What about now

Although the carriage was still moving forward, its speed had noticeably slowed down. Like a lone boat sailing into the shallows, every step revealed its exhaustion.

The surrounding silence grew denser, and a cold, viscous killing intent quietly spread through the air.

Driven by the circulation of his true qi, Gu Chengyin's perception rapidly expanded outward.

Although his mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivation was not considered high, with the enhancement of the system, his acuity far exceeded others at the same stage.

Almost instantly, he pinpointed the sources of those undisguised, even provocative, killing intents.

"One person on the eaves to the front left, one on the eaves to the front right."

"Two following from behind. Their auras are concealed, but their killing intent is already exposed."

Hearing this, the Cui Manor coachman showed no signs of panic and simply nodded.

He reached under the door curtain and precisely pressed an inconspicuous groove.

With a soft click, a wooden board silently slid open, revealing a long, narrow hidden compartment.

Inside the compartment lay two sheathed long sabers side by side.

The scabbards were of an antique style without excessive decoration, but their material was clearly extraordinary at a glance, faintly shimmering with a cold light.

The coachman took out one of them and drew it an inch to confirm it was flawless.

Then he spoke, "This humble servant is Cui Yidao, at the early stage of Foundation Establishment. By the master's orders, I am exclusively assigned to protect the Eldest Miss's safety."

"Mm."

Gu Chengyin responded, stood up, and lifted the curtain with one hand. His gaze quickly swept over the dead silent street outside. Then, he reached into the hidden compartment, took out the other long saber, and gripped it in his hand.

It felt slightly heavy in his hand, and the scabbard was cold, but the curvature and feel of the hilt fit perfectly, clearly meticulously forged.

He did not draw the blade immediately; he merely gripped the scabbard tightly.

Then he turned to look at Cui Zilu, who was sitting in the corner of the carriage, watching all this with wide eyes.

His tone was solemn: "Zilu, no matter what happens in a moment, remember, you must follow me closely. Do not run around blindly under any circumstances, understand?"

Although Cui Zilu's heart was pounding, she did not show much fear.

She nodded vigorously, her small face even flushing with a layer of red due to over-excitement, her eyes astonishingly bright.

Lowering her voice, she promised, "Don't worry, Brother Chengyin! I am super obedient! Whatever you say goes!"

To her, this sudden assassination plot was simply the super great adventure she had always dreamed of and loved the most!

Seeing her reaction, Gu Chengyin felt a bit helpless but also slightly relieved; at least Cui Zilu wouldn't lose control and run around out of fear.

He looked back at Cui Yidao and asked, "Brother Yidao, besides you, are there other Cui Manor guards nearby to provide support?"

Cui Yidao gave a slight nod. While vigilantly sensing the outside, he whispered, "Yes. Before setting out from the inner pavilion, I sent a message to the nearby hidden sentries using a special method."

"As long as the carriage fails to arrive at the designated location or send a safety signal within the specified time, they will immediately notice the anomaly and come to support at the fastest speed."

This was a standard arrangement for prominent noble clans to protect their core descendants, ensuring absolute safety.

Gu Chengyin nodded. The Cui Manor's arrangements were indeed thorough. What they needed to do next was to delay for as much time as possible.

Cui Yidao added, "Marquis Gu, if the opponents are all at the Qi Condensation stage, this humble servant is confident in protecting you and the Eldest Miss. But..."

"But if there are Foundation Establishment experts, it will be quite troublesome."

"When the time comes, this humble servant will fight with all my might to hold them back. I implore Marquis Gu to seize the opportunity and take the Eldest Miss away from here!"

"As long as you enter the main street or approach the government office, they definitely won't dare to pursue further!"

Gu Chengyin immediately said solemnly, "Rest assured, Brother Yidao. This Marquis guarantees right here that Zilu will absolutely not suffer any harm."

However, in this world, whatever you fear most tends to happen.

Not long after his words fell, the carriage came to a complete stop.

Cui Yidao did not drive the carriage forward anymore, because up ahead, a figure as burly as a mountain stood like an iron tower, completely blocking their path.

This man had the back of a tiger and the waist of a bear, standing nearly nine feet tall. His face was full of fierce flesh, and a hideous scar ran diagonally from his left forehead to his right cheek, adding a bit more ferocity to his already vicious countenance.

He carried a giant axe as wide as a door panel on his shoulder, its blade reflecting a dark, bloody light under the sun.

What was even more terrifying was that he released his aura without any scruples. A tyrannical coercion, like a tangible tide, rolled toward the carriage.

Inside the carriage, the hearts of Cui Yidao and Gu Chengyin sank almost simultaneously.

Judging by the condensation and profoundness of this aura, he was at least at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

At the same time, as if by prior agreement.

The other assassins Gu Chengyin had pointed out earlier no longer hid themselves.

From the low eaves on the left and right sides, a black shadow leaped down respectively. Their movements were as agile as civets, landing silently.

At the alley entrance behind them, two people also quietly stepped out, forming an encirclement with the giant axe-wielding brute in front.

Five people, all dressed in uniform tight black clothes and masked with black cloth, revealing only cold eyes filled with chilling killing intent.

The weapons in their hands varied—there were short swords, curved sabers, and water-parting daggers—but without exception, they all gleamed with the dark light of being tempered with poison or having drunk their fill of fresh blood.

Along with the giant axe-wielding brute in front, the five had already surrounded the small carriage so tightly that not a drop of water could leak out, cutting off all possible escape routes.

Cui Yidao's hand had already tightly gripped the hilt of his long saber, the cold touch making his mind even more focused.

His gaze was like lightning, rapidly scanning the surroundings, estimating the disparity in strength between the enemy and themselves.

The conclusion was quickly drawn, but it also made his heart run cold.

The four people on the left, right, and behind had aura intensities ranging from the mid to late stages of Qi Condensation.

Although they were skilled fighters, with his early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, if he only had to deal with these four, it wasn't as if he lacked the power to fight; he might even emerge victorious.

However, the problem lay with the giant axe-wielding brute in front, who was like a small mountain.

"The other four are all at Qi Condensation, nothing to fear."

Cui Yidao's voice remained steady, but the underlying determination was clearly discernible:

"But this one in front of us..."

"His strength is likely above mine."

Gu Chengyin did not speak. His gaze fell on the giant axe-wielding brute in front, looking him up and down for a moment.

At the same time, the true qi within his body quietly accelerated its circulation, activating that unique amplifying breathing technique.

Like a slumbering giant beast being awakened, it circulated wildly along specific meridians.

Just as Cui Yidao was preparing to burn his boats and fight to the death.

A palm pressed lightly onto his shoulder.

Immediately after, a strange and warm power flowed into his body like a sweet spring.

Cui Yidao felt his dantian's sea of qi jolt violently, then boil and expand.

This... what is this?!

Cui Yidao closed his eyes, carefully feeling the earth-shattering changes within his body.

He could clearly feel that his overall strength was climbing at an unimaginable speed.

Although his realm had not broken through, whether it was the intensity of his true qi, his physical functions, or his will to fight, all far exceeded his peak.

At this moment, Gu Chengyin's calm voice sounded beside his ear:

"And what about now?"

Cui Yidao slowly opened his eyes.

His previously calm and water-like eyes were now replaced by an almost berserk battle intent.

He licked his somewhat dry lips, and a bloodthirsty smile slowly spread across his face.

He tightened his grip on the long saber. The blade quivered slightly, emitting an excited, dragon-like thrum:

"And now..."

"Am I supposed to shy away from his edge?"

Before his words could even fade.

Cui Yidao shot forward like a bolt of black lightning loosed from a bow.

The edge of his blade aimed directly at the domineering, giant-axe-wielding brute ahead.