Unbelievable, he must have truly lost his mind.
Baili Changyue immediately frowned and said, "Why take your anger out on these ordinary people?"
Ji Tongzhou turned his back, no longer looking at them, and slowly walked back into the courtyard. The emperor was still crying, rolling on the ground like a lifeless lump of flesh. Ji Tongzhou took a deep breath and, under the watchful eyes of everyone, sat back down in his chair.
Soon, someone brought wine from the cellar. Ji Tongzhou held the cup to his lips, his gaze sweeping over the opulent courtyard—carved railings, jade steps, extravagant and luxurious. The scattered servants, stewards, and guards stood in disarray, the emperor still weeping, while Miaoqing from the inner chambers could no longer bear it and rushed out. Every face bore the same gray despair.
Was this everything he was supposed to protect? No.
In the distance, the highest bell tower of Duan Tu glittered in the sunlight, and beyond that, the golden tiles of the imperial palace. The vast and magnificent rivers and mountains of Yue Country, the pride and ambition of commanding the wind and rain, the lofty dreams of dominating the world—his heart had already birthed the Gluttonous Beast. He could not lose these things, even if it meant abandoning anyone.
"Tongzhou." Ye Ye's voice sounded nearby, yet it felt as distant as if separated by lifetimes. His friends were watching him with pained concern. In the face of calamity, they could offer nothing but words of comfort to soothe the wounds—nothing more, nothing...
Ji Tongzhou had never felt so coldly and clearly aware of everything. The warmth that had once felt like a spring breeze was nothing more than fragile paper when a real blade was pressed to his neck.
"Leave," he said indifferently. "Don't get dragged into this."
Ye Ye urgently replied, "You expect us to just watch you throw your life away?! Don’t be foolish! Let’s leave together, now! Before Long Mingzuo and his people arrive!"
Ji Tongzhou chuckled. "I won’t die."
What nonsense! Ye Ye was about to step forward and argue properly when suddenly, someone outside the courtyard shouted, "You're all here?! Perfect!"
Baili Gelin rushed in, panting, followed closely by Lu Li. The sight of the steward’s corpse on the ground made both of them pale for a moment. Baili Gelin cried out, "Ji Tongzhou! Elder Xuanshan Zi has already—"
"I know," Ji Tongzhou cut her off. "No need to say more."
Baili Gelin stared at him in shock. Why was he acting like this?
"On my way here, I saw Wugou and Yue Country at war... Aren’t you going to do anything?" she asked hesitantly. "And... why are there no guards at the manor gate? This corpse... What’s going on...?"
Ji Tongzhou gave her a cold glance. She was as noisy and scatterbrained as ever.
"One question at a time."
Baili Gelin was even more taken aback. She studied him carefully for a moment, then her gaze was drawn to Miaoqing behind him, who bore a striking resemblance to Li Fei. Finally, she looked helplessly at Baili Changyue and the others, but each of them shook their heads slowly—no one knew what had happened to Ji Tongzhou.
Lu Li spoke up, "Though I don’t fully understand the conflicts between these Central Land nations, since the other side has the backing of an Immortal Sect, they’ll eventually mobilize the power of the cultivation world. Leaving now would still be the wisest choice. There will be time to plan later."
Ye Ye nodded immediately. "Brother Lu is right. Tongzhou, acting on impulse is no strategy. As the saying goes, 'Where there’s life, there’s hope.' It’s better to retreat for now and plan your comeback another day."Ji Tongzhou seemed lost in thought, silently sipping his wine when suddenly his expression changed. He set down his cup and looked toward the courtyard. Outside the Spiritual Qi Net above the prince's residence, faint spiritual energy fluctuations could be detected, followed by several loud metallic clangs—the unmistakable sound of Immortal Techniques striking the protective net.
Ye Ye and the other two paled instantly, recalling similar events from their past. Back then, during the turmoil at the Gaul imperial palace, Long Mingzuo's forces had breached the palace's Spiritual Qi Net, forcing the Gaul emperor to surrender. Though the emperor had refused to the end, his public humiliation before the army crushed Gaul's morale, leaving them defenseless against Wugou's cavalry, who stormed the capital and burned the entire city.
Now, over a decade later, the same tactic was being used against Yue Kingdom—but this time, they faced Ji Tongzhou.
In a flash, he was already outside the residence, soaring on his sword. Dark flames surged toward the Long Mingzuo disciples above the Spiritual Qi Net. These faces were familiar—the same group they had encountered at the Eastern Sea Trial Grounds, including his former lackey, who was now gleefully attacking the net with a Mystical Treasure.
Capturing Ji Tongzhou had been their personal request to Elder Zongquan. Today, they intended to settle all scores from the Eastern Sea and humble this arrogant prince once and for all. Though his talent was extraordinary, he was still just one man. Last time, had it not been for outside help, they would have already defeated him.
As the black flames engulfed the sky, the disciples calmly summoned their Mystical Treasures. A torrential spring rain erupted, waves of aquatic spiritual energy surging forth. Yet when it met the black fire, the flames only roared higher, leaping several zhang into the air—how could water-based Immortal Techniques fail to extinguish these strange flames?
A shadow darted forward like lightning. Realizing the danger, the disciples scattered, some activating treasures, others casting techniques, a few deploying defenses. Ji Tongzhou swung his arm, and walls of black fire divided them. Countless techniques struck his Earthen Guardian, its orange glow dimming instantly.
Before a second wave of attacks could come, he had already caught up to the fleeing lackey, gripping the acupoint at his nape to cut off his spiritual energy flow. The lackey went limp like mud in his grasp, trembling. "Y-Your Highness... spare me! I was wrong!"
Ji Tongzhou ignored him. Slowly, he drew his sword—its blade not steel, but a slender black Flame Blade radiating terrifying heat. Sensing the immense spiritual energy within it, the surrounding black fire surged higher, as if intent on burning away the very clouds.
The Long Mingzuo disciples scrambled to retreat, only to find the sky darkening above them. Masses of black fire coalesced overhead while walls of flame encircled them, trapping them in an inescapable cage of darkness.
Seeing one captured and the rest imprisoned by the eerie flames, their leader whistled, signaling everyone to break free using their Earthen Guardians. Desperate to escape, he activated his own guardian and charged through the fiery barrier—only to let out a piercing scream as his body was instantly consumed, reduced to ashes in moments. The Earthen Guardian had been utterly useless.Everyone couldn't help but tremble with fear as their vision filled with strange black flames that couldn't be extinguished or touched. They immediately regretted their actions, wishing they hadn't been so reckless.
"Hmph! Killing us won't help!" The Long Mingzuo disciples trapped in the fiery cage stubbornly shouted, "When the elders arrive, you'll be nothing but a helpless ant! You'd better surrender now! If you behave, we might spare your miserable life..."
Before they could finish, the walls of fire suddenly closed in. The Long Mingzuo disciples didn't even have time to scream before being instantly reduced to black ashes in another flash.
Ye Ye and the others, who had intended to help, were stunned. Ji Tongzhou had eliminated these Long Mingzuo disciples as effortlessly as cutting melons and vegetables. His cultivation was clearly still at the third bottleneck, yet his Profound Splendor Fire was far more intense than before, filling the sky and ground like leaping dark clouds.
Ji Tongzhou retracted the black flames, which eventually condensed into a cluster of tiny, flickering embers dancing weakly in his palm. He looked down at the lackey collapsed in his grip—the man's face had turned deathly pale, trembling uncontrollably as he begged incoherently: "Please... for the sake of my loyal service to you in the past... spare me..."
Ji Tongzhou said coldly, "When will your elders arrive?"
The lackey sobbed, "E-Elder Zongquan was supposed to come personally... but Cuixuan Xianren from No Moon Court suddenly issued a summons... something about discussing some runaway disciple... I—this lowly one truly doesn't know when the elders will—"
Ji Tongzhou tossed him aside. With a light flick of his black Flame Blade, the man's head rolled to the ground, stopping at Baili Gelin's feet. She jumped away in disgust, frowning. "That runaway disciple he mentioned—I suspect it's Li Fei."
Ye Ye and Su Wan were shocked. "What do you mean?" they exclaimed.
Baili Gelin glanced around before lowering her voice to relay Chongyi Zhenren's message for Li Fei. "I think there's a ninety percent chance Zhen Yunzi's matter has been exposed. Did any of you leak it?"
Without waiting for an answer, she turned to Ji Tongzhou. The unfathomable young prince removed his blood-and-dirt-stained outer robe as Miaoqing—whose attire eerily resembled Li Fei's—helped him into a new luxurious outer garment. Truth be told, this maid's presence made them all uncomfortable.
"Ji Tongzhou." Baili Gelin stepped before him, staring into his calm, unreadable eyes. "If what happened in the Eastern Sea were to become known, do you understand the consequences?"
Ji Tongzhou replied indifferently, "Are you implying I revealed it?"
"I don't know." Baili Gelin met his gaze frankly. None of their childhood friends could have imagined things would come to this. "I don't believe you'd harm Li Fei."
Ji Tongzhou coldly averted his gaze, walking past her into the house with only one remark: "Leave."
He shut the door, only to reopen it moments later. Finding Ye Ye and the others still present, he ignored them, striding swiftly toward the courtyard exit.
"Stop." The previously silent Baili Changyue suddenly spoke. Moving like lightning, she grabbed him. "Show me the letter in your robes."
Ji Tongzhou looked down icily at her hand. "How dare you," he said ominously. "Let go.""Tongzhou?!" Ye Ye also flared up. He stepped forward and shoved Ji Tongzhou hard in the chest, shielding Baili Changyue behind him as he confronted Ji Tongzhou. "How long are you going to keep this madness up?"
Suddenly, Baili Changyue struck from behind. Ji Tongzhou only felt a golden mist rush toward his face. Amid the gasps of the crowd, he hastily retreated several steps. Baili Changyue moved like lightning, swiftly retrieving a letter from his embrace. Just as she was about to open it, the letter was suddenly engulfed by Black Fire, turning to ashes in an instant. She raised her head and stared straight at him, murmuring, "Feeling guilty now?"
OpenNovel