Training

Gu Shenwei and Shangguan Yushi's relationship had become very subtle. On the surface, they were the standard master and servant, one high and mighty, the other cautious. But when no one was paying attention, the way they looked at each other would inadvertently reveal deep hatred.

There were no more open conflicts between the two. The battlefield had shifted to the Ninth Young Master, Shangguan Ru. After all, they both had a common goal: to curry favor with the Unrivaled King's most beloved daughter.

Gu Shenwei regained his status as the most favored sparring boy. Every morning, he followed the twins around, seizing every opportunity to speak and instill an idea into Shangguan Ru: to learn the Golden Peng Fortress's most formidable martial arts, one had to become an assassin.

This suited Shangguan Ru perfectly. She was only twelve years old after the New Year and not yet qualified to participate in family affairs, so she was as curious about her family's assassins as anyone else.

Gu Shenwei felt everything was going according to his plan, but he was a step too late. In the end, it wasn't him who completed the task of instigation, but Shangguan Yushi.

The first lunar month ended, and the festive atmosphere of the New Year had long since vanished. That morning, as soon as the twins arrived at the study hall, Shangguan Ru stood on the steps and called all her and her brother, Shangguan Yushi's, attendants to her. There were about twenty-four or twenty-five people. She then announced loudly:

"Boys, follow me. Let's play a new game."

Gu Shenwei saw Shangguan Yushi smiling as she patted her cousin's shoulder, showing support and agreement. He knew this was another idea of hers.

Although Gu Shenwei was surprised, he was happy to see it happen. Qing Nu, the leader of the attendants, however, felt a great headache coming on, because the Ninth Young Master's "games" were always full of danger, and he couldn't participate in most of them.

But this time, he felt it was truly outrageous. The three young masters were leading twenty to thirty people straight to the East Fortress. Wasn't sneaking in once not enough? Were they going to force their way in again? Qing Nu ran to the front, about to ask Shangguan Yushi to persuade the Ninth Young Master not to act so recklessly. But from a distance, he saw that the East Fortress had already opened its gates wide, as if welcoming their arrival.

Qing Nu was dumbfounded. Although he was only in his thirties, he had served several young masters since childhood, and none of them had been indulged like the twins. They could reach for the sky, and someone would help them hold the ladder.

If other young masters had acted like this when they were young, their servants would have reprimanded them, told them to focus on practicing martial arts. The masters in the Moon Holding Courtyard were even more skilled than the East Fortress's martial arts instructors. Only when their martial arts surpassed those of ordinary assassins and they were qualified to be attendants to the young masters would they enter the East Fortress, not as apprentices, but as masters selecting their subordinates.

The twins were truly spoiled.

Qing Nu shook his head repeatedly, like a dog drenched in water, not noticing that the young men behind him were secretly laughing at him.

Most of the young attendants were entering the East Fortress for the first time. They were both excited and nervous, looking around, hoping to see something extraordinary to brag about later.

But they were disappointed. The East Fortress was no different from other places. It still had crisscrossing alleys, with courtyards on both sides. The only distinctive feature was the absence of people. They walked for a long time without seeing a single soul, as if they were walking in an abandoned city.

But this "abandoned city" was exceptionally clean. There wasn't a speck of snow on the stone paths, and the courtyard gates were tightly shut. Ancient characters were carved on the tall gateposts, like a pair of cold, stern eyes monitoring the intruders.

Excitement gradually faded, and fear spread among the attendants, especially as the two young masters led the crowd further and further. Someone must have spread a rumor that their final destination was Rebirth Cliff.

In the Golden Peng Fortress, Rebirth Cliff was far more famous than Ghost Cry Cliff. Many servants who had grown up in the fortress had never even heard of Kindling Courtyard, but they all knew Rebirth Cliff. They believed that all dead assassins were thrown into the abyss from here, continuing to protect the Golden Peng Fortress in another form in another world. It was said that even in broad daylight, ghosts haunted the vicinity of Rebirth Cliff...

Seeing the cliff at the end of the alley from afar, Qing Nu's legs immediately turned to jelly. He had to hold onto the young man beside him to move forward, and he stammered, "Two young masters, we can't go any further. Ahead is..."

"Rebirth Cliff. What's wrong with going there?"

Shangguan Ru turned her head and said calmly.

The ominous rumor was confirmed. A large group of people, like Qing Nu, felt their legs go weak. They huddled together, no longer willing to move forward.

"This is a test," Shangguan Ru guessed the servants' reaction. "Those with courage, come with me. Those without, you can turn back and leave the East Fortress on your own."

More than half of them lacked courage. Hearing this, they breathed a sigh of relief. But Shangguan Ru wasn't finished: "If you leave the East Fortress, don't claim to be our attendants. Find yourselves new masters."

Shangguan Fei, who had been timid and afraid to approach Rebirth Cliff before the New Year, was surprisingly bold this time. He stood by his sister's side and said loudly, "Rebirth Cliff is where the elites of our Golden Peng Fortress are sent off. Not just assassins, but even Father and I will ascend to heaven from here after death. Does anyone here dislike this place?"

As soon as he said this, those who had already taken half a step back now took a step forward. Bearing the reputation of "abandoning their master," it would be difficult to get by in the Golden Peng Fortress, let alone find a new master. Although the two young masters had childish tempers and could be quite ruthless, they were deeply loved by the King, and their future was boundless. Serving them was both leisurely and offered occasional rewards. Only a fool would want to leave.

Especially Qing Nu. Shangguan Ru and Shangguan Fei were likely the last young masters he would serve. He had to work extra hard so that he could obtain an important position after his masters grew up.

No one turned back. They all mustered their courage and walked towards Rebirth Cliff, each with a look of righteous indignation and readiness to die.

However, the most terrifying thing did not happen. Shangguan Ru's final destination was not Rebirth Cliff.

At the southern end of the alley, there was a large boulder piled up, less than a foot away from the wall, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. After entering, it opened up to a semicircular clearing.

On the west side of the clearing was the high wall of a courtyard, on the north was the boulder, and on the east was a curved cliff. It became abruptly straight at the southernmost point.

Although it was adjacent to Rebirth Cliff and was itself a cliff, the boulder created a hidden space. Especially since there were half-human-high iron chains encircling the cliff edge, greatly increasing safety. The attendants' fear subsided, and they praised repeatedly, wondering how the two young masters had found this place.

Gu Shenwei was also puzzled. When he came last time, no one knew about this place. After careful observation, he noticed that the iron chains and stone pillars by the cliff were brand new, clearly installed only a few days ago. The ground also showed signs of being swept clean, with not a single piece of gravel, as flat as if it had been polished.

The Unrivaled King must have ordered this place to be tidied up and given to the twins to play.

Gu Shenwei himself had been doted on at home, but he had never received treatment like the twins, who could do as they pleased and get whatever they wanted.

Gu Shenwei inexplicably felt a pang of jealousy. The favor the twins received constantly reminded him of how wonderful the life he had lost was. However, this also strengthened his resolve for revenge. He even allowed himself to indulge slightly in his thoughts, imagining the scene of killing the twins one day, causing the Unrivaled King to grieve heartbrokenly.

He quickly controlled his wild thoughts and pretended to praise along with the others.

The twins and Shangguan Yushi looked at their subordinates with great pride. After the praise subsided slightly, Shangguan Ru announced the content of the new game:

"Listen, I'm going to select a few potential individuals from among you and personally train them as assassins."

Shangguan Fei chimed in, "Me too. I want to train assassins as well."

"Yes, and Young Master Yu. The three of us will be 'Blade Masters,' and whoever among you is the strongest will be an assassin."

Upon hearing this, everyone relaxed. It turned out to be a "pretend assassin" game. With the twins protecting them, they could do whatever they wanted in the fortress without any real danger. If the two young masters had fun, they might even bestow the title of "assassin" in the future, which would be a huge leap forward. Thus, the attendants rushed forward to sign up, even Qing Nu was tempted. He pushed his way through the crowd, claiming to be maintaining order, but in reality, he was at the very front.

However, some people secretly chuckled. The future status of the two young masters was "Young Master," yet they were lowering themselves to be "Blade Masters." It was truly childish.

The three "Blade Masters," however, were very pleased and began to compete for their "assassins."

Gu Shenwei was relieved. Although it was just a game, if he guessed correctly, the twins must have learned many assassin skills from the Moon Holding Courtyard, which would be helpful to him. Moreover, during this process, he would gain even more favor from Shangguan Ru. Among this group of youths, who could learn better and faster than him?

He thought it was perfect, but he overlooked one point: how could Shangguan Yushi allow him to have frequent contact with Shangguan Ru so easily?

As soon as the "assassin" selection began, Shangguan Yushi took him away. She even smiled triumphantly at the twins, "As agreed, whoever speaks first gets them. No cheating."

The twins' annoyance was evident. Huan Nu was the most skilled among all the attendants, and they both wanted him. Shangguan Fei reacted faster and immediately took another skilled young man. Shangguan Ru's eyes darted around, and only when she had no other choice did she choose her own "assassin."

Gu Shenwei's frustration could only be hidden deep within. His struggle with Shangguan Yushi was still ongoing, and he had lost another round.

The selection ended quickly. The three "Blade Masters" each chose three "Assassins," and the remaining people were taken away by Qing Nu.

Qing Nu wasn't chosen. He sighed as he led the unsuccessful candidates away. In truth, he knew no martial arts and didn't even dare to watch people kill.

The three "Assassin" squads each chose a training location. Shangguan Yushi's team occupied the area near the northern giant rocks, Shangguan Ru was in the middle, and Shangguan Fei was at the southernmost point.

Shangguan Yushi coldly observed the three people assigned to her. The first training exercise was to have them fetch wooden weapons.

Gu Shenwei quickly understood her intention.

Shangguan Yushi had no intention of cultivating any "Assassins." She simply kept assigning the three individuals to do odd jobs: fetching wooden sabers and swords, retrieving martial arts manuals, calling for tea and sweat towels, and so on. In short, she wanted to reduce the time they spent in her sight.

This way, Gu Shenwei not only couldn't learn anything but also had no chance to get close to Shangguan Ru.

The other two youths were delighted. They were merely accompanying their masters for fun and didn't want to endure hardship or train. These chores were part of their duties, so they often deliberately took their time. If possible, they would have preferred not to come here at all.

The twins, however, took this game very seriously. They learned many of the assassins' unique skills and forced the youths under them to train diligently. This caused widespread grumbling among them in private, and they envied the three people under Shangguan Yushi immensely.

A few days later, the situation grew even worse.

When there were no more chores to assign, Shangguan Yushi ordered the three to stand guard outside, under the guise of "scouts," claiming it was also a necessary skill for assassins.

Gu Shenwei encountered an insurmountable obstacle. This jealous girl was more stubborn than the giant rocks.