Chapter 45: The Hunt Is Over, Zhou Rong Ascends as Crown Prince!
An evening passed in what felt like no time.
In the blink of an eye, the sky had begun to lighten—dawn of the next day had arrived.
Atop the high platform, the projection screen had not yet updated.
The current standings still showed Second Prince Zhou Rong trailing behind Crown Prince Zhou Jing by a narrow margin.
It wasn’t much, but there was still a chance.
In this scenario—even with someone like Lian Huo, who had touched the Primordial Yang realm under Zhou Jing’s banner—the Crown Prince looked uneasy.
Second Prince Zhou Rong’s breathing had become slightly rapid, tension painted on his face.
After all, the matter at stake was who would ascend to the supreme dragon throne. Could either of them stay calm?
Seeing his younger brother’s obvious tension, Crown Prince Zhou Jing inhaled deeply and adopted a calm, even tone.
“My second brother seems a bit anxious,” he observed. “It seems you’re not entirely confident in these ‘Twin Stars.’”
Hidden within Zhou Rong’s large sleeve, his fingers curled tensely around the inner folds before slowly relaxing.
A faint smile surfaced.
“Isn’t the same true for Your Highness?” he replied. “If either of us was utterly confident, we’d have closed our eyes to rest already, like our third and fourth brothers.”
He offered two controlled chuckles but said no more.
Their exchange caught the attention of Zhou Sheng and Zhou Qin standing nearby.
Both of them silently hoped for Zhou Rong’s victory. After years of competing, none of the three older brothers had treated the Second Prince as a serious threat—so they’d often avoided open conflict.
Now, however, if the Crown Prince took the heir’s throne, their futures could become dark. Once their brother became emperor, perhaps even a battle between kin might erupt.
But if Zhou Rong succeeded, all three might live in peace…
On the island:
After defeating Lian Huo and Zi Ling, Gu Fan and Lin Yi rested in place through the night.
Displayed on their waists hung a total of fifteen storage pouches—a sign of newly wealthy fortune!
At dawn’s first light, they followed the landmark signs toward the island’s exit.
From afar, they saw many palace-attired attendants standing by, awaiting their arrival.
As the two approached, several rushed forward to announce:
“Place all the spirit-beast tokens in the box, we’ll tally scores and then you can disembark the island!”
Gu Fan swept his hand across his pouches, then dropped a single spirit-beast token into the box.
The staff’s brows furrowed.
“Why only one at a time?”
Gu Fan smiled and waved his hand.
“This is the only one. No more.”
“Eh?”
The onlookers couldn’t believe it.
In an entire day, the pair had only obtained one spirit-beast token? Whose subordinates were these? Were they afraid to face anything, hiding on the island like cowards?
“Then just wait aside. All contenders are here, and we’ll disembark together.”
“Don’t bother waiting — there’s no one left alive down there!”
Lin Yi spoke up.
He was raring to go back and take a bath—the previous day’s violent battle had left him covered in blood, and he needed to clean up fast to restore his image.
At his announcement, everyone there froze, wide-eyed.
“What do you mean no one’s alive?”
“It means they’re all dead,” Lin Yi replied flatly. “Besides the two of us, all fifteen contestants from the Five Major Righteous Sects are dead!”
Silence fell for two seconds.
Then the scorekeepers couldn’t hold it in any longer—they burst out laughing.
These so‑called Demonic “Twin Stars” truly had no shame. Were they even awake?
Let alone other contestants—the fact that one man like Lian Huo, at half‑step Primordial Yang, could threaten the entire competition was already remarkable.
Now these two were essentially claiming to have murdered every Righteous cultivator on the island.
Anyone else would have laughed at that.
“Well then, you two should go rest,” one attendant hastily smoothed over the awkward moment. “The Autumn Wild Hunt is ruthless—getting even a single token is something to celebrate.”
CLANG!
A sword rang out, and all eyes snapped toward Lin Yi, whose gaze had turned ice-cold.
A wave of overwhelming killing intent instantly swept across the entire scene!
“I said—make way for me!”
Silence fell immediately.
Everyone felt as though a cold blade was pressing against their throat.
Suddenly, the leading attendant noticed the fifteen storage pouches fastened at the waists of the two men.
His expression shifted dramatically as something clicked in his mind. Without hesitation, he shouted,
“Open the path! Open it now!”
With a wave of his hand, he added,
“Hurry up and clear the way for these two young heroes!”
Moments later, a golden bridge formed from condensed light. Without another word, the two men stepped onto it and crossed.
Left behind, the others exchanged looks in stunned silence.
“Let’s go, everyone—the mission is complete.”
“Huh? But only those two came out…”
“Idiot! Didn’t you see the number of storage pouches they were wearing? What normal cultivator carries that many? Those were clearly taken from others! And those others must’ve been the fifteen Righteous Sect cultivators!”
Suddenly, a cold chill passed through everyone present.
If a cultivator’s storage pouch had been taken, it usually meant one thing: they were dead.
Staring at the two figures walking away, everyone felt like they had just stepped back from the gates of hell.
These weren’t cowards.
They were killers.
…
Outside the island, atop the high platform—
Under the anticipation of the crowd, a golden bridge of light finally appeared on the water’s surface.
This signaled that all participants had exited the island!
At the same time, the light screen shimmered, seemingly updating for the final time.
All eyes turned to it, filled with eager expectation.
The screen finished its update.
Suddenly, all data under Crown Prince Zhou Jing’s name dropped to zero!
On the other side, Second Prince Zhou Rong’s points skyrocketed—leaving everyone else in the dust!
On the high platform, Zhou Jing’s eyes turned bloodshot. He stared at the light screen in disbelief!
He jumped to his feet, face twisted in rage!
Zhou Rong, by contrast, was speechless.
Although he had always believed in Gu Fan and Lin Yi, witnessing this moment firsthand still left him stunned.
He had endured silently for over a decade!
At last, he had ascended to the Eastern Palace as Crown Prince!
Immediately, Zhou Sheng and Zhou Qin stepped forward with forced smiles.
“Congratulations, congratulations! Second Brother, the clouds have parted and the moon has shone through!”
“Yes, Second Brother! You’ll have to look after the two of us from now on!”
Zhou Rong no longer felt the need to pretend.
He laid all his cards on the table.
He, Zhou Rong, was now officially the Crown Prince!
“Hahaha! Eldest Brother, Third Brother, Fourth Brother—it’s official now!”
“In the coming days, I’ll host a grand banquet at my residence. Everyone must come celebrate!”
The more he had once hidden, the more flamboyant he was now!
“Of course! I’ll bring a humble gift!” the two replied, knowing now was not the time to offend him.
Zhou Rong’s gaze, however, turned toward the stunned Zhou Jing.
With a sweep of his robe, he strode forward.
“Eldest Brother, what’s done is done—it’s settled now. Don’t be too disheartened!”
“Haha, indeed, Eldest Brother! What a pity your Shangqing Sect disciples fell short. Even someone like Lian Huo at half-step Primordial Yang couldn’t compare to those two Demonic newcomers.”
The trio’s words sounded like mockery to Zhou Jing’s ears.
But he knew—it was over.
No more chances remained.
Thinking of this, Zhou Jing could only force a smile.
His bloodshot eyes stared at Zhou Rong.
“Congratulations, Second Brother. Ten years of patience, and now you’ve soared to the heavens. Please, don’t forget to look after your elder brother someday.”
Zhou Rong hadn’t expected his elder brother to concede so easily.
As for whether Zhou Jing would resort to underhanded tricks later, Zhou Rong wasn’t concerned.
The Great Qian Empire’s lineage was not to be trifled with.
Especially when it came to the heir’s position—so vital for maintaining the people’s faith and national stability.
“They’re here! The ones who made it out are coming ashore!”
A voice rang out, drawing everyone’s gaze to the landing platform!