Chapter 672: Don't Kill Me!

Prince Fu's gaze slowly shifted from Jiang Feng and fell on Du Jianchuan's face, which was beaded with thin sweat from nervousness.

He has been reclusive for years and no longer wishes to meddle in the twists and turns of court affairs.

He came to Tianzhou today merely out of respect for Du Jianchuan's father.

Back then, the elder Du had shown him favor, and he owes him a debt of gratitude.

He thought it would just be a brief sit‑down, a meal, a social call, but a moment's inattention plunged him into boiling water.

The National Teacher's Junior Brother, a member of Si Tianjian—someone even his Imperial Family elder dares not provoke—was now surrounded in the main hall by his men, ready to seize him.

Prince Fu did not state any of this openly, but his look said it all.

Du Jianchuan read that gaze, felt a thud in his chest, and a fresh layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

He knows Prince Fu's temperament too well; the old Prince fears trouble above all, and his willingness to come already grants a huge favor.

Yet now that events have reached this point, even Prince Fu is beginning to regret the trip.

Du Jianchuan's mind raced.

He never imagined that behind Qiao Zhenyu stood the mysterious National Teacher.

The terror of Si Tianjian, Governor of Tianzhou knows better than anyone.

It is a being that completely transcends the Empire's bureaucratic system, answerable directly to the Emperor, beyond local jurisdiction and the Six Ministries.

Moreover, National Teacher Zang Zijian is a top figure in the entire Empire's cultivation world; even the Emperor must greet him with courtesy.

If everything Qiao Zhenyu says is true, that young man surnamed Jiang truly is the National Teacher's Junior Brother, then Du Jianchuan's actions today are sending his head straight under a guillotine.

But he cannot retreat…

He has already offended someone; even if he kneels now to admit fault, that young man surnamed Jiang might still not spare him.

Moreover, he still has leverage in Mao Dequan's hands; if Mao Dequan flips the testimony, this Governor's seat will be lost.

Du Jianchuan clenched his jaw and took half a step forward.

"Qiao Zhenyu, you have such nerve! Clearly you're forming cliques for personal gain, yet you dare invoke the National Teacher! I request the angel to issue an order, seize the villain, and hand him over to the National Teacher for punishment!"

There's no other way!

At this point, they can only go down a single dark path!

The purple‑robed eunuch Mao Dequan froze for a moment; he had originally thought Du Jianchuan would simply step down the stairs and let the matter pass.

After all, matters involving Si Tianjian are best avoided as far as possible.

Yet Du Jianchuan, on the contrary, not only refused to stop but tried to push the affair in an even larger direction.

His lips moved as if to speak, but before he could open his mouth, Du Jianchuan leaned in, his lips almost touching his ear, his voice pressed down to a whisper.

"Mister Mao, the only plan for now is to first capture these two. Whether what they say is true or false, as long as they are in our hands, the situation won't get worse."

Mao Dequan's complexion grew even paler, his lips trembling as he lowered his voice in reply.

"If he truly belongs to the National Teacher, should we still risk our heads? We're just foot‑soldiers; we don't want to hang our lives on Tianzhou."

A flash of ruthlessness flickered in Du Jianchuan's eyes.

He looked at Mao Dequan's slightly twisted face of fear and muttered a curse, calling him a useless person.

When he collected gold bars, Mao Dequan was not like this.

Now, at the mention of the National Teacher, he instantly turned into this cowardly behavior.

He cursed Mao Dequan eight hundred times in his mind, yet his face still wore a considerate expression.

His voice sank even lower,

"Mister Mao, precisely because of that we must seize these two. Think, if he truly is the National Teacher's man, and this matter spreads today, neither of our heads will be safe. But if they fall into our hands, we have time to maneuver, plenty of ways to smooth this over. Moreover, as long as we control the situation, things won't get worse."

Mao Dequan's hand trembled, his fingertips pressed on the table, his knuckles turning white.

He glanced at Prince Fu, his mind rapidly weighing pros and cons…

Finally, he gritted his teeth and said.

"Fine, Governor Du, do not disappoint us!"

Seeing Mao Dequan's demeanor, a weight in Du Jianchuan's heart finally eased a bit.

He turned his head, his gaze fixed on Prince Fu.

Now only the last person remains; if Prince Fu nods, there is still room to turn the situation around.

Prince Fu sat there in prolonged silence.

He let out a long sigh.

"In that case…"

His voice was soft, bearing the typical sluggishness of old age, yet each word was crystal clear.

"Then stop being overly cautious; settle this swiftly."

He paused, then spoke, his tone gaining an unmistakable authority.

"Men, seize the two."

The moment his words fell, the candles in the main hall flickered violently.

Two silhouettes silently emerged from the shadows behind Prince Fu, and no one could discern how they appeared.

Those two wore black tight suits, slender, their faces so ordinary they could be lost in a crowd.

Their aura was restrained to the extreme; when they stood still, one could barely sense their presence.

Yet their presence shocked everyone present immensely!

Heavenly Person Peak.

Qiao Zhenyu's pupils snapped shut; he sensed the oppressive pressure radiating from those two, a steady, restrained force like magma beneath a volcano, causing his muscles to involuntarily tighten.

A faint smile finally tugged at Du Jianchuan's mouth corner.

He had originally thought Prince Fu was a leisurely royal, relying on his seniority to indulge in food and drink, never expecting that his move would summon two Heavenly Person Peaks.

This depth, not to mention Tianzhou, would even be frightening enough if placed in Kyoto.

And the guests in the main hall now have completely changed the way they look at Prince Fu.

An idle royal family member can casually dispatch two Heavenly Person Peak guards; after all, Prince Fu has been in seclusion for so many years—how many things does he truly have hidden behind?

The two men in black stood at Prince Fu's side, their eyes fixed on Qiao Zhenyu.

As for Jiang Feng in the corner, they merely glanced at him and did not linger.

In their view, that young man who never let even a breath escape from beginning to end is simply not worth their trouble. Their objective is singular.

Capture Qiao Zhenyu and control the situation.

Then they moved.

Two black silhouettes, like arrows launched, simultaneously darted toward Qiao Zhenyu.

Their speed was so great that two vague afterimages lingered in the air, the Green Stone Slab beneath their feet sprouted fine cracks, and the wine glasses and cutlery placed by the table rang as the wind they stirred rattled them.

Qiao Zhenyu's body tensed abruptly, his right fist clenched, and true qi rapidly gathered on the knuckles.

He neither retreated nor dodged; instead, he stepped forward.

The true qi foundation that Jiang Feng forcibly infused into him that night surged at an unprecedented speed at this moment, and the meridians, repeatedly washed, seemed ignited, unleashing power far beyond his usual limits.

A wave of sharp, cold breaths rose in the main hall.

The guests who had crouched beneath the table peeked out secretly, their eyes bulging round as they watched the unfolding scene.

The three collided, and an invisible ripple spread outward.

But the next second, those two actually stepped back three times!

Sss!

Everyone drew a sharp breath of cold air!

Heavenly Person Mid-stage versus Heavenly Person Peak—Qiao Zhenyu not only avoided being shattered by a single blow, but actually drove his opponent back three steps?

Du Jianchuan's mouth gaped wide, cold sweat on his back had soaked his official robe thoroughly.

The candles in the main hall flickered wildly. Qiao Zhenyu stood there, his dark red general's attire fluttering under the light, his breathing a little rapid, a streak of blood at the corner of his mouth.

He stared at the two men in black, his voice a hard, angry rasp squeezed from his teeth.

"Who else?"

The main hall was silent as if all the air had been drawn away.

The two men in black remained in place, made no further move, and silently watched Qiao Zhenyu.

Prince Fu sat on the main seat, silently watching Qiao Zhenyu.

Finally he slowly rose, gave a slight bow toward Qiao Zhenyu, said nothing, and turned to walk toward the back hall.

The two men in black silently followed behind him, like two accompanying shadows, vanishing into the gloom.

Du Jianchuan stood there, his complexion deathly pale, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

He looked toward Mao Dequan; the eunuch in the purple robe had completely tucked himself behind the chair, head lowered, not daring to meet his gaze, as if wishing to turn himself into a wisp of air.

He felt his legs trembling, an uncontrolled shaking from knee to toe that nearly made him unable to stand steady.

Qiao Zhenyu walked step by step toward the main seat…

Finally, he arrived beside Mao Dequan.

Thump!

Mao Dequan collapsed, sitting on the ground.

"No, don't kill me!"