The empress disliked my achievements for overshadowing her own, so she turned her attention to the N

The next second, several blood-red warhorses suddenly appeared in the Imperial Garden, which no one dared to enter without an imperial decree.

A series of neighing sounds rang out, like warhorses in heat galloping wildly through the imperial garden.

The flowers and plants on both sides quickly withered under the trampling of the horses' hooves...

Immediately afterwards, a dozen or so men dressed in black, each with a large knife tucked diagonally at their waist, suddenly appeared in the Imperial Garden.

These men simultaneously drew their swords, and with a swift stroke, the blood-red warhorse collapsed in agony.

Chen Nan could tell that most of these people were fifth-rank martial artists.

Strangely, they seemed to be very clear about their responsibilities.

After resolving the trouble, it disappeared with ghostly speed.

At that speed, even Chen Nan could only barely catch a glimpse of a few people.

Chen Nan concluded that this group of people must have undergone some kind of specific training.

They completely ignored the Empress Dowager, who was being held in Chen Nan's arms.

"Can the Prince of Zhennan finally put me down?"

The woman in his arms suddenly spoke.

Chen Nan then realized that the woman in his arms was the highest authority in Northern Wei. He smiled awkwardly, leaped up, and landed steadily on the ground.

He put the woman in his arms down and said, "Your Majesty, I was too rash just now."

The Empress Dowager chuckled lightly: "It's alright, the Prince of Zhennan was only thinking of my safety."

Her expression immediately changed: "Since the Prince of Zhennan has the intention to save Northern Wei, then go ahead and do it. I will support you in everything you do."

Having obtained the rights he desired, Chen Nan clasped his hands in a fist salute and fled from the Imperial Garden as if escaping.

After Chen Nan left, the Empress Dowager's face turned cold, and she shouted, "Investigate and see who is so bold as to release the horses from the Imperial Stables without authorization!"

Those horses, all blood red, were known to the Empress Dowager at first glance to be the Akhal-Teke horses from the palace.

She didn't know why the warhorses, which should have been under the care of the Imperial Stables, were in the Imperial Garden.

As her voice faded, a deep, resonant voice suddenly echoed through the Imperial Garden: "This subordinate will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly!"

As Chen Nan left the Imperial Garden, he smelled the lingering fragrance on her body, a smile playing on his lips. He muttered to himself, "This woman has quite a scent."

After leaving the palace, Chen Nan deliberately went to a secluded corner.

He raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.

A moment later, a man in a black robe walked towards them.

The man approached Chen Nan and asked respectfully, "Master, what are your orders?"

"Investigate the land situation in Northern Wei and see who is backing them up," Chen Nan said expressionlessly.

The man in black nodded: "I will continue to follow up on this matter."

"The master asked us to investigate Jianghe's matter, and we've already made some progress."

"In addition, Liu Banggua of Western Shu left Western Shu two days ago under the pretext of being an envoy to Northern Wei."

"Liu Bangua?" Chen Nan repeated the name.

His eyes suddenly lit up as he confirmed, "Is this Liu Bangua Wang Dong's master?"

The man in black robes nodded again: "That's right, this person is Wang Dong's master."

"Strangely, this person did not lose any cultivation level after leaving Western Shu."

"Moreover, the people who were following him were all discovered one after another."

"Therefore, I do not know where this person is now."

"You've all been discovered?" Chen Nan's expression changed slightly.

He understood his subordinates the most.

These people may not have that much talent in martial arts.

But he personally taught me how to track, counter-track, and investigate information.

He was certain that martial arts practitioners below the level of a half-step grandmaster would absolutely be unable to detect these people's whereabouts.

And now they've been discovered.

This only proves that Liu Bangua's strength is definitely at least at the half-step grandmaster level.

Thinking of this, Chen Nan felt pressure for the first time and ordered, "The matter of the river can be put on hold for now. We should investigate the matter of the Northern Wei territory first."

After receiving the order, the man in black left immediately.

Chen Nan also returned to the palace with Wu Xu and the other person as quickly as possible.

Inside the Prince's mansion, Chen Nan locked himself in his room.

"System, to what extent can my strength improve with twenty years of cultivation?"

[Ding! Twenty years of cultivation will allow the host to reach the peak of the Grandmaster realm.]

"Just the peak of Grandmaster?" Chen Nan frowned.

In his view, twenty years of practice should have allowed him to break through to the Grandmaster level.

[Twenty years of cultivation is merely an increase based on the host's cultivation speed.]

Chen Nan gave a bitter smile. His body, after twenty years of cultivation, had only reached the peak of the Grandmaster level.

But he didn't care. After all, he had the system, so what if he was mediocre?

Calming himself, he parted his lips slightly and said, "Use twenty years of internal energy!"

Chen Nan was prepared to deal with the pain during the breakthrough.

【Ding, it was used successfully! 】

As the system notification sounded, Chen Nan tensed up, ready to respond at any moment.

It felt like a cup of tea had passed, but Chen Nan still didn't feel any pressure on his body.

He asked疑惑地问道, "System, did you swallow the reward?"

[Use complete. Host has reached the peak Grandmaster level!]

"So, we've already stepped in?" Chen Nan's eyes widened.

He stretched out his hands and looked at them, finding that they were no different from before.

He couldn't help but curse, "What the hell is the difference between breaking through and not breaking through?"

Speechless, Chen Nan flung open the door, intending to go to the prefectural governor's office to continue questioning the registrar.

But before he could even step outside, he saw Wu Xu standing anxiously at the door.

"Your Highness, what are you doing in your room?"

Chen Nan was taken aback: "What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Immediately afterwards, he saw Wu Xu's wide-open eyes.

He pressed on, "Wu Xu, what's wrong with you, kid?"

"What kind of expression is that?"

Wu Xu blinked and carefully examined everything from beginning to end.

Only after confirming that the person in front of him was indeed Chen Nan did he speak.

"Your Highness, you have been in your room for five hours."

"And why is your skin so fair and smooth?"

"Most importantly, I can't sense any martial arts fluctuations from Your Highness."

"Five hours? Is that long?" Chen Nan asked in surprise.

Five hours is ten hours.

He felt that only a short while had passed in the room, so how could five hours have gone by?

When he looked outside, a crescent moon hung high in the sky.

Only then did he believe that he had really stayed in the room for five hours.

Suddenly, the gate of the Prince's Mansion was pushed open.

Mo Bai rushed in, looking anxious.

"Mo Bai, why are you running so fast?"

Chen Nan frowned slightly; his intuition told him that Mo Bai was going to bring him bad news.

Mo Bai, who was jogging along, stopped when he heard Chen Nan's voice.

Following the sound, he saw Chen Nan in the center of the hall.

With just one glance, his eyes were filled with astonishment, as if he didn't recognize the person in front of him at all.

"Your Highness, your skin..." Mo Bai strode up to Chen Nan, his eyes wide.

"My skin? What's wrong?"

Chen Nan then remembered that Wu Xu had not only mentioned the time, but also his skin and the imposing aura emanating from him.