Chapter 983: I've imprisoned the empress—how do I fix this?! 36

"What do we do, Second Prince! I've seen their clothing; they are the emperor's personal dark guards and the Imperial Guard!" The attendant behind him panicked, turning in circles, afraid he'd die today, "Or maybe we should just give up!"

"No, wait a moment."

Ashina stood up, puzzled, watching them approach, but it seemed they weren't on this road, "They're not here to capture us!"

He crossed his arms, his hanging heart relaxed, thumb brushing his nose arrogantly and proudly, "Even Brocade State's Imperial Guard isn't that great! Grandpa didn't even hide, yet they still couldn't spot us— not even half as good as our warriors!"

The two attendants behind him quickly echoed, "Second Prince, we should still hurry up, lest we invite trouble over a long night!"

"'What are you running for? Wait a moment.' Ashina curiously looked that way; the night was dark, only able to see the Imperial Guard's hurried steps, as if something important was happening."

"'You go ahead; this prince wants to go see what's going on, important enough to make the Brocade State emperor's Imperial Guard so anxious— maybe we can even find the emperor's weak spot!'"

Having said that, Ashina quietly followed behind, slowly moving behind the Imperial Guard troop.

Because they'd heard the emperor's words— not to bother with the Western Regions envoy's movements in order to catch them all at once— they had done their best to pretend not to see his Imperial Guard: "……"

"You're crazy! Why did you come following me instead of looking for the secret passage!"

An Feng and the Imperial Guard Commander exchanged a glance, both rolling their eyes, still pretending not to have noticed; worst case, they'd let the monster eat them, no matter how the Western Regions royal family argued, there'd be nothing they could do.

"Maybe that monster, like the cat demon, also came from the Western Regions."

"'Over there! Come help quickly!'"

An injured guard saw the Imperial Guard troop, hurriedly waved to signal, pointing from right to left, his shoulder obviously severely wounded.

"'That monster is incredibly strong and skilled with a blade! You guys need to be careful!'"

The master brought out, with white hair and beard, also looked the part of an immortal sage.

He followed the Imperial Guard to the monster's location, suddenly alarm bells rang in his mind, and his peach-wood sword flashed into view.

"'Hai! This monster's disguise technique is actually so superb; its sorcery must be extremely profound!'"

The tyrant, having heard those words in full: "……"

"This is my face!"

The tyrant now, from that whatever consciousness, learned he was the sole overlord of this world; at once he had no fear, arrogantly lifted his head to scan the crowd, his expression also extremely haughty.

"'You lot, actually can't tell the difference between me and that impostor! Your crime deserves death!'"

An Feng, sparing with words, grabbed a dagger and charged toward the tyrant, aiming straight for his head.

The master urged them to quickly subdue the monster, while holding a peach-wood sword, picking up a talisman and swaying like a shaman, then, as instructed by Jin Chen, arranged for the Imperial Guard to fight on one side while driving the tyrant toward the nearest Soul-binding Formation.

No matter how much protection the world's consciousness grants, the tyrant remains a soul that cannot be merged, an incomplete form, an existence created solely for Jin Chen.

The Soul-binding Formation personally set up by Jin Chen is the best way to subdue him.

Ashina in the corner was so shocked he couldn't speak.

How come the monsters of Brocade State are so unlike any other, even able to disguise themselves with a face identical to the Brocade State emperor's! If undiscovered, they could run rampant in the palace, even across the entire Brocade State!

Ashina thought that, then crept a little closer, trying to look more carefully.

Just then, the tyrant's body had already neared the Soul-binding Formation.

At the instant when Spiritual Power was about to bind him into ropes, the tyrant, realizing something, suddenly began to struggle, tightly staring at Ashina, who had just shifted out from the corner.

Purple light blazed brightly within the formation.

Under the coercion of the master and the dark guards, the tyrant toppled entirely into the formation.

Even the well-seasoned dark guard squad and Imperial Guard troops found the scene unbelievable, watching wide-eyed as a living person vanished within the formation, not even a speck of dust left, as if he had never existed.

The master stroked his beard, thinking the emperor truly hadn't deceived him— indeed, such a formidable formation really existed.

"'I'll go back to report; you keep patrolling, and there's still the Western Regions envoy unresolved.' After An Feng and the Imperial Guard Commander gave their orders, they swiftly leapt onto the roof beams and quickly melted into the night."

——

"'Master, the person is dead.'"

When An Feng reported to Jin Chen, his gaze swept over the Western Regions' Second Prince Ashina, who had somehow already returned to his seat, and he felt somewhat surprised.

How did he come back so quickly?

Jin Chen had no suspicion of him, and let An Feng withdraw.

【No, Host, logically the tyrant's original body should be the protagonist (the attacker), and I should be able to detect it.】

【I haven't detected the death of the protagonist (the attacker) in this event.】

0731 reminder.

Jin Chen's eyes flickered slightly; he lifted his gaze to look at the darkness outside the hall.

【His soul has entered another's body.】

Which means that damn thing is still alive and well.

What a world consciousness.

Jin Chen's eyes, glinting with a cold light, swept slowly over the entire hall, his gaze filled with the authority of a superior.

Wen Zhiheng, who was catching up with Wen Zhining, upon glancing back sensed Jin Chen's unease at this moment, rose to return to the main seat, and placed his hand on Jin Chen's, asking, "What's wrong, Ah Chen?"

"'I just saw An Feng come in; did something happen with killing him?'"

Jin Chen hummed, pulled the person into his embrace, still expressionless, 'That damn thing's soul didn't die; it entered another's body.'

This realization was genuinely shocking for him; Wen Zhiheng digested it for a few seconds, then glanced at the gradually quieting officials, and looking back at Jin Chen, whispered a guess.

"'Given his nature, even if he possessed someone else, he probably wouldn't end up with a lowly status.'"

And the high-status individuals in the palace tonight are already seated in this hall.

"'Right now the welcome banquet is about to end; if everyone leaves, it'll actually be harder to find him.'"

Jin Chen naturally understood this as well, rubbing the rim of the cup with his fingertip, lowering his eyes in thought for a few moments, 'An Feng, come out.'

As the Ashina seated below returned, the Western Regions envoy sitting behind him still wondered, not daring to ask directly here whether they'd found the secret passage, but they wouldn't know that the person before them was no longer their fun-loving Second Prince Ashina.

The tyrant hadn't come here in a long while, nor had he seen so many officials for a long time.

Staying in such an environment, the longer it lasts, the heavier his heart's desire to usurp the throne and his killing intent toward Jin Chen become.

Just then, a large contingent of imperial guards rushed in from outside the hall, swords drawn with fierce vigor, the entire hall was surrounded.

In an instant, everyone who had fallen silent stared at one another.

The Western Regions envoy was so nervous he almost drew his sword.