Secular Immortal of the Nine Realms - Chapter 135
Chapter 135: Kill the Chicken to Warn the Monkeys. You Are the Chicken
“Let me go! Let me go right now! I am the first son of the Ji Clan, Ji Lengyue! Damn it, why are none of you saying a word?! You can’t treat me like that even if I’m a hostage!”
An unkempt Ji Lengyue furiously shook the prison cell bars made out of fine metal, but none of the Valiant Defenders paid him any heed as if they couldn’t hear him at all.
This was the cell that the Valiant Defenders used to imprison experts.
Ji Lengyue’s ki sea had been shattered, so he was no longer an Earth Profound martial artist. He couldn’t pose a threat anymore.
“Stop shouting, Ji Lengyue. You’re in Great Xia now! Do you think you can escape with your martial cultivation crippled? Stop dreaming!”
“Time to get used to it. I have been locked here for many years now. Once you accept your fate, you’ll be happy to get food and water everyday. It’s still not too bad.”
Mocking voices echoed from the other cells. The arrival of this important figure from Chillwater had added some joy to their boring lives.
“The Ji Clan will rescue me. I’ll have all of you slaughtered by then!” Ji Lengyue roared.
“Is your Ji Clan a match for Imperial Duke Fang? We might not have been out for many years, but we have heard about your tragic defeat. Even Guhe, Longdu, and Yizhou have become our Great Xia’s vassal states, no?”
“Ey, how fast times change! I have only been in this darned place for ten years, and Great Xia has already been promoted to grade-8.”
Ji Lengyue’s complexion turned pale, and his eyes slowly lost their spirit.
The immortal worshiped by their Ji Clan was dead. If Chillwater’s emperor learned about this, not only would he not help the Ji Clan deal with Great Xia, but he would exploit this opportunity to deal a fatal blow to the Ji Clan…
Given so, the Ji Clan wouldn’t have the time and energy to rescue him.
The thought of that left tears streaming from Ji Lengyue’s eyes.
Just then, the prison doors opened.
Huang Sihai, accompanied by Niu Jue and the other chiliarchs, entered the prison with over fifty figures held under their custody. One of them was Greatsword Gate Master Xian Wuchang.
“Why did Fang Chen imprison me here instead of killing me?” Xian Wuchang halted his footsteps and looked at Huang Sihai.
“Are you so eager to die? No rush. The young master has his own reason for bringing you here. Just patiently wait here,” Huang Sihai coldly replied.
The other leading figures of the southern region’s attempted rebellion were here too, ranging from sect masters to influential elders.
The Flag Mountain Sect Master looked at the eerie prison and exclaimed in despair, “How can I, the Flag Mountain Sect Master, be imprisoned in a dingy place where the sun doesn’t shine?”
The Flag Mountain Sect Master?
Some of the pugilistic world’s ex-powerhouses amongst the prisoners were startled to hear that, and they quickly crawled forward to take a closer look.
“It really is the Flag Mountain Sect Master! I crossed blows with him once,” one of them exclaimed.
“These… are all sect masters! Flag Mountain Sect, Thousand Ausperity Sect, Flowing Water Saber Sect… Hold on, isn’t that Greatsword Gate Master Xian Wuchang?!”
“What?!”
The prisoners who recognized Xian Wuchang and the others gasped in shock. These people are all famous powerhouses in the southern region! Why are they arrested here?
Xian Wuchang and the others also recognized some of the prisoners, and their faces warped in shock. They didn’t expect to meet so many experts of the pugilistic world here.
“Huang Sihai, where’s Fang Chen? I want to meet him!” Ji Lengyue banged his cell door and roared.
“Ji Lengyue, the young master went to the southern region… though he should be returning to the capital very soon. Don’t worry, I’m certain he’ll pay you a visit,” Huang Sihai replied with a chortle.
Fang Chen went to the southern region?
The prisoners widened their eyes as realization dawned upon them. Fang Chen must have gone there to capture this bunch of people.
“Right, let me introduce him to you. This is Ji Lengyue. He’s the first son of Chillwater’s Ji Clan, an incredible figure indeed. He brought an entire platoon of Nightmare Knights to our Great Xia,” Huang Sihai told Xian Wuchang and the others. “A pity for him that our young master dealt with his Nightmare Knights, and our young master Ji Lengyue was kept here as a hostage.
“Ah, you should also know that he’s an Earth Profound martial artist, having reached first stage Aureate Aura! If only you arrived earlier, you could have witnessed the overwhelming prowess of an Earth Profound martial artist. Hahaha!”
Niu Jue and the others also burst into laughter, as they looked at Ji Lengyue with a gloating face that carried a hint of pride as well.
Xian Wuchang and the others were startled. They looked at Ji Lengyue with a frown.
“Even our great young master Ji is making do with this place. You should have no reason to fuss over the environment here. Just obediently stay here and don’t cause any trouble, all right?”
“Ji Lengyue, is Fang Chen really stronger than you?” Xian Wuchang grimly asked.
Many expressions flickered across Ji Lengyue’s eyes. In the end, he harrumphed in disdain and replied, “He’s stronger.”
“I didn’t lose in vain, I didn’t lose in vain. Hahaha!” Xian Wuchang raised his head and laughed heartily. “If not for Fang Chen, I would have been the southern region’s martial emperor. I was just a step off, just a step off! Hahaha!”
“Tsk. These fellows really tried to rebel…”
“I told you. I knew that it was only a matter of time before the southern region’s martial artists revolted.”
“Considering the circumstances in the southern region, they might have really succeeded if not for Fang Chen.”
Some of the prisoners whispered amongst themselves.
“Just a step off? You’re a long shot away from becoming the martial emperor!” a voice echoed.
Astounded, the crowd turned toward the prison doors. A man stood there with his hands behind his back, and he looked at Xian Wuchang with a smile.
“Young master!” Huang Sihai quickly turned around and bowed.
Niu Jue and the others hurriedly did the same too.
The Valiant Defenders was now under Huang Sihai’s control, and it was common knowledge that Huang Sihai served Fang Chen!
The entire prison fell deathly silent. Even the usually unruly prisoners clamped their mouths shut and quietly stared at Fang Chen.
“Old Huang, are you happy with your new post?” Fang Chen asked.
“Ey, I prefer my days in the Court of Great Brilliance. My head hurts from having to deal with small fry here and there. Luckily Li Daoye helped me out quite a bit,” Huang Sihai replied with a grin.
“Are the barracks clean?” Fang Chen asked.
Niu Jue and the others trembled. In just twenty short days, Huang Sihai clamped down on seven high-ranking and over a hundred mid-ranking officials in the barracks. Such decisive action was rare, and most dared not to step out of line after witnessing that.
Such a move would have usually resulted in a severe backlash, but no one was foolish enough to oppose Fang Chen given the current political climate.
“It’s almost clean.” Huang Sihai nodded.
Xian Wuchang stared unblinkingly at Fang Chen. “Imperial Duke Fang, why did you drag us all the way here from the southern region?”
“I’m killing the chickens to warn the monkeys. You’ll be my chickens,” Fang Chen uttered before making his way to Ji Lengyue, leaving Xian Wuchang and the others pale in despair.
“Let me out, Fang Chen!” Ji Lengyue roared.
“Do you know this place?”
Fang Chen took out a map he had personally drawn. It depicted mountains and rivers, but there were no name labels at all. Most people wouldn’t have known where it was.
Ji Lengyue looked at the map and shook his head. “I don’t know.”
However, the subtle movement in his eyes betrayed him.
“I can find this place myself even if you don’t say a thing. Why don’t you give me something useful in exchange for your freedom in Great Xia’s capital?” Fang Chen chuckled.
Ji Lengyue’s eyes shook. He seemed to be contemplating the matter.
