Yan Wang did not respond to the question, but remained silent for two seconds. Then, her vermilion lips parted slightly as she asked, "This young master, could you be Zhu Zhizha?"

"Impudence!" Upon hearing this, Bao Qi immediately stepped forward and shouted, "Bold commoner! How dare you address His Highness by his given name?"

*Shuuu*—

Before he could finish speaking, a sharp sound suddenly arose from within the curtain.

In that instant, an invisible burst of qi shot out, heading straight for Bao Qi.

This move that Yan Wang used…seemed to have no power at all, merely "passing" through the curtain like a gentle breeze; but in the blink of an eye, this burst of qi accelerated sharply, congealing into a lightning-like form in mid-air, unstoppable.

No one knew what means, what technique, or what cultivation method she had used…

In fact, among the Eight Great Experts, only two reacted to this move in time.

The first…was Bian Ji.

As the Vice Envoy, Bian Ji's internal energy was unparalleled, and he instinctively sensed the danger of this move. Therefore, he hurriedly activated his true energy and raised a single palm swiftly, creating a powerful palm shadow in mid-air, intending to meet its force head-on.

And the second…was Shangguan Si.

As the Jinyiwei (Imperial Bodyguard) Commander, he naturally could not sit idly by and watch his subordinate get killed. Unlike Bian Ji, Grandmaster Shangguan, an expert in external martial arts, relied mainly on his "five senses" to recognize the move, which was very similar to the players.

No sooner said than done! Shangguan Si's figure swayed, arriving first despite starting later, raising an arm to block Bao Qi's front.

However, what happened next could only be described as "terrifying."

*Chi*—*puff*—*bang!*

After three strange sounds…

A hole had been punched through Bian Ji's palm shadow, causing it to vanish.

A hole had also been punched through Shangguan Si's arm, causing blood to flow profusely.

As for Bao Qi…his entire upper body had been reduced to a pile of minced meat. He didn't even let out a groan before he died.

Under these circumstances, the seven surviving grandmasters undoubtedly had the same reaction deep down in their hearts—"Holy crap!"

As for Zhu Zhizha and Chang Wei, who did not understand martial arts…although they did not understand the intricacies of this exchange, they could clearly see the tragic state of the corpse. Therefore, they were also terrified and didn't know what to do.

"Good, as expected of the experts of the Inner Court." Two seconds later, Yan Wang's melodious voice rang out again, "With Vice Envoy Bian's aptitude, it is truly not easy to cultivate the ability to materialize true qi; Grandmaster Shangguan's external martial arts are also strong and impressive, very rare… If the two of you were to travel the martial world, you would surely become top-notch figures in the Jianghu (martial world)."

Her tone was very calm when she said these words, and the calmer she was, the more terrifying she seemed…

Terrifying to the point of suffocation.

In today's world, there was only one person who could give these seven great masters such a sense of oppression…and that was Cao Qin.

"Senior…" After another five seconds, Shangguan Si stopped the bleeding on his hand using acupressure, and said in a deep voice, "...Just now, my subordinate was somewhat offensive in his words, please forgive him!"

He was indeed a clever man, knowing how to assess the situation. For him, the death of a Bao Qi was completely acceptable. If necessary, he would even sell out Zhu Zhizha…

"Hmm…" Yan Wang pondered for a moment, then said, "Now do you know how to talk to me?"

"I…I am Bian Ji, paying respects to Senior." Perhaps no one would have thought that Vice Envoy Bian, who usually seemed somewhat aloof, would be the second to bow his head after Shangguan Si.

But his actions also set a good example…Seeing the attitudes of Grandmaster Shangguan and Grandmaster Bian, the remaining people had nothing to be ashamed of.

So, Lu Yuan, Mao Jincai, Jiang Xu, Cao Guo, and Yu Fei clasped their fists one after another, respectfully reporting their names to Yan Wang.

Then, it was Imperial Physician Chang's turn…

"This old one, Chang Wei, pays respects…"

"Esteemed Mr. Chang…there's no need to call me 'Senior'." Unexpectedly, Yan Wang interrupted Chang Wei, "I can't bear that title."

These words…at first glance, seemed fine, because Imperial Physician Chang was the oldest of the ten people in this group (although now there were only nine). But thinking about it carefully, something seemed wrong…

Judging from the previous exchange, Yan Wang was quite impolite to this group of people, and she didn't say anything when Bian Ji (nearly sixty years old), the second oldest of the ten, called her 'Senior'. Logically speaking…even if she wanted to refuse Imperial Physician Chang from calling her 'Senior', she only needed to say the first half of the sentence. The second half, "can't bear that title", didn't seem right no matter how you thought about it.

As a result, after a moment of realization after these words were spoken, the crowd gradually turned their faces to Imperial Physician Chang, revealing suspicious looks.

"Hmph…Even if I can't hide it from your eyes, why did you have to point it out?" In the next second, the old age on Chang Wei's body seemed to disappear in an instant. His slightly hunched body straightened up, and the complexion on his face seemed to be more than ten years younger. Even his tone of voice was no longer like an old man, but revealed the vigor of a middle-aged man.

"Master Chang…you…" Zhu Zhizha, who was standing next to Chang Wei, was the last to come to his senses, and he was also the most surprised by the changes in Imperial Physician Chang.

"Heh…Your Highness, to tell you the truth…" Chang Wei said with a sneer, "This old man was not an imperial physician many years ago…" As he spoke, he put his hands behind his back, striking a standard stance of an unparalleled expert.

As soon as these words came out, the faces of the seven great masters next to him changed drastically. Especially those two from the Jinyiwei and the Eastern Depot…For them, the fact that such a person was mixed in among the imperial physicians dedicated to the imperial family, and they were unaware of it, was definitely a major dereliction of duty.

"It's normal that you couldn't find out his identity." At this time, Yan Wang seemed to see through their thoughts and coldly continued in the room, "This person is Chang Xingyu, the number one expert in Dongying (Japan) forty years ago. Not only has he reached the pinnacle in martial arts, but he is also proficient in medicine, divination, and astrology. He can be said to be an all-rounder." She paused, "However…about thirty years ago, Chang Xingyu suddenly disappeared from the Dongying martial world. Some said he was dead, and some said he went overseas to seek immortality. But in reality…he disguised himself and mixed in with the Wokou (Japanese pirates)'s ships, and came to the Central Plains."

"Heh…" Chang Wei sneered upon hearing this, "I never thought…that in this deep valley on the edge of the desert, there would be someone who knows so much about me…" He waved his sleeves and asked back unceremoniously, "But I don't know…how exactly did you know about this?"

"Simple," Yan Wang replied, "Of course, someone told me."

"Who?" Chang Wei showed a stern look, casting a sharp gaze towards the curtain.

"I~" Responding to him was another voice.

A feminine and indifferent voice.

The moment this voice sounded, everyone present changed their expressions…including Yan Wang.

As the voice faded, Cao Qin's figure had already appeared between Zhu Zhizha and Chang Wei.

No one saw how he came, as if he had been standing there all along.

"Cao Qin…" Chang Wei's expression became very serious, and his hand unconsciously moved towards the collar of his chest.

"What? You want to release smoke bombs?" Cao Qin didn't even look at him, and said leisurely, "Oh…no, it should be called 'ninjutsu', that sounds more impressive."

After being said this, Chang Wei put his hand down: "You…even know about 'ninjutsu'?"

"I know a lot." Cao Qin replied, "The day you entered the Imperial Hospital, I knew you weren't an ordinary person." He said slowly, "Since then, you have been dormant as an imperial physician for more than twenty years. In such a long time…I naturally have enough time to find out your origin."

"Hmph! Bluffing…" Chang Wei said, "If you really knew my identity as early as when I entered the Imperial Hospital, why didn't you expose me?"

"Why should I expose you?" Cao Qin asked back without thinking.

"Of course, because…" Chang Wei wanted to say something, but the words stuck in his throat.

Then, his expression became quite ugly.

"You understand, don't you?" Cao Qin replied, "Since you can endure for more than twenty years, I can accompany you in enduring for more than twenty years. Whenever you show your true colors, I will take you down." He smiled, picked up the wine pot, and took another sip, "Arresting you on the first day you sneaked in wouldn't be much of a punishment, because you would have already been aware of 'death.' So, I won't let you die…I'll just watch you pretend, watch you waste half your life on something that can't succeed. Finally, when you think you're about to achieve great things, I'll let you know that everything is in vain…" Each of his words was like a biting cold wind, scraping against Chang Wei's heart and soul, "This…is the best way to deal with people like you."

Not only Chang Wei, but even those officials beside him felt a chill when they heard these words. At this moment, they were truly extremely grateful in their hearts…"Fortunately, we are on the same front as Eunuch Cao." However, there was also a hint of hidden fear in their hearts…"What if I also have some weakness that he has already grasped, but he hasn't exposed it yet…what should I do?"

"You…you…" On the other hand, Chang Wei, the person involved, was already furious, and his internal force and killing intent spread uncontrollably from his body.

Cao Qin was not moved at all, but just stood in front of Zhu Zhizha and continued, "At the age of forty, you were already a legend in the Dongying martial world. Like many overlords, when you obtained power that others couldn't reach, what you thought of was how to keep it permanently, so…you came to the Central Plains." He paused, "You are very smart, you know that my Great Ming is vast and rich in resources, and there are countless experts. Even if you are invincible in Dongying, there may not be anyone in the Central Plains martial world who can defeat you. So you hid your identity, disguised yourself as a wandering doctor, ostensibly traveling the world and practicing medicine, but in reality you were inquiring about the 'art of longevity'."

At this point, Eunuch Cao glanced at Yan Wang, "But at that time, the legend of 'Yan Wang' did not yet exist. After searching the Jianghu (martial world) without success, you thought of the royal family…" He chuckled, "Heh…this idea is indeed correct. If there really is any art of longevity in this world…then the Son of Heaven of my Great Ming Empire will definitely seize it at all costs. Even if he can't get the real thing immediately, he can at least get the news. So, after several years of twists and turns, you finally entered the Imperial Hospital through your superb medical skills, and from then on…you felt that half of your plan had succeeded." He spread his hands and shook his head, "Unexpectedly, it has been nearly thirty years of waiting. Now that you are nearly seventy years old, you can no longer wait. Coincidentally…this time the Emperor sent people to search for the 'art of longevity' in the Burial Heart Valley, and happened to designate you as the only accompanying imperial physician. Hehe…I think you must have been overjoyed when you heard this news, right?"

Hearing this, Chang Wei stared at Cao Qin and replied, "Okay…you know everything, but so what?" As he said this, he took out eight shuriken from his bosom and held them between his fingers, "Now I have come to the Burial Heart Valley and I am already standing in front of Yan Wang…As long as I kill all of you and then subdue that woman, the art of longevity will still be mine."

"Hahaha…" Cao Qin looked at Chang Wei's appearance and laughed a few times, "Chang Wei, you are really obtuse…You yourself said…I 'know everything', then do you think…at this moment, the fact that you, and everyone here, are able to 'stand here alive'…I didn't anticipate that?"

Cold. These words made everyone except Yan Wang feel a bone-chilling cold.

"There are many medical officers in the Imperial Hospital. Why do you think the Emperor chose an old geezer like you to follow us and travel across mountains and rivers?" Cao Qin added another cut to Chang Wei with an obvious question.

"Ah—" At this point, Chang Wei had nothing to say.

A second later, he roared violently and suddenly struck.

The eight shuriken were like dancing butterflies, as if each had its own consciousness, bypassing Cao Qin…and swarming towards Zhu Zhizha.

Chang Wei was arrogant and regarded himself as invincible in the world. Even Yan Wang's actions did not surprise him (he just pretended to have the same reaction as Zhu Zhizha), and he didn't even pay attention to the seven great masters around him. However…Chang Wei was still somewhat wary of Cao Qin. He knew that going head-to-head with this unfathomable monster would probably not have much chance of winning, so…he chose to attack Zhu Zhizha, trying to use this to expose Cao Qin's weakness. Once Eunuch Cao was killed by him, the others would probably not even have the courage to fight him.

However…what Chang Wei never expected was…

Cao Qin did not move.

This Duke of the Eastern Depot just stood there indifferently, not even turning his head, allowing Zhu Zhizha to die under the shuriken.

"What!" Chang Wei was shocked again. Because the other party did not move at all, naturally there was no weakness exposed, and his subsequent offensive had no way to start.

"What's wrong?" Cao Qin picked up the wine pot and took a sip, "Did you once again assume that…I stood between you and His Highness to talk to you just to protect him?" He shook his head with a smile, "Alas…you deserve to die without a whole corpse."

Before the word "corpse" could be uttered, seven different techniques and internal energies…had rained down on Chang Wei's back.