"The national exam's top scorer really is extraordinary. Are you going to come with me willingly, or do I have to force you?"
Now that her disguise had been exposed, there was no need to hide any longer. The maid released an enormous Spirit pressure, bearing down on everyone present.
"Why are you so certain that you'll take me away by force?"
Lao Tie's sturdy body stood between Zi Liyuan and the maid, instantly opening his gravity field that enveloped the maid, slowing her down with a negative speed BUFF.
"It's not just you, there's also the second-place scholar from Jiangnan Province here, equally a target for our mission."
Fourth Order vs Second Order, an absolute dominance in strength. The maid pulled out two daggers and vanished in an instant. When she reappeared, the daggers were mere inches from Zi Liyuan's shoulders.
But that was as far as she could go. Not even an inch further.
Lao Tie's hands, one left and one right, grabbed the maid's wrists. The eight spikes on his back, as if homing in on their target, straightened out and then, swift as lightning, pierced her relentlessly.
"I just don't get it. Clearly, you're a squishy assassin. After being exposed, instead of running away, you choose to assault head-on? Are you seriously ill or what?"
Lao Tie, fully buffed and in peak condition, was strong enough to face off against the Legendary BOSS, the Spider Queen, at LV60. His attributes were so powerful that they were not far behind those of a Fourth Order expert.
An exposed assassin opting for a head-on attack is blatantly suicide, right?
Oh, if she underestimates Lao Tie's strength, then there's no problem.
Watching her body being pierced by spikes in a matter of seconds, blood gushing out and forming a large pool, it was a grisly sight.
Zi Liyuan signaled to Lao Tie, "Keep at it, step up the game."
An assassin who abandons their strength and attacks the enemy's fortress with their own weakness deserves to be hung up and hammered.
Holding back was out of the question, especially since she had just overheard that the Fourth Order Peak powerhouse above had declared that these people were the damned Wokou.
If they're not killed on the spot, what are they left for, New Year's eggs at home?
Such a bloody and brutal scene left Shen Yurou and the four sisters Fan Yuer utterly unmoved, without the slightest discomfort, while the remaining three maids were seriously frightened.
"Xiao Yurou, it looks like you need to speed up your research process."
With the maid now dead, Zi Liyuan walked back to the balcony, looked up at the battle in the sky, and said to Shen Yurou beside him.
"The martial trial instance underwent mutations, and the officials and military dispatched a huge number of people to eradicate so many forces. How did these Wokou escape the investigation?"
With substantial investment, the officials and the military used the numerous ordinary examinees as bait, striking at many forces in one swoop, and tracing the thread to eradicate quite a few of the Coalition of Nations' evil forces that had infiltrated the Great Xia.
Unexpectedly, at this critical moment, the Wokou still had enough power to come and kidnap them.
"Clearly, some families of great clans have entangled interests with foreign forces, so they secretly acted to protect a batch of people."
Zi Liyuan felt somewhat relieved, glad that the Great Xia Empire had used the national exam as bait to destroy a large number of evil forces. Otherwise, those who attacked the airship to kidnap them would have definitely not been just these few people.
"This vendetta, I'll make a note of it. When I reach the peak of the Fourth Order, I'll settle these scores one by one!"
"I'll come with you at that time!"
While Shen Yurou felt covert hatred, it also made her even more eager to invent more powerful mechanical creatures.
"Senior, let's make a deal."
From the moment someone broke into the first-class cabin, Zi Liyuan had felt the gaze of the powerhouse in the sky. Now that the nuisance had been dealt with, he had no more precautions.
At that moment in the sky, the Holy Light Elder, wielding a Knight's sword, was chasing after the bridal ghost and four Green-Faced Ghosts, hacking away as if he were disciplining an unruly child.
"Want these five ghosts?"
A powerful voice rose by Zi Liyuan's ear.
"Five Fourth Order ghosts? Of course, I want them. How about I trade these five Spatial Backpacks for them?"
Pulling out five blood-veined evil packs, Zi Liyuan shared the properties of the bags with the elder.
"You have quite a few nice things, young fellow, but with your current spirit strength, you can't suppress Fourth Order ghosts, and you can't make a contract with them either,"
The old man's tone became somewhat mercenary, with a tang of greed.
"Could you help me out, elder, by sealing them first? I'll suppress and contract them when I get stronger,"
This old man deliberately avoided mentioning the possibility of contracting after sealing, and with his mercenary tone, it was clear he wanted to drive the price up.
"These five are Shikigami with masters, more ferocious than ordinary ghosts, and they could turn on their master at any time. I think it's better to forget about it."
As the elder spoke, the speed and strength of his Knight's sword hacking noticeably decreased, which allowed the five ghosts to start resisting, leading to some rather intimate and affectionate interactions with the elder.
Watching from below, Zi Liyuan was speechless; to highlight how ferocious the ghosts were, the elder was intentionally going easy on them.
Is it just because he wasn't satisfied with the price I offered earlier?
"I only have these five backpacks, what if I add five pieces of Level 20 silver hero equipment, would that do?"
Casually pulling out five pieces of silver equipment with not-so-great attributes, he shared the properties one by one.
"No wonder the Wokou decided to kidnap you, you have so many nice things on you. Alright, the old man will help you out and seal them with a Second Order seal."
The casual voice, when heard by Zi Liyuan, made him almost spit out his tea.
Damn it, you're using a Second Order seal on Fourth Order ghosts, are they not running away fast enough for you?
If you're not satisfied with the price, just say it, why beat around the bush!
"Elder, these are the last four pieces I have. I've put all the treasures I've collected here. I'm really squeezed dry this time, not a single piece left."
Zi Liyuan, with a look of deep suffering and a pained expression, once again took out four pieces of silver equipment, slightly better than the previous five.
"Alright, seeing as you're so sincere, the old man will help you this once."
No sooner had the elder spoken than his Knight's sword radiated a massive Power of Holy Light. The light between heaven and earth, drawn by the Holy Light, instantly formed five Holy Light Prisons, enclosing the five ghosts within.
"Holy Light Prison, seal!"
The huge Holy Light Prisons, under the elder's control, quickly shrank to the size of thumb-sized orbs. In just a few breaths, they turned into five luminescent beads, each with a dark shadow at its core.
"Young fellow, here's what you asked for."
The elder sealed the five ghosts in the blink of an eye, and in the next second, he appeared in front of Zi Liyuan.
"Thank you for your help, elder, this is a token of my appreciation."
Money exchanged hands, and Zi Liyuan quickly completed the transaction. Only after tossing the five luminescent beads into the Spatial Backpack did he breathe a sigh of relief.
This time, he had made a killing!