"Your situation is much better than mine back then. You only lost a martial arts competition, but when I lost to your third uncle in that competition, I lost everything. The position of Crown Prince was taken by your third uncle. All my retainers left me because no one wanted to continue serving a prince without cultivation, a useless prince, a loser."
"What? Father, your cultivation?"
"That's right, the martial arts competition with your third uncle. I was crippled by your third uncle. My dantian was broken by his sword, my spiritual power was completely destroyed, and I became a useless person without any hope of cultivation. Your royal grandfather didn't stop it. He was happy to see your third uncle win. He believed that the throne should be inherited by the eldest son, and it was my fate to lose as a son of a concubine. Even if I was crippled, it was deserved..."
"I vaguely remember that day. My dantian was broken, and I had become a useless person, unable to even walk. I was covered in injuries and blood, and I was carried back to the Prince's mansion. No one came to see me, not even your grandmother, because she was afraid of offending your third uncle. She was afraid of offending your third uncle who had become the Crown Prince. She had another son. As for me, a useless person without any cultivation, I wasn't worth her investing any more emotions in. She was afraid that visiting me would anger your third uncle and affect your ninth uncle's future."
As he said this, Qin Wushang, the number one overlord of the Seven Kingdoms, looked at the dim palace, lost in thought. Perhaps no one would have imagined that the invincible Human Emperor, who now stood above all, had such a miserable past?
Hearing this, the Fourth Prince was somewhat shocked. His ninth uncle was his biological uncle, a brother of the same mother as his father.
He had heard that his father and the Empress Dowager, as well as his ninth uncle, had some issues in the past, but he never thought there would be such shocking secrets.
There was a rumor in the Wu Kingdom that after the current Human Emperor Qin Wushang ascended the throne, the Empress Dowager wanted to find a title of Prince for her ninth son, but Qin Wushang refused and coldly imprisoned the Empress Dowager in the distant Taiji Palace, and exiled his own brother, the ninth prince, to the border.
At the time, people said that Qin Wushang was cold and ruthlessly imprisoned his mother in the Cold Palace and exiled his own brother to the border.
But no one thought there would be such shocking secrets.
Imagine, a person whose cultivation had been crippled, and his own mother didn't come to see him because she was afraid of affecting the future of another son.
Being crippled was already despairing enough, but his own mother was so unfeeling. Perhaps at this moment, despair was not enough to describe it.
"Father, I..." The Fourth Prince felt a little ashamed at this moment. After hearing his father's words, his situation today was indeed not worth mentioning compared to his father.
He lost to Lin Changqing today, but he still had cultivation. He still had the entire Great Wu Dynasty behind him, and his father supporting him. But when Qin Wushang lost, he had nothing. He had no cultivation, and his mother didn't come to see him.
In comparison, the Fourth Prince felt that his situation today was indeed much better.
"So your failure is nothing, especially your failure today. In my opinion, it's not worth mentioning at all. Back then, I also felt like you, that one failure meant the end of my life," Qin Wushang continued, "I was also extremely desperate at the time. My cultivation was crippled, and I tasted the bitterness of the world. I watched my retainers leave one by one, and watched my former opponent become the Crown Prince, enjoying the success in the capital. I once thought about committing suicide."
As he said this, Qin Wushang drew his sword from his waist. He slowly placed the sword on his neck, his eyes becoming沧桑, as if he was recalling something. Then he smiled, "I wanted to end my life with this sword, but..."
Speaking of this, Qin Wushang's eyes suddenly became sharp. He drew his sword and slashed it heavily on the table. A corner of the table was chopped off by his sword, scaring the Fourth Prince. Qin Wushang didn't notice it at all, as if he had turned back into the overlord who ruled the world. He said coldly, "But I was not willing! I was lying in the Prince's mansion covered in blood, unable to even get off the bed because of my injuries, but when I heard the lively celebration outside the Prince's mansion, I asked the servant what was going on outside. The servant said that your third uncle was being enthroned as the Crown Prince. I was not willing! I put down the sword on my neck."
"I asked the servant again, I asked the servant where my mother was? The servant replied tremblingly, saying that she had taken my ninth brother to celebrate your third uncle becoming the Crown Prince."
"Hearing this, I was even more unwilling. I endured the pain and walked off the bed covered in blood. I took my sword and walked step by step to the outside of the Prince's mansion. I saw the bustling traffic in the city, watching your third uncle proudly walking in the capital, welcoming everyone's cheers. I swore with my sword that I, Qin Wushang, would stand up again. I was not willing to lose like this!!"
"I told myself that if I admitted defeat, if ending my life was so simple, then why bother? If I really did that, I wouldn't have a single chance to turn the tables. So I gritted my teeth and persevered!"
"My cultivation was crippled, so I started to cultivate again. My dantian was broken, so I traveled to Medicine Valley, walking ten thousand miles as an ordinary person, and finally arrived at Medicine Valley covered in blood. I kowtowed for ten days and ten nights. The elders of Medicine Valley were touched by my persistence and finally agreed to see me and heal my dantian."
"After healing my dantian, I endured for another thirty years, and finally restored my cultivation bit by bit. But thirty years, after all, I was thirty years behind. Your third uncle's cultivation had already surpassed me by an entire realm, and your royal grandfather was about to pass away, and it seemed that the throne was about to fall into your third uncle's hands, but I still patiently looked for opportunities. Finally, I waited for that day, the opening of the Ancient Starry Road." Speaking of this, Qin Wushang paused and continued, "You also know what happened later. I entered the Ancient Starry Road, fought desperately and obtained a great opportunity, completed my transformation, and finally defeated your third uncle and奪回the throne."
"Father..." Hearing this, the Fourth Prince was speechless for a long time. He heard the hardships his father had endured back then. His cultivation was crippled, and he had to kowtow to others for ten days and ten nights to get a chance to be saved. After that, he endured for another thirty years, gradually improving his cultivation, and finally waited for the opportunity of the Ancient Starry Road, and turned the tables in one fell swoop.
"The reason I'm telling you this is to tell you that failure is not terrible, because the road of life is very long. One-time victory over you does not represent anything. You are only losing to Lin Changqing in the Nascent Soul realm now. In the future, you will have to transform into gods and return to emptiness, and there are still more than a dozen great realms waiting for you. Why give up easily if you lose in one realm?" Qin Wushang looked at the Fourth Prince and said, "If I had given up like you back then, then I wouldn't have had the chance to ascend to the throne later. It's not terrible that you lost to Lin Changqing today. As long as you persevere, you will have a very long lifespan in the future, hundreds of years, thousands of years, tens of thousands of years. You may not be able to overtake him in a corner, as long as you persevere. But if you really give up completely, then there is really no chance to surpass Lin Changqing!"
