Chapter 25 – Maybe She Really Can Do It

“Let’s call it that.”

Gong Xiurong gave a helpless smile as he slipped out of Mu Nanjin’s arms. He turned toward the man chasing him and said, “I’m the one you want to kill. Come at me—there’s no need to drag innocent people into this.”

Lowering his voice, he whispered to the Emperor and the others, “I can hold them off for half a quarter of an hour. Take the chance and get out of here.”

Kan Chaoyan frowned. “They also want to kill His Majesty. They won’t let any of us leave.”

Gong Xiurong said nothing at first.

“And they want to kill me too,” Mu Nanjin added softly.

Gong Xiurong tried to reassure her. “Don’t worry. If His Majesty and I die, they’ll probably let the rest of you go.”

Mu Nanjin repeated, almost expressionlessly, “I said, they’re also after me.”

Gong Xiurong finally understood. “Why would they want to kill you? You’re just an Ordinary Jinyiwei—why target such a low-ranking officer?”

Mu Nanjin shook her head. She didn’t know either.

【I’d like to know that too. I’ll just capture them alive and ask later.】

The Emperor and the others froze.

Was she joking?

They’d be lucky to survive—how could she even think of capturing those monsters alive?

Gong Xiurong’s expression hardened. “It seems none of us will leave here alive today. But we can’t just give up. Stick to the plan—I’ll hold them off. Run as far as you can.”

Kan Chaoyan asked, “And you? What about you?”

“If I stay, I stay. There’s no running for me.”

Everyone fell silent.

“Staying here means certain death,” Feng Sinan said coldly. “We might as well do as he says.”

He stared at the approaching man, confusion flickering in his eyes. Why would someone so powerful appear in a small empire like Great Qian?

Mu Nanjin nudged the Emperor. “Go. Now.”

The Emperor hesitated for a moment, then quickly led the Empress Dowager and the others into the forest.

Gong Xiurong saw that Mu Nanjin hadn’t moved and frowned in frustration. “Why are you still standing there?”

Mu Nanjin glanced toward the trees where the Emperor had vanished. “I’ll stay and keep you company.”

【Now that the Emperor’s gone, I can finally make my move.】

Make her move?

The Emperor and his entourage exchanged confused looks, even as they ran faster.

【If I beat the enemy back, that technically counts as saving the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, right? There should be a reward for that.】

【Wait… if they’ve already fled, who’s going to see me defeat him? No witnesses, no proof—no reward.】

【Tch, mistake! I should’ve made at least one of them stay as a witness!】

【But… on second thought, if they realize how good I am at fighting, they’ll make me take the lead every time. That’d be a loss.】

The Emperor looked back and saw no trace of her.

“Where’s Mu Nanjin?”

Everyone glanced behind them.

Kan Chaoyan wiped a bead of sweat from his temple. “She didn’t follow us.”

The Empress Dowager’s voice trembled. “She… she didn’t actually stay to fight that man, did she?”

“Most likely,” the Emperor said through gritted teeth as he ran. “That girl—what a nuisance! Kan Chaoyan!”

“Your servant is here!”

“Do you think she can fight him off?”

“I secretly checked her pulse earlier,” Kan Chaoyan replied. “She has no inner force.”

“Then she’s doomed!” the Emperor snapped, furious. “And she still dares to think about rewards? What does she want—should I reward her with a golden coffin? Fine! I’ll grant her that!”

Feng Sinan, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke. “Maybe… she really can do it.”

No inner force didn’t mean no spiritual power.

He was living proof of that—he had no inner force either, yet he could stand against a Martial King.

The Emperor turned to him. “Do what?”

Before Feng Sinan could reply, a deafening explosion thundered from the distance—right from the direction they had just escaped from.