Emperor and the Twelve Celestial Guardians

Gu Changyuan turned around, his calm gaze falling upon Zhuge Dancheng, Gongsun Xiangming, and Xuanyuan Feiyue. He spoke slowly:

"You have been entangled with the Imperial Court for many years, so you must know its power structure like the back of your hand. Could you explain it in detail?"

Hearing this, Zhuge Dancheng hurriedly took a step forward, his attitude even more respectful than before.

After witnessing this person's terrifying strength with his own eyes, whatever pride he had as an Immortal King had long since vanished.

When he spoke now, he even changed his address from "Your Excellency" to "Senior."

"To answer Senior, the Imperial Court of the Wanluo Immortal Realm has a strict structure and clear hierarchy. The one who controls the entire Imperial Court is the sole figure known as 'The Emperor', the supreme ruler of the Imperial Court, whose strength is unfathomable."

"Below The Emperor is the core pillar of the Imperial Court—the Twelve Heavenly Balances.

These twelve are all true Immortal Emperors, representing the highest combat power of the Imperial Court and holding the power of life and death.

They share equal status and exist below only one person, yet above billions."

"Beneath the Twelve Heavenly Balances are the Twenty-Four Heavenly Guards, all of whom are in the Immortal King realm.

Each Heavenly Balance has two Heavenly Guards by their side, responsible for relaying their messages to various provinces and handling matters on their behalf.

Further down are the Earthly Fiends—they are also Immortal King experts, though their authority is lower than that of the Heavenly Guards.

They are in charge of managing the provincial affairs of the Imperial Court, suppressing rebellions, and executing the various orders issued by the Imperial Court."

"Further down are generals at the Immortal Venerable and Immortal Lord levels, who command the major legions of the Imperial Court."

"At the very bottom are cultivators at the Golden Immortal realm and below, who form the foundational strength of the Imperial Court."

Gongsun Xiangming chimed in from the side:

"That 'The Emperor' of the Imperial Court rarely takes action.

One such instance was when the Imperial Court went to war with us; he single-handedly blocked five of us Immortal Emperors.

Furthermore, it seemed he wasn't using his full strength at all. As for what level his true power has reached... no one knows."

Xuanyuan Feiyue also nodded:

"The Twelve Heavenly Balances are the ones truly active on the front lines for the Imperial Court.

Normally, the Imperial Court's external conquests, purging of dissidents, and issuing of kill orders are almost entirely led by the Twelve Heavenly Balances."

He paused, a trace of oddity coloring his tone:

"However, although they are called the Twelve Heavenly Balances, our five families have only ever seen eleven of them in all our years in the Immortal Realm.

There is one more who has never shown up from beginning to end, as if they don't even exist. To this day, our five families have no idea about their background."

Immortal Emperors as Heavenly Balances, Immortal Kings ruling the provinces, Immortal Venerables and Lords commanding the armies, and those below Golden Immortal serving as the foundation...

This layered architecture meant that the Imperial Court's control over the Wanluo Immortal Realm was completely watertight.

And those three Immortal Kings imprisoned here were nothing more than insignificant minor characters in this massive system.

After Zhuge Dancheng and the other two finished their explanation, their eyes could not help but linger on Gu Changyuan for a few more breaths.

This was because they noticed something—

This terrifyingly powerful senior remained perfectly calm after hearing their introduction.

That calmness was not a deliberate disguise, but a genuine... realization after being completely ignorant.

It seemed he truly knew absolutely nothing about the Imperial Court of the Wanluo Immortal Realm.

The Nine Heavens Realm was a lower realm under the jurisdiction of the Wanluo Immortal Realm.

Logically speaking, any cultivator with such strength should have some understanding of the Wanluo Immortal Realm's landscape.

Yet this senior...

He didn't know about the Imperial Court, or even the basic situation of the Immortal Realm.

Then where did he come from?

Could he be someone from another Immortal Realm?

But the Wanluo Immortal Realm and other Immortal Realms were separated by an endless Sea of Chaos, and they had always minded their own business.

How could someone from another Immortal Realm come to a lower realm managed by the Wanluo Immortal Realm?

The three of them exchanged glances, all seeing the same confusion in each other's eyes.

They thought of countless possibilities, but not a single one—

Connected this man with being a native of the Nine Heavens Realm.

Gu Changyuan pondered for a moment before speaking again:

"I would like to set up a grand teleportation formation in the Zhuge family so that it will be convenient to travel back and forth if anything comes up in the future.

Although these three have already been captured by me and the higher-ups in the Imperial Court won't notice for a short while, we still need to take precautions to prevent any accidents."

After he finished speaking, Gongsun Xiangming and Xuanyuan Feiyue turned their gazes to Zhuge Dancheng. After all, since the teleportation formation was to be set up at the Zhuge family, it was naturally up to him, the grand ancestor, to respond.

Hearing this, Zhuge Dancheng felt instant ecstasy; this was simply something he could only dream of. He hurriedly bowed and cupped his hands, his tone respectful and excited:

"Thank you for your profound favor, Senior! This junior could ask for nothing more.

For Senior to be willing to set up a grand teleportation formation in the Zhuge family is our honor. This junior will definitely cooperate with Senior fully and will absolutely not delay Senior's affairs!"

It was no joke; he had witnessed this senior's strength with his own eyes.

What did it mean to have an almighty expert of this caliber set up a teleportation formation in his own home?

It meant that from now on, there would be a direct communication channel between the Zhuge family and this senior!

This was an opportunity that countless people could only beg for!

Gu Changyuan nodded slightly:

"Good."

As his voice fell, he gently waved his right hand.

A silver-gray stream of divine sense flew out from between his eyebrows, instantly condensing into a figure that looked exactly like him.

That figure nodded at Gu Changyuan, then flashed and disappeared from the spot—going off to set up the teleportation formation.

Gu Changyuan withdrew his gaze and looked at Zhuge Dancheng and the other two again:

"Regarding the matter of the Imperial Court, our goals should be aligned.

However, now that the Immortal Path is sealed, I assume you all are powerless to do anything and can only wait for the right opportunity."

He paused:

"I still have some matters to attend to later. If the three of you have nothing else, you may go back and rest first."

Hearing this, Zhuge Dancheng and the other two knew this was a cue for them to leave. They immediately cupped their hands and bowed:

"We shall take our leave."

Gu Changyuan gently waved his right hand, and a gentle power enveloped the three of them. In the next instant, their figures vanished from within the black coffin.

Inside the black coffin, silence returned.

All that remained were Gu Changyuan, his three disciples, and those three figures bound by iron chains.