Shan Yidao’s movement technique — that speed seemed to have startled Feng Jiu’er. Ordinarily, his movement technique was decent enough, but it was never this good.

He had been hiding his abilities so deeply…

“Yidao, what are you… trying to do?” Feng Jiu’er retreated half a step, wariness beginning to surface in her eyes.

“Jiu’er, I’ll give you one more chance — come with me.” Shan Yidao fixed his gaze on her, undaunted by the possibility of her fleeing. After all, Feng Jiu’er’s martial prowess had been made abundantly clear today.

She was no match for him. Not even close.

“And if I don’t?” Feng Jiu’er’s expression darkened, her palms curling into fists. “If I refuse to come with you, you’ll hand me over to someone — isn’t that right?”

She drew a slow breath and pressed her lips together, steadying herself. “You’re the assassin who attempted to kill the Ninth Prince. The wound on your back was self-inflicted to muddy the waters. I’m not wrong, am I?”

“I have always known you to be exceptionally perceptive.” Shan Yidao stepped forward; Feng Jiu’er immediately stepped back. His voice turned cold: “If you come with me willingly, I swear I will not harm you.”

“But I am not willing.” That Shan Yidao harbored feelings for her had genuinely caught Feng Jiu’er off guard — yet it changed nothing about what would ultimately happen.

“Why do another’s bidding? Who is the person behind you? Is Zeng Lanyue your woman?”

“No. In this lifetime, you are the only one I have ever cared for.” Shan Yidao’s face was expressionless.

“Yet Zeng Lanyue was still on the same side as you. On her deathbed, she warned me to be wary of someone close to me — and that person is you!”

Feng Jiu’er stood her ground, letting the evening wind stir her dark hair. “Who is the one pulling your strings?”

Shan Yidao said nothing. He simply advanced.

Feng Jiu’er regarded him coolly. “Your task tonight is to take me away — to bring me back as leverage against the Ninth Prince?”

“Jiu’er, I have no choice. Now that I’ve been exposed, staying here is a death sentence.”

As Shan Yidao looked at her, there was still a trace of lingering attachment in his eyes. But since she refused to come willingly, a forced melon is never sweet.

“Only by delivering you to my master can I atone for my failure. Otherwise, not even he will forgive me.”

“Then we shall see whether you truly have the ability to do so.” Feng Jiu’er’s expression turned cold as well.

They had been in the same squad for so long, and they had all gotten along so well. No one wanted to believe there was truly a traitor among them.

Yet people speak truthfully as death approaches — and Feng Jiu’er had never doubted a single word Zeng Lanyue had spoken before she died.

Their team truly did harbor a spy.

Shan Yidao had no intention of wasting more time. His large hand shot out, fingers curling into a claw as he lunged for Feng Jiu’er’s shoulder.

Jiu’er shifted her footing. To Shan Yidao’s complete surprise, she evaded his strike with ease.

“You…” Shan Yidao’s brows sank. He had not expected Feng Jiu’er’s movement technique to be so vastly superior to what she had shown today.

“Was that deliberate?” His expression shifted sharply. He spun on his heel and moved to dart in another direction.

But before he could, a figure came at him head-on through the evening breeze. The figure raised an arm with a light swing, and a fierce palm force immediately swept down like a tide covering the sky.

Shan Yidao was no pushover either. The moment he recognized who it was, without a second thought, he pulled his feet back and swept toward where Feng Jiu’er stood.

Mu Mu had arrived. Shan Yidao at least had the self-awareness to know he was no match for him.

But seizing Feng Jiu’er — that should not be too difficult. If he wanted any chance of escaping tonight, his only option was to use Feng Jiu’er.

That palm strike crashed straight toward Jiu’er’s face — domineering and ferocious.

As expected, anyone bold enough to attempt an assassination on the Ninth Prince had to possess some measure of real ability.

Ordinarily, Shan Yidao concealed his true strength with great care. But the palm he unleashed now drew upon ninety percent of his inner power.

Mu Mu was already behind him — if this strike missed, there might not be another chance.

The palm force was fierce and ruthless. In the blink of an eye, the biting surge of energy was already upon Feng Jiu’er.

Shan Yidao was certain this blow would wound her. What he did not expect was that Feng Jiu’er gave her sleeve a light sweep, shifted her footing at the last instant — not only evading the strike, but meeting it with a palm of her own.

Shan Yidao’s focus jolted. His tall frame lunged swiftly toward Feng Jiu’er.

Jiu’er held her ground with steady steps, utterly unshaken by the pressure of his palm force. She turned to the side, slipped out of the way, and countered with her own palm.

With a thunderous boom, the two palm forces collided. The dead leaves scattered across the ground were swept into a wide circle around them.

“You actually…” Shan Yidao’s qi and blood were thrown into turmoil, a wave of stifled frustration roiling in his chest.

How could Feng Jiu’er possess such formidable inner energy? How was this possible? Could it be that she, like him, had been concealing her true strength from the very beginning?

But he refused to accept it. He shook off his momentary daze and immediately surged forward with his palms again.

The palm force was powerful, raising a cloud of swirling dust in its wake. The force spread out like a vast, dense net, enveloping Feng Jiu’er entirely.

Mu Mu held his palms charged with true energy, prepared to rescue Jiu’er at a moment’s notice should she fail to hold her own.

Yet he had not anticipated that Feng Jiu’er’s martial skill would far surpass anything he had imagined. In the span of a single month, it was as though she had become an entirely different person.

Shan Yidao grew increasingly uneasy. Mu Mu was watching from close by, and yet he could not even overpower Feng Jiu’er. Was this truly the end? Was there really no escape tonight?

His hand suddenly moved to his waist. Two sharp whistles cut through the air — two hidden projectiles launched simultaneously.

One flew straight for Feng Jiu’er’s heart. The other hurtled toward Mu Mu.

Jiu’er was standing too close to him. To avoid the projectile, she swiftly leapt to the side.

Mu Mu gave a casual flick of his wrist, and the projectile dropped to the ground nearby.

Shan Yidao had already sprung into the air, soaring over the treetops in an attempt to flee.

Yet barely had he risen when a gust of tremendous force slammed into him without warning, driving him straight back down.

The palm force was mightier than anyone could have imagined. A resounding crack split the air, and Shan Yidao crashed to the ground — unable, for a long moment, to pick himself up.

Four figures came rushing in from below. Arriving together were Qiao Mu and Huo Yan; approaching from the other side were Xiao Yingtao and Xing Zizou.

And at the crown of a towering tree not far away, a slender figure stood poised against the wind.

She gazed down with lowered eyes at Shan Yidao lying on the ground below. Her cold eyes held not a trace of feeling. Her transcendent, otherworldly bearing, bathed in the glow of moonlight, was so magnificently beautiful it resembled a painting wrought in verse.

Both Qiao Mu and Xiao Yingtao nearly fell into a trance. It had not occurred to them that seeing the Seventh Princess through different eyes could make her this captivating.

But… ahem, why did “magnificently beautiful” come to mind rather than “ravishingly lovely?”

That was likely a question no one could answer. All anyone knew was that in this moment, Zhan Luori outshone even the moonlight itself.

Feng Jiu’er could not help glancing up twice as well — but in the end, her thoughts returned to Shan Yidao.

She walked over and fixed her gaze on Shan Yidao, who was struggling to push himself up from the ground. The bond of their shared past stirred a reluctant tenderness somewhere deep in her chest.

“Give up the name of whoever is behind you. I give you my word — I will spare your life.”