Rainstorm Assassination

"Why don't you tell me, Song—just what is so extraordinary about that prince who spent fifteen years stranded in some remote little city?"

Zhang He narrowed his eyes as he asked. Song Shanyue frowned and pondered for a moment, but soon shook his head again.

"Hard to say."

Seeing this, Zhang He gave a scornful laugh. "This time, I'm afraid Song is overthinking it. How extraordinary can some twenty-year-old brat really be?"

"Is he a Xiantian Realm expert? A Grandmaster? A Great Grandmaster? Don't tell me he's a Heavenly Human?"

As he spoke, Zhang He casually straightened his robes. "It's normal for Song to be cautious, but don't let every rustle of wind and cry of crane put you on edge. Besides... what Song may not know is that we aren't the only ones who want that prince dead!"

Song Shanyue lifted his gaze toward the foppish young noble before him and heard him continue.

"Too many people hate the Great Li Court. There will always be people who see eye to eye with us. After all, chances this good do not come often."

"The matter of the real and fake princes has already spread throughout the martial world. Who knew how many eyes across the realm were fixed on the Great Li Imperial Capital? If someone were to cut off that real prince's head and hang it high atop Shangyang City's walls right now, tell me—wouldn't that be satisfying?"

"I reckon that even if Emperor Yuanwu doesn't grieve, he'll still be angered half to death. Hahaha..."

As Zhang He spoke, he burst into laughter, as though merely imagining it brought him immense pleasure.

Song Shanyue remained silent. Only after the other man stopped laughing did he say, "He has already headed to the Heavenly Brocade Guard Headquarters with Sun Changyu. I cannot guarantee that I can kill him, nor can I guarantee that I will be the one to kill him with my own hands."

At those words, the careless young face of Zhang He instantly turned indifferent. "An opportunity like this is rare. Even if Song won't think for himself, he should think of his son. He'd best give it everything he has!"

"Also, Song only needs to know one thing. The process never matters. I only look at results."

At that moment, a muffled peal of thunder sounded from the heavens. Zhang He turned to look outside through the carved lattice window, and a wicked smile appeared on his face.

"It's about to rain. The perfect time for killing. Song, you'd better hurry."

With that, Zhang He cradled his head in his hands and pushed the door open, cursing and grumbling as he shouted that he was going to find his uncle, the Vice Minister of Revenue.

Song Shanyue watched his departing back, his eyes dark and gloomy, then slammed a palm onto the desk behind him.

The next instant, the desk silently collapsed into a heap of splinters. Before long, the entire hall was deathly still and utterly empty.

Dark clouds churned over the entire imperial capital, as though a massive sheet of black cloth had covered the sky. The carriage carrying Li Musheng raced along streets where pedestrians were steadily thinning out.

A bolt of lightning split the sky like a sharp sword, instantly bleaching the long street ahead a ghastly white. Immediately afterward, another thunderclap exploded, as though it would shatter heaven and earth.

Dense raindrops began pattering against the carriage roof. The already sparse commoners on the road scattered in all directions, running beneath the eaves of nearby shops to shelter from the rain.

In an instant, it seemed as though the Heavenly River had burst its banks. Torrential rain poured down in sheets, while howling winds slanted the sound of the rain and made the banners outside the shops whip violently.

Li Musheng sat idly inside the still-racing carriage as its wheels rolled on, splashing up great sheets of water.

The long street, lively only moments ago, had become utterly desolate beneath the ravaging rain. Only the sound of rainfall and peals of thunder remained.

When the carriage turned into an even quieter alleyway, Sun Changyu, the chief eunuch who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly snapped them open.

He looked at Li Musheng, who seemed to have noticed nothing, and said grimly, "Killing intent."

With that, his figure flashed. Like a crimson swallow in flight, he shot out through the carriage window.

The next instant, Sun Changyu spun through the rain and landed lightly atop the back of the lead horse.

Seeing this, the coachman immediately understood. He yanked tight on the reins, bringing the galloping steed to a sudden halt.

Then he reached beneath the driver's seat and pulled out a long saber wrapped in oilcloth.

With a light shake, the oilcloth burst apart and scattered. The coachman seized the hilt and sprang upright, the saber's sharp tip flashing with cold light as murderous intent surged forth.

The entire sequence flowed in one breath, as though it had been carved into the coachman's bones.

At this moment, the surroundings were filled with the rushing sound of rain striking shop eaves and bluestone pavement. Thick mist of water hung more than a yard high, blurring both near and distant sights behind the curtain of rain.

Sun Changyu and the coachman stood silently, both releasing their true qi. The rainwater between heaven and earth seemed to drift around them, and not a single drop had touched their robes.

At the same time, a figure slowly emerged from the rain-drenched street ahead.

The person wore a bamboo hat and a straw rain cape, holding a bamboo staff that tapped the ground with a clear tap, tap amid the roar of falling rain.

Behind the carriage, two swordsmen in azure robes rode tall horses, charging toward them through splashing water.

Only when they came within several yards of the carriage did they abruptly rein in their mounts amid a long neigh.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Two more masked figures in black suddenly leaped up from behind the shops lining both sides of the street. Riding gusts of wind that pierced the rain curtain, they silently crouched atop the rooftops.

"Five people."

"Every one of them is at the Martial Grandmaster realm."

The coachman spoke in a hoarse voice, his gaze unreadable, while Sun Changyu's face darkened as though water might drip from it.

Standing atop the horse's back, he swept his eyes over the five figures and shouted sternly, "This is the Great Li Imperial Capital. I advise you to leave at once and not bring ruin upon yourselves!"

His effeminate voice pierced the dense curtain of rain and rang out within a radius of thirty yards.

At the same time, a wave of frigid true qi spread outward, sweeping up rainwater from heaven and earth and crashing toward the five figures.

Yet the five people around them did not move. The powerful force that could easily overturn a carriage quietly dissipated before them.

"No rush. Before you die, this old man must let you know whose hands you are dying by. Otherwise, all the hardship of living on wind and sleeping in dew for half a month, and these old bones traveling so far, would have been for nothing."

The elderly man in the straw rain cape ahead coughed, raised his aged face mottled with spots, and spoke slowly.

His words seemed to earn the approval of the other four.

However, the two masked men in black on the rooftops merely nodded slightly without saying a word.

One of the two azure-robed swordsmen laughed loudly. "Killing that dog emperor's son in this imperial capital is an event that will shake the martial world. If we don't leave behind our names, wouldn't such a fine thing be wasted?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the other azure-robed swordsman said coldly, "Remember this. The ones who kill you are the West Wind Duo!"