CHAPTER 412: CHAPTER 207 DONGFANG XINGLAN_2

With her head lowered, her black hair cascaded like a waterfall, her eyes slightly drooping. Her small, oval face had soft contours, cheeks like fresh peaches, paired with long lashes, bright almond eyes, a delicate nose, and lips like pink petals, creating an ethereal beauty akin to a lotus emerging from water.

After binding her chest, she lightly patted it a few times, making sure the tightness wouldn’t affect her in battle, then lowered her hand.

She looked down again, and even though her chest was bound, it was still noticeable.

But she wasn’t depending solely on the binding to hide her gender.

She was just always dissatisfied with her fullness.

Why did they have to grow so big?

They’re completely unsuitable for combat.

With a "tsk," Xing Lan picked up the pristine garments from the bed, put them on piece by piece, tied the belt, and fastened her hair with a jade crown, lifting her head to face her reflection, revealing a resolute spirit tempered with an ethereal beauty.

After throwing yesterday’s old clothes into the fire, she took a phoenix-shaped jade pendant from her Qiankun Bag and hung it on her belt. Her true appearance, her stature seemed to be enveloped in an invisible mist, leaving only the spirited vitality.

Xing Lan looked down again, and the once noticeable chest now appeared flat in her visual perception.

’It’d be nice if it were naturally this small...’

She thought silently, raising her hand as she stepped out of the barrier’s range.

She walked forward for dozens of steps, before lighting three incense sticks for the stone statue and covering it again with a white cloth.

As she was tidying a corner of the white cloth, she suddenly heard an earth-shattering "boom" outside the cave, and with her acute hearing, she caught a faint "Xing..." sound.

As if recalled something, Xing Lan’s expression changed slightly, swiftly moving towards the outside.

The hem of the brocade robe fluttered, the two slender and long legs beneath the silk pants showcased powerful movements and graceful, rhythmic muscles as she sprinted, all indicating the explosive strength akin to that of a panther hidden beneath her delicate body.

······

Under the ancient forest trees, blood stained the trunks, a corpse floated on the lake beneath the waterfall, and a body with its head buried in the ground had already stiffened at the shore.

In the soft soil, Lu Jin’an clutched the cheek of the woman in the python robe with his right hand, slightly lifting her off the ground.

Calculating the time in his mind, his gaze lowered slightly, and he suddenly exerted force with his fingers.

Crack—

Amidst the slight sound of a skull cracking, Xing Lan flew out from the waterfall, urgently shouting: "Stop!"

Lu Jin’an stepped back with his force, but did not let go of the woman in the python robe whose expression twisted with pain.

Seeing Lu Jin’an halt his actions, Xing Lan sighed in relief, casting her gaze over the three corpses present, recognizing them as guards from the Hall Front Department from their attire.

There should be a ’Mute Guard’ from the Left Guard accompanying as well...

Xing Lan’s expression remained calm as she looked at Lu Jin’an’s back and asked: "Did you kill them all?"

"They made the first move." Lu Jin’an turned to look at Xing Lan, chuckling lightly: "I think these people probably knew you, but trying to kill me without a word is over the line. I thought they were enemies."

His tone was relaxed: "I assumed they came to assassinate you, so I exerted full force by your standard, not expecting such a disparity in power between you..."

So I accidentally killed them all."

Listening to Lu Jin’an’s words, Xing Lan twitched the corner of her mouth... this man was completely speaking without blinking.

The qi and blood from body refining, along with the use of vigorous force, made judging strength easy, and she didn’t believe for a second this guy named Lu An couldn’t see the strength of these guards.

Then why was he making up these excuses?

Xing Lan couldn’t figure it out and simply advised: "Put her down first."

"She tried to kill me." Lu Jin’an said flatly: "Just upon meeting, she ordered her men to kill me, and you ask me to spare her?"

"She is a Prince of the Eastern Dynasty."

"I know." Lu Jin’an turned the woman in the python robe to face Xing Lan: "Her men just mentioned it, so being a prince, there’d be endless troubles if we don’t kill and destroy the body.

Do you want the Eastern Dynasty’s Emperor to issue a pursuit order against you?"

He discreetly observed Xing Lan’s expression, awaiting her response.

The reason he was so lethal was not just because the opponents attacked first, but also to test Xing Lan’s identity.

By killing these guards, precisely timing Xing Lan’s arrival to save this prince, he could infer her background from Xing Lan’s attitude and reaction towards the Eastern Dynasty’s prince.

Xing Lan’s attitude towards the Eastern Royal Family... this was crucial.

Lu Jin’an needed a guide to the Eastern Dynasty, whose status wasn’t too low, but not too high either.

Too low wouldn’t be useful, too high risked exposure.

"They won’t." Xing Lan looked at Lu Jin’an: "She wouldn’t dare."

"And what makes you so sure?" Lu Jin’an slightly relaxed his grip on the python robe woman’s cheeks: "I’m thinking kill her..."

"I, I’m her Imperial Sister..."

Hearing the woman in his grasp speak out anxiously, Lu Jin’an’s eyes twinkled with amusement, yet he remained as expressionless as ever while looking at Xing Lan...

Perhaps she should now be called Dongfang Xinglan.

A cross-dressing princess, combined with the abilities she’s shown... her status within the Eastern Dynasty was somewhat high.

To use divine soul control methods?

Lu Jin’an quickly pondered, then dismissed the thought, realizing he had little knowledge of the Eastern Dynasty’s internals, especially if it were an experimental ground under Hidden Life Mountain’s control, risking discovery through divine soul manipulation.