My cultivation disguise has been exposed by Xiao Sizi.

The night breeze was slightly cool.

The streets of Chang'an appeared exceptionally empty under the moonlight.

Li Chengqian walked alone on the bluestone slab.

He did not ride in a carriage, nor did he bring any attendants.

The faded coarse cloth shirt he was wearing looked rather thin in the early autumn night breeze, but he didn't feel a chill at all.

On the contrary, he felt a surge of heat coursing through his body.

He looked down at his right leg.

Once, this leg felt like a heavy, rotten piece of wood, and every step was accompanied by excruciating pain and humiliation.

He was used to dragging it, used to relying on that sandalwood cane, and used to the pitying or mocking looks people gave him.

But now, every step he takes is as steady as a rock.

After half a month of chopping wood and carrying water, along with the inhuman nourishment from his sixteenth brother's spiritual medicine and true essence, he not only completely overcame his disability, but his body also accumulated unprecedented violent power.

The gates of the Prince of Wei's residence came into view at the end of the horizon.

The tall, vermilion gate was flanked by two imposing stone lions, and several bright red lanterns hung under the eaves.

Compared to the dilapidated side hall of the sixteenth brother's palace, this place is simply a paradise on earth.

"Halt! Who dares to trespass into the Prince of Wei's residence!"

Upon hearing footsteps, the two guards from the Prince's residence standing at the gate immediately drew their swords and demanded an explanation.

When they saw the newcomer dressed in shabby coarse clothes by the light of the lanterns, a hint of contempt flashed in their eyes.

"Go beg elsewhere! Are you blind? Don't you know where you are?! If you disturb His Highness Prince Wei, I'll chop you up and feed you to the dogs!"

Li Chengqian stopped and slowly raised his head.

Those eyes, which were usually filled with gloom and timidity, now pulsated with an almost beast-like clarity and fervor.

"Open your dog eyes and see clearly who I am."

Li Chengqian's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling, authoritative aura of someone who had long held a high position.

The two guards paused for a moment, then leaned closer to take a look. When they recognized the face, they were so frightened that the knife in their hands clattered to the ground, and their legs went weak, causing them to kneel down.

"Your Majesty... Your Highness the Crown Prince?!"

The guards looked like they'd seen a ghost.

Wasn't the Crown Prince lame? Shouldn't the Crown Prince have a large entourage when he goes out? Why is he dressed in tattered coarse clothes, looking like a farmer, and running here in the middle of the night?

"Get out of here."

Li Chengqian didn't even glance at them, and strode forward.

He didn't wait for the guards to announce that the door should be opened, but instead stretched out his hands and placed them on the two heavy vermilion doors.

Take a deep breath, and the muscles in your arms bulge instantly.

"Bang!"

A dull, loud bang.

The two heavy doors, which normally required four strong men to slowly push open, were shoved open by Li Chengqian with brute force, sending large clouds of dust flying from the door frame.

The guards kneeling beside them nearly popped their eyes out; just how much strength must that have been?!

Li Chengqian clapped his hands, strode over the high threshold, and walked straight towards the inner hall of the Prince of Wei's residence.

The inner room was brightly lit.

Li Tai was comfortably leaning back in a large pearwood chair covered with soft cushions.

Although he was ordered by his father to be confined to the palace, he did not feel stifled at all.

The table in front of him was laden with freshly roasted mutton, exquisite pastries, and a pot of wine, a tribute from the Western Regions.

He held a book in his hand, but his mind was not on the book at all.

"Hmph, that cripple Li Chengqian, now that Daizhou has fallen, everyone in the court and the public is watching him. Father's patience is almost exhausted."

Li Tai stuffed a piece of pastry into his mouth, muttering indistinctly with a smug look on his face, "The position of Crown Prince of the Great Tang will be mine sooner or later."

Just then, a series of steady and powerful footsteps came from outside the door.

Li Tai, mistaking him for a servant delivering late-night snacks, scolded him without looking up, "You ill-mannered wretch! Didn't I say no one is allowed to come in without my permission? Get out!"

"My brother is in high spirits. Even though he's been confined by Father, he can still eat so heartily."

A familiar voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, rang out at the entrance to the inner hall.

Li Tai's entire body of fat shuddered suddenly, and the pastry he was holding fell directly onto the table.

He looked up in disbelief at the doorway.

Li Chengqian then closed the door to the inner room with his other hand and bolted it shut.

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince?"

Li Tai stared wide-eyed at the man in front of him, dressed like a woodcutter but standing ramrod straight, and for a moment his mind was blank.

"You...your leg? How did you get in?"

Li Chengqian ignored his surprise.

He strolled slowly to the table, casually pulled over a chair, and sat down opposite Li Tai.

"I've made those unsightly servants wait outside in the courtyard."

Li Chengqian rested his hands on the table, leaned slightly forward, and wore an exceptionally kind smile.

That smile was exactly like the way the sixteenth brother would fool people.

"My dear brother, it's been a long time since we've had a private chat like this, behind closed doors."

Li Tai instinctively sensed that something was wrong.

The Li Chengqian before him no longer possessed the bluster and arrogance of the past; instead, he exuded a calmness and oppressive aura that sent chills down his spine.

"What exactly do you want?" Li Tai shrank back in his chair, shouting with a fierce but weak voice, "I'm still under house arrest, and you've broken into the Prince of Wei's residence in the middle of the night! I'm going to report you to my father!"

Li Chengqian ignored his threats.

He extended a finger and tapped it lightly on the table.

"Brother, you pride yourself on your exceptional talent and extensive knowledge of literature. Let me ask you a question."

Li Chengqian's smile grew wider and wider.

Do you know what the saying in the Analects, "The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits," actually means?

Li Tai frowned, completely baffled by this nonsensical question.

He snorted and subconsciously began to show off his knowledge.

"What's so difficult about that? This is the teaching of Confucius. It means that a virtuous person should follow the right path and not talk about strange, violent, disorderly, or supernatural matters."

"My royal brother came all this way in the middle of the night just to test my knowledge?"

"wrong."

Li Chengqian shook his head, his smile instantly vanishing.

Before Li Tai could react...

Li Chengqian clenched his right fist and exerted force from his waist. The violent power he had honed while chopping wood in the cold palace burst forth from his arm!

"Bang!"

A heavy straight punch, like a cannonball, landed without warning on Li Tai's round belly.

"vomit--!!!"

Li Tai's eyes bulged out instantly, and the fat on his face trembled violently.

The immense impact made his stomach churn violently. The pastries and mutton he had just eaten, mixed with acid and tea, were sprayed directly onto the carved pear wood table with a series of painful retching sounds.

He was like a boiled shrimp, clutching his stomach in pain, sliding off the chair and kneeling on the ground with a thud, his whole body convulsing wildly, unable to even catch his breath.