Nanhong. The Dragon Palace.

Figure after figure returned to the green-stone great hall. The Ke family's Crown Prince had shed his fine robes and put on heavy armor.

He stood at the foot of the green-stone steps, his face dark and hard to read.

Qi Zhaoyi hid his gloating and walked over to clap the Crown Prince on the shoulder. “Brother, my condolences. Your brother died for nothing, but it happened to show us the Nanhong Seven's true face. And the golden light—don't fret too much over it. A master who could lie low all these years and earn an immortal's seat through merit surely doesn't care about Hongze's petty affairs.”

“……” The Ke family's Crown Prince shot him a smile that never reached his eyes.

Easy for him to talk—this merit immortal hadn't turned up in Xihong, after all. With so great a figure appearing, how could anyone not worry?

Whose side was this immortal on?

If he had ties to the Nanhong Seven, then once he actually reached the Immortal Court and received his immortal's seat, a single word from him would be enough to make things very hard for the South Dragon Palace.

Leaving that aside, there was the banquet.

He'd finally had a brother make it into the Heaven Realm, and his own position as Crown Prince was secure. Unlike in Xihong, it would be no exaggeration to call that brother his right-hand man.

Now he was simply gone. How could that not hurt?

“It wasn't your brother who died.” The Ke family's Crown Prince looked away and gave a chilly smile.

“Listen to you… If a brother of mine really died, This Prince would be only too glad.” Qi Zhaoyi didn't take offense at all. The West Dragon Palace's grip on its domain was something these venom dragons couldn't dream of.

“Good. Then that's fine.”

In that instant, a deep voice sounded in the hall.

The next moment, with heavy footsteps, a towering figure several zhang tall slowly entered the green-stone great hall.

It wore a thin ceremonial robe, finely made but very old. As…