Chapter 479: Li Xun’s Background

The six top chefs at Lin’s Inn would not stop just because someone told them to. Not only were they unaware of the King of Clear Streams’ identity, but even if they had known, no one would have paid him any attention without Lin Dong’s orders. In their eyes, the only one who could make them act was Lin Dong. All they needed to do was cook honestly; if trouble arose, Lin Dong would handle it.

Seeing that the six remained unmoved, the King of Clear Streams suddenly leaped into the air, turning into a streak of shadow as he rushed at them.

The six moved simultaneously, with Jiang Kui opening his mouth wide toward the King of Clear Streams.

Roar…

A soundwave, invisible and silent, burst forth from Jiang Kui’s throat. To Lin Dong and the others, it sounded like a lion’s roar, but to the King of Clear Streams, it was like a thunderbolt that could steal one’s soul. Jiang Kui’s self-created lion roar caused his ears to ring and his gaze to go blank.

In the next moment, Hua Wu Yue soared into the air. Her spiritual sword transformed into countless peach blossoms, which surrounded the King of Clear Streams.

With continuous thudding sounds, though the peach blossoms couldn’t pierce the King of Clear Streams’ energy barrier, they forced him to retreat continuously.

In Cheng Bao’s palm, a golden sword appeared abruptly. Its blade light instantly grew two or three meters long.

Seeing several of the King of Clear Streams’ guards charging forward, Lin Dong shouted, “Stop!”

Instantly, the blade light vanished. The guards also dared not act rashly and quickly protected the King of Clear Streams at the center.

“Your Highness!” Lou Wanxian rushed over.

Lin Dong felt somewhat helpless and didn’t stop them, wanting Jiang Kui and the others to vent their anger. It was also meant to intimidate Emperor Qianwei, showing him that Lin’s Inn’s strength went beyond just a mysterious, peak-level warrior.

Unfortunately, those guards were too dedicated. If Cheng Bao had slashed with his sword, the difference in cultivation levels would have meant at most minor injuries to the King of Clear Streams. But if he had struck those guards, they would all have been killed instantly. This was no longer just a lesson—it could easily turn into a deadly conflict.

“Your Highness, are you alright?” Lou Wanxian rushed to the guards’ side, looking around anxiously for any signs of injury on the King of Clear Streams.

“You… you…” The King of Clear Streams pointed at Li Xun, unable to utter a word. This situation left Emperor Qianwei and Lou Wanxian utterly puzzled, unable to understand why the King of Clear Streams would lose his composure.

“What do you mean, ‘you’?” Qiao Tianhao glanced at the King of Clear Streams disdainfully and said, “If Lord Qiao had intervened, you’d be dead by now.”

The King of Clear Streams continued to point at Li Xun, his finger trembling slightly, still unable to speak.

“Did we run into a madman?” Qiao Tianhao smirked.

“Dare you call the prince mad?” The four guards were furious and each prepared to attack Qiao Tianhao.
“Prince? Pfft! Even when the emperor is here, Master Qiao still calls him mad.” Qiao Tianhao wasn’t afraid of their threats at all; since the shop owner hadn’t spoken, he feared no one.
“Dareful scoundrel! How dare you slander the emperor!” Yang Shun glared and also prepared to attack Qiao Tianhao.
“And who the hell are you?” Qiao Tianhao snorted as he looked at Yang Shun. He actually preferred if both the guards and Yang Shun attacked—that way, things would be even more entertaining today.
“Go! Bring the princess here! Now!” King Qingliu suddenly regained his senses and shouted at the guards.
The guards were stunned, unable to understand how this order related to the current situation.
“Hurry up!” King Qingliu roared, his face growing increasingly fierce.
“Yes!”
Without hesitation, the guards rushed out—those fastest among them dashed forward and disappeared from the courtyard in just a few moments.
This sudden change made everyone look at Li Xun involuntarily, and many felt their hearts surge with emotion.
He had a very handsome face. In fact, after grooming himself and wearing the clothes Ma Chun had given him, aside from those eyes that still held a terrifying emptiness and slightly dark skin, he was undeniably strikingly beautiful.
But what truly stirred up waves of emotion in Emperor Qianwei, Lou Wanshen, and the three guards was the fact that he resembled a woman too much. If only his skin could be fairer and smoother, if he wore makeup and a long dress, and looked a bit older—he would be like a replica of a woman.
That woman was the princess.
“Wh-what’s your name?” King Qingliu asked Li Xun nervously. This first question revealed his anxiety. Even with King Qingliu’s intelligence, most people present would have asked about Li Xun’s parents first when calm.
The atmosphere suddenly became heavy. Everyone’s gaze was fixed on Li Xun.
One second, two seconds, three seconds… The tense air seemed almost tangible as Li Xun remained silent. Breathing became difficult for everyone.
This matter was extremely important.
“Call me your boss!” Qiao Tianhao couldn’t stand the atmosphere any longer and retorted coldly.
“Mr. Ni? Your surname is Ni?” King Qingliu’s reaction made everyone’s expressions strange. A smile already appeared in Lin Dong’s eyes.

Li Xun ignored him completely, treating the King of Qingliu as if he didn’t exist. Although he was in slightly better condition now than when Lin Dong first saw him, it was only a slight improvement. He went from ignoring everyone except his master to occasionally glancing at Ma Chunhe and Qiao Tianhao, who kept talking nonstop in his ear.

“He’s really a madman!” Qiao Tianhao muttered.

“Who… who are your parents?” The King of Qingliu’s sanity was returning, just a little bit.

Li Xun still treated the King of Qingliu as if he didn’t exist.

“Your Highness, you might ask Shopkeeper Lin,” Lou Wanshen whispered in the King’s ear.

“Right! Right!” The King snapped out of his daze and quickly turned to Lin Dong, urgently asking, “Shopkeeper Lin, who are his parents?”

“I don’t know,” Lin Dong replied crisply. Those three words brought him great relief; the frustration he had felt earlier diminished significantly because of them.

“Why?” the King pressed.

“Because he was sold as a slave to a wealthy family by those who claimed to be his parents since he was young. Apart from those who sold him, probably no one knows who his real parents are,” Lin Dong said calmly.

“When was he sold?” The King pushed aside his guards, trying to get closer to both Lin Dong and Li Xun, but hesitated in between.

“I think it was around the age of three,” Lin Dong replied unhurriedly.

“How old is he now?” the King asked anxiously.

“Probably twenty-five!” Lin Dong answered question by question. In fact, he could have given all the answers at once, but he preferred to take his time. The more he answered, the more comfortable he felt. He still remembered clearly the King’s threats from before.

“Twenty-five, twenty-five…” The King’s body began to tremble uncontrollably.

“Younger brother, calm down. Why doesn’t this young man like to talk to people?” Emperor Qianwei stepped forward to comfort the King, though he was extremely frustrated at that moment. The reason was obviously that the King might have found his biological son. This meant that, in order to compensate for this son, the King might try every means to seize the throne for him.

Although the King had no real power, his prestige and intelligence were extraordinary. If he really decided to make moves, at the time of Emperor Qianwei’s death and the new emperor’s ascension, he could create public opinion, incite the other failed princes to unite and stage a rebellion. With chaos in the capital and the new emperor and princes killed, the court officials would surely bring up the King to restore order. Once in power, things would be much easier—it was just a matter of time.

Of course, people aren’t fools, and those princes eligible to compete for the throne aren’t incompetent either, so the chances of success aren’t very high. The son of the King of Qingliu appeared out of nowhere and couldn’t gain widespread acceptance, so the likelihood of him doing this is also low. But as long as there’s even a sliver of possibility, it’s enough to frustrate Emperor Qianwei.

Worse still, Emperor Qianwei can’t eliminate even this sliver of possibility. Not only in the current situation, but even during his strongest and most energetic years, he couldn’t have taken action against the King of Qingliu. Otherwise, if the King of Qingliu had escaped, the harm would have been immense, and his reputation would have been utterly ruined.

Ultimately, the only blame to place lies on that man for being careless back then.

Everyone knew the King of Qingliu had no children his whole life, but few knew that his queen had indeed given birth to a son over twenty years ago. However, the child was taken away within a day of birth. The King of Qingliu had a son in middle age only to lose him again; fearing his wrath, no one in the royal family dared speak of it.

Back then, Emperor Qianwei, worried that the King of Qingliu might use some trick, sent Tianwei Pavilion to investigate and thus learned the truth. That year, the King of Qingliu was tasked by him to handle the floods in the six northern provinces. Thousands of people in those provinces starved to death, and the King of Qingliu caused bloodshed among the officials there. One of the county magistrates was the father of a disciple from a major sect. This disciple went to the King of Qingliu to plead for his son’s life but was beaten away by the King himself.

This disciple was also a filial son and repeatedly tried to seek revenge on the King of Qingliu, disregarding the consequences. The King, concerned about the sect behind him, only gave him a stern warning each time before sending him away. Unexpectedly, this led to future trouble. The disciple planned to infiltrate the royal palace to assassinate the prince but, upon hearing of the prince’s birth and while the King was away, stole the child and abandoned him in the mountains.

When the disciple was finally captured, it was already months later. Searching the mountains for the child yielded no trace. Whether it was the common people, hunters, or passing merchants—no matter how hard the King of Qingliu searched, he found nothing. The most likely explanation was that the child had been eaten whole by a magical beast.

“Li Xun was a slave since childhood. His master tortured him at the slightest mistake to keep him obedient, which made him obey only his master,” explained Lin Dong. “Fortunately, when I rescued him, he still had some sense left. I’ve been arranging for people to talk to him and keep him company. The effect isn’t obvious, but it does help a bit.”

“To be a slave? A master? If he truly is my son, I swear I will never serve anyone unless all those who keep slaves are destroyed!”
The King of Qingliu’s face was grotesque and terrifying.