When Rong Yi, Chu Murong and Mr Shi Er arrived at the main gate, the outside was already surrounded by the Kaoshan Wang1's troops. The leader of the group was still Qin Mu'an, with two columns of archers in front of him, followed by a dozen cavalrymen holding the Terrifying Dragon Leaf, and after the cavalrymen were three groups of well-trained infantry soldiers holding red tasselled spears, looking majestic in their outfits.
"General Qin, you are quick to act." Rong Yi sneered.
The corner of Qin Mu'an's mouth twitched, but he made no reply. His eyes swept over the three people for seconds before he waved his hand with a flourish and commanded, "Kill, none, pardon!"
In an instant, ten thousand arrows were fired.
Rong Yi and Chu Murong were severely injured by the Terrifying Dragon Leaf and could not exert their internal strength. They immediately retreated into the house to avoid the archer's attack. However, they were one step too late, and both fell.
Mr Shi Er hugged them both and screamed in pain before passing out.
*
The next day, groundbreaking news came from Jinling: Kaoshan Wang1 had laid siege to the Murong Mansion, killing Mr Shi Er, a diner at the Murong Mansion, and a pair of unidentified young couples.
The entire Imperial Court and the people of the jianghu2 from near and far were all shocked by this.
"What kind of place is the Murong Mansion in Jinling? Kaoshan Wang1 even dared to kill people at the entrance of the Murong Mansion. Not to mention the identities of the people he killed, but just for the crime of dirtying the Murong Mansion, it was enough for his entire family to be wiped out hundreds of times over."
"Yeah. That Murong Mansion is the maiden home of Murong Yunshu, the wife of the Majiao Sect Leader, Chu Changge. Killing someone there is like making an enemy of the Demon Sect."
"It is not that scary to be an enemy of the Mojiao Sect. The Demon Sect Leader, Chu Changge, has long since retired from the jianghu2, and the Majiao Sect is no longer what it once was. Still, there are rumours that Chu Changge has a good relationship with the Imperial Family, and perhaps this King of the Reliance wants to rebel."
"Speaking of which, it has been a long time since the mistress in charge of Murong Mansion, Murong Yunshu and Chu Changge, retired and paid no attention to world affairs, so why would a young couple appear at the mansion?"
"What is so strange about that? Maybe they're an eloping couple. The point is, Mr Shi Er. He had a great reputation in the jianghu2 and had been hiding in the Murong Mansion. Now that he has been killed in broad daylight, I am afraid that Murong Yunshu and Chu Changge will not leave it at that."
"In short, after such an uproar by Kaoshan Wang1, there will be another foul wind and rain of blood3 in the jianghu2."
While everyone talked among themselves, no one noticed a handsome young man whose eyes blazed with flame in the corner of the inn. He sat there until the day burned out of the light and was consumed by darkness.
Fu Chengfeng didn't know how he got back to the stone tomb. He kept recalling the news he had heard at the inn as Rong Yi's face continued to appear before his eyes.
It was dusk when he reached the stone tomb.
This was the stone tomb where Liu Yidao had imprisoned him. There was no sky to be seen from inside, so Fu Chengfeng didn't know how long he had been there. He always practised his sword to pass the time and ease his loneliness. This morning, however, Liu Yidao suddenly opened the tomb door and said he could go out.
After leaving the stone tomb, his first thought was to go to Jinling to find Rong Yi. But he never expected to hear the news that Kaoshan Wang1 had killed her before he could even leave the town.
Although the rumours did not mention her name, who else could have been killed in front of the Murong Mansion but her? The other young man tragically killed with her must have been Chu Murong.
When Fu Chengfeng entered the stone tomb, he collapsed to the ground. His mind kept screaming 'Heaven' as the demon in his heart rushed out, unstoppable until it was completely unleashed.
"You have heard." A voice came from in front of him.
Fu Chengfeng knew that the person speaking was Liu Yidao, but he didn't even look up. He just stared at the ground with empty eyes and said nothing.
"I didn't expect him to take her life," Liu Yidao's voice was filled with guilt and pain. The guilt came from his part in creating this human tragedy, and the pain was from the fact that he was still deeply trapped and unable to escape from it.
After a long silence, Fu Chengfeng suddenly spoke calmly, "You people locked me up so that I couldn't save her, and then you waited until she was killed before releasing me. Was it because you wanted to stimulate the demon in me that the Duantian Sword awakened?"
Liu Yidao nodded. "Yes."
"Congratulations, you have achieved your purpose."
Accompanied by this cold, lifeless voice from hell, Fu Chengfeng instantly rose like a ghost in front of Liu Yidao as the Duantian Sword in his hand pierced Liu Yidao's collarbone.
A stream of blood poured out, staining Liu Yidao's clothes red.
"Just kill me, please." Liu Yidao's eyes were tightly closed, and he had a relieved look on his face.
Fu Chengfeng remained expressionless. A bright light flashed, and the Duantian Sword moved from Liu Yidao's left collarbone to his right.
Liu Yidao groaned in pain and said: "As expected, once your inner demon was released and your sword broke through its shackles, you could perform your sword skills with great ease, hundreds of times faster than before. No one in the world today can avoid the sword in your hand. He has truly achieved his goal.”
"Who does he want me to kill for him after he went to all the trouble to inspire my potential?" Fu Chengfeng asked.
Liu Yidao hesitated before answering, "He won't let you kill anyone. Because the people you want to kill now are the ones he wants to kill."
Fu Chengfeng slowly pulled out the Duantian Sword and said, "At least one of them is not." After that, he walked away.
Liu Yidao fell helplessly to the ground, bleeding profusely, and asked, "Why didn't you kill me?"
Fu Chengfeng halted his steps and replied, "When you experience the feeling of watching the person you love die but being unable to do anything about it, you will understand why I won't kill you."
"I've experienced that feeling a long time ago." Liu Yidao said in a desolate tone.
After hearing his words, Fu Chengfeng turned around, looked down at him condescendingly, and asked coldly, "Do you really think Yun Ni is dead?"
Liu Yidao was startled. "Could it be that she is still alive? That's impossible. I saw her buried with my own eyes."
Fu Chengfeng stopped talking and turned away.
*
After leaving the stone tomb, Fu Chengfeng rushed to Jinling overnight. He didn't believe that she had just died like this, never. Even if everyone in the whole world said she was dead, he wouldn't believe it until he saw her body with his own eyes.
Yi-er, I'm the one who should be in trouble, not you, not you......
Fu Chengfeng whipped like crazy, and the horse's back was torn and stained with blood. Despite this, the horse seemed to sense its owner's anxiety. It endured the pain and ran like mad.
Fu Chengfeng took only one night for a seven-day journey.
Fu Chengfeng was thrown into Jinling City by his horse. With the last of its strength, it threw him into the city and then fell with a bang. Its pair of eyes stared at him as if it would not close its eyes after it died4 if it had not seen him enter the city.
"Who is there? Quickly stand up and prepare to be searched!" A group of soldiers standing guard at the city gates surrounded Fu Chengfeng.
Fu Chengfeng took one last look at the exhausted horse, then stood up and slowly drew his Duantian Sword. In an instant, all the surrounding soldiers fell to the ground with a flash of his sword. The Duantian Sword returned to its sheath without a trace of blood.
A noob translator, きつね, translated this noob translation. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.site. If you read this in another location other than the site stated, it has been taken without the translator's permission. Please don't support this kind of act.
"Demon... a killer demon..."
"There is a killer demon in Jinling. Everyone run!"
"Quickly run!"
Everyone started to move, and the street was in chaos for a while. Only when the crowd had hidden far away did they realise that the demon had long since disappeared. Some brave people began to whisper and speculate: "With such skills, could it be that the leader of the Mojiao Sect has come to seek revenge?"
"Impossible. Chu Changge, the leader of the Mojiao Sect, should be nearly 40 years old. The man just now was only in his twenties at most, so he couldn't be Chu Changge. He should have been his descendant, more or less."
"Chu Changge has a descendant? Good heavens. There are rumours that the couple killed by Kaoshan are Chu Changge's son and daughter. Chu Changge kills people without blinking an eye. Will he massacre the city?"
"Chu Changge's son and daughter? If that's true, I'm afraid that he will slaughter everyone in the city. Oh my God, let's quickly run for our lives."
*
Kaoshan wangfu5.
Qin Mu'an: "Your Highness, Mr Shi Er has woken up."
Kaoshan Wang1: "Bring him up."
Qin Mu'an: "Yes."
Soon after, a deathly pale Mr Shi Er was brought before Kaoshan Wang1. Suddenly, his face immediately turned ferocious as soon as his eyes fixed on Kaoshan Wang1. He bared his fangs and brandished his claws6 as he cursed him, "How dare you kill the Emperor and the Princess! Kaoshan Wang1, your entire body will be torn into thousands of pieces! And you, Qin Mu'an, none of your Qin family will survive this, ever!"
Kaoshan Wang1 sneered. "Shi Er, you still have that hard mouth7 to fool this Wang1 by insisting that the young couple are the reigning His Majesty and the Eldest Princess of this dynasty?" After saying that, he slapped the table, stood up and said, "Do you think this Wang1 is a vegetarian8? This Wang1 has been planting spies in the imperial palace for a long time. The Emperor is currently bedridden, so Taishang Huang9 is running the affairs of the state on the Emperor's behalf. The Eldest Princess is even accompanying the Empress Dowager. How could she come to Jinling?"
These words took Mr Shi Er aback. Soon after, he burst into a loud laugh that sounded as heartbreaking as a mournful cry.
Mr Shi Er's heartbreaking laughter shook Kaoshan Wang1 as he looked at his military advisor 'Yun Gongzi10', Yun Nitian, beside him and said, "Moon Manor is well informed and has close friendships with the important ministers of the dynasty, so tell this Wang1 if the Emperor and the Princess are still in the Imperial Palace."🦊
Yun Nitian replied, "Reporting back to Your Highness, as far as this humble one knows, the Eldest Princess secretly left the palace a few months ago, and the Emperor wasn't bedridden but had come out of the Imperial Palace to look for Her Highness. This humble one has also heard that both the Emperor and the Eldest Princess appeared near Moon Manor some time ago."
Kaoshan Wang1's face turned pale at these words as he fell back into the taishi armchair and said, "You clearly said that the young couple were in no way the reigning His Majesty and Princess. Yun Nitian, you, are you playing tricks on this Wang1?"
Yun Nitian: "This Yun did not say that the couple was not the reigning His Majesty and Princess. This humble one only reminded Your Highness that there are a lot of liars these days, so do not be deceived."
Kaoshan Wang1: "But since you heard that the Emperor and Princess were not in the palace, why didn't you tell me?"
Yun Nitian replied without batting an eyelid, "Your Highness did not ask this humble one. Besides, those news are just hearsay, and this humble one could not possibly confirm them."
At that time, Mr Shi Er exclaimed, "Kaoshan Wang1, I thought you were truly fearless to the point of death and that you wanted to be the emperor so badly that you even dared to murder even the reigning His Majesty and the Princess, but it turns out that you were tricked by such a scoundrel!"
Kaoshan Wang1 was furious. "You, you... someone, catch this traitor for this Wang1!"
Kaoshan Wang1's voice was loud, but there was little movement from the soldiers. Not a single person in the hall stepped forward to grab Yun Nitian. They all just held their weapons in their hands and did not move.
Kaoshan Wang1 became even more furious and shouted, "Qin Mu'an, do it quickly!"
Qin Mu'an remained motionless.
Footnotes Full List
- king
- lit. rivers and lakes—people who wander from place to place and live by their wits, e.g. fortune-tellers, quack doctors, itinerant entertainers, etc., who are regarded as a social group
- Chinese idiom: reign of terror
- Chinese idiom: to die with an unresolved grievance
- wang=king, fu=residence
- Chinese idiom: to make threatening gestures
- fig. stubbornly refusing to admit defeat
- fig. weak/easy to deal with
- retired Emperor/father of the reigning emperor
- a son of nobility
- Referring to Chapter 263 He introduced himself as Yun Shang, but his real name is Yu Nitian, the twin brother of Yun Ni.
きつね's Musing
There are still 4 more chapters to go before the novel is really over. So, きつね, keep fighting!
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