The thunderous sound of hooves echoed in the distance, bearing down upon them. It seemed their assassination attempt here had finally drawn attention.

After a moment, the masked man leading the black-clad group’s eyes turned icy. With a flick of his hand, he drew his sword and charged once more toward Princess Lingmeng! If you remain silent, he thought, I will act again. If you intervene, we retreat immediately! If you do not, Lingmeng is dead! Our mission will still be accomplished!

Yet, as he advanced, he meticulously skirted the throwing knife lying on the ground, daring not to touch it. Who knew what strange temper this powerful figure possessed? Perhaps touching that knife alone would invite instant death!

Suddenly, a flash of azure erupted in mid-air again. Another throwing knife, gleaming with a watery blue hue, swished as it embedded itself directly in front of the black-clad man! This second throw was clearly much faster, a clear indication that the mysterious expert was growing somewhat annoyed by the Golden Profound assassin’s impudence!

The two throwing knives stood embedded side-by-side in the earth, trembling slightly. Tiny and exquisite, they resembled priceless works of art, seemingly fragile enough to shatter with a breath, yet these two small blades had transformed into an insurmountable mountain between the nine assassins and Princess Lingmeng!

A mountain they could not possibly cross!

To attempt to scale it meant utter self-destruction!

Now, if they were still determined to kill Lingmeng, they would first have to dispatch the one throwing the knives! But that individual… was clearly a peak Heaven Profound expert! Setting aside killing him, even if all nine assassins struck together, they would likely be wiped out in the blink of an eye.

This time, the Heaven Profound master hidden on the rooftop activated his entire spiritual sense, closing his eyes in devout concentration, determined not to miss the slightest flicker of any powerful divine sense nearby. Under such thorough sensory searching, he was confident he could instantly detect even an expert at the peak of Heaven Profound or the early stages of Supreme Divine Profound.

But…

After a complete sweep of his spiritual sense, the Heaven Profound master’s eyes snapped open in horror. Sweat beaded instantly on his forehead, and the shock in his eyes reached a terrifying level!

Who on earth is helping Princess Lingmeng? the Heaven Profound master wondered, but he dared not probe the aura of that inscrutable, mysterious master any further. For in his diligent effort to search with his divine sense, he had detected absolutely nothing! There was no fluctuation of Profound Qi in the air, not even the slightest trace, not a whisper, of divine sense activity. The person who acted had managed to conceal even those elements!!!

What did this imply?!

What level of cultivation did this demand?! At least according to this Heaven Profound expert’s understanding, not only was he utterly incapable of achieving it, but even a peak Heaven Profound master, perhaps even one at the mid-stage of Supreme Divine Profound, might not manage it!

Could it be… that this mysterious master had reached such a staggering level of attainment? Could he possibly be a peak Supreme Divine Profound expert?! If so, that would make him an invincible figure! A character belonging purely to myth and legend!!

Good heavens above!!

The thought that his own "meager early-stage Heaven Profound" self had presumptuously attempted to probe such an immensely powerful being made the Heaven Profound expert break out in a cold sweat! Though he could not perceive the other party, such a godlike existence must surely have already detected him! If that individual had unleashed his divine sense just now to meet the probing sense head-on, shattering all his thoughts would have been trivially easy. In that case, without a doubt, he would already be an imbecile!

Fear, awe—how long had it been since he last felt such sensations?

But in this moment…

The Heaven Profound master felt a genuine chill of retroactive terror, and his eyes shone with gratitude. He silently bowed toward the empty air, his demeanor utterly respectful, like a descendant meeting the founder of his lineage. He knew the other party could surely sense him and see him.

Little did he know that the being he had elevated in his mind to the level of a peak Supreme Divine Profound expert was currently sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, not moving an inch. As for failing to perceive any "powerful" divine sense, that was perfectly understandable… This current "peak Supreme Divine Profound expert," resembling a dead dog, possessed Profound Qi and divine sense weaker than that of a Silver-grade Profound Practitioner, making him truly insignificant. The Heaven Profound master had detected something, but his mind had simply dismissed it as too weak to register… it was simply too faint…

Of course, the reason this "peak Supreme Divine Profound expert" chose to use Heaven Profound level cultivation to deter the assassins was easily explained. At the level of Supreme Divine Profound, Profound Qi light returns to its original simplicity, becoming completely concealed and colorless. If he had attacked with his true strength, those assassins might have been too dense to recognize its significance, which would hardly be ideal. That would necessitate a personal intervention, but crushing those few ants would be far beneath his dignity. However, the azure-blue color of a peak Heaven Profound display, Bìlán Hǎitiān, was precisely the highest level of external manifestation achievable by Profound Qi’s brilliance—even an ordinary person who hadn't studied Profound Qi could recognize it immediately!

From this, it could be seen that this senior was incredibly meticulous and compassionate; his intentions were truly… profoundly selfless.

The Heaven Profound master sighed, filled with sincere admiration. It was no wonder the man had reached such sublime heights; judging by his temperament and state of mind alone, he was immeasurably superior to the admirer. A true supreme master!

If the thoughts of the "peak Supreme Divine Profound expert" Jun Xie, currently sprawled on the ground, were to reach the Heaven Profound master, he would likely choke on his own blood from sheer amusement. You overestimate me too much…

Down at the street corner, the leading black-clad assassin’s eyes burned with intense unwillingness. His expression flickered several times before he finally looked up and called out, "Since the senior does not permit us juniors to run rampant, we shall take our leave now!" He waited a moment, receiving no response, realizing the Heaven Profound master had no intention of showing himself, and the sound of approaching hooves was nearing the corner. Finally sighing, he waved a hand: "Retreat!"

All nine black-clad figures stepped back simultaneously. With flashes of gold and silver light, they prepared to leap into the air and escape, when a cold voice cut through: "You’ve killed so many people, and you think a mere word will let you walk away? That seems a bit too easy, doesn't it?"

With those words, a figure in blue suddenly materialized at the street corner, blocking the path of the nine assassins. Blue light flickered around the man’s body, his eyes like two pale blue pearls. He was slender and lean, yet standing there in the darkness, he involuntarily evoked a profound sense of solitude and loneliness in everyone who saw him.

Desolation, sorrow, isolation, bleakness… these overwhelmingly melancholic emotions were embodied in this single person! Even the slender longsword held in his grasp appeared exceptionally lonely in his hand…

Princess Lingmeng’s face instantly lit up with joy as she cried out, "Uncle Ye, it really is you! Meng’er is so happy!"

The eyes of the two leading black-clad assassins changed drastically, their pupils contracting simultaneously. They hissed coldly, "The Lonely Star of the Horizon, Ye Guhan? So it’s you! Aren't you a swordsman? Since when did you start using throwing knives to play ghost games?"

"No matter what I use, killing a few trash like you is more than sufficient!" Ye Guhan coldly swept his gaze over the nine assassins before looking towards Princess Lingmeng, a rare warmth and deep affection surfacing in his eyes: "Little Meng’er is being naughty again, sneaking out of the palace. Did you run into trouble? Were you frightened?"

"With Uncle Ye here, Meng’er is perfectly safe," Princess Lingmeng replied with a sweet laugh. Before this Ye Guhan—the famously reclusive Lonely Star of the Horizon—she showed not an ounce of royal decorum, instead appearing like a young girl seeing her uncle, clinging to his sleeve with absolute dependence and maternal warmth.

l; Recommending a friend’s book: "Rebirth of the Peerless World" &g;