13: The Heaven and Earth Chamber of Commerce, a path to wealth.

"He still dares to demand someone from me?"

Xia Xuan chuckled.

Black Owl was a Killing Altar operative planted by Prince Qi, and Prince Qi still wanted to rescue him.

"It seems my Second Imperial Brother is still in the dark."

If Prince Qi knew Black Owl was from the Killing Altar and had even attempted to assassinate him, he would never have so brazenly demanded his return.

"Tell him the person is already dead. This Prince has confirmed that Black Owl was the one who tried to assassinate this Prince that day. Tell Prince Qi to wait for this Prince's retaliation."

Xia Xuan made things clear, waiting to see Prince Qi's next move.

At the same time, he instructed the butler to spread the news that Hou Zun (Hou Zun) had led men to infiltrate the Prince's Mansion for an assassination attempt and was captured.

Prince Qi's Residence.

"Black Owl is dead?"

Prince Qi's expression grew increasingly grim as he listened to the report from the person in front of him.

"I originally thought the Black Water Gang's allegiance to me was due to the prevailing situation, but now that I think back, there were indeed many suspicious points."

Prince Qi was speechless. He had wanted to bide his time and grow stronger in secret, yet he had repeatedly taken the blame for others.

Now, he had even provoked a powerful enemy like Prince Chu. It would have been fine normally, but during this sensitive period when the Great General was about to return to the Imperial Court, he truly had grievances he couldn't voice.

Before long, new information was brought back.

"Fourth Brother's Master actually dared to infiltrate the Prince's Mansion to assassinate someone, and he failed? A good-for-nothing who only causes trouble!"

Prince Qi cursed, then suddenly felt something was amiss. "Although Fourth Brother has already parted ways with this Prince, wouldn't it be too unfair if Prince Chu also blamed this on me?"

"Elder Jia, have you investigated thoroughly? Is the news true?" Prince Qi called out to his trusted old attendant and asked.

Elder Jia nodded and said, "My people went to the Minister of Justice. Prince Chu's Mansion provided Hou Zun's (Hou Zun) confession as blood evidence. However, Prince Chu refused to hand the person over to the Minister of Justice, keeping him detained in the Prince's Mansion, saying he wanted to ask His Majesty to preside over justice."

"Hou Zun (Hou Zun), a Divine Martial Realm Triple-layer cultivator, still fell in Prince Chu's Mansion, unable to even escape."

Prince Qi grew serious. "Our previous judgment was correct. The Great General would not be at ease leaving only a True Martial Realm Wu Zhong (Wu Zhong) to protect Prince Chu. There must be military experts hidden in the Prince's Mansion."

Elder Jia sighed lightly, "Then what should we do now? Although Prince Chu does not yet possess the true strength to contend for the throne, he has already become a considerable threat."

To kill him, we only have this last chance. Once the Great General's arrangements are in place, the difficulty will increase a thousandfold."

"No, no, no..." Prince Qi shook his head. "We cannot clash with this reckless man. This reckless man is completely unreasonable. Dealing with him will only make the Crown Prince happy."

"Does Your Highness mean... to turn enemies into friends?"

"Exactly. Since he has threatened to retaliate against me, this Prince will personally go to apologize."

Prince Qi was capable of picking up and letting go.

"It's naturally good if we can resolve the conflict, but Prince Chu, that glutton, has a huge appetite," Elder Jia worried.

Prince Qi laughed, "I only fear he has no appetite; I don't fear his large appetite."

...Eastern Palace.

In the side residence, the Crown Prince was meeting an important guest.

"Imperial Brother, you must save me! I truly did not send anyone to assassinate Third Brother."

Savage Tiger, still bandaged and his injuries not yet healed, was sweating profusely with anxiety. "Third Brother severely injured me, then turned around and bit me. Imperial Brother, you must be careful of such a vicious wolf."

The Crown Prince slammed Hou Zun's (Hou Zun) confession onto the table, his Face ashen, and roared, "Then tell me what this is?!

Did your Master conspire with Prince Chu to frame you? Or are you a fool who dares to act but not admit it!?"

Previously, when Savage Tiger switched allegiance to the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince was quite pleased, as it weakened Prince Qi by a point and strengthened himself by a point.

Moreover, having an Imperial Prince as an example could slowly divide others in Prince Qi's faction.

Yet, only a few days later, Savage Tiger caused such a huge mess for him.

"Imperial Brother, believe me, I truly didn't..."

"Didn't? Besides you, who else could have invited your Master? You were just severely injured by Prince Chu, and then he infiltrated the Prince's Mansion to assassinate. Who would believe there's no connection?"

The Crown Prince said, "It's not that this Prince doesn't want to help you, but with the cause and effect, plus all the evidence, how can this Prince help you?"

Savage Tiger was stunned upon hearing this; it seemed to make some sense.

He even suspected that his Master, unable to bear seeing him humiliated by Prince Chu, decided to seek revenge, leading to this assassination.

But the confessed evidence, along with the blood handprint, was incredibly glaring.

"This must be a false accusation made by Third Brother!"

Savage Tiger couldn't accept it and continued to plead, "Imperial Brother, help me this time, and I swear I will be loyal to Imperial Brother from now on, and help you deal with Second Brother and Third Brother."

The Crown Prince remained silent... Prince Chu's Mansion.

Prince Qi, traveling by night, personally came to visit, but was met with a closed door.

Inside the Bronze Sparrow Terrace.

Xia Xuan was listening to music while studying the art of talismans.

With the Talisman Mountain in hand, talisman jade Materials were continuously supplied, allowing him to use them freely.

At this moment, the discarded talisman jade beside him had already piled up into a small mountain.

"Having only theory is not enough; only practice makes perfect."

Xia Xuan sighed, stopping the jade brush in his hand.

Buzz!

The rune took shape, and the white jade in his hand vibrated.

Heaven and Earth Origin Qi quickly gathered, forming a small vortex.

"Spirit Gathering Talisman, an ancient lost spirit talisman. It has nine basic runes, and when all nine are superimposed, it can increase the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi within the Spirit Gathering Talisman's range by more than nine times."

Xia Xuan looked at the finished product in his hand, quite satisfied. The effect of such an auxiliary cultivation spirit talisman was just as described in ancient texts, and even surpassed them.

Beside him lay the 'Three Thousand Explanations of Runes' collected from the Imperial Palace's library, of which over ninety percent of the rune inscription methods were outdated or incomplete.

In comparison, his basic rune culture was extraordinary and transcendent, with his technique far superior.

Currently, the greatest benefit runes could bring him was the inscription of auxiliary cultivation spirit talismans, enhancing the strength of his subordinates.

But he didn't want to be a tool, inscribing spirit talismans every day.

Xia Xuan simply took out a Jade Slip and inscribed a Legacy spirit talisman, recording all the basic rune methods.

He made two copies in total: one with a complete Legacy, and one with some reservations.

"In the future, I can find a trustworthy person to inherit this Legacy and inscribe spirit talismans for me. As for the other incomplete one, I can sell it to the Heaven and Earth Merchant Guild for a sum of resources."

The Heaven and Earth Merchant Guild, a powerful force with branches spread across the Four Seas and Five Regions, was as rich as a nation. It always operated on principles of integrity and profit, never interfering in the disputes of various Dynasties or Sects.

The existence of the Heaven and Earth Merchant Guild brought benefits to all parties, and all forces were willing to give it some Face.

Recently, a grand auction, hosted by the Heaven and Earth Merchant Guild, affecting the Four Seas and Five Regions, and held every twenty years, was scheduled to take place in Zhongzhou, specifically in the Imperial Capital of the Wu Dynasty.

Past auctions had always featured an endless array of rare treasures, and it was said that this current one would also include many treasures related to the Dharma Aspect Realm.

Xia Xuan naturally wanted to get involved.

The five million Origin Stones he had, plus the one million paid by Prince Qi, seemed like a lot, but in front of the great Imperial Dynasties and super-forces with deep foundations, it was not worth mentioning.