Aunt, Qin Sirong

Ye Erniang reacted swiftly. Supporting the injured Yue Laosan, she immediately used her qinggong to flee. After a few leaps, she vanished from sight.

Qin Shuang did not pursue them. He leaped in front of Helian Tieshu and unleashed a series of Heavenly Frost Fists, killing Nurhachi, Tan Qing, and Sun Sanba in an instant and thoroughly intimidating the people of the Western Xia First-Rank Hall.

Helian Tieshu had completely lost his former imposing bearing. His eyes darted about as he asked Qin Shuang fearfully, "What do you want?"

Qin Shuang spread out a hand and said, "Hand over the antidote to the Sorrowful Crisp Breeze, and I'll spare your life!"

"Will you keep your word?" Helian Tieshu asked skeptically.

"The Dragon Guard has always kept its word!" Qin Shuang stared at Helian Tieshu without hesitation. "Besides, do you have any other choice but to trust me?"

Helian Tieshu's face shifted between green and white. In the end, he pulled the antidote from his robes and handed it to Qin Shuang.

Qin Shuang was not worried that Helian Tieshu would play tricks and give him a fake antidote. In the current situation, Helian Tieshu had no way to stay alive except to cooperate fully.

Qin Shuang tossed the antidote to Cheng Lingsu, letting her identify it before detoxifying everyone.

The antidote to the Sorrowful Crisp Breeze smelled unbearably foul, but it was extremely effective. Everyone recovered immediately after merely inhaling it.

As soon as Jiang Xiaoyu regained the ability to move, he went straight to Qin Shuang and asked, unable to suppress his confusion, "Brother Shuang, why were you so happy just now?"

Heng Feijing also came over, looking displeased, as though he were angry that Jiang Xiaoyu did not believe his deduction.

"Was it that obvious?" Qin Shuang had not expected Jiang Xiaoyu to ask him about it. He rubbed his nose awkwardly and said, "I thought that after killing so many Imperial Guards this time, even if we found Ni Pusa, at best our merits and demerits would cancel each other out. This mission would have been for nothing! Who would have thought we'd be so lucky? The people from the Western Xia First-Rank Hall came right to us, and we captured the Western Xia spies who had infiltrated the Great Shang. Tell me, isn't that a great merit? Hehe!"

As he spoke, Qin Shuang calmly walked behind Wen Fangda. Ignoring his repeated pleas for mercy, he held Wen Fangda's chin with one hand and tilted his head up slightly. With the other hand, he reversed his grip on the Hatred Severer and slowly, steadily drew it across Wen Fangda's neck. Blood splashed onto the orange-patterned black brocade of his military uniform, like an inkstone sinking into ink, leaving no trace behind.

Qin Shuang repeated the process three more times, slitting the throats of Wen Fang Yi, Wen Fangwu, and Wen Fanglu in succession. Then he ordered the Dragon Guard, who had regained the ability to move, "Kill the Imperial Guards who just spoke up and surrendered to Western Xia. Detoxify the rest and let them go!"

"You're really letting them go just like that?" Jiang Xiaoyu asked from the side, somewhat unwillingly.

"Ultimately, we're all citizens of the Great Shang. They were only following orders. The fact that they firmly held their ground and refused to surrender under those circumstances shows that they're men of courage. There's no need to make things difficult for them." Qin Shuang explained it to Jiang Xiaoyu, then looked at the surviving Imperial Guards. "Report today's events truthfully when you return. The one who killed your Hundred-Man Commander was Qin Shuang, the Mystic Tiger of Chaoge, Squad Leader of the Divine Unit of the Yu Unit of the Dragon Guard in Chaoge City of the Great Shang Dynasty."

It was a sunny afternoon, with the blazing sun seeming to drape the entire world in a golden veil. The clouds appeared to have melted beneath the sun's warmth, leaving only a stretch of azure sky.

The trees on both sides of the official road glittered beneath the sunlight, every leaf brimming with the force of life. A gentle breeze swept past, bringing the soft rustling of leaves—the most beautiful music nature had to offer.

Qin Shuang, Ding Ning, and Jiang Xiaoyu's group traveled toward Chaoge, some on horseback and some driving the carriage.

The warm sunlight, gentle breeze, relief at successfully completing the mission, and delight at capturing the Western Xia spies blended together, diluting the regret and sorrow over the loss of nine members of the group.

After experiencing this battle, Qin Shuang felt an urgent need to improve the Martial Way of both himself and the entire group. He did not want to see anyone else sacrificed or left behind.

Just as Qin Shuang was pondering how to exchange their merits for cultivation resources to improve everyone's strength, a signal flare shot into the sky from the woods beside the official road with a sharp hiss. It turned night into day and day into night—the Dragon Guard's unique distress signal.

"Little Fish, bring one squad with me. Xiao Ding, Brother Hu, take people to protect Ni Pusa and the carriage. Notify the patrols to return and stand guard!" Qin Shuang gave the orders aloud while rushing toward the flare's launch point.

From a distance, he saw three plainly dressed, old-fashioned swordsmen surrounding a woman in red. Their sword strikes flowed without pause, each one targeting an opening in the enemy's defenses.

What they used was actually Taibai Swordplay, famed for its traceless sword intent, the intent moving with the sword, and the sword moving before the intent!

Qin Shuang knew that many members of the Dragon Guard had studied under the Taibai Sect, so he naturally assumed that these three were Dragon Guard. What puzzled him was that they clearly had the upper hand, so why had they sent up a distress flare?

When Qin Shuang drew closer and took a proper look, he saw that the woman in red appeared to be around twenty years old. She had delicate features, while decisiveness and determination showed between her brows. Her graceful movements carried an aura Qin Shuang found utterly familiar.

She was actually his aunt, Qin Sirong!

"Save her!"

Qin Shuang charged forward at once, drawing his saber to block the attacks of two Taibai Sect swordsmen. Jiang Xiaoyu naturally knew Qin Sirong as well, and he used the Absolute Defense of the Five Absolute Divine Arts to guard her from the front.

Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling, Huai Mie, and Huai Kong all attacked in turn, capturing the three Taibai Sect swordsmen in fewer than ten moves.

"Shuang'er?" When Qin Sirong realized that the person who had arrived was Qin Shuang, surprise and delight filled her voice. "I only sent out that distress signal as a last resort, hoping to try my luck. I never imagined that one of our own would really be nearby—and that it would be you!"

"Aunt, what happened?" Qin Shuang blurted out the words, only then noticing Huai Mie and the others staring oddly at him for calling a young woman his aunt. He could not help feeling slightly embarrassed.

"Our group accepted a mission to assassinate the military commander of the Northern Yuan allied state outside Liaozhou. After we succeeded, we were pursued all the way by martial artists recruited by the other side. The five of us scattered and fled. Not long ago, I was caught up with by these three, Shi Bingguang, Shi Bingwen, and Li Gang, who call themselves the Three Heroes of Taibai. If you hadn't arrived in time, I would certainly have been nine parts dead and one part alive." Qin Sirong still felt shaken.

"What Three Heroes of Taibai? The Taibai Sect is a dignified and righteous orthodox sect, and its disciples are renowned throughout the martial world for their heroic reputations. How could these lapdogs serving a foreign race deserve to be called heroes? They aren't even worthy of sullying the name Taibai!" Jiang Xiaoyu said indignantly. "If the people of the Taibai Sect learned what the three of them had done, they would surely be ashamed to call them fellow disciples!"