"No! Mother, why would you steal my Dragon Soul?!"
"Mother? Do you think you're fit to be my son? You're nothing but the bastard son of a lowly palace maid. I'm not afraid to tell you… I was the one who had your mother executed!"
"You little wretch. When I took you in, it was only for your Heavenly Dragon Battle Body. Sending you to the army was solely to nurture your soul through combat. Now that the Dragon Soul within you is fully formed, it's time to graft it into my son. It will elevate his Heavenly Phoenix Battle Body to the Dragon Phoenix Saint Body!"
Su Han shot up in bed, his eyes looking as if they might split from rage, his entire body drenched in cold sweat as though waking from a terrible nightmare.
No! That was no nightmare! My Heavenly Dragon Battle Body, my Dragon Soul… they've both been stolen from me!
"Empress, for ten years I served you as if you were my own mother! To think you were plotting against me for a decade… How laughable, how utterly laughable!"
Su Han trembled, and bloody tears seemed to stream from his eyes. A towering rage and killing intent surged from his heart before he suddenly burst into crazed, self-mocking laughter.
Su Han was of humble origin. His mother was merely a servant girl whom Wang Tianqing had favored one night while drunk. In his memory, his mother had a low status and was ostracized in the harem. Eventually, she fell into despair and threw herself down a well to her death.
After his mother died, the young Su Han was shown favor by the Empress, who brought him into the palace to be raised alongside the Great Crown Prince. Over ten years, they developed a deep bond, and Su Han came to treat the Empress as his birth mother.
Su Han was exceptionally gifted. He was not just the Ninth Prince, but he had also awakened the rare Heavenly Dragon Battle Body at a young age. To repay the Empress for her kindness in raising him, Su Han joined the Tianqing Army as a teenager, fighting in all directions and shedding his blood on the battlefield. It was all to help the Great Crown Prince secure support at court and solidify his position as the Crown Prince.
「A month ago, he had returned to the Heavenly Capital victorious.」
The Empress held a celebratory banquet in his honor, but Su Han never imagined she would drug his wine and steal his Dragon Soul!
In the Desolate Heavenly Ancient Realm, there was a ranking of Special Physiques that recorded the three thousand strongest in history, each one marking its owner as a prodigy. The Great Crown Prince originally possessed the Heavenly Phoenix Battle Body, which ranked just over one thousand. But after obtaining Su Han's Dragon Soul, it was elevated to the Dragon Phoenix Saint Body, ranking one hundred and eight!
With the Dragon Phoenix Saint Body, the Great Crown Prince would become a true dragon among men, a peerless talent of his generation!
And Su Han, deprived of his Dragon Soul, was now doomed to be a cripple for life.
Ten years of heartfelt devotion, scattered in a single day.
"You viper! I will kill you with my own hands and return this pain and hatred to you a thousand times over!"
Su Han clenched his fists, his body shaking and his eyes shot through with blood. An overwhelming hatred and a powerful killing intent filled his Heart Spirit, a hatred carved into his very bones!
CREAK.
A graceful figure pushed the door open and entered.
"Little Han, you're awake!"
A voice full of pleasant surprise rang out. Su Han saw a girl in a white dress who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen. She was utterly flawless, her black hair flowing like a waterfall and her skin as white as jade. Her face was as exquisite as a painting, and her teeth shone like pearls. At a glance, she was like a fairy who had descended to the mortal realm, stunningly beautiful, with a temperament as gentle as water. Her cheeks, however, were exceptionally pale and gaunt.
"Fairy Sister Yun Xian!" Su Han said, his gaze softening slightly.
This was the girl his mother had adopted, yet she was closer to him than any biological sister could be.
PFFT!
Just as Lu Yunxian was about to speak, her face went deathly pale, and she couldn't stop a mouthful of blood from erupting, staining Su Han's hair.
"Fairy Sister Yun Xian, what's wrong!"
Shocked, Su Han scrambled to support her. Only then did he notice a blood-stained porcelain bowl beside him, from which a peculiar fragrance wafted. In that instant, Su Han's heart felt as if it were being torn to shreds, and tears streamed down his face.
Lu Yunxian possessed the rare Qingmu Spirit Body. Her spiritual blood was as potent as any elixir, containing powerful healing properties. It was rumored that upon reaching Great Accomplishment, it could even bring the dead back to life and grow new flesh on bones.
Could it be? Has Fairy Sister Yun Xian been nourishing me with her spiritual blood all this time? Just how much blood has she given me while I was unconscious?
"Little Han, as long as you're awake, it was all worth it… I'll recover quickly," Lu Yunxian said with her usual gentle tone, quickly wiping the blood from her lips and forcing a smile.
"You wretch, have you forgotten the Empress's command? You are to give blood to the Great Crown Prince every three days—that's the only way you'll be allowed to keep this worthless dog alive!"
A harsh rebuke suddenly echoed as a man with a gloomy expression walked in. He was Steward Li from the palace, tasked by the Great Crown Prince to stand guard here.
"What? What did you say?"
Hearing those words, Su Han felt as though he had been struck by lightning. The blood vessels in his eyes bulged wildly as a firestorm of rage shot through him.
He knew Fairy Sister Yun Xian had been deceived.
He had fought for the empire for years. If he had been poisoned and killed right after a triumphant return, it would have undoubtedly caused a massive uproar, possibly even jeopardizing the Great Crown Prince's bid for the throne. The Empress had only ever wanted his Dragon Soul!
Poor Lu Yunxian, who only wanted to save his life, had been used.
The Empress had schemed against him for a decade, and now she had her sights set on Fairy Sister Yun Xian's spiritual blood!
What a venomous heart!
Steward Li grabbed Lu Yunxian's slender wrist and slapped her so hard she tumbled to the floor. Looking down at the delicate and beautiful girl, a wicked fire ignited within him. "If you serve me well today and make me happy, I'll turn a blind eye to this matter..."
Seeing the fury on Su Han's face only seemed to excite Steward Li more.
"I've wanted to have you for a long time. You're going to die sooner or later anyway, so you might as well please me first. It's perfect timing, too, since this piece of trash just woke up. Today, I'm going to take you right here in front of him!"
Weak from blood loss, Lu Yunxian's frantic struggles were futile.
"I'll kill you!"
Su Han's eyes were blood-red, his killing intent surging. He struggled to his feet and lunged at Steward Li. But he had just woken up and was incredibly weak. How could he possibly be a match for Steward Li, who was at the Fifth Layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm?
"Get lost, you waste!"
Steward Li lashed out with a kick, sending Su Han flying.
PFFT!
Like a kite with its string cut, Su Han crashed to the floor. He couldn't suppress the mouthful of blood that sprayed from his lips before his vision went black and he passed out.
Just as he lost consciousness, the blood he had coughed up splashed onto a bronze ring on his finger.
Instantly, a flash of green light shot out from the ring and entered the space between his eyebrows.
The next moment, his consciousness appeared inside a massive palace.
Above the palace floated three enormous words, formed from coagulated blood:
Prison Divine Palace