Immortal of the Nine Realms

Dressed in a peach-colored robe, Steward Jiang glared at Fang Chen with a mix of shock and anger, his fingers making delicate gestures.

A series of shouts soon followed, and numerous guards from the residence rushed over. Most of them were Golden Core Realm cultivators. However, one of them stood out as he was the only at the Nascent Soul Realm. Clearly, he was the leader.

The leader looked at Steward Jiang briefly before his gaze shifted toward Fang Chen, turning cold. He waved his hand and ordered, "Take him down."

The guards exchanged glances, clearly hesitant to carry out his orders. Their eyes flickered between Xia Ji and Steward Jiang.

"Are you rebelling?! I told you to take him down!" the guard leader barked.

"Steward Jiang, don't make it hard for them; they're just earning a salary," Xia Ji said with a faint smile. "This person is my friend, and we haven't seen each other for many years. He's not some thief, so Steward Jiang and the rest of you needn't be so tense. There's no problem here; you can just step back."

Steward Jiang seemed not to hear Xia Ji's words and continued to raise his voice. "Master Xia, how can we let an unknown person stay in the residence? If he has ulterior motives and harms you, even if we had ten heads, it wouldn't be enough of a punishment to chop them all off!"

After speaking, he shot a glare at the guards. "If you really want to rebel, I will immediately send a message to the palace and see how you will explain yourselves to the prince. Have you forgotten the rules of being a royal guard?"

The guard leader's expression darkened slightly. These guards had only interacted with Xia Ji for a short time, and now they dared to defy the orders of both the guard leader and Steward Jiang.

Xia Ji's expression darkened as he stared coolly at Steward Jiang. "Steward Jiang, I don't care about your strange behavior or your sarcastic remarks, but if you speak ill of my brother and target him, I won't tolerate your petty antics any longer."

Upon hearing this, Steward Jiang and the guard leader's expressions changed drastically, and the nearby guards were taken aback.

The usually indifferent Xia Ji, who never engaged in arguments with Steward Jiang, was now standing up to him for a random friend?

From their point of view, Xia Ji had led a life of hardship before he was accepted as a son by the Corrosive Dragon King, so they were wary of his friends' intentions now that he had risen in status.

Steward Jiang appeared to feel deeply wronged, his eyes reddening as he cried out, "Young Master, you're wronging me! When have I ever mistreated you? It's just that your friends haven't been vetted by the royal palace. How can we know for sure he doesn't have any ulterior motives?

"You're now the young master of the royal palace, which is not what it used to be. Everything must be handled with extreme caution. If the royal palace suffers a loss because of you, how could we, as servants, bear the consequences?"

After his heartfelt inquiry, Steward Jiang even wiped the corner of his eyes with his sleeve.

Fang Chen chuckled. "Xia Ji, your guards need to be disciplined. No matter their background or position, if servants dare to speak out against their master, how is that different from rebelling against the heavens?"

Xia Ji sighed helplessly. "I was hoping for a peaceful coexistence since they're not really my people; they're all sent by my foster brother to keep an eye on me. Whether I discipline them or not makes no difference. Normally, they wouldn't dare to act against me. It's you who's suffered some grievances today."

Seeing Xia Ji lay everything on the table, Steward Jiang and the guard leader's expressions turned grim. The nearby guards exchanged increasingly awkward glances.

Steward Jiang spoke expressionlessly. "Xia Ji, although we are all working for the crown prince, don't misunderstand his intentions. He has us watching you because he's worried that you might suddenly fall victim to outside temptations, leading you astray. After all, the lord values you greatly and even wants you to marry the Fourth Princess.

"If that happens, you would be the prince consort of the Central Continent Empire. What a status that is! The more prominent you become, the more cautious you must be. Please understand, Young Master."

He then cast a cold glance at the surrounding guards and sneered, "When it comes to rewards, you all scramble to get close to me, but when it's time to get the job done, you start making excuses. After today, you'll all be sent back to the North Continent. How can you protect the Young Master?"

After saying that, he looked at the guard leader. The guard leader understood the meaning behind that look but remained silent as he walked straight toward Fang Chen.

Xia Ji sighed softly. "Take it easy; otherwise, I won't have an easy time explaining this."

Steward Jiang laughed heartily, feeling that this young master seemed to have matured. He nodded, "Rest assured, the guards always know when to hold back." Ṛá𐌽ɵʙЁṣ

Meanwhile, the guard leader had already approached Fang Chen. As he attempted to move forward, he suddenly felt as if a massive mountain were pressing down on him, rendering him immobile.

Unbeknownst to him, the black and white paper figures had appeared beside him, one holding down his shoulder while the other had inserted a hand into him

From the position of the hand, it was clear that they had seized hold of the guard leader's heart.

The guard leader turned his head and was met with this scene. Upon feeling something was off in his body, his face drained of color, and he stared at the paper figures, frozen in place.

He sensed that if he dared to move even slightly, his insides would be overturned!

What kind of technique is this?

The surrounding guards were struck with a chill as they looked at the black and white paper figures, their eyes filled with astonishment.

Steward Jiang's expression froze. Suppressing his shock, he shouted angrily at Fang Chen, "Do you still dare to resist!? Do you know you've committed a grave sin?"

"Young Master, should this person live or die?" the black paper figure asked, chuckling lightly.

Its voice was sharp like a chilling wind, sending shivers down the spines of those present.

Fang Chen smiled and glanced at Xia Ji. "My brother said to take it easy, so I'll naturally listen to him."

To kill or not to kill?

Xia Ji understood Fang Chen. "If you feel it's unfair and want to kill him, that's fine. I can withstand the pressure from my brothers in the palace."

Steward Jiang finally understood that when Xia Ji said "Take it easy" earlier, he had not been referring to Steward Jiang or the guard leader but to this mysterious figure before them!

"Xia Ji, if our guard leader dies here today, even you won't be able to bear the wrath of the crown prince!" Steward Jiang threatened harshly, then pointed at Fang Chen. "And you, a distant relative trying to climb the family tree, will also end up crushed!"

Xia Ji's lips curled into a faint smile. "Steward Jiang, if I were you, I wouldn't speak such nonsense to Fang Chen. No one in the Immortal Court would dare say they want the sword leader of the Void Immortal Sword Sect crushed!"

The Void Immortal Sword Sect's sword leader?!

As soon as this statement was made, all the guards present froze in shock, and even the guard leader displayed an expression of disbelief.

Steward Jiang seemed to choke on his own words, coughing repeatedly for over ten seconds before finally regaining his composure.

In the distance, Wu Ruochou quietly watched the scene unfold, a smile appearing on her face. Her junior had mentioned that this group would be well taught a lesson soon, and now it was truly coming to fruition.