Zuan was initially worried that Qiu Honglei's master would be cut in half on the spot, but in the blink of an eye, the situation changed dramatically, and they actually turned the tables. However, it seems that Zhu Xie Chixin's injuries are not serious, and there is still a fight ahead.

However, he was more concerned about the three words Zhu Xie Chixin had just uttered: Grandmaster!

This woman is actually a Grandmaster?

Wouldn't it be something to brag about if he escaped a Grandmaster's attack unscathed?

The long-haired woman did not answer. Instead, she casually waved her hand, and Qiu Honglei and the other followers who were covering the rear and trapped in the encirclement were lifted by a gentle force and instantly flew out of the East Palace area.

Zhu Xiechi hurriedly gave the following orders: "Guo Zhi, you take your men to protect the Crown Prince to a safe area; Zhao Yuan, you lead your men to pursue the assassins; Jin Pai Eleven, you take the embroidered-robed envoys present to each palace gate to inform the guards of the specific situation. Under no circumstances should a single assassin be let go, and anyone who resists should be killed without exception!"

The imperial guards in the palace were mainly divided into four branches: the left and right guards, the guerrillas, and the elite cavalry.

Guo Zhi was the Right Guard General, while Zhao Yuan was the Guerrilla General and also a member of the imperial family, though his bloodline was quite distant from the current imperial family.

Too many things happened in the palace today. The entire Imperial Guard is in chaos. The other generals, the Left Guard General and the Valiant Cavalry General, are either with the Empress or somewhere else. In any case, we haven't seen them yet.

Guo Zhi and Zhao Yuan had just arrived with their men.

The four generals are all eighth-rank experts. As long as Zhu Xie Chixin can hold off the long-haired woman with the highest cultivation among the assassins, the group of them will be able to suppress the remaining assassins.

"Yes!" The two generals accepted the order in unison. Although Zhu Xie Chixin's official rank might not be higher than theirs, he held a special position and was a confidant of the emperor, so he naturally had the right to command them.

At the same time, the two looked at Zaun curiously. Weren't there always only 10 Gold Medal Messengers? When did they get one more?

Zuan was also secretly complaining, "I just came out to make a cameo appearance, why is everything being pushed onto me?"

However, on second thought, it would be a good opportunity to check if Qiu Honglei had escaped, so he gladly accepted the order.

As she passed by the Crown Princess, she suddenly said, "Eleventh Prince, please be careful on your journey."

Zu An was taken aback, somewhat surprised, but still cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you, Crown Princess."

He then hurriedly left, glancing back at the long-haired woman floating in mid-air as he departed. Her clothes fluttered, and she shone brightly like the moon in the sky, yet remained ethereal and indistinct like an invisible cloud.

Sigh, when will I be able to have such class?

However, she doesn't seem to be flying very high. Oh, I remember now, there's a large formation in the capital that prevents cultivators from flying freely. No wonder that's the case.

He put aside his thoughts and hurriedly dispatched the embroidered messengers who accompanied him with his bronze badge to inform the guards at each palace gate.

The embroidered-robed messengers were stunned: "Don't you need any help?"

Zuan waved his hand: "The bandit leader is entangled with Lord Zhu Xie, and the other assassins are no match for me. You all need to travel together so that you can look out for each other."

He wanted to save Qiu Honglei, so naturally he didn't want anyone getting in his way.

The other embroidered-robed envoys had no idea about these things. Instead, they were all filled with admiration. The gold medal envoys were indeed highly skilled. Many of them had witnessed his prowess in the Eastern Palace before, and no one questioned this point.

"Thank you for your kindness, Eleventh Lord!"

After expressing their gratitude, the group of embroidered-clad messengers hurriedly flew off towards the various palace gates.

Thinking of the grateful looks in their eyes before they left, Zu An almost burst out laughing. It felt so good to sell someone out and they still count the money for you.

He quickly composed himself and began searching for Qiu Honglei.

He remembered that the long-haired woman had just escorted Qiu Honglei and the others eastward, so he instinctively headed east. He didn't know if he could find Qiu Honglei, or even if she had already left the palace. He could only do his best and leave the rest to fate.

He didn't know how long he had been walking when suddenly he heard the sounds of fighting not far away. His heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly followed the sound.

Arriving near a rockery, he saw a group of guards besieging several men in black, while the men in black were trying to cover one of their companions as he escaped.

"Qiu Honglei!" Zu An recognized her at a glance. The two had just fought for a long time, so even though she was wearing a veil, it was not difficult to recognize her.

He looked at the guards and suddenly felt a chill in his heart, because these were not ordinary guards. They were also surrounding a leader in golden armor. The leader's armor was similar to that of General Guo Zhi and General Zhao Yuan, who had just been guarding the Right Guard, indicating that they were of the same rank.

"It should be General Cheng Xiong of the Left Guard." Zu An quickly made the judgment. An eighth-rank expert.

The disparity in strength between them was already immense, and with the addition of Cheng Xiong, an eighth-rank expert, Qiu Honglei and her group quickly became overwhelmed. If it weren't for the expert who had fought the Crown Prince's tutor in the Eastern Palace accompanying them, they probably wouldn't have needed to put up a fight at all.

But that demonic sect expert had clearly just suffered a severe blow in the Eastern Palace, so he was no match for Cheng Xiong in his prime.

The other companions were either dead or captured. Seeing this, the demonic sect expert hurriedly grabbed Qiu Honglei by the shoulder and threw her away forcefully: "Run!"

Qiu Honglei's beautiful eyes were filled with tears, but she knew this was not the time to act on emotion. She gritted her teeth and desperately mustered her strength to run out. She couldn't let her companions sacrifice themselves in vain.

Cheng Xiong sneered, "Where do you think you're going!"

He struck the demonic sect expert in the chest with a palm strike, and the expert collapsed to the ground, collapsing weakly. Before he could even get up, the guards around him had already placed their knives against his neck.

Cheng Xiong didn't stop and continued chasing after Qiu Honglei in the direction she had left. He was confident that he could catch up with her in three breaths. She was only a sixth-rank cultivator, and the gap between them was too big.

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