Granny Li took the pills, and the woman tried to snatch them, but found her strength slipping away, unable to gather it; she realized that if this continued, she would be in real trouble. Furious, she shouted, "Young Master Henry Huang, if my cultivation really dissipates, you won't escape consequences either!"
"Consequences? It's just the few of us here, what do you think?" Young Master Henry Huang had already decided to take desperate measures.
The woman glared at Young Master Henry Huang and said, "Fine. As long as I don't die today, I'll make sure your whole family pays for it."
"Die? Oh, I could never let you die. Even if your cultivation is gone, you can still be a concubine in my house—sounds like a pretty good deal to me," Young Master Henry Huang said with a smirk.
"Despicable!" the woman shouted angrily.
Granny Li couldn't understand what the two were saying at all. Young Master Henry Huang gestured, "You can go now. Leave this to me."
"Alright." Granny Li led the others downstairs, holding two pills in her hand, planning to use them for treatment. But as she reached a room and was about to open the door, the pills vanished from her hand—she saw only a shadow, then it was gone.
"Who! Who!" Granny Li shouted angrily.
Granny Li wasn't strong enough to see Evan Yang's swift shadow. As for the guards, she hadn't brought them along—she just wanted to deliver the pills, but now they were gone and she hadn't noticed anyone.
By the time people arrived, Evan Yang was already nowhere to be seen.
The woman vanished in a flash, but her divine sense scanned everywhere, trying to find the expert who helped her. Finding nothing suspicious, she could only feel helpless.
Granny Li from Fragrant Lily House hurried over to Young Master Henry Huang and asked, "Young Master Henry, what happened?"
"She got away." At this moment, Young Master Henry Huang felt terrible, as if he was falling apart.
"I'll send someone to chase after her right away," Granny Li said.
"No need. Even if you chase her, it won't help." Knowing the opponent had escaped, chasing was pointless. All Young Master Henry Huang could do now was go back and recover.
"Stop struggling. Who would've thought I'd run into someone as gorgeous as you here? I've been worried sick these past days, thought you'd disappeared for good. But now you're back—perfect. Why don't we just sleep together right here?" Young Master Henry Huang clicked his tongue.
Granny Li recounted what had happened earlier. After hearing her story, Young Master Henry Huang was furious. "Damn it! Who is working against me?"
Fuming, Young Master Henry Huang left two pills behind and departed. Evan Yang also slipped away from Fragrant Lily House and returned to his own inn.
"Thousand-Miles?" Evan Yang's divine sense discovered that the woman had gone to a place called Thousand-Miles Manor.
Although he didn't know what kind of place it was, its size in the capital suggested she belonged to a remarkable family.
"You..." The woman was both furious and anxious. Just as she spoke, something flew into her mouth and she swallowed it.
The woman froze, and Henry Huang noticed too, asking curiously, "What was that?"
"I..." The woman felt a surge of heat through her body, as if power was exploding inside her. Henry Huang was right in front of her, about to assault her, but she suddenly punched out.
Henry Huang never expected the woman to regain mobility. He was sent flying, the wall cracked, and blood splattered.
Struggling to stand, Henry Huang said through gritted teeth, "You... how can you move?"
The woman didn't know why, but after swallowing the thing that flew into her mouth, she could move again. She guessed some expert was helping her, so she joyfully called out, "Thank you, Senior!"
Evan Yang chuckled in the shadows. "Senior, huh? That's funny." To respond, he sent a voice transmission: "No need to be polite. Finish him off quickly, or he'll poison you again."
Henry Huang tried to make another move, but the woman, delighted by the mysterious voice, quickly slapped him again. Already badly injured, Henry Huang ended up even more battered.
"Damn it." Henry Huang had no idea what was happening today and was furious. The staff from Fragrant Lily House rushed in to protect him.
Seeing people arrive, Henry Huang felt relieved—otherwise, he'd have died here today. The woman, satisfied she'd taught him a lesson, left a warning: "That's it for today. Next time won't be so easy. Our score isn't settled—I will come for you again!" She snorted coldly.
"It seems someone in my manor is keeping an eye on me," the woman cursed inwardly.
"So, Miss, are you going or not?" the maid asked, frustrated.
"I think if I go out now, someone might just drag me off anyway. Might as well go on my own," the woman sighed.
"Miss, are you really going to get married?" the maid asked, a bit sadly.
"Silly girl, I'm just going to pick. Who says I have to actually choose anyone? If none of them measure up, I'll just cut them all down. Let's see what my father can do about it," the woman replied.
"That's true, Miss, you're so smart," the maid said.
"Alright, I'll change clothes and head out. You come with me," the woman said.
"Yes, Miss," the maid replied.
The woman changed clothes, then took her maid and headed toward the palace in the capital.
Although he didn't know what kind of place it was, its size in the capital suggested she belonged to a remarkable family.
The woman had no idea that it was Evan Yang who helped her escape disaster today. Thinking back, she realized just how close she'd come—if not for someone secretly stepping in, she would have been in real trouble. Unfortunately, she still hadn't found that person.
"Miss, you're back? How did it go?" the maid asked.
"I almost had a disaster today," the woman sighed.
"What happened?" the maid asked curiously.
So the woman explained the whole incident to the maid. After listening, the maid fumed, "That damned Henry, he's truly despicable."
"Twice now, I've almost been defiled by him. Damn it, next time I'll cripple him for sure," the woman said.
"Miss, your strength still isn't enough to take him on. Why not talk to the Palace Lord?" the maid suggested.
"Do you think my father would believe me? He'd just think I'm causing trouble again. If not for the Deputy Sanctuary Lord constantly pushing Henry on my father, wanting him to marry me, I wouldn't have to hold this husband-selection event at all—the real purpose was to get rid of him," the woman said angrily.
"That's true. But someone from the palace came earlier and said you have to go," the maid replied.
"Didn't they know I was back?" the woman frowned.
"Where's she going?" Evan Yang wondered as he saw her come out.
Unconsciously, Evan Yang's gaze followed her. When he lost sight of her, he left the inn and continued walking, tracking her with his divine sense.
About half an hour later, he saw the woman enter a palace—the Ethereal Sanctuary Capital Palace, where all the high-level members gathered. "Strange, what's she doing here? Is her family part of the palace?" Evan Yang wondered.
Curious, Evan Yang came to the palace gates. He thought he'd be stopped, but the guard simply asked, "Where are you from?"
Evan Yang answered casually, "I'm from the Lower Sanctuary."
"Lower Sanctuary? Here for the husband selection, right? Let me check your information," the guard said.
"Information? What information?" Evan Yang asked, confused.
"Just give me your name. I'll check to make sure you're not an impostor," the guard replied.
So Evan Yang reported his name. The guard took out a recording stone, scanned it, then checked Evan's name, image, and aura. Once everything matched, he said, "Alright, you can go in."
Evan Yang hadn't expected to get in so easily. "I've never been here—might as well take a look around," he thought.
Curious, Evan Yang wandered inside. He saw lots of guards coming and going, but none checked him—almost as if he was free to roam wherever he wanted.
"Don't they suspect I'm an infiltrator?" Evan Yang muttered when he saw no one paying him any mind.
Actually, as soon as Evan Yang entered, his information was transmitted to every guard, so they all knew exactly who he was and had no reason to be suspicious.
Evan Yang wandered the palace, since no one was guiding him. With no one stopping him, he felt like he was exploring a luxurious palace on his own.
The woman, of course, had no idea Evan Yang was inside the palace. She walked confidently through the halls and soon arrived at Shadow-Drift Palace, the place where the Palace Lord usually stayed.
When the outside guards saw her, they quickly greeted her, "Hello, Miss."
The woman told her maid to wait outside, then walked in herself. Inside, she saw a middle-aged man sitting on a golden lounge chair carved in the shape of a dragon.
"You're here?" the middle-aged man said.
"Father, I'm here," the woman replied.
"Do you know what you've been doing these days? Disappearing?" the man sounded a bit angry.
"I wasn't missing—someone poisoned me," the woman said.
"Poisoned? Don't make excuses again. Deputy Sanctuary Lord already told me—he said you went out with his grandson a few days ago, then you injured him and vanished," the man said.