The young lady of the Huang family

The night was already deep.

The men were exhausted after carrying the coffin for so long, and gradually drifted off to sleep.

Snores rose and fell.

The camp was full of mingled noises.

The wind swayed the branches, making them rustle against one another.

The campfire crackled and popped.

And Xu Da ground his teeth, farted, and occasionally muttered in his sleep.

Wang Qilin had no idea what he was dreaming about, but heard him say, "Three flat ones can't beat one round one. It's New Year for yours truly today."

He was now the only one awake in the camp. The men were too exhausted to stay up, and there was no use in their remaining awake anyway, so Xie Hama had discussed it with him and Xu Da, and the three agreed to take turns keeping watch.

Xu Da said he could stay up late. Every time he went to the Leaning on Emerald Pavilion, he stayed awake all night.

Xie Hama did not trust him, and assigned Wang Qilin the first half of the night and himself the second.

Xu Da was furious at being underestimated and swore he would keep watch alongside Wang Qilin for the first half.

Yet now he was talking in his sleep more than anyone.

Time passed slowly when a person was bored and alone.

Wang Qilin had no idea how much time had passed when he heard someone at the edge of the woods say with an ingratiating smile, "Lord Wang, Lord Wang, could you come with me to relieve myself?"

At those words, he abruptly raised his head.

A burly man in black was half crouching at the forest's edge, clutching his lower belly and sucking in sharp breaths.

He seemed to have a stomachache and could no longer hold it in.

"When did you get over there?" Wang Qilin asked.

The man smiled ingratiatingly. "My stomach hurt and woke me just now, and I ran out without thinking. Only when I reached the woods did I remember how dangerous this place was, so I thought I'd ask you to come along. Sorry for the trouble, Lord Wang. My stomach hurts so badly I can't bear it!"

Wang Qilin shifted Horse Slayer to his left hand and stood. "Let's go."

Bent at the waist and sucking in breaths, the man turned and darted into the woods.

Wang Qilin quickened his steps and flicked his left hand backward, sliding his hand forward. The scabbard shot back, leaving the hilt in his grip. His right hand smoothly took hold of the saber as he accelerated again, bringing Horse Slayer down in an overhead slash!

Even if I got my ten years of internal power by eating!

It's still ten years of internal power!

The pallbearers were merely ordinary strong men. How could one have reached the edge of the woods without him noticing?

His strike was blindingly fast. Catching up to the man from behind, he slashed straight down at his head!

With a howl like a night owl's, the man ran another two steps before his upper and lower halves separated and fell to the ground.

The Furnace of Creation appeared at once.

But Wang Qilin had no time to spare it any attention. Something whistled through the air above his head!

Whatever his opponent was, it was more cunning than he had expected.

He had thought it meant to impersonate a pallbearer and ambush him at close range, but all it actually needed was to lure him to the woods before attacking.

The Lunar Soul-Severing Saber changed course midway. Great Night Envelops the Sky!

The demonic saber Horse Slayer swept upward with an eerie whistle, but struck nothing!

Several dark shapes sprang at him from either side of the woods, like wolves pouncing on a sheep, utterly fearless of death!

Wang Qilin's heart sank.

There was no time to change moves!

Two burning logs flew from behind him. Seeing that they were about to collide with the logs, the two leading shadows hurriedly used both hands and feet to slow down and turn aside, avoiding the burning wood.

That brief opening gave Wang Qilin a chance. He drew back his saber and slashed again!

The blade was colder than a winter night's wind. He stepped forward rather than retreating, fighting spirit soaring through his entire body.

Internal power surged from his dantian into every limb and bone. His blood and qi roared like magma erupting from underground as Wang Qilin gathered his strength and swung!

Cold light flashed and blood flowed with that stroke. The demonic saber Horse Slayer swept all before it, unstoppable!

Swish, swish, swish!

The swift blade sliced through the air with faint sonic booms. Wang Qilin unleashed several consecutive slashes, hacking a shadow that had lunged within reach into pieces.

An unbroken torrent of internal power surged through the meridians in his arms and into Horse Slayer. The demonic saber's edge vibrated furiously, and a streak of cold light burst from the blade!

Saber radiance!

It shot out like a laser. Wang Qilin swung his saber like streaking meteors and lightning, shredding the shadows charging toward him along with the air.

The wind from the saber swept dead leaves and branches off the ground. Wherever the saber radiance passed, they scattered in fragments.

Burning logs kept flying from behind him. The saber radiance tore their flames apart, flinging them onto the shadows, where they blossomed into fire!

A shrill howl rang out deep in the woods, and the burning shadows dropped to all fours and fled.

Do not pursue a desperate foe.

Xu Da tossed away the firewood in his hands and laughed scornfully. "I knew they'd try something in the middle of the night. Fuck them. Not an original idea among them!"

Wang Qilin put away his saber and smiled. "So you weren't asleep."

"I told you I could stay up," Xu Da said. "I was only pretending to sleep. Yours truly was employing a stratagem."

Xie Hama searched the woods and found a stone figure cut in two.

Looking at the smooth cut, he turned toward Horse Slayer in surprise. "That saber..."

"I traded Niu Er's ancestral treasured saber to General Huang for it," Wang Qilin said vaguely.

"Then you got a good bargain," Xie Hama said with a pleased smile.

Then his expression grew serious. "Mountain Puppets, just as I thought! When you first encountered that stone figure, did you splash urine on it?"

"I think so," Wang Qilin said. "I felt someone behind me and hurriedly turned around. I probably splashed it."

Xie Hama gave him a meaningful look. "Lucky you're still a virgin, or you'd have been in serious trouble!"

But the Mountain Puppets were in even greater trouble. He had killed four in one go, and no more demons or ghosts appeared that night.

The lure of the Six-Step Qi Jade clearly did not outweigh the deterrent of being killed.

When the morning sun rose, they picked up the coffin and retraced their route.

On the way, Xie Hama asked, "If you needed to walk a hundred li, why not just circle the villages for a hundred li? Why come into these desolate hills?"

Chen Jiu smiled wryly. "Our general was afraid we'd frighten the villagers, so he told us to go somewhere sparsely populated."

Huang Huaji was greatly surprised to see the pallbearers return.

Chen Jiu recounted everything that had happened the previous night. Learning that something so uncanny lurked in the desolate hills right beside his home surprised Huang Huaji even more.

When he learned that Wang Qilin and his two companions had saved the eight military household men under his command, the old general cupped his hands and bowed. "Lord Wang, you're an outstanding young talent, with excellent skills."

Wang Qilin returned the salute. "You flatter me, General Huang. In truth, when those monsters appeared last night, I was terrified. Fortunately, my brother came to my aid in time, and then we utterly routed them."

Xu Da lifted his head, waiting for praise, but the old general misunderstood and turned to bow to Xie Hama instead.

Xu Da was furious. "Don't look down on a young man for being poor."

Xie Hama smiled. "Don't look down on a young man for being poor, don't look down on a middle-aged man for being poor, don't look down on an old man for being poor, and respect the dead?"

To express his thanks, Huang Huaji led them to breakfast. Breakfast at the general's residence was simple, however: the same old three dishes of corn cakes, plain rice porridge, and shredded pickles.

Xu Da was deeply disappointed. "We'd have been better off eating at a tea stall."

Then he ate five corn cakes as big as his face and drank five huge bowls of plain rice porridge. He polished off all the shredded pickles, too, until the cook had no choice but to slice up whole pickled vegetables and bring them over to make up the shortfall.

After breakfast, they were invited to the reception hall for tea, which Huang Huaji's daughter-in-law, Madam Huang née Yao, personally served.

Madam Huang née Yao had a rosy complexion and regular features. She swayed gracefully as she walked, as though treading on lotuses, charm suffusing her every movement.

But then a young man slowly entered, supporting a girl with even greater charm.

The girl was tall, with a slender waist and long legs. Her black hair, tied with a thin red ribbon, fell over her shoulders. Her delicate features and oval face made her every bit the rare beauty people outside had described.

Perhaps because she was haunted by demons or ghosts, her face was pale and her delicate brows tightly knitted. Yet this lent her an added air of gentle refinement and fragile grace. Her every movement truly captivated the soul, and each lift of her head or backward glance was touchingly vulnerable.

Xu Da immediately clutched his chest. "Seventh, why does your brother's heart suddenly hurt?"

"Go have Divine Physician Zhang examine you. I suspect heart disease," Wang Qilin advised with concern.

The young man supporting the girl bore a strong resemblance to her, though he looked more masculine. With a face like fine jade and eyes like bright stars, his handsome looks actually came faintly close to rivaling Wang Qilin's.

Seeing the pair enter, Huang Huaji nodded. Madam Huang née Yao stepped forward to introduce them. The girl was his granddaughter, Huang Qingyun, and the young man was his grandson, Huang Liufeng.

After hearing the introductions, Xu Da wore an odd expression. He looked from Huang Liufeng to the steward, then gave Wang Qilin a meaningful look.

Wang Qilin had noticed it too. The general's grandson actually looked a little like the steward...

But Huang Huaji had already turned to the matter at hand. "Yun'er, tell these three gentlemen about the ghost in your dreams."