The Anarchic Consort

“Well then, let’s stop wasting time.” Zongzheng Wen Ren stood up, his eyes staring coldly at Baili Jia Jue. “What about the seal, how do you plan to fix it? Once the Divine Exorcist Seal is destroyed, not just the capital, but the entire Divine Mainland will face the invasion of the demons. Right now, all envoys of the three countries are here, so we have enough power to strengthen the seal.”

“You may deny us entry into the capital, and you may reject the idea of a political marriage. You can do whatever you like. However, this is a matter that concerns everyone else, so you can’t just do as your heart desires. Since the War Dragon Empire has your own Elder Compound, then why don’t we have a contest? Let’s see who is more competent at exorcism and necromancy. The winner will be the guardian of the seal.”

His words angered Wu Jing. “Prince Wen Ren, we all know that the Xuanyuan Kingdom is the most adept in necromancy. You’re just proposing this because you think we know nothing about exorcism. Why don’t we compare our skills in martial arts instead?”

“General.” Zongzheng Wen Ren smiled and replied sarcastically, “You can only use necromancy to neutralize demons and wraiths. If you use martial Qi to fight these ghosts, you will be the only one dying.”

Wu Jing was left speechless at once. He could only glare daggers at the enemy prince, while internally blaming himself as his ability could not be used.

The envoys from the other nations spoke up at this moment, “Prince Wen Ren is not wrong. Third prince, let us fight fairly. The winner of two out of three rounds should bear the responsibility of guarding the seal!”

As they were speaking, the exorcists behind them stood up as well. They started to flex their wrists, and when they looked at Wu Jing, their expressions were full of disdain. It was obvious that the other nations had come prepared. Right from the start, they had planned to propose this contest as an excuse for their armies to enter the capital.

Everyone knew that the War Dragon Empire’s Elder Compound had yet to recuperate, which was the only place where they would find any real exorcists to compete against.

The War Dragon Empire used to be the strongest among the four nations, but now, the other three nations had formed an alliance against them. As a scholar-official, Liu Yu was starting to feel anxious.

Zongzheng Wen Ren raised his eyebrows and spoke slowly, “Brother Baili, you would not reject this too, right?”

The exorcists chortled. It was obvious what they were laughing about.

“Your Highness!” A representative from the Elder Compound stepped forward. It was a young man with fire burning in his eyes. With recalcitrant wrath, he spoke, “Let me fight! I am capable of necromancy!”

Even so, his knowledge of necromancy seemed to be confined to mere theory, not practical skills. From the way he dressed, it was obvious that he was still an amateur.

The courtiers were more than aware of that, and the young man himself knew it too. They knew that they could not beat the rest. However, they could not just stand around and be bullied by these people!

“Alright!” Elder Xu Wu caressed his white beard and stepped forward. “Since there are no further objections to this competition, then we should determine the candidates and the rules. Let’s settle this matter quickly.”

Hearing this, the courtiers looked toward Baili Jia Jue. If His Highness had accepted the offer of a political marriage, then they would have avoided this complication.

Despite that, no one dared to say a single word. They were all afraid that they would be the next one to decorate the hall’s floors with their blood.

However, they have made up their mind that they would report this to the Retired Emperor when he returns.

Not only was there no news of pregnancy from the Third Princess Consort, now His Highness was rejecting the Xuanyuan Empire’s offer of marriage for her sake.

There was really no hope of them winning this contest!

After all these thoughts, someone finally stepped forward and kneeled down, kowtowing heavily as he said, “Your Highness, I have been a loyal servant of this kingdom for more than ten years. In light of my diligent service over so many years, I would just like to put in a word that the War Dragon Empire has never been known for our skills in necromancy. If we lose this contest, we will not only lose our dignity, but our entire empire! I entreat Your Highness to reconsider the offer of political marriage with Princess Zongzheng!”

“Please, Your Highness, please reconsider this political marriage proposal! ” Another courtier kneeled down and knocked his head twice on the ground.1

Elder Xu Wu beamed with delight. These old courtiers were indeed more sensible.

Throughout all of this, Baili Jia Jue stood there as perfectly as always, with a faint smile on his face. However, the kowtowing sounds made by the two courtiers triggered a cold look in his eyes, as he got ready to take action.

Helian Wei Wei tugged at his coat and shook her head.

Baili Jia Jue squinted at her, a dangerous look in his eyes. “Why are you stopping me? Did you not hear what they said, hmm?”

“I told you, I should do the killing and fighting.” Helian Wei Wei raised her head and smiled as she held his hand. “Your hands are too beautiful. They are not meant for fighting and killing. Furthermore, these two are Imperial Grandfather’s men, how would you explain yourself to him if you killed them?”

Baili Jia Jue lowered his head and smiled. “Wei Wei, you seem to have forgotten something.”

“Hmm?” Helian Wei Wei raised her eyebrows.

Baili Jia Jue replied nonchalantly, “I am a demon. It is only normal that a demon kills. But since you despise my bloody methods, fine, killing is a waste of energy anyway. If it was not for your sake, it would have been too much trouble to kill them too. They are not worthy of dirtying my hands, as I would have to spend a long time washing them.”

Helian Wei Wei: Those are humans, not a fly or a mosquito! Can you not speak of them so casually!?

Baili Jia Jue released Helian Wei Wei’s waist as he concluded his reply. He walked toward the two courtiers with brooding eyes and spoke coldly, “Help these two lords up.”

“Yes sir.” The shadow guards stepped forward with uniform movements.

The courtiers’ expression turned to delight as they thought that the Third Prince had finally come around to it.

Zongzheng Yu Er even looked at Helian Wei Wei and said in a soft voice, “I know the one he likes is you, but Helian Wei Wei, you cannot deny that marrying me would settle all his troubles, right? What about you? What can you do for him?”

Hearing these words, Helian Wei Wei’s lips curled as she smiled meaningfully.

Her expression enraged Zongzheng Yu Er. She took a deep breath and continued, “I do not want to make things too ugly. He will agree to marry me in a bit, so if you would give up your title as princess consort, I will ensure that the rest of your life would be fr… ”

Before she could finish her sentence, Baili Jia Jue’s cold voice boomed like shattered ice as it spread to the entire palace. “Did you not want a contest? Let us begin now, Lord Qi and Lord Xie. Please, just stand there and watch. Did you think that the War Dragon Empire would just lose like that?”

Zongzheng Yu Er’s face went rigid. She turned her head slowly and looked at Baili Jia Jue with an incredulous expression.

He still refused to marry her even when it came to this!?

How could the War Dragon Empire win in its current state!?

Zongzheng Wen Ren’s gaze turned cool. “Leng Yi, you will be our first representative. Be gentle, your opponent is a novice. Teach him what it means to be an exorcist!”

“Roger that.” The exorcist named Leng Yi stepped forward with a flippant expression on his face, like he had no regard for his opponent at all…

1 A sign of utmost respect, usually used when asking something difficult of someone. It involves kowtowing so low that you knock your head on the floor, usually multiple times.