Chapter Ninety-Nine
An Jiu was momentarily stunned, murmuring softly, "Clean and pure, with a clear conscience..."
These words felt impossibly distant for hands like hers, soaked in blood. Though Mei Jiu shared the same body, her soul was untainted.
Some paths, once taken, offered no return. A stained soul could never be cleansed again.
Only now did she understand—the reason she could never return to an ordinary life wasn’t just because reality forbade it, but because her sullied soul could never find peace. "Fine. I’ll grant you this."
An Jiu changed into a black close-fitting outfit, draping an ivory-white outer robe over it. She slung her bow and quiver over her shoulder, grabbed her pack, and immediately headed for the banquet hall.
Outside, remnants of snow still lingered. Clad in ivory, An Jiu’s figure nearly blended into the white landscape as she walked.
After following Mei Zhengjing and the others for a while, An Jiu realized she truly was better suited to traveling alone. While numbers provided mutual support, they also made it easier to be detected. Once combat broke out, others’ assistance had its limits—someone like her, lacking Inner Force, was at a severe disadvantage.
But now, moving alone, she could rely on her formidable Mental strength to detect and evade enemies early. Even if confrontation became unavoidable, hiding was far easier without others to give her away.
The banquet hall was engulfed in towering flames, the sounds of battle still audible—proof that the siege wasn’t over yet.
Yet, on the path from Jade Serenity Residence to the banquet hall, An Jiu encountered no fewer than fifty people. They moved in groups of five, scouring the Mei Manor for survivors, sparing not even the servants.
Mei Jiu, too, hardened her resolve. She knew her own survival depended entirely on An Jiu—she had no power to save anyone else. So despite the ache in her heart, she didn’t ask An Jiu to intervene.
Rounding a grove of plum trees, An Jiu finally saw the raging fire that had nearly consumed the entire banquet hall.
Mei Jiu gasped, "What do we do?!"
Mei Ru Yan was still hidden in the storage room behind the side hall. If she hadn’t been discovered yet, any delay would surely see her burned alive.
An Jiu remained silent, frowning at the inferno. After carefully considering the layout, she seized a moment when the surroundings were clear and sprinted toward the rear courtyard.
The banquet hall’s backyard housed a kitchen—larger than the manor’s usual one, as it had prepared the feast for the New Year’s banquet.
Entering the courtyard, An Jiu immediately spotted the large water vat beside the kitchen door. Her Mental strength could sense many people nearby, but not their exact actions.
She shed her outer robe, concealing herself in the shadows along the side of the building.
The voracious flames devoured the structure before her. An Jiu studied the front hall for a moment. If they were to save Mei Ru Yan, they had to act quickly—every second made entry more difficult. Waiting for absolute safety wasn’t an option.
"Mei Ru Yan might have had ill intentions from the start. Are you sure you want to save her?" An Jiu asked Mei Jiu.
"Impossible," Mei Jiu replied with uncharacteristic firmness. "We shared the same plight back then. Even I didn’t know my own family background—what could she possibly have schemed for?"
"Tch." An Jiu couldn’t even be bothered to mock her. "I consider myself already dead. I’m just borrowing your body—consider this repayment for rent in full."Mei Jiu was still stunned by those words, but An Jiu had already darted to the water vat, submerging the outer garment in her hands into the water. She also pulled up her face covering, immersing her entire face in the water until the mask was thoroughly soaked, then draped the wet outer garment over herself before rushing swiftly into the banquet hall.
The acrid stench of burning assaulted her nostrils, so pungent that even through the damp mask, it was unbearable.
This was An Jiu’s first time entering the banquet hall from the back door. She groped her way through the scorching environment for a while before finally reaching the main hall.
The horrific scene in the banquet hall flooded her vision—the floor densely packed with hundreds of corpses, mostly the elderly, weak, women, and children. The dining tables were overturned, and where wine had spilled, flames had already taken hold.
Blood flowed like a river. An Jiu could feel the warmth beneath her feet seeping into her shoes. She glanced down and saw the innocent face of a child submerged in a pool of blood, its small, pale hand still clutching a bamboo dragonfly.
Mei Jiu was completely overwhelmed! The mountain of corpses amidst the raging flames seemed, in an instant, to overlap with a scene from An Jiu’s memories—a place she had once believed to be the eighteenth level of hell.
An Jiu paused, then bent down to pick up the bamboo dragonfly and tucked it into the pouch at her waist.
Clang!
A wine bottle fell from a table near the secret passage entrance.
An Jiu hid behind a pillar, warily watching the area. A figure drenched in blood, their original color indiscernible, struggled to stand up.
From the person’s build and facial contours, An Jiu recognized him as the Mei family’s patriarch.
After a moment’s hesitation, An Jiu stepped out from behind the pillar and strode toward him.
Mei Zhengyan raised his eyes, his voice hoarse. “Who are you?”
“Mei Shisi,” An Jiu replied, reaching out to steady him.
“You…” Mei Zhengyan coughed up blood, breathing rapidly. He stared intently at An Jiu, as if trying to discern her identity.
An Jiu pulled down her mask briefly before quickly covering her face again. Mei Zhengyan relaxed slightly and gripped her hand tightly. “Behind the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness… beneath the mountain… lies the Mei family’s… the Mei family’s…”
Mei Zhengyan’s body trembled faintly, stiffened for a moment, then suddenly went limp.
An Jiu felt Mei Zhengyan press something warm into her hand. She pried open his clenched fingers.
By the firelight, An Jiu saw what appeared to be an ornament resembling a jade pendant. The front was carved with orchids, while the back had small, square protrusions.
The Mei family’s what? Faced with this half-finished last words, An Jiu wondered if it might be something like the Mei family’s treasure.
So the Mei family truly did have a family motto of “Loyalty and Righteousness.” But where was this Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness?
An Jiu wasn’t very familiar with Mei Manor, but she had explored every corner once and had never seen or heard of any so-called Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness.
Still, a dying man’s last words were likely of great importance. An Jiu tucked the object into her robe, gently closed Mei Zhengyan’s eyelids, and stood up to head for the side hall.
The storage room behind the side hall hadn’t caught fire yet, but to An Jiu’s surprise, Mei Ru Yan was nowhere to be found among the boxes and chests!
There were no corpses or even a trace of blood in the room. Had she woken up and escaped on her own?
“I’ve done all I can,” An Jiu muttered.
Mei Jiu murmured dazedly, “How could this happen?”
An Jiu ignored her and prepared to return to the rear courtyard the way she had come.
But upon exiting, she realized the carved partition between the main hall and the side hall had already been engulfed by the raging flames. The fire roared fiercely, wooden beams collapsing incessantly.The fire had started from the front courtyard and hadn’t yet spread to the rear. Taking the original path was the safest option! An Jiu paused for a moment, then wrapped her head with her outer garment and charged forward fiercely.
The flames licked and curled, quickly drying the outer garment, leaving black scorch marks and even igniting some parts. An Jiu simply discarded the clothing.
Barely making it out of the courtyard, she collided with someone crouching by a water vat.
Hearing the noise, the person turned abruptly, flicking open a folding fan in their hand and hurling it toward her.
An Jiu’s eyes sharpened as she spun aside, but she was a fraction too slow—the fan sliced off a corner of her sleeve.
From the corner of her eye, she glimpsed a red apricot blossom painted on the fan. “Mo Sigui! It’s me.”
The fan curved back midair. Mo Sigui stood up, catching it, and called out, “Mei Shisi?”
An Jiu knew this was just Mo Sigui’s reflexive reaction, but she couldn’t help cursing, “Bastard! Doctors really do have violent tendencies!”
“Mei Shisi!” Mo Sigui dashed over, his peach-blossom eyes glimmering with a heart-stopping smile. “You came back for me?”
An Jiu replied indifferently, “Why would I come back for you?”
Assuming she was just being stubborn, Mo Sigui ignored her words and praised, “I knew you were loyal!”
An Jiu didn’t bother explaining and only asked, “Weren’t you captured by Old Madam? Why are you here?”
“After Old Madam brought me here, she handed me over to a Shadow Guard.” Mo Sigui smirked. “I just didn’t dare to act against Old Madam, but a mere Shadow Guard? No way they could hold me!”
Mo Sigui was a physician, but he was also skilled in poisons. He knew Old Madam was the type who showed no mercy, and he couldn’t use any lethal toxins on her. But with a Shadow Guard, he had free rein.
An Jiu asked, “What were you doing by the water vat?”
Mo Sigui unhooked a thumb-sized jade gourd from his waist. Against the firelight, it was clear the gourd was hollow and filled with water.
He shook the small gourd, uncorked it, and a faint mist rose from its mouth. The smoke was eerie—instead of dispersing in the open courtyard, it clung stubbornly to clothing. “This is a new poison I made. I call it ‘The Sorrow of the World.’”
An Jiu was speechless. Mo Sigui’s naming sense for medicines was truly appalling. But judging by the name, it must be a potent poison.
Mo Sigui handed her a pill. “Antidote.”
Her vision was already blurring, so she swallowed it without hesitation.
Soon, her body gradually returned to normal.
Mo Sigui pulled out a fist-sized jade flask from his sleeve, poured a packet of medicine into it, then filled it with water from the vat. “This poison has another name. Since it’s mainly made from mineral-based medicine and must be stored in jade, Elder Qi calls it ‘Jade-Clad Robes.’”
As expected, Elder Qi’s naming was far more reliable!
An Jiu guessed his reason for concocting this poison. “Are you going to save Elder Qi?”
“Yeah. Those people are swarming to corner him. He doesn’t have much poison left—sooner or later, he’ll be caught.” Mo Sigui’s voice darkened noticeably.
Elder Qi’s Martial Arts were at the ninth rank, but the enemy seemed well-prepared—those surrounding him were at least seventh rank. In such a situation, relying solely on strength wouldn’t guarantee a safe escape. Poison was necessary.
“Then let’s go!” An Jiu said.
Mo Sigui was surprised. “You’re coming with me?”"My meridians haven't been healed yet, so I can't let you die here." An Jiu spoke the truth, and she was very blunt about it.
Mo Sigui thought she was just being stubborn. "How noble!"
An Jiu, "..."
Once they had filled the water, the two of them slipped out through the back door and sneaked into the front courtyard.
The chaos outside was still ongoing. The two crouched inside a cave in the rock garden, and with a single glance, they spotted Elder Qi. While most others were engaged in one-on-one fights, he alone was surrounded by nine people. These nine moved with precision, forming a circle and holding iron chains that crisscrossed, trapping Elder Qi in the center.
An Jiu's gaze shifted, and she noticed another striking figure in the crowd—a man in pristine white robes with dark hair, untouched by dust. Beside him, a young woman in a crimson dress was being protected. It was none other than Mei Ru Yan. (To be continued...)
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