If Jiang Chen was just some ordinary cultivator, Imperial Prince Huo and Chief Warden Ding would’ve flipped the table on the spot after learning the truth. Alas, the young man before them was the young lord of the Eternal Sacred Land and had an ill.u.s.trious, almost perverse history in battles.
They could only feel a deep astonishment and helplessness. There was no room in their hearts to even think about vengeance.
Once upon a time, they had gnashed their teeth at Jiang Huang’s name. Once upon a time, they had raised the bounty against him again and again in an effort to capture and publicly execute him.
And yet, when the man they’d hated for so many years appeared in front of them all of a sudden, they despaired to find that they no longer even had the courage to keep on hating him.
The atmosphere froze for a few moments in awkward silence.
Jiang Chen broke that silence with a smile. “Gentlemen, if you’re interested in retaliating for any perceived abuses, I’m game anytime.”
“Ah, not at all,” Imperial Prince Huo shook his head briskly. “I think we were partially in the wrong back then as well. We didn’t know that you were on the premises, young lord Jiang Chen, and suffered by not taking into account your incredible ability.”
The imperial prince had obviously abandoned all ideas of taking revenge.
Chief Warden Ding laughed weakly as well. “I didn’t particularly agree with the idea of the hunt from the start. I didn"t know that you would be present either, young lord. You truly distinguished yourself from the chaff… such is the will of heaven!”
“Yes, yes, the will of heaven.” Imperial Prince readily agreed.
Jiang Chen smiled coolly. “Your explanation is sufficient. Let bygones be bygones!”
The two men were quite pleased and delighted to hear that Jiang Chen would no longer press them for being wronged in the past.
The converse would never happen, of course. For Rejuvenation to seek action against the young lord of a sacred land was tantamount to suicide.
Even Jiang Chen’s Vermilion Bird could raze the Rejuvenation Isles, much less the rest of the Eternal Sacred Land. Moreover, many first rate factions wouldn’t dare draw his ire given his current position, much less a second or third rate faction like Rejuvenation.
Having possessed significant authority in both lives, Jiang Chen was used to taking careful measure of the situation.
“I hear you two have come to Winterdraw often as of late. What? Are you still not over the loss of this place? Do you seek to interfere in my affairs?”
The question caused the two men to break out in a cold sweat.
“This is a huge misunderstanding, sir. We came so many times solely to visit you and express our admiration for your sacred land.”
Jiang Chen knew that Rejuvenation had always wanted to court the Ten Divine Nations’ favor. Its relations with Polylore was a cla.s.sic case study in catastrophic failure.
“Enough with the empty words. Tell me why you’ve really come here,” he declared coolly.
“That…” Imperial Prince Huo scratched his head, laughing with some embarra.s.sment. “We promise that we have no designs on Winterdraw. However, after hearing that you were the expert residing here, we wanted to build a good rapport with you… and possibly, seek your protection.”
“My protection?” Jiang Chen blinked. “The Eternal Sacred Land’s, I a.s.sume? But that’s so far away from here. How do you propose that to happen?”
His lack of outright refusal excited the two men.
“Distance isn’t a problem,” Imperial Prince Huo replied quickly. “Your name is very well known everywhere in Myriad Abyss, young lord. A single visit would be enough to induce awe in the various surrounding factions. They wouldn’t dare disrespect us anymore, much less covet our holdings.”
“Covet your holdings? Why do you say that? If I remember correctly, I thought you were one of the stronger ones among your surrounding isles?”
In fact, Jiang Chen remembered it to be the pinnacle of its nearby peers.
Imperial Prince Huo smiled wryly. “Yes, that was the case before. But now, Rejuvenation is in a great deal of trouble. Because of the Polylore affair, several of its houses came to protest and disturb us. We’ve suffered significant losses in manpower and resources. Accordingly, our neighbors have begun to get… ideas about us. Currently, they see as an easy, tasty morsel. Since we’re hated by Polylore Divine Nation, there’s no way we’ll get any help, so…”
Chief Warden Ding let out a long sigh. Clearly, the straits they were in burdened all Rejuvenation’s executives.
Jiang Chen burst out in laughter. He didn’t usually pay attention to the day-to-day affairs of minor factions. After he left Rejuvenation several years back, he hadn’t paid a mote of attention to it. Why would he have any interest in its flouris.h.i.+ng or survival?
Compared to the Ten Divine Nations, it had nothing to draw him here, much less keep his interest. But it did seem that Rejuvenation’s sorry state was actually related to his past actions. He looked back at the imperial prince and the chief warden with a half-smile.
“So, let me confirm this. You came to visit to seek my personal protection, yes?” Jiang Chen inquired comfortably.
“Indeed. We aren’t hiding anything else.” Imperial Prince Huo was smart enough not to deny his motive. He knew that any fake moves before an expert like Jiang Chen was pointless. It was better to be honest.
Chief Warden Ding, on the other hand, looked at the young man with some antic.i.p.ation. He had heard Jiang Chen soften, which gave him some hope.
“We’re hardly relatives or friends, Rejuvenation and I. If I cared about it, we technically have some enmity between us – though I did say that’s water under the bridge. Still, offering you my protection… don’t you think that’s a bit too far-fetched?”
The two men from Rejuvenation wilted. If they didn"t know that Jiang Chen and Jiang Huang were the very same, they would’ve wished for something far more.
But that knowledge led them down a different path. Only the most optimistic would count on a past enemy to extend a helping hand.
However, Jiang Chen’s tone took an unexpected turn. “But to put it another way, we really only got to know each other after we clashed. I have a very important mission right now that needs a lot of spirit stones. If you can figure out anything to help with that, I don’t see any reason why Eternal couldn’t offer some backing. Furthermore, I can guarantee that the factions that want to cause you trouble will leave you alone voluntarily. If not… then I’ll teach them to!”