It was clear to the remaining embroidered envoys just how grave the situation was. They exchanged glances, and each of them saw the same unwavering determination in their companions’ eyes. They quickly said to Huang Huihong, “Commander Huang, take the criminals with you and run! We’ll bring up the rear!”

Huang Huihong frowned, but offered no other objection. He nodded his head with a grave expression. He couldn’t say anything right now, and could only gesture with his eyes. Brothers, take care!

Every single embroidered envoy had undergone cruel training. They no longer cared about their own individual lives. They valued the fulfilment of the emperor’s mission above all else.

That was why none of the remaining members of the Embroidered Envoy showed the slightest bit of hesitation, and neither did Huang Huihong. He leapt into action to carry out the plan immediately.

He tossed all of the captives into the covered carriage. Taking the reins, he drove away at a reckless speed.

The dark elves immediately tried to give chase, but they were blocked off by the three embroidered envoys who had stayed behind.

Even though the dark elves had the greater fighting strength, every member of the Embroidered Envoy was an expert who had undergone strict training. They had already resolved to make this patch of ground their final resting place. Without the fear of death to hold them back, it was difficult for the dark elves to break through their defenses right away.

The dark elf leader looked at the dragon race elder in anger. “Why didn’t you stop them?!”

The old elder dragon said indifferently, “I am only in charge of dealing with the Embroidered Envoy’s imperial edict. I’ve already completed this task—the rest is up to you.”

With that, he turned and left. Even though his gait was slow, it only took a few steps for his figure to vanish into the depths of the forest.

The dark elf leader had an awful expression on his face, but he didn’t dare provoke that elder. He tamped down on his rage and charged at the three embroidered envoys.

The three embroidered envoys were heavily outnumbered. The fact that they had lasted until now was a miracle in itself. Their bodies were already drenched in blood.

The dark elf leader released a cold snort. He dashed forward, leaving an afterimage behind while his real body became transparent. Bright slashes flashed all around him. When he reappeared, the three embroidered envoys were covered in mortal wounds, blood gushing out of their bodies. Their corpses crashed heavily to the ground.

“After them!” The dark elf Leader didn’t bother to give the corpses a second look. He led his subordinates in the direction that Huang Huihong had disappeared, beginning a relentless pursuit.

…

Meanwhile, inside of that speeding carriage, Zu An couldn’t resist opening the carriage door to offer up a snide remark. “You guys really need to do something about how slow your imperial edict ceremony is. Why do you need so many fancy rituals and flowery words? Aren’t you suffering the consequences of that now?”

Huang Huihong gritted his teeth, but could not reply.

You have successfully trolled Huang Huihong for 444 Rage points!

He was already furious that he wasn’t able to use his ultimate attack against an opponent that he should have been able to defeat. Zu An’s words only fueled his anger further.

Sang Hong stepped in. “You can’t blame Commander Huang for this. His Majesty was probably the one who devised this ceremony.”

Zu An replied, “Oh, that makes sense. The emperor must really love to show off. I would order my subordinates to do all that nonsense as well, if I cared that much about looking good. I guess he didn’t consider that it would end up becoming a burden for his men.”

Huang Huihong felt himself growing more irate by the second.

Sang Hong frowned. “Please speak cautiously. Talking about His Majesty behind his back is disrespectful, and a major crime.”

“There’s no way the emperor can hear me anyway.” Zu An didn’t seem to mind. “He might be the world’s number one expert or whatever, but he’s still far from being omniscient and omnipotent. Otherwise, he could’ve just interfered personally and killed those dark elves. Those Embroidered Envoy members wouldn’t have had to die.”

Huang Huihong did not take kindly to the mention of his subordinates’ death, but again, he could not reply.

Sang Qiang snorted. “You know nothing about respect. His Majesty obviously has his own considerations when he makes his decisions. Someone of your level cannot even begin to fathom the depth of his thoughts.”

Zu An chuckled. “From young master Sang’s tone, it seems like you know exactly what His Majesty was thinking. Please enlighten us!”

Sang Qian’s face turned red. “I already said that His Majesty’s considerations are his own. How could I dare to guess his sacred thoughts?”

“Tsk.” Zu An’s face was full of contempt. “You pretend like you know everything, yet you can’t say a single useful thing when it matters. People like that absolutely disgust me. You guys mindlessly worship the rich and powerful, and think that every fart coming out of their ass is a deliberate action taken after deep reflection.”

“You!” Being criticized like this in front of his own wife made Sang Qian furious. He stood up in rage, about to fight Zu An to the death.

You have successfully trolled Sang Qian for 999 Rage points!

Unfortunately—or perhaps otherwise—he was stopped by his father. “Enough. Think about the situation we are in! Stop causing trouble. Commander Huang, we are in a moment of crisis. Do you still have no intention of undoing our seals so that we can lend you a helping hand?”

Huang Huihong’s face was red, and his expression flickered rapidly. He was clearly experiencing an intense internal conflict.

He was obviously aware that Sang Hong would be of great help, given his cultivation level. However, once he unsealed them, the heavens only knew whether they would really help out, or if they would just make a run for it! He wouldn’t be able to control anything at that point.

It was one thing if the Sang clan members took off on their own, but he wouldn’t be able to stop them if they took Zu An with them.

Considering the enmity between Zu An and Sang Qian, which had only built up along the way, they might even kill Zu An as soon as he undid their seals. That would truly be the worst outcome.

Just then, a glimmering streak of black lanced towards them, and Huang Huihong quickly dodged to the side. Even though he avoided being struck in a vital area, blood still gushed out from his shoulder.

A trace of black energy seeped outward from his wound—that arrow was poisoned.

Huang Huihong quickly fished out a bottle of medicine to suppress the effects of the poison. He had come from the capital, after all, so he wasn’t lacking in supplies.

Eight dark elves swiftly surrounded them. They had clearly learned their lesson from the last encounter. Each occupied a different position, cutting off all chances of escape.

The Dark Elf leader snorted coldly. “Run, why don’t you? Let’s see where you can run to now.”

Huang Huihong’s eyes smoldered with anger. The appearance of these dark elves meant that his three compatriots were already dead.

Zu An looked around him, puzzled. “Hm? Where did that dragon elder go?”

Sang Hong replied, “Members of the dragon race are usually uninterested in the affairs of the world. I believe they do not wish to become too deeply involved.”

“Ah, so they’re just hypocrites,” Zu An concluded. “If that’s the case, can’t Huang Huihong use the imperial edict as much as he wants, since he’s not here?”

Sang Hong smiled bitterly and said, “It’s not so easy. He is still afflicted by that elder dragon’s silencing Soulspeak. It’ll be at least another two hours before the effects wear off. That’s enough time for us to die eight hundred times over.”

“Oh,” Zu An said. He had a pensive look on his face. So, the Soulspeak skill can be used in this way. Doesn’t that mean I don’t have to fear Soulspeak or the Embroidered Envoy’s imperial edict anymore…?

Sang Hong examined Zu An curiously. “Why don’t you seem flustered at all?”

“What?” Zu An was momentarily confused.

Sang Hong continued, “I’ve been watching you carefully all this time, yet I haven’t seen any trace of fear in your expression. Putting Huang Huihong aside for a moment, even I, an old man who has lived out most of my life and has absolute confidence in my own willpower, feel alarmed. However, I don’t sense even a speck of nervousness from you.”

Zheng Dan, Sang Qian, and even Huang Huihong studied him curiously when they heard this.

Zu An laughed. “This is known as having the temperament of a protagonist, okay? Even mountains can crumble, yet I will always remain unfazed! Sorry, but this isn’t something you guys can learn.”

Sang Hong and the rest of them stared at him, mouths slightly ajar.

The dark elves clearly didn’t want to waste any more time. Their leader ordered in a low voice, “Kill everyone apart from Zu An… Oh. Keep that woman alive as well.”

Zheng Dan was beautiful, especially in her stunning bridal dress. Even these dark elves were tempted.

A beautiful girl like that would surely be fun to play with. Once they’d had enough of her, they could sell her off for a tidy sum.

Even though Zheng Dan didn’t know what they were thinking, their gazes made her feel incredibly uncomfortable, and she leaned against Zu An subconsciously. Being at his side made her feel slightly more at ease.

Even though her movements were slight, they didn’t escape Sang Hong’s attention. His brows drew together in a frown.

Sang Qian remained silent. I’m masquerading as Zu An right now, so I shouldn’t be in danger of dying. It seems like Zheng Dan will survive as well. All I need to do is wait for little sis to save us. Then again, is little sis strong enough to beat these dark elves…?

Huang Huihong knew that they were in critical danger, and was just about to undo Sang Hong’s seal, when suddenly, a sweet and flirtatious and female voice came from above. “I didn’t expect it to be so lively over here.”