Despite his curiosity, Chen Nan did not refuse. After all, the Thunder Emperor had spoken, and he had to show respect.
Following this, Qiu Xingbang led Chen Nan to the imperial palace of Xiling. To his surprise, he was directly escorted into the inner court. Finally, he met the Thunder Emperor in a grand bedchamber.
The man appeared to be over seventy years old, with white hair and beard, and a face full of wrinkles. He looked pale, as if gravely injured.
"Greetings, Thunder Emperor," Chen Nan said, bowing.
The Thunder Emperor smiled, looking at Chen Nan. "Indeed, you are young and promising, with outstanding bearing. I have long heard of the Three Grandmasters, and it is my great fortune to meet you today."
As he spoke, he had chairs brought for Chen Nan and Bai Jie.
"Thunder Emperor, who wounded you?" Chen Nan asked.
The Thunder Emperor replied, "The Human Emperor, Bai Li Aotian."
Chen Nan frowned. "That's not right. Wasn't it said that your battle back then, where seven of you attacked the Human Emperor, ended in a draw? Why are you so severely injured?"
The Thunder Emperor sighed. "That battle seemed like a draw, but after returning, I felt a force corroding my foundation. As a result, I am now gravely wounded. If nothing changes, I fear I will perish."
Chen Nan couldn't help but ask, "So, you summoned me here to heal you?"
The Thunder Emperor smiled and shook his head. "I know my injuries well. Even with your extraordinary talent, being the renowned Three Grandmasters of the Three Realms, you cannot heal me."
He then looked at Qiu Xingbang. "Go summon the Sixth Prince."
"Yes!" Qiu Xingbang turned and left.
Moments later, the Thunder Emperor's sixth son, Lei Xia, approached respectfully. He bowed to his father.
The Thunder Emperor smiled. "This young man beside you is the renowned Three Grandmasters of the Three Realms, and your idol."
Lei Xia suddenly looked at Chen Nan, his eyes filled with disbelief. He then bowed to Chen Nan. "Greetings, Grandmaster!"
Chen Nan replied, "Your Highness, there's no need for such formality." Although the other was the Sixth Prince of Xiling, Chen Nan was worthy of his bow. The honor of being a Three Grandmaster alone placed him on par with the Eight Great Human Sovereigns.
The Thunder Emperor spoke, "Grandmaster Chen, do you know the relationship between Xiling and Xueguo?"
Chen Nan shook his head. "I have stayed in Xueguo for a short time and have not heard of the relationship between Xiling and Xueguo."
The Thunder Emperor explained, "As you know, the human race in the Immortal Realm today migrated from the Land of Origin. Before that, the Lei family of Xiling and the Si family were related by marriage. By seniority..."
"I should call you Uncle-in-law."
Chen Nan almost spat out blood. "Your seniority is lower than the Empress?"
The Thunder Emperor did not seem embarrassed. "Yes, Empress Si Ning is my cousin's aunt."
This was outrageous! Chen Nan had never imagined such a connection between the Empress and the Thunder Emperor.
The Thunder Emperor said weakly, "I've said all this... hoping that you would, out of the connection between the Lei family and Xueguo, take Lei Xia as your disciple."
Chen Nan smiled and shook his head. "Your Highness the Sixth Prince already possesses the cultivation of a first-level Immortal Emperor and his talent is not lacking. He will grow into a powerful figure soon, why would he need me to teach him?"
The Thunder Emperor sighed. "The Sixth Prince's talent is indeed not bad, but among my sons, he is too ordinary. Only in governing the nation does he possess extraordinary talent. If I die, Xiling will surely fall into chaos. If you were to take him as your disciple, you would be able to protect the destiny of Xiling."
It was clear that the Thunder Emperor wanted to entrust his son and kingdom to Chen Nan. However, if Lei Xia relied on his own means to compete for the position of crown prince, he would surely lose. But if Lei Xia could become Chen Nan's disciple, even an informal one, the Thunder Emperor's other sons would certainly not dare to act recklessly.
"To show my sincerity, I am willing to gift this treasure to you, sir," the Thunder Emperor said, waving his right hand. A square wooden box flew towards Chen Nan.
When Chen Nan opened it, he saw a handful of light golden soil. There wasn't much of it, but it was soil Chen Nan had never seen before. Moreover, he could feel a profound earth elemental law force emanating from it.
Chen Nan looked at the Thunder Emperor in disbelief. "You... how did you know I needed this?" He now controlled the laws of Yin and Yang, the fire element, the metal element, and the wood element. To master five elemental laws simultaneously, he still lacked the earth element and the water element. Now, the Thunder Emperor had presented him with the earth element, making this discipleship gift difficult to refuse.
The Thunder Emperor offered a faint smile. "The Yan Emperor visited Xiling a year ago. We are old friends, and he told me some things about you. For instance, you first obtained the fire elemental law, then mastered the metal elemental law! After that, you went to Xueguo. If my guess is right, you must have visited the Divine Tree of Xueguo. You should have already mastered the wood elemental law, right?"
"So, the divine soil before you is like charcoal in the snow for you, isn't it?"
"No..." Chen Nan exclaimed. "Why did the Yan Emperor tell you everything?"
The Thunder Emperor chuckled. "You and the Yan Emperor are sworn brothers, and we are also sworn brothers. Therefore, if we consider the relationship through the Yan Emperor, you should call me Big Brother."
"Brother, for the sake of the billions of citizens of Xiling, would you please take my son as your disciple?" His eyes showed a trace of supplication.
Chen Nan's mouth twitched. "Let's each call each other what we should. I'll call you Big Brother, and you call me Uncle-in-law."
The Thunder Emperor replied, "As long as you agree to take my son as your disciple, I don't mind what you call me." To him, it was just a title. What truly concerned him was the eternal foundation of Xiling. Especially now that Chen Nan had returned from the Demon Realm, it was obvious he had unified the Demon Realm, and true peace would follow. If external threats were resolved, and his sons fought over the throne, it would be another disaster for the people of Xiling, something he did not wish to see.
*Clack!* Chen Nan closed the wooden box and waved his hand, sending it floating back to the Thunder Emperor. "This item is very important to me. However, I cannot agree to take His Highness the Sixth Prince as my disciple. I am an outsider and cannot bear the responsibility for the lives and deaths of billions of Xiling's citizens. I mean, what if, just what if, I were to die one day? Have you considered the consequences? Everything you worry about would happen. Brother killing brother, war breaking out. So, why would you entrust the life and death of Xiling to an outsider like me?"
The Thunder Emperor smiled. "I don't believe you will die."
Chen Nan countered, "Did you ever believe you would die from an old wound resurfacing?"
The Thunder Emperor was speechless. He truly hadn't considered it. The seemingly drawn battle back then had, upon his return, revealed itself to have injured his foundation.
He sighed and said, "Everyone has their own aspirations. Since Uncle-in-law is unwilling to be my son's master, then this handful of divine soil shall be my tribute to you as a junior!"
Chen Nan was stunned. A surge of anger rose within him. The Thunder Emperor's strategy of retreating to advance had completely cornered him! He needed the earth elemental law, but accepting this gift made it difficult to refuse. What should he do?