Hidden off to the side, Ian Song was a bit surprised. He hadn’t expected that, in just over a month, his name would already be known here.
Chloe Cao asked in confusion, "Sister Qin, why are you calling my junior brother Song Ziyu? Isn’t his name Ian Song?"
Sophia Chang smiled, "You might not know this, but Ziyu is the courtesy name given to him by Zachary Cai!"
"So that’s how it is!"
Chloe Cao nodded.
Yvette Cao spoke up again, "Ninth Sister, isn’t the Cloudwater Sword Sect a martial arts sect? Why would you take the imperial exams?"
"Of course it’s because my junior brother is talented in both literature and martial arts!"
Chloe Cao said this with an air of absolute certainty.
Yvette was instantly left speechless, nearly choking on her own words.
Originally, this poetry gathering was meant to embarrass Chloe Cao, but clearly that didn’t happen. Feeling awkward, Yvette Cao decided to call it a day.
So, all the noble ladies rose from the pavilion, boarded their carriages, and, under the protection of their guards, started down the mountain.
Inside the carriage.
Chloe Cao didn’t speak, and neither did Yvette.
Though Chloe was simple, she wasn’t stupid. Thinking back over everything today, she realized her eighth sister probably hadn’t had good intentions and wanted to embarrass her. Luckily, with her junior brother’s help, she hadn’t let Yvette get her way.
With that in mind, she felt even less inclined to stay at the Prince of Yan Residence.
Nearly twenty carriages rolled out in a line, moving slowly along the mountain road and stretching the convoy over a hundred meters.
Just then—
Suddenly, a barrage of sharp arrows shot out from the hillside.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Thud, thud, thud!
Screams echoed nonstop. After just one volley, over seventy or eighty of the hundred-plus guards were killed or wounded.
"Assassins!"
A shrill cry rang out, and instantly, the young ladies inside the carriages fell into chaos.
Chloe Cao instinctively wanted to rush out.
But Yvette Cao grabbed her. "Ninth Sister, what are you doing?"
"I’m going to catch the assassins!"
"Catching assassins is the guards’ job! Why do you need to worry about it? Otherwise, why bother raising all those guards!" Yvette scolded.
Chloe could only sit back down helplessly, but she quietly lifted the curtain to peek at what was happening outside.
After the first volley, a second wave of arrows came flying.
This time, though, the guards were ready. Only a few were hit.
"Kill them!"
Right then, shouts erupted, and over two hundred masked warriors armed with weapons charged down the hillside.
The guards hurried to intercept them.
But to their shock, these masked men were all incredibly strong—every one of them had Martial Master-level strength. And the three who stood with hands behind their backs radiated an even more dangerous aura; they must be Innate experts.
Screams kept ringing out.
The remaining dozens of guards were quickly wiped out.
"Come on, get all those young ladies off the carriages for me!"
One of the Innate masked men barked out the order.
Immediately, the masked men clambered onto the carriages and forced all the young ladies and maids out.
"Who are you people? Why are you kidnapping us?"
Yvette Cao kept her composure and asked.
"No wonder you’re the Prince of Yan’s daughter—you still dare to question us!" sneered the Innate masked man.
At those words, Yvette’s face changed. After years in the Prince of Yan Residence, she instantly realized this ambush must have been premeditated.
"Boss, these girls are all so pretty—our brothers are in for a real treat!"
A masked man laughed lewdly, his greedy eyes sweeping over each of the young ladies.
"Enough talk—knock them all out and take them away!"
Ordered the Innate masked man.
Just then—
Chloe Cao darted forward, snatched a sword from a masked man, and unleashed the Sword of Drizzling Rain, sending a flurry of entwining sword threads slashing toward one of the Innate masked men.
"Oh? There’s actually a real expert here!"
The Innate masked man was startled, then reached out—a faint golden light shimmered on his palm.
Clang, clang, clang!
His palm collided with the sword again and again, sparks and the sound of metal rang out.
"Cowardly scum, die!"
Chloe shouted, her eyes narrowing. Her sword flashed like lightning, thrusting straight at his eyes.
The strike was so fast, the man was caught off guard and instinctively retreated.
But Chloe was even faster—her sword tip instantly reached his eyes, sword qi burst forth, piercing his eye socket and exploding inside his head. He died on the spot.
"Third Brother!"
The other two Innate masked men were shocked. They drew their swords and attacked Chloe together.
Yvette Cao was utterly stunned by the scene. She hadn’t expected Chloe to be so powerful—able to kill a masked man in just two moves.
The other two masked men were powerful—one was mid-Innate, the other late-Innate.
Even surrounded, Chloe Cao, wielding the Sword of Drizzling Rain as revised by Ian Song, managed to fight the two to a standstill.
"Girl, stop right now! Or I’ll kill her!"
A masked man pressed a blade to Yvette Cao’s neck.
Chloe instinctively glanced back. That brief distraction gave the other two Innate masked men an opening—their swords gleamed, stabbing swiftly at her vital points.
Clang!
In haste, Chloe flicked out several sword flowers, barely blocking one strike, but the force from the opponent’s blade sent her staggering backward.
"Die!"
The other man shifted his sword stance, swinging down with overwhelming sword force toward Chloe’s head.
"Courting death!"
Just then, a low voice rang out.
Whoosh, whoosh!
A blur flashed past, slamming into the chests of the two Innate masked men. Both grunted and were sent flying.
A tall, strikingly handsome youth appeared at Chloe’s side, steadying her as she staggered.
"Senior Sister, are you alright?"
Ian Song asked with concern.
"Junior Brother, you’re here—thank goodness!"
Chloe exclaimed, her face full of joy.
The two Innate masked men’s faces darkened.
The young ladies all glanced at Ian Song, secretly admiring how handsome he was.
"Kid, who are you? How dare you meddle in our business?" one Innate masked man shouted.
Ian Song’s expression turned cold. "Who I am is none of your concern—you two cowards aren’t qualified to know. Since you dared to attack my Senior Sister, don’t think you’ll be leaving here!"
"Big talk! Let’s see what you’ve got!"
With a roar, the two attacked together.
"Mere ants dare to make a fool of themselves before me? Get lost!"
With a casual wave, Ian Song sent a surge of force crashing into the two, knocking them to the ground where they tumbled several times before stopping.
The young ladies’ eyes lit up at the sight.
The two masked Innate experts, now sprawled on the ground, stared at Ian Song in shock. "You’re a Grandmaster!"
"Grandmaster!" Yvette Cao’s face showed astonishment as well.