“You… are planning on taking it by force?”

　　Seeing Ling Xian’s Qi being unleashed, the Seventh Princess raised an eyebrow and her entire demeanor fell cold.

　　“If you willingly hand me the Wood of the Warming Soul, then of course I won’t attack.” Ling Xian faintly smiled. Killing a prince inside the Emperor’s Millennium Capital was a big deal.

　　Whether he succeeds or fails, he will infuriate the Emperor. Thus, he planned on acquiring the object first to awaken the Immortal of Alchemy, who was in a deep state of sleep.

　　Then, he will began his assassination. Whether he succeeds or not, he will immediately escape this place. If he stalls for even a second, the Emperor will order to shut down the city and even if he was the strongest cultivator in the city, he would not be able to get away.

　　“I understand your worry, but if you do not successfully kill the Third Prince, then my treasure would go to waste?” The Seventh princess snickered as her Qi too, dissipated throughout to defend against Ling Xian’s.

　　“I don’t care about that. If you want me to do something, you have to pay up first.”

　　Ling Xian glared at her and said, “Think about it, what you asked of me is risky business. If you do not hand me over the Wood of the Warming Soul first, then I will just leave the Zhou Dynasty.”

　　“You!”

　　The Seventh Princess raised an eyebrow. Growing up, this was the first time someone threatened her. Though she was angry, after seeing Ling Xian’s stern expression, her heart fell. She knew then that he wasn’t kidding.

　　“It is true that I don’t like the Third Prince and he really wants me to dead. Right now, I want to kill him too.”

　　Ling Xian’s expression was calm as he continued, “But, I can always wait for a better opportunity to kill him rather than risking my life now and kill him in this city. Doing this is the same as slapping the Emperor in the face. Unless there is enough of an incentive for me, or in other words, the Wood of the Warming Soul, I will not risk my life trying.”

　　“Ling Xian!”

　　The Seventh Princess clenched her teeth but felt helpless. To get rid of the obstacle and sit in her royal seat, she had to kill the Third Prince. Her best bet right now is Ling Xian.

　　He has the capabilities and the drive. More importantly, he hated the Third Prince, which means nobody would suspect her for his death.

　　The Seventh Princess was silent for a while as she analyzed the pros and cons of each alternative. In the end, she decided to comply.

　　“Aye, you win. Take it.”

　　The Seventh Princess sighed as she took off the Wood of the Warming Soul from her neck and handed it to Ling Xian.

　　“Smart choice.”

　　Ling Xian revealed a victorious smile and accepted the Wood of the Warming Soul. He then entered the Painting of the Nine Immortals.

　　“I hope you won’t disappoint me.”

　　The Seventh Princess stared at Ling Xian and couldn’t help but to worry. She wasn’t worried about his life or death, but she was worried that her invaluable treasure was going to go to waste.

　　After all, killing a royal while still in the capital is a task with great difficulty. When the target is the favorite of the Emperor and the very capable Third Prince, this adds more difficulty. The entire task is like trying to climb up the sky.

　　“About that…”

　　Ling Xian mockingly grinned, “I cannot promise anything. But do not worry, I will do my best. I do not want someone who wants me dead to walk around the world.”

　　The way he said the last statement was extremely cold.

　　It was obvious how determined he was to kill the Third Prince!

　　“Very good.”

　　Sensing Ling Xian’s intent to kill, the Seventh Princess worried a little less. “If you need anything, speak, I will do my best to fulfill it.”

　　“No need.”

　　Ling Xian shook his head as his eyes turned even colder, “This time, either he dies, or I die.”

　　“I look forward to the moment you decapitate him.” The Seventh Princess had a faint smile on her face. She found it hard to conceal her excitement.

　　“You sure are ruthless. You want to kill your own brother.” Ling Xian glared at her. He was too lazy to ask for reasons. After all, this was a war he could not avoid.

　　If the Third Prince left him alone, he would’ve just left the Zhou Dynasty and forget about the past. But it was obvious that the Third Prince was unforgiving and sent assassinators to kill Ling Xian. How could Ling Xian not to enraged?

　　“Third Prince, you are forcing me to do this…”

　　Mumbling, Ling Xian looked back at the Seventh Princess, “In 10 days, I will attack the Third Prince’s palace and everyone in it. You do not need to worry about anything other than taking care of Lin Qing Yi for me. I do not want her hurt.”

　　“Rest assured, Qing Yi is safe with me. I will not let anyone hurt her.” The Seventh Princess was calm but her tone was powerful.

　　“Then I won’t worried.”

　　Ling Xian nodded but suddenly remembered something, “Also, don’t tell her I am going to kill the Third Prince. Tell her something came up and I left.”

　　“You plan on leaving without saying goodbye?” The Seventh Princess raised an eyebrow.

　　“There are no alternatives. I do not want her to worry.” Ling Xian softly sighed. Though he was confident that he could defeat the Third Prince, this was the Emperor’s Millennium Capital after all. He may not be able to walk away with ease.

　　Thus, he didn’t want Lin Qing Yi to know.

　　“Then… I understand.”

　　The Seventh Princess raised an eyebrow and thought about it, “Don’t worry. I will take care of her.”

　　“Thank you. I will now call my subordinates and leave.” Ling Xian grinned. In the next second, he disappeared from the battle ring.

　　When he reappeared, he was already at the clear blue pond. Spinning around, he formed a hand seal and a path appeared within the pond.

　　“I will call up Luo Xin Jie. That woman has a mysterious identity but her capability is no joke. There is no way she is merely of the intermediate stage of the completion level.” Ling Xian strolled through the pond and returned to the palace. He planned on asking Luo Xin Jie if she can aid him.

　　After all, this woman had terrifying capabilities and despite how powerful he was, he wasn’t that confident about his chances of winning. If he can acquire her help at this critical time, then he will increase his probabilities of surviving this.

　　However, after he returned to the palace, there was nobody there anymore.

　　“Eh? Where is Luo Xin Jie?”

　　Ling Xian frowned and searched the entire palace with his Qi but found no abnormality. This made him certain that Luo Xin Jie was truly gone.

　　However, he wasn’t worried. That woman was very eerily powerful, nobody could kidnap her. Only possibility remained, she willingly left.

　　“What happened? Why would she leave without saying bye?”

　　Ling Xian frowned. Remembering that ever since they came to the palace, Luo Xin Jie was in a strange state of silence. He simply couldn’t guess why she was acting so strange.

　　After a while, he decided to give this up. Pity though, if she was still here and was willing to help, then his chances of success would increase drastically.

　　“Whatever. Her leaving is good. Less for me to deal with. I have to be careful against her anyways.” Ling Xian stopped frowning and turned out to leave.

　　Since Luo Xin Jie was gone, then he will need to leave quickly. Just in case the second wave of challengers showed up here. Though he wasn’t afraid of any challenger, it would troublesome to battle now.

　　After all, he had an important matter to deal with.

　　The Wood of the Warming Soul had been acquired. This meant the Immortal of Alchemy… was about to be awakened!

　　“Master, please wait a little while. I will soon awaken you.”

　　Ling Xian called out to his Winged Blitz and he dashed towards the rural area of the city. After about half an hour, he landed inside a forest.

　　Then, he randomly found a leafy ancient tree and set a few protective arrays around it. Then, he entered the Painting of the Nine Immortals.

　　After he stepped inside this place, Ling Xian saw the Untainted and Feng Qing Ming stand side by side on top of the Mountain of the Healing Soul.

　　It seemed like that were already drawing energy from the Wood of the Warming Soul in an attempt to awaken the Immortal of Alchemy.

　　“So they started…” Ling Xian showed a bright smile. In an instant, he arrived on top of the mountain peak.

　　“You came.”

　　Feng Qing Ming stroke his beard, “Good job. You acquired the Wood of the Warming Soul so fast.”

　　“You flatter me. It took me eight years to get my hands on the treasures. I am ashamed.” Ling Xian croaked.

　　“You shouldn’t be.”

　　The way Feng Qing Ming stared at Ling Xian was full of admiration as he exclaimed, “If this old man wakes up today and sees how much you have accomplished, he would be over the moon.”

　　“If my Master is happy, then I am happy.” Ling Xian grinned. He too, was looking forward to how the Immortal of Alchemy will react to how much he’s grown.

　　“That old man sure is lucky to have acquired such a good apprentice.” Feng Qing Ming exclaimed again and laughed, “Just wait patiently. The Untainted has already started the process. With the power of the Wood of the Warming Soul, Liao Cang Qiong will wake up really soon.”

　　“Thank you, Immortals.” Ling Xian paid his respect and lowered his head. His handsome face showed much excitement.

　　Liao Cang Qiong’s appearance changed his life. For him to have the achievements he had today was all thanks to Liao Cang Qiong. Without him, he never would’ve been able to cultivate.

　　Thus, he very much appreciated the Immortal of Alchemy and saw him as his father. This was the reason why he declined the Untainted and Feng Qing Ming as his Masters. Because he didn’t want Liao Cang Qiong to be sad.

　　It had been eight years since the Immortal of Alchemy drifted into deep sleep. Now that he was finally going to awaken, why wouldn’t Ling Xian be excited?

　　“Okay, let us wait patiently.” The Untainted suddenly spoke.

　　“Thank you.” Ling Xian organized his emotions and silently waited for the Immortal of Alchemy to wake up.

　　Just like that, time passed little by little.

　　After about half an hour, the entire Mountain of the Healing Soul began to quiver. Endless amount of heavenly light rose.

　　In the next second, a mysterious energy began to expand. It felt like spring wind gently blowing by, but there was also a hint of winter wind coldness.

　　Just then, an indescribable amount of mighty energy rolled out and engulfed the entire Painting of the Nine Immortals.

　　Immediately, a storm raged with full force and the entire Painting of the Nine Immortals began to quake!

　　Within the unrivalled divine energy, a sage-like silhouette appeared.

　　It was the Immortal of Alchemy, the one known to be able to accrete the Sun, Moon, and Stars.

　　Liao Cang Qiong!