In the royal palace of the nation, Ji Xiya and Jing Ye were sparring. Jing Ye stood with one hand behind his back, and the other hand lightly surrounded by spiritual essence, which was weak—only at the level of the Third Heaven.
Ji Xiya wore simple black attire, his long hair tied up at the back. Spiritual energy continuously flowed from his hands, and the two exchanged blows back and forth, having already fought over a hundred moves in a short time.
Jing Ye's strength was at the Sixth Heaven, but with the aid of the Tai Lai Spirit Water, the quality of his spiritual essence had improved, and now it was nearly on par with the Seventh Heaven. However, he still could not break through the Earth Barrier and thus could not truly reach the Seventh Heaven realm.
For the past few days, he had been sparring with Ji Xiya. At first, Ji Xiya had very little battle experience and was often easily defeated by Jing Ye, who used only his own level of strength.
However, Jing Ye was astonished by Ji Xiya's rapid progress. In just over ten days, Ji Xiya's improvement could be described as terrifying. Not only had he broken through to the Third Heaven in terms of spiritual essence, but his combat skills and strategic thinking had also become much sharper.
This was simply unbelievable.
Especially when Jing Ye learned that Ji Xiya had only been cultivating for just over a month. His inner thoughts shifted from mixed emotions to disbelief.
"How is it possible?" he wondered. "A month, and he's already at the Third Heaven? Does that mean in just a few months, he could catch up to me and even surpass me?"
It wasn't so much that being surpassed by a monarch was a big deal, but the idea of being surpassed by a monarch in just a few months left Jing Ye feeling somewhat despondent.
"Is the gap between people really this vast?" Jing Ye couldn't help but ask himself.
Suddenly, Ji Xiya struck out with a palm, and a hundredfold wave of energy hit Jing Ye's chest. Jing Ye was startled, and the spiritual essence from the Snow Mountain surged rapidly, flowing to protect his chest and organs. Despite this, Ji Xiya's strike pushed him back several steps.
"You were distracted," Ji Xiya said, standing in place and stretching his muscles.
Jing Ye stood with a bow, but Ji Xiya gestured for him to rise and smiled. "You've been away from home for so many days; you must be missing Jing Yu, right?"
Jing Ye was taken aback. The monarch remembered his sister's name?
Ji Xiya continued, "Tomorrow, I'll give you a day off. Go to the treasury and pick up a few dresses for a young lady, take them back as a gift from me for your service as a personal attendant."
A rare smile appeared on Jing Ye's usually serious face. He bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Ji Xiya nodded, thinking to himself, I'll make up for that little girl. The useless Crown Prince scared her last time.
He then said to Jing Ye, "Since you're not in the military, you don't have to strictly follow the rules. You'll only return home once every three months. The palace is very close to South Qing Street. You can go and return on the same day, it'll take no more than two hours. There's no problem."
Just as they were about to resume their sparring, a guard's voice was heard outside the door: "The Envoy from the Pigeon Dog Kingdom requests an audience."
Ji Xiya quickly changed his clothes and instructed Jing Ye to make arrangements.
Jing Ye stepped out and returned shortly. Lu Yu appeared hurriedly.
Seeing Ji Xiya sitting on the throne, Lu Yu immediately paid his respects and then spoke quickly, "Your Majesty, the Pigeon Dog Kingdom has sent envoys to Taicheng, and they are currently waiting at the palace gates."
Ji Xiya furrowed his brow. "Pigeon Dog envoys? What do they want?"
Lu Yu looked puzzled. "I can't guess the intentions of the Pigeon Dogs. Why don't they discuss a ceasefire with the Crocodile Horns and come to Taicang at this time? Could they have some new plot?"
"Regardless of their intentions, we'll meet with them first," Ji Xiya replied.
Ji Xiya went to the Tai He Hall and summoned the officials of Tai Cang. Soon, the Pigeon Dog envoys arrived.
The envoys brought a group of people, most of whom stayed outside Taicheng, while a few entered the city, with only three summoned by Ji Xiya.
Inside Tai He Hall, the officials and military leaders of Tai Cang stood on both sides, waiting for the Pigeon Dog envoys.
Not long after, three envoys entered the hall, and whispers broke out among the officials.
"What does the Pigeon Dog Kingdom want this time by sending envoys to Tai Cang?"
"The last time they sent envoys was after the Starfall Disaster. They came to demand peace talks, and they were very arrogant."
"This time, it's likely not peaceful. Look at their attitudes, they have no respect at all."
The officials whispered, their eyes filled with disdain. They remembered how the Cang Wei Army had been completely destroyed during the Starfall, and how Ji Shang had been forced to repeatedly ask the Pigeon Dogs for peace. But the Pigeon Dogs had refused, and even killed many of Tai Cang's envoys, leaving many families shattered.
As the officials speculated about the Pigeon Dogs' intentions, the three envoys were quietly observing. When they saw Ji Xiya sitting on the throne, they all showed a trace of contempt.
"The envoys of the Pigeon Dog Kingdom request an audience with the Lord of Tai Cang," one of the envoys called out loudly, standing perfectly straight with no sign of courtesy.
The Tai Cang Chief Minister, Chang Feng, frowned and shouted, "How dare you! To meet with the Lord of Tai Cang and not bow?"
Before the envoy could speak, a woman in the Pigeon Dog attire behind the envoys laughed loudly. "Bow? What qualifications does Tai Cang have to make us bow to you?"
Chang Feng was furious. "How dare the Pigeon Dog envoys show such disrespect to our country's ruler? What is the point of your visit?"
The woman, dressed in feminine Pigeon Dog attire, spoke arrogantly, "In the eyes of my Pigeon Dog Kingdom, Tai Cang is but a dying animal. Our embassy here is a blessing for you, giving you a brief chance to catch your breath!"
Chang Feng was about to scold them again, but Ji Xiya waved his hand to stop him. He lazily leaned back in his throne and looked down at the Pigeon Dog envoys with disinterest. He then asked lazily, "Who spoke just now?"
The woman raised her head proudly and said haughtily, "I am the Seventh Princess of the Pigeon Dog Kingdom. I have come here to see what kind of place Tai Cang is, now that we are unprepared, after you slaughtered six thousand of our soldiers."
"The Seventh Princess of the Pigeon Dog Kingdom?" Ji Xiya sat up straight and seemed interested. He then asked, "Is that so?"
The princess saw Ji Xiya's reaction and stepped forward arrogantly, past the envoys. She looked down at him and said, "Yes, now that you see me, don't you think it's time for you to bow?"
Ji Xiya merely nodded, resting his chin on his left hand. He casually pointed at the princess with his right hand and said softly, "Kill her."
In Tai He Hall, a red sword aura suddenly slashed across the space, cutting through two meters in an instant. The intense heat passed by in a flash.
The other two Pigeon Dog envoys were stunned, staring at the spot where the Princess had just been shouting. Now, there was no sound from her.
"Princess!" one of the envoys called out, but there was no reply.
The envoy stepped forward and gently pushed the princess. Suddenly, her head fell off, and blood sprayed out, staining the envoy red.
The princess, who had been shouting moments ago, was now dead.
"You… You dared to kill the Seventh Princess, the most beloved daughter of the Pigeon Dog King… In the future, the Pigeon Dog army will come to Tai Cang and—" the envoy began, but Ji Xiya interrupted.
"Kill him," Ji Xiya sighed.
The sword aura cut through the air once more, and the voice of the envoy was abruptly silenced.
Ji Xiya looked at the last remaining envoy, smiling slightly, showing a row of white teeth. "Now that there's only one of you left, can we get to the real business?"