The Beloved Guide Was Forced in a Love-Rival Shura Field - Chapter 46

“Boom——”

The hatch slowly opened with a heavy hiss of hydraulics.

A blast of icy air, tainted with the sharp scent of purifying agents, surged inside like an invisible blade.

The sight outside made Ning-Normal-Office-Drone-Ning suck in a sharp breath, almost swallowing his own tongue.

A whole squad!

An entire squad of Royal Guards in snow-white uniforms trimmed with gold was already lined up neatly on the landing pad, waiting like rows of lifeless ice sculptures.

They stood ramrod straight, faces expressionless, holding energy halberds that gleamed with a chilling light. The oppressive, murderous aura they exuded was suffocating, as though they could freeze one’s very soul.

At their head stood a man in ornate court dress, hair slicked back to a glossy perfection, not a strand out of place. A formulaic smile stretched across his face, the kind that made one’s spine crawl.

In his hands, he carried a scroll of gold—clearly nothing good.

【Help! What the hell is this setup? Is this a mass arrest? I-I-I… I’m just a disposable cannon-fodder character forced to court death, why the heck do you need such a grand display?! This is way too much… absolutely unnecessary!】

Ning Ning’s internal commentary hadn’t even finished scrolling before the court-dressed man stepped forward with a gait that was both arrogant and elegant.

He first gave Gu Qingfeng a polite bow, posture flawless, the very picture of ceremony. But the next second, his gaze cut past everyone like a pair of precision spotlights—“swish”—locking firmly onto Ning Ning.

That look made Ning Ning’s skin crawl.

His voice was flat, like a perfectly straight line without fluctuation, yet it rang across the empty landing pad with an icy echo:

“By His Majesty’s decree, summoning the ‘Moon God’ Ning Ning, to immediately enter the palace for audience.”

The words “Moon God” crashed like a thunderbolt from the heavens, detonating without warning in the ears of all three present.

The gentle smile on Gu Qingfeng’s face instantly froze. Something flickered deep in his eyes—too quick to grasp—leaving only a bone-deep chill.

He hadn’t expected Father’s move to be this fast, this… blatant.

This wasn’t testing the waters anymore. This was outright robbery.

On the other side, the moment the words “Moon God” landed, Xiao Lin’s face had already darkened to the point of dripping ink.

“Buzz——”

A terrifying aura, reeking of iron and blood, burst from him like an invisible storm.

The temperature on the landing pad plummeted. Even the distant work-drones’ electronic hum seemed to lag under the freezing pressure.

“Your Majesty…”

Xiao Lin’s voice was low and terrifying, each word squeezed out like it came through cracks in hell’s ice:

“News does spread quickly.”

Every word was laced with razor-edged shards of ice, sharp enough to kill.

The steward, addressed as Chief Eunuch Li, appeared unaffected by Xiao Lin’s monstrous pressure. Or perhaps he deliberately ignored it, emboldened by the supreme authority he represented.

His eyes swept greedily over Ning Ning, inch by inch, without a shred of human warmth.

That look wasn’t directed at a living person—

But at a priceless treasure just acquired. Evaluating its luster. Calculating its value. Judging whether it would obey, whether it would be useful.

That objectifying gaze made Ning Ning’s stomach churn. His pale skin erupted with goosebumps.

He instinctively took a small step back, trying to escape that sticky gaze—

Only to thump into a firm, burning chest behind him.

Xiao Lin.

At some point, he had silently moved to stand behind Ning Ning. His tall, muscular frame loomed like an unbreakable wall, shielding Ning Ning completely and cutting off that nauseating stare.

“He,” Xiao Lin’s voice was iron-hard, every word hammered with unshakable dominance, “isn’t going anywhere.”

For the first time, the steward’s drawn-on eyebrows furrowed with impatience.

He lifted his eyes, finally looking directly at Xiao Lin, and reminded with condescending reproach: “Marshal, do mind yourself. This is His Majesty’s command.”

“My person,” Xiao Lin loomed over him, his dark-gold wolf eyes blazing with oncoming storm and madness, “only obeys my orders.”

“Marshal!” The steward’s face twisted, his voice sharpening into a shrill screech. “Are you defying the imperial decree?!”

“So what if I am.” Xiao Lin spat out the words like shards of ice. His hand on his sidearm’s grip had gone bone-white from force.

The atmosphere crackled with gunpowder, seconds from exploding into open conflict between the Empire’s Marshal and the Emperor’s supreme authority—

When a feather-light voice slipped in like a breeze.

“Chief Li, why work yourself into such a temper?”

Gu Qingfeng had somehow moved to Ning Ning’s other side. Together with Xiao Lin, they formed a pincer, flanking Ning Ning protectively left and right, sealing him off entirely.

His face once again wore that impeccable smile, eyes on the steward, his tone as warm as spring wind:

“Father wanting to see Ning Ning is truly his blessing. As sons and subjects, it’s naturally our duty to make all the proper arrangements.”

Then his voice shifted—still soft, but every word needled sharp as iced steel.

“However…” He sighed, feigning concern, eyes falling on Ning Ning’s pale face. “Ning Ning is the legendary Moon God, his status unimaginably exalted. His powers have only just awakened. His mental sea is terribly fragile and unstable.”

His gaze slid toward Xiao Lin, words weighted with implication:

“You see, both the Marshal and I must remain constantly at his side to stabilize his psyche. Should he be taken abruptly into the palace, and should—just hypothetically—his powers clash with the sacred presence… well, that would be one matter.”

He paused, his smile deepening, colder.

“But if this God’s power spirals out of control outside our supervision… who, I wonder, will bear the responsibility? Can you, Chief Li?”

Every word struck flawlessly: praising the Emperor, shoving the risk back onto the steward, and preemptively saddling him with the blame of a potential disaster.

The steward’s face turned an ugly shade, pale then green.

Of course he knew what “Moon God” meant for the Empire. And he knew very well the two men before him—one, the Empire’s Marshal with an army of millions; the other, a calculating prince favored by the Emperor himself.

Either was untouchable.

As the three-way standoff tightened to breaking point—

Ning Ning, crushed between two suffocating Alpha auras, trembled uncontrollably from tension and pressure.

Like a frightened little creature, he reached out his cold hand and clutched tightly at the sleeve of the military coat draped over him, the fabric still carrying its familiar warmth and scent.

That rough, comforting cloth was his only lifeline.

The tiny motion, full of helpless dependence, was like a lit match to a barrel of TNT inside two top Alphas.

Boom!

Xiao Lin felt that trembling grip on his sleeve.

That frail strength smoothed away all the violence boiling in his chest, leaving only heartache and fierce protectiveness.

Lowering his gaze to the crown of soft silver hair before him, his voice softened unconsciously, though the words remained a command:

“Tell His Majesty—”

“Ning Ning has just finished a long journey. His mental sea is critically drained. He needs rest now.”

Seeing Ning Ning secretly exhale in relief at his words, Xiao Lin’s heart melted entirely.

So he gave the greatest concession he could.

“One hour later,” Xiao Lin paused, each word like steel on stone, “I will personally escort him to the palace.”

It was his final compromise. His final ultimatum.

Far in the shadows behind the guard formation, a figure in plain worker’s uniform quietly observed the spectacle.

Lowering his head, fingers dancing swiftly on his wrist terminal, he sent off an encrypted message before slipping unnoticed into the bustling crowd.

【Target confirmed. Marshal and Second Prince in direct standoff with Imperial authority. The show has begun.】

…

Under the twin pressure of Xiao Lin and Gu Qingfeng, the steward finally stiffly nodded, leading his soldiers to withdraw a short distance away to wait.

The landing pad fell into an eerie silence.

Ning Ning still clung tightly to Xiao Lin’s sleeve, caught between Gu Qingfeng’s gentle-yet-cold gaze on one side and Xiao Lin’s blazing wall of possessive protection on the other.

Inside, his mental barrage had completely broken down into chaos.

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