Chapter 242: Commoners Cannot Endure

Chapter 242: Commoners Cannot Endure

Within the Palace, the news spread like an invisible lightning bolt, crackling through every corridor.

"Prince Ailike has been executed—right at the City Gate!"

"His mage companion arrived and reduced heads to pulp without even lifting a finger!"

"No one saw him move—he didn’t even open the carriage door!"

These whispers slithered like phantoms through every corner of the Palace, weaving an invisible net of terror.

Servants scurried with bowed heads, terrified that a stray glance might be mistaken for disrespect.

Guards gripped their weapons until their knuckles turned white, knowing full well that these steel blades—symbols of power in the mundane world—were mere children’s toys to transcendent might.

Even the so-called nobles, so proud of their "pure" bloodlines, now cowered like rats in their chambers, praying not to be swept into this power vortex beyond their comprehension.

In a grand hall of white marble on the Palace’s eastern wing, Prince Augustus Falu Ke trembled as he accepted a report from a trembling squire.

The eighty-year-old High Apprentice still stood straight as an arrow, his piercing gaze undimmed by age. His face, carved by decades of intrigue, bore deep wrinkles beneath a silver beard that cascaded to his chest, radiating both authority and weariness.

"You’re certain it was Luo En Lalf? Andie’s companion?"

His voice rasped like dry leaves.

"Absolutely, Your Grace", the squire replied, head bowed low, voice quivering. "When Prince Ailike tried to flee through the City Gate, the mage didn’t even step from his carriage. Six heads exploded at once—blood sprayed over ten meters, staining the City Gate stones crimson."

A flicker of wild joy ignited Augustus’s gloomy expression. His clouded, age-worn eyes gleamed with a youthful ferocity.

His fists clenched, not from fear, but from barely contained exhilaration.

"Hah! Perfect!"

The old prince’s laughter echoed through the chamber, tinged with madness. "A true Full Mage! And an ally of Andie’s! The Falu Ke Kingdom’s supremacy is now absolute!"

The squires exchanged uneasy glances, unnerved by this sudden lapse in the elder’s usual composure.

Augustus, however, reveled in his excitement, his sharp eyes blazing, his grin stretching wider. His mind raced, connecting the dots—Ailike’s death, the mage’s arrival, the future expansion of royal power—each link forming a grand blueprint in his mind.

"Prepare the Royal Suite in the eastern wing!" he barked, his voice brimming with urgency. "That’s reserved for our most honored guests!"

He swept his gaze over the room, as if to ignite their enthusiasm. "Activate all protective arrays, install fresh Mana Crystal Lamps, lay out the most potent Spiritual Energy Mattress! Re-inscribe the Soundproof Runes on the walls—absolutely no disturbances!"

His boots thudded rhythmically against the marble as he paced, suddenly halting with a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Oh, and I hear Luo En was quite the rake in his youth", he murmured conspiratorially to the Royal Steward, his voice dripping with implication. "Remember that scandal with the fifth son of the Ralph Family? The one who caroused with maids in the eastern district and charmed even the Capital’s most elite ladies?"

The steward blinked, then grinned. "Ah! The wastrel who rebuilt the Rose Hall to win an Exotic Dancer’s favor?"

"Exactly!" Augustus’s eyes gleamed. "Men never change. Fetch me ten of the city’s most exquisite virgins—peerless beauty, unmatched dance skills, especially those trained in… unique soothing techniques."

The steward hesitated, but the prince’s glare crushed all doubt. He bowed deeply.

"Also", Augustus continued, "bring my century-old Ice Flame Wine from the cellar. Brewed with essence of glacial beasts, even High Apprentices feel its warmth. It’ll please our guest well enough!"

As Augustus basked in visions of a golden future, heavy footsteps interrupted him.

Andie strode into the hall, golden vertical pupils gleaming like blades in the dim light.

His recent transformation startled even the hardened nobles. Since reclaiming power, this once-humble Thirteenth Prince had become a predator. His awakened Crimson Blood Sky Dragon bloodline manifested in those mesmerizing yet terrifying eyes—eyes that made men feel like prey.

"Grandfather, what are you doing?"

His voice, low and commanding, cut through the air.

Augustus turned, still grinning. "Andie! Glad tidings! Your mage friend has arrived! I’m preparing the Royal Suite—Ice Flame Wine, eastern beauties—"

Andie’s expression remained ice. "Cease these frivolities."

The words froze Augustus mid-gesture.

"These are meaningless gestures", Andie continued, advancing slowly, golden eyes burning. "Have you forgotten the essence of Full Mages after all these years away from the Academy?"

The old prince’s smile faltered.

"Commoners and Full Mages exist on entirely different planes of existence", Andie hissed, his voice like a blade. "Commoner women couldn’t survive a Full Mage’s Radiation Field. Recall how apprentices hid when a Full Mage passed? How even standing nearby made breathing impossible?"

Augustus’s face paled, the earlier excitement draining.

"Indeed", Andie concluded, golden eyes narrowing. "Some truths transcend time."

Otherwise, one would feel an invisible pressure, as if their breath had been bound. The light-headed would suffer vertigo, while the severe cases would collapse outright.

This was the natural rejection caused by differences in life hierarchy - a gap no human effort could bridge.

"And Luo En isn't the spoiled brat he used to be", Andie continued, his voice turning even colder. "According to intelligence from the Black Mist School, he became a Primordial Mage through special means. This process transformed his spirit structure and soul essence. Those so-called beauties you sent to find him? In his eyes, they're not even worthy of the dust beneath his feet."

To anyone with even basic occult knowledge, the term "Primordial Mage" alone could send chills down their spines. It was a path fraught with unknown perils - an Abyss where countless geniuses had perished. Few succeeded, but those who did became beings that shook the world.

Even someone like Augustus, a High Apprentice, had only ever read scattered mentions of these higher-tier mages in ancient archival records. He'd never imagined he'd encounter a mage who had ascended through such unconventional means within his lifetime.

"Andie, are you saying..." Augustus' voice trembled slightly, disbelief flickering in his eyes. "He really is..."

"Yes, Grandfather." Andie nodded, his tone carrying the faintest trace of pride. "Luo En has become one of the extremely rare Primordial Mages."

Augustus felt a wave of dizziness overwhelm him, forcing him to lean on the nearby table for support. A Primordial Mage was an existence even rarer and more powerful than an ordinary Full Mage. Legends claimed they could directly commune with certain great beings, gaining powers beyond imagination.

"The..." The old prince inhaled deeply, struggling to keep his voice steady. "Then how should we receive this honored guest? Why has he come to our kingdom?"

Andie's gaze turned even more profound, as if peering straight into the old man's thoughts. "Luo En has come for the final lineage of the Solar Corona Breathing Technique."

"What?!" Augustus' face paled dramatically, his voice rising sharply with shock and disbelief. "The Solar Corona Breathing Technique? That's impossible! That's the foundation of our Falu Ke Kingdom!"

His expression grew agitated, his eyes flashing a complex mixture of fear and fury. "The core secret techniques passed down through generations - how could we possibly hand them over to an outsider? Even if he is your friend, he's still..."

"Outsider?" Andie's voice suddenly turned ice-cold. His golden vertical pupils constricted into thin lines, like twin blades piercing straight into the old man's soul. "Have you forgotten who helped me awaken the Crimson Blood Sky Dragon bloodline? Who rescued me, giving me the chance to escape Xin Xi Ya's clutches? Who gave me the strength to stand against my elder brothers?"

His voice grew lower but colder, like winter gales cutting through bone. "Without Luo En, would you still be sitting here giving orders today? Or would you already be imprisoned along with the rest of them?"

Augustus' face turned ashen, a flicker of fear flashing in his weathered eyes. He'd never seen this side of his normally courteous grandson - this ruthless, decisive side that reminded him of the iron-fisted Falu Ke II, the tyrant emperor who once defended the kingdom with blood and fire.

Yet doubt still lingered in his heart. The Solar Corona Breathing Technique wasn't just the royal family's core lineage; it was also the kingdom nobles' crucial trump card against surrounding nations. Handing it over to outsiders would have unimaginable consequences.

"Andie, I understand your gratitude", Augustus tried to regain control, his voice carrying the faintest hesitation. "But the Solar Corona Breathing Technique concerns the royal family's future. Especially its highest cultivation method for the Sun Crown Knights - that's our family's true core secret."

"Grandfather." Andie suddenly interrupted, his voice as cold as winds from the northern ice plains. "What are you still hesitating about?"

With each step forward, his oppressive aura intensified. The chilling gleam in his golden vertical pupils felt almost tangible, suffocating. "Offering the treasure willingly now might make Luo En show mercy for our past friendship, even perhaps return something in exchange."

His voice grew colder, the golden glow in his eyes nearly manifesting as actual flames. "But if we provoke his anger and he attacks directly, we won't have anything left - not even our lives!"

Each word struck Augustus' heart like a heavy hammer, filling him with suffocating fear.

"Could it be", Andie continued, his eyes burning with cold fire, "you believe those few Magic Automatons in the palace that can only mimic our ancestors' movements could withstand a Full Mage's wrath? Those things might work against High Apprentices, but against a true mage, they're nothing more than toys to be reduced to scrap metal!"

Augustus' face grew even paler, sweat trickling down his wrinkled forehead. He felt an unprecedented sense of defeat - not just from facing a possible catastrophe, but because this once meek grandson had completely slipped from his control.

"Perhaps..." The old prince finally spoke, his voice hoarse with exhaustion. "You're right, Andie. We really shouldn't risk provoking a Full Mage."

He sighed heavily, his shoulders sagging under an invisible burden. His once-proud posture seemed to age ten years in an instant. "Very well, I'll prepare to open the Royal Treasury to welcome this... honored guest."

Andie's expression softened slightly, the golden glow in his eyes dimming a bit. "That's the wise decision, Grandfather."

Just then, a subtle energy fluctuation suddenly rippled from the city gate direction, like a stone dropped into a calm lake, creating endless ripples. The sensation was so powerful that everyone in the palace could clearly feel it.

A heavy, oppressive aura, as tangible as physical pressure, blanketed the entire space, making breathing difficult and thoughts sluggish.

Augustus abruptly lifted his head, all color draining from his face. As a High Apprentice, he could sense the fluctuation's essence more keenly than ordinary people. This was pure, overwhelming mana radiation - the kind only a Full Mage could emit.

Yet even the Full Mages he'd seen before paled in comparison to this suffocating presence. This was a deeper, more fundamental power, as if radiated directly from some cosmic entity.

"He... he's here", the old prince whispered, his weathered eyes now reflecting pure reverence and fear.

Andie also felt the pressure, but compared to his grandfather, his reaction remained far more composed. Perhaps because he'd already experienced it, or perhaps due to enhanced resistance after bloodline activation.

"Yes, Mage Luo En has arrived", Andie said, complex emotions flickering in his eyes. "Let's go welcome him."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end