Scorching Fire, Killing with a Cup of Wine

The fire spread quickly.

The curtains were fine Suzhou-Hangzhou silk, and the lamp oil was deep-sea whale fat. When the two met, it was like oil on a raging fire.

Red light seeped through half the pavilion, and screams, running footsteps, and the sound of shattering porcelain merged into chaos.

Amidst this boiling turmoil, only a single green silhouette moved against the flow of people, stepping on tongues of flame, silently drifting up to the third floor.

Third floor, the "Heaven" character sized private room.

The heavy nanmu door was tightly shut, isolating the clamor from outside.

Four Barbarian guards, hands on their sabers, stood guard at the door. They didn't move, even as the floor beneath them began to heat up.

These were death warriors.

Barbarian death warriors only obeyed their master's commands, not their own lives.

"Stop."

The leading guard saw the green-clad figure emerging from the smoke and coldly uttered two words.

Da Liang speech was stiff, carrying a hint of mutton smell.

Ji Ye didn't stop.

He held the iron sword in his hand, its tip dragging on the ground, leaving a shallow mark on the wooden floor with each step.

"I've come to deliver a gift."

Ji Ye's voice was soft, as if he were chatting with an old friend.

"What gift?" The guard's fingers tightened on his saber's hilt.

"To send you on your way."

Before he finished speaking.

The wind stirred.

Ji Ye's figure suddenly vanished.

Not the teleportation of storybooks, but speed so extreme it surpassed the limits of human vision.

The guard only saw a blur, and a biting cold air pressed against his face.

"Hah!"

All four guards drew their sabers simultaneously.

The curved blades, like snow, interwove in the air, forming a net of death. This was the Barbarians' combined attack formation, known as the "Wolf Fang Formation," which could strip the skin off even a master of the Organ Tempering realm.

But Ji Ye didn't fall into the net.

Because he was faster than the net.

"Clang--"

A long hum.

The iron sword was drawn.

This sword stroke had no technique, only a simple, direct, yet strangely rhythmic arc.

Like the final stroke of a calligraphy master on Xuan paper.

The brush lifts, the ink runs out.

The movements of the four guards froze simultaneously.

Their sabers were still in mid-air, their eyes still wide with ferocity, but a thin red line had slowly appeared on their throats.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft."

Four soft sounds, almost simultaneous.

Four heads rolled neatly to the ground, their faces still holding the fierce expression from when they drew their swords.

Ji Ye sheathed his sword.

The blade was bloodless.

Because the sword was too fast, the blood couldn't keep up.

"Bang."

Ji Ye kicked open the private room door.

At this moment, Tuli had one foot already on the windowsill.

He looked back, his eyes meeting Ji Ye's calm, unmoving gaze.

In that instant, he felt he wasn't looking at a person, but at a bottomless well.

"Stay."

Ji Ye raised his hand and swung his sword.

The sword light, like a silken banner, spanned over ten feet.

Tuli only felt a chill on his neck, and the scenery before his eyes suddenly began to spin, the world turning upside down.

He saw his own headless corpse still hanging on the windowsill, gushing fresh blood.

He also saw the swordsman in the green shirt slowly sheathing his sword.

"Such a fast sword..."

This was Tuli's last thought.

"Crack."

The head fell to the ground.

Ji Ye walked over, picked up the still-dripping head, and casually tore off a piece of the curtain to wrap it.

He turned and walked out of the private room.

The fire had already reached the third floor. Waves of heat washed over him, making his skin feel dry.

Ji Ye, carrying the head, walked to the railing.

Below, the main hall on the second floor had descended into chaos.

But amidst the chaotic crowd, there was one area that was empty.

A person stood there.

Clad in white as snow, unstained by dust.

He held a cup of wine and was looking up at the third floor.

Qin Wuji.

Their gazes met in mid-air.

One was the aloof young master of a noble family, the other a wandering killer carrying a head.

In his previous life, Qin Wuji had pierced Ji Ye's heart with his sword, ending his life.

In this life, they met again.

Except this time, the roles of hunter and prey were yet to be determined.

Qin Wuji looked at the figure in the green shirt, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

Such a fast sword.

Such a heavy killing intent.

"You have impressive skills, sir."

Qin Wuji raised his wine cup and saluted from afar. "Killing people on my Qin family's territory, and then setting fire to the building. How do we settle this debt?"

His voice was not loud, but amplified by his Internal Strength, it cut through the noisy fire and drilled clearly into Ji Ye's ears.

Ji Ye smiled.

A cold smile.

He lifted the head in his hand and shook it.

"This barbarian's head is my thank you gift for cleaning up your Qin family's mess, Young Master Qin."

"As for the fire..."

Ji Ye glanced at the raging flames behind him.

"The weather is dry and the air is brittle, be careful with fire."

With that, he pushed off the railing with his foot, leaping out of the building like a great bird.

"Trying to leave?"

Qin Wuji snorted coldly.

The wine cup in his hand suddenly flew out.

The delicate porcelain cup, infused with Internal Strength, let out a piercing whistle as it cut through the air, like a cannonball fired from its chamber, heading straight for Ji Ye's back.

This strike was powerful enough to pierce metal and stone.

Ji Ye, suspended in mid-air, seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.

He didn't turn around.

He simply swung his sword in a counter-attack.

"Clang!"

The flat of his sword precisely struck the side of the wine cup.

Not a head-on collision, but using the opponent's force to redirect it.

The wine cup changed direction with the slap, not shattering, but instead reflecting at an even faster speed towards a load-bearing pillar on the second floor.

"Boom!"

The wine cup struck the pillar, and Internal Strength erupted.

That camphor wood pillar, as thick as two people embracing, was actually blown halfway through by this tiny wine cup!

Wood chips flew, and the building shook violently.

Qin Wuji's expression finally changed.

"What an exquisite force-dispelling technique."

He looked at the broken pillar, then looked up again. The figure in the green shirt had already disappeared into the vast night.

Only a single sentence remained, drifting in the night wind.

"Young Master Qin, the wine is good."

"Next time, I'll treat you to Blood Wine."

Qin Wuji stood in place, gazing at the empty night sky, his fingers lightly stroking the hilt of the sword at his waist.

After a long time.

He suddenly smiled.

His smile was chilling.

"This is a bit interesting."

"Investigate."

He faintly ordered the old servant behind him.

"Dig three feet deep, I want that 'sword' found."

"When did such a formidable newcomer arrive in this capital city?"

The Grand Princess's manor, Tingxue Tower.

The tea had already gone cold.

Xiao Hongxiu still sat there, her fingers tapping lightly on the tabletop.

"Your Highness, that person probably isn't coming back."

The man in black behind her said coldly, "Zuisheng Tower is engulfed in flames, and Qin Wuji is inside. Even if he's a mere martial artist who managed to kill Tuli, he won't escape Qin Wuji's sword."

Just then.

"Plop."

A round object was thrown over the wall, rolling to Xiao Hongxiu's feet.

It was a head.

Tuli's head.

Immediately after, a figure leaped over the wall and landed lightly in the courtyard.

Ji Ye brushed the ash off his clothes, carrying his iron sword, and walked up the steps.

He looked at Xiao Hongxiu and pointed at the cold tea on the table.

"Your Highness."

"The tea is cold."

"But it doesn't matter."

Ji Ye grinned, revealing a row of white teeth.

"This head is still warm."