An Jiu had heard that there were very few masters of the highest realm in the world, yet the leaders of the army were all at this level. This indicated that most officials in the Crane Control Bureau had martial arts skills inferior to Chu Dingjiang’s.

“What a brilliant idea!” Chu Dingjiang exclaimed sarcastically. “Then I’ll assassinate the Prime Minister, and I’ll be second only to one person in the empire!”

An Jiu caught the sarcasm and snorted, “You’re not cut out for high office! High officials never do the dirty work themselves! Just hire someone else to do the killing.”

Chu Dingjiang laughed, pulling out a piece of silver from his pocket. With a grand gesture, he said, “Why don’t you assassinate the Emperor’s favorite courtier for me? Once I’m in power, I’ll double your payment!”

“Deal!” An Jiu pocketed the silver. “I’ll assassinate the Emperor’s most favored eunuch. It’s foolproof – prepare for your ascension!”

The Emperor sometimes sent his favored eunuchs as supervisors or inspectors. They were no longer mere servants but could be considered officials.

“Haha!” Chu Dingjiang reached out to ruffle her hair, but An Jiu blocked his hand.

Chu Dingjiang was slightly surprised. Despite being in the highest realm while An Jiu had no inner power, her reaction was incredibly fast. If he had used force, she couldn’t have blocked him. Such quick reflexes were extremely rare. What a pity…

“Get some sleep!” He stood up, dusting himself off. The dust scattered, covering An Jiu.

An Jiu hadn’t expected such a childish act from him and forgot to dodge. As he turned to enter the room, An Jiu slowly said, “Has the demotion hit you that hard?”

“What do you mean?” Chu Dingjiang looked back.

An Jiu pointed to her head, “Your intelligence seems to have regressed.”

“Intelligence?” Chu Dingjiang sensed this wasn’t a compliment. He didn’t wait for her explanation. “Sleep while you can. There won’t be such leisurely days in the future.”

“Chu Dingjiang,” An Jiu called out to him, “How many people are left in the Mei clan?”

Seeing her calm expression, Chu Dingjiang answered honestly, “Less than fifty in total. The Mei bloodline only has Mei Zhengjing, Mei Tingzhu, Mei Tingyuan, Mei Tingchun, and Mei Ruyan left. The two elderly madames are also unharmed.”

Out of nearly a thousand people in Meihuali, only fifty remained. It seemed like a massive loss, but the Mei clan’s core members weren’t numerous to begin with. The Mei Manor had only a few hundred people, most of whom were servants. No one could have anticipated the enemy having so many ninth-level fighters. The Mei clan had done well to preserve their young core forces in such an unexpected situation.

An Jiu lowered her eyes, hesitating before asking, “Is there… is there anyone named Mo Sigui among the survivors?”

Chu Dingjiang could sense her tension. “Elder Qi and Mo Sigui were famous in the Crane Control Army and were priority protection targets. Unfortunately, the shadow guards sent to protect them were killed, and we’ve temporarily lost contact with these two. However, we haven’t found any bodies that might be theirs. I haven’t received any news about the Mei clan for three days now. He might still be alive.”

As the Divine Martial Commandant of Guards, a slightly lower-ranking official, Chu Dingjiang only needed to carry out missions and could no longer inquire about everything.

“He won’t die,” An Jiu murmured.

Chu Dingjiang thought her feelings for Mo Sigui must be very deep. He was about to offer some words of comfort when he heard her continue, “Scourges live for a thousand years. Bastards live even longer.”

“Mo Sigui is truly blessed to have such a caring cousin!” Chu Dingjiang clicked his tongue.

“You saved me, so you’re my benefactor,” An Jiu said, seemingly oblivious to his sarcasm. “If your fate was uncertain, I’d pray for you in the same way.”

Chu Dingjiang’s lips twitched. “How thoughtful of you!”

“It’s only right,” An Jiu replied.

Chu Dingjiang felt that talking heart-to-heart with this girl was a waste of time and emotion. Sleeping would be more meaningful.

Night fell.

An Jiu and Chu Dingjiang had been staying in the same room, with An Jiu sleeping on the bed while Chu Dingjiang made do with a couple of benches. The weather was still cold, but without any heavy tasks recently, they didn’t need to be constantly alert – a rare luxury.

“You take the bed,” An Jiu said, putting on a large cloak and pushing aside the curtain.

Chu Dingjiang turned his head and opened one eye. “Can’t sleep?”

“Mm,” An Jiu walked outside. Sensing a sudden gust of wind near her ear, she quickly bent down. As she stood up, she threw a punch towards the assailant.

Chu Dingjiang wrapped one arm around her waist and swiftly blocked her pressure points with his other hand. Her fist stopped half an inch from his nose.

“Confiscating your dagger was truly a wise decision,” Chu Dingjiang said as he carried her to the bed. He covered her nose and mouth with his hand, which was coated with a sedative. After she closed her eyes, he released her pressure points.

He turned around, only to be caught off guard by a sudden gust of wind.

“Unreasonable!” Chu Dingjiang exclaimed. His kindness had not been repaid. He spun around and grabbed her wrist, shocked to find a dagger in her hand. Furious, he realized he had been nurturing a venomous snake all this time. His grip tightened.

An Jiu launched a flying kick. As Chu Dingjiang dodged, he leaned forward and pinned her firmly to the bed.

Their faces were almost touching. He saw that there was no killing intent in her clear eyes. In an instant, he understood that An Jiu’s attack wasn’t meant to harm him, but to vent her emotions.

His guess was correct.

The killing was the only way An Jiu knew how to release her emotions, whether it was anger, hatred, or sorrow…

Chu Dingjiang snatched the dagger from her hand and tossed it aside. He stood up, removing his cloak to reveal his athletic physique. Dispelling all his protective inner power, he looked down at her and commanded, “Get up!”

An Jiu’s mental power exploded instantaneously as she threw a punch.

Chu Dingjiang felt an enormous pressure, like a mountain pressing down on him, rendering him immobile. In a split second, his consciousness struggled, and An Jiu’s fist connected solidly with his chest.

He had underestimated her!

Chu Dingjiang quickly broke free from the mental pressure and, like An Jiu, relied solely on mental power without any inner force as they fought.

He had initially thought it was his carelessness that allowed An Jiu’s mental power to subdue him, but after ten exchanges, he was shocked to realize that her mental strength far surpassed his own!

Without using inner power, he found himself at a disadvantage.

After fighting for a while, Chu Dingjiang noticed that although An Jiu showed no killing intent, every move she made was potentially lethal.

During the trial at the ancient temple, he had found An Jiu to be a formidable opponent. Now, having shed his pride in his inner power, he truly discovered – that she wasn’t just formidable, she was ruthless! When she fought, her ferocity was like that of a predator certain of catching its prey, and a strategically minded predator at that.

Chu Dingjiang’s fighting spirit was ignited.

They exchanged blows, fist for foot, until two hours later when Chu Dingjiang’s physical advantage finally became apparent. However, for An Jiu to reach such a level after sustaining serious injuries had already earned his respect.

Seeing her face turn pale, Chu Dingjiang released his inner power and moved to restrain her. “Enough, let’s stop here. Your wounds might reopen.”

Feeling her relax, Chu Dingjiang helped her sit on the edge of the bed. He looked around and saw the room in complete disarray.

Both of them looked as if they had just been fished out of water. Chu Dingjiang said, “You’re weak right now. Rest a bit, and I’ll boil some water for you to clean up.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he nearly bit off his tongue. Given her recent display, it was hard to see any weakness in her at all.