Chen Yixin and Wenren Li remained in the small courtyard Zhu Yan had arranged for them for ten days before Nine Sovereigns Hall finally sent someone over.
Zhu Yan’s public explanation was that the Young Master of Myriad Immortals Tower had personally arrived, leaving him unable to spare any attention elsewhere. In response, Nine Sovereigns Hall sent over invitations to its banquet—one for Zhu Yan and one for Chen Yixin, the newly emerged Young Master of Myriad Immortals Tower.
“What does Young Master intend to do?” Zhu Yan asked with a slight bow, though the distance he kept between himself and Chen Yixin was noticeably greater than before.
To be honest, Zhu Yan had no objection whatsoever to Chen Yixin becoming his Young Master. But neither was he remotely unfamiliar with Chen Yixin. Even now, people still came to Myriad Immortals Tower from time to time asking for information about Chen Yixin and Wenren Li’s whereabouts, hoping to obtain clues from him and claim the enormous rewards offered by the Ten Emperors and Nine Clans.
Some people within Myriad Immortals Tower had even proposed that they take on the business themselves, but Zhu Yan rejected the suggestion the instant it was raised. Those people had never actually met Chen Yixin. If Zhu Yan had to rank the brutality of the Immortal Lords in the Upper Realm, Chen Yixin would unquestionably stand near the very top.
No matter how badly Myriad Immortals Tower wanted to earn money, provoking Chen Yixin was completely out of the question. At most, they could do what they had done in the past: sell information about Chen Yixin’s battle record, whom he had killed, and similar matters.
That fear had lasted from thirty thousand years ago all the way until now. Zhu Yan treated Chen Yixin with respect, but there was always fear mixed in as well. He felt it especially strongly whenever Wenren Li was absent.
“Of course we’re going.” Chen Yixin set the invitation aside and propped his chin on one small hand. “While you’re at it, find out exactly who else he invited.”
After Zhu Yan left, Chen Yixin went back to whatever he had been working on earlier. His fingers circled and twisted through the air, flashes of red light appearing around them. But the instant Wenren Li or anyone else turned their attention toward him, he would stop and resume the pose of someone resting his cheek on his hand in deep thought.
Wenren Li had already noticed that Chen Yixin was doing something. But Chen Yixin clearly wanted to hide it from him, and every time Wenren Li looked over, Chen Yixin would put on such an adorable expression that Wenren Li could do nothing except indulge him.
Two days later, the date of the banquet at Nine Sovereigns Hall arrived. Zhu Yan had completed everything Chen Yixin and Wenren Li had instructed him to prepare. The rest would have to depend on how circumstances developed.
Zhu Yan and several subordinates waited outside with a sedan chair, but Chen Yixin dawdled inside for quite some time before finally emerging. He entered the sedan alone, and soon their group of a little more than ten people disappeared from the Myriad Immortals Tower branch in the immortal city.
They first traveled to the city gate’s teleportation point and from there reached the imperial capital. In less than half a shichen, they had crossed several million li from the distant immortal city to the imperial capital. Another half shichen later, they arrived before Nine Sovereigns Hall at the center of the capital.
This immortal city was called the imperial capital not because of Jiuyu, but because it had originally been the capital of an ancient immortal kingdom. That kingdom had long since fallen, yet its capital remained, and even its architecture still preserved traces of the old kingdom’s style.
Afraid that Chen Yixin might grow bored during the journey, Zhu Yan spent the entire way explaining one thing after another from outside the sedan.
Chen Yixin paid no attention to Zhu Yan’s endless chatter, but he did not stop him either. After all, the newly emerged Young Master of Myriad Immortals Tower was not necessarily supposed to know these things. Only once they had entered the grounds of Nine Sovereigns Hall did Zhu Yan finally fall silent.
A servant of Nine Sovereigns Hall started to approach and lift Chen Yixin’s sedan curtain, but Zhu Yan waved him away.
“This…” The servant looked awkward, yet clearly had no intention of giving up. Though he did not physically move closer, his immortal sense swept toward the interior of the sedan. He apparently refused to rest until he had confirmed Chen Yixin’s identity. Such breathtakingly rude behavior could practically be called a specialty of Nine Sovereigns Hall.
A muffled groan sounded. The servant collapsed backward, his soul scorched almost to the point of shattering. If no one stepped in to save him, the damage to his soul would spread into his physical body. Even if he survived, he would become a crippled fool.
“Father was right. There really are more idiots than anything else in this world.”
Chen Yixin’s slightly mischievous voice drifted from inside the sedan. Only then did Zhu Yan bow and step forward to lift the curtain.
Chen Yixin sat upright inside, the smile on his face still clean and innocent. Yet he raised his hand again and lightly pointed toward the servant.
Even if the man had already been reduced to an idiot, he had offended Chen Yixin. That meant he was not permitted to continue living.
“Such ruthlessness at such a young age. Do your elders know you behave this way?”
A pale-blue skirt drifted down from the sky. A woman appeared and blocked Chen Yixin’s attack for the servant, but even she let out a muffled grunt and staggered backward two steps. She did not bleed, yet she had clearly been injured.
She was both shocked and furious. But at that very moment, Chen Yixin lifted his hand again and pointed once more. This time, the attack was not aimed at the servant. It was directed openly at her—Lan Xin, daughter of Immortal Emperor Guangle, and the woman who lacked only the final formal acknowledgment before becoming mistress of Nine Sovereigns Hall.
“How dare you!” Lan Xin instinctively raised both hands to defend herself. But despite possessing ninth-rank Immortal Lord cultivation, she was obviously no match for Chen Yixin. If this strike landed, her injuries would certainly worsen.
“Xin’er, step back.” A voice traveled from afar. Lan Xin was pulled away, while a stream of silver-gray divine power collided with Chen Yixin’s attack. The two forces canceled each other out. The fear lingering in Lan Xin’s eyes had not yet faded before she stared at Chen Yixin with even greater shock.
“Half-Step Immortal Emperor… nearing full completion.” Jiuyu approached from the far end of the path. Dressed in flowing white immortal robes, he looked extraordinarily elegant. His burning gaze fixed on Chen Yixin with something resembling astonishment—and even more strongly, delight.
“If Father hadn’t said I was too young, Nine Sovereigns Hall would already belong to me.”
That neatly explained why Chen Yixin had reached the Half-Step Immortal Emperor realm yet had never participated in the Upper Realm’s struggle among the Half-Step Immortal Emperors. Evidently, the “Father” he spoke of had kept him hidden away.
“You stole my Nine Sovereigns Hall, and now you dare set your sights on my Myriad Immortals Tower too. You’ve got some nerve!”
As he spoke, Chen Yixin stepped out of the sedan. He extended his right hand, and a long crimson whip appeared in his grasp. Judging by his expression, not only was he prepared to cause trouble inside Nine Sovereigns Hall, he also intended to blame the current occupant for daring to live there.
“Outrageous!” Whatever Jiuyu himself was thinking, Lan Xin was already furious. Her usually gentle features twisted slightly with anger, making her look intimidating to everyone else and especially ugly in Chen Yixin’s eyes.
“Ugly freak. I’ll teach him a lesson first, then I’ll deal with you.”
The moment Chen Yixin finished speaking, he lashed out with the crimson whip and charged forward. When he said he intended to teach Jiuyu a lesson, he had not been joking.
Jiuyu had swept through the Upper Realm without meeting an equal, so naturally he felt no fear either. He leaped upward, and the two immediately began exchanging divine arts in midair.
Lan Xin watched from below. Her expression gradually steadied as she waited to see Chen Yixin taught a lesson instead. Zhu Yan, meanwhile, was completely dumbfounded. Chen Yixin was not following the plan they had agreed upon at all. They had only just arrived, yet he had already picked a direct fight with Jiuyu.
Of course, Zhu Yan did not let his panic show. He watched the battle closely while rapidly considering possible countermeasures.
A full half shichen passed, yet Chen Yixin and Jiuyu remained evenly matched.
Jiuyu had not used his full strength, while Chen Yixin had deliberately restricted himself to Half-Step Immortal Emperor cultivation. The reason Chen Yixin remained undefeated lay in the enormous variety of divine arts he knew and the fluidity with which he switched between them. Whatever Jiuyu used, Chen Yixin always had a corresponding method to dissolve it.
At the same time, actually landing a blow on Jiuyu was equally difficult. That was how the battle ended up deadlocked.
Zhu Yan, who had received no warning whatsoever about what Chen Yixin intended to do, finally reacted. He shouted, “Young Master, don’t forget what my lord instructed you before you came!” Zhu Yan held a piece of immortal jade in his hand as though he might crush it at any moment.
Chen Yixin glanced down at Zhu Yan, then glared at Jiuyu again. Slowly spreading his hands, he descended back toward the sedan.
He looked in Jiuyu’s direction and raised one eyebrow. Part of the crimson whip dissolved and transformed into a scarlet feather-arrow. Chen Yixin had only completed half the motion of drawing a bow before the arrow shot toward Jiuyu.
Several locking array patterns appeared around Jiuyu as he descended. Chen Yixin had secretly left them behind during their earlier exchange of divine arts. Jiuyu could no longer dodge the incoming feather-arrow.
Boom! A thunderous explosion erupted around Jiuyu. The blast spread outward, and the great gates of Nine Sovereigns Hall behind him shattered completely beneath the pressure released from the scarlet feather. Naturally, the plaque bearing the three characters for Nine Sovereigns Hall—the plaque Chen Yixin found especially offensive—was destroyed along with them.
Only then did the smile on Chen Yixin’s face become genuinely satisfied. He strolled about with great interest, admiring his handiwork. As for the immortal guards who had already surrounded him and Zhu Yan, Chen Yixin simply ignored them.
Jiuyu stood intact before the collapsed gates, but the easy expression that had previously covered his face had vanished. The problem was not the destroyed gate. What concerned him was that any Immortal Emperor capable of raising someone with this level of combat power could not possibly be ordinary.
His plans for tonight’s banquet would have to be adjusted accordingly. At the very least, while they remained in the imperial capital, he could not kill these two.
After reaching that conclusion, Jiuyu’s faint smile returned. He was clearly a creature of extreme evil, yet he dressed and conducted himself more like an immortal than anyone else.
“Well then… has that relieved your anger?” Jiuyu lifted a hand and stopped Lan Xin before she could scold Chen Yixin. He looked at Chen Yixin with an expression of boundless indulgence, resembling Wenren Li so closely that even Zhu Yan found it difficult to separate the two.
Chen Yixin had been somewhat appeased. But once Jiuyu directed that expression toward him, he became even angrier than before.
Chen Yixin lifted his chin, turned around, and climbed back into the sedan. “I’m tired. Find somewhere for me to rest.”
Chen Yixin refused to play along with him in the slightest. Jiuyu was surprised, but strangely enough, he could not bring himself to feel much resentment. He waved for the immortal guards to withdraw, then nodded to a steward and ordered him to arrange accommodations for Chen Yixin.
Only after the sedan vanished down a corridor did Jiuyu finally withdraw his gaze. By then, Lan Xin could no longer endure it.
“Your Excellency, why?”
Chen Yixin had humiliated both her and Jiuyu right in front of the main gate, yet Jiuyu had let him off this easily.
“Interesting people naturally deserve different treatment. Do not interfere in matters concerning the Young Master of Myriad Immortals Tower.”
When Jiuyu spoke to her in that tone, Lan Xin did not dare make further trouble no matter how unwilling she felt. Slowly forcing down her anger, she hooked her arm around Jiuyu’s. “I understand. I was only angry that he dared offend Your Excellency.”
Her voice trembled slightly toward the end of the sentence, and once again Chen Yixin was the reason.
Chen Yixin’s divine sense swept toward them, seemingly intent on burning Lan Xin’s arm into ash. And this was already the result after he had restrained himself. Otherwise, he genuinely wanted to burn both their souls away and reclaim Wenren Li’s remnant immediately.
Jiuyu lifted his gaze and was just about to look toward Chen Yixin when Chen Yixin’s divine sense disappeared without a trace. Even the courtyard where Chen Yixin was staying had already been covered with barriers that prevented any investigation.
Jiuyu pulled his arm free from Lan Xin’s embrace, the pressure around her arm already making it seem as though the limb might break. His lips curved faintly. Before Lan Xin could complain, he vanished from where he stood.
Meanwhile, inside the guest courtyard of Nine Sovereigns Hall, Chen Yixin still looked ready to explode with rage. “Ahhh… how dare they…!” Watching them defile Wenren Li’s remnant like this was truly going to drive him insane.
“You go stand guard outside. I… need to stay angry for a while longer.”
Otherwise, once he reached the banquet, Chen Yixin feared he would have even less control over his behavior.
Zhu Yan left wearing a deeply worried expression. Chen Yixin flopped facedown onto the bed. A tiny bird doll woven from red feathers appeared in his palm, and he rubbed his face against it again and again. “A-Li, A-Li, I want to chop both their arms off.”
Once Chen Yixin’s jealousy flared, even Wenren Li’s remnant could not escape being caught in the crossfire of his anger.
The red-feathered bird doll in his arms remained completely motionless, without the slightest trace of spiritual energy. But before Chen Yixin came here today, he had used a seduction ploy. While Wenren Li was caught off guard, Chen Yixin had sealed him inside the doll.
The doll had been woven from the Vermilion Bird clan’s red feathers specifically to conceal Wenren Li’s aura. The drawback was that until Chen Yixin made his move, Wenren Li could not show even the slightest reaction. Otherwise, Jiuyu, who was only a short distance away, would immediately detect him.
So even if Wenren Li wanted to comfort Chen Yixin now, he could not. Yet simply knowing that Wenren Li was there was already the greatest comfort Chen Yixin could receive. After rubbing against the doll for a while, he gradually regained his reason.
Leave a Reply