“The Commander of the Imperial Guards, Lord Pei Wuji, has arrived!”
However, the arrival of the War God Yanhuang was merely the beginning—not the end.
“The Imperial Guards, hear my command! Surround these Chen family traitors. Not a single one is to escape!”
Wearing a suit of silver chainmail and mounted on a mighty Dayuan warhorse, Pei Wuji spoke without the slightest trace of emotion.
“What?!”
“How can this be?”
“This has to be a mistake! Lord Pei Wuji just called the Chen family traitors?”
Even the most imaginative storytellers in the capital wouldn’t dare come up with such a shocking twist.
And yet, this impossible turn of events was happening right before everyone’s eyes.
“L-Lord Pei, this is a misunderstanding… a huge misunderstanding…”
Chen Jingting’s head was practically about to explode.
Among the cultivators in the imperial capital, Pei Wuji was one of the most fearsome and unique.
Pei Wuji acted under imperial sanction—kill first, report later.
If Pei Wuji decided to cut him down right here and now, there would be nowhere to appeal.
The War God Yanhuang was already terrifying, but this expressionless Pei Wuji? Even more so.
“Lord Pei… this must be some kind of mistake…”
At this point, Chen Shiyu wasn’t thinking about any beautiful women anymore.
Pei Wuji was someone who rarely showed himself, but whenever he did, it ended in bloodshed—or worse, the annihilation of entire families.
But neither the War God Yanhuang nor Pei Wuji paid any attention to Chen Jingting or Chen Shiyu.
Their eyes were only on Su Chen and Ruo Ximeng.
“Lord Su Chen, Sister Ximeng, are you both alright?”
As soon as Yanhuang spoke, she regretted the question.
With Su Chen’s overwhelming strength, he could take on even the long-dead old monsters of the Chen family and win easily—let alone deal with someone like Chen Jingting.
“Lord Su Chen, Princess Ximeng, I failed in my duties by allowing the Chen family traitors to startle you. The blame is entirely mine!”
Pei Wuji dismounted immediately and respectfully cupped his fists toward Su Chen and Ruo Ximeng.
“Hiss—”
A collective gasp swept through the crowd.
“What is going on?”
“Who are these two people?”
“Heavens above! Both the War God and Lord Pei Wuji are treating them with such reverence! Who exactly are these two?!”
By the banks of the Jinling River, the onlookers were experiencing their third shock of the day.
No one could have predicted that today’s events would take such a dramatic turn.
And now, more and more people began recalling something Su Chen had said earlier.
“‘Give you face? I’m willing to give it—are you brave enough to take it?'”
Not just the bystanders—even Chen Jingting suddenly remembered those very words.
***
A short while ago, he had laughed it off.
Now, seeing how Yanhuang and Pei Wuji treated Su Chen, he felt as though lightning had struck his soul.
His legs trembled.
His heart pounded.
He stood at the edge of a cliff, feeling as if the ground beneath him could crumble at any moment.
Su Chen—no one knew who he truly was, but Chen Jingting definitely didn’t dare ask him for mercy.
At this moment, Chen Jingting’s mind was racing as he frantically tried to figure out how to escape today’s crisis.
“Imperial edict incoming! Chen Jingting, receive the decree!”
A slightly sharp voice echoed from afar, drawing closer.
“What? An imperial edict?”
Everyone was stunned speechless.
No one could have imagined that this incident had already alerted the Emperor himself!
“By the order of the Emperor of the Great Yan Dynasty! Chen Jingting has deceived the monarch and defied imperial authority.”
“The Chen family has long enjoyed imperial favor, yet instead of remaining loyal and serving the country, they have formed factions for personal gain and committed countless crimes in the capital and Luoyun City. Their actions have provoked outrage from both Heaven and man, and cannot be tolerated!”
“All members of the Chen family guilty of major crimes shall be imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison and executed after the autumn trial. The rest shall be exiled to the borderlands!”
The eunuch finished announcing the decree and handed the imperial edict to Chen Jingting.
The once arrogant Chen Jingting went pale, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground unconscious, utterly terrified.
They had only meant to teach two nobodies a lesson.
‘Who could’ve guessed they had provoked a disaster that would destroy their entire clan?’
Not only were the members of the Chen family dumbfounded, even the commoners of the capital stood frozen in shock, speechless.
The Chen family—royal relatives, nobles of imperial blood, one of the four great clans of the capital—was just… gone?
And this time, the Emperor had been ruthless, settling both old and new scores.
Who knew how many heads from the Chen family would roll?
***
Inside the imperial palace of the Great Yan Dynasty, the Emperor himself was nearly coughing up blood in rage!
He had just used a provocation tactic to buy a little breathing room for the dynasty.
He had also personally warned the capital’s noble clans that the empire was in crisis and that they must keep a low profile and avoid causing trouble.
And yet, these Chen family idiots blatantly provoked Su Chen, practically forcing him to start a massacre!
‘Did these brainless fools really need Su Chen to storm into the palace and chop off his head before they’d learn restraint?’
‘Today’s imperial edict wasn’t just a punishment for the Chen family’s stupidity—it was also a warning to all the other nobles in the capital.’
‘If any of them dared to mess with Su Chen or Ruo Ximeng again, the Emperor wouldn’t hold back!’
Still, this incident had made the Emperor even more wary.
Power—true power—was the foundation of survival.
Only great strength could ensure lasting peace for the empire.
His current cultivation was still far from enough.
He needed to improve further—perhaps by several more realms—if he ever wanted to stand on equal footing with Su Chen.
He would have to schedule his future cultivation with even greater intensity!
***
While countless thoughts flashed through the Emperor’s mind, Su Chen and Ruo Ximeng—the cause of this massive uproar—had long since disappeared into the crowd.
Autumn Moon Pavilion was one of the ten famed restaurants in the capital.
Each of the ten famed establishments had its own signature dish.
The Autumn Moon Pavilion’s specialty was none other than Autumn Moon Ginseng and Jade Dove Soup.
At that moment, Su Chen and Ruo Ximeng were already seated in a private room of the restaurant.
Since they had become quite well-known in the capital, it was better to let things cool down a bit before showing themselves in public again.
Taking a short break at the Autumn Moon Pavilion right now was perfect.
“Ximeng, does it taste good?” Su Chen asked gently as he reached out to pat Ruo Ximeng’s little head.
He couldn’t help it.
The way the girl sipped her soup with a satisfied gulp was just too adorable.
Her slightly puffed cheeks made her look so cute that if he weren’t afraid of making her choke, he would’ve pinched them already.
‘No! My inner softie can’t take this anymore!’
Even as he spoke, Su Chen reached out and gave Ruo Ximeng’s delicate, doll-like face a light pinch.
‘Tsk tsk, that texture—pretty damn nice.’
[Host, are you even human?! She’s still a child!]
The Imperial Mentor System knew exactly what this shameless old rogue Su Chen was up to.
As a system upholding justice, it had no choice but to jump in immediately to voice its righteous outrage.
[Host, tricking people is one thing, but how can you shamelessly take advantage of someone like this?!]
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.