Chapter 1427: The Murderer

Zu An and the others reacted quickly, instantly dodging the incoming arrows. Just as they prepared to counter-attack, they were astonished to find that the arrows curved, making a circle to shoot at them once more.

“Still infrared-guided?” Zu An was dumbfounded, but he had no time to ponder. Unexpectedly, these arrows were magical, and the women, poised to counter-attack, now had no time to dodge.

Zu An performed the Great Wind technique, instantly appearing before the three women. There was no time to summon a weapon, so he directly punched an arrow.

Who knew those arrows weren’t tangible objects? His punch went right through, and the invisible arrows struck his body, erupting in clouds of blood mist.

“A’Zu!” The three women cried out in alarm.

“I’m fine, I won’t die,” Zu An said with a pale smile. Fortunately, at that critical moment, he had used the Gluttonous Devouring Art to absorb and neutralize much of the force. Otherwise, relying solely on his physical body, no matter how strong, he would have been blown into blood mist by those four arrows.

Indeed, he was a divine archer, truly a successor of Yi. The arrows shot were too powerful. He wondered how Yi’s own arrows would be.

Seeing that he was not in mortal danger, Yun Jianyue, with murder in her eyes, charged directly at Pang Meng.

Yan Xuehen, her face like frost, also attacked with her Flying Snow Sword.

Yu Yanluo cradled Zu An, tears welling in her eyes, frantically applying medicine to his wounds.

Pang Meng’s eyes showed shock and regret that Zu An hadn’t been killed. However, he knew he was severely wounded and in no condition to fight these two women. He decided to recover and return to play with them later.

He transformed into a wisp of black mist, preparing to leave. Yun Jianyue and Yan Xuehen’s hearts sank; the Fengxi demonic energy on him had not been removed at all, or perhaps he *was* Fengxi!

Crucially, they had witnessed how quickly the black mist dissipated before, and neither of them was at their peak. They probably wouldn’t be able to stop him.

Just then, Zu An sneered, “Trying to leave?” and activated his Profane Tongue skill.

The black mist paused, reforming into Pang Meng’s figure. He glared at Zu An with bloodshot eyes, “I’ll kill you!”

This man was clearly inferior to him in every way, yet he had three such beautiful women by his side? Did he deserve it?

These women only had eyes for him, just like his master’s wife back then, who only had eyes for Yi!

For a moment, he felt the man before him overlapped with his former master, and years of grievances and hatred burst forth.

This time, he would kill their lover in front of the three women, making them realize who the stronger man was.

He drew a bow, an invisible one appearing in his hand. Although without physical form, as he pulled the non-existent bowstring, a light arrow condensed before him, brimming with a terrifying aura.

Just then, a beautiful moonlight flashed, and he was astonished to find his hands seemed to have detached from his body.

Yun Jianyue had unleashed the Star Moon Wheel of the Shattered Star Profound Seal—its power was immense.

The excruciating pain in his arms brought Pang Meng back to his senses. Was he mad, ignoring two attacking women, intent only on killing that man?

As he was about to retreat, the Flying Snow Sword, like a streak of light, pierced directly through his glabella.

He stiffened, mumbling, “Master’s wife…”

After speaking, his body crashed to the ground, lifeless.

The two women had just breathed a sigh of relief when a faint wisp of black mist emanated from Pang Meng’s body, swirling towards them—clearly the Fengxi demonic energy seeking a new host.

Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue’s expressions changed slightly. If they were possessed by this demonic energy, it would be worse than death.

Unfortunately, their studies did not include methods to deal with such demonic energy. One could only rely on killing intent, and the other on profound mystical arts, preparing to endure it head-on.

At this moment, Zu An’s voice slowly sounded: “Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, what should leave, do not stay…”

The black mist seemed to encounter something terrifying, emitting a shrill, piercing scream before vanishing into thin air.

Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue looked back at Zu An, somewhat dazed. For years, being so powerful, they had always been the staunchest support for those around them; they were always the ones protecting others.

Being protected now felt truly wonderful.

Recalling his calm voice, it gave them a strange sense of security.

At that moment, both noticed the other was staring blankly, and for some inexplicable reason, they blushed, feeling a little flustered. They quickly went to Zu An’s side: “How are you?”

“I’m tough, can’t die,” Zu An tried to smile nonchalantly, but wincing in pain, it really ruined his image.

“Don’t do such impulsive things again. I am a Grandmaster, can’t I handle an arrow?” Yun Jianyue said sternly.

Yan Xuehen, her face like frost, added, “Exactly. With our cultivation, even if injured, dealing with an arrow is no problem. You should have just saved Sister Yu.”

Zu An chuckled. These two women had been famous for years, but spending time with them revealed their occasional childishness.

Of course, this side of them was probably something no one else had ever witnessed.

“These arrows are really strange. Didn’t I miscalculate just now? It’s better for me to get hurt than for you beautiful ladies to have extra holes. Anyway, I recover quickly.”

“Even if you recover quickly, you shouldn’t be so careless with your body,” Yu Yanluo said, her voice trembling slightly as she gently touched the area around his wound.

Yun Jianyue looked at him with a complex expression: “You brat, you’re really risking your life to flirt. No wonder Hong Lei… *cough cough*. This trick only works on Sister Yu and the Ice Maiden. It’s completely wasted on me. Don’t do it again.”

Yan Xuehen immediately retorted, “What does that have to do with me? Don’t use it on me either.”

Yu Yanluo frowned, “Zu An is so badly hurt, stop arguing.”

Given Yan and Yun’s usual status and position, who would dare to reprimand them like that?

But now, for the first time, they weren’t angry; instead, they felt somewhat guilty.

They wondered if they had overreacted, not that they weren’t grateful to Zu An, but they just couldn’t show it too obviously.

But now, they couldn’t bring themselves to explain.

Feeling the awkwardness, Zu An quickly tried to defuse the situation: “By the way, did you hear a warning sound just now?”

The three women paused, then nodded in unison: “Yes, there was indeed a faint, blurry sound.”

So, who was the one who gave the warning?

They looked around, but saw no one. The cold wind whistled, sending shivers down their spines.

Zu An’s heart suddenly stirred. He turned to the massive mulberry tree behind them: “That must have been you warning us, Sir.”

“Who are you talking to?” The three women weren’t slow; they quickly understood.

The wind rustled through the leaves of the tree, sounding like a human voice, though very faint: “Yes, it was indeed this old one who warned you.”

They were somewhat surprised. Had this great mulberry tree really gained sentience?

As if sensing their thoughts, the great mulberry tree sighed: “The laws of this world are incomplete, so I haven’t been able to transform, only to develop consciousness.”

“Thank you for saving us, Sir,” Zu An said politely. After all, this entire area was the mulberry tree’s domain, and offending it wouldn’t be wise.

“It wasn’t a rescue, just a warning,” the great mulberry tree mused. “I just didn’t want Fengxi to harm anyone again.”

Zu An’s heart skipped a beat: “Was that Fengxi all along? So his claim of being Yi’s disciple Pang Meng was a lie?”

“That part wasn’t a lie. He was indeed Yi’s disciple, Pang Meng. However, their master-disciple relationship was strained, and rumor has it he was the one who killed Yi,” the great mulberry tree’s words were shocking.