Chapter 997: Our Child

Zu An frowned. He had just been engrossed in painting for Daji, and combined with being on the imperial envoy's ship where patrolling soldiers were everywhere, he had indeed let his guard down.

Yet, even when relaxed, given his current cultivation level, it wasn't easy for ordinary cultivators to approach him. However, he only detected something amiss when this person made their move, indicating that the assailant clearly possessed a special skill for concealing their presence.

He dared not be careless in the slightest. He flicked his finger against the assailant's dagger, and while their hand trembled, he swiftly closed the distance and charged directly into their embrace.

The person reacted quickly, contorting their body in an impossible bend to narrowly dodge his attack.

Zu An immediately employed his "Silken Robe Entanglement Hand" to prevent the assailant from creating distance. The attacker's knowledge was also quite extensive; they skillfully countered each move, parrying for more than ten exchanges.

Zu An noticed the assailant's lithe figure and extremely nimble footwork; some of their dodges even earned his admiration. However, their internal energy was clearly still shallow.

At first, the person could barely hold their own, but as Zu An began to circulate his internal energy, the residual force from his moves swept over them, causing their body to visibly falter for a moment.

Zu An seized this opportunity, directly breaking through their defense, and landed a palm strike squarely on their chest.

"Ah..." A clear, pained cry escaped them as the person slammed against the wall like a tattered sandbag.

"A woman?" Both the feeling of his palm striking their chest and their recent cry revealed that the assailant was a female assassin.

However, Zu An did not go easy on her just because she was a woman. Since she had come to assassinate him, there was no reason for him to hold back.

As he was about to step forward, he suddenly felt something underfoot. He looked down and saw a jade token on the ground. Its unique design instantly identified it as belonging to the Carefree Pavilion.

What surprised him even more was that the number on the token was 333!

How did my jade token end up on her?

It seemed this jade token had just fallen from the woman.

At this moment, the woman pulled down her veil and weakly said, "Young Master... it's me..."

Her usual sweet, honeyed smile was gone, replaced by a pale face and a trickle of blood at the corner of her mouth.

"Why did you try to assassinate me?" Although she was somewhat familiar, Zu An's expression remained unchanged as he gazed at her coldly.

"I'm not..." Tang Tian'er was about to say something, but her injuries were too severe, and she was extremely weak. She couldn't catch her breath and fainted.

Fearing she might be faking her injuries, Zu An didn't lower his guard. After a moment, he indeed sensed her breath was barely there, only then squatting beside her to examine her.

"She's truly severely injured..." Zu An knew the power behind his recent palm strike. Although he hadn't used his full strength, it wasn't something an ordinary person could withstand.

Honestly, it was a miracle Tang Tian'er hadn't died on the spot; she likely had some protective magical artifact that saved her life. But if things continued like this, she would soon die anyway.

Just then, a knock came from outside the door: "Lord Zu, Lord Zu?"

Clearly, nearby guards had heard the commotion and rushed over to investigate.

"It's nothing, just a petty thief. I've dealt with it. You may withdraw," Zu An said, appearing at the doorway. Only then did the guards feel completely relieved. They saluted him and returned to their patrols.

Zu An closed the door and looked at the black-clad woman lying on the ground. "Should I save her?"

The latter question was directed at Daji.

Unfortunately, Daji stood there motionless, utterly lifeless.

Zu An sighed. He had thought she might have developed a soul, but no matter how he tested, she showed no reaction at all.

"So, if you don't speak, that means I should save her, right? Fine. I also want to know why she tried to kill me," Zu An mused to himself. Daji simply watched him silently, without emotion.

Zu An helped Tang Tian'er up. She was as soft as if she had no bones, which explained why she had often performed such difficult dodging maneuvers earlier.

He fed her a medicinal pill for injuries, not the expensive Jade Marrow Rejuvenation Pill, but rather some pills previously given to him by You Zhao. This person had come to assassinate him, so just saving her life was good enough.

Zu An told her to sit cross-legged on the bed, but in her current state, she couldn't sit upright and quickly began to tip sideways.

Zu An extended his finger and propped it directly in front of her to keep her stable. Then, he circulated his Primordial Qi, simultaneously helping her dissolve the medicine and beginning to heal her injuries.

His Primordial Genesis Scripture had already reached the fourth level, allowing him to treat injuries that weren't immediately fatal.

His fingers moved swiftly, sending wisps of true qi into her body. Tang Tian'er let out a soft groan, already showing signs of response.

As the Primordial Qi circulated within her, she quickly began to feel warm all over, followed by white steam rising from her body.

About half an hour later, Tang Tian'er's eyelashes fluttered lightly twice.

Zu An withdrew his hand and said plainly, "I know you're awake."

Tang Tian'er reluctantly opened her eyes. "I just wanted you to heal me a bit longer; my injuries are far from recovered."

There was also another rather embarrassing reason she didn't mention: the practitioner's essence circulating within her body felt wonderfully warm and comfortable, and she genuinely didn't want him to withdraw it.

"As long as you're not dead and can answer questions, that's enough. You want me to fully heal you? Miss, are you clear on your current situation?" Zu An couldn't help but chuckle.

"The current situation is you're touching me all over, and now I'm all wet," Tang Tian'er said, pulling up her clothes to show him. They were already soaked with sweat.

Zu An was speechless.

"Could you please not say things so ambiguously? Otherwise, anyone outside might think I actually did something to you."

Tang Tian'er's face also flushed slightly, realizing that because her clothes were soaked with sweat, they had become somewhat transparent. Her recent action had made her body even more evident.

To divert her embarrassment, she quickly let go of her clothes and looked around. "Oh, where's that woman from earlier? I've never seen such a beautiful woman in my life."

This was indeed a genuine question. She hadn't had time to look closely during the fight, but a fleeting glimpse had already deeply stunned her. Could there really be such a beautiful woman in the world?

And such a woman being alone with Zu An in a room late at night made her even more curious about him.

Zu An had already put Daji away and didn't bother to explain. "Stop beating around the bush. Tell me why you came, then I'll decide whether to spare your life."

Tang Tian'er's face fell. She replied, "It's because earlier at the Carefree Pavilion, I heard that VIP Number 333 had arrived. I thought it was you and went enthusiastically to greet them, only to find it was two other people. Feeling indignant, I swiped the jade token from them and specifically came to return it to you."

Zu An's expression was odd. He thought to himself, when Pei You discovers his jade token has been stolen and he can't get things for free, how awkward will that scene be...?

He naturally didn't believe her nonsense. "Do you think I'll believe that?"

Tang Tian'er pursed her lips. "Alright, I'll tell you the truth. I was curious about your identity, so I specifically came to see if it was you."

"Is this how your Carefree Pavilion investigates guests with jade tokens?" Zu An, having circulated his energy to heal her for so long, felt thirsty. He got out of bed and poured himself a cup of tea.

"I want some too!" Tang Tian'er had lost a lot of water and was severely injured, so she felt very parched.

"Answer my question first," Zu An ignored her.

"Stingy man," Tang Tian'er snorted before saying, "Of course we don't investigate ordinary guests, but you're different. I don't want to not even know the identity of the man I spent a night of pleasure with. Otherwise, if I get pregnant in the future and the child asks who their father is, I wouldn't know how to answer."

As she spoke, her expression suddenly changed. "Oh no, did your palm strike just now abort our child?"

Zu An was speechless.

This woman was truly a drama queen. Still, he admired her acting skills; anyone else would have been utterly captivated and confused by her.

"Miss, you are still a virgin, so why do you insist on acting like a seductive courtesan?" Noticing that she had swallowed several times, Zu An handed her the teacup he was holding.

Tang Tian'er showed a hint of gratitude, quickly took the teacup, and drank it all in one gulp.

"More, please!" she said, looking up at Zu An piteously.

Zu An couldn't be bothered to pour it for her, so he simply held up the teapot. "Open your mouth!"

"Ah!" Tang Tian'er was quite cooperative, opening her mouth directly and gulping it down. However, she quickly choked.

"Slow down," she said, giving Zu An a resentful look.

Zu An ignored her directly. "You've had your water. Now, speak."

Tang Tian'er's expression became complicated. "I merely wanted to test you. Now I know you weren't swayed by my charms back then. From beginning to end, I was like a fool, treated as a joke by you."

Zu An's eyes narrowed. "You're telling me all this, aren't you afraid I'll silence you?"