Chapter 408: Life is Full of Encounters

Seeing the faint outline of a hand in the air around him, Zu An could even feel his breathing becoming difficult, a result of the compressed air.

"Damn it, are you Buddha?" he cursed under his breath, certainly not wanting to be Sun Wukong.

He dared not hold back, immediately summoning a strong gust of wind above his head and soaring straight up into the sky.

All directions were sealed off, but he forcibly escaped through the only gap.

When he felt himself about to fall, he summoned another gust of wind and teleported dozens of feet forward.

Liu Yao's eyes widened in disbelief. According to his information, Zu An was supposed to be only around the fourth rank. Liu Yao hadn't paid much attention to whether he was third, fourth, or fifth rank, as it didn't make much difference to him.

Who knew the opponent could actually fly!

Could he be ninth rank?

Although he found it absurd, everything was happening before his eyes, which made him cautious. He quickly shot into the sky to pursue.

Soon, Zu An had to descend, as he couldn't use the strong wind continuously.

Seeing his opponent descend, Liu Yao breathed a sigh of relief. So he wasn't ninth rank after all.

He secretly laughed at himself for overreacting, thinking there couldn't possibly be a ninth-rank master so young in the world.

He didn't bother playing hide-and-seek with his opponent. He seized an opportunity and struck with his palm, intending to cripple him first before interrogating him slowly. After all, a mere son-in-law of the Chu family wasn't a core member, and harming him wouldn't cause any significant repercussions.

The moment Zu An stopped, he heard a sharp whooshing sound from behind. He quickly dodged to the side, but unfortunately, he was still a step too late.

It felt as if his back had been hit by a speeding car. He spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, feeling as though his internal organs had shifted and his entire body was about to fall apart.

Feeling his vision blur, he knew he couldn't pass out now. He bit his tongue, and, gathering his resolve, immediately cast the Sunflower Phantoms, fleeing in three different directions.

Liu Yao was somewhat stunned. With that palm strike just now, even a sixth-rank master would likely have been knocked down by now. Yet his opponent could still run?

What kind of monster was this?

Moreover, his opponent split into three figures in an instant, making it impossible for him to know which one to pursue. In the blink of an eye, the opponent had vanished.

Liu Yao's expression turned grim. Standing on a treetop, he gave orders to his subordinates: "Everyone search the vicinity for a young man in white, severely wounded. He can't have gone far! Search this way, that way, and over there—all three directions!"

Zu An, meanwhile, did not flee outward, but circled back and returned to the Chu Mansion. As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is often the safest. With the soldiers searching for him outside, it was safer to remain inside the mansion.

He had also heard Liu Yao's earlier words. He immediately took off his outer coat, turned it inside out, and put it back on. The coat instantly turned blue.

He wasn't sure if anyone in the mansion would recognize him. After some thought, he took out a mask and put it on. This not only changed his appearance but also concealed the paleness and blood on his face.

Only after doing all this did he have a chance to examine his injuries. Several bones were broken, and his internal organs were ruptured from the impact. If he hadn't cultivated the Primordial Chaos Sutra and tempered his body twice, making it many times tougher than an ordinary person's, that last blow might have crippled him.

"What a ruthless strike!" Zu An quickly circulated the Primordial Chaos Sutra to begin healing, and swallowed a Jade Marrow Revitalization Pill from Doctor Ji.

At this moment, he was still reluctant to use the "Believe in Brother Chun" pill, as it wasn't yet a life-or-death situation.

The Jade Marrow Revitalization Pill lived up to its name. He could feel a surge of medicinal power spreading from his dantian, nourishing his internal organs and limbs. Combined with the healing from the Primordial Chaos Sutra, his recovery speed was significantly faster than before.

He searched along until he finally found the room where Qin Wanru was being held. To his surprise, she wasn't bound with ropes, but was sitting by the window, looking troubled.

"Who are you?" Seeing an extra person outside the window, Qin Wanru was startled and instinctively took a step back.

"It's me, Madam," Zu An quickly removed his mask.

"Ah Zu!" Seeing his face clearly, Qin Wanru was both surprised and delighted.

"Madam, you've suffered here. I'll take you out!" Zu An pulled her out without further ado, but then suddenly coughed, spitting out a small mouthful of blood.

"You're injured?" Qin Wanru asked in surprise.

"It's nothing, just a minor injury," Zu An said with a smile, wiping the blood from his mouth.

Qin Wanru said gravely, "At this moment, only Liu Yao could have injured you here. He is a peak ninth-rank master. How could you have escaped from him and only sustained a minor injury? I also just heard him mobilizing the Imperial Guards. So he was coming to apprehend you."

Zu An waved his hand. "It's really nothing. I'm tough-skinned. Haven't I mostly recovered already? We can talk about the rest once we're out."

Qin Wanru shook her head. "No, I've been placed under a restriction now. I can't use any of my energy. I would only be a burden to you. Besides, your father-in-law is still in the mansion. How could I leave alone?"

Zu An felt a bit awkward for a moment. If she had been placed under a restriction, then Chu Zhongtian certainly would have been too. With his current cultivation, he couldn't possibly take both of them out.

"Oh, by the way, how is Xiao Zhao doing?" Qin Wanru quickly asked.

"Madam, please rest assured, I've settled her in a safe place," Zu An replied.

"That's good, that's good." Qin Wanru breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly remembering something, she quickly reached her hand towards her collar. Midway through, her face flushed. "Turn around."

"Oh..." Zu An was a bit confused and instinctively turned away.

"Here, take this." Soon, Qin Wanru's voice came from behind him.

Zu An felt a square token being placed in his hand. He looked at it, and it was a military tally.

To his surprise, it didn't have the slightest metallic chill, but was remarkably warm. There was also a faint fragrance on it.

Qin Wanru's face flushed, and she whispered: "This is very important, so I've been keeping it close to me. After all, I am the Duchess. Liu Yao and his men searched everywhere in the mansion, but they didn't dare to search my person. That's how it wasn't discovered."

Zu An recalled her earlier gesture of reaching into her collar and guessed where she had hidden the tiger tally. He couldn't help but glance at her again, wondering if she was *that* well-endowed.

Feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, Qin Wanru lightly coughed and quickly said: "Take this military tally to the military camp outside the city and mobilize the Red-Robed Army. These guys are relentless. Do they really think the Chu family is so easily bullied!"

Zu An was stunned, thinking, "Like mother, like daughter indeed!" Their choices this time were exactly the same.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Qin Wanru was startled and instinctively lowered her gaze to her collar, thinking her clothes weren't properly buttoned after taking out the military tally.

"Actually, Chu Chuyan thought the same thing," Zu An said, telling her about Chu Chuyan's plan.

"Good daughter," Qin Wanru's face showed a trace of a smile, but she quickly sighed. "It might not go as smoothly as she thinks. This time, Hong Xingying reported us, and he has the ledger she gave me in his hands. It's all my fault for being useless. The ledger was taken by Chu Tiesheng during the last incident."

"Hong Xingying!" Zu An gritted his teeth. That guy had just exposed his whereabouts, nearly costing him his life at Liu Yao's hands.

"Don't worry, I'll tell all this to Chuyan. Then we'll discuss exactly what to do. Worst case scenario, I'll lead the Red-Robed Army to break in and rebel completely!" Zu An said.

Qin Wanru was startled. "Don't ever say such rebellious things! At worst, we can become bandits. If we rebel, there will be no way out for us."

Clearly, people in this world held an inexplicable reverence for imperial power. Coupled with the fact that the Great Zhou Emperor was the strongest person in the world, she had no confidence that a rebellion could succeed.

Just then, footsteps were heard not far away. Then a voice, barely concealing its smugness, sounded from outside the door: "Is Madam resting? Xingying requests an audience!"