Imperial Cultivation-Chapter 438 - 435 Pretending
```html
He vaguely felt that the relentless pursuit by the Huaisu Sect and the Heavenly Heart Sect wasn’t solely to devour him and achieve the status of a Great Grandmaster.
There might also be the intent to retrieve these two statues.
With these statues, all disciples of the Huaisu Sect and the Heavenly Heart Sect could be found.
Evidently, these are not ordinary statues and hold immense significance to the Huaisu Sect and the Heavenly Heart Sect.
Zheng Tu and the others might be able to become Great Grandmasters, possibly by harnessing the Sacrifice Technique through these two statues.
Either by sacrifice or by devouring Imperial Blood, both paths to becoming a Great Grandmaster are arduous.
But compared to one’s own enlightenment, they’re much simpler.
Therefore, the Evil Sect has more Great Grandmasters.
Once achieving the status of Great Grandmaster, one gains free will, and the influence of the Outer Heaven Power diminishes.
Upon becoming a Great Grandmaster, whether one leaves the Sect to roam freely or stays for benefits, it’s a personal choice.
If truly pushed, they might very well act collectively.
This is also the Court’s concern, hence unable to completely eradicate the Evil Sect.
The Grandmasters of the Evil Sect are also wary of the Emperor’s Sword, hence not too many Grandmasters rush forward to kill him.
Only a few Great Grandmasters came, blocked by Huang Cheng and the others, never reaching him.
That’s why he can kill so freely, why he can progress as he has.
Essentially, he still relies on his identity; if not for being the Princely Heir, favored by the Emperor, he wouldn’t have grown to this stage.
He sat in the Tianshui Pavilion for an entire morning, yet it was calm.
He didn’t lure any skilled masters from the Evil Sect.
He realized that this strategy was no longer effective; the Evil Sect’s skilled masters wouldn’t be fooled.
They were no fools; they might fall for it once, or even twice, but certainly not a third time.
However, he believed that as long as these guys harbored greed, they would be unable to resist.
After pondering for a moment, he used Sound Transmission into Secret.
Huang Cheng instantly appeared inside the room, bowing respectfully, "Your Highness."
If in the past it was because of his status as Princely Heir, the first heir of Da Jing, expected to become Emperor someday...
Now it was a respect for his strength.
Single-handedly suppressing numerous masters of the Evil Sect in the Eastern Territory, slaughtering hundreds of grandmasters within days.
With his own power, he severely wounded the Evil Sect of Da Jing, causing a massive loss of Primordial Energy.
Without grandmasters, there’ll naturally be fewer Great Grandmasters in the future, and with fewer Great Grandmasters, the Court will seize the opportunity to eliminate them more than once.
It can be foreseen that the various Evil Sects of Da Jing will inevitably fall into decline, all due to his efforts alone.
Chu Zhiyuan said, "Imperial Envoy Huang, let’s use the ruse of self-injury."
Huang Cheng asked, "How to execute it?"
Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Mr. Tao will disguise himself as the Great Grandmaster of the Evil Sect chasing me. Imperial Envoy Huang, you and Mr. Meng and Mr. Zhou will engage in chaos, how about it?"
"Your Highness intends to..."
"Feign severe injury and then escape, see if these Evil Sect fiends can hold back."
"...Yes." Huang Cheng internally praised.
While others avoided the Evil Sect fiends, fearful of getting involved, the Princely Heir was the opposite.
Fearful that the Evil Sect fiends wouldn’t come out to assassinate him.
The situation became somewhat absurd and laughable.
Weren’t the Evil Sect fiends said to be terrifying figures? How did it come to this?
So many grandmasters from the Evil Sect, yet suppressed by the Princely Heir alone, wiped out utterly.
Now, they’ve shrunk back, no longer daring to attack the Princely Heir.
Yet the Princely Heir is not satisfied, wanting to use such a tactic to lure them out.
The more you think about it, the funnier the situation becomes.
——
"Your Highness."
When Meng Canglan appeared before Chu Zhiyuan, she was wearing a cold and icy mask.
She was clad in a combat uniform, showing off a captivating figure, creating a strong allure to the eyes.
Seeing her like this, Chu Zhiyuan couldn’t help but laugh, "Isn’t this being too cautious?"
The two were in a private room of the Tianshui Pavilion.
Meng Canglan sighed, took off her mask, revealing a beautiful and gentle face, and shook her head lightly, "One must be cautious."
Chu Zhiyuan laughed, "Now you don’t dare to let anyone know of the connection between your Sect and me, right?"
Meng Canglan said, "Your Highness has shown great power; they dare not confront you, so they take it out on us."
Chu Zhiyuan said, "That’s easy, find a chance to show that I’ve fallen out with your Sect, that’s all."
"This..." Meng Canglan hesitated.
Such action would indeed benefit the Wuyou Sect right now.
This can effectively avoid suspicion.
At least prevent vengeful actions from each Evil Sect, sparing Wuyou Sect disciples.
But it also has potential repercussions.
"Isn’t this a good idea?" Chu Zhiyuan asked with a smile.
Meng Canglan sighed, "There are troubles with that too."
Falling out with the Princely Heir could avoid the Evil Sect’s wrath, but would invite punishment from the Court and even retaliation from all Eastern Territory Martial Arts Sects.
If anyone is the most grateful to the Princely Heir now, it’s the Eastern Territory Martial Arts Sects.
Eradicating various Evil Sects, the ordinary citizens of the Eastern Territory might not feel it strongly, but the Martial Arts Sects certainly do.
The ultimate targets of the Evil Sect’s masters are these martial artists, to devour their Essence Blood.
Ordinary people’s Essence Blood can’t compare to these martial experts—quantity can’t bridge that gap.
The ones who fear and despise the Evil Sect fiends the most are these Martial Arts Sects.
And now, these Evil Sect masters, who kill them as if they were pigs and dogs, are being killed by the Princely Heir as if they were pigs and dogs.
They are extremely satisfied, immensely grateful, and already view the Princely Heir as divine.
The Princely Heir’s prestige in the Eastern Territory Martial World is now remarkably high.
In such circumstances, the Wuyou Sect falling out with the Princely Heir is indeed unwise.
"So what to do?" Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Just speak freely."
"...Let’s fall out first and think about it after passing this hurdle." Meng Canglan gritted her teeth, ultimately choosing to address the immediate situation first.
Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "If we fall out, we can always mend relations later."
"Exactly." Meng Canglan nodded.
First, fall out, wait until each Evil Sect leaves the Eastern Territory, and then mend relations.
Not only can this avoid the wrath of the Evil Sects, but it also avoids the retaliation of the Martial Sects and the Court.
But this timing must be well handled, requiring precise control and operation.
——
By evening, Chu Zhiyuan walked along the main road of Wanghai City, finally stopping at a small stall, where he sat down and ordered a bowl of wonton.
His face was pale, and he coughed twice, as if still recovering from severe injuries.
The people around him curiously looked at him.
His luxurious brocade robe and noble demeanor stood out from the surrounding people sitting and eating wontons.
Chu Zhiyuan, however, didn’t mind and continued eating heartily.
Just then, a delicate fragrance approached, and someone sat across from him.
Chu Zhiyuan looked up and smiled, "Miss Meng."
Meng Canglan, wearing a luxurious gown, looked disinterested, clasped her hands, and said, "Your Highness, it’s time to stop."
She waved her hand.
A dozen young men, with eyes gleaming, "persuaded" the surrounding people to leave.
Instantly, an empty space formed, leaving only Chu Zhiyuan and Meng Canglan at a small table.
From a distance, people watched curiously, more and more gathering to see the spectacle.
Chu Zhiyuan raised an eyebrow, continued eating his wonton, "What do you mean by ’time to stop’?"
"The Eastern Territory is already chaotic enough," Meng Canglan said slowly, "Our Sect has already lost twelve disciples, and if it continues, there will be more losses."
Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "Am I to blame for your Sect’s disciples getting killed?"
"...If not for the chaos in the Eastern Territory, our Sect wouldn’t have lost disciples."
"Haha..." Chu Zhiyuan laughed, shook his head, and said, "Your Sect is weak and easily bullied, who else to blame? If from the start you’ve been relentlessly striking back at the Evil Sects, building a reputation, would they dare kill your disciples?"
"Your Highness!"
"The fiends of the Evil Sect are also bullies; see now, do they dare to come for me?"
Chu Zhiyuan chuckled, continuing to eat his wonton.
"Your Highness..."
"..." Chu Zhiyuan continued focusing on his wonton.
"...Your Highness, take care!"
Meng Canglan’s face was cold as frost as she slowly stood up.
Chu Zhiyuan ate his wonton, waving his hand dismissively.
Meng Canglan gave him a deep look and then turned to leave, gently escorted by a dozen Wuyou Sect elites.
Most people couldn’t hear their conversation.
But some martial artists, using their keen ears, listened intently and spread word of their conversation and conflict.
```
