Changying Prefecture City.

Inside the largest, most famous brothel in the eastern part of the city.

In a spacious, brightly lit private room on the fifth floor.

"First Young Master, we’ve just received news. Gu Zheng has broken through to the Heroic Body Realm!"

A young man in tight-fitting black clothes strode in from outside the private room, came to Zhong Tianhu’s side, and spoke in a low voice.

"He broke through to the Heroic Body Realm?"

Zhong Tianhu had been leaning back lazily, relishing the sight of the dancers performing on tightropes outside the window. At these words, he sat up straight, his expression turning grave. "What kind of treasure did that Gu fellow get his hands on to break through to the Heroic Body Realm so quickly?"

"The Celestial Yin Fruit, supposedly."

The black-clad youth replied, "Gu Zheng lured away a third-rank Silver Bone, entered a passage, and ran into the Storm Bone Demon Fiend’s territory. By a stroke of luck, he found the Celestial Yin Fruit. After consuming it, he broke through to the Heroic Body Realm and killed the third-rank Silver Bone that was chasing him, as well as the third-rank Storm Bone Demon Fiend that had been injured by Ji Tianping and fled back to its lair."

"That son of a bitch is so damn lucky!"

Zhong Tianhu’s face was filled with unconcealed jealousy and hatred. "To think he could get his hands on a Treasure Medicine like the Celestial Yin Fruit... breaking through to the Heroic Body Realm just like that. Why can’t he just go and die?"

The black-clad youth remained silent.

Inside the private room, another man in his thirties, who was holding a teacup and sipping from it gently, also said nothing.

"Heh, I almost forgot. That bastard really can’t die right now."

Recalling something, Zhong Tianhu’s smile returned, cold and sinister. "If the bastard dies, wouldn’t that be exactly what that bitch Liu Ying wants? Breaking through to the Heroic Body Realm is a good thing. A very good thing. Now it won’t be so easy for Liu Ying to kill the bastard."

"Go. Keep a close eye on Liu Ying’s movements for me. And pass a message to the bastard to... provoke him a little..."

"Yes, provoke the bastard!"

Zhong Tianhu clapped his hands, stood up, and began to pace as he thought. "Find a way to lead Liu Ying’s lackeys to go after the bastard’s family! I remember his family is in Qingshi County in Nanyun Prefecture, right?"

"Yes, First Young Master." The black-clad youth nodded.

"Lure Liu Ying’s lackeys into killing the bastard’s family, then tell the bastard the news!"

Zhong Tianhu sneered. "The bastard is in the Heroic Body Realm now. If he finds out his family was slaughtered by that bitch Liu Ying, I refuse to believe he won’t go berserk! When the bastard goes berserk and goes after Liu Ying to settle the score... heheh, now that will be a good show to watch!"

"Yes, sir!"

The black-clad youth bowed, backed out of the room, and closed the door behind him.

"That’s quite a move you’ve come up with."

The man who had been drinking tea set down his cup at the opportune moment and said with a faint smile, "Pitting Gu Zheng and Liu Ying against each other... Gu Zheng has Meng Taiqi and Xie Bisheng behind him, so he’s not at a disadvantage compared to Liu Ying. In the end, no matter who wins or loses, they’ll both suffer heavy losses!"

"Hahaha..."

Zhong Tianhu laughed smugly. "Of course. As long as I can cause trouble for Liu Ying, it’s a victory. Besides, the bastard’s strength is nothing to scoff at now!"

"Then let’s just wait for the show to begin."

...

...

The wilderness.

At the foot of a mountain.

"Alright, talk. What’s the situation with Zhong Tianhu?"

Gu Zheng spoke calmly, his hands clasped behind his back. "Why was he so kind as to have you pass on a message, telling me that Liu Ying wants to kill me?"

"Reporting to Master, Zhong Tianhu and Liu Ying are enemies. The title of Crown Prince, which belongs to Zhong Tianlang, was originally meant for Zhong Tianhu."

Zhou Chengbing stood ramrod straight and answered respectfully, "He passed the message to you, Master, because he wants you and Liu Ying to fight. No matter who wins in the end, Zhong Tianhu will be the victor."

"That makes more sense."

Gu Zheng said calmly.

Zhong Tianhu secretly passing him a message seemed strange no matter how he looked at it.

To get to the bottom of it, Gu Zheng had directly implanted a Nether Heart Slave Seal into Zhou Chengbing, turning the Demon Slayer Bureau Commander into his Seal Slave.

Now, he was respectful and obedient, saying whatever he knew.

"Based on what you know of Zhong Tianhu, if the assassin Liu Ying hired fails to kill me, does he have any follow-up plans?"

Gu Zheng asked, "For example, going after my family and framing Liu Ying for it?"

"He will!"

Zhou Chengbing said with certainty, "Zhong Tianhu is a sinister person. It’s precisely because of this that Zhong Zhengtang dislikes him. If you survive the assassin’s attack, Master, given Zhong Tianhu’s viciousness, he will absolutely go after your family!"

"..."

Gu Zheng was silent for a long moment before saying coldly, "These noble youths... they truly are calculating."

THUD~

Zhou Chengbing dropped to his knees and declared loudly, "This subordinate is willing to die for you, Master! I will sneak close to Zhong Tianhu and kill him!"

"Can you even kill him?" Gu Zheng glanced at him.

Er...

Zhou Chengbing’s face flushed red with embarrassment. "Zhong Tianhu is in the Super Body Realm. In a direct confrontation, this subordinate is no match for him. But I could try to poison him secretly."

"That would require the right opportunity and would take too long. I can’t wait that long."

Gu Zheng said calmly, "Since Zhong Tianhu knows Liu Ying hired an assassin, does he know what kind of assassin she would hire?"

At the same time, he used his Mind-Spirit Sensing to send a message to Fu Changying, telling him to hurry over.

"It’s likely one of the Assassin Families."

Zhou Chengbing answered, "Master, you were already a Super Body·Radiant before. Anyone who can kill you would have to be a Super Body as well. And among those who would dare to try, besides undercover agents from other countries, there are only the three great Assassin Families!"

"Assassin Families?" Gu Zheng’s eyebrows shot up. "Noble Families that specialize in assassination?"

"Yes."

Zhou Chengbing replied respectfully, "Among the Noble Families, there are three that specialize in the assassination trade. No matter who the target is, as long as the client can pay the price, they will dare to kill."

"Which three, specifically?" Gu Zheng pressed.

"The three families are the Jia Family, the Xiang Family, and the Beiming Family."

Zhou Chengbing answered, proceeding to describe the characteristics and specialties of each of the three Assassin Families.

Finally, he requested, "This subordinate is willing to go to Master’s hometown to protect your family."

"That’s already been taken care of."

Gu Zheng raised a hand. "You go back first and wait for my instructions. Just inform me immediately if you learn anything new about Zhong Tianhu."

"Yes, sir!"

Zhou Chengbing replied, sighing internally.

He had wanted to go to Qingshi County to protect the Gu family and increase his own value.

He hadn’t expected someone to have beaten him to it.

...

Zhou Chengbing left.

Fu Changying arrived shortly after.

"Greetings, Master!"

As soon as he arrived, Fu Changying knelt in salute.

"Your chance has come."

Gu Zheng waved his hand for Fu Changying to rise, saying, "Zhong Tianhu, the son of the King of Lie Mountain. Later, you will go with someone else to kill him."

"Yes, Master!"

Fu Changying didn’t ask why, simply rising and acknowledging the order.

"Come, let’s go meet someone."

Gu Zheng continued as they walked, "After we leave the mountains, you hide yourself first. Wait until I’ve met the person, then you can show yourself."

"Understood!" Fu Changying said respectfully.

’Meet someone?’

He was, of course, going to lure the assassin out!

An assassin would have to be hired in advance. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Which meant they were hired before Gu Zheng broke through to the Heroic Body Realm.

Therefore, the assassin who was hired posed a limited threat to him now.

Gu Zheng didn’t mind luring him out personally.

Of course, a Noble Family that specialized in assassination would naturally have its own special skills.

The necessary vigilance and precautions were still essential.

Once the assassin revealed themselves, things would be on Gu Zheng’s terms.

Gu Zheng still had two spare Nether Heart Slave Seals, after all.

He would use a Slave Seal on the assassin and then have him and Fu Changying go kill Zhong Tianhu together.

This Prince’s son wanted Gu Zheng and Liu Ying to fight each other.

In that case, Gu Zheng would make his mother and Liu Ying tear each other apart!

Zhong Tianhu’s mother was also a Princess Consort.

She was on the same level as Liu Ying!

She also had a Noble Family backing her.

The assassin hired by Liu Ying, working together with Fu Changying, kills Zhong Tianhu.

Zhong Tianhu’s mother would definitely go crazy!

With the two Princess Consorts fighting, Zhong Zhengtang would have his hands full!

...

Things went very smoothly.

Gu Zheng went into the county town, sat in a restaurant for a while, and successfully baited the assassin who wanted to kill him.

Jia Shisan!

From the Jia Family of the Half-demon Lineage, specializing in Invisibility and poison.

His poison gas was silent, undetectable, and could even be used for tracking.

While using Invisibility, he couldn’t be detected by a Shadow unless he was within one meter.

But one sweep of Gu Zheng’s Eyes of Golden Flame revealed him instantly.

However, he pretended not to see him, luring his opponent out of the city and into the wilderness before the assassin released his poison gas.

Then, the Great Sun Golden Silkworm leaped out and devoured all the poison gas.

By the time Jia Shisan realized what was happening and tried to escape, it was already too late.

Gu Zheng unleashed the pressure of his Heroic Body, stunning his opponent and completing the implantation of the Nether Heart Slave Seal.

...

"Greetings, Master!"

In the wilderness, at the base of a small hill, Jia Shisan prostrated himself on the ground, saluting respectfully.

"Rise."

Gu Zheng spoke calmly, then called out to Fu Changying, "You can come out now, too."

WHOOSH~

A strong wind blew.

Fu Changying swiftly appeared, stopping in front of Gu Zheng and saluting. "Greetings, Master!"

Hearing this, Jia Shisan looked up at Fu Changying.

"Introduce yourselves." Gu Zheng gestured for the two to get acquainted.

"Kang Country, Sky-Splitting Dragon Hammer, Fu Changying."

"Ghost Shadow Demon Lizard, Jia Shisan!"

Fu Changying and Jia Shisan exchanged salutes.

"Jia Shisan, you are to assist Fu Changying in going to Changying Prefecture City to kill Zhong Tianhu. Any problems?"

Gu Zheng asked, "What I mean is, does this violate any of your Jia Family’s assassination rules? For instance, not being able to change targets mid-mission?"

"As long as this subordinate doesn’t personally strike the killing blow, there is no problem," Jia Shisan replied respectfully.

"Excellent."

Gu Zheng nodded. "You just need to provide support. Then, make a brief appearance. Fu Changying will be the one to act."

"Fu Changying, I want Zhong Tianhu to die in public, preferably on a main street!"

Gu Zheng ordered coldly, "After you kill him, return to Kang Country immediately. The head of the King of Lie Mountain’s son should be enough for you to get a promotion when you get back, right?"

"It is enough!"

Fu Changying saluted respectfully, his voice filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Master!"

It was more than enough. It was far more than enough.

As the son of the White Elephant King, his identity was respectable, but his status was very low.

Zhong Tianhu was different; he was about to become the Crown Prince.

By taking Zhong Tianhu’s head, Fu Changying would have earned enough merit to be promoted immediately upon his return. He would ascend to a high position, one with real power.

Planting undercover agents among the Eight Great Vassal Kings was a top-level decision made by the Sovereign and the Elder Council.

As long as one rendered meritorious service, regardless of their background, they would be promoted upon their return.

No matter how much the White Elephant King disliked Fu Changying, he would have to swallow his pride!

...

"Then go."

Gu Zheng raised his hand. "Remember, don’t touch anyone else in the King of Lie Mountain’s Mansion. Just kill Zhong Tianhu."

"Understood!"

"Yes, Master!"

Fu Changying and Jia Shisan responded in unison.

Then, the two of them took their leave and departed for Changying Prefecture City.

’Two Princess Consorts tearing each other apart... it should be quite a show, right?’