusion. "Why would you think that?"
Chen Junting didn't explain, nor could he explain. He couldn't very well say that the concept of "Grand Unification" was deeply ingrained in his heart from his past life. So, he could only analyze the benefits of "Grand Unification" for Ning Tian. At the end, he asked an extra question, "Xiao Tian, if you became the Sect Master, and at this time, one of our Douluo Three Empires unified the continent, what would you think in your heart?"
"I..." Suddenly, Ning Tian's words caught in her throat. She realized that she actually felt indifferent about it. Compared to her views on the Sun Moon Empire unifying the Four Great Empires, this was truly a world of difference.
Seeing through Ning Tian's thoughts, Chen Junting's words struck her heart like a hammer.
"Ultimately, both you and I know the benefits of unification. But the most important factor in resisting the Sun Moon Empire is that, to us, they are outsiders—true outsiders. And what about the original Douluo Three Empires?"
"Not mentioning the fractured Tian Hun and Dou Ling Empires, looking purely from the perspective of the entire continent, even if the local customs of each country are different, the actual differences aren't that big, to the point where it's hard to even feel them. Because ultimately, the culture of the Douluo Continent has blended together. Whichever of the three countries you look at, they can all be considered 'our own people.' After all, they share the same roots and ancestors. So, if any one of the Three Great Empires unified the continent, how much of a psychological barrier would there really be in people's hearts? For the common folk, it's nothing more than a change in the upper echelons. As for the absolute top-tier powers... well, basically nothing would change."
Think about it: if any one of the Three Great Empires wanted to unify the continent, what would Shrek do besides trying to get them to reconcile, and then, upon realizing they truly couldn't be stopped? They would really only have one choice: refuse to help and remain detached.
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