Jianghu Awaits Ninth Royal Uncle’s Strike

Princess Yara has forever lost the right to be a mother!

The imperial physicians announced that, despite their best efforts, Princess Yara's life was saved, but she has permanently lost the ability to bear children. She will never become a mother again, and her body is damaged—every winter, she will suffer from deep chills and must be carefully nursed. As for whether she'll ever recover, no one can say—it might take a year, or it might last a lifetime.

In short, Princess Yara's health is completely ruined, and she may never recover for the rest of her life!

When the Emperor heard, he only said, "I understand," and made no further comment—not a word of comfort for Princess Yara or the Lyndarian royal family. Instead, he ordered the Ministry of Rites to gather portraits of all eligible noble daughters from the ministers' families.

Since Princess Yara can no longer bear children, the Emperor certainly won't let Prince Adrian suffer. He plans to select a noblewoman from a prestigious family to be his side-consort. And though she may be called a side-consort, she will not be treated as inferior—because the principal consort will never have children.

When Crown Prince Terrence of Lyndaria heard the news, he only sighed and made no move to defend Princess Yara—not because he was unwilling, but because he couldn't. In this matter, the Eastlyn Emperor has clearly sided with Serena Feng. If Terrence tried to cause trouble, Lyndaria would only lose face.

The Lyndarian royal family stayed silent. Even if others wanted to stir up trouble, they were powerless—Lyndaria wasn't backing them, and the Eastlyn Emperor was especially domineering lately. What could they do?

Haven't you noticed that Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan has been keeping a low profile lately? With the Emperor so forceful, it's wise to avoid direct confrontation. So, harmony reigns across Eastlyn.

Occasionally, small waves would rise, but they quickly settled down. For example...

As soon as Princess Yara woke up, she overheard her maids pitying her, saying she would never be pregnant again. She immediately lunged at them, nearly tearing her attendants apart, and screamed in hysterics.

"What did you say? I can't have children?" Princess Yara's eyes flew wide open, as if she'd been struck by a massive blow.

"P-Princess..." The maid was startled, not expecting Princess Yara to wake so suddenly. She dropped to her knees with a thud, too scared to speak.

Princess Yara demanded again, voice harsh: "Tell me, is what you just said true? Am I really infertile?" She refused to believe fate could be so cruel to her.

"Y-yes, it's true, Princess..." The maid barely finished before Princess Yara interrupted, rough and frantic: "Impossible, impossible! You're lying, you're lying! How could I possibly be infertile...?"

She roared in anger and tried to get up, but her strength failed and she tumbled off the bed. The maid rushed to help, but Princess Yara shoved her away: "Get away! Don't touch me!"

Princess Yara refused to believe it, but facts are facts—she had no choice but to accept them.

"Princess, please calm down, please! Don't hurt yourself." The maid was miserable—she couldn't offend Princess Yara, but she had to protect herself too.

"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down? I can't have children anymore—how can I possibly stay calm? Where's Serena Feng? Where is she? Isn't she supposed to be a great doctor? How could I be infertile unless she did this to me? Did she do this on purpose to ruin me?" Princess Yara grabbed her maid, her eyes flashing with venom.

"Princess, Serena Feng is attending her parents' funeral and can't go out. Even when the Crown Prince went in person, he couldn't get her to come. Princess, it was the Eastlyn imperial physicians who saved you. They said you waited too long, your body was damaged, and you'll never be able to have children again." The maid shivered as she remembered the blackened, deformed fetus the physicians had removed from Princess Yara's body.

The imperial physicians said the fetus was suffocated to death—though it was only an embryo, it was alive, and must have suffered terribly before dying. That's why the mother was in so much pain.

The imperial physicians' words nearly scared the maids out of their minds. Of course, they didn't dare repeat this to Princess Yara—and even if they did, she wouldn't listen.

When Princess Yara heard Serena Feng hadn't come to save her, her fury flared again: "Serena Feng, how dare she refuse to save me? Who gave her the nerve?"

Serena Feng, you venomous woman—it's all your fault! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be like this. Who do you think you are, refusing to save me? So what if your parents are being buried—do you think I won't dig up their graves and leave their bodies exposed to the wild?

"Ah...!" Princess Yara screamed in fury—she hated, she regretted, she resented. After her rage passed, she collapsed to the ground, sobbing.

Infertile, infertile—am I still a complete woman? If I can't have children, who will I rely on for the rest of my life? Serena Feng, you wretched woman—you let me die, it's all your fault, all your fault... Serena Feng, where is she? I want to see her, I want to see her—do you hear me?!

Princess Yara was like a madwoman, sprawled on the ground screaming, pounding the floor and her own stomach as if she couldn't feel any pain.

"Serena Feng, I want to see Serena Feng..."

Princess Yara's room was a disaster zone—blankets and bed curtains strewn everywhere, her maids' faces scratched. When Prince Titus of Lyndaria heard, he only said, "Keep an eye on the princess. Don't let her die."

Yes, don't let her die—if Princess Yara dies, who will marry into Eastlyn? Lyndaria has no other eligible princess. As for Princess Yara demanding to see Serena Feng—

Sorry, but it's not just Princess Yara—even in the Capital, few people can see Serena Feng right now.

The white mourning cloth outside Feng Manor has never been taken down, so no one dares to knock on the door. Why? The Emperor’s warning, though directed at Prince Adrian and Crown Prince Terrence, also serves as a warning to everyone else. Everyone is smart enough not to run headlong into trouble right now.

Most people thought Serena Feng was at home, shut in and recovering from excessive grief, but those in the know understood she was not in the Capital at all.

She, Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan, and William Wang quietly left the city on a dark, windy night; the next day, rumors spread that Ninth Royal Uncle was seriously ill and the Wang family's Grand Young Master had gone out to visit friends.

Whether you believe it or not is up to you, but I believe it. Everyone in the Capital believes it, the Emperor believes it, and he directly said Serena Feng was at home grieving, Ninth Royal Uncle was recuperating from illness and should not be disturbed, and the Wang family's Grand Young Master was enjoying winter visits to friends.

With the Emperor saying so, who would dare object?

Although these three are influential figures in the Capital, their departure did not cause much of a stir or attract much attention.

The Capital remained bustling and lively; their departure did not make it desolate. Princes and ministers still held nightly banquets, busy recruiting allies and winning hearts, never abandoning their luxurious lifestyles.

When Crown Prince Terrence of Lyndaria and Prince Damien of Southern Lyn heard the news, their eyes turned cold...

Finally, it has begun. They had waited a long time—finally, these two are making their move against Skyvault Palace Sect. They did not completely trust Lance Quinn, but they also did not intend to miss a chance to profit.

Skyvault Palace Sect is a fat piece of meat—countless butchers have raised their knives toward it. It cannot escape being carved up. Even if there are many who want a piece and not everyone gets a big share, there will still be something to gain, just like with the Young clan.

When all four kingdoms simultaneously raised their knives against the Young clan, the Young clan was just a piece of fat to them. Now, Skyvault Palace Sect is the same. Not acting now would be foolish.

The Emperor turns a blind eye to Ninth Royal Uncle's actions. Recently, Ninth Royal Uncle has withdrawn all his forces from the Capital, allowing the Emperor to consolidate power in Eastlyn, gather all the Capital's influence into his own hands, and carry out his own revenge and plans.

Though power struggles are never equal or fair, everyone tacitly maintains a balance and avoids eating alone: Ninth Royal Uncle withdraws his Eastlyn networks; in return, the Emperor tacitly allows him to vent his wrath by attacking Skyvault Palace Sect.

Yes, vent his wrath!

Does Ninth Royal Uncle have a grudge against Skyvault Palace Sect?

Yes, he does—over Sienna Skyvault and a Thousand-Year Everfrost Lily, Ninth Royal Uncle became enemies with Skyvault Palace Sect. Add to that the sudden appearance of Serena Feng's fiancé, Skyvault's Young Palace Lord Sean Xuan, and the feud has only grown.

Ninth Royal Uncle makes no effort to hide his anger—he fully displays his arrogance and pride, openly declaring war on Skyvault Palace Sect. He forces the Young Palace Lord to skip General Feng and Madame Feng's funeral and return to the sect early.

The Emperor knows about this and tacitly approves, even faintly supporting it.

To the Emperor, Skyvault Palace Sect is also a hidden threat. If Ninth Royal Uncle and William Wang join forces to uproot Skyvault or at least severely weaken it so it withdraws from the top tier, the Emperor will be pleased.

When two tigers fight, both will be wounded. No matter who wins in the end, the Emperor will be the ultimate victor. It's not just Prince Damien and Crown Prince Terrence who want to profit from the aftermath—the Emperor does too.

On the day Ninth Royal Uncle and William Wang departed, the Emperor sent out a secret order, mobilizing thirty thousand troops to secretly station at the foot of Skyvault Palace Sect's mountain.

The Emperor's actions were secret; few people knew, but that didn't stop everyone from wanting to profit from this operation. They all watched closely, waiting for Ninth Royal Uncle, William Wang, and Skyvault Palace Sect to fight to the death.

When everyone learned the superficial reason for this war—that it began over Sienna Skyvault and the Thousand-Year Everfrost Lily, and over the insult of Sean Xuan briefly being engaged to Serena—they ironically praised the Skyvault Palace Master for raising such a good daughter. Before she could marry out and ruin another family, she managed to drag her own sect into disaster.

To have the skill to offend both William Wang and Ninth Royal Uncle at the same time, forcing them to go to war with Skyvault Palace Sect even at great cost—now that's something. Not everyone could do it.

The biggest event in the martial world now is the war between Skyvault Palace Sect and Ninth Royal Uncle and William Wang. Even if you can't profit from it, watching is still worthwhile—the martial world is never short of spectators.

Countless people are watching closely to see whether the old power, Skyvault Palace Sect, will fall, or whether the two rising stars, Ninth Royal Uncle and William Wang, will be defeated...