Chapter 4098 Turning danger into good fortune

The more the prince said that, the more guilty we felt towards him became.

From the very beginning, we both wanted to use the prince to infiltrate Zhaoyao Mountain and steal the Zhaoyao Wood. To us, the prince was just a pawn to be used. As for the care and loyalty we showed him, it was nothing more than flattery to achieve our goal.

But the prince didn't care about any of that. He only cared about his own experience. Even if it was feigned sincerity, if it made him feel good, he would accept it gladly.

The prince's sincerity was the ultimate weapon, making me and the slovenly Taoist priest, like old bastards, deeply aware of our own despicable nature. In the past, all the methods we used were used on those treacherous, cunning, and wicked villains, but we never expected to encounter a good person this time.

"Your Highness, we've destroyed that 'Swinging Tree' so badly. Are you really just going to let us go like this? The King really won't punish you?" I was a little worried.

"As I just said, I am the king's own uncle. Would he kill his own uncle? Besides, that 'Swish Tree' is so big. You didn't uproot it, so it won't affect its ability to grow more leaves. We have more than enough leaves stored in our royal palace. You can leave with peace of mind." The prince waved his hand.

As he spoke, the prince took out a precious sword from his body and cut the black iron chains binding the disheveled Taoist priest. He said again, "You should take me hostage and leave now. The reason I didn't let you leave before was because those two Dukes of Protectorate are the king's men. I couldn't let you go openly. As long as you take me hostage, they won't dare to lay a hand on you."

After the disheveled Taoist priest was freed from his restraints, I saw that he was so moved that he almost cried.

"Your Highness, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have lied to you. Um, I still have many treasures on me, I'll leave them all to you..."

As he spoke, the slovenly Taoist priest took out a bunch of random things from his Qiankun Eight Treasures Pouch, including a box of aged Moutai liquor.

The disheveled Taoist priest took out two bottles of perfume from the pile of things and handed them to the prince: "Your Highness, the Eternal Love perfume I gave to the Empress Dowager before wasn't very good. Here are two bottles. Please send them to the Empress Dowager. These are for my wife. They are both high-end products. Please accept them."

Good heavens, the slovenly Taoist priest finally decided to spend more than ten yuan on something. Those two bottles of perfume were indeed high-end, each costing at least tens of thousands of yuan. This was the first time I had ever seen the slovenly Taoist priest spend so much money.

"Alright, alright, I'll keep it. You should leave now, it wouldn't be good if those two Dukes of Protectorate found out," the prince said in a low voice.

The slovenly Taoist priest drew his lightning-struck wooden sword and severed the black iron chains binding me, thus freeing both of us.

The prince picked up a leather whip from the table and said again, "You two make some noise, then take me hostage. That will make it more realistic. Once you're gone, don't come back."

As he spoke, the prince brandished his whip and lashed it at the pillar behind us.

The slovenly Taoist priest and I immediately started to wail in mock pain. The slovenly Taoist priest was the most convincing, wailing and pleading, "Your Highness... please stop hitting me. I've given you everything I'm owed. Please spare me."

"Spare you? Dream on! I'll beat you to death today!" The prince was also a master of acting, and his leather whip cracked loudly as he lashed it.

Just then, the disheveled Taoist priest suddenly stepped forward, hugged the prince from behind, and respectfully said, "Your Highness, I'm sorry!"

I also took out the Victory Sword and held it to the prince's neck.

At this moment, the prince shouted, "What are you trying to do? Even if you take me hostage, you won't get out of here!"

"Stop talking nonsense and lead the way! Release my brothers!" the slovenly Taoist priest roared.

Upon hearing the prince's shout, the two Dukes outside immediately rushed into the tent.

The two men, carrying their magical implements, were terrified when they saw that both of our magical swords were at the prince's neck.

"Release the prince, or you will all die a horrible death!" Duke Zuo raised his sword and pointed it at the two of us.

"Get lost, who are you trying to scare? Stay away from us, or I'll make sure the prince loses a part right now!" The slovenly Taoist priest's magic sword moved even closer to the prince's neck.

Upon seeing this, the two Dukes of Protectorate panicked and took a few steps back.

"Let's talk this out, don't hurt the prince..." The Right Duke was also a little flustered.

If anything were to happen to the prince, these two Dukes of Protectorate would certainly be in deep trouble.

The Duke of Zuo clearly sensed something was amiss. As he backed away, he asked, "Your Highness, with your skills, how did you manage to be outmaneuvered by these two men tied to the pillar?"

"Oh dear, I was careless for a moment. This kid said he had a lot of treasures to give me, so I let him go. Look, those treasures are all there. Who knew he would launch a sneak attack... You two quickly step back. If I lose even a single hair, it will be your problem." The prince said helplessly.

The two Dukes of Protectorate glanced at the tattered items the slovenly Taoist priest took out of his Qiankun Eight Treasures Pouch, and seemed to believe him somewhat.

At this point, the two of us, holding the prince hostage, had already reached outside the camp.

As soon as we stepped outside, we saw that all the men the prince had brought earlier had gathered together and surrounded the two of us.

"Release the prince! How dare you!"

"Taking a prince hostage is a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!"

Those people kept chattering away.

"Release our men, or we'll kill him right now!" I shouted, shoving the prince on the shoulder.

"Release them at once! Do you want me dead?" the prince shouted.

The two Dukes on either side exchanged a glance, then nodded to the people beside them.

Before long, the group left and released Master Zhiqing and Brother Gu, who had been imprisoned in another tent.

When they saw the two of us holding the prince hostage, they were all dumbfounded.

"Xiao Jie, Brother Luo, you guys are awesome! I knew with you guys around, we could definitely turn bad luck into good!" Little Fatty was overjoyed when he saw this scene.

At this moment, Master Zhiqing and Li Chao were still a little confused, probably because they couldn't quite believe what they were seeing.

"Untie the black iron chains on them and return the magical artifacts to them, quickly!" I shouted again.

Those people had no choice but to comply, not only untying the black iron chains binding them but also throwing their magical artifacts on the ground.