More and more Imperial Guards poured up from below, their iron armor clanging, their blades a forest of steel.
They swiftly occupied every entrance and exit, sealing the hall so tightly that not a drop of water could get through.
Soon, the situation upstairs had completely reversed. The assassins were either captured or killed. Only the White-Clad Assassin, seeing the tide turn against him, stopped trading blows with Fan Xian. A flash of his sword forced Fan Xian back, and he crashed straight through a window, soaring out of the tall building, his white robes snapping in the wind.
Only then did Gong Dian finally appear on the top floor.
He swept his gaze across the devastated hall, his face deathly pale, cold sweat streaming down his temples.
"Your servant arrived late to protect Your Majesty. I deserve ten thousand deaths!"
Gong Dian dropped heavily to his knees before Emperor Qing. Ignoring the blood on the floor, he knocked his forehead against it with a dull thud.
By then, Emperor Qing had long since discarded that half of the wooden tray. Standing with his hands lowered, he had once again become the unruffled, imposing emperor.
He ignored Gong Dian, merely staring at the shattered window before turning to Fan Xian.
"Legend has it that Si Gujian had a younger brother who left home as a child. No one knows where he is."
His voice was icy. "Fan Xian, capture him for me. I would like to see whether those two brothers are equally witless fools!"
The White-Clad Assassin's swordsmanship looked forward without looking back, looked left without looking right, abandoning all defense to focus on the utmost offense.
Its characteristics were far too distinctive. Without question, it was the Si Gujian Technique of Si Gujian, Dongyi City's Grandmaster.
The man