"You killed an Immutable Constant?" Zechariah Lee's pupils contracted, and the demon saber behind him suddenly opened its eyes, fixing its gaze on Prince Autumnshade.
The tiny lantern-man, Lin Hawk, had revealed the secret of the Immutable Constants, stirring up infighting among the boarders. Zechariah Lee had already suspected that an Immutable Constant could be killed.
He just hadn't expected that Prince Autumnshade would actually ambush another boarder—and even succeed in killing one.
Prince Autumnshade said leisurely, "I wanted to see if killing another Immutable Constant would affect us—maybe it'd even let one more person survive. But I've discovered I'm already at the edge of virtualisation. Last cycle, I lost a portion of my power. I'm afraid I won't have time to test this theory before I turn virtual myself."
Zechariah Lee's heart sank.
He still didn't feel himself becoming virtual, which meant the Ghost Ship judged Prince Autumnshade's power to be above his own—so it was Prince Autumnshade being virtualised, his strength suppressed.
"I don't dare cripple my own cultivation," Prince Autumnshade said, "because if I do, I'm likely to be killed by someone else. So I've set aside everything else and come here to find you two."
Prince Autumnshade smiled. "My purpose in descending to the lower realm is to wipe out Qin Overlord Body and the other reformists, eliminating the threat while it's still a seed. Zechariah Lee, you're Prodigy Legion of the Heavenly Court, and I'm a Heavenly Court prince. You're my subordinate—you know perfectly well what you should do. After I kill Qin Overlord Body, I'll cripple my own cultivation, you'll virtualise, and I'll survive and break this ghost ship's curse. You'll still have a chance to live."
Zechariah Lee was silent for a moment, then suddenly shook his head. "I don't trust you. I only trust my saber."
He lifted his head and gazed at Prince Autumnshade from afar. "The path I walk, I carved myself. The cultivation I have, I forged myself. My life was given by my parents—not bestowed by some prince. I may be Prodigy Legion of the Heavenly Court, but I'm no lowborn cur. My parents gave me this life, and I'm going to hold onto it. I won't hand it over to anyone."
Prince Autumnshade frowned slightly and said, "My method is simple: eliminate all the other Immutable Constants until only I remain, then kill myself."
Zechariah Lee looked at him in shock.
Prince Autumnshade said, "Once this ship loses all its Immutable Constants, the stability of the divine art will drop to its lowest point and the art will collapse. As soon as that happens, we'll all return to our original eras—no one has to die. Rest assured, I have the strength to kill thirty-five era-defining powerhouses!"
He was extremely arrogant. "You've trained under Logan Cross and Furylo, and entered the Dao through the blade—impressive. But everything you've learned is just a wild path."
Zechariah Lee frowned.
Prince Autumnshade said, "I've mastered Emperor's Throne Arts of the Heavenly Court, personally taught by the Celestial Teachers themselves. Many underestimate imperial heirs, thinking we're all spoiled brats, but they're wrong. There are countless princes, and to stand out, we have to work harder than anyone else—otherwise, a prince is just a plucked phoenix, not even as good as a chicken! The royal family is full of intrigue and ruthless competition; I've faced no fewer dangers than you."
Zechariah Lee's respect grew solemn. He said in a low voice, "For a prince to be entrusted with such a task, you must have carved a bloody path through thousands of rivals."
Prince Autumnshade smiled. "So, Zechariah Lee, will you follow me?"
"No."
Zechariah Lee said calmly, "Though I respect you, I won't pledge loyalty to you, nor will I trust you. I only trust my saber, and my loyalty belongs to my saber alone."
“You people who clawed your way up from nothing—why do you always act so arrogant just because you’ve got a little talent?”
Prince Autumnshade let out a sigh. “You lot annoy me most. The moment you show a hint of ability, your noses point skyward, convinced you’re something special. But you don’t realize—I was born better than you, I work harder than you, and my strength is higher than yours. I lower myself to speak with you decently, and you’re still so stubborn and unruly.”
“Because...”
Zechariah Lee drew his demon saber and charged, blade raised high. In an instant, saber-light filled the sky, the blade-qi arcing like a rainbow as he roared, “The status and glory you were born with—those are heights we might never reach, even after centuries of blood and struggle!”
His saber technique grew sharper and faster, each stroke heavy with ambition, sweat, and pride.
“You think being born into imperial royalty is your birthright—we see it as a distant, impossible dream!”
“You call us arrogant, but you don’t know how many of us have died—how many bones we’ve had to trample—just to make it this far!”
“You think you work hard, but you have no idea how much blood and sweat each step costs us—how many comrades and enemies we’ve had to climb over just to reach this position!”
“Follow you? Become one of your so-called Immutable Constants?”
Zechariah’s demon saber danced wildly, its quicksilver light flowing like ink as he wrote his ideals across the air, pouring out his passion with every stroke.