Zuan was about to tell her that there was no need to take such a risk, and that he intended to confront the emperor directly to resolve the matter once and for all.

But then he suddenly realized that tonight was really too strange. First, he didn't go directly into the palace and stayed outside for another night. Then, he was easily ambushed by assassins. If it weren't for his rapid improvement in cultivation, he would probably be dead by now.

He didn't know who was behind all this. If Zhu Xie Chixin was also involved, and later saw that these assassins had failed to kill him, they would send some more powerful experts, or even him personally take action. That would be troublesome. So he decided to leave here first to avoid trouble.

He nodded: "Okay, let's leave here first."

A hint of joy appeared on Qiao Xueying's face, and she took his hand, intending to leave through the window.

"Wait..." Zu An hurriedly went back and picked up Chu Youzhao.

"Why bring him along?" Qiao Xueying was a little annoyed at the sudden appearance of a third wheel. "Now that those assassins have failed, the guards will be coming in soon. With his status, no one will dare to harm him."

Zuan shook his head: "Everything that happened today seems a bit strange. It wouldn't be good if something happened to him if we left him here."

If it were anyone else, Qiao Xueying would naturally not care whether the other person lived or died, but considering that he was, after all, a member of the Chu family, she did not refuse again.

Zu An picked up Chu Youzhao, but his hand accidentally touched something soft and bouncy. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly changed his position.

The girl was wearing something that looked completely normal to the naked eye; you could only tell how strange it was by touching it.

His eyes caught sight of the corpses on the ground, and he quickly composed himself. With a flick of his wrist, four flames flew onto the bodies. He didn't want anyone to deduce what had just happened from the corpses. Whether it was Qiao Xueying's sneak attack on the Kameda ninja or the wounds he had inflicted on the other three, it would be easy for someone with ulterior motives to deduce their secret.

The four flames quickly spread without making a sound. In just a few breaths, the four corpses were burned to ashes.

Seeing this, Qiao Xueying was somewhat surprised: "You awakened a fire elemental ability? It feels like your flames are different from other fire elemental cultivators; they seem to be somewhat special."

"Naturally, it's not quite the same. This should be considered the demonic flame of a nine-tailed fox." He borrowed Daji's flame ability, so it was naturally not an ordinary one.

He had previously envied Pei Mianman's black flames as a good way to destroy corpses and cover up evidence, but he never expected that his own flames would be just as good.

The two whispered to each other as they slipped out of the courtyard under the cover of darkness.

Zuan took a closer look and noticed that many guards were fighting with the men in black, some of whom were far more powerful than the four who had come to kill him.

Presumably, in order to tie down the main force of the guards, they could only send those few sixth-rank officials to deal with them.

At this moment, the men in black fought and retreated, presumably because they thought their comrades inside had succeeded and there was no need to stay and fight to the death.

The two stealthily made their way through the shadows. Soldiers were already patrolling the streets, clearly aware that something had happened in the city.

Qiao Xueying was very familiar with the capital city. She led him through many twists and turns, managing to avoid the soldiers' patrols each time. Finally, the two arrived at a secluded and quiet courtyard.

Qiao Xueying opened the door and led him inside: "This is a secret hideout of mine. Let's stay here for now, and once things have calmed down a bit, I'll take you to reunite with your people."

“Okay.” Zuan looked around. Although the interior was simply furnished, it was quite elegant. It was filled with all kinds of flowers and plants, giving it a vibrant feel. The elves were indeed naturally close to nature.

Qiao Xueying helped Chu Youzhao onto a chair. She obviously couldn't let any other man lie on her bed, not even if he was the heir of the Chu family.

Zuan guessed her little scheme and couldn't help but chuckle.

"By the way, do you know anyone from the fox clan?" Qiao Xueying asked, somewhat puzzled. She hadn't been able to ask on the way, but now that she had some free time, she said, "That's not right. The fox clan's abilities are based on bloodline innate talents, so they can't be passed on to you."

"The reasons are a bit complicated," Zaun didn't know how to explain it, "but simply put, I can borrow the fire ability of a nine-tailed fox."

Qiao Xueying looked delighted: "I was a little worried that sending you to the demon race would cause some trouble, but if you can use the power of the nine-tailed fox, things will be much easier. You know, even the fox race hasn't had a real nine-tailed fox for many years. You will definitely be treated like a VIP, and you might even become a holy son or something. Although the fox race is not a powerful race in the demon race, it has a special status and still has considerable influence. Protecting someone should be a piece of cake."

Zuan was taken aback: "You plan to send me to the demon race?"

“Otherwise?” Qiao Xueying replied, “You are now wanted by the Emperor of Great Zhou, and you probably have no place to stand within Great Zhou. However, no matter how powerful the Emperor of Great Zhou is, he cannot control our demon race’s territory. So you should go there and hide for a few years, and come back after the Emperor of Great Zhou dies.”

In this world, the demon race is a general concept, and the elves are also a type of demon race, which is why she used the word "we".

Zu An chuckled: "I was wanted by the Emperor of the Great Zhou mainly because of the immortality method in the Phoenix Nirvana Scripture. Do you think that once I'm with the demon race, they won't covet the cultivation technique I possess?"

Qiao Xueying was taken aback, clearly not having realized this before. She hesitated and said, "The lifespan of the demon race is generally longer than that of the human race, so they don't have such an urgent need for the method of immortality..."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!