Caged Bird

"Seventh Prince."

Long Chen truly did not expect that the person coming to see him would be the Seventh Prince. Ever since that unpleasant incident at the Imperial Academy, they had not had any interaction.

However, the Seventh Prince was Chu Yao's younger brother. Long Chen felt a bit apologetic about what happened last time; after all, this was effectively his future brother-in-law.

"Brother Long, you should just call me Chu Feng," the Seventh Prince hurriedly stood up and said. His attitude was extremely respectful, as if he had become a completely different person compared to his previous arrogant and domineering demeanor.

Long Chen had learned from Chu Yao that Chu Feng was actually not a bad person. It was just that in order to protect himself, he had to act like a buffoon to keep himself safer.

"I apologize for what happened last time," Long Chen nodded and patted Chu Feng on the shoulder.

"Brother Long, you are too serious," Chu Feng hurriedly said with humility.

Long Chen picked up the teapot on the table, poured two cups of tea, and handed one to Chu Feng. "Is there something you need by coming here this time?"

This time when Chu Feng came, he was not wearing his imperial prince attire, but a set of brocade robes, looking more like the attire of an ordinary young nobleman.

"Brother Long… this…" Chu Feng wanted to say something, but he opened his mouth a few times without letting it out.

"Just speak your mind," Long Chen looked at Chu Feng and said.

Chu Feng hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, and said, "Today the Empress Dowager announced that she is marrying my sister to Xia Changfeng, and the date is set for the first of October."

"Snap." Although he was somewhat prepared in his heart, upon hearing this news, Long Chen still felt his blood boil. The cup in his hand was crushed into powder, and the scalding hot tea splashed all over him.

A surging killing intent could not help but fill his eyes, and the entire room immediately felt as if it had descended into an ice cellar. Chu Feng could not help but feel a chill in his heart.

At this moment, Long Chen was like an enraged Vicious Beast, ready to explode and kill at any moment. The intensity of his killing intent was a hundred times stronger than that day at the Imperial Academy.

"Is this matter true?" Long Chen asked through gritted teeth.

Chu Feng nodded. Under Long Chen's pressure, he felt it was difficult to even speak.

"Seeking death." Long Chen was filled with immense anger. That day, in front of everyone in the Imperial Capital, he had responded to Chu Yao, which was equivalent to telling everyone that Chu Yao was his woman.

He did not rely on his relationship with Great Master Yun Qi to propose to Chu Yao; that was to give the Empress Dowager enough Face, allowing her a way to step down, as he did not want to make her too embarrassed.

Yet he did not expect that she would completely disregard Long Chen's feelings and ignore Great Master Yun Qi's Face, resolutely marrying Chu Yao to Xia Changfeng. This was simply bullying others too much.

"Brother Long, my sister has lived a lonely and bitter life, always wearing a mask to Face the world. But I understand her; if she is forced to marry Xia Changfeng, it would be the end of her. Brother Long, I beg you, please save my sister." By the end, Chu Feng's eyes were filled with tears, and he actually slowly knelt before Long Chen.

"What are you doing? Get up quickly!" Long Chen pulled Chu Feng up and said, "Since I have made a promise, even if it means death, I will uphold my vow. You can rest assured."

Hearing Long Chen say this, Chu Feng could not help but feel moved. Living in the inner palace, they had everything except for the word "trust."

"Has your sister not left the house during this time because she is under house arrest?" Long Chen asked.

Chu Feng nodded and said, "Yes, ever since we returned last time, my sister has been under house arrest in the palace. The Empress Dowager does not allow her to step out of her room even one step."

Long Chen's Face turned livid. It seemed the Empress Dowager did not hold Great Master Yun Qi in any regard at all. You old hag, just you wait.

"Can you see your sister?" Long Chen asked.

"I can. The Empress Dowager only forbids her from leaving, but she did not forbid others from visiting. As her younger brother, they dare not stop me," Chu Feng replied.

"That's good. Calculating the days, the first of October is still more than a month away; we have enough time. Three days from now, the Huayun Pavilion will hold its annual auction. I will strive to obtain the Melted Star Grass to resolve the trouble in your sister's body. Tell her to wait for me properly and not do anything foolish," Long Chen said seriously.

Chu Feng was overjoyed and thanked Long Chen profusely, which made Long Chen feel very uncomfortable.

"Chu Feng, let me check your Dantian." Long Chen felt some suspicion in his heart. He reached out to place his hand on Chu Feng's shoulder, and Spiritual Qi surged, slowly injecting into his Dantian.

There really was something fishy! Long Chen discovered that although Chu Feng's Dantian did not have shackles like Chu Yao's, there was a foreign object on his Spiritual Root, above his Dantian.

It was an object so tiny that it was almost invisible to the naked eye. If Long Chen hadn't been predisposed to look for it, he likely would have had a hard time discovering it.

"Bear with it." "Puff." Long Chen stimulated his Spiritual Qi. Chu Feng felt a pain in his lower abdomen, and a tiny column of blood sprayed out. In Long Chen's hand, there was an extra fine needle.

"It's actually a Nether Feather Needle. That is truly vicious." A cold sneer appeared on Long Chen's Face. This Nether Feather Needle was originally a needle used to treat Yang poison. It contained Yin poison, which could alleviate Yang poison and neutralize the toxicity, making it easier to expel the poison.

However, when such a Nether Feather Needle is placed into a normal person's Dantian, the Dantian's Spiritual Root is eroded by the Yin poison for a long time, making it impossible to cultivate.

Re-examining Chu Feng's Dantian, Long Chen could not help but sigh. Due to the long-term erosion by the Yin poison, his Spiritual Root had dropped in grade; otherwise, his talent would definitely not be much worse than Chu Yao's.

"Chu Feng, I have expelled this poisonous needle for you. You can cultivate once you return, but you must be careful to keep it hidden. I will give you some Breath Concealing Pills; take one every seven days, and no one will discover it." Long Chen handed Chu Feng a jade bottle.

During his leisure time, Long Chen would usually refine some other Medicinal Pills, which had a great auxiliary effect on him now.

However, Long Chen did not tell Chu Feng that his Spiritual Root had been severely eroded, and he was afraid that the Blood Condensation Realm would be his limit. This cruel fact was something Long Chen truly could not bring himself to say.

While feeling pity, he also felt even more disgust toward the royal family, that group of tigers and wolves wearing human skin.

"I can cultivate?" Chu Feng simply could not believe it. He had always thought he was a born waste, and he could not help but be overjoyed.

Long Chen could understand Chu Feng's mood; as someone who also carried the title of a waste, he had a deep understanding of it.

"Yes, but you must be careful to cover your tracks," Long Chen advised. Although he knew that the two siblings were definitely careful enough, the saying remained: it is better to be safe than sorry.

After seeing off the excited Chu Feng, Long Chen fell into deep thought. The plight of Chu Yao and Chu Feng made him think of his own situation.

However, he was even more miserable; his Spiritual Root, Spiritual Bone, and Spiritual Blood had all been taken away. Although the methods were different, was the purpose not the same?

His father was a top expert of the Fengming Empire. Was it because of his father that he was crippled, to eliminate any future worries?

Last time when he was chatting with Chu Yao, she mentioned a name to Long Chen—Marquis Ying.

The three great experts of the Fengming Empire were Marquis Ying, Marquis Wu, and Long Chen's father, Marquis Zhenyuan, collectively known as the three pillars of Fengming.

Marquis Zhenyuan guarded the barbarian frontier, Marquis Wu garrisoned the southern border, and only Marquis Ying remained in the Imperial Capital.

According to Chu Yao, the cultivation of all the princes and princesses was taught solely by Marquis Wu. At that time, Long Chen felt that this Marquis Ying might have a major problem.

Because regarding Chu Yao's situation, even he, an outsider, had discovered that there was a huge problem with her during their first encounter. As a top expert of Fengming, how could he not see it?

Since he knew, yet said nothing, was it possible that he was involved in this matter, or perhaps he was the one who did it?

If he was the one who did it, was it also him who did the things to him? What was his purpose in doing this? Was it really just to cripple them? Or did they have a bigger purpose?

So many question marks swirled in Long Chen's mind, making his head ache with pain. These matters were like a tangled mess, layered and impossible to sort out.

"Forget it. No matter how cunning a fox is, it will eventually reveal its tail. What I need to do is become a qualified hunter when the fox reveals its tail and fangs; otherwise, the outcome will still be miserable."

After thinking this through, Long Chen stopped dwelling on these problems and returned directly to his room. He didn't even dare to go to his mother's place and immediately went into seclusion again.

However, just as he started circulating his Qi vortex, Long Chen jumped up from the ground, almost crashing through the roof.

"This is too exaggerated." Long Chen looked into his Dantian. The ten neatly arranged Qi vortexes had stopped growing, but each Qi vortex had reached a terrifying diameter of three feet, which truly gave Long Chen a shock.

Compared to the original Qi vortexes, the current ones were simply too scary. As he slowly circulated the Qi vortexes, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi poured into the Fengfu Star like a tide, with a speed a hundred times faster than before.

Long Chen was both shocked and delighted. However, just after cultivating for a few breaths, Long Chen noticed something was wrong.

The ten Qi vortexes were like ten giant water pumps, absorbing the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. However, the nearby Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi could not satisfy the absorption of the ten Qi vortexes and began to become thin.

Later on, when the ten Qi vortexes were opened simultaneously, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi absorbed was the same amount as opening one Qi vortex, because there was only so much Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi nearby.

"This won't do, I must change locations."

That night, Long Chen concealed his aura, quietly leaped over the city wall, and left the city without a sound. He unfolded his Wind Chasing Steps and, like a wisp of green smoke, headed straight for Luoxia Mountain.

Luoxia Mountain in the night was peaceful. Although the scenery remained the same, while one could not say that things were different and people had changed, it still made Long Chen feel some emotion.

The first time he came, it was with Meng Qi. Thinking of Meng Qi's peerless beauty and those gentle, water-like eyes, his heart trembled with agitation.

The second time he came, he was brought by Chu Yao using a net. Originally it was meant to be revenge, but it ended up turning into a romantic scene.

Now Meng Qi was far away, her fairy-like shadow lost in the distance. He did not know how she was doing now, or if she had already forgotten him.

And there was also that Brother Qi Shi who almost put him to death. Thinking of that idiot, Long Chen felt a surge of annoyance, as if that high and mighty gaze appeared before his eyes again.

Meng Qi was far away, Chu Yao was under house arrest, and now he was left alone. This was the cruelty of reality; living without strength is not called living, but can only barely be called surviving.

To live with dignity, one needs to have matching strength. This is reality. Looking at the surrounding scenery, Long Chen took a deep breath.

He sat cross-legged on a large rock and slowly circulated his Qi vortexes. After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi was still unable to keep up with the supply.

However, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi here was more than twice as dense as at home, so it could be considered not a wasted trip.

Two days later, when a hint of white appeared in the east, a loud explosion sounded from within Long Chen's body. He slowly opened his eyes, and a strange expression appeared on his Face.

He had actually condensed another Qi vortex. Now the number of Qi vortexes had reached eleven, which made Long Chen sigh.

Nine Star Hegemon Body Art, just how long do you want me to stay in the Qi Gathering realm?

Long Chen looked at the Qi vortexes in his body that started growing again, feeling both happy and worried. It was still that saying: painful yet happy.

After returning home, Long Chen pondered for a moment, then ran to the Alchemist Association and purchased some medicinal herbs.

Looking at the medicinal herbs placed in the room, a look of anticipation appeared on Long Chen's Face: it was time to try the new pill fire.