Save Her or Not?
Yang Yu was a little stunned.
Ji Yonghao had gone to such great lengths just to make him agree to escort Ji Hongxue out of the Azure Kingdom.
And now, one of Ji Hongxue's guards was actually saying he wanted to fire him and take over his position?
"So, you're dissatisfied with my decision? You have objections?"
An Bulang's eyes suddenly turned icy. The hand gripping Yang Yu's also tightened slightly.
Yang Yu was clearly a cultivator who specialized in cold-element techniques, yet at this moment, he felt an even more terrifying chill from the other man. It was as if, if he said the word "no" one more time, his whole body would turn cold for good.
"N-No objections." Yang Yu felt that he could not beat An Bulang.
A wise man submitted to circumstances. He chose to yield.
Hearing that, An Bulang released his hand with a satisfied expression and smiled. "You can still move, right?"
"I wouldn't dare move, I wouldn't dare move." Yang Yu hurriedly shook his head.
"Hm?" An Bulang drew out the sound through his nose.
Yang Yu's stern face completely fell apart. "If you say I can move, then I can move!!"
Ji Hongxue watched from the side, feeling as though her worldview had been overturned once again. Was this the benefit of strength? That powerful cultivator who had been proud, aloof, and looked down on everyone only moments ago had, beneath An Bulang's nearly unsolvable force, turned into a bootlicker in the blink of an eye.
"Then what are you standing around for?" An Bulang curled his lips. "Lead the way."
"Huh?" Yang Yu froze.
"Where are the spirit stones Ji Yonghao gave you? I can't just fulfill my obligations without enjoying my rights!" An Bulang said righteously.
Yang Yu and Ji Hongxue both felt a little stifled in the chest. The young man's intentions were now laid bare beneath the blazing sun.
The real reason he was so actively stirring things up was for the spirit stones!!
"Are you moving or not?" An Bulang asked impatiently.
"I'm moving, I'm moving!" Yang Yu gritted his teeth.
"The spirit stones Ji Yonghao paid me have already been transferred to a carriage outside the city. I was planning to use that carriage to escape..."
"It's fine, lead the way!" An Bulang said without hesitation.
"Sister Hongxue, stay in the palace and keep an eye on Yinyin. These next few days are a critical time, so don't cause trouble." An Bulang instructed.
Ji Hongxue obediently nodded, thinking, Who's the one who loves causing trouble most? Don't you have any idea yourself?
An Bulang eagerly followed Yang Yu out of the palace.
He asked Yang Yu how many spirit stones Ji Yonghao had given him.
Yang Yu said, "Three hundred."
Smack!! An Bulang suddenly slapped him, sending Yang Yu flying to the ground coughing blood. "Tell the truth!"
Yang Yu was completely dumbfounded and said aggrievedly, "I wasn't lying..."
An Bulang carefully assessed his reaction before nodding in satisfaction. "Oh, I was only testing whether you were lying. It seems you're very honest. I appreciate you."
Yang Yu's mouth fell open. Holding his red, swollen cheek, he looked somewhat blank.
What kind of move was that?
Did he really think that one compliment would make him forget that he had suddenly hit him?
In the past, Yang Yu would have drawn his sword in fury and cut the other man down with one slash.
Unfortunately, the gap between them was simply too great. Yang Yu did not dare anger An Bulang at all and could only swallow a bellyful of grievances.
I can't beat him, I can't beat him, I can't beat him, I can't beat him, I can't beat him...
Yang Yu continuously recited the words in his heart, forcefully suppressing the anger within him.
He led An Bulang out of the palace and hurried toward the escape point he had prepared in advance.
A post station outside the Royal City.
Two men in purple robes and bamboo hats that concealed their faces stood quietly beside a carriage.
Before long, Yang Yu and An Bulang entered their sight.
Both men looked somewhat confused.
Hadn't Yang Yu gone to the palace to fetch the peerlessly beautiful Third Princess? Why had he brought back a man instead?
"These two are called Wang Lin and Wang Ling. They're also cultivators serving as Attendants in the palace, and they're brothers. Both are top experts at the Body Refinement Seventh Level. Ji Yonghao originally sent them to assist me in this operation..." Yang Yu took the initiative to introduce them.
"Senior Yang." Upon seeing Yang Yu, Wang Lin and Wang Ling immediately bowed.
"Mhm..." Yang Yu nodded coldly, carrying himself with the bearing of a great expert. "Go. Bring out all my spirit stones."
The two did not understand why, but they still followed his orders and carried out a tightly sealed chest.
An Bulang opened the chest and saw the spirit stones emitting a faint green glow. A satisfied smile appeared on his face. "Very good, it really is three hundred. Though it's less than I expected, it's still better than nothing."
As he spoke, he closed the chest, secured it to his back with several strips of cloth, then happily turned to leave, waving his hand. "Thanks."
Yang Yu forced out a difficult smile. "You're welcome..."
When Wang Lin and Wang Ling saw that An Bulang had actually taken all the spirit stones Ji Yonghao had provided, they finally could not hold back any longer. "Senior Yang, this..."
Yang Yu let out a faint sigh. "Can't you tell? We've been fired."
"How can the King go back on his word?" The two brothers were indignant.
"No, that man fired us." Yang Yu pointed at the white-clad figure walking away with light steps, a chest on his back, and muttered.
"Why?!" The brothers were still unconvinced.
Yang Yu's gaze was profound as he said faintly, "Because of his fists."
With a chest of spirit stones on his back, An Bulang hummed a little tune as he headed toward the Royal City.
He was in an excellent mood. With these three hundred spirit stones, he had a chance to advance from the Body Refinement Seventh Level to the Profound Body Eighth Layer.
"Mm... Come to think of it, haven't I been advancing a little too quickly lately? It's only been a few days, yet I've gone from the Profound Body Third Layer to the Body Refinement Seventh Level. Advancing too quickly isn't good. I need to slow down my advancement..." An Bulang pondered carefully, then clapped his hands and decided, "Fine, then I'll advance to the Profound Body Eighth Layer in two days!"
He did not need to worry about his foundation at all. After all, as someone rebuilding his cultivation, he had a huge vat inside him that could hold an ocean. No matter how much water was poured into it, there would be no problem. The only bad thing was that advancing too quickly made it easy to grow arrogant.
"Mm... Cut arrogance and cut impatience, one footprint at a time." An Bulang silently encouraged himself.
Suddenly, he halted and turned his gaze toward the mountain forest on his right.
"Don't run! The Flame Thunder belongs to our Ghost King Sect!"
"Hahaha... Little beauty, you belong to our Ghost King Sect too!!"
Two evil cultivators draped in black robes and exuding chilling auras raced through the forest with sinister grins.
A woman ran frantically ahead of them, her lovely face pale with fear.
Her red sleeveless dress of gauzy fabric swayed around her, exposing snow-white shoulders, beautifully curved collarbones, and two tempting patches of snowy softness. She was clearly fleeing for her life, yet she carried a deadly allure that drew the eye.
Without realizing it, the woman had run close to where An Bulang stood. Suddenly, she spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed to the ground.
An Bulang could sense that her aura was extremely weak, as if she had been afflicted by some fierce poison.
"Hehehe, little beauty from the Heavenly Fragrance Sect, aren't you going to keep running?"
"You've been hit by our Bone Softening Powder. It disperses all the spiritual energy in your body and softens your bones and flesh. Where else can you run? We've long heard that Hua Qingzhu of the Heavenly Fragrance Sect is stunningly gorgeous. Today, we can finally have a proper taste..."
The two evil cultivators held longswords as they approached with greedy gazes.
"Young master, save me..." Hua Qingzhu lay on the ground, raising her beautiful eyes toward An Bulang as though he were the last straw she could cling to.
An Bulang blinked. From where he stood, he could see her excellent figure beneath the fitted, cinched-waist dress, her magnificent curves nearly bursting through the fabric. As she breathed heavily, they rose and fell without pause, while her long legs lay weakly against the ground as she seemed to struggle to stand again.
It would be a pity not to save such a beautiful woman...
An Bulang tightened the spirit stone chest on his back, glanced once more at Hua Qingzhu lying on the ground, and nodded slightly. "Really big."
After saying that, he stepped forward, walked around Hua Qingzhu, and left directly.