"Sixth Brother, how could you be so careless?"
Yang Cheng wore a big smile, looking every bit the gracious elder brother as he helped Yang Xiu back to his feet.
This scene made many people around them gasp in admiration.
"Even though the crown prince is still so young, he already shows the bearing of a wise and virtuous heir."
"Look at the sixth prince—he seems terrified, but the crown prince, a fellow infant, knows to care for his little brother."
The ministers all voiced their praise.
At the same time, no one blamed Yang Xiu.
After all, he was only a one-year-old baby.
Most infants couldn't even stand properly at that age, and would fall on their own without any bump or shock.
This was perfectly normal for someone like Yang Xiu.
Even so, his cheeks flushed crimson.
His mental age was already like a three- or four-year-old child, so he understood the feeling of shame.
Yang Cheng, on the other hand, was having the time of his life.
In his mind, the sweetest sound rang out.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, host, mission complete!]
That voice made Yang Cheng glance immediately at the subtitles on his system panel.
[The host forced Heavenly Emperor Yang Xiu to kneel publicly, causing the high ranks of the Eastern Wastes nations to see him as a mere child, leaving Yang Xiu thoroughly humiliated.]
[Yang Xiu had already become a hegemon, ruling over the Eastern Wastes. For the host to achieve this now is a true miracle.]
[Congratulations, host, mission successfully completed.]
[Sword Dao Initiation has been issued. Would you like to fuse it now?]
"No," Yang Cheng decided as usual.
Right now, everyone's eyes were on him—there was no way he could act rashly.
He almost laughed reading the system's text.
The leaders of the Eastern Wastes now saw Yang Xiu as a child? Of course they did—Yang Xiu was literally a baby.
"The royal bone aptitude ceremony is hereby concluded."
At that moment, the experienced Prince Duan decisively stepped forward and declared, "Crown Prince Yang Cheng's martial bone aptitude is the Divine Dragon Sword Body."
His announcement left others, even if they had doubts, with no choice but to swallow them.
Prince Duan knew well there was no way to keep the earlier phenomenon secret.
But by announcing it this way, he could at least minimize the impact.
He clenched the Martial Bone Record tightly in his hand.
A nine-clawed purple-gold dragon—this wasn't just the Divine Dragon Sword Body. It was the Ancestral Dragon Sword Body.
But if he didn't declare it, even if word spread, outsiders would only suspect and could never confirm.
'Even though Cheng'er is the crown prince of Great Zhou, the kingdoms surrounding us are like hungry wolves. If they learn he possesses the Ancestral Dragon Sword Body, the dangers he'll face will be ten times worse.'
With that thought, Prince Duan resolved to speak with the emperor about it in detail later.
Emperor Qian Yuan seemed to read his mind, picking up smoothly, "Today's test has shown that our Great Zhou's sixth prince, Yang Xiu, possesses the Heavenly Sword Sacred Body, and the crown prince, Yang Cheng, has the Divine Dragon Sword Body."
Noble Consort Zhuang didn't understand the deeper implications.
But even just hearing Yang Cheng had the Divine Dragon Sword Body was a massive blow to her.
Yang Xiu's little fists clenched tight.
Just moments ago, he'd felt his brilliance would outshine the crown prince.
Then fate had slammed him with a heavy blow.
The crown prince's martial aptitude was not inferior to his own at all.
And worse, he had just humiliated himself in front of everyone.
Inside his consciousness.
Lin Xinglan's brow furrowed slightly.
She couldn't see what was happening outside, but she could sense vague shifts in the flow of energy.
Right now, she had a strong feeling something wasn't right.
But since she couldn't directly observe what was happening, there was nothing concrete she could do.
Moreover, she still needed to strengthen Yang Xiu's martial heart.
There was no other choice.
She was currently lodged in Yang Xiu's sea of consciousness.
Though she could abandon him and find someone else, it would cost her greatly.
Unless absolutely necessary, she would never make that choice.
That made helping Yang Xiu grow stronger vital for her.
Yang Xiu was her medium.
The stronger he became, the more energy she could absorb from heaven and earth, letting her recover faster.
"You're shaken just by this?"
Lin Xinglan's voice was cool. "Do you understand? On the martial path, talent is important, but comprehension and opportunity matter even more. Your comprehension isn't bad. With my help, you'll only grow stronger, and my presence is your greatest opportunity. So there's no need for you to be jealous of your crown prince brother. As for this momentary humiliation, it's a trivial thing."
"I understand," Yang Xiu said with newfound resolve. "From now on, I won't be jealous of him or anyone else. This shame won't break my spirit. It'll only push me to work harder."
"A teachable child," Lin Xinglan said.
Inside the ancestral temple, Emperor Qian Yuan gathered with a few senior members of the royal clan.
"Your Majesty, it's the Ancestral Dragon Sword Body—truly the Ancestral Dragon Sword Body!"
Now that no outsiders were present, Prince Duan could no longer hold back his excitement.
"The Ancestral Dragon Sword Body is the evolved form of the Divine Dragon Sword Body. It's the blue surpassing the blue."
"The crown prince has always been extraordinary since birth. I'm not surprised he's achieved this now."
"Heaven blesses us; our ancestors protect us!"
All the royal elders were overjoyed, unable to hide their smiles.
Emperor Qian Yuan was also filled with unprecedented delight.
But as the ruler of a nation, he had to remain calm and dignified.
With a steady tone, he said, "This must be kept strictly secret. We need to do everything possible to minimize its impact. Quietly spread rumors that many prodigies are appearing across Great Zhou—say there are people with double pupils, ancient sacred bodies, anything you can think of."
The royal elders broke into knowing smiles.
They understood perfectly: the emperor was deliberately muddying the waters.
Once those rumors spread, even if someone claimed the crown prince had awakened the Ancestral Dragon Sword Body, few would believe it.
Meanwhile, Yang Cheng paid no attention to the chaos outside.
He had already been brought back to the bedchamber by Yun Liyue.
And it made him deeply realize how wonderful it was to be a one-year-old baby.
No matter how fierce the storm, it couldn't reach him.
After all, no one expected a baby to shoulder any burden.
And that was crucial for Yang Cheng.
It gave him the chance to quietly grow stronger without attracting attention.
"Yang Xiu is definitely the favored child of heaven, and with the help of the half-step Martial Ancestor Lin Xinglan, he's bound to soar in the future," Yang Cheng thought. "But now, I'm not the same as in my past life. At least at this starting point, I'm ahead of Yang Xiu."
"And those myriad geniuses of the world from my previous life… Back then, I was nothing but cannon fodder to them. But this time, I'll stand among them as an equal and fight them head-on."
These thoughts flashed quickly through Yang Cheng's mind.
Compared to such distant goals, what mattered more to him now was the culprit behind the Myriad Despair Divine Water.
In his past life, his bones had been truly ruined by the poison.
Because of that, the mastermind never needed to act again.
But now, since he hadn't been crippled, would they try to harm him again?
Unfortunately, with his tiny arms and legs, he couldn't do much.
Worse, maybe because of his infant body, he didn't feel any real sense of urgency in his heart.
"I can't just do nothing," he told himself, forcing his mind to dig through past memories.
In his previous life, even after hundreds of years, he had uncovered a few hints.
But by then, too much time had passed; every clue in the old palace had long been erased by time.
Now, things were different.
So soon after the incident, the culprit must have left traces behind they hadn't had time to cover up.
"Others might not know why someone used Myriad Despair Divine Water on me, but I do—it was to help Yang Xiu ascend the throne."
"After he took the throne, he imprisoned Father Emperor, deposed Mother Empress, and elevated Noble Consort Zhuang and Consort Xian to empress dowagers of the Eastern and Western palaces."
"Zhuang Wanrong was his mother, so making her an empress dowager was expected. But Consort Xian…"
Before Yang Xiu's rise, Consort Xian had been a trusted ally of Yun Liyue, locked in bitter opposition with Zhuang Wanrong.
Because of that, no one ever suspected Consort Xian of involvement with the Myriad Despair Divine Water.
And the reason Consort Xian earned Yun Liyue's trust was simple: her identity.
Her name was Yun Yirou, Yun Liyue's own younger sister—Yang Cheng's aunt.
Thinking about it carefully, with Yun Yirou's status, she was perfectly placed to poison him, doing it without anyone suspecting a thing.