Greater London District, Capital London.
Lancelot and an older British gentleman looked with grave expressions at the injured man wrapped in white bandages on the throne:
"Your Majesty, the Knight King, how are your injuries?"
King Arthur, seated on the throne, shook his head and said, "It's nothing serious, thanks to China's Shen Tui Deng Yan Wan. Otherwise, you would have to assist the next Knight King. It's just, why does such a miraculous elixir have such a strange name?"
Lancelot wore a perplexed expression and said, "Uh, Your Majesty, this might be a little hobby of our young friend. But I feel you should be more concerned about our kingdom."
The Knight King nodded as if struck by realization and said, "Indeed, little Lancelot reminds me. You are a fine young man."
He then turned to the older British gentleman: "Old Lancelot, have our old brothers, the previous generation of Knights of the Round Table, guard our kingdom well. Make sure the blood clan doesn't find any loopholes."
Old Lancelot said with a wry smile, "Your Majesty, the blood clan came with premeditation. Take this attack on you, for example. If I may speak frankly, if this blood clan prince didn't want to kill you, we would be preparing your funeral right now."
King Arthur's expression turned grim as he said, "Old Lancelot, you were always unlikeable in your youth, and now that you're old... uh (⊙o⊙)... you've become even more so."
Old Lancelot shrugged nonchalantly and said, "Of course, disliking me is your prerogative, but assisting you is my duty. For now, please come up with a plan. How shall we deal with the blood clan problem?"
Arthur said with a bitter smile, "Yes, how indeed? Although I have advanced to King, the blood clan prince who came this time was too strong. Even I couldn't defeat him, let alone so many of them. I think we should seek help from China."
Upon hearing this, Lancelot quickly said to the Knight King and his mentor, Old Lancelot, "Your Majesty, mentor, seeking help from China is indeed the best solution. But we don't know the extent of the blood clan's power. How can we approach China with this information?"
"I can't very well say, 'Ah, because our great Knight King was thoroughly beaten by a blood clan prince, we want you to come and help our Knight King save face, can we?'"
Arthur pondered for a moment and said, "Then you can say this: the blood clan who came this time are very powerful, and the Knight King was ambushed and severely wounded. We suspect a blood clan Emperor is behind them and would trouble the ancestors of China to make another move."
"Wouldn't that be better? My reputation would be preserved, and we could find an ancestor from China to help us defend Great Britain."
Old Lancelot nodded with satisfaction and said, "Your Majesty's idea is good. We can do it this way. If we can truly invite another ancestor from China, they might even offer guidance in our cultivation. I feel I am close to advancing to King."
Arthur, upon hearing Old Lancelot's words, said with great self-satisfaction, "Young man, see what a brilliant idea this is. If your mentor also advances to King because of this, Great Britain will have two Kings guarding it. You should quickly think about which ancestor from China we should invite."
Lancelot gritted his teeth, looking at the two old geezers in front of him with smug expressions, and said irritably, "Heh, Your Majesty, I know it's a good idea, and the best solution right now. However, we're out of money. Meaning, we can't afford to invite anyone."
King Arthur and Old Lancelot looked at little Lancelot in utter bewilderment and said, "Are you joking, young man? How could the royal family of Great Britain be out of money? Have all the resources from that secret realm been spent? That was equivalent to ten billion Lord-level crystal cores of resources! What have you done?"
"Nani, what have I done?" Lancelot looked at the old pervert who, despite being hundreds of years old, had married a young woman and fathered Prince William, and roared, "My liege, what do you mean, what have I done?"
Then Lancelot took out a ledger and said, "Prince William and that idiot Charles, one was kidnapped twice, the other three times. Add to that the living expenses you personally approved for them last week, and that's equivalent to 5.5 billion Lord-level crystal core worth of supplies."
"Also, the ancestor Da Yu of China, to build him a palace and support his cultivation, we spent 150 million. Plus, the fees and bonuses paid to ancestor Da Yu were 350 million."
"The twelve old Knights of the Round Table members cost 120 million. Your own advancement cost 330 million. Oh, and your Queen, 29 mistresses, and 105 concubines also cost over 15 million."
"Furthermore, our army construction, the expenses of all royal family members, the cost for the twenty Dragon Knight members. Most importantly, those dragons, they eat too much and have bad tempers. That cost us about another 210 million."
"A secret realm with just over ten billion in wealth and resources, and we've already spent 12.8 billion! And you still have the nerve to ask me where the money went?"
Lancelot's emotions grew increasingly agitated, and he finally shouted.
King Arthur and Old Lancelot exchanged bewildered glances and said, "How is that possible? Great Britain can't be out of money. Is this some kind of joke?"
As the two were questioning their kingdom's wealth, the previous generation Knight of the Round Table, the quasi-king Sir Gawain, entered with a stern expression.
"Your Majesty, please postpone your rant for a moment. If you still have the mood after hearing this news."
Having said that, Gawain opened the video in his hand and handed it to King Arthur.
In the video, a man in luxurious blood clan attire sat on a magnificent throne, holding a cup of crimson blood.
Beneath the throne stood thirteen figures dressed as blood clan princes, including the two who had injured Arthur.
The blood clan member on the throne slowly opened his mouth and said, "Arthur, I am Emperor Nicholas VII of the blood clan. I imagine you are unhappy to see me. But don't worry, little one, I am not here for you."
"Go and find the Emperors of China. China has imprisoned my descendants and slaughtered my kin. We must settle this score properly. If the Emperors of China do not arrive within ten days, I will inflict slaughter upon all of Great Britain."