The man laughed for a short while. Seeing that no one responded, he laughed two more times before stopping. The man suddenly thought of something and said, “This way. We’re almost there…almost there. I just purchased a few female slaves from Xianyang City. They are beautiful and dressed up already. Heh, they are waiting for you, Master.”

　　The footsteps stopped right beside where Chu Qiao was hiding. Her body stiffened. Holding the dagger in her hand, she took a slow, deep breath and frowned.

　　A low voice drifted over. The man had seemingly caught a cold. His voice was hoarse and nasal. “Xianyang City?”

　　“Yes,” the man laughed. “Heh, Master. You know that the Xia people have laxer restrictions on slaves. As for the price, heh, it’s cheaper than in the Tang Empire. A while back, Cui Sima from the Secretary Office went to Xianyang City to run some errands. He picked these slaves for me. Master, do you want them?” The master thought for a long while, before saying, “Let’s take a look.”

　　The official felt a surge of joy. With a smile on his face, he departed, along with everyone that was following him.

　　Chu Qiao heaved a sigh of relief. She knew that she had picked the right time to visit, given that there was an important visitor in the house that night. However, she did not know who exactly from Xia could enjoy such royal treatment. Not thinking further, she got to her feet and ran in the opposite direction.

　　In the darkness, Chu Qiao’s movements were like that of a civet cat—light and agile. However, as she prepared to walk through the cloister, she slipped. As she tried to stabilize herself, she realized that she had stepped on some moss.

　　Did anyone hear me? Chu Qiao’s heart skipped a beat as she thought to herself.

　　Suddenly, a cold voice echoed out, “Who is that?” The voice was low. In a flash, he had appeared at the other end of the cloister. It was the master of few words!

　　Chu Qiao held her dagger tightly. She took a deep breath, frowned, and remained silent. The young master, seeing that she did not utter a word, gave a cold laugh. With a leap, he took two steps upwards, scaling the pillar. He grabbed the pillar with one arm, and leapt onto the rooftop with the other arm!

　　The night was pitch-black; the dark clouds shrouded the moon. In the darkness, the man appeared tall and upright. His sleeves fluttered in the air as the wind blew, giving off a sinister and menacing aura.

　　Chu Qiao’s eyelids twitched, anger filling her heart. She knew that waiting would give time for the enemy’s reinforcements to arrive. Without further ado, she jumped in the air, waving her dagger. The enemy did not say anything, grabbing her arm with ferocity. His other arm came flying towards Chu Qiao’s neck with unrivalled speed!

　　Chu Qiao, aware of the situation, arched her back to avoid the enemy’s blow. With a rear somersault, she landed on the ground, away from the enemy. In a flash, the two of them landed another blow on each other’s shoulder. With a thud, she felt pain in her shoulder. She kicked towards the enemy with force, missing his vital points and making contact with his leg instead. Their shins collided, causing a numbing sensation in both their legs. They took steps back, staring coldly at the opposite party.

　　Sounds of footsteps approached from the other side. Evidently, the guards earlier on had turned back. Chu Qiao cursed to herself in her heart. She did not expect to meet such an exponent in this residence. If she was surrounded, she would die an inevitable death.

　　In the blink of an eye, she struck at her enemy again. Her actions were swift, ruthless, and carried murderous intent! The enemy was not one to be merciful either. With another cold laugh, he threw the thing he was holding in his hand towards her.

　　Chu Qiao was stopped in her tracks. Before she could call the enemy out for his underhanded tactics, he dashed swiftly in front of her, grabbing hold of her wrists and inching his body closer.

　　Chu Qiao replied with a cold look. With a bizarre twist of her body, she somersaulted, her left leg landing on the man’s shoulder forcefully. The man grunted and puffed, his alcoholic breath landing on Chu Qiao’s face. The man was unfazed by this blow. With a stride, he grabbed Chu Qiao’s waist. However, due to the moss on the rooftop, the both of them slipped and fell towards the ground! The cloister was neither high nor low, about three meters up. If they were to fall, even if they did not die, they would be heavily injured.

　　The two of them, with telepathic chemistry, let go of one hand to support themselves on the rooftop. At this instant, the man kicked out, suppressing Chu Qiao’s legs. As she was about to retaliate, the man inched forward with a somersault, aiming his fists at her chest!

　　Chu Qiao was shocked. She raised her other leg, staring at the man viciously. She swore that if the man continued his assault, he would never raise his head up as a man in future!

　　As expected, the man guessed Chu Qiao’s intentions. He retreated, changing his posture! Two thuds echoed out in the night. A wave of acute pain hit the both of them!

　　The man’s hand landed viciously on Chu Qiao’s shoulder, while Chu Qiao’s leg made forceful contact with the man’s calf. The dagger flew out of her hand and landed on the slanted roof of the cloister, slipping onto the ground with a crisp sound.

　　Chu Qiao got to her feet. Before she had steadied herself, a gust of wind blew onto her face. Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows and kicked at her assailant, thinking that he would dodge her blow. Unexpectedly, he actually absorbed the impact of the blow, without making a sound. The man dashed forward, reached out a single hand, and grabbed at Chu Qiao’s chest!

　　At that instant, both of them were stunned! It felt soft. Although it was not big, but it felt abnormally elastic and good to the touch! The man suddenly realized the gender of the assassin in front of him. He was shocked, and suddenly forgot his movements, then restrained his hand.

　　Chu Qiao sneered. With a swift motion, she grabbed the man’s waist. With an explosive roundhouse kick, she struck the man’s waist. The man grunted, retreating while staggering. Chu Qiao wanted to follow up with her actions, but realized that the footsteps were rapidly approaching. She stared at the man coldly in the eye, turned around, and agiley jumped off the cloister. Before the troops had arrived, she had disappeared into the darkness.

　　The guards scaled the cloister with their ladders. Tian Chengshou staggered forward, wiping the cold sweat off his face. He asked cautiously, “Master? Who was that?”

　　The troops climbed up the cloister from all directions, holding their torches. The man was handsome, with pitch-black eyes. He was dressed in a striking purple outfit, with a piece of cloth missing from his chest area. Evidently, Chu Qiao had pocketed that piece of cloth while they were engaged in battle.

　　“Assassins,” the master slowly said. Tian Chengshou was shocked. He hollered, “Ah! Assassins! Inform the entire residence to go after the assassins!”

　　Loud sounds of drums reverberated around the entire Chengshou Residence. Torches shone around the place, illuminating the entire compound!

　　“Tian Chengshou,” the man turned around to look at him, “inform your subordinates to capture the assassin alive. Do not use any arrows or weapons.”

　　Tian Chengshou was stunned. Hurriedly, he replied, “As Master wishes.”

　　The wind caused the man’s sleeve to fly in the air. He looked in the direction where Chu Qiao had escaped, thinking about her movements, frowning silently.

　　Chu Qiao was in a dilemma. The outside was illuminated. Coupled with the patrolling troops, she could not escape however skilled she was. As she thought about the damned master, she gritted her teeth with anger.

　　“Don’t let me see you again!” Chu Qiao muttered to herself. She held a jade pendant in her hand, which she had obtained from the man while they fought. Although she had not seen his face, she would be able to identify the man sooner or later with this pendant. Chu Qiao seethed with rage, thinking about how he had grabbed her chest.

　　This meant war.

　　Chu Qiao hid behind a screen in a well-decorated room. Suddenly, she heard a demure voice coming from inside. Evidently, the mistress of this room had awoken. The woman was skimpily dressed. Half of her ample chest was popping out. She stretched lazily, walking towards the screen.

　　Chu Qiao was agonizing over whether she would be discovered, but before she had the time to dodge, both of them were staring each other in the eye.

　　The woman opened her mouth to shout, but before she managed to do so, Chu Qiao grabbed her throat. The woman’s eyes rolled back in her head, before collapsing softly on the ground.

　　Looked like she would be here for the entire night.

　　As she moved the woman up, sounds of footsteps came from outside the room. Chu Qiao was stunned. Tian Chengshou’s repulsive voice echoed from outside. “Master, this is the room of the new female slave. She’s a virgin and no one has touched her before. Enjoy.”

　　F*ck! Chu Qiao was dumbfounded.

　　The doors in the room were adorned with the aroma of pine. When the door opened, a fragrant aroma drifted into the room along with the wind. The master had changed his outfit, and was now wearing a long golden robe with a pair of green boots underneath. His boots were embroidered with dragon patterns, which looked exquisite. The patterns were hidden with an outline of similar color, looking ordinary from the outside, but giving off a majestic aura upon closer inspection.

　　The room was dimly lit, with only two light sources in the north and south sides of the room. The light source was covered by pink cloth, giving the room an intimate ambience. A young lady wearing a revealing peach-red dress knelt on the ground upon seeing someone enter the room. She kowtowed with respect, head touching the floor. From above, the fair skin on her neck could be seen.

　　Tian Chengshou’s expression was still pale. However, he still managed to say with a certain degree of composure, “Master, please take a rest. I’ll take my leave.”

　　The master nodded and replied, “Thank you for your hospitality, Lord Tian.”

　　Tian Chengshou bowed and nodded. Before he left, he said to the kneeling young lady, “Serve Master well. You get me?”

　　The young lady crouched low on the ground in caution. Gently, she replied, “Yes.” Her voice was pleasant to the ear and soothing, but sounded nasally, as if she had just woken up. The master did not mind and neither did Tian Chengshou. Waving farewell to the master, he stepped out of the room and closed the door carefully.

　　The sound of footsteps became faint, but it could still be heard that at least 20 guards were stationed outside the room. They were well-skilled and not ordinary people.

　　The lights in the room flickered. The vision in the room was blurry. An enormous bed lay in the center of the room. It did not look like a bed, but looked like a giant mat above the ground. Even if five or six people occupied the bed, there would still be space. A red bedsheet was pulled over the bed, along with thick pillows and soft blankets. A pearly curtain was draped at the front of the bed. There was no wind in the room, but the curtains seemed to be alive, moving by themselves. Under the dim lights, they gave off an aura of majesty.