He'd rather run than be turned into a cannon fodder for the broken engagement.

Is it because they're afraid of being recognized? So it's true that only prominent figures in Dongjun City are afraid of being identified.

Looking around again, it turned out to be a huge hot spring!

The stone chamber contained several maids and servants. The front door led outwards, and to the side... Inside the stone chamber, one could vaguely see screens, lamps, and beds, making it resemble a living room!

They were indeed herded into the hot spring to bathe, and Leng Huan felt as if they were marinating meat in spices, preparing it to be cooked at any moment.

She quickly washed up and changed into her tunic clothes, a strapless dress with a transparent outer garment, just as scantily clad as Hua Niang. She took a deep breath, looked at the several maids serving her, and grabbed one of them, asking hesitantly, "Excuse me, where can I use the outhouse?"

Using the restroom as an excuse is always a good one, anywhere. The maid hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Please come with me, miss."

Leng Huan followed the maid, turning left and right, trying to get information out of her, but the maid was too tight-lipped and he couldn't get anything out of her.

"We've arrived, young lady, may we go in?"

The maid pointed to a small room and gestured for Leng Huan to enter.

Along the way, Leng Huan realized that this was actually an underground palace layout. Thank goodness, she had finally found the exit to the surface!

Unexpectedly, not all of them stayed. After the steward Zhang left, she changed her appearance, making her look less conspicuous, and successfully blended in with the other girls.

"Today, we will select three young ladies to serve us in bed, and the rest will go to the side hall first."

After a man who looked like a butler finished speaking, he pointed to a few people who stayed behind and went to the room next to the hot spring. Leng Huan breathed a sigh of relief, but before turning around, he looked at the girls who had stayed behind and had a bad feeling.

The young man was indeed beautiful, with a face like a woman. He lived alone. Leng Huan walked towards the side hall and felt that the person behind the scenes was probably crazy. Not only did he have a taste for both men and women, but he also acted like an emperor.

He's selling fried dough twists in his dorm!

Leng Huan needed to find out who was behind this and what their purpose was, especially if that person was a Golden Core cultivator—

Leng Huan took out a concealment magic item, a gift from her second senior brother. It could block the detection of cultivators below the Nascent Soul stage. She activated the magic item, which acted like a curtain to conceal her figure and aura. She changed her clothes and quietly waited in a hidden corner.

-

"Lord, everything is ready."

Hearing the familiar voice of the steward, Leng Huan was shocked. Holy crap, it was actually the city lord!

The steward had regained his voice and removed his mask. Leng Huan immediately remembered that she had seen this person before at the Qi family!

—The chief steward of the city lord's mansion who delivered the congratulatory gifts!

Hearing the approaching footsteps, Leng Huan held her breath and calmed her mind, waiting silently for them to pass. She dared not look at the city lord, for fear of being discovered, after all, the cultivation of the late Golden Core stage was not simple!

She remained motionless, her heart pounding slightly. She tried hard to calm herself, to stay calm... don't panic...

"Hmm, how's the situation lately? We need at least one person every day, the more the better... It's getting harder to control lately..."

"Reporting to the city lord, there are no problems for now, please rest assured."

-

She felt a ripple of air flow pass by her; the city lord and his companion were heading towards the hot springs.

After walking several feet away, Leng Huan cautiously followed and waited behind a stone platform lamp outside the Tangchi Palace. After an unknown amount of time, he suddenly heard faint cries, followed by shrill screams. Hearing several hurried footsteps getting closer and closer, Leng Huan smelled a strong stench of blood.

Her heart sank.

"Roar--"

Suddenly, a beastly roar came from inside the hall. Leng Huan was startled. How could there be a ferocious beast in the underground palace?

She quickly moved outside the hot spring and finally understood what had happened, leaving her stunned.

Bloodstains were everywhere in the hot spring and living quarters. The once clear hot spring was now stained crimson. By the pool, something was crawling on the ground, eating bits of flesh and limbs, making howling noises like a wild beast and crunching sounds as it chewed its food.

The creature had bulging muscles, bristling hair, strong limbs, and scales covering its entire body! Its clothes seemed to have burst open, hanging in tatters, but Leng Huan could tell that they were clearly the city lord's black and gold outer robe!

That's the city lord? What the hell?!

"Ouch... roar..."

Half an hour later, seemingly having finished eating everything, the monster let out a low growl, tilted its head back, and gradually lost its inhuman features. It slowly turned its head, revealing a somewhat distorted face.

—The monster has transformed into the appearance of the city lord!

Leng Huan's breath hitched as the city lord's still-red beastly eyes suddenly fixed on her direction!

Oh no! A dangerous instinct sent a chill down her spine. Without thinking, she used her concealment artifact to run away!

I thought the city lord had practiced some evil art, but I never expected him to turn into a monster!

"Roar!"

A loud shout came from behind, followed by a sudden gust of wind and a fierce killing intent that landed on the spot where I had just been.

With a bang, the stone lampstand shattered into pieces. Leng Huan rushed towards the exit, his figure as fast as lightning, clinging to the wind-controlling talisman.

"Butler, stop her!"

"Yes!"

For some unknown reason, the city lord reverted to human form and shouted for the steward to stop Leng Huan. The steward was preparing new robes, but unexpectedly, at this critical moment, someone discovered the city lord's identity!

"Stop!" He immediately obeyed the order and chased after Leng Huan. He was also at the late stage of Foundation Establishment. Leng Huan did not dare to be careless and ignored him. Without looking back, he gathered his energy and leaped over stone pillars, stone arch bridges, and artificial mountains, heading straight for the road leading to the ground.

The steward was even more formidable than Steward Zhang. As he chased after her, he attacked her back with his spiritual energy. Leng Huan used her invisibility to react quickly and evade the attacks. Behind her, there were flying stones and explosions.

Fearing the city lord would catch up, Leng Huan ran for a quarter of an hour. When she came out of the passage, she encountered guards at the entrance. She used an explosive talisman to blow away the ghosts blocking her way. When she got out and saw the light of day, she realized it was already dusk!

The first thing she did was activate the bell to notify Fu Xun of her location. Upon looking at her surroundings, she realized that this place was actually the location of the Thousand Machines Pavilion.

She emerged from beneath a secluded pavilion in the middle of the lake. She had only skimmed a few meters across the surface when she heard a deafening roar behind her! The small pavilion had collapsed.

The steward stopped and chased after Leng Huan, shouting, "Stop! Today I will make you atone to the city lord!"

Seeing that things had been exposed, someone had to take the blame. The butler was terrified, never expecting such a huge mess to happen!

The Thousand Machines Pavilion is mostly staffed by the City Lord's confidants. Today is a day off, and there are not many civil officials or staff on duty. This has already alerted the City Lord's guards, all of whom are at least Qi Refining cultivators. They are surrounding the Thousand Machines Pavilion to capture the assassin.

Hiding in a secluded artificial cave, the space was cramped, and Leng Huan curled up to hide herself. Fortunately, she had a concealment artifact, otherwise she would not have been able to escape.

He grabbed several mid-grade spirit stones, which he instantly absorbed, turning them into dust. He then heard sounds of searching coming from outside.

"Master Steward, rest assured, we will conduct a thorough search, inch by inch, and we will definitely catch the assassin!"

The steward still frowned. The man's cultivation was not low, and he had a magic weapon in hand, so he was not easy to catch. However, the commander of the guards did not know this, and they even thought that he was just a simple assassin.

Even he himself didn't seize the opportunity to kill her in the underground palace. Now that a major conflict is about to erupt, it could become a huge problem!

"Commander, please don't let your guard down. That man is very cunning. If we let the thief escape, who will take responsibility if the city lord blames us?"

. . .