Chapter 1006: Why Should I Care?
Their surprise and silence was completely justified. What kind of person was Yun Jianyue? She was the Devil Sect’s Sect Master, an expert at the peak of the grandmaster rank! There were untold numbers of experts who had been defeated by her hand over the years. She was already one hundred percent a bloody devil in the hearts of the Zhou Dynasty’s officials!
Zu An had actually fought against that bloody devil, and was still okay? He didn’t seem to be all that injured either! What kind of notion was that?
Forget about the others, even Zu An was shocked. Does Sang Hong know about my Embroidered Envoy identity?
Just then, Sang Hong sent him a voice transmission in secret. “Put on a bit of an act to make yourself look a bit stronger. Since they are giving us an initial show of strength, we cannot just sit here and do nothing.”
Even though he was the Imperial Envoy, he only had eight ranks of cultivation. Furthermore, Golden Token Eleven hadn’t shown up. Cloudcenter Commandery had many experts at the eighth rank, and Jian Taiding was even at the master rank. That gave him a kind of mysterious pressure.
If their side ended up looking too weak, many things would become more problematic later on. That was why he adopted that plan.
As for whether it was true or not, Zu An worked in the Imperial Palace, so outsiders had no idea about the real situation. Furthermore, as he was part of the imperial envoy, these people couldn't really test him. That was why it was a lie that wouldn’t be exposed. How could he give up such a good chance?
Jian Taiding exclaimed in shock, “Sir Zu has faced Yun Jianyue before?” Even though there was no way to test that claim, there was still no problem with asking questions.
Zu An coughed lightly and said, “It couldn’t be considered facing each other; I only received one of her attacks.”
Sang Hong gave Zu An a big thumbs up inwardly. He had originally planned to warn Zu An not to go too far with his boasting, but he hadn’t expected the kid to be so sharp, acting almost as if it were true. Even he began to wonder if Zu An had fought against Yun Jianyue.
All of the officials present were shocked when they heard that. This person was so young, so there was no way he could have fought against Yun Jianyue. But if it had just been a single move, there was a chance.
Zuo Su was the Magistrate, so he was on the imperial court’s side. He naturally had to praise the Imperial Envoy. When he heard that, he remarked, “How formidable is that demoness Yun Jianyue? Being able to receive a single move from her is extremely difficult. Sir Zu truly is young and promising, deserving of admiration!”
With him taking the lead, the other officials in Cloudcenter Commandery naturally voiced their agreement. Even though the Military Affairs Manor had some doubts, the other party was the Imperial Envoy after all. They couldn't just challenge him like they had Vice Magistrate Xu. They could only join in the praise.
Sang Hong stroked his beard, feeling extremely satisfied with his brilliant idea.
Gao Ying and Pei You also spoke up.
“That’s not all! For the sake of protecting the crown prince in the secret dungeon, he single-handedly slaughtered an evolved Jade Moon Serpent!”
“Some powerful assassins came to kill the crown prince, but all of them were defeated by Sir Zu.”
…
The two of them really buttered up Zu An like crazy. They were already used to such exchanges of praise, and they really did feel admiration for Zu An. Everything they said was the truth.
However, when they finished their boasting, there was an awkward silence. Those present had strange expressions. They hadn’t really believed that Zu An could face Yun Jianyue, but they didn’t want to embarrass the Imperial Envoy and had just agreed.
But now, the boasting was getting more and more ridiculous. They were even saying that Zu An had single-handedly killed some Jade Moon Serpent?
The Jade Moon Serpent was a seventh ranked beast at the weakest. If it were an evolved one, wouldn’t it be at least the eighth rank?
Everyone knew that beasts were much stronger than cultivators of the same rank. There were so many experts there who didn’t dare to claim that they could single-handedly kill an eighth ranked Jade Moon Serpent, and yet a brat like him could?
As for the crown prince’s attackers, they just ignored that claim. After all, Gao Ying and Pei You only had six ranks of cultivation. Seventh ranked cultivators were probably already experts in their eyes, right?
Sang Hong gave the two of them an annoyed look. Do you not understand that too much is just as bad as not enough?!
The atmosphere he had aimed for just then was just right, yet those two had ended up adding a bunch of nonsense, turning his previous move into a complete joke. The onlookers could just start making fun of him for trying to show off.
Gao Ying and Pei You felt incredibly wronged. They were speaking the truth, so why did no one believe them?
“Brother Zu, why don’t you say something?” The two of them looked toward Zu An with pleading expressions. Zu An chuckled and didn’t try to explain anything.
Just then, however, a lazy voice spoke up. “You were able to take a hit from Yun Jianyue? I refuse to believe it.”
Even though that voice wasn’t loud, it still stood out in such a situation. Those present quickly turned around. They saw that the drunkard had his finger hooked around his gourd, looking at Zu An with an ambiguous expression.
Those from the Military Affairs Manor hadn’t really liked him before because of that situation with Commander Dian. But now, they suddenly found him much more likable. They were all looking forward to seeing how the Imperial Envoy’s group was going to deal with him now.
Sang Hong’s expression finally changed. He had forgotten to consider that variable in his plans. The worst part was that he had just seen the seventh rank Commander Dian’s miserable defeat. This mysterious man was deep and immeasurable, perhaps already at the master rank. Even though Ah Zu has won against City Lord Liao, against a master rank, I fear…
Vice Magistrate Xu Yu also tugged on the drunkard’s sleeves nervously, saying, “Brother Xiao…” With his position, he naturally didn’t want to get into conflict with the Imperial Envoy. The drunkard was also his friend, so wouldn’t Sang Hong think he had instigated this?
However, the drunkard didn’t pay him any attention and instead looked at Zu An in amusement, saying, “I have faced Yun Jianyue in my earlier years, and even I was defeated by her. I understand her cultivation well. I really cannot believe that you could remain unscathed under her attack.”
Those present gasped when they heard that. Even though they had seen the drunkard defeat Commander Dian, they hadn’t thought too much of it. After all, there were many present who could defeat Commander Dian in the room alone. Furthermore, they were all in high positions and had a lot of resources at their disposal. It wasn’t something an independent cultivator could compare to.
But now that the other person had said he had faced Yun Jianyue before, even though he hadn’t spoken about it in detail, they could infer that he had actually experienced a huge battle. Even though he said he had lost, to be someone who could escape from Yun Jianyue in one piece, how formidable would one have to be?
It was different from when Sang Hong had tried to butter up Zu An. Back then, everyone had been full of doubts. Now that the drunkard said the same things, the onlookers subconsciously trusted him.
Sang Hong felt troubled. How could he have expected that there would be someone there who had actually faced Yun Jianyue before? The situation was now outside of his control.
Zu An was quite shocked. He hadn’t expected the weak and delicate Yun Jianyue he knew to be so ferocious in the outside world! Why were there victims of hers everywhere? However, he fiddled with the wine cup in his hands and remarked indifferently, “What do I care if you believe me or not?”
The drunkard chuckled. “I fear that’s not up to you to decide.” As soon as he said that, he slammed the table. A stream of alcohol shot out from the wine cup. With a flick of his arm, the alcohol fired at Zu An like an arrow.
“Be careful!” someone exclaimed.
There were several experts present. All of their expressions changed. They could tell that the stream was no longer alcohol, but rather profound sword intent. It was basically no different from a real sword.
Sang Hong wanted to stop the drunkard, but he was already too late. The ‘sword’ was just too fast.
Xu Yu’s mouth was wide open. He knew that things had become troublesome now.
Jian Taiding had an ambiguous smile on his face. The sword was too powerful; there was no way that youngster could withstand it. He wondered if the drunkard would show any mercy. If he didn’t and ended up seriously wounding Zu An, or even killing him, that would really be something.
Even if he did hold back, Zu An would be put in quite a sorry state. How could the imperial envoy still have any prestige left to investigate anything afterward? They would just obediently pass on the dukedom and return to the capital.
The officials present all had their own thoughts. However, their eyes quickly widened.
Zu An raised his wine cup in front of him to block the stream. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the sword intent-imbued alcohol entered his cup. He said, “Thank you, sir, for the toast.” Then, he drained the cup in one gulp.
The entire place became momentarily silent. Against a sword that powerful, forget about a fragile wine cup, even a boulder would be directly penetrated! Yet this kid had actually received it that easily?
Their expressions immediately changed when they looked at Zu An. Before, they had only been showing him courtesy out of respect for Sang Hong, but now, they knew that they had greatly underestimated this person. No wonder that old fox Sang Hong cares so much about him! This person is extraordinary after all!
The drunkard revealed a look of shock. “Your respected self managed to take this sword from me, so I believe receiving a move from Yun Jianyue shouldn’t have been too great of an issue either. I crossed the line earlier and will drink three cups here as an apology.”
After saying that, he raised his alcohol gourd and began to gulp the contents down. But how was it just three cups? It was almost an excuse for him to drink more.
Zu An was quite shocked at how the other party had responded. He was also curious why the drunkard would be near Pei Mianman’s residence, so he asked to test the waters, “The sword intent I just sensed reminds me of someone. In the past, the libationer’s third disciple was Sword Immortal Xiao Yao, while your surname is Xiao as well. May I ask what kind of relationship you have with that sword immortal?”