"How should we welcome him?"
Someone nearby spoke up.
"For the Crown Prince, of course we're thrilled to have him here."
The man with thick eyebrows said, "If the Crown Prince were just here to inspect, we'd behave properly. But this time, he's coming to serve as our Commander-in-Chief. In that case, we have to see what he's capable of—so we'll know how to learn from him in the future."
The others' eyes lit up. They all thought this excuse was brilliant.
"Exactly."
"It's not that we don't respect the Crown Prince, and it's not about offending him. We just want to witness his skills firsthand. That way, we can ask him for guidance more easily."
Every one of these veteran soldiers flashed a sly smile.
"And what if His Highness is unwilling to show us his abilities?" Zhou Zheng couldn't help but ask.
"Then we'll politely ask His Highness to stop visiting the camp. After all, life in the military is dull and rough—nothing like the comfort of fragrant beauties and warm jade."
The thick-browed man replied.
The soldiers all burst into laughter.
Just then, a cavalry squad appeared at the foot of Fire Dragon Mountain.
General Meng stepped up beside the golden dragon carriage, looking uneasy. "Your Highness, the Dragon Spear Army is full of gruff old veterans who don't know much about etiquette. But of course, they know their limits. They won't do anything too outrageous. Still, if you can't keep them in check, I'm afraid in the future they might..."
Yang Cheng cut in, "They'll start treating me like a good luck charm?"
General Meng wiped the cold sweat from his brow. "Please forgive me, Your Highness."
"I already said—I'm not that petty."
Yang Cheng's tone was calm. "And as for being treated like a good luck charm? If they're really capable of that, then it'd be Great Zhou's fortune. I'd be more than happy about it."
Those words made General Meng's heart sink.
It felt like His Highness hadn't taken him seriously at all.
That was bad.
But he didn't dare say another word, fearing he'd upset the Crown Prince.
Miao Shuangshuang was already giggling in her heart. 'Your Highness, I'm just waiting to see you get put in your place.'
At the mountain summit—
"Look down there—it seems the Crown Prince has arrived."
"That golden carriage is impressive. No wonder he's the Crown Prince."
"Gentlemen, just a reminder: behave yourselves later. That's the Crown Prince we're dealing with."
The Dragon Spear Army soldiers at the top were all abuzz with anticipation.
At the foot of the mountain—
The convoy stopped three li from Fire Dragon Mountain.
Yang Cheng gazed ahead.
Fire Dragon Mountain was one of the great wonders of the Wasteland Realm. It truly was awe-inspiring.
"Your Highness, our Dragon Spear Army's main camp is at the summit of Fire Dragon Mountain," General Meng said. "It looks scary, but the top of the mountain is like a world of its own. There's a lake and open space. It's not even that hot up there. Of course, the molten streams at the base and mid-slope are terrifying. We'll need to ride the flying vessel to reach the summit."
In the sky, a flying vessel hovered, pulled by four gryphons.
"Your Highness, please wait a moment. Once the vessel comes down, we can board and ascend."
General Meng explained.
"But since I'm already here, how can I not enjoy the view of Fire Dragon Mountain?"
Yang Cheng said suddenly.
Then he stepped down from the carriage.
A searing hot wind blew straight at him from the front, scorching the skin as if it would burn through flesh.
"Your Highness?"
The others looked at him in confusion.
They'd come all this way, and the Crown Prince still wanted to pull something unexpected?
Thousands of soldiers were waiting for him at the summit, yet he wanted to admire the scenery down here?
Yang Cheng ignored them and kept walking forward.
At the camp above, the soldiers leaned over to look down.
"Someone just got out of the carriage—it's a young man."
"Judging by General Meng and General Miao's attitude, he must be the Crown Prince."
"Why isn't he waiting for the flying vessel to land? Why is he walking toward Fire Dragon Mountain on foot?"
The soldiers were puzzled.
"I heard that those noble heirs always want to explore the scenery whenever they arrive at a landmark."
Someone suddenly said that.
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Then it became noisy all at once.
"The Crown Prince is trying to admire the scenery of Fire Dragon Mountain?"
The man with thick eyebrows frowned.
"We've got several thousand people waiting for him, and he wants to sightsee?"
"For royal descendants, this is normal. Let's just wait obediently."
The rest were all clearly unhappy.
"If this is what the Crown Prince is like, then even my lowest expectations were too high."
There was a flicker of anger in the thick-browed man's eyes.
Truth be told, he had held some hope for the Crown Prince.
After all, there were quite a few rumors about him.
Of course, he wasn't expecting the Crown Prince to be qualified to lead them right away, but if the Crown Prince had a wise and open mind, and was willing to be tempered by them, he might truly become a wise ruler in the future.
The same disappointed expression appeared on the faces of the other soldiers too.
At that very moment—
A lone figure stood apart from the crowd, quietly watching from the shadows.
It was Qin Qiansheng.
"So that's the Crown Prince of Great Zhou?"
She gave a slight cold snort.
But seeing Yang Cheng's behavior, she didn't look down on him like the others.
'The Book of Fate said today was the first time the original host met the Crown Prince, and it left a deep impression—though it didn't say exactly what happened.'
Qin Qiansheng murmured, "But from that alone, it's safe to assume the Crown Prince definitely isn't some useless playboy."
'Could it be... he already knows the Dragon Spear Army plans to give him a hard time, so he's deliberately putting these prideful veterans on ice with this move?'
At the foot of the mountain—
"Your Highness, are you intentionally trying to put the Dragon Spear Army in their place?" Miao Shuangshuang guessed.
"No. I just want to save time, that's all," Yang Cheng replied calmly.
Miao Shuangshuang curled her lips.
General Meng couldn't hold back and reminded him, "Your Highness, I've said before—the Dragon Spear Army is full of rough men. They're nothing like the civil officials. If you try to freeze them out, it might not only fail—it could backfire and spark their rebellion."
"When did I ever say I wanted to freeze them out?"
As soon as he said that, Yang Cheng's pace suddenly quickened.
"If you're not trying to snub them, then you—"
General Meng looked puzzled, but then he saw what Yang Cheng was doing.
His pupils suddenly shrank. It seemed like he'd realized something—but he still couldn't believe it.
And then, under the stunned gazes of everyone around, Yang Cheng dashed directly up the mountain.
"Oh no!"
Miao Shuangshuang's mouth dropped open. "The Crown Prince's been provoked—he's gone crazy and is actually trying to climb the mountain!"
"We're finished! If he gets burned to death by the molten lava, we and the whole Dragon Spear Army are done for!"
General Meng had thought the same at first.
But when he swept his gaze around and saw the Crown Prince's maid—her expression calm and unbothered—he suddenly started to doubt himself.
At the mountain peak—
"Everyone disperse. Since His Highness wants to wander around and enjoy the scenery, we might as well go rest. Once he's done, we'll come back."
The thick-browed man said.
The rest of the soldiers relaxed their posture. One after another, they stood lazily, some even hanging their arms around each other's shoulders.
"Lao Hu, since we've got time to kill, how about a little sparring?"
A round-faced officer called out to the thick-browed man.
The man replied, "Sure. Sounds like you still haven't accepted your last defeat—"
He didn't finish.
Zhou Zheng suddenly shouted, "Look—quick!"
"What's there to see?"
"Always making a fuss."
At first, the others didn't take it seriously.
But the next second—they were all stunned.
In that instant, every single soldier of the Dragon Spear Army saw an utterly jaw-dropping sight.