Chapter 747: Doubts Everywhere

"A woman?" Zu An was stunned. Although her face was veiled, her infinitely graceful figure revealed that she was undoubtedly a beauty.

He couldn't think of any woman he knew who would hide her identity like this to save him.

Yun Jianyue?

No, that's not right. If the Demonic Cult Master had truly arrived, she could have easily defeated these people with one hand.

Just then, his vision blurred. The familiar grand buildings and clean streets vanished, replaced by a dilapidated courtyard.

The inn where the siege crossbow was set up had also become a crumbling attic within the courtyard. He found himself pinned by the siege crossbow to a low earthen wall, most of which had collapsed.

"How did I get here? Wasn't I on my way to the palace? By now, I should be nearing the imperial city!"

A shiver ran down Zu An's spine. He recalled that the reason he was struck by the siege crossbow earlier was a sudden, needle-like pain in his mind as he tried to dodge, which slowed his movement just enough.

Reflecting on it now, he realized a master of mental cultivation must have created an illusion for him, guiding him to this place.

Wait, why does this courtyard look so familiar?

As he looked at the somewhat familiar vegetable patch, spinning wheel, and other items, a thought suddenly struck him: wasn't this the home of Xinrui's mother and younger brother, which he had investigated before?

Why would his opponent intentionally lead him here?

However, he had no time to ponder this, as several black-clad figures leaped out from the shadows, surrounding the mysterious woman.

Three, seven, five...

There were a total of 15 black-clad figures. Two of them were already lying motionless on the ground, presumably killed by the mysterious woman's earlier actions.

The three at the forefront included one who was short and stocky, wielding a golden gourd hammer, clearly relying on brute force.

Another was tall and slender, holding a red-tasseled spear; he stood like a javelin, clearly highly skilled in spearmanship.

The third held a gold bracelet in his left hand and a silver bracelet in his right, immediately recognizable as unusual weapons.

He paid close attention to these three because the aura fluctuations they revealed upon appearing suggested they were all Grade Seven masters.

Given their distinctive weapons, it wouldn't be difficult for the Embroidered Uniform Guard's intelligence network to uncover their identities.

Of course, all of this depended on him surviving to return to the Embroidered Building.

The remaining seven black-clad figures held gleaming *pudao*, their eyes indifferent, a look typically seen in battle-hardened assassins accustomed to violence.

Their aura suggested they were all Grade Six practitioners, likely operating in a formation due to their long-standing coordination.

To deploy such a large force and even use a siege crossbow to ambush me, I must be quite important.

Zu An muttered inwardly. He presumed news of his victory over the Crown Prince of Qi had spread, making them wary of underestimating him.

However, it was clear that they had been misled by his earlier ruse, believing that some mysterious master had secretly assisted him in defeating the Crown Prince of Qi, rather than him doing it with his true strength. That's why no higher-level cultivators were sent this time.

Hold on, where is the mental cultivation master who created the illusion for me?

He quickly tried to survey the area through the eyes of nearby small animals. Unfortunately, the recent commotion had frightened many animals away. He barely managed to control a few small birds, only able to make out the situation in the field with difficulty.

There were still many blind spots, making it impossible to spot anyone else.

"Who are you?" the black-clad figures stared warily at the mysterious woman. The man holding the gold and silver bracelets asked in a deep voice.

The mysterious woman remained silent, swiftly observing everyone around her, looking for an opportunity to strike.

The man with the gold and silver bracelets frowned, then waved his hand dismissively. "Kill her. Her body will be yours afterwards!"

Behind him, the eyes of the seven Grade Six assassins, armed with *pudao*, finally lost their indifference, replaced by ruthlessness and... desire.

Zu An was speechless. Seeing the assassins' excitement, it was clear this wasn't their first time doing such a thing.

Damn, what a gruesome taste; they looked like reanimated corpses.

The assassins swung their gleaming *pudao*, coordinating closely as they attacked the mysterious woman from all directions.

Meanwhile, the three Grade Seven masters stood by, observing the situation in the field with detached indifference.

In the past, when Zu An read novels or watched TV, he never understood why villains always sent their lesser soldiers first, giving protagonists opportunities to defeat them one by one or suddenly gain power in adversity. Wouldn't it be simpler to just kill the opponent immediately?

It wasn't until he arrived in this world of cultivation that he understood: for cultivators, unless there was a truly vast difference in power, there was always a risk of "flipping the car" (failing unexpectedly) if one didn't know the opponent's trump cards and skills.

Sending subordinates to test the opponent's skills first, and then being prepared, allowed for a more confident approach.

As for the lives of the subordinates, well, that's what subordinates were for.

Seeing the assassins charge, the mysterious woman twisted her body, elegantly dodging the attacks of the two foremost attackers. She then turned sideways, parrying the central assailant's blade with a palm strike, using the momentum to close within a foot of him, striking at his vital points.

Zu An nodded secretly. This woman was top-notch in both cultivation and combat experience.

Among the women he knew, who possessed such ability and yet needed to hide her identity?

Just as she was about to strike down another, two more *pudao* suddenly extended from under his armpits—one aiming for her stomach, the other for her legs—at incredibly tricky angles.

Clearly, this group had a well-coordinated formation that allowed them to protect their comrades by attacking in a way that forced a defensive reaction.

The mysterious woman seemed to have anticipated this; she showed no panic, lightly tapping her toes to leap over everyone. This was likely the weakest point in their formation.

Just as her fingers were about to crush the heads of several men, two figures from behind suddenly raised two shields above their heads.

The mysterious woman's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, but she still pressed down with her palm.

Runes flashed on the two shields, clearly high-grade military equipment, but they glowed for only a second before shattering into pieces.

Though the mysterious woman appeared delicate and fragile, the power of her palm strike was terrifying.

Several assassins below groaned, blood trickling from their ears and noses.

The three observers exchanged glances, a grim realization dawning in their eyes: this mysterious woman's cultivation was unexpectedly high.

The key question was: who was she, and why was she obstructing their plans?

At that moment, the mysterious woman suddenly shot upwards. It turned out that the instant the shields shattered, the assassins inside had quickly drawn two hand-crossbows and fired.

These military crossbow bolts were inscribed with special runic arrays, making their power at such close range extraordinary. Even she dared not directly intercept them.

The woman frowned. She had intended to catch these men off guard, but finding them more formidable than expected, she gave up on further attacks. Instead, she moved to Zu An's side, sealed the wound on his chest, and pulled out the giant crossbow. "A'Zu, are you alright?"

"It's her?" Zu An's heart skipped a beat. Recognizing the familiar scent and her delicate, melodious voice, he finally knew who she was.

It was Yun Yuqing, the Princess Consort of Wu, with whom he had shared a night of intimacy!

"Who are these people trying to kill me? Why is she in the capital? And how coincidental that she saved me?" Countless questions swirled in Zu An's mind. Additionally, wary of the mysterious mental cultivation master whose location he didn't know, he decided to give the hidden person a surprise later, so he feigned unconsciousness and did not respond to her.

"A'Zu, don't scare me~" Seeing no reaction from him, Yun Yuqing's voice trembled slightly. Her tender white hand gently caressed his wound, and then a faint purple light appeared, healing the terrible injury.

"Stop her quickly!"

On the other side, the short man with the large golden hammer, believing he had seen through the woman's cultivation methods, could no longer hold back. He kicked his stout calves backward, cracking the ground, then swung his golden gourd hammer towards the two of them.

Before he even reached them, a terrifying pressure of wind rushed forward, instantly tearing the scattered spinning wheel nearby into pieces. It was clear that if the hammer struck, both of them would likely be turned into a bloody pulp on the spot.