Turns Out, I’m In A Villain Clan! Chapter 653 Baiting the Ninth Princess

"Heh!"

Qin Lingxiao looked at the invitation sent by the Imperial Court.

More specifically, the invitation to Yu Zidi's coronation ceremony.

It had been distributed to almost all of the major forces, including many clans and sects under her command.

Of course, for a big event such as the coronation of Desolate Heaven Empire's Emperor, it wasn't limited to just Desolate Heaven Empire.

The surrounding nation has also received the invitation including Empires like Vermillion Pill Empire and Falling Star Empire.

A faint sneer appeared on Qin Lingxiao's face.

She barely needed a glance to understand what it was.

A very obvious trap.

Yu Zidi was trying to lure her into making a move.

If she did nothing, then once the coronation was completed, Yu Zidi would officially become the Emperor of the Desolate Heaven Empire.

At that point, any action she took afterward could easily be branded as rebellion.

Whether she cared about such labels was another matter entirely.

However, legitimacy was still important, especially when trying to unite forces beneath a single banner.

Otherwise, even if she got the throne, if those people under her couldn't obey what she says, then what she did until now would be useless.

Qin Lingxiao lightly tapped the invitation against the table.

Her eyes remained calm.

These were merely some small tricks from Yu Zidi.

Unfortunately, she had little choice but to take the bait.

A cold light flashed through her eyes.

She could not afford to continue delaying.

It has already been a month since she suffered at the Bai Clan.

Every additional day increased the chances of more forces from the Central Glorious Continent becoming aware that the True God's legacy is in the Desolate Heaven Empire.

That was something she wished to avoid at all costs.

The fewer competitors, the better.

However, Qin Lingxiao was unable to take any swift action against Yu Zidi.

She has various methods by which she could have instantly gotten the throne.

For example, assassinating Yu Zidi which was probably the most efficient and quick.

Unfortunately, that idea had quickly reached a dead end because she could not find him at all.

No matter how many people she sent.

No matter how extensive her intelligence network became.

Yu Zidi's whereabouts remained a mystery.

She did not even know whether he was currently within the Imperial Capital or hidden somewhere else entirely.

It was as though he had vanished from the world.

So, even if she wanted to take any direct action against Yu Zidi, she couldn't.

As for infiltrating his faction and gradually taking control of his forces just as she did previously, that was even less practical.

The process was far too slow because of various officials and factions that the First Prince is allied with.

Unlike Yu Wenzhao or Yu Qingya, as far she knows, Yu Zidi didn't have a single major backing which if lost, he would lose.

Rather his backing were all the important officials of the Imperial Court who had a lot of connections.

If she were to start by taking his allies, it would require her to personally interact with numerous officials and influential figures.

Doing so would only risk exposing herself to greater traps.

Yu Feiyan was confident in her strength. After all, she was a Golden Immortal Realm cultivator.

But she was not arrogant enough to believe she could do whatever she wanted.

The lesson from the Bai Clan was still fresh in her mind.

If she encounters another unexpected obstacle just like the Bai Clan, then her plans will be for naught and she might end up suffering at the First Prince's hand.

Her eyes narrowed slightly.

Yu Zidi was not a simple opponent.

Many people thought that those old monsters who had lived for thousands of years were wise and omniscient.

In Yu Feiyan's opinion, that was just bullshit.

Most of them had spent the majority of their lives in seclusion.

When it came to schemes and political maneuvering, many of them were surprisingly lacking.

They might not be as good as the shopkeeper aunties on the street.

Many cultivators who spents most of their time in seclusion think that larger fists equal greater truth.

The people truly proficient at scheming were often those born into royal families.

People like Yu Zidi.

Individuals who had been immersed in political struggles from the moment they were born.

Every smile concealed intentions.

Every word carried hidden meanings.

Every action served a purpose.

Compared to them, many powerful cultivators seemed almost straightforward and naive.

Although they might possess higher cultivation, more often than not, they ended up losing against such scheming individuals.

Fortunately, Yu Feiyan was not one of those cultivators who relied solely on strength.

She understood various schemes to a certain extent due to her dealings with various royal families in the Central Glorious Continent.

Yet even so, she could not fully grasp what Yu Zidi was planning, nor could she predict what cards he still held in reserve.

However, just his decision to hide and not confront her directly showed just how cautious he is.

He might try to smear her reputation and whatnot but he has been avoiding direct confrontation and also revealing his position.

Qin Lingxiao slowly placed the invitation back onto the table.

Her gaze became firm.

In the end...

There was only one option.

She would need to attend.

The coronation ceremony was the one occasion where Yu Zidi would be forced to appear before her.

That might be the only opportunity for her to deal with him directly.

Otherwise, if she missed that chance as well, who knew for long he would go into hiding?

But she also knew that since he was making his appearance and even dared to give her force the invitation, he must have something planned.

"One month..."

Although it was a bit long, since she could not find him, she had no choice but to attend the so-called coronation and deal with him there.

***

Two months passed since Bai Zihan entered seclusion.

The only reason Bai Zihan finally emerged from seclusion was because today was the day of Yu Zidi's coronation.

The day the First Prince was supposed to ascend the throne and become the next Emperor of the Desolate Heaven Empire.

Naturally, Bai Zihan had already been informed when the invitation was first delivered to the Bai Clan.

At the time, he had been somewhat surprised, though not particularly shocked.

After all, from Yu Zidi's perspective, this was indeed the best move available.

Force Yu Feiyan to make a choice.

Either allow him to become Emperor or come and stop him.

Simple and effective.

That was, of course, only if Yu Feiyan were not Qin Lingxiao in disguise and did not possess Golden Immortal cultivation.

Aside from that matter, there had been nothing urgent enough to warrant interrupting Bai Zihan's cultivation.

As a result, he had remained in seclusion for another entire month.

Although only two months had passed in the outside world, for Bai Zihan, the cultivation wasn't limited to just that two months.

With effects of the 100× Cultivation Card and the 10× Cultivation Card, he was cultivating for more than two months.

To others, it had only been sixty days.

To Bai Zihan, however, it felt more like two to three years of cultivation.

The benefits were naturally enormous.

Of course, the price was equally enormous.

His System Points had been consumed at an alarming rate.

After checking his remaining balance, even Bai Zihan could not help but feel somewhat helpless.

Only a little over ten thousand points remained.

Compared to the mountain of points he once possessed, the current amount was almost insignificant.

Still...

Bai Zihan did not regret it.

Resources existed to be used.

What mattered was the result and the result was extremely satisfactory.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

He slowly opened his eyes.

[ "System!" ]

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[ Host Info ]

Host: Bai Zihan

Age: 20

Cultivation Realm: Great Ascension (Late)

Constitution: Primordial Chaos Body

Supreme Dao Bone

Martial Arts:

Nine Shadows Flowing Light Sword (Major Mastery)

Eternal Flowing Water Sword (Greater Mastery)

Fate Severing Slash (Greater Mastery)

Heaven's Mandate Reversal (Minor Mastery)

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In these two months, he had been able to break through from the Early Great Ascension Realm to the Late Great Ascension Realm.

That was an increase of two minor realms.

Not only that, he had also practiced his martial arts, but he was only able to increase the mastery of Heaven's Mandate Reversal technique by one level.

As for the others, it seemed that he would need much more intensive practice if he wished to improve them further.

Well, there was no time for that right now.

Not only did he need to attend the coronation, but he also needed to earn a few more points.

Considering what might happen during the upcoming coronation, Bai Zihan was certain that many opportunities would present themselves for him to earn System Points, which he could then use for cultivation.