Cai Kun's expression suddenly became stern, and he quickly stepped forward, firmly protecting Ye Xuan behind him. His sharp gaze swept across the dark surroundings as he shouted sternly:
"Who dares to attack from the shadows! If you have the guts, show yourselves, don't hide in the dark!"
At the same time, Ye Xuan's Heavenly Human power spread out, covering the surrounding few miles. A cold glint flashed in his eyes as he said coldly:
"One Lingdan Realm, ten Spirit Transformation Realm, and one hundred Foundation Establishment Realm assassins. This scene is quite interesting. Even though I was demoted to this desolate You Province, there are still people who can't forget about taking my life."
Just then, a dense sound of air being torn, like countless falling leaves dancing in the wind, echoed as over a hundred black-robed assassins quickly surrounded Cai Kun and Ye Xuan.
One of them carried a huge crossbow on his back; the arrow that had just launched the sneak attack clearly came from his hand.
Cai Kun stared at the approaching enemies, his heart sinking as he inwardly groaned. Drawing the sharp sword from his waist, he whispered a message to Ye Xuan:
"Your Highness, these assassins are all above the Foundation Establishment Realm. The situation is critical. This subordinate will fight to the death to hold them back; Your Highness must seize the opportunity to hide in the carriage and quickly drive away from here!"
"No need."
Ye Xuan's expression was calm. He simply uttered these two words, then walked straight past Cai Kun, his gaze fixed directly on the black-clothed man carrying the crossbow.
He slowly spoke, "I am quite curious about your identities. Which force within the Imperial City holds such intense killing intent towards me?"
The black-clothed man was expressionless and ignored Ye Xuan's question. His cold voice was heard:
"The rumored Seventh Prince, ever since his cultivation was crippled, has been like a stray dog. However, upon seeing you today, your Aura seems completely different from the rumors."
"Unfortunately, no matter what, you won't be leaving here today. You are destined not to set foot in You Province. Today is your death day!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the black-clothed man lightly waved his right hand. Immediately, one Spirit Transformation Realm and ten Foundation Establishment Realm black-clothed individuals responded to the call. They all drew the sharp long knives from their waists and pounced towards Ye Xuan.
To them, hunting down a prince was undoubtedly a great thrill. Some even let out eerie "hehehe" laughter, appearing extremely excited.
"Presumptuous! If you want to touch Your Highness, you'll have to get past me first!" Cai Kun's eyes widened in fury, his spiritual energy surging around him. He roared and unhesitatingly charged towards the black-clothed assassins.
"Hehe! Stop your futile resistance. How could a mere mid-stage Spirit Transformation Realm Cultivator possibly stop us?"
The black-clothed man, who appeared thin but whose strength was not to be underestimated, being at the Late Stage of Spirit Transformation Realm, sneered repeatedly and mocked,
"You might as well save your energy and end your own life. It will spare you some unnecessary torture."
"Kill him!"
With the black-clothed man's command, in an instant, these black-clothed individuals rushed towards Cai Kun like hungry wolves, clearly intending to deal with Cai Kun first before brutally killing Ye Xuan.
But at this critical moment, snowflakes unexpectedly began to fall from the sky.
One should know that it was currently the transition between summer and autumn. How could snowflakes fall without reason at such a time? It was truly strange.
"Step! Step! Step! Step!"
Just as everyone was filled with doubt and hadn't yet recovered, a steady and powerful sound of footsteps came from far away and approached.
A man dressed in a white robe slowly appeared in everyone's line of sight.
He had sword-like eyebrows and cold eyes, his gaze was deep, and a stern Aura emanated from his body. He carried a long sword on his back, and his entire being seemed integrated with the sword, full of Sword Intent.
The moment the man appeared, the temperature of the entire space seemed to instantly drop to its extreme, and cold intent raged.
Frost even began to condense on the bodies of the black-clothed individuals with slightly weaker cultivation, and their bodies shivered uncontrollably.
"This... Aura is... it can actually change the power of heaven and earth!"
The black-clothed man carrying the crossbow widened his eyes, which were filled with terror. Even his pupils faintly showed cracks, and his voice trembled slightly, "Could it be... Heavenly Human power, a Heavenly... Heavenly Human Realm expert!"
"You are...!" Cai Kun tried his best to suppress the fear in his heart, seemingly seeing a ray of hope in this sudden powerful expert.
"Your Excellency, the person behind me is You Wang of the Great Night Dynasty. If Your Excellency can lend a hand to save us, we will certainly..."
However, before Cai Kun could finish speaking, Ye Xuan's calm voice leisurely drifted out: "Chui Xue, you've arrived!"
Upon hearing this, Ximen Chuixue immediately moved, arriving beside Ye Xuan in the blink of an eye. He then knelt on one knee, his face full of respect, and said loudly, "Your subordinate, Ximen Chuixue, greets Master!"
"You've worked hard on your journey! Chui Xue!" Ye Xuan had a gentle smile on his face and reached out to help Ximen Chuixue up.
"Master!!?"
Cai Kun, who was standing nearby, instantly froze. His head felt as if it had been severely struck by a heavy ball, leaving him dumbfounded.
He had been faithfully following Ye Xuan all along, yet he had never known that there was such a terrifyingly powerful expert hidden by Ye Xuan's side, who even recognized Ye Xuan as his Master. This was truly beyond his expectations.
Of course, the most shocked ones were the group of assassins.
At this moment, it felt like ten thousand 'grass-mud horses' were galloping through their hearts, and they were inwardly groaning incessantly.
What the heck!
A Heavenly Human Realm subordinate! In front of someone like that, aren't we just insignificant small fries? This is simply overestimating ourselves!
What's the difference between this and a mouse poking a cat's nest? We're purely tired of living!
Thinking of this, the black-clothed leader carrying the crossbow made a decisive decision and shouted loudly to his subordinates:
"The plan has changed, retreat immediately!"
After all, with a Heavenly Human Realm expert here, assassinating Ye Xuan was simply impossible.
At present, for them, being able to save their lives and leave alive was already an extremely luxurious hope, so they could only try their best to escape quickly.
"Your Highness, they are running away!" Cai Kun urgently pointed at the black-clothed figures scattering and fleeing, shouting loudly.
Ye Xuan let out a cold laugh, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.
Escape? Under his very eyes, how could that be possible?
"Chui Xue, leave one alive to question them about their origin, the rest - kill them all!" Ye Xuan gave the command in a cold tone.
"As you command!" Ximen Chuixue nodded, and his figure instantly shot up from the ground, as light as a falling leaf, suspending in mid-air.
He slowly raised his right palm, and then gently patted downwards. In an instant, the snowflakes that were originally falling in the air became even denser, fluttering down like goose feathers.
Those black-clothed individuals who were only focused on desperately running and attempting to escape this place, as long as a single snowflake touched them.
Except for the leader carrying the crossbow, all the others, without exception, were instantly enveloped by a layer of frost. Immediately after, their entire bodies shattered like fragile porcelain, breaking apart and turning into flying ash, completely dissipating between heaven and earth.
