Chapter 610: Great Master

Zu An's head was spinning. Under everyone's watchful eyes, could he really allow these people to kill the Crown Prince? If he did, the Emperor would surely flay him alive afterwards.

So he could only step forward to stop Qiu Honglei and her group, while secretly transmitting a message with his elemental energy: "Honglei, hurry and leave. Zhu Xie Chixin is back; you have no chance now."

"It's not too late to leave after killing the Crown Prince and this woman," Qiu Honglei replied expressionlessly, seeing that he was still protecting the Crown Princess. "Then you can also come with us."

Rage points from Qiu Honglei +555, +555, +555...

Zu An understood her anger. If he hadn't suddenly appeared and interfered with their plans, their assassination attempt would most likely have succeeded, so it was natural for them to be angry.

But from his perspective, he couldn't stand by and do nothing. This was the downside of being on opposing sides; it was inevitably difficult to satisfy both parties.

Meanwhile, new Embroidered Uniform Envoys and guards arrived one after another, and the situation gradually began to turn unfavorable for the Demon Sect.

Zu An grew anxious: "Honglei, if you don't leave now, it'll be too late."

First, he had worried they would harm the Crown Prince and Crown Princess; now he was starting to worry about Qiu Honglei.

Qiu Honglei bit her lip, clearly hesitating as well.

At this moment, the cold, clear voice of the long-haired woman from the other side rang out: "A gentleman is respectful and restrained, gaining the righteousness of the Way of Heaven through humility."

After hearing this, the assassins below all paused, stunned, and then their attacks became even fiercer.

"Everyone, be careful and protect the Crown Prince and Crown Princess!" other guards hastily shouted, focusing all their efforts on defense.

Zu An, however, found it strange. The Demon Sect had clearly lost its momentum, so why were they still attacking so fiercely? Did the Demon Sect truly not care about the lives of their subordinates? But her own disciple was among them.

He quickly reminded Qiu Honglei: "Since your master doesn't care if you live or die, why are you risking your life for her? Quickly find a way to leave; I'll cover your escape."

Hearing the concern in his voice, Qiu Honglei felt a warmth in her heart, and her expression softened considerably. "You misunderstand," she said. "This is the agreed-upon retreat signal before the operation. Everyone is now looking for an opportunity to withdraw."

Zu An finally understood. If they had simply announced their retreat, the palace guards' morale would have instantly soared, and with them giving chase, the assassins might not have been able to escape at all.

By appearing to fight to the death, they made it difficult for the palace guards to discern their true intentions and hesitate to adopt aggressive tactics. The guards' primary concern would be to ensure the safety of the various nobles, which would give the assassins a chance to escape.

As expected, soon the black-clad assassins one after another found opportunities to withdraw. A group, led by Qiu Honglei, systematically stayed behind to cover the retreat, clearly having undergone rigorous training beforehand.

Zhu Xie Chixin saw this and was furious: "Trying to leave? All of you stay!"

He immediately waved his hand in that direction, and a giant flaming palm descended directly from the sky. Under its immense pressure, those below were utterly powerless to resist, as if they would be instantly crushed to ashes by the palm.

Yet, the black-clad assassins showed no panic, continuing to withdraw in an orderly fashion.

At this moment, the long-haired woman's voice rang out: "Your opponent is me!"

A cold light shot out from the East Palace wall. Zu An, with his sharp eyes, recognized it as the flying sword that had almost taken his life earlier.

At this moment, the sword's body gleamed with flowing light. The sword was already shorter than a normal one, and in front of the giant flaming palm, it appeared even more minuscule.

Yet, this tiny sword pierced directly through the giant flaming palm. A hole appeared in the palm and then grew larger and larger. Finally, as if some rule had been broken, the flaming palm completely vanished.

Zhu Xie Chixin: "???"

Zu An, however, felt a sense of relief. He had just been pursued by that sword, almost having nowhere to run or hide, and had thought he was just a weakling. But it turned out Zhu Xie Chixin was in a similar predicament.

Zhu Xie Chixin frowned as he looked at the long-haired woman: "Are you really just a Grandmaster?"

The long-haired woman calmly replied: "If you want to know, why don't we fight and find out? Being so indecisive doesn't suit the fearsome reputation of the Grand Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Envoys."

Zhu Xie Chixin's eyes narrowed, and a murderous intent flared. With a flick of his sleeve, a pitch-black iron chain shot out and coiled around the woman.

Zu An was startled: "The Soul-Snatching Chain!"

He had seen Huang Huihong and his subordinates use the Soul-Snatching Rope Formation in Brightmoon City before; it truly could achieve an effect greater than the sum of its parts. Furthermore, the Soul-Snatching Chain could, to a certain extent, obstruct the flow of elemental energy for cultivators. It was indeed an unusual and effective weapon.

It now seemed that the reason the Soul-Snatching Chain became the standard weapon for most Embroidered Uniform Envoys was likely related to Zhu Xie Chixin. He had developed a version suitable for lower-level cultivators based on his own weapon; he truly lived up to his reputation as a Grandmaster of his generation.

However, he immediately noticed that the Soul-Snatching Chain in Zhu Xie Chixin's hand was different from those he had seen before. Its tip featured a pitch-black scythe; only the blade's edge gleamed white, while the entire weapon exuded a deathly aura.

Truly a chain to snatch souls!

Zhu Xie Chixin's face was grim. He hadn't used his life-bound weapon in many years, but this long-haired woman was too bizarre. He dared not be careless in the slightest, knowing that if these assassins escaped, he would not be able to bear the responsibility.

Seeing the Soul-Snatching Chain approaching, the long-haired woman clearly had no intention of meeting it head-on. She lightly tapped her foot and retreated several zhang.

Zhu Xie Chixin flicked his wrist, and the Soul-Snatching Chain instantly extended several zhang, just barely encircling the long-haired woman's waist.

A slight smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth. This woman was still too careless; she hadn't expected his Soul-Snatching Chain to extend so unnaturally. "Hmph, once entangled by the Soul-Snatching Chain, your elemental energy will be suppressed, and you'll be unable to break free even a little."

At the same time, the grotesque, chilling giant scythe swung down towards her waist. The long-haired woman's slender waist against the massive scythe created a powerful visual contrast.

Zhu Xie Chixin licked his lips, a hint of madness flashing in his eyes. He no longer cared about keeping her alive. Killing such a top-tier expert would greatly benefit his cultivation. He could clearly envision the woman being cut in half by his scythe, the sky filled with blood splattering onto her flowing hair. It would surely be the most poignant and beautiful painting, and at that moment, his Grandmaster realm would be completely solidified.

Zu An's heart skipped a beat as he watched. Although he had nearly been killed by her sword earlier, seeing the long-haired woman about to perish, he still couldn't bear it and hoped even more that she could escape.

At this moment, a little white figure appeared in his mind and said: "She's Honglei's master. If she dies here, Honglei will surely be sad."

Soon, another little red figure emerged, coldly chuckling: "Save it. You just think she's pretty; you're lusting after her body, you degenerate!"

The little white figure weakly retorted: "Nonsense. She's veiled; how would I know if she's pretty or not?"

The little red figure's tone was sarcastic: "With her figure, her aura, and those beautiful eyes, do you really need to see her face to know she's beautiful?"

The little white figure: "..."

While Zu An's internal drama unfolded, the scene had already changed. Zhu Xie Chixin's expression suddenly changed as he realized something was wrong.

By then, the long-haired woman had been cut in two by the spinning scythe. However, the imagined scene of blood splattering everywhere did not materialize. The woman's figure gradually faded, and what was bound in the middle of the Soul-Snatching Chain became a broken pillar.

"The Art of Substitutions?" Zhu Xie Chixin was startled and quickly dodged to the side.

At the same time, a graceful figure with flowing long hair appeared behind him and thrust a sword towards him.

Fortunately, Zhu Xie Chixin dodged quickly, but even so, a long bloody gash was left on his ribs.

His eyes narrowed. He didn't even glance at his wound; instead, he stared intently at the long-haired woman: "You're not just a Grandmaster, you're a Great Grandmaster! Who exactly are you?"