Elder Jun Sik''s fist shot forward like a cannonball, aimed straight at Alex''s face. If itnded, there was no doubt about the oue-Alex would die instantly.
For the briefest moment, regret stabbed through Alex''s mind.
"I shouldn''t havee here."
The thought barely formed before the strike arrived.
But a split second before Jun Sik''s fist reached Alex''s face, another hand suddenly appeared and mped down around his wrist, stopping the blow in midair.
The courtyard froze.
"Jun Sik," a calm voice said. "Is it really necessary for your fist to kill?"
Jun Sik''s eyes red with anger as he turned his head.
"Xie Han," he snapped. "Stay out of this."
Elder Xie Han stood beside Alex, his grip on Jun Sik''s fist firm as iron.
"You''re trying to kill one of my people," Xie Han said evenly. "How could I not interfere? Did you ask my permission before raising your hand against him?"
Jun Sik''s face twisted with fury.
"I am the elder of the Discipline Department!" he barked. "This brat is using me of crimes I nevermitted. For that alone, he deserves death!"
With a roar, Jun Sik twisted his arm free and threw another punch straight at Alex.
But Xie Han moved faster.
He stepped forward and ced himself between Alex and the attack. His fist shot out to meet Jun Sik''s, the two blows colliding with a thunderous crack.
The impact sent a shockwave through the courtyard.
In an instant, the two elders shed again.
Fists struck like lightning.
Kicks tore through the air.
They exchanged nearly ten punches and eight powerful kicks in the span of seconds. Every collision echoed like thunder. Their movements were too fast for most people to follow.
The surrounding servants—already standing far away—were still sted backward by the violent wind from their strikes. Several stumbled and nearly fell from the pressure alone.
These were elders.
Their level of strength was worlds beyond ordinary disciples.
Jun Sik''s face darkened with rage.
“Bastard Xie!” he roared. "Are you trying to die?"
With a sharp metallic sound, he drew his sword.
The de shed in the sunlight.
Across from him, Elder Xie Han didn''t panic. He calmly drew his own sword, the steel sliding free with a quiet, lethal whisper.
“Jun Sik,” Xie Han said firmly. "If you don''t want to make this situation worse, you should stop right now. There''s still a chance for you to admit your mistakes and ask forgiveness."
Jun Sik barked a harshugh.
"So you''re still protecting your people?" he shouted. "They attacked the Servants'' Discipline Department!"
Xie Han''s eyes narrowed slightly.
"But the report I received says your department attacked the kitchen first."
"He''s lying!" Jun Sik snapped, pointing furiously at Alex. "That brat is using me of crimes I nevermitted!"
"He has proof," Xie Han replied calmly.
"Proof?"
Jun Sik burst intoughter, loud and mocking.
"What proof could he possibly have?"
"The ledger book," Xie Han said.
Jun Sikughed even harder.
"A ledger book? That''s hrious,” he sneered. "There''s no such thing. And if you''re talking about that little book he was holding earlier-it''s already destroyed. There''s nothing left to prove anything."
For a moment, Xie Han simply watched him.
Then, slowly, he lowered his sword.
Instead of attacking, he turned and walked toward Alex.
Alex was still on the ground, pale and unsteady from the earlier beating.
Xie Han bent down and helped him to his feet. As he did, he ced a hand on Alex''s shoulder and quietly channeled a stream of inner force into his body.
Warm energy spread through Alex''s chest, soothing the pain and stabilizing his breathing.
Only then did Xie Han speak again.
"The ledger book," he said calmly, "is already in the hands of the Elder Discipline Council."
Jun Sik''s smile vanished.
"And it''s real," Xie Han continued. “I believe it''s only a matter of time before the Discipline elders arrive here to investigate."
The courtyard fell into heavy silence.
“Impossible,” Jun Sik said coldly. "You have nothing.”
"Jun Sik," Elder Xie Han replied with a faint smile. "This kid is smarter than you think."
He nced at Alex before continuing.
"He gave the real ledger book to First Fatty and told him to meet me.”
Jun Sik''s eyes narrowed.
"I instructed First Fatty to deliver the ledger directly to the Discipline Council."
Jun Sik shook his head immediately.
"No way."
His gaze swept across the courtyard. Only then did he notice something strange.
There had been eight of the fat servants earlier.
Now there were only seven.
One of them had disappeared.
Jun Sik''s expression stiffened.
"That book was already burned," he said sharply.
Alex smiled faintly.
"The book you burned was the daily discipline record book," he said calmly. “I just pretended it was the ledger."
He tilted his head slightly, watching Jun Sik''s face darken.
"You panicked because you were afraid it was real," Alex added. "So you destroyed
it without thinking."
Jun Sik''s chest rose and fell heavily.
He understood the situation instantly.
If the real ledger reached the Discipline Council, every one of his crimes would be
exposed. The consequences would be devastating.
His eyes slowly turned toward Alex.
Cold.
Murderous.
"You have to die," Jun Sik said quietly.
"Don''t me everything on me," Alex continued quickly. "This didn''t start because of
me."
"It started with Wang Junhao trying to take my position in the kitchen."
Then his finger shifted toward the older brother.
"And his brother, Wang Junwei, backing him up. He sent forty Discipline servants to storm the kitchen."
"That''s the real reason we''re all standing here today. That''s why the ledger book came out in the first ce."
"If anyone is responsible for this mess, it''s Wang Junwei."
Alex gave a small shrug.
"I''m just an innocent passerby who got dragged into it."
"You?" Jun Sik exploded. "An innocent passerby?!"
His fury erupted.
With a roar, Jun Sik rushed forward and swung his sword in a wide, savage arc at
Alex.
But before the de could reach him-
Two figures suddenly rushed into the courtyard.
Both wore ck robes marked with the insignia of the Discipline Council.
One of them stepped in instantly, his sword shing out to parry Jun Sik''s attack with a sharp metallic sh.
At the same moment, the second man drove his fist straight into Jun Sik''s stomach.
The strikended like a hammer.
Jun Sik''s body folded instantly.
The air sted from his lungs as he copsed to the ground, doubled over in pain.
A shocked murmur swept through the crowd.
"The Discipline Elders..."
Everyone in the courtyard recognized the ck robes.
The Discipline Council only appeared when an elder hadmitted serious
wrongdoing.
One of the ck-robed elders stepped forward and looked down at Jun Sik, his face cold and authoritative.
"Jun Sik," he said firmly. "You were entrusted with authority over the Servants'' Discipline Department.”
His voice carried clearly across the courtyard.
"Instead, you used that authority for personal gain. From this moment forward, you
are under arrest."
The second Discipline elder turned toward Wang Junwei.
His gaze was just as cold.
"Wang Junwei," he said. "For your role in these crimes, you will be sentenced to fifty
years of confinement in the Cave Prison."
The crowd gasped.
The Cave Prison was a terrifying punishment.
The prison cell was barely the size of
a human body. Once inside, the
prisoner could not move freely. The
only thing they could do was sit and meditate. t
For fifty years.
If a person''s mental strength or cultivation was not strong enough, the endless
istion could slowly drive them insane.
Some prisoners died long before their sentence ended.
Not even waiting for the forty-year sentence to begin, Alex broke into a wide smile.
Atst.
Peace.
With Wang Junwei gone and Elder
Jun Sik arrested, the kitchen would finally be quiet again. No enemies. No trouble. Just cooking, surviving, and waiting.
For Alex, that was perfect.
"Number Nine," Elder Xie Han said, looking at him thoughtfully. "You''ve already reached the fifth level of Qi Condensation. You qualify to apply for the Outer Discipline. I can personally rmend you.
Alex reacted instantly.
"No," he bowed slightly and spoke with polite urgency. "I still have many things to
learn in the kitchen. I would like to stay."
The truth, of course, was much simpler.
The servant area was safe now.
No rivals. No enemies. No powerful cultivators trying to crush him.
If he stayed here quietly, he could live peacefully while he searched for a way to
return home.
Going to the Outer Discipline would only throw him into a nest of stronger fighters.
That was thest thing he wanted.
"Is that so?" Elder Xie Han said.
He studied Alex for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"I won''t force you."
"Thank you, Elder," Alex said with another respectful bow.
But before the moment could settle―
A thunderous voice suddenly exploded across the sky.
"There''s no need for thanks. You''reing to the Outer Discipline.”
The instant the voice reached Alex''s ears, his entire body stiffened.
A terrifying force descended from high above the sky.
It wrapped around him like an invisible hand.
Then it began pulling him upward.
Alex''s feet left the ground.
"AAAAAH!"
He screamed miserably as his body rose into the air.
"Senior brothers! Save me!" he cried desperately, reaching toward the group of fat
servants below.
"Brothers!"
He didn''t want to go!
The Outer Discipline was full of cultivators far stronger than him. Life there would be
dangerous.
Down below, the fatties reacted in panic.
They rushed forward, trying to grab Alex before he was lifted away.
But everything happened too fast.
Before their hands could reach him, Alex was already floating high above the
courtyard.
At that same moment, a figure appeared in the sky.
A beautiful woman in flowing robes descended slowly from the clouds.
Li Qingxue.
The moment the kitchen crew saw her, their faces turned pale.
Without hesitation, they lowered their heads and bowed deeply, not daring to look directly at her.
"Ninth Junior Brother!" one of the fatties shouted from below.
"What?!" Alex yelled while floating helplessly in the air.
"Don''t worry! When you be a powerful cultivator, remember us!"
Alex iled his arms wildly. "Powerful cultivator? I''m being kidnapped!" Another fatty cupped his hands and shouted upward.
“Kidnapped by Senior Sister Li Qingxue! That''s an honor!”
Alex stared down at them in disbelief.
"An honor?!"
The fatty nodded seriously.
"Most people would die for that chance."
Alex sighed miserably as he drifted higher.
"Good. Then one of you can take my ce."
Up in the air, Li Qingxue stared at Alex with a faint frown.
Just looking at him made her feel a headacheing on.
She had only brought this man into the sect a year ago.
And now look at what had happened.
The entire kitchen crew had shed with the Servants'' Discipline Department.
An elder had been exposed, arrested and punished.
The story had already spread across the sect.
Even the senior elders were talking about it.
From their perspective, the whole incident was almost entertaining.
For cultivators who had spent decades—or centuries-quietly cultivating, this kind of
chaos was a rare and amusing distraction.
Some of them evenughed about it.
In fact, nothing like this had happened in the sect for nearly a hundred years.
Because of that, none of the elders were particrly interested in punishing Alex.
Still, the situation couldn''t be allowed to continue indefinitely.
Someone had to restore order.
And that responsibility had fallen to Li Qingxue.
So she had personallye to clean up the mess.
"Ninth Junior Brother!" another fatty shouted.
"What now?!" Alex cried.
"Don''t forget us!"
"How could I forget you?" Alex yelled.
"You''re the only people who tried to save me!"
The fatty nodded proudly.
"Exactly!"
Alex narrowed his eyes. "Although I noticed something strange."
"What?"
"You stopped trying after about two seconds."
The fatty coughed awkwardly.
"Well... once we saw it was Senior Sister Li Qingxue..."
Alex sighed.
"So your loyaltysts exactly two seconds."