527: Chapter 527 Crisis Approaching

"I thought some princes or princesses would come to offer their congratulations this time."

After all, the worse the Third Prince's Wonderful Elixir Pavilion fared, the less weight he would carry in the Emperor of Da Qian's heart. This was a perfect opportunity to kick a man while he was down!

Unfortunately, not a single prince or princess showed up.

Was it out of concern for the Third Prince's retaliation? Or something else?

He couldn't quite figure it out.

Jiang Ning let out a yawn.

With the Spirit Pill Hall relocating, Jiang Ning and the others' residence naturally followed into Kunyu Academy.

Drawing from his experience reading novels, Jiang Ning had designed a student system for the Elixir Patrol, which included different Ranks of "dormitories" used for rewards or rentals.

The dormitories were divided into four Ranks: Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow.

Yellow Rank dormitories were single rooms meant only for sleeping and resting, while Profound Rank dormitories were shared courtyards for four people, equipped with facilities for various activities.

An Earth Rank dormitory was a small private courtyard.

The Heaven Rank dormitories were the most luxurious, consisting of a single-entry courtyard that was much more spacious than the Earth Rank ones. Not only that, they featured independent Pill Refining Rooms and a greater supply from the Spiritual Vein.

Of course, Jiang Ning didn't live in a Heaven Rank courtyard; his was an Elder-level residence.

The courtyard featured landscaping and even a field for planting Spirit Medicine. As for the spiritual spring and Pill Refining Room, those were the most basic configurations.

After returning to the courtyard.

Jiang Ning lay directly on a lounge chair in the yard. Their living situation had certainly been upgraded. Feeling the evening breeze and watching the moon in this courtyard was extremely pleasant.

Shen Jinhuan brought over a chair and sat beside Jiang Ning.

"Revered Master, if the Third Prince investigates and finds out that the idea for the academy came from you, will he fly into a rage?"

"He will."

Jiang Ning said nonchalantly, "The Third Prince and I have accumulated too many old and new grudges, but when you're already buried in debt, another one doesn't hurt. The Third Prince is a man who seeks revenge for the smallest grievance.

If we had just let him develop freely, his retaliation would have come even sooner.

Instead, making him frantic and driving him to rage gives us more of an opportunity. Decisions made in anger often leave openings to exploit."

Shen Jinhuan nodded, taking Jiang Ning's hand and beginning to massage it.

She trusted Jiang Ning. If Jiang Ning said it was fine, then it was definitely fine.

Jiang Ning looked at the moonlight, a trace of worry flickering in his eyes.

As a Cultivator at the Late Stage of the Soul Transformation Realm, how could he not be worried when facing the Third Prince? That was a prince! If he truly sent the experts under his command—not even needing the Mahayana Realm, just an Integration Realm Cultivator would be enough to crush him.

However, he didn't want Shen Jinhuan to worry about him.

That was why he said those things.

My Realm is still not high enough; I urgently need Heaven And Earth Treasures!

With Heaven And Earth Treasures and his cheat to fill the progress bar, what would he have to fear?

Jiang Ning and Shen Jinhuan stayed peacefully in the courtyard.

Xiao Bai, meanwhile, was having a blast riding on Xiao Hui.

Having moved to a large courtyard, they no longer had to stay cramped inside a room. The natural instincts of Spirit Beasts erupted, and Xiao Bai and Xiao Hui ran non-stop around the yard.

What Xiao Bai was most dissatisfied with was that Xiao Hui still couldn't shake the bad habits of a Spirit Beast.

Specifically, the habits of a male Spirit Beast.

In a courtyard like this, especially with those upright pillars, Xiao Hui always wanted to lift a hind leg to mark his territory.

Every time, Xiao Bai would directly smack Xiao Hui back.

...

On the other side.

The Third Prince listened to the reports from the Patriarch of the Liu Family and the Patriarch of the Sun Family, his expression grim.

The white Persian cat in his arms hissed and bristled its fur out of instinct when the Third Prince's grip became painfully tight.

Spiritual Qi erupted from the Third Prince's hand.

The Persian cat instantly vanished from his arms, leaving not even a speck of ash behind.

The Patriarch of the Liu Family and the Patriarch of the Sun Family broke into a cold sweat at the sight.

They didn't dare make a sound.

The two exchanged a look, left with nothing but bitter smiles.

Following a prince did indeed provide access to vast resources, but princes held high status and power; they weren't people they could afford to offend. Having now displeased the Third Prince, they felt their fate might end up just like the cat in his arms.

Regret began to well up in the hearts of the Patriarchs of the Liu and Sun Families.

They had boarded a "pirate ship"!

There were indeed jewels on the ship, but their lives were constantly in peril.

The Patriarch of the Liu Family mustered his courage and said with a forced smile, "Your Highness, although Spirit Pill Hall has established Kunyu Academy, how could they be willing to use the resources they've worked so hard to gather for an academy?

There must be a larger conspiracy at play.

Furthermore, with the Great Masters from the palace overseeing things, our Wonderful Elixir Pavilion can still be maintained.

Do not worry too much. We can take it slow; Kunyu Academy won't be able to outlast us."

The Patriarch of the Sun Family nodded. "The Legacy left by Spirit Elixir Master is certainly good, but that's like gambling. Whether one can actually comprehend it is another matter entirely. We can further reduce the commissions at Wonderful Elixir Pavilion.

Medicinal Pills are never hard to sell. With our lower prices, we can still attract many Cultivators!"

The Third Prince clenched his fists.

He inwardly cursed these two idiots.

Setting aside the fact that the resources he could divert were actually quite limited, what about Spirit Elixir Master's Legacy? Gambling? So what? Who in the Cultivation World isn't a gambler? Who isn't gambling against the Heavenly Dao?

Never mind a Legacy of this caliber; even a Nascent Soul level Legacy would have countless Cultivators fighting for it with their lives.

This move with the Wonderful Elixir Pavilion was likely a failure.

The Third Prince was losing his confidence now; he even began to doubt whether his decisions had been right or wrong.

Was it really a mistake to invest so much effort into Alchemists?

But this was clearly such a good opportunity!

If he didn't try, how could he ever be satisfied?

The Third Prince looked at the Patriarchs of the Liu and Sun Families, his brow furrowed deeply.

He wanted to kill someone.

Perhaps his plan wasn't flawed; the flaw was using these two incompetent fools.

Then again, if these two were of any use, how would their families have declined to such a state?

Unconsciously, the Third Prince's fists tightened within his sleeves.

The Patriarchs of the Liu and Sun Families felt an oppressive aura and were drenched in sweat.

Finally, the old man stepped forward and waved his hand for the two to leave, allowing them to feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

The old man said to the Third Prince, "Your Highness, you felt murderous intent just now? The Patriarchs of the Liu and Sun Families likely sensed it. If so, they will probably hold something back from now on.

It shouldn't have been like this... Sigh..."

The Third Prince sneered, "Just two mediocre men. If I kill them, I kill them. Now, I've wasted a favor from my Imperial Mother and spent so many resources only to get this result. How can I not be angry?"

The old man consoled him, "They are Pill Refining Noble Families with some foundation after all; they have their uses. However, intimidating them a bit is fine; they will work more diligently in the future."

"Mm." The Third Prince's mood calmed significantly as he forced himself to be cool-headed. "Regarding Kunyu Academy, has any information been found?"

"There is one person primarily involved, someone Your Highness is very familiar with."

The old man smiled.

"Who?"

"Jiang Ning. This idea for the academy was his suggestion for the Elixir Patrol."