The Frightening Prince Jiu
At Bai Yeâs words, the crowd turned to look at Bai Yeâor more specifically, at the jade badge in Bai Yeâs hand.
Even the aloof Tianxuan soldiers who were eager to spill more blood stopped in their tracks, their eyes locked onto the participation badge.
At that moment, a humming sound echoed through the hall.
When Bai Ye revealed her participation badge, the Ranking Crystal began resonating and glowing. Clouds of green smoke enveloped the crystal and the jade participation badge.
The most surprising wasâ¦
The green smoke was coalescing into the shape of a dragon which curled up into the character â
nine
â.
The public did not understand the significance of the character. Those with military backgroundsâMu Yunzhan and the Tianxuan soldiersâknew what the display meant.
Mu Yunzhan was the first to react. He raced toward Bai Ye who was still holding up the jade badge and knelt down. âAll hail Prince Jiu!â
His greeting was followed by a uniform salute from the Tianxuan army. âAll hail Prince Jiu!â
At the same moment, Yun Suqian felt his legs give out. He stared at the jade badge in Bai Yeâs hand in disbelief. The sense of dread consumed him.
He was not alone. Qing Xuantianâs legs were trembling.
âAll hail Prince Jiu!â
âAll hail Prince Jiuâ¦â
Everyone in the assessment hall fell to their knees.
Bai Ye was taken aback by the sudden commotion. She stared at the billowing smoke dragon above her that spelled the character ânineâ. She was speechless.
Prince Jiu.
Was this the same prince she heard about in stories? Prince Jiu wasâ¦
âPrince Jiu has control over the vast majority of the army. Heâs the empireâs demon prodigy. To think that he came to Qingyun and chose Lady Bai for the Erudition Trials!â
âOh my! This is exciting. Lady Bai must be incredibly talented to be selected by Prince Jiu. Howââ
âThis is a good sign for Qingyun! We can definitely crush the other states this round!â
Excitement thrummed through the crowd. Even the honorary guestsâcomposed of mainly the elderlyâwere blushing as if they were meeting their first crush.
âApologies for my earlier rudeness, I did not realize Lady Bai was a seed participant,â Mu Yunzhan said apologetically to Bai Ye. The jade badge made him see her as an equal.
Confused, Bai Ye asked, âSeed participant?â
Mu Yunzhan explained kindly, âA seed participant is someone who can join the Erudition Trials without going through the talent and skill assessments.â
A moment later, he turned to look at Qing Xuantian who was pale as a sheet. âWhich also means anyone who tries to take you away is interfering with the Erudition Trials.â
Qing Xuantianâs eyelid twitched. Mu Yunzhan was right, he was done forâ¦
His plans were in tatters.
âTake down all these bandits and scum!â Mu Yunzhan ordered. The soldiers from Qingyun wisely surrendered.
Yun Suqian abandoned his plans to call the Tong City guards for help.
Bai Ye had a frown on her face.
The character, âä¹â, in Yu Jiuchongâs name (御ä¹é) also means the number nine.