Out of the Tiger's Jaws, Into the Eagle's Shadow

"Why are you...?"

Seeing his torn, soaked clothes, the woman could not help asking.

"Why are you in such a sorry state?"

Zhu Yingxiong stepped over the pebbles along the riverbank, making his way ashore one step at a time. His voice was calm, betraying neither joy nor anger.

The afterglow of the setting sun fell upon his sodden monk's robes, outlining them in a warm orange gleam.

"Isn't this all thanks to you? One little scheme of shifting the disaster elsewhere, and you brought Black List experts down on me."

He looked around. Steep cliffs hemmed them in, and the forest was deep and shadowy. He had no idea where the Luo River had carried him.

The mountains on both banks were precipitous, and the valley was utterly still, save for the murmur of running water. He must have drifted downstream for quite some time before the river had brought him to this nameless valley.

"I'm sorry. I didn't think..." A trace of guilt flashed through the woman's eyes, and her voice softened.

"If apologies were useful, there wouldn't be so many people dying unjustly in this world." Zhu Yingxiong cut her off without ceremony.

Without looking back, Zhu Yingxiong walked straight toward the shore. A fire had been lit there, likely by her earlier. Its flames flickered in the secluded valley, echoing the last streak of rosy clouds on the horizon.

The fire crackled. A wild pheasant was skewered on a bamboo pole above it, the pole resting on stones at either end.

Flames licked at the chicken skin as fat dripped down with a sizzle, scattering tiny sparks when it hit the fire. The aroma drifted over in waves, slipping into his nose and making his stomach rumble.

The river water in early spring was bone-chillingly cold. He had no idea how long he had soaked in it, and he was drenched to the bone. A fire was exactly what he needed.

He sat beside the fire and naturally picked up the roasted pheasant, tearing off a piece of meat and putting it into his mouth. It was hot enough to scald his tongue, but it carried the distinct charred fragrance of the fire. The skin was slightly burnt, while the meat inside was still fairly tender.

"Consider this a small compensation."

Gu Zixian stood to one side, watching him in speechless silence. She watched this monk pick up the chicken she had roasted and begin eating it as if nothing were amiss. For a moment, she did not know whether to be angry or laugh.

After quite a while, she finally could not help asking,

"You... aren't you a Buddhist disciple? How can you eat meat?"

Without even raising his head, Zhu Yingxiong merely turned the bamboo pole to roast the meat more evenly.

"Who told you Buddhist disciples can't eat meat?"

"This..." Gu Zixian choked. "The precepts, of course. Though I am not of the Buddhist faith, even I know that monks abstain from meat and alcohol. That is the duty of one who has left the secular world."

Zhu Yingxiong glanced at her, his gaze calm, then returned it to the fire.

"Those are Hinayana precepts. I don't follow them."

"Then are you Mahayana?" Curious, Gu Zixian stepped two paces closer. She had heard of Mahayana Buddhism, which supposedly emphasized precepts of the heart rather than outward restrictions, but she had never heard that Mahayana monks could eat meat as they pleased.

"Neither."

"Then what are you?"

Zhu Yingxiong did not answer at once. Firelight flickered over his face, making his already handsome features appear all the more profound.

The rosy glow on the horizon gradually faded, and dusk closed in from every direction. Only this fire shone brightly in the secluded valley.

Leisurely, he tore off another piece of chicken, put it into his mouth, chewed, swallowed, and only then said unhurriedly,

"I'm a monk who roams the martial world."

Gu Zixian froze for a moment, then could not help feeling exasperated.

A monk who roamed the martial world? What kind of answer was that? Yet seeing how self-righteous he looked, she found herself unable to refute him.

The flames danced between them as the river wind occasionally swept by, carrying a few sparks into the air.

Gu Zixian simply stood there, watching this monk devour her roasted chicken as though no one else existed. She could not tell how much of what she felt was annoyance and how much was curiosity.

Firelight flickered across his face. Only now did she have a chance to study him carefully. His brows and eyes were refined, his features sharply defined. Though young, he possessed an air of tranquil composure.

His eyes were particularly unusual. When he looked at others, they were usually calm and indifferent, as though he cared for nothing in the world. Yet when he occasionally lifted his gaze, there was an unfathomable depth in them.

She suddenly recalled what he had said earlier—"a monk who roams the martial world."

Looking at him now, it did seem to fit rather well.

Then she heard him ask,

"I suffered this undeserved disaster, yet I still don't know who you are."

After a brief hesitation, the woman softly gave her name. "My name is Gu Zixian."

Zhu Yingxiong's chewing paused slightly, and he looked up at her. Firelight shone across his face, and in that instant, something flashed through his eyes.

"So you're the princess of Dual Cultivation Manor." His tone was casual as he lowered his head and tore off another piece of meat, as though that momentary reaction had never happened.

"You know me?" A flicker of surprise crossed Gu Zixian's pretty face. She stepped forward, staring intently at him. "How did you learn of me? Did someone mention me to you?"

"I've merely heard of you."

Zhu Yingxiong answered offhandedly and added another armful of wood, making the fire burn more fiercely. Dead branches crackled, and sparks flew up before falling again, tracing brief arcs through the deepening dusk.

Gu Zixian bit her lip, wanting to speak but holding back. She stared at him for a long time, but with his face half-hidden between watery reflections and dancing firelight, she could make nothing out.

Suddenly, Gu Zixian asked, "What about you? Your name."

"You may call me Yuan Zhen."

"That is your Dharma name. What is your actual name?"

"My name is Zhu Yingxiong. Zhu as in Zhuge."

"Zhu Yingxiong." Gu Zixian silently repeated the name, and the two fell silent for a time.

One sat eating roasted pheasant while the other stood watching. Apart from the firelight on the riverbank, the surrounding mountain shadows gradually sank into the thickening dusk. In the distance, returning birds flew into the woods, the faint flutter of their wings briefly audible before silence returned.

Every now and then, the firewood gave a crisp pop, the only sound in the valley.

Not until Zhu Yingxiong finished the last piece of meat, dusted off his hands, and rose to his feet.

Seeing that he seemed about to leave, Gu Zixian could not help calling out, "Hey."

Zhu Yingxiong paused and turned to look at her.

She opened her mouth, but when the words reached her lips, she did not know where to begin. She ought to have kept her distance from him, yet the thought of simply letting him leave made her feel strangely unwilling.

"Your cooking is terrible. The pheasant tastes burnt."

He suddenly spoke.

Gu Zixian was taken aback.

"Improve your cooking skills, or you'll have trouble finding a good husband someday."

As soon as the words fell, Zhu Yingxiong's figure flashed. He had already leaped onto a high branch, lightly tapping off with his toes as he prepared to leave.

Gu Zixian stood where she was, staring at the moon-white figure, forgetting to react for a moment.

How did he know I was looking for a husband?

Yet just then—

An eagle's cry pierced the sky!

The cry was sharp and shrill, especially grating in the secluded valley as dusk settled all around.

Zhu Yingxiong's body stiffened, and he abruptly looked up.

A great eagle circled above them. Beneath the dim yellow sky, its dark silhouette looped round and round, lingering overhead.

"This is bad. That's..."

His expression changed. With a tap of his foot against the branch, he flew backward and landed once more on the ground.

Seeing him return, Gu Zixian recalled what he had just said and still felt somewhat irritated. She snapped, "Didn't you leave? Why have you come back?"

"Tan Yingshou is coming after us." Zhu Yingxiong stared at the eagle overhead, his brow tightly furrowed.

Following his gaze, Gu Zixian saw that the eagle was still circling above them, looping round and round as if waiting for something. She frowned. "How do you know it must be Tan Yingshou? What if it is merely an ordinary eagle?"

"There's no such coincidence." Zhu Yingxiong did not take his eyes off the eagle, his voice lowering. "I had barely escaped here when an eagle came tracking after me. Why would an ordinary eagle linger overhead in this remote wilderness?"

He paused, then added,

"This should be a Blood Peck raised by the Carefree Sect, skilled at tracking. Tan Yingshou has close ties with the Carefree Sect. He must have borrowed this beast to find my trail."

Gu Zixian fell silent for a moment, then turned and walked to the fire. Bending down, she picked up the longsword lying on the ground. Its scabbard reflected the firelight with a faint, cold gleam.

"If that is the case, then this started because of me. You should leave. I'll stay behind and hold him off."

Her tone was calm but resolute.

Zhu Yingxiong, however, gave her no chance to argue. Stepping forward, he seized her wrist.

Gu Zixian staggered from the pull, her feet involuntarily following him forward. Her brows furrowed as she struggled hard, but she could not break free.

Her brows remained drawn together. "You..."

"Even at your peak, you would be no match for him." Without looking back, Zhu Yingxiong pulled her along at a rapid pace. His voice came from ahead, low and firm, allowing no objection. "Much less now, when your serious injuries probably haven't healed."

Gu Zixian was startled by his words and found herself unable to refute them.

Her severe injuries truly had not healed. On that day, she had fought Tan Yingshou to the point of grave injury before barely managing to escape, and her internal wounds remained unhealed even now. If she truly faced Tan Yingshou, she likely would not last three moves.

She bit her lip and stopped struggling, allowing him to pull her along as they used their lightness skills. Their figures swept away in rapid succession, one ahead and one behind.