Chapter Fourteen: The Scarlet Snake

  The Guan family is just like the Zhao family, a hereditary military family, but their current situation is vastly different. The Zhao family has already declined, while the head of the Guan family, Guan Yu, holds the official title of "Martial Marquis" and commands all the troops in the land.

  Not far from the Zhao family's residence was a grand mansion that was on the same scale as theirs, but its aura was even more overwhelming.

  The interior of the house has a well-arranged attic, with neat and tidy rows, giving off the aura of a military general.

  In the study, Guan Xing and his son Guan Miao were discussing the matter of the crown prince.

  Guan Xing looked like he was only over thirty years old, with a star-shaped eyebrow and sword-like eyes, his eyes seemed to have a murderous aura, and he had an air of majesty without even being angry.

  He was over twenty years old and held the position of Zhong Hu Jun, a top general in the army.

  "Father, although this matter has happened suddenly, I have also been prepared for it. And with my sister's cleverness, she may already be planning something. As for the position of Crown Prince, except for Zhou Jian, we all have a chance."

  He said with a slight squint of his eyes.

  "Is that an opportunity? What's that, we want to ensure that Fei'er takes the throne." Guan Xing's face revealed a hint of arrogance and overbearingness.

  "Right, we must support Fei'er in her ascension."

  The arrogant air of being managed suddenly surged, and Guan Que's confidence also immediately soared, with a determined look on his face.

  The butler had also made preparations.

  …….

  Chongtian Marquis Ming's family, for generations a noble house, is the most prominent among the powerful and wealthy. The current Chongtian Marquis Ming Yuan is even more illustrious, holding the high-ranking position of Grand Minister of Works, making him the most distinguished among all the Chongtian Marquises throughout history.

  A luxurious mansion located in the southern part of the city, with an aura that is overwhelming. The Chongtian Marquis Manor is one of the top-notch ones among them.

  Inside the mansion, flowers and birds are fragrant, fish are sweet, and a noble atmosphere presses upon people.

  In the hall, Mingyuan sat separately with his two sons.

  At the age of 45, he looked like a man in his early 40s, with fair skin and elegant temperament, exuding an air of nobility. He sat on his knees, his hands naturally placed on his thighs, looking very dignified.

  Mingyuan's eldest son, Mingde, looked very similar to his father and was appointed as the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat. He sat on Mingyuan's right side, with bright eyes shining, looking very thoughtful.

  The second son, Ming Dian, is slightly younger, but also a government official. Kneeling on the left side of Ming Yuan, he looks quite clever too.

  "Father, this time we are also well-prepared. In terms of the power in the dark, we are not weaker than the Guan and Deng families. But I'm afraid my sister doesn't have that kind of mind."

  Thinking of his sister Ming Fei's personality, Ming Dian sighed.

  "Don't worry, your sister indeed doesn't have that kind of mind, but your nephew is ambitious. Moreover, because your sister doesn't have that kind of mind, she appears to be virtuous and naturally more suitable for the position of queen, isn't it?"

  Mingyuan stroked his beard and said with a smile.

  "Now the arrow is on the string and cannot be withheld. Anyway, our Ming family will take action. The question is how to win. De Er, do you have a good strategy?"

  At the same time, Mingyuan also had thoughts of considering his son, and turned to say to Mingde.

  "We three families are actually balanced, but the main one is still the Zhao family and the power of those old ministers in the court. These people can destroy the balance."

  Mingde also knew his intention and deeply understood it.

  "It's not easy to win over those old ministers." Ming Dian suddenly understood what Ming De meant, but also frowned.

  "It's indeed not easy, but we have an advantage. Don't forget that sister is not only the most virtuous, she also had a relationship with Empress Zhao back then, this is a breakthrough." Ming De said with a smile.

  "Well said."

  Mingyuan thinks Mingde's intention is good.

  Then, Mingyuan patted his palm and laughed: "On the day of the crown prince's enthronement, you must not go to fight for the king. We just need to follow Zhao's family and the old ministers in the court to attack Zhou Feng. Exposing your ambition too early will make people dislike you."

  "Agreed."

  Mingde's eyes lit up with a hint of surprise in Mingdian's gaze, and he nodded in response.

  Wang's eldest son, Zhou Jian, had his leg broken and automatically withdrew from the competition for the position of Crown Prince. The news spread just a month before the enthronement ceremony of the Crown Prince.

  The Deng family, Ming family, Guan family and Zhao family all sprang into action for their own purposes.

  At the same time, with these four families as the center, all civil and military officials in the entire Zhou Dynasty were involved, and they all took action for this coronation of the crown prince. Even if someone wanted to be a wallflower, it was not possible.

  A month's time passed quickly.

  The appointment of Prince Wang as crown prince is also imminent.

  The guards at Qing Shui Palace are increasingly strict, and it's said that even a fly can't fly in.

  However, Zhou Jian and Zhou Mengguo were extremely calm and composed.

  Zhou Meng has never been out since she was a child. She is content with just her brother and Xiao Bai. Zhou Jian, on the other hand, is devoted to practicing the changes of Zhou Tian.

  A palace in Qing Shui Palace has been converted into a training room by Zhou Jian.

  At this moment, the door of the training room is closed tightly, and it's quite dim inside.

  There is also a smell of sweat and stench mixed together in the air.

  Zhou Jian's Zhou Tian transformation has reached a very critical juncture. The epidermis of his entire body has begun to reveal red snake scales one by one.

  His entire body was like a giant python, constantly twisting and turning. With each twist, a massive wave of pain washed over him.

  This is a transformation of the entire body, both inside and out, into a snake demon in order to gain the power of the snake demon.

  Skeletons, internal organs, all are either inverted or shrunk, or thoroughly altered.

  This is a kind of pain that ordinary people can hardly imagine, but for Zhou Jian, it is also an opportunity that is hard to come by.

  He has been confined for over ten years, and compared with those brothers and sisters born out of wedlock, he is really far behind. He doesn't have any martial arts skills, nor does he have various kinds of elixirs.

  Zhou Jian let out a loud roar in his heart, forcibly suppressing the pain all over his body. He circulated a surge of demonic energy, starting to wash and refine his bones and tendons.

  Along with the flow of demonic energy, dense sweat droplets and some black grime flowed out from the gaps between the scales.

  The air in the training room became increasingly murky.

  As time passed, Zhou Jian's entire body was getting closer and closer to the Red Practice Python, with a burst of red light emanating from his whole body.

  Suddenly illuminated the dim practice room.

  "Roar."

  A loud roar in his heart, Zhou Jian changed completely.

  A two-zhang-long, water-bucket-thick red python appeared.

  Suddenly, the tightly closed snake eyes opened, a flash of red light flashed by, and the python quickly slithered up to climb onto a huge cylindrical pillar.

  The whole body was wrapped around it, and soon after, this column was tempered inch by inch, and the entire practice room shook violently.

  The red python immediately opened its mouth and spat out an apricot, a column of fire suddenly erupted, and the wall was instantly pierced. A large fire also broke out in the room.

  But in this great fire, the red python snake was like a water snake playing in the water, swimming happily and effortlessly.

  After a moment, the red python began to change slowly, Zhou Jian's face began to emerge, his hands and feet began to appear.

  A burst of movement, Zhou Jian appeared in the sea of flames.

  At this moment, Zhou Jian is greatly different. His body is full of muscle like a granite mountain, but his skin is as white as jade.

  His sharp eyebrows reached his temples, and his originally slightly weak face suddenly became angular and hard.

  A moment later, his tightly closed eyes slowly opened, and a joyful color gradually spread out, filling Zhou Jian's entire body and mind.

  A power, a force he never dared to think of in his daily life, filled his entire body.

  He built his strength with his own two hands, acquiring what he should have acquired, one step at a time, without any pretence.

  "Ah."

  Immediately, Zhou Jian opened his mouth and sucked in, the sea of fire that filled the sky poured into his mouth like a vast ocean.

  The sea of flames disappeared. Instead, Zhou Jian's body was filled with a surge of power, and he felt a swelling sensation.

  Satisfied with a smile, Zhou Jian walked towards the tightly closed door. Under the impact of a surge of demonic energy, the door was blown open with a loud crash.

  Zhou Jian stepped out with his bare feet.

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