34: Chapter 34: Set off for the capital!

Yang Lin waved his hand, dispersing the Formation, and saw Jiang Xuan slowly walking towards them. "Haha, you rascal, you certainly made us wait. If you didn't come out soon, I would have gone in and dragged you out."

Jiang Xuan smiled, "I didn't delay too much time, did I?"

"No, we were just waiting for you. Looking at you, you must have gained a lot from your seclusion these past few days."

"Oh dear... gentlemen, can we talk as we walk? You may not be in a hurry, but I am!" The middle-aged man beside them couldn't help but remind them.

"Oh, oh, look at my memory. I'm getting old and senile. Jiang Xuan, this is Ouyang Cai, the City Lord of our Donglin Prefecture. He will also be joining us on this journey," Yang Lin said quickly, stroking his beard.

Jiang Xuan turned to look at Ouyang Cai, who had a full beard and an impatient expression. He felt a strange thought in his heart: "Ouyang Cai? This name is a perfect match for this rough-looking, obviously hot-headed man. Is this what they call contrasting beauty?"

Jiang Xuan suppressed his smile and bowed slightly. "Greetings, City Lord Ouyang."

The latter waved his hand. "Alright, alright, stop learning that stuffy manner from Old Yang. Cultivators don't bother with such things. Let's get on the ship first."

"Get on the ship? Are we going by water?" Jiang Xuan wondered.

At the entrance of the Martial House, Jiang Xuan stood rooted to the spot, looking at the flying ship above his head, which was as large as a football field. He finally understood what 'getting on the ship' meant.

"Kid, you've never seen one, have you? This is the Dynasty's unique Cloud-Soaring Ship. Each Prefecture only has one, and it can only be used when important events occur. It's much better than simply traveling by spiritual Qi," Ouyang Cai said boisterously, slapping Jiang Xuan's shoulder with his large hand.

Everyone boarded the flying ship. Jiang Xuan glanced around and found that besides himself, there was also a large group of students, from both the Inner Courtyard and Outer Courtyard.

Yang Lin walked over, his aged face full of smiles. "The capital has a rule that each Prefecture can bring a thousand students to watch the competition. These are the more outstanding students from both courtyards, all here to cheer you on and also to broaden their horizons."

Jiang Xuan understood. This rule was a good thing for each Prefecture. It allowed them to see the gap between each other, improve their competitiveness, and with pressure, they wouldn't become complacent.

At the bow of the ship, Ouyang Cai stood with his hands behind his back. Jiang Xuan and Yang Lin stood on his left and right, with a thousand students following closely behind, ready to depart.

A moment later, Ouyang Cai waved his large hand and shouted sternly, "Depart!"

As they traveled outside the city, Jiang Xuan looked at the huge city gate below. In his thoughts, he recalled the scene when he first arrived in Donglin City. At that time, the tall city walls had truly surprised him. He hadn't expected that he would be leaving again in just over a month.

Looking at the overlapping mountains and mist-shrouded Thundercloud Mountains below, Jiang Xuan suddenly felt a surge of heroic Qi. A true man should be like this.

In the Great Li Dynasty's capital, in the imperial garden, a beautiful but still somewhat childish girl sat by a stone table, propping her cheek with one hand, her eyes unblinking as if deep in thought.

Suddenly, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she murmured, "Will you come?"

"Who will come?" A man's voice suddenly came from behind her. The girl, like a startled rabbit, jumped up from her seat.

She looked back fearfully and saw the person approaching was wearing a red Dragon robe, a purple-gold crown on his head, with a handsome face, exuding an extraordinary nobility that made people dare not look directly at him. It was none other than Chu Junlin, the Crown Prince of the Great Li Dynasty.

The girl stamped her foot and said indignantly, "Imperial Brother, you scared me to death!" After speaking, she patted her chest, looking as if she was still shaken.

Chu Junlin shook his head and chuckled, looking at the girl with doting affection. "When did our Princess Mingyue become so timid?"

"I didn't..." The girl felt a little guilty, then snapped, "Oh, Imperial Brother, do you have something to do? If not, hurry up and leave, don't disturb my thoughts." After speaking, she was about to go forward and push Chu Junlin away.

"Alright, alright, I'll go. Sigh, I was going to tell you about Donglin Prefecture, but since you don't want to hear it, never mind." Chu Junlin feigned regret and prepared to leave.

Hearing the words "Donglin Prefecture," the girl immediately grabbed Chu Junlin, looking fawning. "Hehe, Imperial Brother, come and sit." Her large eyes blinked, and she said with pleasant surprise, "Imperial Brother, is there really news from Donglin Prefecture?"

Chu Junlin smiled and playfully flicked the girl's nose. "You, when will you grow up? Girls should know how to be a little more reserved."

Seeing the girl pouting, Chu Junlin no longer teased her.

"I've found out. The person who came is called Jiang Xuan, and his age is similar to what you said. As for the rest, the news seems to have been deliberately blocked, probably because they don't want to expose his strength too early. I don't know if he's the person you mentioned."

"His name is Jiang Xuan?" A hint of joy welled up in the girl's heart.

Looking at his sister's joyful expression, Chu Junlin thought to himself, "Jiang Xuan, huh? Interesting. I'd like to see what charm you possess to captivate Yue'er like this."

Two days later, the flying ship had already left the territory of Donglin Prefecture. According to Yang Lin, they would reach the capital in about one more day.

These two days, Yang Lin had told him all the major and minor relevant matters, the most important of which were some opponents he needed to pay attention to among the thirty-two Prefectures.

Jiang Xuan generally understood. The only four people worth his attention were the first two, who were from Tiandu Prefecture within the capital's territory: Crown Prince Chu Junlin and Li Wuyou, a Prodigy from Tiandu Prefecture's Inner Courtyard. The other two were Ye Zhiwei from Yunmu Prefecture and Ye Ying from Youying Prefecture.

All four of them were at Spirit Connection Perfection cultivation and their names had long resounded throughout the Great Li Dynasty. They were recognized as the strongest few, and each possessed a special Physique. Especially Crown Prince Chu Junlin, who possessed the legendary King Physique. He was the most promising candidate to pass the selection.

The King Physique was an even more powerful and rare existence than a Spiritual Physique. In the entire Great Li Dynasty, Chu Junlin was the only one who possessed a King Physique.

Jiang Xuan lay on the bed, his hands clasped behind his head, sorting through the information he had gathered in the past few days. "A King Physique, huh? I hope it can bring me more fun."

To this day, among his peers, no one had been able to give him any pressure. In the cultivation world, as long as one's age did not exceed fifty, they were considered part of the younger generation.

As he was pondering, a sudden clamor came from outside the room. Jiang Xuan walked out and saw another huge flying ship, identical in size to Donglin Prefecture's, flying in the air about a hundred meters from their own flying ship.

"Is this another Martial House team participating in the selection?" Jiang Xuan wondered.

"Hehe, I wonder who it is. It turns out to be people from Donglin Prefecture. Where's Ouyang Cai, that brute? Won't he come out and meet an old friend?"

A sinister voice suddenly came from the opposite side, sending a chill down one's spine.