Free Web NovelChapter 128: Chapter 128: The Martial Kingdom’s Fawning
The Emperor of the Martial Kingdom didn’t answer right away. Instead, he grew pensive, as if lost in memory. After a long moment, he finally nodded and said suddenly, "You really do look like your mother!"
Shen Daoxing was stunned. A possibility suddenly occurred to him. He glanced cautiously at the Martial Kingdom’s emperor and asked tentatively, "Your Majesty, I couldn’t possibly be your illegitimate son, could I?"
Hearing this, the emperor threw his head back and laughed loudly. Then he shook his head and said slowly, "No. I was not worthy of your mother."
’Not worthy of my mother!’
Shen Daoxing was shocked. He never expected the Emperor of the Martial Kingdom to say such a thing. It only made him more and more curious about his mother’s identity.
"Then why are you protecting me so much, Your Majesty?"
Shen Daoxing was still confused.
"Because, long ago, your mother saved my life."
The Martial Kingdom’s emperor paused for a moment before adding, "Of course, that’s only part of the reason."
As he spoke, the emperor looked at Shen Daoxing seriously. "More importantly, the Great Wu Dragon Vein is a power left behind by the Dragon Ancestor. It contains his will. Since the Dragon Vein has chosen you, it must have seen something in you.
"I am not so arrogant as to believe my judgment surpasses that of the Ancestral Dragon."
’This Martial Kingdom emperor is quite clever!’ The Blood Dragon’s voice suddenly commented in Shen Daoxing’s mind.
"Your Majesty, my only desire is to focus on my martial cultivation. I have no interest whatsoever in the throne, so please rest assured!" Shen Daoxing bowed with his hands clasped, making his position clear.
"There’s no rush to discuss that!"
But the Martial Kingdom’s emperor suddenly laughed and clapped his hands.
One by one, graceful imperial concubines in magnificent palace gowns emerged. They surrounded Shen Daoxing, scrutinizing him and whispering quietly among themselves.
’Just like a mother-in-law sizing up her future son-in-law!’
"Your Majesty, what is the meaning of this?" Shen Daoxing asked, feeling a little unsettled by all the stares.
The Martial Kingdom’s emperor just smiled mysteriously without a word.
"Father Emperor! Father Emperor!"
Just then, the Ninth Princess’s voice suddenly rang out.
Shen Daoxing looked toward the sound and saw a petite figure running over.
"Father Emperor, don’t kill Shen! Don’t use him as a living sacrifice!"
As soon as she arrived, the Ninth Princess rushed forward, grabbed the emperor’s arm, and pleaded urgently.
"Kill him? Why would I kill him?"
The Martial Kingdom’s emperor turned his head and smiled benevolently.
"Then why did you lock Shen in the palace and not let him leave?" the Ninth Princess asked, confused.
The Martial Kingdom’s emperor chuckled softly. "Shen Daoxing is a once-in-a-millennium genius of our Martial Kingdom. How could I bear to kill him!"
As he spoke, the emperor waved his hand, and a beautiful figure walked out.
The newcomer was slender with a fair, delicate face. It was none other than the apple of the emperor’s eye, Princess Anyun.
"Not only will I not kill him, but I also intend to betroth Anyun to him."
With that, the emperor turned to Shen Daoxing. "Shen Daoxing, are you willing to marry Princess Anyun?"
Shen Daoxing was rather surprised. He hadn’t expected the Martial Kingdom’s emperor to do this.
He had just obtained the Dragon Vein for free, and now the emperor wanted to marry a princess to him.
’It feels like the entire Martial Kingdom is throwing itself at me.’
What Shen Daoxing didn’t know, however, was that...
...the Great Wu Dragon Vein was a power left by the Dragon Ancestor for his descendants. It was no ordinary thing and could be passed down through bloodlines.
Now that the Dragon Vein had chosen Shen Daoxing, as long as he united with a member of the Royal Family, their children would also be able to inherit the Dragon Vein’s power.
Furthermore, what resided within Shen Daoxing was the Dragon Vein Origin, a power far beyond that of the ordinary Royal Bloodline.
This way, they wouldn’t have to worry about the Dragon Vein’s recognition in the future, and they could also bind Shen Daoxing securely to their Martial Kingdom.
It was an undeniably clever move by the Martial Kingdom’s emperor.
The Ninth Princess, standing to the side, was also stunned. When the emperor said he wouldn’t kill Shen Daoxing, she had been overjoyed. But when he announced that Shen Daoxing was to marry Princess Anyun, her heart sank. She felt a wave of disappointment, and an inexplicable sadness welled up inside her.
The Ninth Princess looked at Shen Daoxing, then turned to look back at her Father Emperor. She wanted to say something, but then she remembered her own face.
The Ninth Princess froze. In the end, she silently touched the scar on her face and said nothing.
"Shen Daoxing, are you willing to marry Princess Anyun?"
the Martial Kingdom’s emperor asked again.
But before Shen Daoxing could say anything...
...Princess Anyun spoke up first. "Father, you want me to marry some country bumpkin from a remote little city? I won’t do it!"
Baiyun City was just a city on the Martial Kingdom’s border. In Princess Anyun’s eyes, that made Shen Daoxing nothing more than a wild brat from the countryside, someone she naturally looked down upon.
Besides, Shen Daoxing had just come out of seclusion in the Treasure Pavilion. He had been dragged here by Eunuch Li immediately, covered in the filth that came with a cultivation breakthrough and with no time to clean himself up. As a result, he looked quite sloppy.
"Father Emperor, I won’t do it! I refuse to marry this country bumpkin!"
Princess Anyun whined, pulling on the emperor’s arm.
Princess Anyun was the emperor’s most beloved princess, a treasure he cherished. The fact that the emperor was willing to marry her to Shen Daoxing was a clear sign of how highly he regarded him.
But precisely because she had been doted on and pampered since childhood, Princess Anyun had become spoiled, arrogant, and extremely willful in the palace.
"I refuse to marry him! My husband must be a one-in-a-million genius, dashing and suave like Xia Junze."
Princess Anyun cupped her face with her hands, a lovesick expression in her star-struck eyes.
But the thought of her Father Emperor wanting her to marry the filthy country bumpkin next to her made her seethe with anger.
Fuming, Princess Anyun stomped her foot on the ground. "I don’t care! I will absolutely not marry him! If someone has to marry him, you can do it yourself!"
With a final huff, Princess Anyun stormed off without a backward glance, not even giving the emperor a chance to explain.
What she didn’t know was that the genius she was always dreaming of, Xia Junze, was already dead at Shen Daoxing’s hands.
For a moment, the entire scene fell silent. After a while, the Martial Kingdom’s emperor gave an awkward cough or two. "I’ll go talk to her!"
He then headed off in the direction Princess Anyun had gone.
Seeing how much Princess Anyun despised Shen Daoxing, the Ninth Princess felt a strange sense of relief. But then she thought of her own face, and her expression turned desolate.
In the end, she left silently without saying a word.
However, all of this was observed by a curvaceous woman among the concubines.
The woman had a delicate face and a well-proportioned figure. Her every move exuded the charm of a mature woman.
This woman was the Eldest Princess of the Martial Kingdom, the emperor’s younger sister. After the Ninth Princess’s mother went mad, she was the one who had taken care of the Ninth Princess and raised her. To do so, the Eldest Princess had not even married to this day.
The Eldest Princess glanced at the departing Ninth Princess, then looked back at Shen Daoxing, a look of understanding dawning on her face.
