"Why are you all standing there? Go pour wine for Young Master Song!" the old servant suddenly barked at the four maids.
"Yes, sir!"
The four maids answered together and hurried forward.
Meanwhile, Ian Song had already picked up his chopsticks and was about to eat a piece of fragrant meat. But just then, he suddenly paused, looked at the old servant, and asked, "You didn't poison the food, did you?"
The old servant's face stiffened, turning slightly dark, but he still replied politely, "Young Master Song, please rest assured—the food is absolutely not poisoned."
"Good." Ian Song smiled, popped the meat into his mouth, chewed, and nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. The Princess Claire Manor's chef is truly exceptional—much better than my own cook's dishes."
Then Ian Song looked at the old servant again. "Why don't you sit down and join us?"
"This old servant wouldn’t dare." The old servant replied calmly.
"Alright, suit yourself!" Ian Song chuckled, then turned to Old Man Tanner, who hadn’t touched his chopsticks yet. "Tanner, you should eat too—this is our first time dining at the Princess’s manor."
At this, Old Man Tanner could only smile wryly, secretly thinking, Ancestor, what kind of time is this—how are you still thinking about food?
"Please, Young Master."
A maid brought the poured wine to Ian Song.
"So thoughtful," Ian praised, taking the cup and draining it in one go. Then he fixed his gaze on the maid and asked, "What's your name?"
The maid blushed, startled, and answered, "Replying to Young Master, this servant is called Qiuyun."
"Nice name. Come on, fill my cup again," Ian said with a grin.
Seeing this, the old servant looked a bit puzzled.
Time passed, and Ian Song had already eaten more than half the dishes on the table and drunk three bottles of spirit wine, but Princess Claire still hadn’t appeared.
"Hey, when is your princess coming? I'm almost full!" Ian Song asked the old servant again.
"Please be patient, Young Master Song. The Princess will arrive soon," the old servant replied calmly.
Another half hour passed. Ian Song set down his chopsticks with a smack and patted his stomach. "Ah, I'm stuffed!"
Just then, a voice rang out:
"The Princess arrives."
"Welcome, Princess!"
The old servant and four maids quickly knelt down. Then Princess Claire entered, leading Young Prince Muyeno—Soren Wu—and two maids.
As the saying goes, enemies meet and eyes blaze with hatred. As soon as Soren Wu saw Ian Song, his face twisted with venom, glaring at him. The next moment, he shouted, "Ian Song, how dare you! Why don't you bow before my aunt?"
Ian Song curled his lip. "Princess Claire isn’t dead, so why should I bow? If you really want me to, I could even offer a few sticks of incense for free—how’s that?"
"How dare you!" Soren Wu roared in fury.
"Sharp-tongued and vulgar," Princess Claire said coldly, her gaze toward Ian Song filled with disdain and disgust.
Ian Song just grinned, his face turning serious. "Princess Claire, we all know what’s going on. I’ve eaten, I’ve drunk—so let’s get to the point."
"Since you’re so straightforward, I’ll be blunt. If you do two things for me, I’ll let bygones be bygones," Princess Claire said slowly.
"Let’s hear it," Ian Song said easily.
"First, return the Prince Muyeno Estate to Soren Wu and serve under him for five hundred years. Second, hand over the Azure Flood-Dragon Sword. If you can do these two things, I’ll let bygones be bygones!" Princess Claire declared.
Ian Song’s lips curled into a faint smile. "Those two conditions sound easy enough, but unfortunately, I’m not the type to be anyone’s lackey. Sorry, I can’t do either of them!"
Princess Claire’s face instantly turned cold. "Are you really refusing?"
"Hell no!" Ian Song’s face darkened suddenly, pointing at Princess Claire and cursing, "Are you deaf, woman? I already told you—no! Stop asking!"
Everyone was stunned—the old servant, the maids, Old Man Tanner, even Soren Wu. But Soren was secretly thrilled: with Ian Song insulting his aunt so brazenly, he was sure Ian wouldn’t escape death.
As for Princess Claire herself, her face was frosted over, her voice thick with killing intent: "What did you say? Dare to repeat that?"
Ian Song smirked. "Ha, why wouldn’t I? I’ve heard all kinds of crazy demands, but never someone begging to be insulted. If you want to hear it again, I’ll oblige—but next time I’ll charge! Listen up: are you deaf? I said no! Stop asking!"
"Aunt, kill him! Kill him now!"
Soren Wu shouted loudly.
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Princess Claire raised her hand and pointed.
A transparent sword-qi, icy as winter, shot out like lightning straight for Ian Song’s chest.
"Heh!"
Ian Song let out a strange laugh and raised his hand to point back.
"Pfft!"
Finger-force and sword-qi collided, unleashing a wave of bone-chilling cold. Ian Song’s whole arm was instantly coated in frost, which spread rapidly, threatening to freeze his entire body.
"Boom!"
His immortal yuan-force exploded from within like a raging river, instantly dispelling the icy power. But just then, another force erupted and crashed into his body.
"Bang!"
Ian Song staggered back several steps before barely steadying himself.
Princess Claire was surprised—she hadn’t expected Ian Song to withstand her attack. But then, as if realizing something, she stared at him and asked, "Are you a disciple of the Male Phoenix Line?"
At the words 'Male Phoenix Line,' the old servant’s eyes widened in shock. The others, however, had no idea what it meant.
"Guess!"
Ian Song straightened up, smiling, though his eyes were serious.
Princess Claire spoke again: "Since you’re a Male Phoenix Line disciple, hand over the Azure Flood-Dragon Sword and the Prince Muyeno Estate. I’ll let you leave!"
"Aunt, you can’t just let him go!" Soren Wu cried anxiously.
But no one paid him any attention.
Ian Song spoke again: "Since you know I’m a Male Phoenix Line disciple, you should also know—we don’t bow our heads in humiliation. If I agreed to your terms, I wouldn’t deserve the Phoenix name!"
"Aren’t you afraid of death?" Princess Claire sneered.
Ian Song shrugged. "Of course I’m afraid—but I don’t think you can kill me. And if I can’t beat you, I’ll run. If I can’t run, I’ll call for backup. The Phoenix Line elders wouldn’t just stand by and let you kill me, would they?"