Chapter 10

It was Liu Ye—Liu Ye with hair gone half white.

Chang'an was shocked. Liu Ye had not had a single white hair before, yet now more than half his hair had suddenly turned white. Having his wife abducted and his son killed had dealt him too great a blow. Chang'an could even sense the violent, despairing aura around Liu Ye, as though there was nothing left for him to live for.

"Ning Family's Chang'an!"

The eyes of Liu Ye, lord of Crimson Blood Fortress, flashed with ferocity as he barked, "Why did you kill my son?"

Chang'an smiled bitterly. "I have lost all my inner strength. No matter what, I could not have killed your son."

Liu Ye sneered. "So you used poison? Ning Family's Chang'an, I never expected you to be such a sinister man. I originally sent my son to personally invite you to help me kill an evil man. Why did you strike him down?!"

Chang'an said, "But on the road, your son heard something he should not have heard. Someone told him the secret that I had lost all my inner strength, and he developed ill intentions toward me. Not only did he have no sincerity in inviting me, he even stole my Green Ox and Erhu. Lord Liu, how did you recognize me at a glance? Could it be that you knew this secret from the very beginning? If you knew from the start that I had lost all my inner strength, why did you ask me to kill someone? Could there be some ulterior scheme hidden within this?"

Chang'an fired off question after question.

With a swish, Liu Ye pulled out a portrait. The person painted on it was precisely Chang'an as he looked now. Liu Ye seemed to realize something as well, and confusion appeared on his face. "Not long after Tang Ying left, someone sent me this portrait and told me it would be of great use. I recognized you because of it. You and I only met once, and I had actually long forgotten what you looked like."

Chang'an was startled. "Who gave you that portrait?!"

Liu Ye said, "That day, I was drunk! The person who gave me the portrait seemed to be a woman, but I cannot remember clearly anymore. I only remember that she carried a fragrance that made one lose oneself in it..." A trace of bewilderment appeared on Liu Ye's face.

Women always carried different scents. This was no clue at all.

Chang'an could not figure it out either.

Suddenly, a woman came strolling down the flagstone path. Her slender waist swayed, and she smiled sweetly. Her laughter was crisp and pleasant, like a lark singing in a mountain stream.

A fragrance drifted over on the wind.

Liu Ye's nose twitched, and he shouted, "That's it! This is the scent!"

Chang'an smelled it too. It truly was fragrant and distinctive; once smelled, it could never be forgotten.

Chang'an looked at the graceful woman. He had never seen such a bewitching woman before. She was like a demoness—every part of her body brimmed with temptation as she walked, peerlessly enchanting.

The woman was looking directly at Chang'an.

Chang'an asked, "Who are you?"

The woman had been smiling, but when Chang'an asked, her expression turned cold. "The one who will kill you!" Her voice was icy and sinister.

Chang'an did not understand. "Why?"

The woman said, "Does the name Guo Qingshui sound familiar?" Her voice was originally soft, yet every word she spoke carried a venomous chill.

Chang'an said, "You are Guo Qingshan's younger sister?!" Guo Qingshan had been the leader of Twelve Tiger Wolf Village, a man who burned, killed, pillaged, and committed every evil imaginable. He had died beneath Chang'an's Dragon Head Sword, in the battle that made Chang'an famous.

Guo Qingshui said, "It is good that you still remember someone named Guo Qingshan died by your hand. That's right, I am Guo Qingshan's younger sister. You killed my own elder brother. You deserve to die! And you..." Guo Qingshui pointed at Liu Ye. "You killed my mother. You both deserve to die. I have waited far too long for this day."

Liu Ye snorted coldly. "When did I ever kill your mother?"

Guo Qingshui said, "Thirteen years ago in Sanhe Commandery, you rode your horse over a woman washing clothes by the river and trampled her to death, then rode away without a care. You probably never knew that the woman's two children had engraved you deep in their hearts and sworn to make you pay your debt of blood with blood!"

Liu Ye shut his mouth. He had seen far too many vendettas like this.

But Chang'an still had doubts, so he asked, "How did you learn the secret that I had lost all my martial arts?"

Guo Qingshui raised her head. "Because on the night before your decisive battle with Lu Jing, I was in Lu Jing's bed. I was the one who made him cripple you."

Yu Fu abruptly released Chang'an's hand and placed hers upon the hilt of her sword, staring intently at Guo Qingshui.

Yet Chang'an gently clasped her hand in return.

Chang'an said, "So everything was a trap you laid?"

Guo Qingshui said, "That's right. Even Liu Bao'er eloping with someone was arranged by me. Killing two birds with one arrow!"

Liu Bao'er was Liu Ye's woman.

Liu Ye flew into a rage. "Where is Liu Bao'er now? What have you done to her?" He deeply loved Liu Bao'er. She was the only woman he had married in his life, a treasure he cherished beyond measure.

Guo Qingshui gave a bewitching, icy smile. "Of course, she is enjoying herself in a big bed."

Liu Ye's entire body trembled. His face turned deathly pale. As he threw back his head and let out a long howl, he spat out blood. His face twisted hideously as he stared fixedly at Guo Qingshui. "You... why did you poison my son? What grudge did my son have against you?"

Guo Qingshui said coldly, "He thought I was beautiful and actually wanted to do something shameless to me. Even dying ten thousand times would serve him right. I already gave him a chance, but sadly, he did not live long enough to find the Hundred Herbs Divine Doctor!"

"Ah!"

Liu Ye lunged at Guo Qingshui like a Fierce Wolf. His woman was gone, defiled by another; his son had been murdered—it was as if his heart and guts had been carved out. Even if he had to risk his life, he would kill the culprit before him.

Guo Qingshui looked delicate and frail, dazzling like a flowering branch, as though she lacked even the strength to bind a chicken. Yet she was not afraid in the slightest. Instead, she smiled.

The moment she smiled, Liu Ye let out a miserable cry and fell to the ground. White foam spilled from his mouth, then the foam turned blood-red.

Chang'an was horrified. "Poison!"

Guo Qingshui smiled sweetly. "Too late. Asura Blade is trash, and Ghost Shadow is a mediocrity. They could not kill you, so I had to act personally."

Liu Ye shouted with all his strength, "Men! Men, where is Wang Meng..."

Guo Qingshui's gaze was like poisoned blades, but she said softly, "No need to call. There are no survivors in Crimson Blood Fortress. While you were talking with Ning Family's Chang'an, everyone died. Is my scent fragrant?!"

Liu Ye's eyes widened. His mouth was like a blood-red spring, blood gushing from it without end. He died with his eyes still open.

Chang'an drew in a sharp breath. Everyone in Crimson Blood Fortress had been poisoned to death?! Yet he himself felt no serious discomfort. The poisonous vapor seemed to have no effect on him. His whole body grew hot as a current of power flowed secretly within him, dissolving the poison.

But Yu Fu's body went limp. The poison had taken effect.

Chang'an hurriedly said, "This is Heartbreak Poison Incense from the Poison Dragon Cult. Do not use your inner strength, or the poison will take effect even faster."

Everyone in Crimson Blood Fortress was dead. Several hundred lives had perished. The woman standing before Chang'an was nothing less than a life-reaping female demon. Chang'an was both anxious and enraged.

Guo Qingshui sneered. "Ning Family's Chang'an, are you surprised?"

Chang'an said coldly, "What are you to the Poison Dragon Cult?"

Guo Qingshui snorted. "You have no right to know. There is no use in a dead man knowing." Then she smiled happily again and sighed. "There are people who, in order to achieve their goals, will always stop at nothing and spare no cost. The only end for anyone who offends such people is death. Unfortunately, I am one of them. You people forced me into this. For so many years, I was willing to do anything for revenge. Watching my enemies die one by one before my eyes is truly a comfortable, joyous thing."

Supporting Yu Fu, Chang'an sneered. "You have lost all humanity. You have fallen into Demonic Possession."

Guo Qingshui burst into laughter. "I was forced into it! I like it this way. Demons have a demon's carefree freedom, lawless and unrestrained."

Chang'an said coldly, "I will definitely kill you."

Guo Qingshui's expression changed. She suddenly realized something was wrong and said in shock, "Why has it not taken effect on you?"

Supporting Yu Fu, Chang'an walked toward Guo Qingshui step by step, enunciating every word. "Because I am Ning Family's Chang'an. Because all my strength remains. And because I had been on guard against you from the start. Hmph. Did you think Lu Jing truly listened to you and scattered my inner strength?!"

Panic crossed Guo Qingshui's face. She could feel the killing intent—cold, bone-piercing killing intent.

She knew Ning Family's Chang'an excelled at fighting with his life on the line.

Yet she suddenly burst out laughing. "Ning Family's Chang'an, you cannot fool me!"

Guo Qingshui moved abruptly. Poison needles and poison pellets flew one after another from her sleeves like a torrential rain. A cloud of pink mist rose up and engulfed Chang'an and Yu Fu.

Chang'an and Yu Fu emerged from the mist, but Guo Qingshui had already vanished without a trace.

Chang'an's body was riddled with hidden weapons and poisoned needles. He had shielded Yu Fu with his body. He was too fat, too large a target, and had become a living target. The Poison Dragon Cult's poisons were unmatched under heaven and exceptionally vicious. Chang'an could already feel his entire body going numb and swelling. He felt like a piece of wood, about to lose consciousness, his head splitting with pain. He snatched up the portrait from the ground and tucked it into his clothes, then prepared to leave with Yu Fu and race at full gallop to find Miao Suyi.

Miao Suyi's grandfather was a renowned divine physician, no worse than the Hundred Herbs Divine Doctor. One was strange, the other wicked, and they could cure Yu Fu's poison.

The carriage was not far away by the roadside.

When Chang'an turned around, however, he saw a black mass of people rushing toward him.

At their head was Cao Jing, beside whom stood a panic-stricken woman. The woman's hair hung loose and disheveled, and she was covered in blood. The moment she saw Chang'an from afar, she shrieked, "It's him! The murderer, the murderer who poisoned Crimson Blood Fortress..." As she shouted, she coughed up blood. Her appearance was utterly miserable.

Chang'an's heart tightened. A wave of unease rose within him, and his gaze turned cold.

Heroes from all corners of the martial world swiftly surrounded Chang'an and Yu Fu. One after another, they drew their blades and faced them with glaring eyes.

Cao Jing was clearly the leader. He glared at Chang'an and demanded, "Who are you? What school and sect do you belong to? Why did you poison everyone in Crimson Blood Fortress?"

But Chang'an stared directly at the disheveled woman and asked, "Who are you? Why are you framing me?"

At this moment, he was frantic with worry. Yu Fu's life hung by a thread, and his heart was twisted into a knot. He had truly been careless. Hearing Liu Ye say that he had smelled this fragrance before and suffered no harm, he had lowered his guard.

The miserable-looking woman screamed hoarsely, "I am Liu Ye's wife, Liu Bao'er! Why did you murder my son, my husband, and my family?! Sob... heroes of every road, you must seek justice for this humble woman! Young Master Cao, you must uphold justice and never let this man go! This man is utterly vicious, and his methods are cruel. Fortunately, I escaped by sheer luck and exposed the truth. Otherwise, everyone in Crimson Blood Fortress would have become wronged ghosts and died a miserable death!"