Chapter 480: Ambushing the Enemy

The two women were stunned by his words and instinctively exchanged a glance before saying, "Alright then, Azu, please take care of yourself."

Pei Mianman even glared deliberately at Qiu Honglei and warned, "Qiu, you must take good care of him. If anything happens to him, I swear I'll kill you."

Qiu Honglei rolled her eyes and retorted, "Hmph, you might not even be able to defeat me. Don't think your large chest gives you the right to boast here."

Sang Qian, who hadn't run far, couldn't help but glance back at Qiu Honglei's chest, muttering under her breath about how annoying it was that Qiu Honglei, despite being well-endowed herself, was feigning jealousy. "What about us genuinely flat-chested women?" she thought.

Pei Mianman snorted, "If you're so capable, tell these guys to step aside, and let's have a one-on-one fight!"

Qiu Honglei glanced at Pei Mianman's wounds, shook her head, and said with a half-smile, "Let's not. You're injured today, so even if you lost, you probably wouldn't accept it. Besides, if I were to injure you, a certain someone would likely be quite distressed."

Seeing Qiu Honglei's gaze constantly flickering toward Zu An, Pei Mianman's face flushed. She knew her current condition meant she truly couldn't defeat the other woman, so she didn't insist further.

Zu An also seized the opportunity to advise, "Alright, alright, you two should leave quickly. Take good care of your injuries and protect yourselves."

Pei Mianman hummed in acknowledgment, then pulled Zheng Dan away.

Many among the Eight Free-roaming Cultivators watched the two women's retreating figures with a sense of regret. Both were exquisite beauties, and it seemed a shame to let them go.

The Demonic Cult members were a mixed group, and naturally, they lacked strong moral restraints. Thus, seeing the beauty of Pei Mianman and Zheng Dan, some harbored ill intentions. In the past, they would have secretly abducted them for their own enjoyment. However, this time they were entrusted with the Cult Master's important task, and under everyone's watchful eyes, no one dared to take such a risk.

Sensing her companions' thoughts, Thunder Cultivator snorted in dissatisfaction, secretly cursing the seductive 'fairies' and thinking it was good they had left.

Seeing the two women leave, Qiu Honglei looked at Zu An and said, "Please come this way."

Just then, Thunder Cultivator produced a set of chains, intending to bind Zu An. Zu An couldn't help but frown. "Didn't you say you wanted to recruit me? Is this how your esteemed cult treats its guests?" he asked.

Qiu Honglei stopped Thunder Cultivator. "Young Master Zu is a distinguished guest of the Cult Master, and he's staying voluntarily, so there's no need to bind him," she explained.

Thunder Cultivator frowned, "What if he takes the opportunity to escape?"

Qiu Honglei looked at Zu An and said, "I'm sure Azu won't make things difficult for me."

Looking into her large, expressive eyes, one would think no man could ever make her sad or disappointed.

However, Zu An was accustomed to all sorts of beauties, and his resistance was now higher than that of ordinary people. "That's not necessarily true," he countered. "So, to ensure I don't escape, Miss Qiu will need to keep a very close eye on me."

"Nonsense!" Thunder Cultivator roared in anger. "How dare you suggest a man defile our cult's Saintess!"

Rage from Thunder Cultivator: +444!

Zu An was speechless. "Who arranged for Qiu Honglei to go to the Immortal Dwelling in the first place?" he thought. "There were far more vulgar people there, weren't there? Why didn't I see you demolishing the Immortal Dwelling with a sledgehammer then?"

At this point, Qiu Honglei smiled slightly and said, "Thunder Cultivator, you're overthinking it. Zu An and I are friends. He's just fond of joking; there's no need to take him seriously."

Hearing the Saintess speak up for Zu An repeatedly, the other Cultivators' expressions grew intrigued. It was well known that due to Qiu Honglei's unparalleled charm, countless men within the cult adored her, and many high-ranking members openly pursued her, yet she had never been known to be genuinely close to anyone. Furthermore, her special status meant that even some cult elders dared not use overly aggressive methods, making her an unattainable figure in everyone's hearts. Yet now she was so close to this brat. If this news truly spread back to the cult, even if the Cult Master, in his generosity, took the *Phoenix Nirvana Sutra* and spared his life, a large number of the Saintess's admirers would likely want him dead.

Qiu Honglei then said to Zu An, "Azu, are you at ease now?"

Zu An looked at her with a touched expression and said, "Honglei, you're too kind to me. I don't know how to repay you. Perhaps by offering myself..."

"Cough, cough~" Qiu Honglei, knowing his tendencies, hastily interrupted him. "Alright, alright, it's time to set off. We need to get back to the cult as quickly as possible."

Zu An chuckled and casually asked, "Honglei, is your Cult Master a man or a woman? What are their hobbies? Or what do they dislike? How many meals do they eat a day...?"

Qiu Honglei felt her head ache. "Why are you asking such detailed questions?" she wondered.

"So I don't accidentally offend him and get killed," Zu An replied as if it were obvious. "And I can prepare some gifts in advance to get on his good side."

Qiu Honglei couldn't help but snort, "Your obediently handing over the *Phoenix Nirvana Sutra* would be the best gift."

"Naturally," Zu An readily agreed. "Also, I hope your Cult Master is a woman. I've always been quite popular with women, but men tend to dislike me out of jealousy."

Qiu Honglei was speechless.

The Cultivators were speechless.

This fellow's shamelessness truly surpassed everyone's imagination.

Thunder Cultivator couldn't help but snort, "Then why don't I like you? I despise glib talkers like you."

Zu An glanced at her tower-like physique and prominent muscles, then swallowed, instinctively replying, "You're a bit... different from other women."

Thunder Cultivator roared in anger, "What did you say!"

Rage from Thunder Cultivator: +999!

Throughout her life, her biggest taboo was being looked at strangely by men.

Zu An quickly changed his tone. "I meant you're a true heroine! You must be attracted to peerless heroes, and naturally wouldn't care for a playboy like me."

"That's more like it!" Thunder Cultivator snorted, a hint of bashfulness suddenly appearing on her face, as if she were imagining her own peerless hero.

The other Cultivators nearby felt a turmoil in their hearts, but none dared to show it, clearly aware of her fiery temper.

As this group departed, Pei Mianman and Zheng Dan were on the other side, discussing how to rescue Zu An.

Sang Qian, who hadn't gone far, saw this and ran over. "Are you two alright?" he asked.

Pei Mianman rolled her eyes, too bothered to speak to him. Zheng Dan, while initially thinking it inappropriate to ignore her nominal husband, quickly lost the inclination to respond when she recalled his repeated attempts to frame Zu An.

Rejected, Sang Qian was both ashamed and annoyed. Fortunately, Sang Qian and her father walked over at that moment, alleviating his awkwardness.

"Miss Pei, Sister-in-law, are you discussing how to rescue Zu An?" Sang Qian asked.

Clearly, after all this time, Pei Mianman's identity was no longer a secret.

"Hmm, I've heard Miss Sang is resourceful. Do you have any suggestions?" Pei Mianman asked. Having just fought alongside them, she naturally had a different attitude toward Sang Qian.

"We could notify the local officials and also contact King Liang and his people," Sang Qian suggested. "They could then intervene and retrieve Zu An."

Pei Mianman shook her head. "No, that won't do. That would be jumping out of the wolf's den straight into the tiger's maw."

Although Zu An had said he had a way to handle things in the capital, it was truly hard to believe how one could deal with an invincible emperor. Therefore, she was unwilling to let him fall into the hands of King Liang and his associates again.

Sang Qian hesitated for a moment. "Then we'll have to rescue him ourselves," she said. "I brought some subordinates with me on this trip, originally planning a prison break from an inn over there. I came out to scout for information and learned someone was attacking my father here, so I had to act alone. I thought the arrangements there were wasted, but now I realize those people can be used to rescue Zu An."

"Sister!" Sang Qian was somewhat displeased. He desperately wished Zu An dead and truly didn't want to save that fellow.

Sang Hongyuan, nearby, transmitted his voice to him. "Qian'er, we are still criminals on this trip. If we can rescue Zu An, it will be considered atoning for our sins by rendering meritorious service. Then the Emperor will be greatly pleased, and our crimes might just be expunged."

Hearing him say this, Sang Qian finally understood. He uttered an "oh" but still felt a bit awkward inside.

Zheng Dan, nearby, couldn't help but ask, "Those Demonic Cult fiends are very highly skilled. Can we truly deal with them?"

Sang Qian smiled, pressing her lips together. "Sister-in-law," she said, "many things in this world don't necessarily require brute force; they can be achieved through cleverness."