Joy of Life: Me, the Second Prince? Summon Yuan Tiangang!

Li Chengze casually accepted the visiting card presented by Zhao Gao, but did not rush to open it.

His peach blossom eyes, which always seemed to carry a hint of sleepiness, were now scrutinizing the man before him, shrouded in a black robe, who was considered the greatest assassin in the world before the appearance of the Net.

The shadow was also looking at Li Chengze, but he kept his eyes down, displaying his own arrogance.

But today, in the Second Prince's mansion, which has just experienced a silent massacre, Shadow feels no advantage as a "hunter".

On the contrary, he felt as if he had walked into a bottomless abyss of evil, with countless scarlet eyes staring greedily at him, ready to tear him to pieces at any moment.

Li Chengze's slender fingers lightly traced the subtle patterns on the edge of the visiting card, a lazy smile playing on his lips: "Dean Chen, you're too kind. I merely found the courtyard too infested with mosquitoes and casually swept it up. How did it disturb the old dean's household, prompting him to send someone as important as you to make the trip in person?"

As he spoke, he casually flipped open the visiting card.

The handwriting on the visiting card was vigorous and elegant, exuding a sharp and resilient spirit despite the vicissitudes of life; it was indeed Chen Pingping's own handwriting.

There are only two lines of text above:

"Spring thunder awakens the insects, and all things come to life. Now that Your Highness has cleared the weeds from your courtyard, I will personally visit you in half a month to ask for a cup of new tea and enjoy the spring scenery of your courtyard."

As Li Chengze looked at the two lines of text, the smile on his lips gradually widened, and finally he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Interesting, very interesting." Li Chengze casually tossed the visiting card onto the small table in front of him, picked up a glass of Western Region wine that Jing Ni had just poured, and gently swirled the clear crystal glass. "Is the old dean telling me that he knows I pulled out the 'weeds' in this yard, and that he wants to come and see for himself what kind of man-eating exotic plants I've planted in this yard?"

The shadow stood silently in place, without saying a word.

Although his gaze remained fixed straight ahead, the corner of his eye was always on Zhao Gao behind Li Chengze, and on the maid Jingni who was peeling grapes.

Too dangerous.

This is Shadow's intuition as a top assassin.

The maid who was peeling grapes, though she had concealed her aura, still unleashed a pure, cold sword intent that had been present for a moment, without a trace of superfluous emotion.

That wasn't swordsmanship for friendly sparring; it was a swordsmanship born for slaughter. Shadow even felt that if he were to face that maid and try to win, he would likely have to pay an extremely heavy price.

What truly chilled Shadow to the bone was the middle-aged man with a effeminate face, dressed in a dark red robe.

Zhao Gao.

The man stood there like a black hole, swallowing up all the light and life around him. The cold, viscous malice emanating from him, carrying a strong, bloody stench, reminded the shadow of a giant, venomous spider weaving its web in the abyss, waiting for its prey.

"Ninth Rank Upper... No, this feeling... it's even touched that membrane..." Shadow was secretly shocked. He himself was at the peak of Ninth Rank Upper, only one step away from Grandmaster, but he actually felt a sense of oppression from this red-robed man that could threaten his life.

Besides the two obvious experts, Shadow could also clearly sense that around this seemingly peaceful courtyard, in the shadows of the artificial hills, corridors, and rooftops, there were at least a dozen faint presences hidden.

Each of their auras was no weaker than an eighth-rank! Moreover, their methods of concealing their auras were extremely skillful. If Shadow hadn't been naturally sensitive to killing intent, he probably wouldn't have been able to detect their presence at all.

"No wonder..." Shadow suddenly realized. No wonder the thirty-six elite spies that His Majesty and the Censorate had planted here were all wiped out without even uttering a scream. With such a terrifying net covering them, let alone thirty-six spies, even three hundred would not return alive.

"Go back and tell Dean Chen." Li Chengze downed the red wine in his glass in one gulp, then casually tossed the crystal glass onto the grass with a dull thud.

He raised his head, his gaze passing over the shadows to the direction of the Imperial Censorate, a glint of unfathomable light in his eyes: "Tell me about his visiting card; I have accepted it. In half a month, my confinement will end, and the gates of the Second Prince's residence will be open at any time for the old abbot. At that time, I will certainly prepare the finest crimson robes to properly entertain him."

At this point, Li Chengze paused, his smile turning somewhat sinister: "However, I would like to request that the old headmaster use the main gate when he comes. I recently replaced the guard dogs in this manor with a new batch, and they are not very good-tempered. If anyone is foolish enough to try to climb over the wall or crawl through a hole, and ends up being bitten to death by the dogs, I will not be responsible for compensation."

The shadow bowed slightly, its voice still hoarse and cold: "I will certainly convey Your Highness's words. Farewell."

Having said that, Shadow turned around without hesitation and strode away.

"No need to see me out." Li Chengze waved lazily, lay back down on the recliner, and closed his eyes.

Zhao Gao watched the departing figure, a chilling murderous intent flashing in his narrow eyes. He leaned down slightly and whispered in Li Chengze's ear, "Your Highness, this man's movements are unpredictable, his strength is extremely high, and he is extremely sensitive to killing intent. If we keep him alive, he may become a great threat in the future. Should I send Yan Ri to...?"

"No need." Li Chengze interrupted Zhao Gao with his eyes closed. "Shadow is Chen Pingping's lifeline. Now is not the time to completely break ties with the Observation Bureau. Besides, keeping him alive to report back will let Chen Pingping and the Emperor know that my mansion is full of hidden talents."

Li Chengze's lips curled into a cold smile: "What I want is for them to be wary and suspicious. In this game, whoever fails to figure out the other's hand first has already lost half the battle."

……

Outside the Second Prince's residence.

The heavy, vermilion gate slowly closed behind us with a dull thud, as if separating two completely different worlds.

The shadow stood on the empty street, the spring sun shining on his black robe, but it could not dispel the chill in his bones.

A gentle breeze blew by, and the shadow suddenly shivered.

Only then did he realize with horror that his underwear was completely soaked with cold sweat. It clung stickily to his back, chilling him to the bone.

how many years?

Since he met Yuan Tiangang in that valley many years ago, he had never experienced this feeling called "fear" again.

But in that short span of time, in the seemingly peaceful Second Prince's residence, he actually felt the threat of death once again.

"This is terrifying..." Shadow took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging waves of horror in his heart. His figure flashed, transforming into a black lightning bolt, and he sped towards the Imperial Censorate. He had to report everything he had seen and heard in this mansion to Chen Pingping as soon as possible, word for word.

……

The Forensic Institute was located deep within a dimly lit study that never saw sunlight.

Chen Pingping remained seated in his wheelchair, eyes closed in rest. The study was so quiet that only the soft sound of sand flowing in an hourglass could be heard.

Suddenly, the shadow in the corner of the study stirred, and the figure of the shadow silently emerged.

Chen Pingping didn't open his eyes, but simply asked calmly, "You're back? The invitation was delivered?"

"It's been delivered." Shadow's voice was still hoarse, but if you listened carefully, you could detect a hint of undisguised seriousness in his tone. "The Second Prince said he agreed. His confinement period ends in half a month, and he will be ready to await the Dean's arrival at any time. He also said..."

"What else did he say?" Chen Pingping slowly opened her eyes, her gaze sharp.

"He also said that you must go through the main gate when you go. He just changed the guard dogs in his mansion. They have bad tempers. If someone climbs over the wall or goes through a hole and gets bitten to death, he will not be responsible." Shadow repeated Li Chengze's words.

Upon hearing this, Chen Pingping was slightly taken aback, and then couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Hahaha... What a Li Chengze! What a Second Prince!" Chen Pingping laughed until tears streamed down his face. He pounded on the armrest of his wheelchair. "This kid, he's been hiding his true colors for a long time! Now that he's finally showing his fangs, he dares to directly threaten this old cripple of the Censorate! Interesting, very interesting!"

After laughing for a while, Chen Pingping gradually stopped, his eyes becoming incredibly deep and cold: "It seems our Second Prince has truly gained power. Tell me, what did you see and feel in his residence?"

The shadow was silent for a moment, as if organizing its thoughts, trying to accurately express the indescribable sense of oppression.

"Very strong. Stronger than I imagined." Shadow took a deep breath and said slowly, "The moment I stepped into the mansion, I was locked onto by at least fifteen killing intents. The owners of these killing intents are all no weaker than the eighth rank, and they are extremely skilled in concealment and assassination. Their aura blends into the surrounding environment. If it weren't for my innate sensitivity, I wouldn't have been able to detect them at all."

Chen Pingping's eyes narrowed slightly: "Fifteen assassins of rank eight or higher? Are you sure?"

"Confirmed." Shadow nodded. "But that's not the most terrifying thing. The most terrifying thing is the two people standing next to the Second Prince."

"Oh?" Chen Pingping became interested. "Tell me more about it."

"One is a woman dressed as a maid. Her sword intent is extremely pure. If I were to fight her, the outcome would be... fifty-fifty."

Chen Pingping's fingers suddenly paused.

He knew Shadow's strength best. For Shadow to give a "50/50" evaluation, that maid must be a top-tier existence of the ninth rank.

"And the other one?" Chen Pingping's voice became low.

"The other one was a middle-aged man in a dark red robe, with a effeminate face, like a eunuch. The Second Prince called him Zhao Gao." As he spoke this name, Shadow's body tensed imperceptibly. "This man... was terrifying. Standing there, he was like a giant, blood-soaked spiderweb. His aura was cold, viscous, and carried a nauseating malice. I had a feeling that if he made a move, I might... not be able to leave that courtyard."

"hiss--"

Even with Chen Pingping's composure, he couldn't help but gasp upon hearing this.

For the Shadow, the world's greatest assassin, to utter words like "I can't leave the courtyard," could Zhao Gao's strength already be...?

"Grandmaster?" Chen Pingping stared intently at the shadow.

"No, not a Grandmaster." The shadow shook its head. "A Grandmaster's aura is as vast as the sea, merging with heaven and earth. But this person's aura is purely restrained and destructive. He hasn't broken through that barrier, but he definitely possesses the strength to kill a ninth-rank expert, and might even... have some means to contend with a Grandmaster."

A deathly silence fell over the study.

Chen Pingping leaned back in her wheelchair, closed her eyes, and her mind raced.

Fifteen assassination masters of the eighth rank or above.

A top-tier female swordswoman of the ninth rank.

A red-robed man of unfathomable strength, suspected of possessing methods to rival a Grandmaster.

What a massive and terrifying force this is!

More importantly, the Forensic Service was completely unaware of this force before this!

"Spider web... Zhao Gao..." Chen Pingping muttered to himself, then suddenly opened his eyes, a terrifying glint in them. "A net! 'A net that can penetrate anywhere'... They're hiding in the Second Prince's residence!"

Chen Pingping felt her breathing become rapid.

He originally thought that the Second Prince had only secretly trained a group of assassins, but he never expected that what Li Chengze held in his hands was a terrifying killing machine that was enough to overturn the situation in the capital!

"This is absolutely not a force that Li Chengze could have cultivated on his own," Chen Pingping said decisively. "How old is he? Even if he started recruiting experts from birth, it's impossible for him to build such a large force silently under the noses of the Observation Bureau. Moreover, how could experts of Zhao Gao's and Jing Ni's caliber easily submit to a prince without any foundation?"

The shadow asked, "What does the Dean mean...?"

"Cooperation. Or rather, some kind of alliance." Chen Pingping's fingers tapped on the armrest again. "This 'Net' has chosen the Second Prince for cooperation."

Chen Pingping slammed his hand on the armrest of his wheelchair and shouted sharply, "Prepare the carriage! I need to go to the palace to see the Emperor immediately!"

The seriousness of this matter has far exceeded the scope of a princes vying for the throne.

If he wasn't mistaken, the Luo Wang organization wanted to interfere in the royal power struggle!

……

The Imperial Palace, the Imperial Study.

Emperor Qing was dressed in a loose-fitting casual robe, sitting cross-legged behind a large imperial desk. In his hand, he held a carving knife and was intently carving the arrowhead of a white-feathered arrow.

Sunlight streamed through the window, bathing him in a soft golden glow, making him look less like an emperor wielding the power of life and death and more like a focused craftsman.

"Chen Pingping, why aren't you catching rats in your inspection hall? What are you doing here?" Emperor Qing asked casually, without looking up, as he carefully polished the barbs on the arrowhead.

Chen Pingping, seated in a wheelchair, was pushed to the imperial desk by a young eunuch. He waved his hand, signaling the eunuch to leave, then bowed slightly and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, I have come for the Second Prince."

There's a surprise in Chapter 74, Chen Pingping's conjecture. Click here to unlock it now.