Chapter 167: Chapter 138 Happy New Year!
Since it was an affair between the future Emperor and Long Yi, others naturally had no place to comment.
Long Yi laughed like this for a while, and each time he raised his head, as long as he saw the face of the Second Prince, he couldn’t help but burst into laughter again.
Although the Second Prince was very well-behaved, he was still rendered quite awkward by Long Yi’s laughter. He had not felt it inside the Dragon God’s space since everyone was unfamiliar there. But being laughed at like this to his face, if it wasn’t for the fact that the Second Prince had known long ago that Long Yi would do this, he might have really thought that Long Yi was doing this on purpose to embarrass him.
"Your Highness the Second Prince, may I ask, what did you say to my master? Can you tell me?" Little Zi, who seemed to have appeared from nowhere, asked with her large eyes full of curiosity.
"Actually, the joke goes like this." Faced with the adorable maid’s request, the Second Prince naturally couldn’t refuse, so he quietly repeated the joke.
"That joke, so cold..." said Little Zi, seemingly expressionless, after hearing the joke.
"This is the only joke I can tell. It was told to me by my elder brother when I was young, I don’t find it that funny, do you also think it’s not funny?" The Second Prince looked at Long Yi who was still laughing and asked, puzzled.
"This joke is so cold that even I, as a female demon, felt cold. How could it possibly be funny?" Little Zi glanced at Long Yi, "I didn’t expect that such a serious master would have such a low threshold for laughter."
"Master, this isn’t appropriate..." Little Zi floated over to Long Yi’s side, gently reminding him. As a personal maid of the master, it’s her duty to maintain the master’s most elegant image at all times. Long Yi’s current state was simply a challenge to Little Zi!
"Oh, ho! I know! But, hahaha, I just can’t help it! Hahahaha, it’s too funny! Hahahaha!"
"I’m sorry then, Master!" Little Zi finally couldn’t stand Long Yi’s irrational behavior any longer. With a pair of ice-cold little hands, she grabbed Long Yi’s ’big’ head, stared into his eyes, and a sudden chilling sensation spread amongst the bystanders. Instantly, Long Yi’s laughter stopped abruptly, and his body stiffened on the spot.
"Fear trick?" The old retainer protecting the emperor from a distance opened his dim old eyes, surprised as he looked at Little Zi. "Such a strong Fear Trick, even I, an outsider, felt a shiver. This young female demon, doesn’t she know her limits? Isn’t she afraid that she might burn her master’s brain?"
Just then, Long Yi let out a breath, "Thank you, otherwise, I really would have laughed myself to death." As he spoke, Long Yi couldn’t help but laugh a couple more times, though it was clear he had controlled himself a little.
"Ahem, sorry, I apologize, Your Highness the Second Prince. Your... ahem, your joke was really too interesting. I didn’t expect you to be so humorous." Long Yi said, still smiling, but obviously trying hard to control himself.
I’m humorous? The Second Prince was helpless, his cold joke was so lame that even a female demon felt cold. Yet you laughed this hard, how low could your humor threshold be?
"Let’s forget the joke, let’s talk about you. Long Yi, I’ve seen your strength and potential, and to be honest, I have long coveted it. I sincerely hope you can follow me. I promise that we will only be brothers, and never superior or subordinate."
The Second Prince stated his proposition directly. Based on his understanding of Long Yi, he knew Long Yi was the type of person who hated beating around the bush. When speaking to him, all you had to do was to state your desires directly.
"The brother of a future emperor? That’s a tempting offer." Long Yi sighed, calming down from his previous mood, then said, "No."
"Why?" The Second Prince didn’t understand. Could it be that Long Yi was so indifferent to fame and fortune to this extent? The offer that the Second Prince had made was rather generous. Being the brother of an emperor was not a disgrace, right? Wealth, power, honor, which one of these could elude Long Yi in the future?
The Second Prince was trying to build up his own forces and he took a liking to Long Yi’s strength and temperament. Though their relationship at this point was average, the Second Prince believed in his own charisma, and moreover, he truly liked Long Yi as a person. He believed that before long, he and Long Yi would become the best of friends.
"Because I am destined to rule the sky, it’s wider than your palace!" Long Yi looked up at the starry sky and made a somewhat pretentious statement.
Yes, even though Long Yi hadn’t yet returned to the sky, every moment he was full of anticipation for a comeback. He practiced and learned, round-the-clock, aiming to return to the sky in his best shape! Once he reached the sky, he would be invincible!
"So that’s how it is..." The Second Prince may not have been strong himself, but he could understand the heart of a powerhouse that Long Yi held!
"Yes, exactly." said Long Yi. Long Yi considered himself a worldly person. He liked money, power, and beautiful, sexy, and cute girls. But above all, he loved soaring through the sky!
"So, can we become brothers?" The Second Prince had already greatly humbled himself by asking this, but he didn’t mind, because he believed that just for the powerhouse spirit Long Yi had, no matter how much achievement Long Yi might have in the future, he was worth humbling himself to make friends with!
"I don’t know now, but, I appreciate your sense of humor." Long Yi said, smiling.
"I have no sense of humor, I can’t tell jokes." The Second Prince felt obliged to explain once again.
"Haha, stop joking around, master of grandmaster-level jokes." Long Yi said, patting the Second Prince’s shoulder.
The Second Prince was helpless, he estimated that he might never turn his situation around in this lifetime.
Compared to the gloomy Third Prince, the Second Prince was obviously more likable. He was also very good at finding common ground with others. Long Yi liked battling, and though the Second Prince was not very strong, his theoretical knowledge was rich. So they soon became deeply engaged in conversation. Even till the end of the evening party, the Second Prince was still somewhat reluctant to leave.
When the banquet ended, and everyone left, the Emperor and the Second prince stood on the balcony on the second floor, watching the servants tidy up the lawn.
"What do you think about Long Yi?" The Emperor asked.
"He is a talent, a real talent." The Second Prince said.
"Oh? It’s rare for me to hear you rate someone so highly." The Emperor became interested. He hadn’t interacted much with Long Yi, and because of the incident with the Third Prince, it always felt like there was friction between him and Long Yi. However, based on his observations just now, it seemed like Long Yi and the Second Prince got along well as they had their arms around each other’s shoulders.
"Yes, he’s not a very cunning person. Everything he has been doing for a long time is to become the strongest Dragon Knight. Furthermore, I believe that no matter his own strength, he can become the strongest Dragon Knight," the Second Prince declared.
"Why?" The Emperor didn’t understand.
"Because, he seems to have mastered a unique combat technique." The Second Prince said.
"Explain further." The Emperor leaned in with interest.
"Father, you should know that the Guardian Dragon Knight Elsa often uses some aerial combat moves that we have never seen before. But she never teaches them to anyone."
"Yes, I know. I’ve even personally requested her superior to make Elsa display all her moves as much as possible." Speaking of Elsa, the Emperor was a bit upset. That girl who could advance even when sitting still was a troublesome figure. On the Gentle Wind Plain, she caused more than half of the disputes with the Black Dragon Empire. Of course, she always managed to suppress it with her overwhelming combat power in the end.
In this empire, no, in this world, nobody seemed to be able to control her.
Wait a minute, what about Long Yi?
"Judging from our conversation tonight, I deduce that Elsa’s aerial combat maneuvers appear to be a complete system of aerial warfare techniques. Moreover, it should be Long Yi who taught her," the Second Crown Prince disclosed.
"What? Him? That’s impossible, isn’t it?" the Emperor didn’t believe it.
"I didn’t believe it either, but from their conversations, it seems that while Elsa’s set of maneuvers is not complete, Long Yi has mastered the entire set," said the Second Crown Prince with a high level of certainty.
"Although Elsa only showcased a few details of the aerial combat maneuvers, even the leader of the Guardian Dragon Rider Order was singing praises about it. It is far superior to the aerial combat techniques taught in our Dragon Rider Academy," the Emperor stated, calmly.
The Second Crown Prince moved closer to the Emperor and then spoke softly.
"Earlier, Long Yi told me. He will make the Empire’s Dragon Riders the world’s most formidable war machine. Even though he said it jokingly, I looked straight into his eyes all the while. His gaze, it was serious," he said.
Listening to the Second Crown Prince, the Emperor laughed.
"Since you have made your judgment, act upon it. You are my most outstanding child, and there is no need for me to teach you any more," he said.
The Second Crown Prince nodded. But then his expression turned worrisome. He wanted to speak but didn’t know how to begin. At this point, the Emperor shook his head and said, "I understand. You wish to talk about your third brother."
"Yes, Father, I..."
"No need to say anything, I already know."
"You know?"
"If even you know, how could I not know?"
"So, you plan to turn a blind eye?"
"Hmm, exactly," he said.
"..."
"..."
"I understand, Father."
The Second Crown Prince struggled to comprehend what the Emperor was thinking. However, he knew that his father was far wiser than most assumed. Outsiders thought the Emperor was under control of the three top generals and the five powerful legions. They didn’t realize that in the Empire, where military prowess determined status, the Emperor, who appeared powerless, perfectly balanced everyone’s power.
Let it be known that the relationship amongst the legions was not entirely peaceful! External forces eyed the Empire covetously while internal strife was unending. Yet, the Emperor was able to suppress the continuous undercurrents of rebellion and maintained a balance between the different powers. How great a wisdom was that?
If the Emperor made a decision, it was always well-thought-out.
From within the Imperial City, the cheerful sound of a crowd counting down could be heard.
"Ten!"
"Nine!"
"Eight!"
"Seven!"
"Six!"
"Five!"
"Four!"
"Three!"
"Two!"
"One!"
"Happy New Year!"
Spangled dots of light flew into the sky and blossomed into brilliant hues. Underneath the magic fireworks, the Imperial City roared with excitement.
The old year had come to an end, and a new year had begun.
"Elsa, I love you!"
Long Yi and Elsa hugged and kissed tightly. Ai Lin desperately covered Little Zi’s eyes, and the pitiful Little Zi, who clearly didn’t have a physical body, had to pretend as if he couldn’t see.
In reality, the old lecher — no, the honest man Long Yi — initially wanted to make further plans for New Year’s Eve. However, Elsa scorned at the idea. Ultimately, under the plea of Long Yi’s pitiful gaze, Elsa allowed Long Yi to fondle her chest as a consolation for his wounded heart. Despite this, Long Yi was already very content.
Because Long Yi wasn’t certain if the scent he was carrying would emerge again.
The New Year’s fireworks lasted for half an hour. Elsa secretly passed on information to Long Yi: the rift above the Gentle Wind Plain had appeared again, and large monsters had escaped from it again. Recently, all nations had been working to eradicate these beasts. Of course, these were the responsibilities of the regular armies and had nothing to do with Long Yi, who is studying at the Dragon Rider Academy. The reason Elsa was so busy was because she was tasked with securing the interests of the White Dragon Empire.
After hearing this, Long Yi’s only desire was to strangle the Emperor. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to qidian.com to vote for a recommendation and a monthly ticket. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile phone users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
