âThe Eternal Celestial Capital is your friend and youâre afraid of the Heavenly Dragon Sect. Fine then. The Empyrean River Palace and the Sublime Chord Temple, Iâll let you pick either one.â Jiang Chen sensed Pillzenithâs hesitation and continued making fun of the great emperor.
Everytime Jiang Chen named a sect, its great emperors twitched and their hearts pounded. Although Pillzenith couldnât possibly agree in public, they all knew how much he loved this son. What if the two parties reached a secret agreement?
Their fear was well founded. For Pillzenith, Tian Lin was worth the destruction of any sect. Why did the damn kid have to ask in front of everyone? The humiliation of today was greater than the shame heâd suffered in his entire life. If not for his son and the palace restriction, heâd have attacked the damn brat long ago.
He took a deep breath and nailed the young lord with a look. âJiang Chen, I have many sons. Itâs impossible for me to abandon a cultivatorâs righteousness for even one of them. Enough with trying to sow dissension. I wonât agree to a single demand.â
Jiang Chen clapped with a bark of laughter. âHaha, if I didnât know you any better, Iâd admire your uprightness. Oh well, Iâll raise your son for you in that case. Donât you have many of them? Just pretend you never had this one.â
Pillzenith almost spat blood at Jiang Chenâs casualness, but he could do nothing but scowl.
âYour Majesty, the kid is clearly afraid of all-out conflict. He wonât dare kill Sir Tian Lin. We might as well retreat for now. We can capture one of his people in the future and make a trade,â Tallpeak offered.
Itâs the only option left to rescue Tian Lin. Itâs impossible to take him back with me today. Pillzenith eased up a little when he came to terms with the idea.
However, he still didnât dare be too rude. He arched his hands. âJiang Chen, Iâve lived for several thousand years, but youâre the greatest opponent Iâve ever met, even more so than Emperor Peafowl. The student indeed has surpassed the master. I admit defeat today. However, if you harm a single of my sonâs hair, I vow to slaughter all million of Veluriyamâs citizens. If you endanger his life, I wonât spare a single soul in your territory!
âLetâs go.â He left with a wave of his hand, his great emperors following behind.
Long Baxian shot a cold, conflicted glare at Jiang Chen, his tone treacherous. âQuite a good trump card youâve got today. I hope you can hold onto it tight!â
Jiang Chen glanced back, unconcerned. âJust remember, Iâm one to hold a grudge.â
Long Baxiang left with a snort.
A little fretful, the holy emperor didnât even have the courage to make eye contact before leaving.
The young lord fixed his departing figure with narrowed eyes but made no move to stop him. He naturally couldnât cope with the Eternal Celestial Capital all by himself.
When all of his enemies had left, he sat down cross-legged, meditated, sorted his thoughts, then finally took a peek outside. He was in no hurry to leave. Pillzenith might not have given up hope and couldâve set up additional traps.
He observed the surroundings carefully, only retracting the palace after being certan that Pillfireâs men had truly left. Why hadnât they tried to ambush him? This was a bit odd. Pillzenith he could understand, but what of the Eternal Celestial Capital? Why werenât they trying to steal a march on him?
They shouldnât have let him off so easily, given the depth of their enmity. But Jiang Chen soon understood. Pillzenith must have stopped them.
Indeed, the holy emperor was incomparably depressed. Heâd wanted to rally all his sectâs powerhouses and kill Jiang Chen while the latter was still in his domain, no matter the risks or losses. Letting this tiger return to his den would spell his sectâs future doom.
Alas, Pillzenith had harshly forbidden the plan. The latter hadnât wanted to interfere in the grudge between Veluriyam and the Eternal Celestial Capital, but what if Jiang Chen used his son as a shield? Itâd be too late for regrets then.
Heâd likewise warned the Heavenly Dragon Sect, but their two great emperors hadnât been confident they could kill Jiang Chen on foreign soil in the first place. Pillzenithâs warning extinguished their ambitions completely.
Still, that didnât stop them from resenting Pillfireâs master. Heâd been the one to suggest killing the kid, but was also the reason why theyâd retreated with their tails between their legs.
Jiang Chen had a smooth trip back to Veluriyam.
The city stood as one, ready for war. After heâd dismissed the great emperors, theyâd brought word back to the city. From top to bottom, the entire place was on tenterhooks because of the young lordâs predicament. Quite a few people wanted to dispatch troops to his rescue.
However, none were ever sent in the end. The young lord certainly had his own plan, or else he wouldnât have sent the great emperors back. The most important was to protect the city well and wait for him to come back.
And come back he did.
The entire city sighed in relief at his safe return. Unknowingly, heâd become Veluriyamâs backbone.
Jiang Feng and Xu Meng had returned to the young lord residence quite some time ago. Even their escort had returned to the Moon God Sect. As to Xu Qingxuan, sheâd taken up residence with her parents a few days ago.
Her arrival had reassured the cityâs force. So Jiang Chen hadnât been trapped. Instead, heâd snuck to Pillfire and captured Pillzenithâs son!
The young lord hadnât been afraid of these great emperors at all! Heâd slipped away despite their siege! No wonder heâd been confident enough to send his men away.
âFather, mother, forgive your unfilial son for causing you worry.â Affection welled in Jiang Chen when he saw his parentsâ concern. His past memories were merged with his current life. For him, these parents were genuine blood kin.
âChenâer, for our safe return, youâve assumed all the risks by yourself. Your mother has been worried sick. Now that youâre safe and sound, sheâll finally have a good nightâs sleep.â Jiang Feng sighed.
Xu Meng stroked her sonâs head. âItâs my fault. You grew up without your motherâs love, yet I made you toil for my sake and brave untold dangers...â
âMother, itâs nothing more than proper filial piety. Stinky brother, donât you think so?â Xu Qingxuan winked at him, making him smile.
âSheâs right. As a son, how could I face the heavens if I didnât rescue my parents? Mother, donât worry. Few in Upper Eight Regions can corner me.â
His mother nodded. âRight, right. To think my beloved son would be so formidable! You bring me so many surprises. But you should thank your father properly. Heâs spared no effort raising you by himself during all these years...â
Jiang Feng blushed. In truth, heâd play little part in his sonâs success. In fact, his sonâs success was just as much a surprise to him. He would have been content to let his son stay a wastrel, as long as he lived ignorant and worry-free.
However, things didnât always turn out as one might expect. To this day, he was bewildered by the young manâs transformation. Sometimes, he even wondered whether someone had replaced his child.
However, no one could fake the intimacy between blood relations. Perhaps, when his son had been beaten by Eastern Kingdomâs king, the heavens had taken pity on him and enlightened Jiang Chen?
âThat reminds me. Father, mother, Qingxuan, you better stay in the residence for now. Iâve captured Pillzenithâs son, so he might send experts to strike at those close to me.â
Xu Qingxuan fumed, âHmph, let them come. Iâm not afraid!â
Aware of his sisterâs aggressive nature, Jiang Chen merely smiled. A curfew or grounding was out of the question. He could only stay vigilant around the city. Fortunately, he could deploy the Goldbiter Rats and detect anyone suspicious within several hundred miles.