Dao Heart Slave

The crown prince of the Da Yu Dynasty, Yu Lin, had a faint smile on his lips. Just a few days ago, one of the princes of the Da Zhou Dynasty had secretly approached the emperor of the Da Yu Dynasty to seek assistance.

The Da Yu Emperor had agreed, but the Da Zhou prince had paid a price on behalf of his dynasty.

One of the terms involved Princess Ji Lingxian—after the matter was resolved, she would be married off to one of the princes of the Da Yu Dynasty.

This Da Zhou prince wasn't overly concerned with Ji Lingxian's feelings because he wasn't from her lineage. Naturally, he didn't care what happened to her.

Marrying her into the Da Yu Dynasty seemed like a trivial matter, and Yu Lin was the most likely candidate for her husband. In his mind, Ji Lingxian was already his future wife.

"Lingxian, why don't you come with me to ask my father for help again? He might be willing to assist your dynasty," Yu Lin suggested with a smirk, glancing at Ji Lingxian, who was dressed in men's clothing.

"No need," Ji Lingxian replied coldly, glaring at Yu Lin. She had dealt with him before and knew of his ulterior motives.

She wasn't foolish. If the Da Yu Dynasty had truly wanted to help, they would have done so already. It wasn't a matter of merely asking for help. Even if they succeeded, it would come at a great cost—something to be negotiated by the elders, not by her.

"And who are these people with you?" Yu Lin's eyes narrowed as he focused on the man standing at the front. He felt a sudden irritation—he had never seen such a strikingly handsome man before.

Yu Lin prided himself on his looks, but standing before the man on the back of the flood dragon, he felt a rare sense of inadequacy.

"I didn't expect to run into three stunning beauties on this trip," Yu Lin said, his gaze shifting to the women standing beside Qin tian, his smile becoming more pronounced.

"Would you lovely ladies care to join me on this journey?"

Yu Lin, crown prince of the Da Yu Dynasty, was a peerless talent, but he had one particular vice: his love for beautiful women. Then again, could it really be called a flaw? Which man doesn't love beauty? It's just a matter of whether or not they have the means to obtain it.

"Be careful, Your Highness. That man is no ordinary figure," warned the elderly grand chancellor behind Yu Lin. He shuddered, unable to discern the cultivation of the handsome man in front of him.

However, the grand chancellor had a special gift—he was born with a spiritual eye that could sense fortune and misfortune. It was one of the reasons he had managed to rise to his position in the imperial court.

Just now, the handsome man had glanced at him, and his spiritual eye had flashed blood red—a terrible omen. This meant the man was at least as powerful as the grand chancellor, if not stronger.

Hearing his protector's warning, Yu Lin's first reaction was disbelief. How could someone who appeared younger than him possess such strength? However, Yu Lin trusted his protector's judgment, so he suppressed his doubts.

"Honored senior, I am Yu Lin, crown prince of the Da Yu Dynasty. May I ask who you are?" Yu Lin spoke with a hint of respect, realizing the man before him might be a powerful Grand void Realm cultivator. He wasn't foolish enough to offend such a person over trivial matters.

While he had spoken out of line earlier, Yu Lin didn't believe the man would start a conflict over a few women. After all, he was the crown prince of one of the top powers in the Qing yun Realm. Unlike the declining Da Zhou Dynasty, the Da Yu Dynasty still had a Human Emperor in residence. Whoever came, they would have to show him respect.

Qin tian smiled faintly. It seemed that having a fortune-bound female protagonist nearby could indeed attract minor villains.

Yu Lin, although a lesser antagonist, wasn't entirely foolish. He wasn't acting like one of those brainless villains who inevitably met their doom.

Villains like Yu Lin, Qin tian thought, were the type to deliver valuable opportunities to the protagonist on their journey to greatness.

And people like Yu Lin could still be useful.

Qin tian's eyes glowed faintly red as his Devil Seed technique activated. While he couldn't plant the Devil Seed in the protagonist, there was no reason he couldn't plant it in a lesser villain like Yu Lin.

Qin tian needed small-time antagonists like Yu Lin to clash with Lin Fan, the protagonist. When Lin Fan encountered a fortuitous opportunity, Qin tian would swoop in and seize it for himself, leaving nothing behind.

This was where his Dao Heart Planting the Devil technique came in handy.

Of course, this plan only worked because Lin Fan posed no real threat at the moment. If Lin Fan had even the slightest potential for danger, Qin tian would have crushed him without hesitation. But Lin Fan was still far too weak.

For now, Qin tian simply let Lin Fan roam free, waiting to harvest every bit of his fortune.

Qin tian wasn't foolish. Villains who died from arrogance underestimated their enemies. However, at this stage, Lin Fan posed no threat to him whatsoever.

Qin tian intended to drain every ounce of fortune and treasure from the protagonist.

"Let's go," Qin tian said calmly, glancing at Yu Lin, who was now fully under his control. No one would have suspected that in just one brief encounter, the crown prince of the Da Yu Dynasty had been reduced to a slave—an obedient pawn for Qin tian.

A pawn with some value.

...

"They've gone ahead, Your Highness," the grand chancellor of the Da Yu Palace said, completely unaware that the crown prince he served had, in essence, already ceased to exist, leaving behind only a puppet.

Yu Lin's eyes briefly flickered with a red glow before returning to normal.

As he watched Qin tian and his group disappear into the distance, Yu Lin's eyes filled with fervor and obsession.

"Master, how do you view the strength of the Qing yun Realm?" Chu Xinyue asked, her curiosity piqued. She wanted to know how their realm ranked among the countless worlds of the cosmos.

The sects and palaces of the Qingyun Realm were aware of the existence of the Upper Realm, as some of their members had ascended to what they called the Primordial Immortal Domain.

The Wan Dao Sacred Land, where Chu Xinyue hailed from, had a unique history. Their ancestor was once a Human emperor who had been dispatched by the Qin Clan to the lower realms to gather resources and talent.

Initially, the Wan Dao Sacred Land had maintained a connection with the Qin Clan. However, as time passed, the Qin Clan lost interest in the talents they sent to the Upper Realm, and the connection grew increasingly sporadic.

It had been a long time since anyone from the Wan Dao Sacred Land had been taken to the Upper Realm by the Qin Clan. Naturally, they were unsure of the Qing yun Realm's standing within the vast cosmos.

"It's decent," Qin tian replied with a distant gaze. After all, the realm could still produce a protagonist of destiny, and its highest cultivation level was the Human emperor Realm.

The Human emperor Realm, while not the pinnacle of power in the Primordial Immortal Domain, was still a respectable level of strength. Not overwhelming, but certainly not weak.