When Chu Zhiyuan woke up the next day, the sky was already bright.
After practicing the Boundless Brightness Sutra in the evening, he fell asleep exhausted and slept exceptionally soundly.
He slept without dreams all night, and when he opened his eyes, it was already dawn, as if it had only been a moment.
He got out of bed and pushed open the door, and Youlan, with her almond eyes and peach blossom cheeks, was already standing outside waiting.
“Your Highness,” Youlan directed Xiaozhu, Xiaoyue, and Xiaoju, three maids, to serve Chu Zhiyuan with washing up, and said, “The news has already spread that Your Highness overwhelmed the Fourth Prince and the Twelfth Prince.”
Chu Zhiyuan washed up indifferently, simply responding with an "Mmm."
Youlan didn't say more, and directed the maids to bring up the food.
After Chu Zhiyuan washed up, ate his meal, put on a sable fur coat and a sable hat, he stepped into the faint doorway and disappeared.
He appeared on the Great Brightness Peak, where two Inner Court Guards were waiting not far away.
“Ninth Prince,” the two men clasped their fists in salute.
Chu Zhiyuan nodded slightly.
“Your Highness, the Emperor has decreed that the Ninth Prince's cultivation place has been changed to Qingfeng Cliff.”
“Qingfeng Cliff?” Chu Zhiyuan smiled and said, “Father Emperor's news is quite well-informed. Lead the way.”
“Your Highness, please.”
The two turned and walked upwards.
Chu Zhiyuan followed them along the white snow, then turned south.
Usually, he would turn north at this point and arrive at Jingsi Cliff.
Now, however, he was heading south.
North and south represented completely different statuses.
The north faced the yin, never seeing sunlight all day, and was cold and windy.
The yin wind on the Great Brightness Peak was extremely powerful.
In the first two days, he felt that he could withstand the yin wind with the Boundless Brightness Sutra.
Later, he realized he was too naive and couldn't resist it at all.
Later, he wore a sable fur coat and a crane cloak, and put on a sable hat, fully arming himself.
Even so, he still felt his body stiffen, and even with the gurgling true essence and rolling blood energy, he still couldn't stop the yin wind from entering his body.
But the south side of the Great Brightness Peak was a different world from the north.
The presence and absence of sunlight were like two different worlds.
He arrived at a cliff protruding from the mountainside, almost identical in appearance to Jingsi Cliff, as if forming a symmetry centered on the Great Brightness Peak.
He sat on the warm jade cushion of Qingfeng Cliff, and the breeze swept through the pine trees, also producing a soft whistle.
But the whistling sound was a different rhythm and a different feeling from the whistling sound of Jingsi Cliff.
One was gloomy, and the other was gentle.
The two Inner Court Guards stood not far away, silent as statues.
Chu Zhiyuan closed his eyes and began to practice the Boundless Brightness Sutra.
After a moment, he opened his eyes.
He quickly took off the crane cloak, unbuttoned the sable fur coat, and took off the sable hat.
Only then did he nod in satisfaction.
In the bright sunshine, the wind also became gentle and could not invade his body.
Wearing a sable fur coat, a sable hat, and a crane cloak made him feel unbearably hot.
Then he closed his eyes again and began to practice.
— —
The sun had set, and twilight enveloped the area.
Chu Zhiyuan got up and left Qingfeng Cliff.
Qingfeng Cliff was indeed a good place for cultivation, with spiritual energy three times more abundant.
Cultivating here would result in faster progress.
Especially when he visualized the entire Great Brightness Peak, it was several times more effective than the cultivation time and efficiency of others.
With the surrounding spiritual energy being three times greater, the cultivation efficiency increased by several times three.
For him, the improvement was astonishing.
He walked slowly, but occasionally encountered people hurrying past him.
When they passed, they would smile and nod, some calling him Ninth Brother, and some calling him Ninth Younger Brother.
Chu Zhiyuan didn't expect his popularity to suddenly become so good.
This change was too great.
It seemed that in one day, he had gone from being hated by everyone to being loved by everyone.
As he was about to reach the foot of the mountain, the Seventh Prince, Chu Lieyu, called out from behind.
Chu Zhiyuan stopped and looked at him.
“Seventh Brother?”
“Ninth Brother, wait.”
“What's the matter, Seventh Brother?” Chu Zhiyuan watched him hurry over.
“A big matter,” the Seventh Prince said, “Have you heard the news about the competition for the Cave Heaven slot?”
“What Cave Heaven slot?” Chu Zhiyuan shook his head.
He had never heard of this matter.
“The Jade Scenery Cave Heaven opens once every hundred years,” the Seventh Prince said, “Each time, three people can enter.”
Chu Zhiyuan said: “Three people… Father Emperor will decide these three, right?”
He didn't ask what the Jade Scenery Cave Heaven was.
He knew from the original owner's memory that the Jade Scenery Cave Heaven was the dynasty's original Cave Heaven.
It was after the appearance of this Cave Heaven that the later Thirty-Six Cave Heavens came into being.
The Jade Scenery Dynasty was named after this Jade Scenery Cave Heaven.
“Father Emperor has divided these three slots, one for us princes, the second for the sons of princes, and the third for the Spirit Guards.”
“Giving it to the Spirit Guards is no problem, but he even gave the sons of princes one.”
“We can't be too biased. The sons of princes are also of our Chu family's direct bloodline.”
Chu Zhiyuan nodded.
“It's a competition among us princes for one slot.”
“How to compete?”
“A martial arts competition,” the Seventh Prince smiled and said, “Competing with the Great Brightness Fist.”
“Only competing with the Great Brightness Fist?”
The Seventh Prince nodded: “The Great Brightness Fist is our fundamental fist technique, complementing the Boundless Brightness Sutra. The more you progress, the more important it becomes.”
Chu Zhiyuan nodded thoughtfully.
The original owner didn't know these things.
The Great Brightness Peak had masters guiding the princes in their cultivation, but the original owner had already lost this qualification.
So, he didn't know many things.
The Seventh Prince continued: “Ten days later, there will be a competition at the Diwu Academy. Ninth Brother, don't miss it.”
Chu Zhiyuan solemnly clasped his fists: “Thank you, Seventh Brother.”
“We are brothers, why be polite,” the Seventh Prince waved his hand: “I'm leaving.”
As he spoke, he stepped into the doorway and disappeared.
Chu Zhiyuan followed and stepped in, then appeared in his own courtyard.
Youlan and Xiaozhu were already waiting on the side.
Chu Zhen and Chu Qiao were also staring at him excitedly.
Chu Zhiyuan smiled and said: “Zhen'er, Qiao'er, why are you so happy?”
Chu Zhen excitedly said: “Hehe, Elder Brother, you don't know what they looked like.”
While Chu Zhiyuan took off his clothes under the service of Xiaozhu and the others, wearing only his underclothes, he listened to Chu Zhen chattering non-stop while washing up.
It was nothing more than the princesses being extremely surprised, praising endlessly, and saying that they had not misjudged him.
In short, their attitude towards Chu Liezhao had completely changed.
This change made them feel instantly satisfied and even more excited than if they had won themselves.
Chu Zhiyuan smiled and ate with them, also talking about the change in the princes' attitudes.
While they were eating, Consort Hui arrived.
She was still wearing a palace dress made of flowing cloud silk, her golden hairpins swaying gently, her face like a hibiscus, beautiful and gorgeous, like a fairy.
Chu Zhiyuan got up, clasped his fists in salute, and asked if she had eaten dinner.
Consort Hui waved her jade hand: “I've already eaten, you eat yours.”
Chu Zhiyuan didn't stand on ceremony, sat down and continued eating, while asking about the Jade Scenery Cave Heaven.
“I was just about to talk to you about this matter,” Consort Hui said: “This time, the competition for the Jade Scenery Cave Heaven slot will be very fierce. You'd better not compete.”
Chu Zhiyuan frowned and looked at her.
“Those three in front, they have to go in, and they don't even want their faces in order to go in,” Consort Hui coldly waved her jade hand: “You have no chance of winning if you compete with them.”
“Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother? They are all in the Transformation Intent Realm, right?”
“The eldest is already at the eighth level of the Transformation Intent Realm, how can you compete?” Consort Hui sneered: “They are really shameless!”
Chu Zhiyuan said: “Isn't it only for those in the Qi Transformation Realm?”
“Originally it was only for you in the Qi Transformation Realm, but this time those three have shamelessly joined in.” Consort Hui showed a mocking expression and sneered repeatedly.
Chu Zhiyuan's expression became solemn.
