The dark elf leader frowned. Even he was beginning to feel confused. Even though the various clues pointed towards the fact that the one in the groom’s outfit was Zu An, he was still worried that the enemy might be misleading him.

Furthermore, the one distinguishing feature of Zu An was that he was despicable.

Of course, the one who had just hollered and sold out a comrade seemed to embody this trait perfectly…

He immediately gave the order. “Kill all of them!”

He would rather kill an innocent than let Zu An get away.

Sang Qian, who was still screaming, cut off suddenly with a bewildered frown.

Why aren’t these guys acting according to my expectations?

The dark elf assassins had already surrounded the carriage, brandishing their swords.

Pei Mianman sent her black flames flying left and right. She knew that not a single one of these dark elves were ranked below her in terms of cultivation, so she didn’t have high hopes of defeating them. She only prayed that she could buy a little more time. She didn’t expect that woman to just watch from the side without interfering.

Sure enough, Qiu Honglei quickly called out to her companions as the situation grew more desperate. “Save them!”

The Solitary Eight understood the objective of their mission. The sect master had clearly said that he had to obtain Zu An no matter what. How could they just let the enemy kill him?

The earth element cultivator—who possessed the strongest defense—stayed behind to protect Qiu Honglei, while the others all rushed towards the carriage.

The dark elf leader was exhausted, but he had no choice but to draw his weapons and rejoin the fray.

After all, both sides wanted to achieve their objective as quickly as possible. That was why no one held back. Skills were unleashed one after the other, the combatants fighting recklessly, trading wound after wound.

Zu An observed the battlefield carefully. He was worried for Pei Mianman’s safety, because her level of cultivation was, in theory, the lowest of all the fighters. Only her extraordinary black flames allowed her to hold her own against these experts for so long.

Sang Hong sighed. “The youngsters nowadays really are getting stronger and stronger! She is so young, and a woman as well, yet she has already reached the sixth rank! This level of talent truly is rare.”

“Sixth rank?” Zu An could tell that he was talking about Pei Mianman. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that there was indeed a layer of elemental armor made of black flame encasing her body, the mark of a sixth rank expert. No wonder she was able to last so long against so many powerful opponents.

It looks like she has been hiding her real strength all this time!

Zu An clicked his tongue. What the heck is with this world? Why are there so many pool sharks? I should probably tone down my bragging a little in the future, or I might end up screwing myself over…

As he was sighing over this, the carriage suddenly jerked. Everyone in the carriage lost their footing and fell, and Zu An dropped straight into Zheng Dan’s embrace.

So wonderfully soft!

Unfortunately, he didn’t have the time to fully appreciate this right now. He turned around and saw that the seriously-injured Huang Huihong had taken this chance to leap to the front of the carriage, and was driving it deeper into the mountains.

Both the dark elves and the Devil Sect fighters noticed this sudden development. They all wanted to chase after the carriage, but they were tangling with each other and couldn’t break free immediately. Pei Mianman wanted to chase after them too, but both sides were stopping her from wriggling away. It was clear that neither side wanted to give her a chance to get her hands on Zu An.

Zu An and the others were inside the carriage that used to belong to Liu Yao. This carriage had been specially remodeled, drawn by fine steeds with extraordinary stamina. The wheels of the carriage had all been engraved with wind element formations, which not only made them light, but increased their speed significantly.

Huang Huihong had relied on these traits to successfully flee the battlefield, and they quickly vanished into the forest.

After going at breakneck speed for a good amount of time, Huang Huihong turned around, and sighed in relief when he saw that no one was chasing them. However, as soon as he relaxed, the last bit of energy that had kept him going leaked out of him. Unable to hold on any further, he fell off the carriage.

Zu An grabbed the reins to stop the carriage. He looked at Huang Huihong, who was lying on the ground nearby, and said, “I honestly can’t understand the way you think. Can’t you just let those people from the Devil Sect capture me? You can just gather some experts later on and rescue me. That would be so much better, compared to the pitiful state you’re in right now.”

To be honest, letting either Qiu Honglei or big Manman squirrel him away weren’t bad choices. It was better than trying to survive in the wilderness with this dude for company. He knew that dangerous and vicious beasts were lurking around every corner of this wilderness. The bunch of them had their cultivations sealed, and their only cultivator was seriously injured. It would be far too tragic if they ended up as dinner for some vicious beasts.

Huang Huihong stared at him without speaking.

“You’re still mute?” Zu An ridiculed him when he saw his expression. “You embroidered envoys always strut about like you’re hot stuff, acting as though you represent the son of heaven himself and all that nonsense. But look at you now! You were sealed so easily, and your entire group has been practically wiped out. If I were you, I would feel kinda embarrassed.”

Huang Huihong’s eyes grew wider.

You have successfully trolled Huang Huihong for 611 Rage points!

Zu An’s voice grew curious. “By the way, something’s been bothering me. Since the emperor cares about my Phoenix Nirvana Sutra so much, why didn’t he send any real experts? Of the Embroidered Envoy, only you alone are at the sixth rank, while the others were only around the fifth rank. There was that formation thing as well, but who the heck would fight you guys fairly? Weren’t you all so easily wiped out by a simple ambush? Seriously, man.”

Huang Huihong jerked his face to the side. Zu An’s words had clearly gotten to him, and he wasn’t about to pay him any further attention.

A furious voice echoed in the silence. “Zu brat, before you go on and on with your questions, can you get the fuck away from my wife!?”

You have successfully trolled Sang Qian for 666 Rage points!

Sang Qian glared at Zu An. This bastard hadn’t left Zheng Dan’s embrace the entire time, and his head was pressed right up against her chest! He was even rubbing himself against her from time to time… how the hell was he supposed to endure this?

Zu An snorted. “Who are you calling your wife? Miss Zheng never completed the last step of the wedding ceremony with you. Strictly speaking, she is not your wife. Furthermore, I’m the one dressed in the groom’s clothes. I think everyone will agree that we look more like a couple.”

“You…” All this nonsense left Sang Qian on the brink of fainting. He was momentarily at a loss as to how to reply.

You have successfully trolled Sang Qian for 888 Rage points!

Zheng Dan’s skin wasn’t as thick as Zu An’s. She couldn’t bring herself to continue being so intimate with him while so many were watching. She pushed him away, her face red. Zu An didn’t want to keep her in an awkward spot, and used this chance to sit up as well.

Sang Hong coughed. He didn’t really want to keep seeing his son being bullied either. He replied to Zu An’s latest question to change the topic. “Based on my own suspicions, the emperor was most likely a little too careless this time. We had a master and a ninth rank expert accompanying us, as well as the Imperial Guard and Embroidered Envoy equipped with his imperial edict. In theory, this should have been more than enough to deal with most situations. However, he did not expect the temptation of your Phoenix Nirvana Sutra would be so great.”

There was one thing that he left out. The various powers might not have made their moves for the sake of obtaining the Phoenix Nirvana Sutra—they probably just didn’t want the emperor to obtain it.

Zu An rolled his eyes. “You make it sound as though all of them came after me. Weren’t there quite a few assassins who came after you guys as well? Look, I’m willing to bet that this dude coming from over there is here for you.”

Sang Hong froze, and quickly followed his gaze. A figure slowly emerged from the depths of the forest. He was a slovenly-dressed man with a thin sword resting across his shoulders, both his hands casually resting on either side of the blade. The way he walked made him seem wanton and unrestrained.

“Cash Warrior Ding Run? Why are you here?” Sang Hong became serious when he saw this person’s face.[1]

“Cash Warrior?” Zu An was stunned. Why did this name sound familiar?

Sang Hong said gravely, “He is an extremely famous hitman from the underground world, who will accept any hit for money. He will even kill his own friends and family, as long as you have enough money. Everyone calls him Cash Warrior because he charges more than the rest of his peers, and he can raise his fee at any time. However, he possesses an extremely high level of cultivation, and he will always complete his mission, regardless of how difficult it is. Hence, everyone is willing to fork over his higher fee.”

The man stabbed his sword into the ground and clapped lazily. “I didn’t expect Lord Sang to know this humble one so well! I’m beginning to suspect that you never worked for the Ministry of Agriculture at all, but served in the Ministry of Justice instead.”

Sang Qian had heard of this man as well. He had been seething with anger just a second ago, but now, he couldn’t help but shrink back. He was even trembling slightly.

Zu An frowned when he noticed how strangely he was acting. If the usually proud and arrogant Sang Qian was reduced to this, this fellow was most likely going to be a problem.

Sang Hong asked, “Respectfully, I wonder who it is you’ve come to kill? Is it Zu An, or are you here for my son and I?”

The slovenly man’s lips cracked open in a grin, revealing a mouthful of snow-white teeth that didn’t match his outward appearance at all. “Someone forked over a sum for the lives of you and your son, but…”

He paused and looked at Zu An. “I’m quite interested in that fellow as well. I’ll have a proper talk with him after finishing off the two of you. This way, I don’t even have to ask for any extra cash.”

Zu An’s face darkened. A proper talk? Please don’t tell me this dude swings that way...

1. This is a reference to the character Ding Xiu in the 2014 film Brotherhood of Blades. When the villain in the film offered him money to kill his younger martial brother, he insisted that the villain increase his offer, since he was being asked to kill someone close to him. Netizens began to jokingly refer to him as “the warrior who asks for extra cash”. That nickname has been shortened to “Cash Warrior” in this translation.