The Immortal Emperor Returns

Chapter 355 Revolt at the Palace

Chu Xun left nothing – absolutely nothing in the vault remained when he finished.

If only Louis knew. If only he would know that after everything he’d done, such wealth amassed through ages and millennia across various generations of the Holy Temple would only end up as bounty for Chu Xun. Somehow Chu Xun wondered morbidly if he would spring out of his grave with rage.

But while Chu Xun’s plunder went on smoothly in peace, outside, the citadel was in a state of chaos.

Under cover of the night, the Dark Guild, allied with several other forces, had begun an assault upon the citadel of the Holy Temple.

They could hardly hold back their greed at the prospects of getting their hands on the treasure and riches the Holy Temple had amassed for thousands of years.

When the clamor of battle above finally alerted Chu Xun that something was wrong, he quietly slipped back up to find that the assault was already underway.

“How dare you bring havoc to the doors of the citadel of the Holy Temple, Dark Guild?!” screamed a Deputy Prelate as he held off two of the Guild’s presbyters.

Everywhere else in the citadel, rings of steel against steel and the cries of battle could be heard.

“The Holy Temple is no more with the death of Louis. You should submit yourselves to the Dark Guild,” sneered a presbyter unabashedly.

“As if there’s any reason to resist with the loss of Louis,” scoffed another of the invaders, “Just give up and surrender. Save yourself the trouble or feel the consequences.”

“You wolves,” hissed another Deputy Prelate. Despite their internal feuds and discord, they knew full well that they needed to band together and not allow any outsiders the chance to prey on them instead.

“KILL THEM ALL!”

Flames burst alive everywhere as more clamors of battle broke out.

Sneaking into the throng of acolytes defending the Holy Temple, Chu Xun made his way out slowly, defeating one enemy after another, no matter to whom or what faction he belonged to.

“Citizens of the Sun God, these infidels dare intrude upon the grace and peace of the Sun God. Everyone, join me in resisting them!” bellowed one of the Deputy Prelates.

But the odds of numbers and strength barely favored the defenders; not only did the invaders came with full force, but most of the forces mobilized also comprised of powerful warriors that the Deputy Prelates and the defenders withdrew slowly as they began to lose more ground.

With the ongoing pandemonium as a good distraction, Chu Xun killed anyone who stood in his way until he reached the exit and immediately slipped away. He would have wanted to destroy the Holy Temple himself, but a strange foreboding dread had been urging him to leave quickly as if something bad was about to take place.

As quickly as he could, he sped away from the battle and dove into the dense jungle nearby where he found a perch to look.

The battle waged on still with utmost fervor.

“Surrender, all you lot of the Holy Temple! Cease your futile resistance and give up!” shouted a presbyter of the Dark Guild.

He barely finished when a gigantic, jet-black fist appeared from mid-air and squashed him into mists of blood.

The sudden attack that came out of nowhere with such incredible might shocked everyone that the fighting came to a sudden halt. Even Chu Xun, from his hiding spot, could hardly prevent drawing a surprised breath. Was this what the foreboding premonition was warning him about?”

With the flaming brands of war lighting up the battle-strewn citadel, a frail, ancient, and hunched figure ambled slowly and gingerly from the darkness.

He strode slowly into the midst of the shocked and awed warriors and peered around with his saggy, wrinkled eyes before raising a hand and bringing it down gently.

Bang!

The ground rocked and a crack split opened; another presbyter of the Dark Guild – along with more than ten of his men – were instantly crushed to death.

Even from a distance, Chu Xun could make out the fearful expressions on the faces of the invaders.

“High Emeritus.”

One of the Deputy Prelates recognized him and fell to his knees, prostrating himself humbly before the old man.

As if with great difficulty, the old man spoke very slowly, “For thousands of years, the Holy Temple stood tall and proud in spite of whatever trials and tribulations that came. And by the glory of the Sun God, the citadel of the Holy Temple shall endure longer still.”

The elderly man raised his hand once more and brought it down like he was swatting a fly.

Bang!

More cracks split open on the ground with blood seeping into it and severed and mangled limbs strewn everywhere.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Panicking, the invaders – the Dark Guild and other allied forces – all turned around and fled. The old man was just too powerful and no one could defeat him.

But the old man has no intention of showing any mercy. With each step that could magically cover hundreds of meters, he chased after the routed invaders, slapping his hand to destroy scores after scores of them.

The defenders all cheered exultantly.

Like packs of beaten dogs, the Dark Guild and their allied forces scrambled for their lives.

“You’re as cantankerous as ever, old friend,” a loud but ancient voice boomed from the darkness as another gargantuan hand came out of nowhere to stop the High Emeritus’s gigantic magic fist.

Boom!

The collision of both magically-constructed fists elicited explosions and sparks like the explosion of a warhead, causing enough illumination to light up the night sky.

The elderly man stopped at last, deciding not to carry on his onslaught after all.

“Keep your dogs on a leash. They’ll not be so lucky the next time,” he said before turning back.

As he ambled back to the citadel with heavy and strenuous steps, he gave Chu Xun’s hiding spot amidst the bushes a cursory glance.

But that one glance proved enough to scare the wits out of Chu Xun, who began sweating cold with fear. Keeping his aura hidden, he turned around to speed as quickly as he could like a bolt of light away from there.

For hundreds of lis he did not stop, all the while keeping his Divine Sense projected to make sure that the old man did not follow.

When he finally heaved a breath of relief, he rued with regret how he had been careless. That old High Emeritus of the Holy Temple was even more dangerous than his successor Louis, he was definitively sure, and he should have been more careful! For thousands of years, the Holy Temple had weathered all adversity and he should have guessed that the order would still have more powerful people aside from Louis.

Then again, he was still jittery about his encounter with the High Emeritus. Did he really not follow Chu Xun?

“Dammit, it’s getting dangerous here. Even the monsters are crawling out of the woodwork,” fussed Chu Xun. Just to be safe, he did not stop at all.

Until the fourth day, Chu Xun reached the borders of Huaxia and only then could he finally breathe easily.

Quietly, he vowed to never step foot into the West again before reaching Nascent Soul.

Everyone at the Fire Dragon Palace was boiling with excitement and euphoria when Chu Xun came back.

“BIG BROTHER!” cried Tang Rou as she catapulted herself into his arms, on the verge of tears.

A week had passed since the skirmish at the borders and Chu Xun had vanished without word or trace after that and everyone was worried.

“Where have you been for the past few days, Master?” asked a visibly-worried Yan Chong and the others.

“I’ve gone to ransack the nest,” grinned Chu Xun broadly, pleased to have returned to Huaxia.

Ransack the nest?! Everyone stared at him in puzzlement.

Chu Xun told everything including the adventures of his plundering.

Yan Chong and the rest exchanged bewildered stares that illustrated their shock and disbelief.

“You’ve raided the secret vault of the Holy Temple?!” Yan Wushuang uttered, grinding his teeth.

Still wearing his grin, Chu Xun nodded. “Richly-stocked too. With the treasures I’ve gathered from there, I daresay that everyone’s progress with their training will improve in leaps and bounds.”

Yan Chong suddenly turned solemn and collapsed to a kneel. “Master! Please! Please consider the risks and think before you act next time!”

Huh?!

Everybody stared at Yan Chong. “What’s wrong with him!? Is he blaming Chu Xun?!”

“What’s going on with you, Yan?!” Lei Bao urged Yan Chong hushedly to watch his tone.

“Watch what?! This is the duty as a subordinate!” retorted Yan Chong hotly before turning back to Chu Xun, “It’s undeniable that you’re powerful, Master. You have great abilities. But as Master of the Chu Mansion, have you thought of what might happen if something happens to you? The Fire Dragon Palace, the Rock Sect, the Tianwu Sect all depend on your protection. We have the Broken Souls Cult, the Sifang Sword Sects among many others who would have not been happier if anything wrong befalls you and woe shall come to all of us.”

Everybody fell silent. There was truth to what Yan Chong said, especially this time with the High Emeritus of the Holy Temple. Hardly anyone could dare to guess the odds of Chu Xun’s survival if the old man had decided to give chase.

“I feel that Yan Chong is right, Chu Xun,” remarked Yan Wushuang.

That earned him a glare from Chu Xun.

Lei Bao and everyone too fell to their knees, with the former leading a chorus, “Yan’s right, Master. You’ve not acted wisely.”

“...” Chu Xun glared at them too. “What’s this?! A revolt?!”

“In short, you’re just irresponsible – to yourself and to the people around you,” added Yu Cheng too.

“...” Chu Xun could no longer stop the edge of his lips from twitching.

Tang Rou stared quietly with her big and bright eyes, before slipping wordlessly from Chu Xun’s side to stand with Yan Chong and the others.

“I’m afraid I have to agree with them, Big Brother.”

“Even you...” Chu Xun found it so hard to believe that not even Tang Rou was supporting him.

“Good job,” Yan Wushuang flashed an approving thumbs-up to Tang Rou before smirking at Chu Xun, “Look how alone you’ve become.”

“So is this a revolt?!” Chu Xun glowered. He had risked his life to loot the secret vault of the Holy Temple only for his people to criticize him for being foolhardy.

Chu Xun was about to burst with rage when Tang Rou suddenly handed over a cell phone, whimpering meekly, “It’s Aunt Liu.”

An irate Chu Xun hissed without thinking, “What Aunt Liu, I don’t have time for...”

“WHAT IS THIS, A REVOLT, BRAT?!” a loud female voice came like a lioness’ thunderous roar from the speaker of the cell phone.

That came like a lightning strike and Chu Xun shrunk and his temper withered. Fishing away the phone quickly, he spoke into it with as loving a tone he could muster, “Mother.”

“You brat. So now you think you’re good on your own, is it?! You’re very busy, is it?! How busy can you get?! That you can’t even take a call from me?!”

Chu Xun gave Tang Rou a nasty scowl before he bent over backwards to sound affable. “Gods, why such anger, Mother? Has Father done anything to make you mad?”

“Dammit, you brat. Don’t drag me into your mess. You get your arse back up here or I’ll make sure you get a good walloping!”

Chu Xun’s neck shrunk into his collar as he feigned a dry laugh. “Ah, you’re here too, Father.”

“What else?! You think you can toss the blame to me if I’m not around, innit?!” bellowed Chu Tianhe.

“What blame?! A son’s misdeeds are the sins of the father! Don’t ever think you’re off the hook!” screech Liu Ran, the barrel of her guns swiveling to face her husband instead.

“Why am I now the one being blamed when we should be giving that brat an earful, Wife?!”

“Shuddup, you! Like father, like son. Everything that’s foul in him came from you!”

“But I...”

Chu Xun sniggered. He could imagine how dismal his father must be looking now.

“Do you think it’s funny, you goddamned rascal?!” Liu Ran’s voice came thundering from the phone again.

Urm... Chu Xun fell speechless.

“Gods, aren’t you just the clairvoyant, Mother,” gasped Chu Xun with heartfelt admiration. How could she have known that he would be grinning?! That’s more powerful than his own Divine Sense!

“Enough flattery. I want you here in a few days.”

“Of course, of course! I’d be there in a few days, Mother,” Chu Xun said with a few giggles to soften the moment.

“And one more thing: don’t blame Yan Chong and the others. If I know that you’re doing something to them, you’re dead meat.”

“Of course, of course. Whatever you say.”

“Well, that’s all for now. Remember: get back here quickly,” grumbled Liu Ran a bit more before she allowed Chu Xun to end the call.

“I’m sorry, Big Brother,” whimpered Tang Rou, hardly able to lift her head before him, “It was Aunt Liu. She had expressly ordered that I give her a call as soon as I see you.”

“...” Chu Xun was exasperated. “Surely you didn’t have to call her so soon?!” Then he saw it – Yan Wushuang grinning dryly and he immediately understood – it must be him!

Yan Wushuang was almost having a cramp from laughter. It was hilarious, having to see Chu Xun so weak and harmless for the first time.

Right when Yan Chong knelt down before Chu Xun and uttered his first syllable, he had quickly urged Tang Rou to call Chu Xun’s mother so that she could listen to every word.

And much to his expectation, it had been entertaining!

“It appears that you’ve progressed a lot, Bratty Yan, but your fundamentals still need work. Let’s work on that,” grinned Chu Xun wickedly.

Yan Wushuang’s face froze immediately. “Work on my fundamentals?! That’s just a pretense to give me a walloping!”

“The rest of you too. Good improvements, but poor fundamentals. Let’s work on it together!”

Yan Chong, Lei Bao, Yu Cheng, and the others all felt a knot in their gut as they shuddered when they realized the wicked grin on his face.