"Hahaha, so Mr. Tantai is rushing to Lu’an City to become a snack for the Exotic Beasts, then you better clean yourself up so they can enjoy their meal." Zirong laughed heartily.

"In ancient times, a great Saint mercifully fed his flesh to an eagle, and now we have Mr. Tantai sacrificing himself to feed the beasts, worried he couldn’t satisfy them alone so he’s bringing a huge crowd along. Admirable, truly admirable." Huayue maintained his cool facade, but his eyes were filled with admiration.

Mu Hanyan and the others were all shocked as they looked at Huayue. This guy actually learned to be sarcastic, and with such long-lasting flavor, rare indeed.

"Didn’t you say being sullen wasn’t good?" Huayue felt weird being watched by them and explained himself.

"Han Yan wasn’t wrong, being sullen indeed isn’t good, it wastes talent. No wonder people say hidden pettiness is easy to dodge, blatant sass is hard to avoid, turns out they were right." Zirong looked at Huayue, saying admiringly.

"Who said hidden pettiness is easy to dodge, you’re so petty, completely merged with it, not that easy to dodge, huh." Jiang Yuzhe exclaimed seriously as he munched on a meat bun he pulled out from somewhere.

"Jiang Yuzhe, itching for a beating again, are we?" Zirong suddenly became furious.

Seeing them start with a tirade of sarcasm towards him and then turned to bickering, completely ignoring him, Tantai Xuan was so angered his face turned ashen.

Initially, he was just casually taunting Mu Hanyan, but who knew she’d seize the opportunity for cold sarcasm, and these sharp-tongued fellows were merciless with words. The most infuriating was, they mocked him and then tossed him aside like nothing, treating him as non-existent.

As a Steward of the Holy Court’s Outer Court, he was flattered and sought after as soon as he arrived in Anyun Country, even His Majesty treated him courteously. The Young Masters of these families followed his every command, yet Mu Hanyan showed him no respect whatsoever, not just her, even the guards dared to disdain him.

If it weren’t for knowing Huayue and the others’ prowess, he would have drawn his sword on the spot to teach them a lesson, but recalling the scenes of them fiercely beating the Iron-Backed Saber-Toothed Tiger and other Exotic Beasts, he reluctantly bore it.

"Mu Hanyan, let’s wait and see, you will beg me eventually." Tantai Xuan spat a threat, and with over a thousand young masters of wealthy families, he turned and left. Well... to be more precise, it was more like fleeing in defeat.

"Let’s head out too." Mu Hanyan certainly didn’t take Tantai Xuan’s words to heart, waved her hand, and led the group towards Lu’an City at full speed.

Originally, Mu Hanyan intended to bid farewell to the folks at Huilong Rock Academy, but having heard that Gong Hongru and Nangong Jingyuan and others went to the Longyan Mountain with her grandfather, and other Hall Masters mostly went along too, she dropped the idea and directly headed for Lu’an City.

Yunjing City is the heart of Anyun, with convenient transportation and accessibility, while Lu’an City is a vital border town of Anyun, enriched by the Longyan Mountains’ resources, bustling with commerce since ancient times, thriving and prosperous. So there are multiple routes from the Capital to Lu’an City. Shortly after exiting the city, no trace of Tantai Xuan’s procession was visible, apparently taking another path.

Mu Hanyan originally didn’t want to get involved with Tantai Xuan’s group, so she paid no mind to it.

She was unworried, but someone beside her was frowning.

"Young Master, although Tantai Xuan is a bit arrogant, he still possesses some strength, and their contingent is large and formidable, we should really not antagonize them." Mu Chengqi knew Mu Hanyan’s standing in the eyes of the He Family Ancestor and Elder Zhang, and seeing Yan Yuchu obediently listening to her, he didn’t dare to disrespect as he did before, but still advised with a somewhat blaming tone.

"They’re unreliable anyway, why bother with courtesy?" Mu Hanyan responded indifferently.

"Young Master, what do you mean by that? Their group numbers over fifteen hundred, thrice our number, and are mostly Sword Masters or above; if we genuinely compare, some of our members’ strengths might not even match theirs. If we encounter danger, how dare you ask for their help?" Mu Chengqi, seeing Mu Hanyan didn’t take him seriously, grew angry, his tone losing its previous politeness.

He is from the Mu Family’s branch in Nanyu City, the young master, and due to his extraordinary aptitude, he was highly valued by family elders since young. His words are not to be taken lightly even by his grandfather, the head of the branch. Yet Mu Hanyan paid him no mind, treating his words as wind blowing past her ear, which was intolerable for the prideful young Chengqi.

While speaking, he even cast a disdainful glance at the Zhang Family members.

Mu Hanyan’s face darkened, Mu Chengqi saying some people’s strength can’t match others was clearly referring to the Zhang Family members. This time, venturing to Lu’an City, the Zhang Family went all in, bringing every capable fighter they could, but compared to other families, their power was still a bit lacking. Of these fifty odd members, about twenty reached Sword Master and seven or eight reached Great Swordsman, while the rest were Eighth Rank Swordsman or Ninth Rank.

Mu Chengqi claiming their strength is lacking is a fact, but he forgot one thing: the Zhang Family went all out to support the Mu Family, more precisely, to support Mu Hanyan, taking a huge gamble. For the Zhang Family, this is an all-or-nothing bet. Even if other families fail, they’d merely slip in status among the Eight Great Families. Still, even if expelled from the Eight Great Families, they’d remain wealthy in the Capital. But if something happens to these young Zhang Family juniors, the family risks extinction.

The Zhang Family has placed their full trust in her, staking all their hopes on her, Mu Hanyan would never allow the slightest contempt for them, nor tolerate any disdain.

"Moreover, this trip to Lu’an City is fraught with danger, burdened with family responsibilities, barely ensuring our own safety, yet you bring along a burden." Mu Chengqi seemingly hadn’t noticed Mu Hanyan’s expression and continued speaking, appearing to have reached a breaking point, his words unrestrained.

Hearing him speak, other branch members glanced toward the carriage at the back of the convoy. Initially, they suspected Mu Hanyan took the carriage for comfort, indulging in her playboy tendencies. However, they later discovered it housed her friend, someone in deep sleep.

Though the Red Charcoal Cloud Smoke Beasts Mu Hanyan brought back from Shangyue are remarkably majestic, and carrying a carriage posed no hindrance, they still harbored criticism, albeit unspoken unlike Mu Chengqi.

But what they didn’t know was, the young girl presumed to be a burden in deep sleep would soon amaze them and make them deeply grateful. But that is a story for another time.

Hearing him bring up Ye Yanran, Mu Hanyan’s expression grew uglier.

Remembering Ye Yanran saved her twice, Mu Hanyan already regarded her as her closest friend, naturally choosing not to leave her in the Capital. With the masters from the Zong Family going off to the Longyan Mountains, she couldn’t assure Ye Yanran’s safety if left behind. Keeping her close was safer in Mu Hanyan’s mind, yet this decision drew Mu Chengqi’s criticism.

"Chengqi, show respect to the Young Master!" Seeing Mu Hanyan’s unhappy expression, Mu Renda frowned, reprimanding sharply.

"If she truly prioritizes the Mu Family’s interests, I wouldn’t disrespect her, but she clearly ignores the situation, and disregards our lives." Having already come this far, Mu Chengqi even retorted back to Mu Renda.

Before Mu Hanyan could react, "Shut up!" A stern shout rang from nearby, a young man caught up with the group unnoticed, glaring at Mu Chengqi with murderous intent.

Mu Chengxuan! Mu Hanyan was surprised at the newcomer, it was Mu Chengxuan, whom she had clashed with upon returning to the Mu Family, whom she defeated.

Compared to Mu Hanyan’s swift rise at Long Yan Academy’s recruitment and her dazzling performance at the freshman competition, Mu Chengxuan experienced consecutive setbacks, gradually forgotten, the two had no further interactions.

Was he standing up for her?