Chapter 970: Shou He
The leaves of the trees in the woods rustled bleakly.
By the long bank of the bamboo grove, a human figure was reflected in the water.
The spring breeze stirred ripples across the green surface.
Yet the reflection did not move.
It was as though the person amid the leaves had merged into one with his own shadow.
The person did not move, and neither did the shadow.
Like an icy mountain standing tall, without the slightest change.
He bent down and scooped up a pool of clear spring water, wetting his face before meticulously washing his hands.
He washed them with great care, as though those gentle palms were stained with blood that could not be cleansed away, or as though this were a ritual before undertaking something.
When he rose, people were already standing behind him.
"Is everyone here?" the figure asked coldly.
"All have arrived."
"Move!"
The figure wasted no words and never once looked back at those behind him.
There were thirteen burly men.
They wore blue robes and carried long sabers at their waists.
The force they exuded was like an army of thousands charging in.
The thirteen followed closely behind the man walking at the very front.
After passing through a vast bamboo forest, a noodle shop came into view.
The figure immediately sat down.
He sat upright and proper.
"Zhao Qingyi, you're late."
A middle-aged man in a conical hat, already seated, slightly raised his head. He revealed a pair of brilliant eyes and casually swept his gaze over the blue-robed figure.
Likewise, he did not look at the thirteen burly men standing some distance away and refusing to sit.
Zhao Qingyi's brows suddenly drew tight. He seemed not to have expected the man in the conical hat to