Villain : I reincarnated as a Prince! Shouldn't I have a Harem?

She scoffed: "What difference does it make if he awakened a legendary spirit? He is more than 200 years younger than you, which means he is already 200 years behind. Do you think he can cover the difference of 200 years so suddenly?"

The second prince's confidence returned after hearing his mother's analysis.

"You are correct, mother. Even a legendary spirit can't make him catch up to me since I'm already far ahead of him. He will just become another stepping stone in my rise to succession."

His mother nodded in agreement, smiling satisfyingly:

"Indeed, my son. Our faction is already developed and he is a chick who has just come out of his shell. He is at the starting line of this race while you have already finished half the distance."

However, the same couldn't be said about the third princess. Though she was 181 years old right now, due to the Xue clan being in conflict on who to support between her and the fifth prince for so many years, her faction hadn't developed much.

Even the other powers didn't want to gamble on her without the backing of the Xue Clan. They have been neutral all this time and have waited for the moment when the Xue clan will finally decide their preferred candidate for succession.

However, right now, the spotlight was being stolen by Ashen in front of her. He had just revealed himself as the direct competition for her.

What if the other powers decided to choose Ashen and joined his faction?

The support she had been hoping to gather in her debut would deteriorate with some being divided between her and Ashen.

There was also the possibility of some of the powers deciding to wait before choosing her or Ashen.

Just thinking about all this possibility, her worries were rising, making her anxious.

And as if all this wasn't enough, the Emperor also decided to add to her worries.

On the stage, the emperor was standing in front of Ashen, putting his hand on his shoulder, he praised:
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"You've done well, son. I'm proud that someone of my blood has awakened the spirit from legends. If you do not mind, I'd like to hold the monkey king's staff myself. Will you allow me?"

Due to the formation installed around the stage, everyone could hear the emperor clearly. It was the first time that they had seen the emperor show such visible interest in something in this event.

The emperor was a fan of the Great Eternal Sovereign and he idolized him due to the stories of his intelligence and strength.

To be able to witness the spirit of his idol, the emperor was excited, however, he didn't make it much visible with his expression.

He was still the emperor, he couldn't act in such an unmannerly way.

Even the legends of the Monkey King fascinated him. He had fought against the evil for the common people and risen to the top by overcoming multiple challenges.

As a child, he had always wanted to be like him, fighting against injustice and fighting for the people.

"It's your birthday, your majesty. How can I deny your request?" Ashen spoke respectfully, handing the staff to the emperor.

As soon as Ashen let go of the staff, The emperor felt the heavy weight of the spirit, unable to keep holding it without letting it fall, however, in an instant, Lightning appeared around his body, rumbling in the arena as a heavy pressure left his body.

It was only after this that he could hold the staff in his hand despite its heavy weight.

He glanced at Ashen, worried that he might've scared the poor boy, however, Ashen was standing with a smile on his face, unfazed by what had just happened.

Just what is his cultivation level?... The emperor wondered internally, surprised to see Ashen fine.

However, he didn't linger on this for long, shifting his focus to the staff in his hand. It had intricate golden designs and was rough yet soft to the touch. It was difficult to describe how he felt.

"This is really a divine weapon of the great monkey king." The emperor murmured before handing it back to Ashen.

He smiled at him, looking at him with a gentle gaze: "I'm pleased by both your gift and talent. I wish you luck for the future, my son."

The emperor knew how hard it would be for this son of his to overcome the challenges that he would face in the future.

Now that he had revealed his spirit in front of everyone. His other siblings and their backers will be after his life, attempting assassination attempts.

Even when the emperor himself was a prince, he also had his younger brother assassinated who was much more talented and gifted than himself.

It was the norm to nip the danger in the bud before it could grow to threaten you.

However, there was one thing that put the emperor at ease about Ashen's future and that was the Shang Clan.

With them having his back, it won't be easy to kill him.

The emperor returned to his throne, receiving the heavenly thunder sword himself.

Meanwhile, in the third Princess's gallery,

The Third princess looked at the stage with a grim expression.

She didn't have a good feeling about this ninth brother of hers who had suddenly become the talk of the event.

She turned her head to her most trusted subordinate, her personal secretary.

"Shi Yun, as soon as we return, relay the order to our spies in the Ninth Brother's palace to assassinate him immediately. We need to get rid of him while he is unable to protect himself. It's only been two years since he awakened his spirit. He shouldn't be strong enough to protect himself."

"If our spies manage to assassinate him while he is alone, my path will be clear. I cannot let him get in my way now that I have finally managed to get the support of the Xue clan."

She was determined to complete her dream of becoming the first empress of this large empire and to achieve that, if she had to have her own weak little brother assassinated, she would do so without hesitation.

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(A/N - Thanks for reading. ^..^)