The saintess is pregnant, what does that have to do with me, a spoiled brat?

At dusk, the setting sun cast a blood-red glow over the Xishan camp.

More than a hundred private soldiers from the Marquis of Changxing's mansion had been hanging on wooden stakes at the edge of the drill ground all afternoon and were no longer moving, like a row of dried-out cured meat.

The heavy sound of horses' hooves came from outside the camp.

The head steward of the Marquis of Changxing's mansion arrived with more than a dozen large carts, sweating profusely.

"Young Master Xu, the money has been brought." The old steward, his face ashen, gritted his teeth as he handed over the gift list. "One million two hundred thousand taels of silver, not a penny less."

Xu Nuo sat on the command platform, toying with a short knife in his hand.

"Lin Hu, count the money."

The veterans of the Zhenbei Army pounced on the chest like wolves, prying it open. The gleaming silver was dazzling.

After Lin Hu finished counting, Chong Xu nodded.

"Release them," Xu Nuo waved his hand.

The guards drew their swords and cut the cowhide ropes. More than a hundred private soldiers fell to the ground like dumplings, their cries of agony filling the air.

Zhang Kuang was dragged out of the main tent, completely exhausted. When he saw the old steward, he burst into tears.

"Take them away." The old steward didn't want to stay a moment longer, so he had Zhang Kuang and his private soldiers stuffed into an empty car and slunk away.

Li Wanning stood next to Xu Nuo, looking at the boxes of silver, swallowing hard.

"At the speed at which you make money, even the national treasury would have to call you an ancestor."

Xu Nuo ignored her and turned to look at Lin Hu.

"Bring two hundred thousand taels of silver and distribute it among the brothers in the camp. Send the rest to Wanbaoge and exchange it for low-grade spirit stones. We need it tonight."

Lin Hu accepted the order and left.

Li Wanning's eyes widened: "One million taels for spirit stones? Are you crazy? Do you know how much one million taels can do?"

"What can you do?" Xu Nuo glanced at her. "Can you buy my life?"

Li Wanning choked.

"Since the Second Prince and Shen Qingyi have gotten together, they're definitely up to no good." Xu Nuo stood up, dusted off his clothes, and said, "In this capital, only the knife in your hand is truly reliable."

late at night.

The manager of Wanbaoge personally escorted 100,000 low-grade spirit stones to the Xishan camp.

Inside the main tent.

One hundred thousand spirit stones were piled up like a mountain, and the rich spiritual energy almost turned into a tangible white mist.

Xu Nuo sat cross-legged in the pile of spirit stones.

Li Wanning was driven out by him, and Lin Hu and his personal guards stood guard outside the tent, so that not even a fly could get in.

Xu Nuo closed his eyes and formed a mudra with his hands.

The Ancient Dragon-Summoning Technique was operating at full speed.

boom!

The jade pendant on his chest burst forth with a dazzling dark golden light. The Primordial Dragon Soul let out a deafening roar, opened its abyssal maw, and inhaled sharply.

One hundred thousand spirit stones exploded simultaneously.

The raging spiritual energy transformed into a white, furious dragon, which surged wildly into Xu Nuo's body through his seven orifices.

The meridians were instantly filled, and a tearing pain spread throughout the body.

Xu Nuo gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.

"Refine it for me!"

The dark golden energy surged wildly within his body, forcibly taming the raging spiritual energy and integrating it into his limbs and bones.

The eighth dragon pattern solidified completely.

Immediately afterwards, the ninth dragon pattern began to appear and disappear.

Initial stage of the third rank.

Middle stage of third grade.

Click.

A crisp sound came from inside my body, as if some kind of shackle had been broken.

Late stage of Rank 3!

Xu Nuo suddenly opened her eyes, and a flash of dark gold vertical pupils appeared in her pupils.

A violent pressure erupted from him, directly blowing the roof of the main tent off the ground.

Lin Hu and the others outside the tent were forced back several steps by this oppressive aura, their faces filled with horror.

"The Crown Prince has broken through again?"

Xu Nuo stood up, feeling the world-destroying power within her.

Late stage of the third rank.

He was only one step away from reaching the second rank.

He glanced down at the grayish-white powder scattered on the ground. Ten thousand spirit stones, gone just like that.

"It's a fucking bottomless pit," Xu Nuo cursed.

But it was worth it.

With this level of cultivation, no matter what tricks the Second Prince and Shen Qingyi played during the autumn hunt, he would have the confidence to overturn the table.

The next morning.

The palace eunuchs arrived at the Xishan camp with great fanfare, carrying the imperial edict.

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The royal autumn hunt will take place in three days. The elite cavalry battalion of the Western Hills Camp is to be responsible for perimeter security, and there must be no mistakes. So be it."

After the old eunuch finished reading the imperial edict, he looked at Xu Nuo with a smile.

"Young Master Xu, receive the imperial decree."

Xu Nuo knelt on one knee and accepted the imperial edict with both hands.

"I obey your decree."

After the old eunuch left, Li Wanning approached and frowned as he looked at the rolled-up, bright yellow imperial edict.

"Guarding the outer perimeter of the autumn hunt is a tough job. Moreover, the Western Hills Camp has never been responsible for this kind of thing; it's always the Imperial Guards' job."

Li Wanning lowered his voice: "The Second Prince must have tampered with it."

"Obviously." Xu Nuo casually tossed the imperial edict onto the table.

"Then why did you answer?"

"Disobeying the imperial decree is a capital offense, and I haven't lived enough yet." Xu Nuo pulled up a chair and sat down. "Besides, since they've set up the stage, wouldn't it be a waste of their good intentions if I didn't perform a piece?"

Li Wanning was furious at his nonchalant attitude.

"Do you know the rules of the autumn hunt? The outer perimeter guard is basically a human shield for those royal relatives. If a monster charges out, you'll be paid with your lives!"

"Moreover, Shen Qingyi will definitely go. The Holy Maiden of the Primordial Holy Land has unfathomable cultivation. If she secretly attacks you, you won't even know how you died!"

Xu poured himself a cup of tea and took a slow, deliberate sip.

"She'd better not mess with me."

Xu Nuo put down her teacup, her eyes cold.

"Otherwise, I wouldn't mind having the Primordial Holy Land replace its Holy Maiden."

Three days later.

West Mountain Hunting Grounds.

Banners blotted out the sun, and bugles filled the sky.

Emperor Li sat on the high stands, clad in golden armor, exuding majesty.

Below, members of the imperial family and noble sons, dressed in fine clothes and riding spirited horses, were eager to try their luck.

The Second Prince, Li Chengqian, rode a pure black Akhal-Teke horse, his cold gaze sweeping over the elite cavalry guarding the outer perimeter.

Xu Nuo, dressed in light black armor, was riding an ordinary warhorse and yawning listlessly.

"Your Highness, everything has been arranged."

Wang Yuan, the Vice Minister of Revenue, approached Li Chengqian's horse and lowered his voice.

"The third-tier demonic beast deep within the hunting grounds has been lured into the area defended by the elite cavalry. Once the beast charges, the elite cavalry will be thrown into chaos."

A cold smile curled at the corner of Li Chengqian's lips.

"What about Shen Qingyi?"

"The saint has already gone in. She said that if Xu Ruo is alone, she will take his life."

"Very well." A murderous glint flashed in Li Chengqian's eyes. "Today, I will make sure Xu Nuo dies without a burial place."

The bugle sounded again.

The autumn hunt has officially begun.

Large numbers of people flooded into the hunting grounds like a tidal wave.

Xu Nuo led the elite cavalry to guard a canyon entrance on the outermost edge of the hunting grounds.

This is the easiest route for monsters to escape.

"Young Master, something's wrong with this place." Lin Hu gripped the hilt of his sword, warily surveying the dense jungle around him. "It's too quiet. Not even a bird's chirp."

Xu Nuo sat on horseback, gazing calmly into the depths of the canyon.

"Of course it's quiet. Something big is about to come out."

The voice just fell.

Roar--!

A deafening roar came from the depths of the canyon.

The ground began to shake violently.

A massive black-armored bear, the size of a small mountain, crashed through more than a dozen towering trees and charged out with red eyes.

A Tier 3 monster, the Ironclad Berserker Bear!

Equivalent to the peak of the third rank among human martial artists!

The pampered soldiers of the elite cavalry had never seen anything like this before. They turned pale with fright, and their formation instantly fell into chaos.

"A demonic beast! It's a third-tier demonic beast!"

"Run!"

Some people turned their horses around and tried to run away.

Clang!

Xu Nuo drew his long sword from his waist and cleaved the fleeing man's warhorse in two with a single stroke.

The man fell to the ground, his face filled with terror.

"Anyone who dares to back down will be killed without mercy." Xu Nuo's icy voice echoed throughout the entire arena.

He dismounted, sword in hand, and walked step by step toward the charging armored bear.

"Lin Hu, hold the formation. I'll handle this beast."

Lin Hu was shocked: "Young Master! That's a third-tier demonic beast, with thick hide and tough flesh. Even a second-rank martial artist would have difficulty breaking through its defenses!"

Xu Nuo ignored him.

He watched the giant bear getting closer and closer, a sinister smile creeping onto his lips.

"Perfect, I'll use you to test the knife."

boom!

Dark golden energy surged into the sky.

Xu Nuo exerted force with both legs, and a large crater instantly appeared in the ground.

He charged towards the armored bear like a cannonball.

The giant bear roared and swung its massive paws, slamming them down on Xu Nuo with a piercing whooshing sound.

This single strike was enough to shatter the city wall.

He promised not to dodge or avoid.

Nine dragon patterns within his body lit up simultaneously.

The phantom of the Primordial Dragon Soul appeared behind him, emitting a soul-shaking dragon roar.

"die!"

Xu Nuo gripped the sword with both hands, and dark golden energy enveloped the blade, transforming it into a giant blade several meters long, which he slashed down fiercely at the bear's paw.

Click!

The bear's paw, as hard as iron, was severed with a single stroke.

Blood gushed out like a waterfall.

The giant bear let out a mournful howl, its massive body lost its balance, and crashed to the ground.

The promise was made without pause.

He leaped high onto the giant bear's body, his long sword plunging down and piercing the bear's eye socket, penetrating its brain.

The screams abruptly stopped.

The massive armored bear twitched a few times and then fell completely still.

The entire room fell silent.

The soldiers of the elite cavalry stared wide-eyed at Xu Nuo, who stood atop the giant bear's carcass, covered in blood, as if he were a god of war.

A knife.

Instantly kills a third-tier monster!

Xu Nuo drew his long sword and shook off the blood.

He raised his head and looked up at a dense forest above the canyon.

"Have you seen enough?" Xu Nuo asked indifferently. "If you have, then get out here."

In the dense forest.

Shen Qingyi, dressed in a green robe, slowly walked out.

She looked down at the enormous monster corpse, then at Xu Nuo, a look of extreme shock flashing in her usually cold eyes.

Late stage of Rank 3!

How is that possible?

A few days ago at Zuixianlou, he was clearly only at the early stage of the third rank!

"Primordial Saintess, Shen Qingyi," Xu Nuo pointed the tip of his knife at her, "Did the Second Prince send you to kill me?"

Shen Qingyi did not speak.

A long, icy blue sword appeared out of thin air in her hand, its blade radiating a chilling aura.

"Xu Nuo, you've certainly hidden your true intentions well," Shen Qingyi said coldly. "But today, you must die."

"yes."

Xu Nuo smiled.

He jumped off the giant bear carcass and walked step by step toward Shen Qingyi.

"I hate it when people point a sword at me."

Xu Nuo's eyes instantly turned extremely dangerous.

"Since you've come to me of your own accord, you're not leaving today."