Proud Sword Soaring Clouds

"Who’s there!?" An immense aura suddenly erupted from the four guards on the carriage, blanketing an area dozens of meters around them. They took their positions at the four corners of the carriage, their killing intent locked firmly on the black-clothed man in the middle of the road. If he made the slightest move, he would face a fatal blow from these four experts!

The appearance of this black-clothed man was simply too strange, as if he had materialized out of thin air.

After all, of these four elite guards, even the weakest was already a Sixth Rank Mad Sword Master! The other three all had the cultivation of Demon Swordsmen! For such a formidable security detail to have completely failed to notice a man standing right there... what kind of power must this black-clothed man possess?

At this thought, even the faces of these four elite guards turned somewhat pale. They exchanged glances, and each saw a trace of terror in the other’s eyes.

The lavishly dressed middle-aged man and the youth inside the carriage were extremely composed, their expressions unchanging. Although the carriage had stopped abruptly, their bodies only swayed slightly, revealing their own considerable cultivation.

The other hidden guards swarmed toward the black-clothed man. In moments, they had him completely surrounded. Each guard had a resolute gaze and a face devoid of any extraneous expression, as if they would charge forward without hesitation even if a mountain of blades stood before them.

"Heh heh, leave the White Jade Red-eyed Python, and I’ll spare your lives!" the black-clothed man cackled strangely. His voice was hoarse and aged, though it was hard to tell if he was deliberately putting it on.

The father and son inside the carriage exchanged a look. They both knew who this was—the man who had just bid against them at the auction!

"How audacious!" the most powerful of the personal guards, a Tier Three Demon Swordsman, shouted harshly. "Do you have any idea whose carriage this is? Do you have a death wish?"

"Heh heh, not only do I know, I know very well," the old man in black cackled again before continuing, "Cut the crap. A bunch of weaklings like you dare to draw your swords before me? I’ll ask one more time: are you handing it over or not?!"

The leading Tier Three Demon Swordsman sneered and roared, "Kill him!"

Following the command, two men leaped like great birds, swooping down on the old man in black. The swords in their hands hissed, unleashing long streams of Sword Qi that swept mercilessly toward their opponent.

The remaining two stayed on the carriage, wary that the mysterious old man might have accomplices.

The old man in black sneered and produced a sword from who-knows-where. Just as the two Demon Swordsmen’s blades were about to reach him, a waterfall of sword light erupted! Both Demon Swordsmen let out muffled groans and rapidly retreated to the carriage, their faces pale. The one with slightly weaker cultivation couldn’t stop himself from spitting out a mouthful of blood. His body swayed precariously as he quickly pulled a porcelain vial from his robes, tipped a pill into his mouth, and two unhealthy flushes of red swiftly appeared on his pallid cheeks.

The two Demon Swordsmen had been defeated in a single move. Their faces were ashen. Although the guards surrounding the old man in black still wore fearless expressions, the terror in their eyes was plain to see.

The old man in black snorted coldly. "Consider that a lesson. If I had wanted to kill you, all of you together wouldn’t even be a challenge! Now, hand over the item. You two in the carriage, your statuses are noble. It wouldn’t do for you to get hurt, heh heh."

The middle-aged man in the carriage replied unhurriedly, "Since you know my identity, are you not afraid of being hunted down endlessly?" His tone was calm, but the threat within was potent. It was the kind of aura that naturally emanated from someone long accustomed to a high position.

But the old man in black was utterly fearless, and he laughed grimly. "Hah, waiting for reinforcements? I’d give up on that dream. Apart from those two old fossils from your Royal Family, no one can stop me!"

At these words, the expressions of the father and son in the carriage suddenly changed. The middle-aged man’s face fell. Just then, the old man in black continued in his hoarse voice, sneering, "It seems you won’t hand it over until you’ve tasted some real pain!"

The middle-aged man shouted, "Stop!" But he was a step too late. A bloodcurdling scream came from his own carriage, and the Tier Three Demon Swordsman fell to the ground with a dull thud.

"Commander!" the others cried out in shock and anger.

Just a moment ago, they had seen the old man in black’s body approach like a wisp of black smoke. The Tier Three Demon Swordsman hadn’t even had time to raise his sword before the old man struck him from the carriage!

"Don’t worry, he’s not dead. But he’s lost half his life. This is your punishment for dawdling!" the old man in black cackled sinisterly. "If you still refuse to hand it over, none of you will leave this place alive today!"

"Fine. You can have it." The middle-aged man opened the carriage door and stepped out, his face livid.

"Your Highness!" the guards outside said urgently. "You can’t come out..."

The middle-aged man waved his hand to silence them, then looked at the old man in black. He pulled a simple, antique-looking ring from his finger and tossed it over, saying coldly, "Might I have your name? I will surely repay the humiliation of this day in the future!"

At that moment, the young man also stepped out. He stared coldly at the old man in black, his thin lips pressed into a tight line. If one looked closely, hidden in the depths of his eyes was... a trace of excitement!

The old man in black probed the ring with his Spiritual Power and, after confirming its contents, sneered. He tapped his toes on the ground, and his body shot into the air, where he hovered, looking down on the lavishly dressed middle-aged man. "Crown Prince, don’t you think your question was a bit foolish?" A mocking smile appeared on his wooden face as he spoke. Then he turned, flew off, and vanished into the vast night.

"Sword Sect!" the middle-aged man growled through clenched teeth, veins popping on his forehead. He had finally obtained this treasure, only to have it stolen from him on his own turf—in the Imperial Capital, a city renowned for its safety! 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

With a rustle, the entire group of guards dropped to their knees. No one dared to make a sound. Even the three who were checking the Commander’s injuries knelt and said in a heavy tone, "Your Highness, we have failed in our duty to protect you..."

The middle-aged man waved his hand and sighed. Against a monster from the Sword Sect, even more men would have been useless. He could only accept his bad luck. He let out a breath of resentment and was about to get back into the carriage when something unexpected happened!

The specially-made carriage, its inner layer reinforced with steel plates, suddenly burst apart with a great CLATTER! If the father and son had not reacted quickly and leaped away in time, they would have nearly been crushed.

The middle-aged man’s eyes narrowed. In that instant, his heart had leaped into his throat, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. ’To think that with my cultivation as a Sixth Rank Mad Swordsman, I was frightened to this degree,’ he thought. ’Have I truly been living a life of comfort for too long?’

The young man hurried over and supported his father. "Father, are you alright?"

The middle-aged man shook his head, then looked at the shattered carriage, which seemed like a monster with its mouth wide open, mocking him...

Just then, a large detachment of the City Defense Team arrived. The moment they saw the Crown Prince and the unrecognizable wreckage of the carriage, they all dropped to their knees, not daring to breathe too loudly.

At the entrance to a distant, dark hutong, Ling Xiao and Ye Wen Ni quietly stood up and left the area.

After they had gone a good distance, Ye Wen Ni finally let out a long breath. "Heavens, that scared me to death! That man in black was from the Sword Sect... And the person in the carriage was actually the Crown Prince! I... I’m not dreaming, am I?"

Ling Xiao had only intended to take this road back to the academy, never expecting to run into something like this. He was inwardly stunned as well. The Crown Prince had always been desperate to win over his father, but his father had always been loyal to His Majesty the Emperor. Because of this, Ling Xiao didn’t have a very favorable impression of the Crown Prince.

He said lightly, "Forget what happened. It has nothing to do with us."