208: Old rogue, tough guy, non-stick pan

The three of them exchanged several glances, merely mumbling and grunting, their eyes darting back and forth so much they almost cramped up, yet no one stepped forward to speak.

Seeing their prolonged lack of cooperation, Loyal and Virtuous's recently bolstered confidence waned a few more points.

Zhou Yan couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.

Unlike mundane Dynasties, as Cultivation Dynasties, Cultivators had long lifespans, wouldn't shake their Foundation over trivial matters, and didn't care much for empty fame.

"Why is no one speaking?"

"Are you not giving me Face?"

"I'm about to lose my temper!"

Zhou Yan feigned anger. Seeing this, Duke Zhenguo rolled over and knelt deftly before him.

"Replying to Your Majesty, this old subject has never seen this thing either; I just think the meat smells delicious."

"I'm asking you, is this a deer or a horse!"

"This old subject truly hasn't seen it, I just smell how fragrant the meat is, heheh."

Well, this one was playing dumb while knowing full well.

Seeing Chen Jingyuan respond first, Prince Kang also stood up and knelt on one knee.

"Old Ancestor, I haven't seen this item either. With my usual standard of living, I wouldn't typically encounter something of this level."

Zhou Yan's nostrils flared slightly as he spoke in a suppressed voice.

"I'm asking, do you think it's a deer or a horse!"

Prince Kang, however, scratched his head.

"Deer and horses, I've only read about them in books. What I usually see are mostly disassembled parts, laid out on a dining table. I've truly seen very few live Yao Beasts."

Alright, another one playing Versailles.

Zhou Yan looked at Zhang Feng, a premonition of unease rising in his heart.

This kid wouldn't have a trick up his sleeve too, would he?

"Minister Zhang, as the Prime Minister, surely you recognize whether this is a deer or a horse?"

It wasn't until he was called upon that Zhang Feng unhurriedly rose and first bowed to Zhou Yan.

Then, he replied with a hint of trepidation.

"This subject knows a little, but not much."

Excellent! I'll make an example of you!

"Cough cough, then Minister Zhang, please explain it to Loyal and Virtuous."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Feng bowed again, then turned to Face Loyal and Virtuous.

"My knowledge is limited, but I hope I won't mislead you."

Loyal and Virtuous secretly breathed a sigh of relief and cupped his hands in response.

"Prime Minister, please speak freely."

Loyal and Virtuous was secretly delighted.

No matter what you say, as long as The Emperor says the opposite later, I'll insist you're wrong!

Zhang Feng took a light breath, then began.

"The Snow Plum Blossom, belonging to the class Lepidoptera, order Artiodactyla, family Linglu, genus Xuemei, is a rare Yao Beast unique to the high mountain terrain of the Qian Dynasty."

"Its classification features are clear: cloven hooves, hooves covered with thick armor, and spiritual horns on its head, consistent with the typical morphology of the Linglu Family. Due to its pure white body and plum-like spiritual aura, it is independently classified as the monotypic genus Xuemei."

"The upper limit of this species' rank is Fourth-tier. This individual is a Third-tier adult, a sample with superior genetic potential within its population."

"Its appearance is covered in dense, short, snow-white fur, with a compact fur layer and high reflectivity, forming a mimicry with the high mountain snow region."

"Its shoulder height is about 1.2 meters, with slender limbs and robust wrist joints, adapting it to rugged mountainous terrain."

"Its spiritual horns are short and thick, with a base diameter of about three centimeters, and plum branch-like patterns on the surface, serving as a core for Spiritual Qi condensation."

"In terms of ecological habits, the Snow Plum Blossom is a seasonally dormant species. It awakens after the first frost each year and goes into hibernation before the Awakening of Insects in glacial crevices or rock caves above 900 zhang in altitude, with a hibernation period lasting up to nine months."

"During hibernation, its metabolic rate drops to one-tenth of normal, and the villi on its body surface absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, continuously accumulating spiritual essence. Therefore, a First-tier individual can live for over five hundred years, far exceeding Yao Beasts of the same tier."

"During its active period, it feeds on cold-resistant Spiritual Plants and ice crystal dew. It forages for about two hours daily, spending the rest of its time quietly meditating and gathering Spiritual Qi in the snow."

"In terms of resource value, due to long-term accumulation of spiritual essence, its meat, fur, spiritual horns, and inner core all contain high-purity Spiritual Qi, with overall value comparable to Fourth-tier Yao Beast resources."

"The meat is rich in spiritual energy protein, which can nourish the Meridians; the fur provides cold protection and magical resistance; the spiritual horns are Alchemy Materials; and the inner core can be used for Magical Artifact purification."

"As a high-quality Third-tier individual, its market price is more than three times that of an ordinary Third-tier Yao Beast, making it a rare species of great utilization value in the high mountain ecosystem of the Qian Dynasty."

"Phew—this subject has finished speaking. Please correct me, Your Majesty."

Everyone present, including Zhou Yan, stared at Zhang Feng, dumbfounded.

Zhou Yan was speechless for a moment.

What... what was this guy talking about?

Only then did they remember that this Prime Minister Zhang, who usually seemed only interested in forming cliques for personal gain, had once been a top scholar.

"I... I actually think it's not a deer, but a horse."

Zhou Yan was extremely embarrassed. If he had known this, he wouldn't have cooperated with Loyal and Virtuous in this act.

Not only did he fail to intimidate these old foxes, but he also subjected himself to mental torture.

"Have the officials in charge of the archives arrived?"

Zhang Feng didn't respond to Zhou Yan's words; instead, he called for the Archive Officials before Loyal and Virtuous could.

Loyal and Virtuous was momentarily stunned because the other party completely deviated from the script. It wasn't until the Archive Officials scurried over that he realized he hadn't caught up with his lines.

Just as he was about to try and salvage the situation, he heard Zhang Feng say,

"Your Majesty is widely knowledgeable and surely recognizes this item. It must have once belonged to our Great Yu. Although it has been lost to another land and is difficult to reclaim, at least its name should return to its homeland."

"The Archive Officials have arrived. As long as Your Majesty gives the order, the name, classification, and other information will be immediately recorded and archived."

No sooner had Zhang Feng finished speaking than the official swiftly pulled out a ledger and a brush. Driven by spiritual power, the brush floated in mid-air, ready to write at any moment.

This counter-move instantly silenced Zhou Yan and Loyal and Virtuous, who had intended to stubbornly press on.

"This matter... is not urgent for now. After the grand ceremony concludes, I will discuss it with you in detail."

Zhou Yan glossed over it, temporarily suppressing the topic.

Seeing no further instructions, the Archive Official put away his ledger and brush into his storage ring and retreated to the side.

Zhang Feng also smoothly said a few conciliatory words, giving Zhou Yan an out and allowing the matter to be completely dropped.

As expected of the Prime Minister, his professional capabilities were impeccable.

After a slight sigh of relief, Zhou Yan looked at Loyal and Virtuous, and seeing that he still wanted to improvise, he gave him a look to stop him.

Zhou Yan was so embarrassed at this moment that his toes could dig out a Great Yu Imperial Palace. He really didn't want to bring up this matter again anytime soon.

He had originally just wanted to use this as an excuse to make trouble, but he hadn't expected these seasoned officials to be so adept at handling all kinds of situations.

It was hopeless to expect Loyal and Virtuous to continue leading, so he could only plan for the long term.

However, this probing was not entirely without gain; his intention to cause trouble should have been noticed by the three of them.

As long as they were put on alert and stopped focusing on his companions, part of his objective would be achieved.

But what puzzled Zhou Yan was that these three were still neutral yellow dots, indicating they hadn't developed murderous intent towards him.

This was intriguing. They clearly hadn't planned to deal with him yet, but the matter of the Dragon Transformation was imminent. If they were to act, he, this 'Body Integration Stage and above' expert, should be an obstacle they absolutely had to overcome.

"Oh—!!!"

A sudden roar of cheers from the entire venue broke the awkwardness and attracted everyone's attention.

Zhou Yan also had no time to think further, looking down at the stage through the light screen.

The reason for the crowd's cheers was that the young emperor had ascended the stage to participate in the battle.

Due to the large number of participants, the early stages of the competition mainly consisted of free-for-all battles, with one-on-one matches only occurring in the later stages.

As a seeded contestant, the young emperor did not need to participate in the first two rounds of group battles, only the final round.

It was unclear if someone had secretly arranged it, but among his opponents in this match were two Core Formation Cultivators.

Logically, it was difficult for Cultivators of the same Realm to determine a victor, let alone one against many.

But as soon as the young emperor entered the arena, he spouted arrogant words, such as, "I am unrivaled below the Nascent Soul, and above the Nascent Soul, it's a one-for-one trade," and "As a Prodigy, I shall suppress all enemies in the world."

As a seeded contestant, he was surrounded by everyone but defeated them all with a single move.

This immediately drew cheers from the entire audience.

This kid is too showy, instantly defeating everyone with one move, not even bothering to act it out.

"Clearly, he's young and impetuous, not knowing how to conceal his strength. He'll surely suffer in the future."

Duke Zhenguo's expression was one of satisfaction, but his words carried a hint of sarcasm.

It seemed that compared to himself, who was impersonating The Emperor, they disliked the 'young emperor' who was impersonating him and was so ostentatious, even more.

"It's better for young people to be more restrained. With his reputation spreading this time, he'll have no shortage of trouble in the future."

Zhou Yan also followed his persona and casually uttered a remark.

After he finished, everyone echoed his sentiment.

"That kid Zhou Yan is probably going to be famous in the Northern Region. He's got a lot coming to him."

Prince Kang finished speaking and burst into laughter, as if he had already foreseen the excitement that would follow.

The old veterans present had more or less experienced early success and understood what this meant, so they all laughed along.

But hearing these words, Zhou Yan's expression stiffened.

Oh right, that kid is using my name now!

Seeing Zhou Yan's unusual expression, Prince Kang subconsciously asked,

"Old Ancestor, why aren't you laughing? Do you not find it funny?"

Zhou Yan coldly turned his head to look at Prince Kang.

"Prince Kang has committed impropriety before The Emperor! Half a year's salary docked, and the position of Regent revoked for one month!"

"Huh?"