CROWN PRINCE'S CONCUBINE

He looked at the little ape called Xiao Jing for a while, it looked very adorable, physically he was just a young ape whose body size was half the biggest one who became their leader. But who would have guessed that this very cute animal had such a terrible poison?

Luo Xiang pulled Bai Ying’s hand up from his seat.

“Ying, they are dangerous creatures, I know you like Xiao Jing, you can let him live but he and the other apes will attack the citizens again. They are so dangerous, a little poison can melt skin and bones, even make their bodies rotten instantly. we can’t just let them go, just like other mystical creatures.”

Bai Ying holds Luo Xiang’s hand. He looked at the group of apes that had calmed down as if waiting for the little ape outside to talk to Bai Ying and others.

“Xiao Jing said, they use to live in the depths of Yue Yang and Dai Yang’s border forest. A place far from humans and other creatures, until a few days ago the ape leader heard a call from the ground that ordered all to come to Fo Wang Mountain to gather. Xiao Jing was too young, was immature and couldn’t listen to verbal orders from anyone, apart from their leader, but the supreme ape leader had a very close relationship with the King of the mountain, it followed orders that came from Fo Wang mountain without being able to resist them, consciously or not. They have no choice but to obey the call. They had come to this region to wreak havoc, the goal of which was to kill as many humans as they could and create commotion everywhere. Your Majesty, they are only carrying out orders, I guess Xiao Jing and the others really can’t help to refuse the call no matter how hard they try.” Bai Ying said.

Luo Xiang saw a group of apes who looked calm even though they were actually very dangerous.

“These apes are about to join forces with the forest lord to wreak havoc, does Ying think they can still be controlled?” Luo Xiang asked.

Chen Ming approached with Xiao Hong beside him.

.....

“Your Majesty, I’ve read about the yellow apes that inhabit the forests around Yue Yang and Wah Ye, they are basically peace-loving creatures, it’s a bit strange that they attack humans in the recent past”

Luo Xiang nodded.

“Some of it may be true Prince Chen, but from the legends I read, the yellow apes and others were part of the guardians of Fo Wang’s mountain, they dispersed from the mountain after Fo Wang was conquered, basically they are Fo Wang’s accomplices”

“But Your Majesty, it was already a hundred years ago, all this time Xiao Jing and the others were living in peace without anyone reporting their attack. The eldest may be the leader who is over a hundred years old, but, he was also too young during Fo Wang’s attack back then, just like Xiao Jing, the little apes can’t be influenced by even the King of the Jungle’s summons, we can’t finish them off because it’s not really their fault, Your Majesty” said Bai Ying still try to convince him.

Luo Xiang saw Bai Ying’s face for a moment and raised his hand to caress his cheek which was looking at him with a restless look.

“Your Majesty”

“Ying knows we don’t have much choice, this is a war, where the enemy is defeated to maintain peace, even though it’s difficult but there comes a time when we have to make that choice”

Bai Ying was silent, his pair of big round eyes staring at the Crown Prince began to tear up -glass, soon he might be crying. Luo Xiang wipe the tears from his eyes before they fell.

“This stupid kid”

“Maybe there is another choice,” said Chen Ming.

His voice made Bai Ying and the Crown Prince turn their heads at the same time, what other choice did he mean? asked the Crown Prince through his eyes.

Chen Ming looked at Xiao Hong, then looked at Xiao Jing and the apes.

“Xiao Ying, is the King of the Realm, and the King of the Forest Fo Wang is not the opponent of the King of the Jungle, if he wished, the King of the Realm could reverse the enchantment of the King of the Forest and make the apes free from their summons.”

Bai Ying frowned slightly confused by Chen Ming’s words.

“Brother, You mean”

Chen Ming looked at Xiao Hong and gripped his hand tightly.

“Did you forget that you have lifted the enchantment spell of the red firebird from Xiao Hong?” Chen Ming asked.

Just one of his words made Bai Ying understand, he widened his eyes.

“Of course, I remember that!”

...........

The wind was blowing hard over Fo Wang mountain. Finally, Princess Chai Ni’s group arrived at the top of a mountain that very few people visited. There was a large cave on top of a mountain covered with dense vegetation with sandy soil barely visible. There were hardly any creatures there, no small or large animals that could be seen as far as the eye could see.

Chai Ni and her men managed to climb up after passing through a steep, rocky, almost impassable path, and apart from Lu er her servant, there were only a few large men the head of the group from the Black Water clan who accompanied her to get there.

Seen in some parts of Chai Ni’s body there was blood still dripping from the wounds, they faced attacks in the middle of the path up there from any beast that appeared suddenly and killed more than half of the Black Water’s men.

Chai Ni’s legs looked a little limp, and although the blood was still dripping the young girl did not give up climbing up to the very top of the mountain which a hundred years ago was a gaping hole where Fo Wang volcano was. Now, it has become a fertile plain overgrown with many plants of all shapes and forms. It doesn’t even appear where the volcanic vent is.

“Princess” Lu er helped her princess to stand up straight with her legs bleeding, the servant girl herself did not escape wounds all over her body and still did not run away leaving her Princess alone no matter what.

Chai Ni pushed Lu er’s hand away and tried to stand up straight. She pushed her servant away as she stood alone on the edge of a cliff at the very top of Mt. Fo Wang. Letting her bloody hands drip onto the ground until they penetrated deep inside.

“King Fo Wang! I Chai Ni, the fifth generation of the female Reverend Lan Mo, give orders for Fo Wang. The king of the volcano to listen to my orders!” Chai Ni let go of a hairpin that let her hair loose completely, the wind blew her very long hair into the distance.

There was no sound there, although the hairpin made of red jade with the carving of a crow’s head that she held up high shone brightly, it was the Order Plaque belonging to the priestess tribe of the Wah Ye’s, which had long since been extinct since the fall of Wah Ye, in fact, long before that.

Chai Ni stabbed her palm with the sharp part of the hairpin that made her blood flow non-stop.

“Ah, princess!” Lu er shouted. Chai Ni was already badly injured, but she still injured herself so that her blood could seep into the ground she stepped on. Everyone doubted what the Princess did, but Chai Ni was very sure of what she was doing at that time.

“King Fo Wang, listen to my orders!” the little girl screamed loudly.

Nothing happened, only the sound of the wind blowing violently at the top of Fo Wang’s mountain. Until suddenly the ground beneath the feet of Chai Ni and the others shook.

“Earthquake” Lu er and the other clan members clung to whatever was near them. But the vibrations in the ground grew louder, so Chai Ni had to lower her body too so she wouldn’t fall. As if something coming out from the ground, the roots and twigs around her moved, even wrapped around her hands and feet, while the other part of the living roots burrowed into his clothes as if looking for something.

“Ah, what is this?”

Lu er and the others tried to get closer but the lively long branches knocked everyone away easily throwing them far back.

The living root and branch went under Chai Ni’s clothes and took something from inside, a small bottle that was in a small bag hanging from Chai Ni’s waist. In an instant, the living rootsbroke the small bottle and the contents spilt out. The red blood was instantly absorbed by the ground.

“Oooh, this blood, it’s so fresh, I can smell it from thousands of kilometres away, it’s a very tantalizing smell of blood.”

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