A Grotto-Heaven and Blessed Land also has its four seasons.
It was autumn. Shafts of light filtered through the branches of the towering Primal Blood Tree, breaking into dappled fragments that fell upon the two Go players seated at its roots. The crisp click of black and white stones striking the board echoed in the stillness, irregular yet steady, like the passing of time itself.
And time—time wields the greatest power. It alters landscapes, reshapes destinies, and even etches itself into a person's very face.
Two hundred years brought immense change and turmoil to the border region. More and more cultivators came to the Azure Cloud Region seeking refuge.
Two centuries can hold many stories—the rebellion that followed the Li family's disappearance, the Wu Clan regrouping their forces, Eternal Sun Prefecture seizing the opportunity to oppress them...
He, too, had been forced to forge alliances. For a century, life was nothing but urgency and peril—until, little by little, the storm began to settle.
This led Li Yunbing to grow fond of making friends. He had also come to value rare moments of respite: a quiet game of Go, a cup of fine tea, a tune drifting from strings. Not for refinement's sake, but because within such interludes he found sanctuary—fragments of stillness amidst the chaos.
"The bond between Region Prince Jiang and the Li family is even deeper than this Prince imagined."
As Prince Feiheng placed his stone, his gaze drifted toward Region Prince Jiang Chenghuan. The man's well-defined features, lined with age, were framed by gray-streaked hair that stirred an old memory of the Father Emperor in his youth, when vigor had not yet abandoned him.
Jiang Chenghuan's reputation was renowned even within the imperial court.
During those years when the Li family were fugitives, everyone had assumed the three Azure Cloud regions would either be invaded once more by the Wu Clan or be annexed by the Eternal Sun Prefecture.
Yet, unexpectedly, Region Prince Jiang rose from the peril on his own strength, reunifying the entire Azure Cloud region and forging the prosperous, militarily powerful Azure Cloud of today.
Everyone said that even in the imperial court, Region Prince Jiang possessed the talent to serve as a grand chancellor.
His Father, the Emperor, had even issued an edict for him to serve at court—a high and important post that would have been a meteoric rise, a veritable path to the Divinity Transformation realm.
But who could have imagined that Region Prince Jiang would refuse? He presented a single map, and for that, the Human Emperor did not hold him accountable for defying the imperial edict.
The map showed a scarred, battle-worn tiger standing guard before a shadowed forest, from which strange, ghostly lights flickered. Before the forest stood a cage, and beside it a beast tamer gripping a snare. The tiger's eyes were locked on the tamer—unyielding, fierce, and filled with killing intent.
At the time, all were bewildered. Why had the Human Emperor shown such magnanimity, forgiving open defiance? Only later did Prince Feiheng learn the answer from his Father Emperor himself.
The message of the map was this: as long as he, the tiger, stood guard at the border, the fierce beasts within the forest would not dare to emerge. But if he were truly forced into the cage that was the Imperial Capital, then, judging by the tiger's defiant gaze, it would become unruly, break free from its cage, and devour its master.
It was then that Feiheng understood: this Region Prince Jiang, who acted so obediently under the Li family in the Azure Cloud Region, was in reality a fearsome and ambitious figure, even with his cultivation merely at the Nascent Soul stage.
And yet, look now that the Li family has returned, Region Prince Jiang truly remains content in his position beneath them. He genuinely couldn't fathom how the Li family had managed to tame such a fierce tiger.
"Your Highness, forgive me, but this Prince finds your question difficult to answer."
Li Yunbing's hand, holding a black Go stone, paused mid-air.
He had come home seeking a moment of peace and quiet, but a single question from Feiheng made him frown, shattering the tranquil atmosphere.
He let out a long breath. "Your Highness, you have been with the Li family for three years now. Have you grown accustomed to it? The situation in the Imperial Dynasty is far from ordinary. His Majesty intends to name you the heir, yet amidst this great tide, you must remain hidden."
"What choice do I have?"
Feiheng gave a bitter laugh, his mood for the game completely gone.
"For my Father Emperor to name an heir is to demand my very life. Year after year, the perils I face only grow. My Teacher supports me, yet I cannot trust him in the slightest. Fortunately, the Li family anticipated this long ago. Otherwise, I fear I would have already lost my life."
Li Yunbing nodded slightly.
The Human Emperor had lived for many years, had many relationships, and fathered countless children. His descendants were now spread across the world.
The Human Emperor favored Feiheng, but in truth, long before him, there had been many other princes of astonishing talent and brilliance.
It was just... the Human Emperor lived for far too long. Naturally, many conflicts arose between him—that old undying one—and these princes.
Take, for instance, the Human Emperor's fourth son from Duskwild Prefecture: Prince Jue!
"I've heard that my Fourth Imperial Brother has already begun..." Feiheng trailed off, his brow furrowed.
Li Yunbing raised an eyebrow. "It was to be expected. For several hundred years, the Fourth Prince has been amassing troops, yet the Imperial Dynasty has taken no measures to suppress him. After centuries of probing, Prince Jue now sees his opportunity.
Everyone under heaven knows he is waiting for His Majesty's fated day to arrive, so that he can raise his army in rebellion. And now, Your Highness has gone missing within his Duskwild Prefecture, precisely as the news that you were about to be named heir apparent began to spread..."
"He will be forced to rebel," Li Yunbing stated. "His Majesty will be furious, and the entire Imperial Dynasty will turn against him with suspicion. The people of the Dynasty will all think it was he, Prince Jue, who trapped you. He will be powerless to stop the endless tide of public opinion!"
"You..." Feiheng's jaw clenched. This was the first time in his three years with them that he had learned of the Li family's true plan!
The Li family's goal was to plunge the world into turmoil! Making him disappear in Duskwild Prefecture was the beginning of their plan. Even the news that he was to be named heir apparent—that too was spread by the Li family.
They wanted the Fourth Prince of Duskwild Prefecture to rebel!
Li Yunbing continued, "Your Highness, you should understand your predicament. To put it bluntly, no matter which prince ascends the throne, the State Preceptor remains the State Preceptor.
He will never truly exert his full strength to help you.
The Human Emperor may intend to name you as heir, but how many share the imperial bloodline? He has grown old, and with age comes fickleness. In the blink of an eye, he could shift his favor to another."
"The Twelfth Prince may seem to be within arm's reach of the Human Emperor's throne, but in reality, it is as if separated by mountains and seas.
You may seem to be surrounded by people willing to help you ascend the throne, but in truth, they are all just grass on a wall, swaying with the wind.
Who can you possibly defeat? You can defeat no one."
These words from Li Yunbing made the Twelfth Prince's face darken. They were harsh, but every sentence was true.
"Only in great chaos can one find true opportunity," Li Yunbing explained. "Given His Majesty's current state, the slide into widespread turmoil is now irreversible.
But this Lord, after many years in the Azure Cloud Region, has come to understand a principle: there is a vast difference between being passively swept up in the world's chaos and seizing the initiative for oneself.
Let others struggle amongst themselves. Only when one side weakens and the other grows can a true opportunity be found."
Li Yunbing's patient explanation made Prince Feiheng's expression soften considerably.
After Li Yunbing offered a parting salute and departed, Feiheng gazed at the spot where he had vanished and then at the entire Li family compound. With his head bowed, his expression was troubled.
He also knew one more thing.
It wasn't just the State Preceptor, Prince Jue, and the entire Azure Dynasty who had been manipulated by the Li family. He... he too had fallen deep into the Li family's cage. There was nothing he could do. He had become the Li family's pawn!
He saw this aristocratic family, risen from the countryside of Eternal Sun Prefecture, attempting to use its humble origins to become the hidden hand manipulating the entire Imperial Dynasty!
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