Chapter 208: The Circle of Nobility Sure is Complicated

It was then that it sunk in for Zu An that Chu Chuyan was already at pinnacle sixth rank. 

He was too used to keeping a low profile that it had become a habit for him to scheme against others in the shadows, but given Chu Chuyan’s current cultivation, even if the teachers of the academy were to bring their students here, they might not necessarily be a match for her. Naturally, there was no need for them to act so carefully anymore.

Mi Li was currently not around, Zhang Han was dead, and the zombie soldiers, evil spirits, and terracotta army were completely destroyed. In this entire dungeon, there was probably not a single person who was stronger than her anymore. In the first place, this dungeon was evaluated to be of lower risk, or else the academy wouldn’t have sent just two sixth rank teachers in to lead the students.

It was just that the appearance of the underground palace was completely unexpected.

Hm? Isn’t this another opportunity for me to rake in Rage points again?

Zu An sharply caught the scent of a business opportunity, but he eventually held back his urge to harvest Rage points.

Forget it, I should dote on my wife instead. 

Even though Chu Chuyan had spoken such grand words, she didn’t let her guard down. She continued staring warily in the direction where the voice had come from.

“Hm? It’s Miss Chu!”

Two figures rushed forward simultaneously. One of them moved in a seductive manner whereas the other one had a huge bald spot on his head.

Zu An heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing them. “Hey, Teacher Lu and Teacher Bai.”

Needless to say, they were the teachers whom Brightmoon Academy had sent into the dungeon to lead the students, Bai Susu and Lu De.

“It’s really a huge relief that you’re fine!” Bai Susu and Lu De spoke in unison. When they realized that the other had spoken the same words as them, they shot sharp glances at one another before turning away with a cold harrumph.

Following that, another group of people arrived at the scene too.

There was one person with massive bosoms that immediately caught Zu An’s eye—Pei Mianman. This woman really should learn water elemental skills. It seems far more matching to her as compared to fire.

Pei Mianman also noticed Zu An’s gaze and shot him a seductive look. Then, she moved over to Chu Chuyan’s side, grabbed her hand, and asked, “Aiya, what happened, Chuyan? Why do you have so much blood on your clothes? Let me see your injuries.”

“I’m fine. This blood doesn’t belong to me…” Chu Chuyan’s face was a little red. Most of it had come from Zu An, but there was quite a bit that actually belonged to her… 

Thinking about how she was no longer a maiden anymore, a conflicted frown formed on her forehead. However, when she recalled how Zu An fought hard to protect her in the underground cavern, the slight frown gradually loosened.

“It’s not yours…” Pei Mianman was stunned. She turned her gaze to Zu An with the intention to probe on, only for her eyebrows to shoot upward in surprise. 

Hm? Isn’t that woman he’s holding onto the tenth place of the Sweetheart Ranking? To be holding onto another woman in the presence of his own wife, and for his wife to show no hint of criticism on her face at all… it looks like he does have some means.

Qiao Xueying hurriedly whispered to Zu An and said, “Quick, put my veil on!”

Zu An knew that she was unwilling to have her true appearance seen by those in the academy, so he asked, “Where’s your veil?”

Qiao Xueying’s face reddened. “It’s inside my robe.”

She was severely injured at the moment, so her body was incredibly weak. Even moving her fingers was tough enough for her, so it would be hard for her to grab her veil and put it on.

Had it been another man, she would have never allowed the other party to take something from her robe, but if it was Zu An… 

Thinking about how they had spent a long time hugging one another while fighting together in the underground palace, as well as the fact that she had used her Half Life’s Fate on him, she felt an inexplicable feeling of intimacy toward him.

Besides, he had already seen and touched everything there was back at the Chu Manor, so it didn’t seem much of a deal to let him touch her again.

Hearing her words, Zu An immediately reached into her robes to retrieve a spare veil and cover her flushed face. Qiao Xueying breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that Zu An didn’t make use of this opportunity to take advantage of her.

Pei Mianman happened to see this series of actions, and her eyes widened in astonishment. Wait a moment, is this for real? He just put his hands into her robe just like that?

She subconsciously glanced at Chu Chuyan and saw that she had noticed the happenings on that side too. Surprisingly, Chu Chuyan didn’t respond at all.

Pei Mianman was utterly dumbfounded. 

What’s going on here? Even if Chu Chuyan doesn’t like Zu An, he’s still her husband. Surely she wouldn’t allow him to cheat on her even if she doesn’t like him, right?

Also, what’s with Zu An messing around with another woman before his own wife? He’s a drafted son-in-law! How could he have the guts to do this?

Also, that tenth place—what’s her name again? Qiao something, right?—she should have some sense of shame as to turn Zu An down here!

Pei Mianman had no idea why a spectator like her was even more anxious than those involved in this matter. There must be something wrong in this world!

“Ah Zu~” 

A delighted voice suddenly sounded in the air and a small, feminine figure dashed forward. However, when she saw that Zu An was holding a woman in her arms, she immediately halted her footsteps.

“Xiaoxi!” Zu An’s eyes lit up upon seeing the other party. He rushed to her side with Qiao Xueying in her arms and asked, “Do you have any recovery medicine on you? Quick, she needs treatment right away!”

“Ah? Y-yes, I do have some recovery medicine on me…” Ji Xiaoxi quickly snapped out of her daze and started searching through her little bags. Soon, she found a bottle of medicine and fed it to Qiao Xueying.

Meanwhile, more and more people were arriving at the scene. When they saw Qiao Xueying in Zu An’s arms, they gasped in shock and incredulous voices began sounding.

“The woman he’s holding is the tenth place on the Sweetheart Ranking, right?”

“Indeed, that’s her!”

“Holy shit, what’s with his luck?!”

“Honestly, I’m more impressed with his ability to placate all of those women rather than his ability to hook up with them. I mean, none of them look discontented at all despite him flirting with another woman right in front of their eyes!”

“Yeah! Pei Mianman and Chu Chuyan are whispering to one another, and Ji Xiaoxi is treating her love rival without any signs of jealousy at all. My gosh, this is unbelievable! He’s really the role model of all men!”

“I used to think that young master Xie was the love expert in the academy, but it looks like the title is going to change hands.”

… 

Hearing their discussions, Xie Xiu smiled bitterly and murmured, “I’m indeed far lacking compared to Brother Zu.”

In order to enjoy the flowers in the garden without being tied down, he had always been careful not to choose the most beautiful ones. He knew that women who stood at the top tended to be prideful and wouldn’t allow him to cheat on them.

For the sake of the entire forest, he had no choice but to forsake some of the trees.

Yet, Zu An was able to accomplish what he was unable to pull off.

Meanwhile, Zheng Dan stared at Zu An with a doubtful glint in her eyes. 

Shi Kun was determined to kill him this time around, but it doesn’t seem like anything has happened to him. Based on the intelligence, he shouldn’t have the means to deal with Shi Kun’s force, so how did he manage to survive? Was it Chu Chuyan’s intervention?

But what’s with the woman he’s holding in his hands then?

Her gaze continuously alternated between Chu Chuyan and Qiao Xueying before glancing at Ji Xiaoxi and Pei Mianman. In the end, she could only conclude… The circle of nobility sure is complicated!

Not too far away, Hong Xingying sighed in disappointment. This fellow sure is lucky.

He rushed over to Chu Chuyan’s side and asked, “Young miss, are you fine?”

“Yes, I’m alright.” Chu Chuyan directed him a slight smile. They were all members of the Chu clan after all, so it wouldn’t do for her to be too distant to him.

Her faint smile enchanted Hong Xingying. For a moment there, he had a feeling that the young miss had become even more beautiful. In the past, she felt like an unreachable flower, lacking a human’s touch, but the current her seemed to command a much more feminine grace, making her even more alluring. 

Could this be the effect of her marriage?

Hong Xingying knew that Chu Chuyan and Zu An were just a couple in name, but he was still unable to curb the envy in his heart.

If not for that bastard’s sudden intervention, I would have become the young miss’ husband. She was supposed to be mine!

You have successfully trolled Hong Xingying for +1024 Rage!

Pei Mianman watched as Hong Xingying turned around and left before remarking with a smile, “Chuyan, that subordinate of yours seems to be very fond of you.”

Chu Chuyan shook her head, not bothering to respond to that remark. There were far too many people who had expressed affection toward her over the years, so how could she possibly bother with every single one of them? Her time could have been used at something far more productive.

At the same time, Zu An was shocked by the sudden influx of Rage points from Hong Xingying. Woah, I didn’t know he harbors such a huge grudge toward me!

After everything he had been through in the underground cavern, he had grown not just in terms of strength but ambition as well. He had seen how huge the world beyond what he had seen thus far was, and he didn’t think that it was worth wasting his time with someone of Hong Xingying’s caliber anymore.

But still, it wouldn’t do to keep someone who obviously bore malicious intentions toward him by his side. He would have to find a way to deal with him once and for all.

“Ah Zu, you’ve bled a lot! Are you really fine?”

After checking Qiao Xueying’s condition, Ji Xiaoxi noticed that Zu An was covered in blood as well. His clothes that were even more tattered than a beggar showed just how intense of a fight he had just been through.

To that, Zu An responded with a smile, “Don’t worry, I’m fine. If you’re still worried, do you want to check my pulse?”

He offered his hand to her while saying those words.

Zu An simply looked too miserable that Ji Xiaoxi was unable to calm the unease she felt in her heart despite his assurance. So, she placed her fingers on his wrist to read his pulse and diagnose his condition.

“Xiaoxi, I’m really grateful to you this time around. If not for you, I would already have died many times by now,” said Zu An. 

Had it not been for the huge amount of medicine she had given him, there was no way he would have been able to toil through those difficult battles he had been through. 

It had just been a few days, but he had encountered the zombie soldiers, came under the assault of Shi Kun and his subordinates, and faced all sorts of crisis in the underground cavern. All in all, he must have fought at least a dozen battles by now. It was only thanks to her medicine that he had been able to pull it through all of these.

“There’s no need to thank me. You did save my life too. If not for you, I would have been killed by those zombies.” Sensing the earnest gratitude in Zu An’s eyes, a flush of redness gushed up Ji Xiaoxi’s neck.

Zu An burst into laughter. “Haha, let’s skip all of these polite words then. It feels kind of weird to be thanking one another as friends. Ah, what brought all of you here?”

Before Ji Xiaoxi could respond, Bai Susu had already spoken up, “It’s all due to Xiaoxi. Just not too long ago, young master Shi returned in a terrible state. He told us that a particularly terrifying zombie has captured all of you.

“Everyone was alarmed upon hearing those words. After all, Shi Kun is a strong cultivator, and he has many experts under his command. Worse comes to worst, he has a lot of life preservation means given to him by the Shi clan. If even he had such a close shave with the zombie, it was unlikely that others would fare any better against them.

“Most people wanted to leave the area, but Xiaoxi pleaded for us to save you, so we decided to make our way over.”

Bai Susu didn’t speak the complete truth. If it had only been Zu An, they wouldn’t have cared even if he died. However, the problem was that Chu Chuyan was with him too. If she were to die here as well, they wouldn’t be able to bear the responsibility of it.

So, he quickly looked for Lu De’s group and gathered some of the stronger student cultivators to explore the area. Unexpectedly, before they encountered any danger, they ended up meeting one another.

Qiao Xueying’s face twitched a little upon hearing Shi Kun’s words. She seemed to be on the verge of saying something, but she eventually held herself back.

On the other hand, Zu An harrumphed coldly. “Where’s Shi Kun right now?”

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