The tea was Junshan Silver Needle.
The water was Plum Blossom Snow Water.
The cup was Ding Kiln White Porcelain.
Ji Ye held the teacup and gently blew aside the needle-shaped leaves floating on the surface. Steam curled upward, blurring his face, which was calm to an almost excessive degree.
Xiao Hongxiu sat opposite him, idly playing with the incomplete page Ji Ye had tossed onto the floor, her eyes glinting with amusement.
The man in black still stood behind her, like a lifeless Iron Pagoda. Yet Ji Ye could sense a faint, elusive aura that had remained locked onto the right hand gripping his sword.
"How is the tea?" Xiao Hongxiu suddenly asked.
"It is good tea." Ji Ye took a sip and set down the cup. "Unfortunately, the water is three parts too hot. It has ruined the tea's courage."
"Too hot?"
Xiao Hongxiu smiled, though the smile never reached her eyes. "The waters of the Capital City have always been hot. If you fear being scalded, sir, why wade into these muddy waters at all?"
"Whether the water is hot depends on whether the tea drinker's skin is thick enough."
Ji Ye raised his head, his gaze clear and bright. "This commoner is a crude man, rough-skinned and thick-fleshed. I can drink this water."
"Such rough skin and thick flesh."
Xiao Hongxiu slapped the incomplete page onto the table with a soft smack.
"Since you can swallow this cup of tea, I will not beat around the bush. The chief of Tingxue Tower receives a monthly salary of a hundred gold, with fine clothes and rich food bestowed upon him—but that is merely the face of it."
She leaned forward slightly. In that instant, the oppressive bearing of one who held sway over the court descended upon him.
"The substance beneath must be bought with your life."
"This commoner's life is not worth much."
Ji Ye lightly rubbed the rough sword hilt with his fingers. "But it is not cheap either. If Your Highness wants it, that depends on the price."
"Supreme Induction Chapter."
Xiao Hongxiu spoke five words.
Ji Ye's fingers stilled.
He showed neither surprise nor greed. He merely narrowed his eyes slightly.
"As expected, Your Highness investigated me."
"There are no walls in this world that do not let wind through."
Xiao Hongxiu said evenly, "A destitute scholar who was still serving as a constable in Black Stone County on the northern frontier two years ago suddenly disappeared. Two years later, he appeared in the Capital City with earthshaking martial arts, then came straight to my residence. What you want is not difficult to guess."
Ji Ye smiled.
He was not surprised. With the Grand Princess's intelligence network, it would have been stranger if she had failed to uncover his background.
"Since Your Highness has laid the matter bare, this commoner will speak plainly as well. I want to read books."
"Granted."
Xiao Hongxiu agreed readily. "As long as you handle one matter for me, I will take you into the Imperial Palace's library. Even that incomplete volume—you may look at it once."
"What matter?"
"Kill someone."
Xiao Hongxiu drew a portrait from her sleeve and pushed it before Ji Ye.
The portrait depicted a Hu merchant with a face full of flesh, sinister eyes, and a chunk missing from his left ear.
"This man is called Tuli. On the surface, he is a fur merchant from the Western Regions. In truth, he is a spy planted in the Capital City by the Barbarians."
Xiao Hongxiu's voice turned cold. "Tonight, he will host guests at Zuisheng Tower. I want you to bring me his head."
Zuisheng Tower.
The greatest money-devouring den in the Capital City, where gold poured in by the day.
But everyone in the martial world knew its waters ran deep. Behind Zuisheng Tower stood the Northern Suppression General's Manor—and the Qin family.
To kill a Barbarian envoy on the Qin family's turf.
This killed two birds with one stone. It would eliminate a spy while also putting a thorn in the Qin family's eye. More importantly, it was forcing Ji Ye to submit a Pledge of Allegiance and utterly offend the Qin family.
Ji Ye looked at the portrait without immediately taking it.
"Lord Shadow cannot kill this man?" He glanced at the man in black.
The man in black snorted coldly, his voice like two iron sheets grinding together. "Zuisheng Tower is filled with experts. If I act, the disturbance will be too great and alert those old undead fools of the Qin family."
"So, you need a fresh-faced blade."
Ji Ye understood.
He was an outsider, a wandering martial artist. After killing someone, he could flee into the martial world, leaving the Qin family unable to seize any evidence. Even if they did, the Grand Princess could claim it was a private grudge.
A discarded pawn.
From the very beginning, he had been meant to serve as a discarded pawn.
"What? Afraid?" the man in black mocked. "Where did the momentum of that sword strike from earlier go?"
Ji Ye ignored him.
He reached out, picked up the portrait, folded it, and tucked it into his clothes.
"Midnight tonight."
Ji Ye rose to his feet and picked up that iron sword.
"This commoner will return to ask for another cup of tea."
"I hope the water will be just the right temperature by then."
With that, he turned and left.
He neither bowed nor took his leave.
His retreating figure was proud and solitary, like a sword drawn from its sheath.
Watching Ji Ye depart, the man in black frowned tightly.
"Your Highness, this man is wild and unyielding, and his ambitions are immense. The Supreme Induction Chapter is a royal taboo. Are you truly going to let him read it?"
Xiao Hongxiu lifted her teacup again. Watching the tea leaves rise and sink within, a meaningful smile curled over her lips.
"That is a fine blade."
"A fine blade should be used to kill the hardest people."
"As for after he has finished reading the book..."
She gently blew a breath.
"If the blade grows dull, simply break it."
Night fell.
The lights of the Capital City illuminated half the sky.
Zuisheng Tower was even more brightly lit, with the music of strings and pipes unceasing and the scent of powder drifting for ten miles.
This was a den where men spent gold like dirt, and a tender homeland for heroes.
On the third floor, in a large Heaven-class private room.
Tuli had two scantily clad dancers in his arms as he guzzled strong liquor brought from the Western Regions. Gold and silver were piled across the table before him, along with several unopened letters.
Four burly guards stood outside the door. Their waists bulged with the curved blades hidden there.
In the main hall below, Ji Ye found a corner and sat down.
He ordered a pot of the cheapest distilled liquor and a plate of peanuts.
The iron sword lay across his knees.
He waited.
Martial Dao Heavenly Eye activated.
In his eyes, the entire Zuisheng Tower became a transparent beehive.
He saw several red points of light in the third-floor private room—martial artists with vigorous qi and blood.
He also saw several obscure auras hidden in the shadows—experts planted by the Qin family to guard the establishment.
He even saw a familiar figure in a room on the second floor.
The man who had once pierced his heart with a single sword strike.
Qin Wuji.
Ji Ye lightly tapped his fingers against the scabbard.
Enemies truly met on a narrow road.
He had not expected to meet again so soon in this life.
Qin Wuji was listening to music on the second floor. He had not brought many guards, only an old servant attending him. Yet Qin Wuji himself was an expert at the peak of Organ Tempering, with one foot already in the Meridian Opening Realm. Alone, he could stand against a thousand troops.
"Interesting."
Ji Ye took a drink of the distilled liquor, its spicy heat rolling down his throat.
If he only needed to kill Tuli, it would be as easy as turning over his hand.
But since Qin Wuji was here too...
A glint of madness flashed through Ji Ye's eyes.
He would not merely kill Tuli. He would also send Qin Wuji a grand gift.
"Waiter."
Ji Ye beckoned.
"What can I do for you, sir?" The waiter hurried over eagerly.
"This wine is too weak."
Ji Ye took a silver ingot from his clothes—his last bit of travel money.
"Bring me a better pot. The strongest you have."
"Right away!"
A moment later, the waiter brought over a pot of potent liquor called Immortal's Fall.
Ji Ye pulled out the stopper and sniffed it.
It was indeed strong.
He did not drink it. Instead, he held the wine jug in his hand, swayed to his feet, and staggered toward the upper floors, pretending to be thoroughly drunk.
His steps were unsteady, his eyes unfocused, and he hummed an unknown tune under his breath.
Just like a drunken fool who wanted to head upstairs and find himself a girl.
The guards at the staircase stopped him.
"Halt! The upper floor is reserved for honored guests. Idle people are not allowed in!"
"Honored guests? Hic..."
Ji Ye belched, his mouth reeking of liquor. "I have money... I am an honored guest too..."
As he spoke, he stumbled forward and tried to squeeze past them.
One guard impatiently reached out to shove him. "Get downstairs!"
The instant the guard's hand touched Ji Ye's shoulder.
Ji Ye's body went limp as though it had no bones, falling with the force.
The wine jug in his hand "accidentally" slipped free and flew out.
Smash!
The wine jug traced an arc through the air and struck a glass lamp hanging from the second-floor railing with perfect precision.
The glass lamp shattered.
Lamp oil mixed with the strong liquor, instantly bursting into flames.
The fire raced along the drapes on the railing, surging up to the third floor in a roaring rush.
"Fire!!"
Ji Ye screamed, his voice shrill with terror.
That cry, coupled with the leaping flames, instantly threw the entire Zuisheng Tower into chaos.
Screams and the crashing of overturned tables and chairs blended into one.
Chaos.
This was the cover Ji Ye wanted.
While the guards stood frozen in shock, the drunken haze vanished utterly from Ji Ye's eyes.
His feet slid, and like a swimming fish, he slipped into the chaotic crowd and moved upstream against the flow.
His target: the third floor.
The slaughter began.
Before you continue