Chapter Thirty-Five: The Little Princess of the Jiang Dynasty

"Master, quickly leave the space, the seven days are up!"

Jiang Jiu exhaled a heavy breath. After seven days of consolidation, although still a step away from the Sacred Realm and needing a stroke of fortune, her cultivation had improved tremendously, and she had mostly mastered the secrets of the first level of the String Slaying Technique.

If you wish to test me, so be it!

The moment she emerged from the space, she saw chaos outside the hall as palace servants fled in panic, pursued relentlessly by a band of men in black.

Some servants had been taken hostage, surrounded by a ring of captors.

Jiang Jiu skirted around the pursuers and hurried toward the main hall.

"Princess! Quickly! Come with me, we must leave the palace! The Grand Chancellor of Shen is staging a coup!"

A fleeing palace servant happened to grab Jiang Jiu, urging her forward.

"That's the Princess of Jiang! Quick, seize her! Great rewards await from the master!"

Despair flashed across the servant’s face as he saw the pursuers drawing near. He released Jiang Jiu and dashed in the opposite direction.

"You traitors! I’ll fight you with my life!"

He threw himself between the pursuers and Jiang Jiu, using his own flesh and blood as a shield. "Princess! Run!"

A spray of crimson blood arced through the air—merciless and swift, the men in black disabled the servant’s arm in less than a second.

Jiang Jiu leapt to his side, clutching his shoulder. "You risk your life to protect me; I will not abandon you, nor will I let the traitors seize Jiang like this."

"Princess! Leave me. I am but a lowly guard, I would only slow you down!"

Jiang Jiu’s voice was cold and resolute: "Silence. So long as there is a chance, I will never abandon any of my people. You are the very roots of Jiang!"

Deeply moved, the servant fell silent, no longer distracting her with pleas.

Jiang Jiu gathered her spiritual power and paused atop a rooftop. With a gesture, Nirvana was summoned from her space.

She tossed the servant a bottle of medicinal powder to staunch the bleeding and ease the pain, then interlaced her fingers across the zither strings. Each note she plucked sent forth a powerful shockwave.

More and more men in black surged toward her.

If this continued, chaos would surely erupt where Jiang Ling and Jiang Che were.

Jiang Jiu dared not pause her playing for a moment; to stop now would be to turn the place into a slaughterhouse.

Spiritual energy gathered in her throat. "Any servants who do not wish to be caught in the crossfire, flee the palace at once. Those willing to live and die with Great Jiang—before my song ends, make for the main hall and do not look back!"

All across the palace, fleeing figures halted in their tracks.

In the firewood pile of the kitchens, someone gasped, "It's the princess!"

"The princess is buying us time!"

"She must have learned skills from the Grand Preceptor!"

"Do we still run?"

A servant flung aside his bundle and stomped his foot. "Run, for what? The princess is fighting for us—how can we shrink away? Charge!"

With that, he snatched up a stick for defense and charged toward the main hall. Another, inspired, grabbed a fire poker and stormed out with a roar.

Jiang Jiu’s melody greatly hindered the men in black, rendering them temporarily docile. This was but the first-level secret of the String Slaying Technique, supposedly only a foundational skill. Jiang Jiu, however, felt it deserved to be called an advanced art; there were ten levels in all, and by the tenth, a single note could slay a Sacred Realm master.

Perhaps it was seeing so many returning, but a dormant patriotism was awakened in the hearts of many. Save for some younger children, even the maids began to turn back.

Jiang Jiu frowned. "The frail women must leave the palace at once—don’t linger here. If fighting breaks out, I cannot protect you!"

Many of the maids paused, and just as Jiang Jiu thought they would leave, one nearby raised her voice:

"Who says women are less than men? We can tend the wounded! We will not leave! We will protect the princess, protect Jiang, protect our home! We will fight with you!"

Jiang Jiu was taken aback—protect our home.

Indeed, women were meticulous by nature, and with so many wounded from the pursuit, a group of brave young women was needed to care for them.

So be it; she would not stop them.

Under Little Rascal’s watchful gaze, all the palace servants gathered near the main hall. Only then did Jiang Jiu let her song fade and leap toward the hall.

In front of the hall, the two sides had already clashed, with many of the recently rescued servants joining the fray.

Blood spattered the ground; the soldiers fought their way through a field of corpses.

Jiang Jiu wasted not a moment and strode directly into the main hall. As expected, Shen Zhao stood at its center with his retinue, joined by court officials, spies, and the maid, Red Moon.

King Jiang, Queen Jiang, Jiang Ling, and Jiang Che were all surrounded and bore various wounds.

"Look at your people, suffering in the depths of despair—are you sure you won’t hand me the royal seal, Your Majesty?" Shen Zhao taunted.

King Jiang snorted coldly.

Queen Jiang’s gaze was icy. "Hmph. Had I not lost my spiritual roots back then, would you dare such insolence?"

Shen Zhao threw open his arms and laughed wildly. "Ha ha ha ha! Come, I’m right here—hit me if you can!"

Jiang Ling thrust his red-tasseled spear at Shen Zhao, only to be blocked with ease by a black-cloaked figure.

"With those pitiful skills, you think you can touch me? Save your futile struggle. Hand over the royal seal, and maybe I’ll let you live!"

Jiang Jiu descended from above, blocking Jiang Ling. "Let whom live? You?"

"Oh, the little princess arrives. Just in time—I was looking for you. Now the whole family’s here."

Jiang Jiu gathered her spiritual power, prepared to fight at any moment.

"How about this, little princess? I heard the Grand Preceptor took you as a disciple. Care to compete? If you win, I’ll let you see Yue Ru again."

Jiang Jiu’s anger flared; Shen Yue Ru was the one she had vowed to protect. "What have you done to Yue Ru!"

"Master, don’t panic. I sense Shen Yue Ru is still alive. Rest assured," Little Rascal soothed.

Those words settled her heart. "Very well. Let’s compete!"

Jiang Jiu formed a seal with her hands, casting a barrier to shield King Jiang and the others from Shen Zhao’s treachery.

They pounded on the barrier, but Jiang Jiu blocked out the noise, focusing on the battle ahead.

War was about to erupt. The men in black attacked first, launching all manner of hidden weapons at her.

But she was beyond such tricks. The difference between a spiritual cultivator and an ordinary mortal was vast; for one, mortals were so fragile.

"Is this all you’ve got? You’re no match for me."

Jiang Jiu taunted deliberately, knowing anger made mistakes more likely.

Sure enough, the masked man closed in for hand-to-hand combat.

He struck with an open palm, silver needles hidden within his fingers. Jiang Jiu dodged each one deftly, blocking with her hands, a smile on her lips as she mouthed, soundlessly:

Crown Prince of Ziliao, you are no match for me…

Hatred surged in the man in black. That’s right—he was none other than the Crown Prince of Ziliao, Huai Ze!