Chapter 1891

Chu Youzhao drew her sword. "Your Highness is so arrogant and unreasonable, do you think we have no one here?"

With her taking the lead, the guards around her also drew their swords. In a sense, these were the Chu family's private soldiers, more loyal to their clan than to the imperial court.

Of course, directly confronting a prince still made everyone feel a bit apprehensive.

In the blink of an eye, the Prince's Mansion guards charged forward like wolves and tigers. However, they were soon blocked by a blue light shield, which repelled them, sending them sprawling in all directions.

Seeing this scene, Elder Shen, who was beside Prince Jin, was somewhat surprised. "Such a small Marquisate actually possesses a defensive formation of this scale."

Prince Jin sneered, "This clearly indicates disloyalty. Perfect, that's another charge added. Men, blast open this grand formation!"

"Yes!"

The guards who remained by his side gladly accepted the order. Each of them unleashed their lifelong training, and lights of various elemental affinities surged towards the formation's light shield.

As Zhao Hao's most favored imperial prince, Prince Jin had no shortage of masters under his command. Each elemental affinity boasted outstanding talents, and for a moment, the attacks were a colorful, lively spectacle.

The formation rippled with wave-like patterns, and Chu Youzhao's heart tightened. However, seeing the light shield remain intact under the opponent's dense barrage, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. Her brother-in-law was truly capable; the formation he acquired was unexpectedly robust.

Seeing that his men couldn't break through the grand formation even after a long time, Prince Jin's expression turned sour. "What are you doing? Haven't you eaten!"

The guards, losing face before the Prince, couldn't bear the shame. So, they spontaneously formed a battle array. Although it was just the simplest military formation, it could integrate everyone's power for a combined attack, making its might many times greater than before.

Sure enough, soon the Marquisate's entire defensive formation began to creak, and faint cracks subtly appeared on it.

Chu Youzhao's expression changed, and she hastily commanded, "Everyone, attack with me to help relieve pressure on the formation!"

As a scion of an aristocratic family, having received the best education in the capital since childhood, she was quite knowledgeable about fundamental concepts like troop deployment and battle formations. She swiftly organized the mansion's guards, and soon they all launched their attacks together. Streaks of internal energy surged forth, helping to resist the assaults from Prince Jin's Mansion.

Seeing the situation on the field reach a stalemate, Prince Jin's face turned icy cold. "Elder Shen, I'll trouble you to make a move." After all, this was the capital, teeming with powerful nobles. If the commotion became too great or lasted too long, attracting interference from others, it would be difficult for him to apprehend Murong Qinghe and impossible to convict Zu An.

The old man beside him nodded slightly, then flew directly into the air. He clasped his hands together, and suddenly a ball of fire emerged between them. As he slowly rubbed his hands, the fireball visibly grew larger and larger.

Seeing the dazzling light in the sky, Chu Youzhao's heart sank. Even from that distance, she could feel the faint, terrifying pressure emanating from it.

The opponent gave her no chance to react. With a push of his hands, the massive fireball hurtled towards the defensive formation like a meteor. A blinding flash of fire, accompanied by a tremendous roar, shook the entire Marquis's residence.

The originally azure defensive light shield instantly developed numerous cracks. The next second, the entire shield collapsed with a roar.

Chu Youzhao and the others who were struggling to maintain the formation felt as if struck by lightning, spitting blood and falling to the ground, completely dejected.

"It's broken!"

The Prince Jin's Mansion soldiers cheered. The remaining forces, brandishing their blades, surged inside, each eager to be the first to seize Murong Qinghe and Chu Youzhao and claim the top merit.

Many Marquisate guards tried to stop them, but being injured, they were no match for the wolf-like Prince's Mansion soldiers and were directly cut down. Chu Youzhao watched, her eyes nearly splitting with rage. She raised her sword, intending to rush forward and help, but alas, her cultivation was not high to begin with, and the previous impact had injured her severely. She had no combat power left.

Her sword was quickly knocked away, and another man directly aimed a chop at her knee, intending to incapacitate her immediately. In the eyes of Prince Jin's Mansion soldiers, what was a scion of an outside duke worth? Moreover, they were now wanted criminals.

Chu Youzhao was terrified beyond measure, yet unable to dodge. Just then, with a crisp clang, a long spear thrust in from the side, deflecting the blade. The spear then moved like a flash of cold light, piercing directly through the assailant's throat.

"Are you alright, Brother Chu?" Murong Qinghe shielded Chu Youzhao behind her. She was, by nature, a fierce daughter of a military family, and the injustice she had suffered recently had already ignited a furious fire within her. Seeing the opponents so maliciously harm Brother Chu and the people of the mansion, she could no longer hold back and struck to kill.

"I'm fine!" Chu Youzhao's eyes reddened as she saw the heavy casualties among the Chu family guards around them.

On the other side, Prince Jin laughed. "Murong Qinghe, you are indeed here. Men, seize them!" The Prince's Mansion soldiers all charged towards Murong Qinghe.

Murong Qinghe's expression was solemn, her heart set on death. Her long spear wielded an exceedingly fierce battle intent, repelling the attacking Prince's Mansion soldiers one by one.

Watching the slender figure on the field, so valiant and heroic, Elder Shen couldn't help but nod slightly. "She truly lives up to her reputation as a fierce daughter of a military family. If not for this incident, she would likely become a formidable general on the battlefield. What a pity."

Seeing his subordinates unable to subdue the young girl for a time, Prince Jin's expression turned exceedingly grim. Hearing Elder Shen's words, he snorted, "Elder Shen, I'll trouble you."

Elder Shen's brows furrowed slightly. For him to take action against a junior was truly a loss of face. However, he couldn't refuse the Prince's command. Moreover, the commotion here had clearly alerted other families on the street; he had just noticed several groups secretly observing from a distance. If the situation dragged on, things could indeed change.

So, he stepped forward. "Young lady, don't say I'm bullying the small. If you can withstand one of my moves, we will turn around and leave today, no longer concerning ourselves with your affairs."

Prince Jin frowned, somewhat displeased by Elder Shen's initiative. However, on second thought, Elder Shen was a Grandmaster, and with such a vast difference in cultivation levels, there would naturally be no mishaps.

Murong Qinghe, of course, knew this as well, but the current situation left her no room to refuse. "Very well!" She stood there, single-handedly holding her spear diagonally pointed forward, while her left hand formed a mysterious hand seal. Her entire being was like a quietly flowing river.

Elder Shen secretly nodded. This young girl had indeed good innate talent. If she had grown up normally, she might have become a Grandmaster in the future. What a pity she wouldn't have the chance. With a fleeting thought, he unleashed a palm strike. A gigantic spectral palm materialized and slammed directly towards Murong Qinghe.

Wherever the palm print passed, sand and stones flew. Those nearby had their faces distorted by the wind. Everyone was astonished, realizing that the might of a Grandmaster was indeed terrifying.

Murong Qinghe found it hard to breathe. Despair filled her heart; the gap was too vast. Even if she gave her all, she couldn't withstand this attack. Just then, a calm voice echoed in her ear: "Don't be afraid, use your spear to pierce him."

For some reason, hearing that familiar voice, Murong Qinghe's previously panicked heart completely calmed down. She took a deep breath, channeled the Murong family's inherited cultivation technique to its utmost, and simultaneously unleashed the most powerful move from her spear art. At the same time, an immense and unrivaled power surged from her back. She felt her internal energy surge within her, and for a moment, she felt as if she could contend with any master in the world.

With a soft cry, she thrust out her spear. The spear thrust initially seemed ordinary, but then a streak of cold light suddenly shot from its tip—a spearhead formed from primordial qi! The spearhead collided with the gigantic palm and instantly pierced through its spectral form. Due to the 'leakage' of energy, the gigantic spectral palm gradually dissipated.

But the streak of cold light did not stop; like a meteor, it continued to pierce forward.

"Ah!"

With a miserable scream, Elder Shen clutched his palm, from which blood flowed freely. The people from Prince Jin's Mansion were instantly dumbfounded. They had expected Elder Shen to effortlessly crush the young girl, even wondering if she, Murong Qinghe, who was quite beautiful, would be smashed into a pulp by that palm. Who would have thought that it was Elder Shen who ended up bleeding?

Elder Shen's face at this moment was also filled with shock and bewilderment. He looked towards the figure behind Murong Qinghe.

At this moment, Murong Qinghe turned to look at Zu An, her honey-colored complexion now somewhat flushed. "Brother Zu!"

Chu Youzhao also rushed over, both surprised and delighted. "Brother-in-law!"

Seeing the blood at her mouth and the dead and injured guards strewn across the ground, Zu An's face turned ashen.

At this moment, Prince Jin recognized him. "You've returned at just the right time. Men, seize them all!" He naturally had nothing to fear. In this capital city, there was no one he dared not provoke. "This fellow named Zu wouldn't dare to kill me, the Prince, would he?"