27. End of the competition

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

( James 5 : 16 )

*****

Princess Xueying,

Seventh in line of succession,

Late stage of the Foundation Establishment,

Born of Empress Lingxi,

Blood sibling of the first prince,

Yep, she was directly related to the Emperor and Empress. Yet, not one outside of her family even dares to speak her name. She was treated like the black sheep of the family due to her lacking any features of the Emperor and Empress.

She had silver-white hair, and azure pupils with black sclera.

But what's the problem here?

Let's go back in time a bit, about eighteen years.

Xueying was born on a normal day with a clear sky. The sun shone mildly with a northern breeze soothing the souls of the tired. The day was very normal, no tribulation nor storm nor rain. It was as normal as it could get.

That day was when Empress Lingxi gave birth to Xueying.

The midwife who delivered Empress Lingxi nearly fainted when she delivered the baby and looked into her eyes. The black sclera and azure pupil nearly froze her in place, but she too was a cultivator so she didn't drop the child.

The empress recovered and asked for the child, but the midwife was scared to give the child to her mother. But after being ordered, she did give in.

Empress Lingxi was shocked by her child's eyes, but she recovered quickly. She knew it was her child; the connection between mother and child was strong. She embraced her child, and the Emperor was informed.

He arrived to meet the child, and he saw that the child looked different. She had silver hair, and her eyes looked different from those of normal humans. Here's the fun fact: he didn't suspect her of anything and ordered the Imperial Doctor and Diviner.

The Imperial Doctor confirmed the child was the Emperor's and revealed that she was born with a yin heart and her Dragon heritage had awakened. The diviner divined that she would be a formidable figure who will lift the empire, and her fate intertwined with a divine beast.

The emperor was happy and threw a celebration.

Well, the others didn't like it. I mean, this child was the only one to receive any kind of celebration after the birth of the first prince, who was born after a decade of marriage. This annoyed the other wives, so they did what they did best: spread rumors.

The children excluded her due to her eyes scaring them and their mothers' warnings.

And as she grew, the Emperor's grace towards her decreased, and it gave opportunities for the others to work their way in. Then, due to her cultivation, she became one of the heirs competing for the throne, and she was the third strongest of the siblings.

In the Battle of the Heir, there was no favoritism; it was a free-for-all.

Why am I saying all this?

For word count, of course. Why would I waste my time writing stupid details?

○( ＾皿＾)っ Hehehe…

The cultivators stood excitedly, waiting to see what Xueying had hunted. They had high expectations for the princess.

Xueying just walked towards the exchange venue and dropped her hunt.

The venue was immediately piled with giant beasts. These giant beasts were different from what the others had brought. They had harder hides than normal beasts and gave off a more primal aura. The appraisers were shocked by the beasts that were brought and quickly moved to check.

"Is that a Voidfang shadow, and the other is a Soulstone guardian?" one of the appraisers asked the one next to him.

"How deep did she go to get these?"

"Don't chat; appraise the beasts!" the man floating above ordered.

But he too was shocked. These beasts only lived in the second circle of the Great Demon Forest. These beasts were more primal and savage than the ones on the outer circle. The primal land could not be traversed by just anyone; you would need to be at least at the Middle of Golden Core to travel that deep.

The man looked down and used his divine sight to see Xueying's core. But he immediately felt a prick of cold and saw those blue eyes looking straight at him. He knew he was overstepping his boundary and bowed his head.

Xueying returned her gaze back to the dinosaurs on steroids. Giant beasts that walked on two hind legs with two short hands and a long snout lined with razor-sharp teeth. On their backs ran elongated spines with a menacing glimmer. This was a primal beast, a Spinosaurus with Void affinity.

The Soulstone Guardian, a beast formed of rugged, withered stone taking the form of a Stegosaur. A four-legged beast with two rows of spikes running down its back. At its chest was the broken core that seemed to have been pierced with an arrow.

The other beasts were all variations of the dinosaurs found in Jurassic Park, added with Qi. These beasts were stronger, faster, and more savage.

The appraisers quickly calculated the points and added her name to the banner. Her name immediately jumped to the top, taking the second place, just a few points below Longwei. Xueying looked at her points and wasn't disheartened. She hadn't hunted any other beast except the strong ones.

"Looks like you made it before me," a voice spoke from behind her.

Xueying turned to look, but a hand reached out and ruffled her silver hair, messing up her perfectly combed hair. Xueying recognized who it was from the touch. She looked up and saw a young man looking at her with a sweet smile.

"Big Brother," Xueying said.

Prince Yuankai ruffled her head more, "Looks like you have grown stronger, but I told you not to go deep into the forest."

Yuan lifted his hand and gave her a bonk on the head. The expected chop caused Xueying to rub her head. "How many times do I need to advise you not to put yourself in danger?" Yuan chided.

"But, brother," Xueying lifted her head, looking sad with puppy eyes.

"It won't work on me, Xueying," Yuan said, but he secretly bit his tongue to not falter. "Where is your maid? I will have a talk with her."

A woman appeared next to Yuan and knelt, "Forgive me, your highness. I should have stopped the princess."

"I know," Yuan replied, "I want you to report personally later."

The woman lowered her head, "Yes, your highness."

Yuan then waved his hand, dismissing the maid. He then turned to the banner of valor and saw the top names. He then turned and ruffled Xueying's hair a bit more, making it messier, and gave a hearty laugh.

"My siblings really set the bar so high," he muttered, "But what kind of big brother would I be if I can't even match it?"

Yuan then turned to the back and gestured.

The crowd turned to where he was looking and saw ten imperial guards pulling a cage. The heavy wheels left deep marks as they rolled through. The cage was covered with a black cloth, but the deep breaths from the cage were enough to reveal that a beast was chained.

The cultivators waited expectantly.

The guards rolled the cage before the exchange venue and removed the cloth, causing the cultivators to gasp. A magnificent beast lay chained and unconscious. The beast looked like a deer with a horse-like mane running on its back, its tail like that of an ox. Two glowing antlers pulsed rhythmically with the beast's breath.

This was a Rank 3 divine beast, a Qilin.

To see one, one had to have incredible luck. But to catch one, you might need to exchange a lifetime's worth.

The cultivators were more than impressed, but the show wasn't over. Yuan waved his hand, dropping hundreds of corpses, each exuding a vicious aura, each a rare beast. Their bloodlust hadn't vanished even after their death.

A Frost Tyrant, an ice type T-Rex. A pack of Lightning Raptors, one Flamboyant Pterosaur, Goldenhorn Triceratops, Spiritclaw Allosaur. Each beast a Rank 2 and could only be found in the inner circle, never outside.

The environmental change from one ring to the other was huge. Due to the dense Qi of the forest, one circle might be a desert, and another might be an Ice age. Then there is the unpredictable weather that sometimes throws lightning at you, or Ice blades, or just wind that will tear you apart.

The cultivators didn't need any announcement; they all agreed that the First prince had claimed the Top spot of the competition. The appraisers updated the Banner, and Prince Yunakai's name jumped to the First place, with a total 31760 points.

First: Prince Yuankai

Second: Prince Longwei

Third: Princess Xueying

Fourth: Prince Zhihao

Fifth: Hu clan

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*

The man blew the horn again, announcing the end of the competition.

"With that, the competition ends," the man announced, "You can exchange the points for resources in the next ten days."

The sun dipped low, and the sky slowly turned red. The cultivators didn't wait anymore and dispersed to their tents. But the important players stayed.

"Xueying, go take rest," Yuan spoke, patting Xueying's head another time.

"Congrats, brother, on winning the competition," Xueying bowed and took her leave.

Yuan gave a nod and dismissed her. The woman, the maid, followed Xueying. Zhihao saw Xueying and approached Yuankai.

"Congrats, brother," Zhihao bowed.

"Xiao Zhi, You did well," Yuankai gave Zhihao a pat on the shoulder. "You know why I don't see Baiyun and Jialiang?" He asked.

"I do not know of their situation, Brother. I only saw them at the start of the competition," Zhihao answered.

"Hmm, maybe they are late?" Yuankai muttered to himself. "If they don't arrive by the day after tomorrow, send a message home."

"Yes, brother." Zhihao accepted.

"You are acting as a good brother, Yuankai," a voice made itself known. "I can't believe I only got the fifth place even after trying so hard."

The princes turned to the voice and saw a man with black and white hair hugging a sword with a calm smile. Zhihao gave a slight bow to his senior, while Yuankai walked to him and gave a hug. "Brother Qian, if you wanted, you could have taken the first spot," Yuan stated. "I heard you were teaching Xiao Cheng."

"I was," Qian admitted, "He was getting reckless."

"I heard," Yuankai nodded. "Where is he?"

"He was bored," Qian commented.

"Well, since the competition is over, why don't we have a feast?" Yuan stated. "It will be my treat. Xiao Zhi, arrange it."

"I will see to it," Zhihao bowed and took his leave.

...

"I won," Ling Hao elbowed Feng Rong.

"Half," Feng Rong replied.

"But I won; First Prince got the top place. So now pay up," Ling Hao stated.

Feng Rong lifted a brow with a smile, "What?"

Ling Hao turned to Feng Rong, "You lost; now pay the wage."

"We didn't wage anything," Feng Rong stated, "You didn't establish any price for winning the bet, and I have no inclination to give you anything."

"..." Ling Hao went silent.

He thought back to all the time he was talking about the bet, but every time he brought up the subject of wager, Feng Rong always changed the subject. Feng Rong made sure that he didn't establish a price for winning the bet.

"Fine, you win," Ling Hao accepted his defeat.

"Pay up," Feng Rong smiled.

"No," Ling Hao folded his hands and turned away.

"Ling Hao, Feng Rong, where are you going without greeting me?" a voice froze them in their tracks.

Feng Rong and Ling Hao turned immediately and bowed in the direction. "Your highness, you are a busy person. We didn't want to disturb you."

"I am not; why don't you join us?" Prince Yuankai replied.

"Yes, bring Xiao Cheng with you," Hu Qian stated, "He should be in the tent."

"Then we will take our leave, Prince Yuan, Brother Qian."