Chapter 2116: Into His Arms

Sure enough, the ugly woman’s eyes narrowed. Inside her sleeve, her hand rose slightly. A needle that was so thin it was almost transparent appeared between her fingers, and she looked as if she was about to strike.

Just then, the main entrance of the restaurant was kicked open, and a group of strange-looking armored individuals walked in.

When that ugly madam saw that, she twisted her fingers and withdrew the needle back into her sleeve.

“So it was the Yaksha Ocean Patrol. How unlucky,” the tough-looking guy grumbled. He walked back to his original position with unsteady steps, completely unaware that he had just made a trip around the gates of hell and back.

Zu An sized up the ones who had entered. They all had indigo-colored faces and cinnabar-colored hair, and they wielded an assortment of giant hatchets and tridents. They looked extremely ferocious.

“So these are the Ocean races’ Yaksha Ocean Patrol...” Zu An muttered to himself.

The Ocean races frequently had these elite troops patrolling the seas to keep troublemakers in check. Even though they were no threat for the current Zu An, for the ordinary cultivators of the various races, they were still a powerful and intimidating force. For instance, the moment he saw them, the lust-consumed tough guy immediately became cool-headed.

The turtle bartender welcomed them with a few jars of alcohol, saying, “Sirs have worked hard. Come and drink a bit of wine to warm your bodies.”

Seeing that the turtle bartender was good at reading the room, the Yaksha Ocean Patrol members’ ferocious gazes eased up a bit. They took the jars of alcohol and quickly drank it all.

When the people present saw them drink the strong alcohol without being affected much at all, they all thought to themselves, As expected of the Yaksha Ocean Patrol, their bodies are extremely sturdy, with fiery blood and ki.

The turtle bartender then asked, “I wonder what noble errand brings you gentlemen here? If there is anything you need this humble one’s help with, please tell me immediately.”

“What else could it be but the Mermaid Queen affair?” One of the Yaksha Ocean Patrol members took out a stack of posters from his inner pockets and handed them over, saying, “Here, go and put these up.”

The turtle bartender quickly received the poster, and one after another, he stuck them in places that everyone in the bar could see.

Zu An gave one a look and saw that it was the Mermaid Queen’s wanted poster. Even though the brush strokes were simple and crude, he could still tell that she was an extraordinary beauty.

Hm? So the Mermaid Queen was named Shang Hongyu. As expected of Shang Liuyu’s older sister.

The Yaksha Ocean Patrol said loudly, “If anyone knows the Mermaid Queen’s whereabouts, quickly make a report to the closest Yaksha Ocean Patrol. You will be rewarded based on the importance of the information. If you assist in the capture or even capture Shang Hongyu, not only will you be awarded with more cultivation resources than you will need for the rest of your life, the Dragon King will even take you in as his personal disciple and pass his techniques onto you.”

When they heard what he said, the entire restaurant immediately broke out into a commotion. Who would have thought that the bounty would increase again in just a few days! The endless cultivation resources were already enough to make one go mad, but now, one could even be taught techniques by the Dragon King personally? Just what kind of an opportunity was this?!

After all, the Dragon King was one of the most powerful individuals in this world. If one could obtain his inheritance, wouldn’t they reach the very top of the world? Even if one took ten thousand steps back and wasn’t talented enough to reach the pinnacle, just the status of being the Dragon King’s disciple was already enough for anyone to mingle with the higher levels of the Ocean races’ society.

Just then, the Yaksha Ocean Patrol began to investigate around table by table. They seemed to be checking if there was anyone suspicious among the restaurant guests.

Zu An suddenly thought of something. With a cool breeze, the middle-aged woman reappeared in the seat next to him. He had to admit that even though she was ugly, her scent was still quite refreshing.

“Are you not going to invite me for a drink?” The woman propped up her cheek with a hand and looked at him with her head tilted slightly. Her posture did have a kind of natural charm. Unfortunately, she looked just a bit too ugly.

Zu An said with a calm smile, “Give me a reason to.”

“Because ever since I entered this place, you were the only person in this entire restaurant who didn’t have any lust or disdain in your eyes when you looked at me.” The woman's eyes were shining brightly. Unfortunately, with her bumpy face, it looked like pearls buried in dirt.

“That’s just what you feel, what does it have to do with me?” Zu An replied, remaining unmoved.

The woman gave him a look of surprise. This man had an ordinary appearance, but his personality was quite unique.

She looked at the approaching Yaksha Ocean Patrol that were approaching their table and asked in a low voice, “Aren't you looking for the Divine Dragon Immortal Medicine?”

Zu An was finally moved. He lowered his wine cup and replied, “Do you know about it?” He poured her a cup as he spoke.

The madam raised the cup and took a small sip. Judging from the way she carried herself, her background was definitely special, or else it wouldn’t be easy to have such a distinguished bearing. She replied, “Of course. As for that turtle bartender, he only said those things because he wanted your money. There's no way his investigations could produce anything useful.”

"Seems like it," Zu An replied with a chuckle. He had already abandoned all hope when he saw the bartender's flustered behavior just then. He'd actually only wanted to get his hands on some intelligence about the Ocean races, and to find out how to get a ship ticket to their territory. He gave her a look of interest and asked, “Then how do I know that you aren’t lying to me?”

The woman was surprisingly calm, replying, “Do you have any other choice but to believe me?”

“Then what do I have to do to make you tell me the Divine Dragon Immortal Medicine’s whereabouts?” Zu An asked with a smile.

“Embrace me!” the madam suddenly said quietly.

Zu An’s smile immediately froze on his face. He was dumbfounded. Ten thousand possibilities had gone through his mind, but he had never expected the request to be this one.

But when he realized that the Yaksha Ocean Patrol were coming their way, his thoughts moved quickly. He reached out and wrapped an arm around the madam’s waist. He couldn't help but feel stunned when he touched her, though. After all, there were a lot of bumps on this woman’s face and neck, so he'd thought that her body would also be like that; and yet when his hand moved over her skin, he could feel that it was soft and smooth.

The woman used the chance to lean into him and look at him intimately, saying, “I want you to feed me.”

Zu An was speechless.

Sis, do you know that your current appearance paired with that playful voice is a bit scary?

But for the sake of saving Honglei, what was the big deal? As such, he picked up the wine cup and brought it to her lips with a smile. At the same time, he even used his fingers to wipe away the bit of extra alcohol around her lips.

When she sensed his gentle movements, the woman was stunned. She looked at him with a slightly strange expression.

However, in the eyes of the people around them, it was as if the two of them were just flirting with each other. If it were a handsome man and beautiful woman, that would be one thing, but the man was ordinary without anything special about him in the slightest. The woman was exceedingly ugly to the point that even a second glance would sting the eyes.

The Yaksha Ocean Patrol moved past them after giving them a single look.

This guy really isn’t picky. He even went after a woman like this.

They didn’t even feel like questioning them. The one they were looking for would never lie in the arms of a man so affectionately.

The turtle bartender returned to his spot behind the bar. When he saw their behavior, he secretly gave Zu An a big thumbs up.

After all, the tough-looking Hai Daniu had said it best. If you turned off the lights and covered the face, weren’t they all the same? Let alone the fact that this woman had such an amazing figure.

He suddenly thought of something and quickly called out to the Yakshas, “Sirs, the Mermaid Queen’s cultivation is so high. Even if we find her, we won’t be able to catch her!”

“That’s right, her cultivation is so high. Even if we find out where she is, she’ll already be gone by the time we contact you.” The restaurant guests seemed to have suddenly realized that. They all began to argue noisily.

That’s right, you need to still keep your life to enjoy the sweetest of rewards!

“That’s not something you need to worry about,” the Yaksha Ocean Patrol leader said. “She is already seriously injured and likely has little combat ability left.”

Many people cheered when they heard that. They were already imagining themselves reaching the very pinnacle of their lives after capturing the Mermaid Queen. However, some others sighed. These were people who had previously benefited from the Mermaid Queen’s grace. They really didn’t want to see her end up like this.

Zu An frowned.

She’s seriously injured? Did the Dragon King hurt her?

But that shouldn’t be the case. With the Dragon King’s cultivation, if he had been the one who attacked her, would the Mermaid Queen even have a chance to escape?

Suddenly, everything in front of him darkened. It turned out that the Yaksha Ocean Patrol had already left and the tough-looking guy named Hai Daniu came over. He said in a low, muffled voice, “I was first! This woman is mine!”

The other restaurant guests couldn't help but blow a whistle. This sort of love affair jealousy happened almost every day, but it was the first time they'd seen it happen over an ugly woman.

Zu An couldn't help but smile at the woman, saying, “I didn’t expect you to be so popular.”

The woman’s expression was a bit unnatural, and it was clear that even she was a bit surprised by this turn of events.

Is this Hai Daniu crazy? I already look like this, yet he’s still interested?

She smiled and leaned into Zu An’s arms before saying, “But I am already his companion.”

Zu An was speechless.

People say that beautiful women are the source of disaster, but who would have thought that this womanwould be good at that stuff too!

Hai Daniu glowered at Zu An and said, “You better let go of her right now.”

Even as he spoke, his hand moved toward Zu An.

Bang!

A loud noise filled the air. There was only a blur in front of the onlookers' eyes, and a second later, Hai Daniu was already gone. They looked around and saw that he was already upside-down, buried in the sandy shore outside. His legs were exposed above the ground, twitching in midair.

As they looked at each other, their expressions changed. It seemed no one had seen how the human attacked. His appearance was ordinary, but he was actually a tough one.

The woman suddenly straightened up. There was a look of surprise in her eyes as she looked at Zu An.

“Why did you get up? Weren’t you acting close to me just a moment ago?” Zu An asked, casually reaching out to hold her again. However, she avoided his hand in a really natural manner.

Zu An looked at her with amusement.

What a soft waist she has.

The woman’s expression was a bit unnatural as she said, “There are too many people here. It’s just a bit embarrassing in front of all of them...”

“I guess it’s fine. It would be better if we changed locations.” Zu An nodded. Hereached out for her waist and they walked straight out. The woman wanted to move out of the way, but his hand almost seemed to contain a demonic force and landed right on target.

When they watched the two disappear, everyone in the restaurant began to enthusiastically discuss Zu An’s background. Unfortunately, none of them could figure it out.

“Say, his cultivation is so high, so he can have any woman he wants. Why would he go after a middle-aged one who's so ugly?”

“You know that those rich bastards all have strange tastes. I reckon that people with high cultivation ranks are about the same. Once you get tired of the pretty ones, it might be more fun to play with some other types.”

“If your beauty standards change that much when your cultivation rank gets high, I think I'm better off the way I am.”

...

Meanwhile, once Zu An and the woman reached the sandy shore, the woman asked curiously, “Your cultivation seems to be really high, no? There's no way that you don’t have a reputation on the human side. May I ask how I should address you?”

“Why should two individuals in a chance meeting be previously acquainted? Even if I tell you my name, you might not believe it. I believe you likely won’t tell me your true name either.” Zu An smiled.

The woman was stunned at first, and then she smiled. “You are quite interesting.”

Zu An sighed. “If you weren’t pressing that needle against my waist vital while saying those words, perhaps I would receive them with more sincerity.”

The woman’s expression changed. She saw that he still didn’t show any intention of guarding against it. After some hesitation, she didn’t use the needle and retracted it with a flip of her fingers. She said, “I did want to take your life, but after thinking about it, I've decided not to. It’s fine for everyone to just forget what happens in the world of warriors.”

“You had many chances to attack along the way. Why did you hesitate for so long?” Zu An asked with a curious look. If she had made her move back then, he wouldn’t have been so patient.

“You did help me just now, after all, and touching my body wasn’t your original intention. If I harmed you, would be repaying gratitude with enmity,” the woman said with a sigh.

Zu An’s expression was a bit strange. He asked, “You were going to take my life just because I touched you? You know, it was you who took the initiative just now, and strictly speaking, I'm the one who's losing out, okay?”

A bit of anger and embarrassment appeared between the woman’s brows. She retorted, “What do you know?! I...” She trailed off for a moment before suddenly saying, “Whatever, it’s fine if you don’t know. It might only bring you more trouble if you do know.”

“Your identity is quite special. Just what kind of background do you even have? Are you a manta ray?” Zu An asked curiously.

“Manta ray?” The woman widened her eyes and exclaimed, “You’re the manta ray!”

“Don’t you use needles? Even after thinking for a long time, the only creature that has anything to do with poisonous needles is the manta ray,” Zu An replied.

“Who says there’s only the manta ray? The Ocean races have so many species, and there are many who use poison needles...” The middle-aged woman suddenly stopped midway through her sentence. “That’s not what’s most important! I'm not a manta ray. Enough, I don’t want to talk to you anymore. Goodbye.”

“Hey, you can’t leave.” Zu An grabbed her hand.

That woman widened her eyes and stared at him, exclaiming, “You’re touching me again?”

“It’s not as if you’ll lose a chunk of your flesh if I touch you,” Zu An said in annoyance. “You still haven’t told me where the Divine Dragon Immortal Medicine is.”

The woman’s expression immediately became grave. “Just where did you hear that name from? Why are you looking for it?”

“That’s not something you need to worry about. I naturally have a use for it.” Zu An naturally wouldn’t tell just anyone that he was trying to save his lover. Who knew if someone would try to blackmail him with this information?

“I don’t care what kind of reason you have, but I advise you to give up on it. There's no way you could obtain it.” The woman shook her head.

“Why?” Zu An asked, unsatisfied.

“Because...” The woman hesitated and was about to reply when her expression suddenly changed. A group of people surrounded them. With a few leaps, they had already surrounded the pair.

At first, Zu An thought that it was because he'd taken out a heaven-grade ki stone and ‘exposed his wealth’, leading to the other customers’ greed. He thought that they had been waiting for him and the woman in a secluded place to kill him and take everything. He was a bit confused, wondering if they were all blind. They were still coming after him even after seeing what happened to Hai Daniu?

However, he quickly saw who the figures approaching were. They were ferocious-looking and had red hair. They were part of the the Yaksha Ocean Patrol!

Hm? Something’s not right.

Zu An noticed that there was a black miasma around the Yaksha Ocean Patrol’s bodies that made them clearly different from the earlier ones. He frowned. He felt a sense of deja vu from this energy.

The woman’s expression changed. She pushed Zu An to the side and ran in the other direction.

Zu An couldn't help but laugh when she saw her leave.

This woman is surprisingly kind. She’s worried that she might end up dragging me into her mess.

However, the Yaksha Ocean Patrol were extremely fast and blocked the woman’s path, saying, “You cannot escape anymore. Just give up and let us capture you!”

Their voices were much more coarse than the Yaksha Ocean Patrol in the restaurant, as if they were demons from hell. Just listening to it could make one shiver in fear.