"Watch out!"
Mu Qihan's soft shout rang in her ear. When Nan Chaoyu came to her senses, she was already in his arms.
"Are you hurt?"
Familiarity breeds ease. Having had the experience in the secret realm, Nan Chaoyu didn't react as strongly as before when she was held in his arms this time.
Suppressing her urge to take advantage, she wriggled out of Mu Qihan's arms. Then she calmly said to the crowd, "Everyone, the barrier has been lifted. Go back and guard your own gates. The people outside the city are all safe. You can leave now!"
Seeing the barrier lifted, the crowd blushed a little, recalling their self - assertive actions just now. They wanted to express their concern for Nan Chaoyu, but then they thought of the state of the Xie father and son.
They also knew that a battle of this level was beyond their reach. After thanking Nan Chaoyu one by one, they left.
"Mr. Mu, this is an internal matter of Dream Sea City. Please go to my manor in the city. I'll entertain you after I've dealt with the Xie family."
Nan Chaoyu didn't want Mu Qihan to get involved in the danger, but she also didn't want to let him go just like that.
How could Mu Qihan not understand her thoughts? His face darkened. "Your Highness the princess is just using me and then discarding me?"
"..." Nan Chaoyu's face froze. What kind of bold words were these?
"Or does the princess look down on this young master's ability?"
"No, I..."
"Oh~ So the princess is just using me and then discarding me!"
"… Bang!"
Li Yuejin, who rushed in from the main gate of the Xie Mansion, stumbled over a small stone when he heard Mu Qihan's words.
When he got up, he saw Nan Chaoyu and Mu Qihan both looking at him.
Li Yuejin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and suddenly felt that he seemed to have discovered something extraordinary.
Given Nan Chaoyu's status as the Holy Light Grand Princess, it was not surprising for her to take a fancy to a few men. Even though Mu Qihan was the young master of Wuxiang City, he might be a bit unqualified to be the princess's consort, but he was more than qualified to be a male favorite.
He just didn't expect the princess to be so heartless as to use someone and then discard them.
Seeing Li Yuejin's expression, Nan Chaoyu knew he had the wrong idea. She glared at him fiercely. "What are you thinking about? Mr. Mu just broke the Xie family's barrier."
"Oh~ Mr. Mu is young and promising. This city lord would like to thank Mr. Mu on behalf of Dream Sea City for his help. After this matter is over, this city lord must hold a banquet to thank Mr. Mu. I hope Mr. Mu will give me the honor to attend."
Nan Chaoyu rolled her eyes. This Second Master Li clearly wanted to watch her make a fool of herself but still said it so righteously. She almost believed him.
However, Mu Qihan showed no emotion on his face. He nodded reservedly. "City Lord Li, you praise me too much. It was Her Highness the princess who turned the tide. I just helped a little. I really don't deserve such praise from the city lord. But since the city lord has specially prepared a banquet for me, I will surely pay a visit in person."
Hearing Mu Qihan's words, two words flashed through Nan Chaoyu's mind:
Hypocrisy!
He didn't even show up at the banquet in the city lord's mansion last time. Now he was being so humble. He was so hypocritical.
While talking to Li Yuejin, Mu Qihan kept an eye on Nan Chaoyu from the corner of his eye. Seeing the expression on her face, he could roughly guess what was on this girl's mind.
He couldn't help but let out a soft snort. Didn't she realize that he was doing this for her sake?
As this thought flashed through his mind, Mu Qihan suddenly stiffened, and his face looked a bit bad.
He was sure that this thought didn't come from that inexplicable subconscious but from his own feelings.
Nan Chaoyu couldn't stand the two of them complimenting each other. She said directly, "Second Master Li, do you know if the Xie family has any secret passages or other villas? The Xie father and son have captured someone and left. I'm afraid they still have some tricks up their sleeves."
Li Yuejin knew this was a serious matter. He quickly straightened his attitude and thought for a while. "There is a forbidden area in the back yard of the Xie family. It is said to be the yard of Xie Cheng's wife. Even Xie Zhenlan has never been in there."
"Then I'll go and check it out first."
With that, she turned around and rushed towards the back yard of the Xie family.
Seeing her actions, Mu Qihan knew that her words about asking him to go back first were not just polite. She really wanted to leave him behind. His face immediately darkened.
He followed silently.
Nan Chaoyu stood on the tallest library building in the Xie Mansion, overlooking the whole place, but she couldn't find the area Li Yuejin had mentioned.
Frowning, she called out Long Yi.
"Long Yi, Long Yi, can you sense where the old man Xie is?"
Since Long Yi said he could break the barrier just now, Nan Chaoyu knew that this dragon was not completely passive. Now that he didn't need to break the barrier, finding a person should be okay.
"Little girl, you've got a lot of nerve! You're treating this master like a dog."
Long Yi was so angry that he jumped up. He, the majestic patriarch of the dragon clan, an old dragon who had lived for millions of years, was being treated like a dog by a little girl. He just couldn't bear it!
Nan Chaoyu curled her lips. "You probably don't know!"
"Who says I don't know? It's in the yard to your left - front!"
"It's there!"
At the same time, Mu Qihan appeared beside Nan Chaoyu and pointed to the yard to their left - front.
"This stinky kid."
Long Yi didn't expect that there would be someone who knew the same thing as him. His impression of Mu Qihan became even worse.
Nan Chaoyu ignored Long Yi's outburst. She looked at Mu Qihan. "Why didn't you leave?"
Mu Qihan gave her a cold look. "Do you think I'm the kind of person who would escape at a critical moment?"
For some reason, Nan Chaoyu felt that Mu Qihan was concerned about her.
Thinking this way, her face looked a bit better. "Stay behind me later."
Saying that, she stepped forward and blocked Mu Qihan behind her. She gathered spiritual energy in her Xuan Bing Sword and slashed towards the yard.
With a "click" sound, something above the yard seemed to shatter, revealing the people inside.
Old Master Xie was sitting upright in the yard. The terrifying aura around him was gone. He looked just like an ordinary old man in his twilight years.
Looking up and seeing the two of them, there was even a hint of a smile on his face. "You've come!"
The two landed in the yard. Nan Chaoyu's gaze swept over Old Master Xie. She couldn't believe it. "You've actually lost all your cultivation?"
Old Master Xie didn't answer. His eyes passed over Nan Chaoyu, paused on Mu Qihan for a moment, and then returned to Nan Chaoyu. "Your Highness the princess has a new lover so soon. Do you still remember that you have an engagement with our Xie family?"
Nan Chaoyu didn't expect Old Master Xie to bring this up. She paused for a moment and then replied, "Xie Haotian publicly annulled the engagement and chose Mu Miaomiao. Don't tell me your Xie family doesn't know about this."
The smile on Old Master Xie's face deepened. "The princess may not know that your engagement with our Xie family was personally arranged by the queen. There is a marriage certificate and a token. Haotian's childish words don't count."
"This engagement is still valid."