Chapter 34: Zhou Ling Wang

  Tang Yan sat down opposite Tang Qiang: "Uncle Tang Qiang, have you figured out the identity of that group of mysterious white-robed people?"

  Tang Qiong's face slowly sank: "So far, nothing has been found. This incident has a wide range of influence and has alarmed Zhou Ling Wang. He personally came to the Mystic Forest Organization to investigate, and the major families and academies also sent strong people in after receiving the news."

  "How many teams were attacked?"

  "There are five teams in total, including the three major academies of Beihuang Domain - Giant Elephant, Dongchen and Huiyao, as well as two teams formed by aristocratic families. The escort team from Dongchen Academy has a Martial King-level elder, so the enemy only made a probing attack and didn't appear again. The Giant Elephant Academy was relatively lucky, with over a dozen students escaping. However, the Huiyao Academy was completely annihilated, with all instructors dead and all students missing. The other two aristocratic family teams were also unlucky, with their guards killed in battle and the young masters and misses all gone missing."

  Tang Yan's eyebrows furrowed slightly: "Kill the instructor, snatch the students, are these mysterious people coming for us? What do they want to do? Don't they fear provoking public outrage throughout the entire Northern Wilderness?"

  "It's still unclear for the time being, but since they dared to make a move on the Five Martial Academies of Beihuang Domain, they must have some backing. Some people suspect that it is a certain secret organization that kidnapped these young men who are about to receive their baptism, and there must be some unspeakable secrets behind it. Zhou Ling Wang has ordered all universities and aristocratic families to strengthen their defenses in the near future and conduct a joint investigation, emphasizing not to disturb the imperial court for the time being, and he will handle the communication with the higher-ups."

  "... Zhou Ling Wang ..." Tang Yan made an effort to search for memories related to this aspect.

  Zhou Lingwang Zhou Tai is the younger brother of the Emperor, with a high position and great power, and has ambitions. He controls one of the three top military units in the empire, the Hawk Troop. More than a decade ago, at the most critical moment of the struggle for the throne, he voluntarily gave up his opportunity to come to the North Wasteland to take root, and fully supported the current Emperor's struggle for the throne.

  On the surface, Zhou Ling Wang is carefree and at ease, but in reality, he has secretly controlled the entire Northern Wilderness Domain, turning it into a veritable "country within a country". Because Zhou Ling Wang has a close relationship with the Imperial Emperor and has always been one of the emperor's most loyal supporters, the imperial court also turns a blind eye to Zhou Ling Wang's actions in the Northern Wilderness Domain.

  "Tang Qiang, old brother, I've finally arrived at Shenquan Town after great difficulty. Are you still planning on hiding and not seeing me?" A bright and cheerful laughter suddenly echoed through the inn.

  "Zhou Ling Wang?" Tang Qiang's face changed slightly, and he quickly walked to the front of the door and looked down.

  A middle-aged man in a golden-embroidered robe walked into the great hall, fanning himself with a feather fan, followed by many instructors and students from the Giant Elephant Academy.

  A middle-aged man dressed in luxurious attire yet without losing his grandeur, with a stern and dignified appearance that was not lacking in warmth, had a bright smile at the corner of his mouth, giving people a refined and elegant feeling like a spring breeze, he was indeed the actual master of Beihuang Domain - Zhou Lingwang Zhou Tai.

  "See His Majesty King Zhou!" The shopkeeper in the inn hastily rushed out and bowed deeply to King Zhou.

  Zhou Lingwang sat down on the intricately carved wooden chair in the center, gesturing for the people from Giant Elephant Academy who followed him to take a seat. His gaze swept across the hall before settling on Du Yang in the corner, and he asked with a smile: "You're Du Yang, aren't you?"

  "Have seen Master Wang." Du Yang stood up and bowed under the reminder of his mentors.

  King Zhou Ling looked up and down at Du Yang for a while, the smile on his face deepened: "Are you interested in coming to my palace to help?"

  "Huh?"

  "Are you interested in coming to my palace to help?" King Zhou Ling smiled at him and repeated.

  The mentors of the college looked at each other in dismay, their faces slightly changed. Is this going to be a robbery?! The students couldn't help but show envy, as Zhou Lingwang openly recruited him. Such treatment is not common, and for a child from a poor family, it's undoubtedly a great opportunity.

  Du Yang looked at Zhou Ling Wang seriously, making sure he wasn't joking, and hesitated for a moment: "Thank you, Your Majesty, but..."

  "What's wrong?" Zhou Ling Wang's face was clear and bright, with a warm smile, extremely kind. But the status placed there, always accompanied by an invisible pressure on people, making Du Yang feel suffocated.

  "I deliberately joined the army and didn't want to enjoy comfort too early."

  "Oh? Hehe, not bad. A good man should go to the battlefield to hone his skills and defend the imperial territory. It seems that my judgment is correct. Since you have the intention of joining the army, I recommend the Hawk Eagle Group Army. Recently, the northern border has been a bit turbulent, it's a great opportunity to show off your talents. What do you think? Want to go?" King Zhou Ling threw out an olive branch one after another.

  Hawk Legion, one of the top three legions in the Empire, a dream team for many warriors to join, gathering numerous elite special forces, with great reputation throughout the southern empires.

  However...the mastermind behind the Thunder Eagle Legion was actually Zhou Ling Wang, and this was something that everyone present was well aware of.

  Zhou Lingwang suggested that Du Yang enter the Falconry, isn't this still a disguised recruitment?

  "Isn't it going to work out, does the king have a petrification-type martial skill?" Wei Hongchen was somewhat curious. Du Yang's talent was indeed not bad, but it shouldn't be enough for the king to personally come out and forcibly recruit him, unless... he had enough confidence to cultivate Du Yang.

  Zhou Lingwang smiled and shook his fan, saying meaningfully: "This depends on Du Yang's younger brother's intention."

  The mentors of Giant Elephant Academy were slightly shocked, and as expected, Zhou Lingwang should have a spiritual-level petrification martial skill in his hands. Du Yang, although possessing the petrification spiritual vein, did not have a suitable petrification-type martial skill, making it equally difficult for him to achieve anything, and the higher the level of the petrification martial skill, the more terrifying Du Yang's future achievements would be.

  Wei Hongchen shook his head and said with some emotion: "Du Yang, we won't stop you."

  Du Yang took a deep breath and bowed deeply to Zhou Ling Wang: "Du Yang wishes to follow Your Highness!"

  "Great!! Haha, great!" Zhou Ling Wang burst out laughing loudly, unable to conceal his excitement: "This king happens to have a Stone-class martial skill, although it's not too high, but barely enough to reach the Earth-class level. When we return to the palace, this king will clear out a place for you to study thoroughly."

  "Earth-level martial skill!!" Many people exclaimed in shock. To know, even a Martial King-level instructor like Wei Hongchen didn't have the qualifications to possess an earth-level martial skill. From mortal to spiritual was a transition, but from spiritual to earth was a transcendent transformation. Such martial skills were absolute treasures even in the royal palace and imperial court!

  "Du Yang, congratulations!" Li Shouze and other students congratulated one after another, their faces filled with excitement.

  "Thank you, Your Majesty!" Du Yang bowed deeply to Zhou Ling Wang, this bow was heartfelt! In a world where martial arts were revered, nothing was more valuable than martial skills, this was simply... fate!

  Zhou Ling Wang was equally delighted: "The Stone Immortal Technique is something I accidentally obtained, and I've been searching for its master all along. And you... are undoubtedly the best candidate, making my trip to this Divine Spring Town worthwhile! As the saying goes, a warrior chooses their technique, and the technique also chooses the warrior. The Stone Immortal Meridian paired with the Stone Immortal Technique is an absolute natural match."

  Du Yang's heart was burning with passion, but he still maintained that lazy and calm demeanor, calmly accepting the envy of the crowd.

  "Tang Jia Tang Qiong, has seen the king." A crisp and powerful voice broke the subtle atmosphere.

  Zhou Lingwang looked at Tang Qiang coming down the stairs, then glanced at Tang Yan following him, and laughed loudly: "Brother Tang Qiang, it's been many years since we last met, are you well?! Tonight, let's drink until we can't return!"

  Tang Qiong's cold, hard face rarely showed a few smiles: "The king's invitation, Tang Qiong will definitely accompany, but the baptism has ended, Shenshui Town will be closed soon, who will serve this wine and dishes?"

  "The arrangements for the royal capital have been made, and this inn will operate normally tonight!" King Zhou Ling personally got up to invite Tang Qiang, and this courtesy surprised Li Shouze and others secretly. Did Tang Qiang have a special relationship with King Zhou Ling?

  "Respect is not as good as obedience, tonight we won't leave until we're drunk!" Tang Qiang came to Zhou Ling Wang's side, the two men's large hands clasped together in mid-air, a deep brotherly affection that surprised even Tang Yan.

  However, Tang Yan's attention soon shifted to the front. Among the many guards, there were two beautiful girls. One was around twenty years old, with a bit of English spirit and a bit of wildness, making people involuntarily feel a desire to conquer her. The other was thirteen or fourteen years old, lovely and sweet, with big eyes that were exceptionally lively, a standard Lolita. Most importantly, the two girls looked almost identical, as if they were carved out of the same mold, one big and one small, with two different personalities, extremely eye-catching.

  She noticed Tang Yan's dazed gaze, and the little girl's willow eyebrows slightly frowned, giving him a fierce glance, humming a sound and turning her head to ignore him. Tang Yan chuckled and his eyes returned to the 20-year-old beauty, repeatedly scanning her body up and down, with a fiery appearance as if he wanted to tear off her clothes.

  The beauty couldn't stand this kind of 'swallowing' gaze, her right hand grasped the sword, warningly making a gesture as if to pull it out.

  The unusualness here did not immediately attract the attention of others, Wei Hongchen took two steps forward and slightly saluted King Wang: "King Wang, I won't disturb your reunion, we'll meet again in Giant Elephant City next time."

  Tang Qiong raised an eyebrow: "Are you leaving?"

  Wei Hongchen joked: "The whole Shenshui Town only has this one inn operating, and with so many of us, we can't all be accommodated."

  "The guardian elder here is a bit stubborn and only allows one inn to remain. But don't worry, I happen to be heading to the capital and can take a detour through Giant Elephant City, we can go together." Zhou Lingwang enthusiastically pulled Tang Qiang to sit down at the dinner table and said: "The two little ones from your Tang family will stay behind, as well as that Elinda instructor. You've had dealings with those bandits before, I have some things I'd like to understand better, so you can all stay together too."

  Aileen's face changed slightly, but she didn't show any sign of refusal, and stood quietly in the corner.

  "Goodbye!" Wei Hongchen bid farewell to Zhou Lingwang and Tang Qiong one after another, and quickly left with the instructor students of Giant Elephant Academy.

  "Huh? What is this little guy looking at?" Zhou Ling Wang suddenly looked towards Tang Yan, who was openly and unscrupulously 'appreciating' the two women.

  Tang Ying then secretly twisted his waist and said discontentedly: "What are you staring at!"

  Du Yang helplessly rubbed his forehead: "Big brother, let's be a bit more reserved."

  "Your Highness, are these two beauties your daughters?" Tang Yan seemed to be unaware of his own rudeness, and his gaze became even more unbridled.

  "Right, who have you taken a liking to?" King Zhou Ling asked with a smile.

  "You mean I can choose?" Tang Yan looked like he was very excited, and such a question and expression not only made Tang Qiang's eyes spout fire, but also made Zhou Ling Wang somewhat lose his mind.

  "I choose her." Tang Yan suddenly appeared in front of the two women and directly reached out to grab the elder daughter.

  "How dare you!"

  "Shameless little brat!"

  The guards' faces changed slightly, and they all took a step forward, glaring at Tang Yan. The eldest daughter's eyes were slightly cold, and she subconsciously wanted to counterattack, but as if there was something holding her back, she chose to dodge in the blink of an eye.

  Tang Yan's eyes flashed with a hint of sharpness, but he didn't continue to be presumptuous. However, the gaze he directed at his opponent became increasingly profound and meaningful.

  "Tang Yan! Don't be rude!" Tang Qiang rebuked in a low voice, this little rascal is getting more and more out of line, his strength has increased, but so has his lust. In Giant Elephant City, he only dared to flirt with civilian women and courtesan girls, now he actually dares to openly flirt with the Imperial Princess!

  "Big brother, you're being too blatant! In front of so many people, can't you be more discreet?" Du Yang quickly pulled Tang Yan back, today was an eye-opener, this guy's audacity wasn't ordinary!

  "Brother, go back to your room!" Tang Ying's small hand twisted again at Tang Yan's waist and pulled him back into the room.

  "Hearing is not as good as seeing, Tang's second young master is indeed extraordinary." Zhou Ling Wang slightly teased for a couple of sentences.

  Tang Qiong shook her head helplessly: "My young master is being unreasonable, making a fool of himself in front of the king."

  Zhou Lingwang seriously sized up Tang Qiang: "Should be close to the third-tier Martial King, right? Looks like Old Man Tang values you highly, I think it'll be tough for me to poach you."

  "It's almost time to touch the third stage, and with two more years of time, I should be able to break through." Tang Qiang did not conceal his own cultivation, but he also did not respond excessively to the implied meaning in Zhou Lingwang's tone.

  Zhou Ling Wang smiled silently, not forcing Tang Qiang. He waved his big hand and shouted loudly: "Bring out your best wine, tonight I want to get drunk!"