Chapter 1348: Ambush

"Ah~" The three women were all peak figures in their respective fields, usually unperturbed even when facing the collapse of a mountain. Yet at this moment, they were all flustered, quickly covering their chests and retreating swiftly.

"Zu An!" Their three beautiful faces flushed crimson as they glared angrily at Zu An.

Rage points from Yan Xuehen +555, +555, +555...

Rage points from Yun Jianyue +555, +555, +555...

Rage points from Yu Yanluo +134, +134, +134...

Xingnu, standing nearby, was curious about what could make the three women so angry, even to the point of risking Zu An's identity being exposed. She wanted to lean in and see what was in the mirror, but Yu Yanluo quickly pulled her back.

Zu An was also dumbfounded, having completely unexpected this situation.

Seeing the fiery glares in the three women's beautiful eyes, Zu An quickly explained, "I really didn't know about this. I just secretly used it to illuminate a stone."

Yan Xuehen's expression was icy. "Then why are you having a nosebleed?"

Although everything had already been seen between them at the Great Snow Mountain hot springs, she had resolved to forget what happened that day. Now, however, she had been seen naked again, a truly entangled mess.

Zu An subconsciously wiped his nose, and sure enough, it was covered in blood. He chuckled awkwardly, "The food I've been eating in the demon race territory recently is too potent, making my blood and qi overly vigorous, haha."

A hint of murderous intent flashed in Yun Jianyue's beautiful eyes. "What did you just see?"

"I didn't see anything at all," Zu An said, feeling guilty, even as a dazzling array of beautiful sights flashed through his mind. He instinctively began comparing them, realizing that each of the three women truly excelled in their own way, possessing unique advantages.

It was fine until he thought about it; then a stream of nosebleed immediately gushed out, impossible to stop even with his hand.

Yun Jianyue: "..."

Yan Xuehen: "..."

Yu Yanluo: "..."

They knew he was lying through his teeth, and he knew they wouldn't believe him. Yet, they could only pretend to believe him and let the matter drop.

The three women then each put on a stern face and ignored him.

Zu An walked behind them, feeling guilty. Only Xingnu stayed by his side, offering him a handkerchief dampened with water. "Please wipe it, Young Master."

"Thank you," Zu An thought, realizing how considerate Xingnu was.

"What exactly did you do to them, Young Master? Why are they suddenly so angry?" Xingnu's eyes gleamed with curiosity. Just a second ago, everyone was getting along harmoniously, so why the sudden change of mood?

Zu An almost choked. "Cough, cough, it's nothing, just a minor accident."

Seeing his reaction, Xingnu grew even more curious and was about to press further when Yu Yanluo's voice came from ahead: "Xingnu, come here."

"Oh~" Xingnu could only trot over helplessly.

Zu An secretly took out the Qin King's Bone-Illuminating Mirror, never expecting it to have such a function.

In his previous life, countless men had fantasized about having a cheat ability like X-ray vision, and the endless stream of novels on the subject proved how popular this fantasy was.

Didn't that mean that from now on, any woman would appear unclothed before him?

His heart pounded. He knew this was wrong, yet he couldn't suppress the urge deep within his soul.

"I'm just testing it, I have no other intentions..." Zu An kept reassuring himself, then cautiously shined the mirror forward.

"If you dare to use that mirror on us again, I will gouge out your eyeballs." Just then, Yun Jianyue's chilling voice rang out. Clearly, she was truly angered by this incident.

"Count me in," Yan Xuehen's voice was equally cold, an unprecedented alliance with Yun Jianyue.

Yu Yanluo also gave him a deep, meaningful look.

"Haha, a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! This will absolutely not happen again," Zu An quickly said, putting away the Qin King's Gall-Illuminating Mirror.

Yan Xuehen was about to say something when her brows suddenly furrowed. She pulled Yun Jianyue and Yu Yanluo back, moving them to stand beside Zu An.

Almost instantly, dozens of crossbow bolts pierced the ground where they had just stood. The shafts were buried several feet deep, their fletchings still trembling, indicating the immense force with which they had been fired.

Blue light shimmered on the arrows, clearly enhanced with special runes designed to break through cultivators' protective qi.

"Do I need your help? I could eliminate them in minutes," Yun Jianyue scoffed, clearly unwilling to accept Yan Xuehen's assistance.

Yan Xuehen rolled her eyes, too lazy to argue with her. Her gaze fell on the crossbow bolts, and her expression subtly changed. "Military crossbows?"

The expressions of everyone in the group subtly shifted. Who could mobilize an army to ambush and kill them?

Their first thought was Shi Min and his group, but then they realized it was impossible. This was the royal court, not the Lion Clan territory; even with all their power, they couldn't mobilize the army here.

Could it be the Second Prince or the Little Golden Peng King?

Both were renowned generals of the demon race, each commanding a direct lineage army.

Just moments before, their group had entered a secluded alley where, even if something happened, no one would pass through quickly.

At that very moment, a rain of arrows filled the sky, shooting towards them.

Yun Jianyue was about to act, but Yu Yanluo swept her sleeve, and a painting scroll unfurled before them, absorbing all the incoming arrows.

Her painting created its own space; within her world, no matter how powerful the arrows, they were entirely under her control.

Yun Jianyue couldn't help but sigh with admiration. Although this woman's cultivation wasn't as high as her own, her methods were quite ingenious.

"Huh?" A soft exclamation came from the shadows, clearly surprised that their powerful attack had been so easily neutralized.

Hearing the somewhat familiar voice, Zu An sneered, "Ban Ka, stop hiding like a rat. You dare to ambush but not show your face? Oh, and Hei Chi Gu should be with you too, right? Come out, both of you."

When they parted ways at Jade Garden earlier, he had already deduced from their expressions that they wouldn't give up. Moreover, this attack used military crossbows, which Ban Ka clearly couldn't command alone. Only Hei Chi Gu of the Hei Chi family would have such capability.

A cold snort resounded, followed by a group of black-clad figures emerging from the distant shadows. Leading them were none other than Ban Ka and Hei Chi Gu.

"We originally intended to take the items and leave, but since you've exposed our identities, we'll have to silence you," Hei Chi Gu said with a cruel laugh, revealing a set of chilling black teeth.

When Ban Ka first proposed they join forces, he had been hesitant. After all, the situation in the royal court was tense, and any mishap could lead to significant trouble.

Furthermore, if the Lion Clan princes had won the gamble, attacking the Snake Clan group would have been pointless, and he certainly wouldn't dare to rob the Lion Clan.

To his utter surprise, however, news soon arrived from Jade Garden: the Snake Clan had actually won.

The key was that various precious treasures had been revealed one after another, and most notably, a divine-tier artifact had appeared at the very end. Although its exact nature was still unknown, the mere mention of "divine-tier" was enough.

So he and Ban Ka immediately saw eye to eye and joined forces to ambush the Snake Clan group.

He had a cunning plan: first, leverage the Hyena Clan's combat power, and if anything went wrong afterward, he could pin all blame on Ban Ka, using him as a scapegoat.

Yu Yanluo scanned the entire scene. She noticed that although Ban Ka's subordinates were masked, their exposed skin, such as on their arms and necks, still showed many yellowish-brown spots, clearly identifying them as Hyena Clan experts.

As for Hei Chi Gu's side, his subordinates also appeared well-trained, but they didn't resemble a regular army.

Feeling more assured, she said coldly, "Hei Chi Gu, the Demon Emperor has now forbidden all combat within the royal court. Golden Crow Guards are patrolling everywhere. If there's any disturbance here, Golden Crow Guards will come to investigate very soon, and you will be facing a death penalty. Do you really think you can kill us in such a short time?"

Hei Chi Gu chuckled, "So, Queen Medusa is still hoping for the Golden Crow Guards to rescue you? Let me tell you, don't count on it. I've already used my connections to seal off several surrounding streets. The Golden Crow Guards will simply think we're investigating the previous assassins and won't come near."