Chapter 1122: Death Cause

Because her vital energy was sealed, preventing her from using spiritual sound transmission, and due to the presence of many experts, Yu Yanluo feared that even speaking softly would be overheard. Therefore, her lips were pressed almost tightly against Zu An's ear.

The touch of her lips against his ear was enough to make anyone's heart race, and the surrounding men watched with profound envy.

However, Zu An, being the one involved in this situation, felt no romantic stirrings whatsoever.

"Ah Zu, the situation here is dire now. Any further defense from you for me would be futile, so there's no need to waste your energy," Yu Yanluo said softly, her breath like orchids.

Zu An replied via spiritual sound transmission, "At worst, I'll simply get you out of here myself."

Yu Yanluo's heart skipped a beat. She subtly glanced at him, a faint blush appearing on her fair cheeks, but she still cautioned, "Don't be impulsive. There are so many officials here, and they are all experts. Moreover, Grandmaster Xiao Yao is present. Don't risk yourself."

In this world, official positions and cultivation levels are directly correlated. This large group of high-ranking officials from Cloudmount Commandery each possessed considerable cultivation.

While most of them might be significantly weaker than Zu An individually, their sheer numbers were overwhelming.

Noticing his inclination to protest, Yu Yanluo sighed softly and whispered, "I know you are very capable, but even if you manage to rescue me, how would we handle the repercussions afterward?"

"Rescuing me in front of the Imperial Envoy and so many high-ranking court officials would be a blatant act of rebellion against the court, wouldn't it? You would become a wanted criminal. I don't want to put you in such a predicament."

Zu An responded in a solemn voice, "Many things in this world cannot be measured by personal gain. We are friends who have faced life and death together, and you even saved my life. How could I possibly stand idly by?"

Yu Yanluo was momentarily stunned by his words. After a pause, she asked with a complex expression, "If I truly am a Medusa, would you still consider me a friend?"

Having lived in human society for so many years, she was well aware of humanity's animosity towards the demon race, as well as the perception of Medusas as inherently evil creatures.

Zu An smiled. "There are good people and bad people, just as there are good and evil among the demon race. Even if you are a Medusa, you must be a benevolent one. Furthermore, when I choose friends, I only consider whether we are kindred spirits and share similar values. Whether someone is human or demon is irrelevant."

"To be frank, I actually have several demon friends."

Hearing the sincerity in his words, warm ripples spread through Yu Yanluo's heart. She bit her lip and whispered, "Ah Zu, if you truly wish to help me, go and inform Xingnu about what has transpired here. Ask her to contact Butler Fu and arrange for our… arrange for our clan to return to our homeland first."

The 'clan' she referred to clearly meant the Snake Clan, not the Yu family.

At this juncture, there was nothing left for her to hide from Zu An.

If she were captured, given her status, her life would not be in immediate danger.

However, it was foreseeable that her clan would suffer a devastating blow, so naturally, arrangements for their relocation needed to be made.

"Alright!" Zu An thought to himself. "Xingnu is likely also from the Snake Clan. I should go and discuss with them first to see if there's any way to save her."

Butler Fu's cultivation was also quite impressive. Back in the capital, when Zu An had clashed with Prince Qi's heir, Han Fengqiu had been wary of Butler Fu, which was why he hadn't dared to directly act against Zu An.

However, he hadn't seen Butler Fu since arriving in Cloudmount Commandery, and wondered where he could be.

Observing the intimate way the two whispered to each other, many of the surrounding officials grew quite jealous.

This hardly resembled a prisoner's emotional farewell, but rather the playful banter of lovers.

However, wary of Zu An's status and the imposing aura he had just displayed, no one dared to provoke him at that moment. They all looked to Xu Yu, signaling that it was time for him to intervene.

Xu Yu cleared his throat. "Lord Zu and Lady Yu certainly share a deep affection."

Of course, he wouldn't be as openly jealous as the other officials, which helped everyone save face.

Yu Yanluo then sat up straight and stated calmly, "Lord Zu is a dear friend of mine, concerned that I might be framed, so we exchanged a few more words just now. Lord Zu advised me to trust that the court will deliver a just verdict, and I agree with his reasoning. Therefore, I am willing to remain and cooperate with your investigation."

Sang Hong's expression changed subtly. These words from the woman effectively exonerated Zu An. Even if the events here were reported back to the imperial court later, the officials there would have no grounds to fault Zu An; in fact, they might even commend him for persuading Yu Yanluo.

Why does Zu An always manage to win such genuine affection from women?

If even the renowned Yu Yanluo was susceptible, it was no wonder Zheng Dan and the others had fallen for him.

Alas, if only Qian'er possessed such charisma.

He could only look forward to Qian'er's child then...

Soon after, Yu Yanluo was escorted away. Given her distinguished status, it was naturally unthinkable to place her in shackles or chains. Instead, experts applied seals to her acupuncture points, ensuring that even after the toxins in her body dissipated, she would be unable to use her cultivation to resist.

Furthermore, a specially prepared room was designated as her cell, jointly guarded by Xu Yu's men and members of the Imperial Envoy's delegation to prevent any tampering.

Zu An took this opportunity to pull Xiao Yao aside and ask, "Brother Xiao, did you not hear the spiritual sound transmission I sent you earlier?"

"I did," Xiao Yao replied, his usual cynicism uncharacteristically absent, his expression instead deeply solemn.

"You knew she was your junior sister, yet you still harmed her?" Zu An asked, utterly perplexed. "Is it because of what happened back then that you bear a grudge against the Dean, or perhaps even harbored resentment towards everyone in the academy?"

"Of course not! I hold my master in the highest regard," Xiao Yao said agitatedly. "It was my own failure that ruined my future and brought shame upon him. How could I ever blame my master?"

"Then why did you disregard a fellow disciple's plea and insist on condemning Yu Yanluo to death?" Zu An asked, frowning.

A trace of sorrow flickered across Xiao Yao's face as he seemed to fall into a reverie. After a long silence, he finally spoke: "Do you know how Manman's mother died?"

Zu An's heart lurched. "I heard she suffered an injury years ago that caused her to lose all her cultivation, and later, when she encountered danger, she was left defenseless…"

"I was the one who injured her back then, because she was…" Xiao Yao paused, then sighed. "In short, due to a series of coincidences, I inflicted an injury upon her, causing her to lose most of her cultivation. However, her true cause of death was poisoning."

"Poisoned?" Zu An's heart sank. He wondered why Xiao Yao had suddenly brought this up. Could it be…

"Precisely, it was Medusa's poison!" A flicker of hatred appeared in Xiao Yao's eyes.

Zu An was speechless.

What a dreadful turn of events! This was truly disastrous. If Manman's mother indeed died at the hands of a Medusa, how could she and Yu Yanluo ever coexist peacefully?

And now that he knew the truth, he couldn't possibly pretend nothing had happened.

Xiao Yao continued, "A Medusa's eyes possess the power of petrification; any creature meeting their gaze will turn to stone. However, she can't always personally use her eyes to petrify others, so she extracts a highly toxic poison from her own blood. This poison slowly petrifies the victim's body, causing them to gradually await death."

"The reason Manman's mother lost all her cultivation back then was partly due to the severe injuries I inflicted upon her, but another reason was that she had been poisoned by Medusa's venom. She could only exhaust her cultivation to delay the onset of the poison. Even if that later accident hadn't occurred, she would have undoubtedly perished."

"For years, I have been tracking the whereabouts of Medusas. Now that I've finally found a clue, how could I possibly let the bond of fellow discipleship make me forget the vow I made to her back then?"

Zu An thought to himself, *'Isn't it because you fell in love with Manman's mother back then…'*

"But Yu Yanluo's age doesn't match; she should be unrelated to Manman's mother's death, right?" He finally realized a crucial discrepancy.

Xiao Yao, however, sneered. "How old do you think Yu Yanluo is?"

"Uh, eighteen?"

"Twenty-eight?"

After several guesses were dismissed, Zu An's expression became troubled. "She can't be eighty, can she?"

Although he knew this was a world of cultivation, where both human and demon races enjoyed much longer lifespans than in his previous world, and many possessed techniques to preserve their youth, truly learning the actual age of such a stunning woman right beside him was still profoundly shocking.