In the wilderness, a dark procession raced toward Wind City.
They moved swiftly. Hooves kicked up flying snow, and in the blink of an eye, they drifted to the foot of Wind City's walls like a wisp of black smoke.
Clip-clop.
Hooves struck the frozen earth, ringing out with a crisp, clear sound.
The black-robed knight at the head of the procession removed the hood from his head and looked up at the people on the city tower.
"Who goes there? State your name," a young officer called down from the tower.
"Is Young Master Mu Yang here?" the black-robed man asked.
Li Mu Yang stood atop the city tower and looked down through a gap in the battlements. "I am Li Mu Yang. Who are you?"
"Shattered Star," the black-robed man said in a deep voice.
Li Mu Yang froze, then asked with delighted surprise, "Where is Aunt Gongsun? Have her come out and speak with me."
Li Mu Yang had never dealt with Shattered Star, but he knew that his grandfather Lu Xingkong commanded ten death warriors known as the Three Souls and Seven Spirits. Those ten were powerful yet elusive. Shattered Star was one of them.
When the Lu Clan met with disaster, the Three Souls and Seven Spirits had been ordered to protect the Lu Clan members and retreat through the secret passage.
They had vanished from the mortal world. No one knew where they were.
These past few days, Qian Du had also been sending people to search for their trail. She had spread word everywhere that Wind City had changed hands and that Lu Wuyong had surrendered, all so they could receive the news and hurry to Wind City to reunite with them.
Yet no one had expected them to truly come.
And at