109: Chapter 109 Dual Talents, the Prince Parades Through the Streets

On the two sheets of paper, the once-vivid portraits of the Yao Beasts quickly dimmed, eventually turning into two clumps of ash and dissipating.

The Painted Skin Butterfly was dead.

The other Wild Boar Demon had also breathed its last.

Several lines of ancient seal script emerged on the Heavenly Book.

[Prisoner Painted Skin Butterfly has died]

[Participation: Extremely High (Captured personally)]

[Settlement Rewards: Five years of cultivation, Talent: Painted Skin]

...

[Prisoner Bone-Crushing Boar has died]

[Participation: Medium]

[Settlement Reward: Talent: Copper Skin]

Chen Ran opened his eyes.

Five years of cultivation.

Plus two major talents.

This wave was simply a massive profit.

Without hesitation, he directly extracted the talent [Copper Skin].

A strange warm current quickly traveled throughout his entire body.

Chen Ran looked down.

He saw a faint layer of dark-gold luster surfacing on his skin.

This luster flowed like ripples, covering every pore of his body.

After a few short breaths, the luster completely vanished beneath his skin, and his complexion returned to normal.

Chen Ran stood up and stretched his limbs.

A series of crisp popping sounds, like beans being roasted, echoed from all over his body.

He could clearly feel that his skin had become incredibly tough, as if he had donned a layer of invisible armor.

His muscle density had also increased accordingly, filled with explosive power.

Chen Ran drew the saber at his waist.

The blade was sharp, glinting with a cold light.

Without using any internal Qi, he directly slashed the blade forcefully against his forearm.

"Clang—"

A piercing sound of metal clashing against iron rang out.

Sparks flew in all directions.

On Chen Ran's forearm, not even a white mark was left behind.

Instead, the blade's edge rolled, then shattered with a crack.

"Such tough skin."

Chen Ran sheathed the broken saber with satisfaction.

This [Copper Skin] talent was much like what he had imagined.

It was a talent focused on physical constitution.

After active activation, his body's defensive power nearly doubled.

"If I continue to train it, wouldn't I be able to clash with Sharp Weapons using just my Physical Body?"

Next, Chen Ran focused his attention on the second talent.

[Painted Skin].

He carefully examined and sensed the description of this talent on the Heavenly Book.

A moment later, Chen Ran's breathing couldn't help but grow heavy.

This talent was too perverted.

Originally, he thought that [Painted Skin] was just like the Painted Skin Butterfly, capable of perfectly disguising one's appearance as someone else.

But the description went far beyond that.

[Painted Skin: Strip a single target to perfectly disguise their appearance, physique, and voice. Simultaneously, obtain a portion of the target's core memories from before their death.]

Obtaining memories.

This wasn't some mere disguise technique.

This was clearly an immortal-like method comparable to the Demonic Path's 'Soul Search'.

In this world, if one wanted to obtain someone's secrets, other than severe torture, there were only some extremely malicious Demonic Path secret methods.

Furthermore, those secret methods often came with great risks; a slight mistake could lead to a backlash, turning one into an idiot.

But [Painted Skin] was different.

It directly stripped the opponent's memories from the level of rules.

Chen Ran calmed his emotions.

Although this talent was Heaven-Defying, it also had a limitation.

It had to be someone who had recently died and whose facial skin was intact.

However, for him, this wasn't a problem at all.

The one thing the Heavenly Jail did not lack was dead people.

Finally,

Chen Ran extracted those five years of standard cultivation.

The majestic internal Qi was like a flood bursting through a dam, surging wildly through the eight extraordinary meridians in his body.

Chen Ran guided this internal Qi, constantly impacting the apertures throughout his body.

In the fifth-grade Meridian Opening Realm, internal Qi circulates endlessly.

Whereas the fourth-grade Aperture Condensation Realm required opening the apertures of the body, allowing internal Qi to penetrate through the body, achieving feats like Plucking Leaves to Fly as Weapons or the Hundred-Step Divine Fist.

As the cultivation was injected, Chen Ran felt the internal Qi in his body had reached its absolute limit.

Only a tiny sliver of resistance remained before that layer of Breakthrough window paper.

"Just one last step."

Chen Ran exhaled a mouthful of turbid Qi.

The Evil Qi in the Heavenly Jail was too heavy, and there were too many eyes; it wasn't suitable for a Realm Breakthrough.

He needed to find a quiet place to break through the fourth-grade barrier in one go.

...

...

The Capital, Long Street.

Chen Ran, dressed in black, walked leisurely toward the city outskirts.

Just as he reached the vicinity of the city gate, he sensed something was wrong.

It was too noisy.

The originally wide street was now packed with people.

The commoners were all looking excited, frantically surging toward the main street.

The city gate guards had even given up on inspections, allowing the crowd to congest the area.

Chen Ran frowned.

He pulled aside a man who was desperately squeezing forward.

"Brother, what's happening up ahead? Why is it so lively?"

The man's face was flushed with excitement as he pointed toward the main street.

"You don't know yet? It's the First Prince touring the streets."

"The First Prince?" Chen Ran was somewhat surprised.

"Yeah," the man began to explain incessantly.

"First Prince Wei Yanxi is a rare Virtuous Prince in our Great Wei; he treats people with kindness and empathizes with the commoners."

"A while ago, the former Vice Minister of Revenue, Lord Zhou, was framed by treacherous officials and thrown into the great prison, facing execution after autumn."

"It was His Highness the First Prince who personally traveled everywhere to gather evidence, managing to clear Lord Zhou's name."

"The Emperor has already issued an edict, allowing Lord Zhou to resume his post with his original rank."

The man grew more excited as he spoke.

"Lord Zhou is an honest official; the First Prince saving him is like saving us commoners. Today the First Prince is on a tour, and everyone came spontaneously to welcome his carriage."

After hearing this, Chen Ran nodded thoughtfully.

He let go of his hand, allowing the man to squeeze back into the crowd.

Just then, a rhythmic sound of footsteps came from the street ahead.

"Silence—"

Two rows of armored Imperial Guards armed with Sharp Weapons led the way, forcibly parting the dense crowd to clear a wide passage.

Following closely, a carriage that was luxurious yet solemn slowly approached.

The carriage was drawn by four pure white steeds, and the carriage body was carved with intricate royal patterns.

The curtain was lifted by a slender hand.

A richly dressed and extremely handsome young man appeared in everyone's sight.

His temperament was as gentle as jade, a warm smile hung on his lips, and he frequently waved to the commoners on both sides.

Bursts of cheers erupted from the crowd.

"Long live the First Prince!"

"Your Highness the Virtuous Prince!"

Chen Ran stood at the back of the crowd, quietly watching the scene.

...

Inside the carriage.

First Prince Wei Yanxi lowered the curtain, the gentle smile on his face gradually fading.

Sitting opposite him was a middle-aged official dressed in crimson robes.

"Your Highness's move to clear Lord Zhou's name this time was truly a stroke of genius." The official lowered his voice, his tone full of flattery.

"Listen to the cheers outside; now the hearts of the people in the capital are all turned toward you."

Wei Yanxi picked up the teacup on the table and took a light sip.

"Lord Zhou is a good official, and also a good chess piece."

His tone was flat.

"The Second Prince has been jumping around too much lately; I had to find something to make him uncomfortable. With Lord Zhou reinstated, the Second Prince won't be able to get his hands into the Ministry of Revenue."

"As for these commoners..."

Wei Yanxi listened to the cheers outside, a mocking look appearing at the corners of his mouth.

"They are just ignorant masses; give them a little sweetness, and they'll be full of gratitude."

"Your Highness is wise," the official quickly cupped his hands.

On the periphery of the crowd.

Chen Ran lowered the brim of his bamboo hat.

He didn't try to listen to the conversation in the carriage, nor could he hear it.

But he had activated [Heavenly Net].

Under the perception of his Mental Energy, that seemingly ordinary carriage emitted a heart-palpitating sense of pressure.

Even his Heavenly Net would automatically bypass it upon contact.

First Prince Wei Yanxi's own aura wasn't strong, at most that of a sixth-grade Martial Artist.

But around the carriage, several extremely terrifying auras were hidden.

The coachman and the personal guards on both sides of the carriage had Qi as vast as a Dragon; they were definitely experts of the fourth-grade Aperture Condensation Realm or higher.

What shocked Chen Ran even more was that in the shadows not far behind the carriage, an elusive aura was also concealed.

That aura was extremely well-hidden; if not for Chen Ran's Mental Energy far exceeding that of ordinary people, he wouldn't have noticed it at all.

Upper three grades.

It was definitely an expert of the Upper three grades.

Chen Ran withdrew his perception.

He took a deep look at the departing carriage.

This First Prince was definitely not as gentle as jade as he appeared on the surface.

The struggle for imperial power, the battle for the succession.

These grand figures sitting high in the imperial courts, for the sake of that throne, would likely stir up countless storms of blood and gore.

But what did the common people of the world or the hegemony of imperial power have to do with him?

Chen Ran turned around and, walking against the fanatical flow of people, silently stepped out of the city gate.

...