Rustle...
The night breeze swept through the wheat field, where three corpses lay. Deathly silence returned to the open land.
Hongyu stood in the field with her hands clasped, her beautiful peach-blossom eyes sweeping over the corpses, nearly all of whom had been killed in a single blow. The doubt and disdain she had shown two days ago were gone from her eyes.
As the saying went, true ability showed itself in real combat.
In martial arts, cultivation was only the foundation. If one lacked experience, awareness or strategy, then no matter how good one's equipment or how high one's cultivation, a master could toy with one to death. But strengths like awareness and strategy couldn't be seen with the naked eye.
Ye Xingge's fight had clearly shown why her master had taken an interest in him, and had even asked her to consider him.
His cultivation wasn't particularly high, but after more than ten years of arduous training, he truly wasn't far from the Gold List's Third Rank. His technique and thinking were nearly flawless, and his courage and resolve were far greater than those of ordinary people.
Hongyu had just warned him that they could find another way if the risk was too great. But this young man had acted on the principle that "a general in the field need not obey every order from his sovereign." He had made his own judgment and ignored her advice entirely.
His subsequent actions had been calculated, neither hurried nor rash. No verbal provocation or physical obstruction had shaken him in the slightest. To Yang Tuyan and the others, he must have looked like a moving city wall. If Hongyu fought him at the same cultivation level, she feared he would look the same to her!
So this young man was qualified to court her.
But given Ye Xingge's background and history, he shouldn't have been able to develop fighting abilities comparable to those of a battle-hardened veteran.
Hongyu pondered for a moment, then turned to the blood-soaked young man. A rare touch of concern, like that of an elder sister who was as a mother, appeared in her beautiful peach-blossom eyes.
"How are you? Can you hold on?"
Ye Xingge was still thinking about Yang Tuyan's words. Hearing her, he looked at Great Beauty beside him and spread his hands slightly.
"I could just now. If you come out and strike another pose, I won't be able to hold on."
Maintaining her visible form consumed internal force like a juicer, and the internal force it consumed was Ye Xingge's. Hongyu said helplessly:
"I'll check for you, to make sure the traces don't give you away. There's something odd about your skills. Qingxi County is near the capital and has barely been touched by war. Your family is all alive, and you haven't been through any calamities either. How did you train your kung fu to such a level?"
There were many reasons Ye Xingge had developed his current abilities, including the wholehearted support of his parents and second uncle, and the opportunities Magistrate Shen had given him to gain experience. But the most crucial point was this:
At three years old, he had already understood what it meant that "society is treacherous, lives are worth less than grass in troubled times, and emperors take turns on the throne-next year it might be my family's turn."
So he had started much earlier than other martial artists, and no one could match his personal drive!
But this kind of talent was indeed hard to explain. Faced with Great Beauty's question, Ye Xingge merely said:
"A fortune-teller said I was the Heavenly Killing Star descended into the world, destined to face endless storms in this life, and that ten thousand bones would wither for one general's glory. I did mature rather early, so perhaps I have exceptional natural talent."
Exceptional natural talent...
Hongyu thought it over briefly and felt that, for now, that was the only explanation.
Thinking of Yang Tuyan's dying words, Ye Xingge asked:
"Speaking of which, was it Heroine Yun who chose me, or the divine weapon? I think there was some sense in Yang Tuyan's dying words..."
Hongyu knew that her master had chosen him, but didn't know why she doted on him like a son. She simply replied:
"The divine weapon chose you, so my master sent me to see whether you were worth nurturing. As for the great affairs of the world, you're nowhere near ready. Make a name for yourself first."
"Oh..."
Ye Xingge nodded slightly, then leaned closer and asked:
"So, am I worth nurturing?"
"?"
Wasn't that obvious...?
But if she praised him lavishly, that would mean accepting the match. Next would come the three matchmakers and six betrothal gifts, and a visit to his parents...
Seeing that Ye Xingge looked a little smug, Hongyu gave a soft snort.
"Not bad. You can be promoted to a senior lackey of the Mountains and Rivers Association. If you want to become the association's live-in son-in-law, you'll need further evaluation. There aren't any major problems with the traces. Set a fire, and the authorities won't notice anything amiss."
Rustle~
With that, her figure dissolved, turning into the long whip in his hand.
Ye Xingge shook his head with a smile and said nothing more. He crouched down, removed the bracer from his arm, then used his saber to chop off two heads. He took a fire starter from his robes and set the wheat field alight.
Whoosh~~
Crackle~
Flames and thick smoke soared from the wheat field, illuminating a hundred zhang of open land.
Ye Xingge rose and put his bracer back on. Feeling much more at ease, he picked up the two heads, the official saber and the dagger, and headed toward Linyang.
Crunch, crunch, crunch...
The prolonged, intense exertion had taken a heavy toll. He hadn't gone far before his steps grew somewhat unsteady.
Fortunately, a blaze this large at night could be seen for dozens of miles around. Before long, a few figures appeared at the far end of the plain...
Meanwhile, inside Linyang.
Fireworks rose one after another, lighting the vast county town as brightly as day.
More than three hundred Embroidered Robe officers, along with large numbers of constables and soldiers, spread through the streets and alleys, searching shops and homes.
Luo Xuanqing stood atop the highest tavern in town, her arms folded around her sheathed saber. Her skirts fluttered in the wind as she surveyed the streets below, her gaze cold as frost.
Ruan Jinyu, draped in a black brocade robe, stood with his hands behind his back, gazing just as intently in the other direction.
The four commanders of the Heaven-Observing Pavilion were all formidable figures ranked among the Gold List's top hundred. Usually, one of them alone could wipe out a gang or stronghold. With two of them acting together, they could go wherever they pleased beneath the First Rank.
But An Yurou was a Later Zhou sleeper agent who had put all her skills into concealment.
Luo Xuanqing's Governing Vessel had also been sealed by Mantanghong's Heavenly Silk Meridian Lock, leaving her with less than a tenth of her cultivation. She was indeed having a hard time; she had chased An Yurou for only half a street before losing her trail.
Now the county town was lit up like day, and more than three hundred Embroidered Robe officers had sealed off the streets and alleys, yet there was still no sign of her. Ruan Jinyu frowned deeply and asked:
"Commander Luo, are you certain you saw someone just now?"
"You doubt my eyesight?"
As a colleague of equal rank, Ruan Jinyu was wary of Luo Xuanqing's strength and background, but not so much that he would abase himself. He replied:
"That's hard to say. There was a huge canister of Linyang Maojian tea sitting in Zhang Shunyuan's study, and no one from the Judicial Review Bureau noticed it. No wonder you can only do the rough work of 'killing without judging.'"
"?"
Luo Xuanqing frowned. "Linyang Maojian isn't anything rare. How could it be a clue?"
"It was new tea from March, from the Fan Family Teahouse in Linyang. But there was no record of the transaction in the money house's account books, and Zhang Shunyuan hasn't openly visited Linyang in the past month."
"..."
Luo Xuanqing thought that sounded quite professional, but Linyang Maojian cost only a few dozen copper coins per canister, and traveling merchants sold it all over Yongzhou. Pinpointing a subordinate in Linyang on that alone seemed a little far-fetched...
After a moment's silence, Ruan Jinyu added:
"I actually just came to try my luck. I didn't expect Commander Luo to really catch wind of it and come. You abandoned your post without accomplishing a thing, and if you also let Mantanghong escape..."
"?"
The corner of Luo Xuanqing's eye twitched. She truly wanted to chop this damned eunuch to pieces.
But the Inspection Bureau was responsible for investigations and official performance reviews. It would have been fine if she hadn't shown herself, but now that she had, and had accomplished nothing, the charge of abandoning her post was fixed firmly on her head. She didn't argue, merely saying:
"The scoundrel must be in town. As long as you make no mistakes, this person won't escape..."
While they were talking, Luo Xuanqing unexpectedly noticed a glow of fire to the west of town out of the corner of her eye.
The fire was at the far end of the plain, just a tiny dot from this distance, but it stood out sharply in the night.
Luo Xuanqing frowned inwardly and was about to send someone to investigate when another thought struck her: Ye Xingge hadn't been seen for quite a while.
Ye Xingge was quite eager in his work, so she had assumed he was searching alongside the constables. She looked down and searched the streets and alleys, but after looking for some time, she still couldn't find him.
Where was he?
Full of doubt, Luo Xuanqing looked again at the fire outside town. Sensing trouble, she immediately pushed off with her toes and sprang over the rooftops, reaching the city wall in the blink of an eye.
People from nearby villages and towns had also spotted the burning wheat field and were running toward the fire. Some who had turned back were calling out:
"Someone's been killed! Quick, call the constables..."
Seeing this, Luo Xuanqing knew something had happened. She immediately leaped down outside the town, touching the tips of the wheat with her toes as she flew across the fields as though floating, covering several miles in moments.
The fire ahead grew larger, becoming a ring of flames stretching across more than ten mu, turning everything ahead a smoky crimson.
And within the firelight, a small black figure was clearly visible, walking this way through the knee-deep wheat.
His outline was sharply defined in the firelight. She could see that he wore a conical hat, carried a saber in his left hand, and held two objects resembling wine jars in his right.
Luo Xuanqing immediately flew across several miles of wheat field and landed a few dozen paces away. Then her eyes widened in shock!
The man walking slowly toward her had a chest stained red with blood, with strips of cloth tied around it.
The things in his right hand weren't wine jars either, but two human heads, still dripping blood!
Blood had stained his right trouser leg red. Backlit by the flames, he looked like a Shura demon that had just emerged from a fiery purgatory.
When the man saw someone drop down in front of him, he paused and stared for a moment before exclaiming:
"Damn, you scared me..."
"Ye Xingge?"
Luo Xuanqing saw that the damned brat, who had been bouncing around just moments ago, had turned into a bloody figure in the blink of an eye. Her eyes filled with shock. After a moment's daze, she swiftly moved forward to examine him.
"What happened to you... huh?"
Before she had finished speaking, the young man in the conical hat fell toward her.
Thump~
Luo Xuanqing didn't know where he was injured and didn't dare use force. She quickly spread her arms and braced herself to support the deadweight of the man, then checked his pulse and his clothing.
Only after finding that he had merely suffered flesh wounds and exhaustion, with no damage to his internal organs or Qi meridians, did Luo Xuanqing breathe a sigh of relief. She took a red pill from her waist.
"Open your mouth! What happened to you?"
Ye Xingge had risked his life pursuing and killing them for quite a while. His injuries were actually not too bad; he was mainly tired. Pressed against her warm, soft body, he wanted nothing more than to lay his head down and sleep.
But if he fell asleep and the yamen helped him change his clothes, the whip might be exposed.
So Ye Xingge forced himself to stay alert and stand upright. He raised the two heads in his hand.
"Impressive, right? Yang Tuyan and the Eight Pillars Hall spies-I caught them all! I set the fire to summon you, but after waiting forever..."
"Huh?"
Luo Xuanqing could hardly believe her ears, but seeing all the blood on him, she wanted nothing more than to pound the reckless brat a few times.
"Who told you to take it upon yourself to catch them alone? Do you know how dangerous that was?"
"Ah, it wasn't so bad, really. The blood is all theirs. I only took a hit to the chest, just a flesh wound..."
"You really are..."
Luo Xuanqing's gaze was stern, but her heart ached for him. She looked him over repeatedly, and after confirming that he had no fatal injuries, she took the heads, wrapped an arm around Ye Xingge and leaped into the air.
Whoosh~
Ye Xingge's body suddenly rose into the air, a powerful force pressing against his back. He instinctively tightened his hold on the person in his arms. Seeing that they were flying over the grass with a "swish, swish, swish," he looked astonished.
"What impressive lightness skill..."
"Don't talk. Rest up."