Princess Zhaoling 5

At the evening banquet, Zhaoling made a point of looking at Di Feisheng, who had shrunk his bones to become a child. She had never encountered this art before and wondered whether it hurt.

She turned to Li Lianhua. "Do you know about this Bone-Shrinking Art? Does it hurt to practice?"

Li Lianhua sighed inwardly. He had only been somewhat suspicious because he knew Di Feisheng well, but Zhaoling's words confirmed that the child of mysterious origins was Di Feisheng, the very person he had come for.

Seeing Zhaoling still looking at him, he said helplessly, "It's an art that has to be practiced from childhood. It takes hard work, and it hurts terribly. Usually, only assassin organizations teach it when training their killers."

Zhaoling nodded. She knew how to disguise herself, and with the Heavenly Devil Instruction at the third level, she could also use illusions. There was no need to put herself through needless suffering.

Li Lianhua gave Fang Duobing another meaningful look, warning him that something was wrong with the wine. Meanwhile, Zhaoling caused trouble again.

In the time it took Li Lianhua to warn Fang Duobing, Zhaoling had already sent two chopsticks flying into the eyes of Zhang Qingshi, who had been staring at her lecherously. Then she flashed to his side with ghostlike movements and kicked him to his knees.

As Zhang Qingshi howled, Zhaoling placed her palm over his head. Secretly drawing out his internal power, she sneered, "What do you think you are, looking at me like that?"

With another kick, she crippled his Dantian, so no one would notice that she had drained his internal power dry. Finally, she put force into her palm and smashed the crown of Zhang Qingshi's skull.

The hall, where cups had been passing back and forth, fell silent for a moment. Only Di Feisheng, whom the master of Wei Manor had called a relative, glanced at Zhaoling when she moved, then went back to eating and drinking.

When Zhaoling blinded Zhang Qingshi, Zhang Qinghu had pulled out a concealed weapon and prepared to strike.

But Zhaoling moved with astonishing speed, crippling and killing Zhang Qingshi in the blink of an eye.

When Zhaoling looked at him, he faced those icy eyes devoid of all feeling and found himself unable to throw the concealed weapon clutched in his hand, no matter how he tried. In the end, he returned it to its pouch and sat back down.

Zhaoling smiled disdainfully and returned to her seat.

Only then did Fang Duobing look cautiously at Zhaoling and speak. "Prin-"

He had only said one word when Zhaoling glared at him. He hastily corrected himself. "Miss Feng, these people are still going to search for the First-Rank Tomb with us. Aren't you afraid they'll turn against you later, now that you've struck so ruthlessly?"

Zhaoling said indifferently, "In all of Wei Manor, there are only two people worthy of my attention. What do the others amount to?"

Fang Duobing thought the two people Zhaoling meant were him and Li Lianhua. After all, they were on the same side. Though he was unhappy with Zhaoling's ruthlessness, the man she had struck was a grave robber guilty of countless evils, so he could hardly say much.

Besides, he always felt somewhat guilty and diffident in front of Zhaoling.

Li Lianhua, however, knew that the two people Zhaoling meant were Di Feisheng and himself. Having seen how skillfully and decisively she had struck, he grew even more wary of her.

Although Zhaoling had spoken of developing some sort of feelings with Li Lianhua, she had not really taken the matter to heart and still acted very much as she pleased. Now she had finally made Li Lianhua pay attention to her, though unfortunately, it was the wary kind of attention.

The rest of the banquet naturally went smoothly. Even Ding Yuanzi, who had wanted to test Di Feisheng's strength, was afraid of angering Zhaoling and behaved himself all evening.

After the meal, Zhaoling dragged Li Lianhua back to the room to rest. She left everything else alone, waiting only to enter the First-Rank Tomb with the others the next day.

After Zhaoling and her companions left, Yang Yunchun would bring the people from the Inspection Bureau and sweep up everyone in Wei Manor in a single net.

Having laid out poison in the room and told Li Lianhua to call her before they set out, Zhaoling slept quite well. She also missed the spectacle of the master of Wei Manor catching a Hundred Rivers Courtyard spy, as well as poisoning people to threaten them.

After Zhaoling, Li Lianhua, and the others left, she looked back at Wei Manor. Thinking of the antiques she had seen being traded in the front courtyard when she arrived, as well as the manor master's collection, she thought her little treasury could grow a little richer. Not bad.

Breaking the formation afterward was also simple for Zhaoling. When she had been Jiao Liqiao, she had already unraveled it.

Only the mechanism on the cliff face left Zhaoling feeling a little embarrassed and annoyed. With her current internal power, she could not fly that high. She fell into a private reverie. When can I transmigrate to a world where I can cultivate Spiritual Qi? She missed flying on a sword.

Though these grave robbers were all dead men in Zhaoling's eyes, they did have some ability. Through their efforts, they finally found the true main burial chamber, though they suffered heavy losses.

Apart from Ding Yuanzi, who had disappeared upon entering the tomb, and Ge Pan, whom Fang Duobing had left barely alive, only Li Lianhua, Fang Duobing, the strange child, and Zhaoling now remained before Prince Fangji and Consort Xuan.

Zhaoling had long known that Li Lianhua intended to use Guanyin's Tear to coerce Di Feisheng. Once nearly everyone who deserved to die was dead, she made her move, intending to knock Li Lianhua unconscious first.

Unfortunately, Li Lianhua had never let down his guard against her. Since Zhaoling lacked internal power, she relied on her fighting techniques alone and exchanged dozens of moves with him without managing to knock him out.

Seeing Di Feisheng already walking toward Consort Xuan's coffin, Zhaoling put aside her desire to win. She increased her internal power and forced Li Lianhua back a step, while scattering a knockout drug with her other hand, rendering him unconscious with what little internal power he had.

At the same time, Fang Duobing tried to stop Di Feisheng and was knocked unconscious by him.

Seeing that Di Feisheng was about to get Guanyin's Tear, Zhaoling flew forward, drew her sword, and unleashed an unstoppable killing move.

Faced with such a fierce killing onslaught, Di Feisheng could only draw back and swiftly dodge the sword.

Zhaoling pressed her advantage, her sword moves flowing without end, murderous intent in every one. It was the sword art she used best, once the Kunlun Sect's signature art: Ethereal Swordsmanship.

Because this sword art had been adapted from an immortal-cultivation sword art, though every move was filled with murderous intent, Zhaoling wielded it with the ethereal grace of an immortal, a sight of breathtaking beauty.

Though Di Feisheng's internal power was now stronger than Zhaoling's, he found himself locked in a stalemate with her beneath that sword assault.

Di Feisheng's mind was no longer on Guanyin's Tear. This sword art was no weaker than Li Xiangyi's Xiangyi Grand Sword, and this woman, too, was a worthy opponent no weaker than Li Xiangyi.

One relied on his abundant internal power, the other on her ethereal movements and exquisite swordsmanship. They fought evenly, neither gaining the upper hand.

Their internal power surged in every direction through the sizable secret chamber, catching the unconscious Fang Duobing in its wake several times.

As the two fought fiercely, Li Lianhua showed signs of waking.

Though Zhaoling's knockout drug was by no means ordinary, Li Lianhua had Bicha in his body and was immune to all poisons. The fact that he had been knocked unconscious at all showed how extraordinary the drug was.