(Catching Bugs)
The four of them had originally headed north in search of An Jiu, but within moments, they lost their bearings. Wandering aimlessly, they stumbled upon a marked grave before they could even determine their direction.
They immediately recognized it as the dagger symbol from the map. Mei Tingjun, who had a complete route on his map, wanted to retrieve the dagger. However, since they couldn’t discern their location, they didn’t know which map the dagger belonged to. Mei Tingzhu decided to make the first move, leading to a fight with Mei Tingjun.
Mei Tingyuan and Mei Tingchun tried to intervene, but their martial arts skills were no match for the other two, and they ended up as collateral damage.
"Mei San!" Mei Tingjun roared. "How dare you challenge me!"
Mei Tingzhu sneered, "What? Throwing a tantrum now? Why should all the good things go to you?"
"Sis, calm down. He’s our own brother," Mei Tingyuan said anxiously. "Even I can see this is a trap—Old Madam deliberately set this up to test us. You’ve always been smart. How can you not see it?"
"Who says I don’t?" Mei Tingzhu retorted. "If you know it’s a test, can you guess the answer?"
The answer was simple—absolute obedience to orders.
An Jiu had upheld this principle countless times, even in her final moments.
"It means completing the mission at all costs," Mei Tingzhu said slowly, staring at them. "In the Crane Control Army, there’s only advancing forward—no retreat. If you’re not prepared for that, don’t throw your lives away!"
She shifted her stance slightly. "Come on. Whoever wins takes it!"
Mei Tingchun pursed his lips and stepped back. "I’m no match. I... I’m out."
Mei Tingzhu turned to Mei Tingyuan. "And you?"
Mei Tingjun and Mei Tingzhu were evenly matched in martial arts, far surpassing their peers. Mei Tingyuan was no match either, but she didn’t want to lose her chance to enter the Shadow Academy.
"It’s all Mei Shisi’s fault!" Mei Tingyuan’s eyes reddened as she stomped her foot and retreated to stand beside Mei Tingchun, giving up. But she couldn’t hide her resentment. "If Mei Shisi hadn’t taken those two map pieces, we all could’ve passed!"
A bunch of idiots!
Mei Tingyuan’s words forced An Jiu to silently label them as such. The four of them had maps that, when combined, could easily determine that hers was the southernmost piece. Given two hours, they could’ve found it by checking every grave!
In truth, An Jiu was being unfair to them—Mei Tingzhu had also considered this. But with no directional markers and no specialized training in orientation, it was easy to get lost.
"Eldest Brother, forgive my offense!" As she spoke, Mei Tingzhu flicked a long whip from her sleeve, aiming straight for Mei Tingjun’s neck.
The gust of wind forced Mei Tingjun to dodge. With a swift motion, he drew the soft sword from his waist, twirling it into a defensive flourish before countering like a viper.
The whip struck a nearby grave with a sharp crack, sending dried grass flying and dirt raining down like a downpour. Even An Jiu, standing ten zhang away, was caught in the aftermath.
An ordinary whip couldn’t produce such force—it had to be linked to so-called Inner Force. Her excitement grew.
Meanwhile, Mei Tingjun’s sword closed in to within three inches of Mei Tingzhu, who sidestepped just in time. Simultaneously, her whip lashed out again with overwhelming momentum.Mei Tingzhu was usually quiet and reserved. She appeared gentle in nature, yet somehow wielded a soft whip with the sharpness of a longsword.
Mei Tingyuan clenched her fists tightly, shifting her feet restlessly. Mei Tingzhu rarely used weapons, so the fact that she immediately resorted to her whip now showed how determined she was to claim that dagger.
"Time is almost up," Mei Tingchun frowned, glancing back at the marked grave covered in wild grass, indistinguishable from the others. There was no telling where the dagger might be hidden.
"Right!" Without a moon or any means to track time, Mei Tingyuan could only estimate.
Dead grass was swept up by the gusts of Mei Tingzhu’s whip, scattering in the air above.
Seeing the two locked in a fierce struggle, their figures indistinguishable in the dark, Mei Tingchun said, "Let’s search for the dagger first. Otherwise, even if they finish fighting, none of us will pass."
Mei Tingyuan gave him a suspicious look.
"What’s that look for? I can’t even beat you—I wouldn’t grab the dagger and run!" Mei Tingchun snapped. "All three of you siblings came, and if none of you pass, aren’t you afraid of being laughed at when you return?"
Mei Tingyuan found his reasoning sound. "Fine."
The two began carefully searching the grave.
How big could a grave mound be? Even if they combed every inch, it wouldn’t take long. Yet after two thorough searches, they found nothing.
"What’s going on?" Mei Tingchun muttered. "Do we have to dig it up?"
"Unlikely," Mei Tingyuan said. "This mass grave is huge. Just finding the marker took forever, and we don’t have tools. We’d never finish digging by dawn. Old Madam wouldn’t assign such an unreasonable task."
"Keep looking." Mei Tingchun resumed his search.
Mei Tingyuan muttered to herself as she meticulously checked from top to bottom. Near the base, she noticed her left foot sinking slightly into something soft—different from the rest. Her heart leapt, but after a moment’s hesitation, she didn’t call Mei Tingchun. Instead, she bent down to investigate.
Pushing aside the grass and a layer of loose soil, her fingers brushed against something cold and yielding.
Her hair stood on end, but curiosity compelled her to explore further.
Suddenly, the thing jerked violently, seizing her wrist and yanking her inward. The entire grave mound trembled as the soil shifted.
Terror froze Mei Tingyuan’s voice. By the time she regained her senses, half her arm had already been dragged in.
"Fifth Brother! Fifth Brother! Help me!" Her voice cracked, sharp and shrill, piercing the silent night.
Mei Tingchun sprang up, rushing over. Seeing the situation, he immediately grabbed her arm and pulled.
"It hurts!" Mei Tingyuan wailed. "My arm’s going to break!"
Mei Tingchun, barely more than a teenager himself, panicked. "Second Brother! Third Sister! Stop fighting and come help Seventh Sister!"
Hearing the cries, Mei Tingzhu and Mei Tingjun exchanged glances, their eyes reflecting the same determination. Instead of stopping, they intensified their attacks, unleashing deadly moves.
From An Jiu’s vantage point, she couldn’t see what danger Mei Tingyuan was in—nor did she care. She only hoped Mei Tingjun and the others would keep fighting.The two of them certainly didn’t disappoint her, each move more ferocious than the last, their actions swift, but An Jiu’s keen eyesight allowed her to see everything clearly. As she watched, she tried the breathing and energy circulation method Mei Yanran had taught her. After a while, she faintly sensed a small warmth gathering in her dantian.
Inner Force was something An Jiu desperately needed to improve, so she simply stopped watching the fierce battle and focused entirely on circulating her energy.
The sounds of fighting and Mei Tingyuan’s wails couldn’t shake her concentration in the slightest. She could feel the energy in her dantian accumulating more and more—if it had been the size of a sesame seed before, now it was at least as big as a soybean.
An Jiu concentrated on gathering energy, her sensory awareness diminishing. It wasn’t until she guided the warm current to slowly flow through her meridians that she suddenly detected the sound of breathing extremely close to her!
Steadying her mind, she discerned that the breathing was about ten breaths per minute, even and steady, remaining in one spot. It likely posed no immediate threat to her, so she continued guiding the warm current through her meridians. Once she felt light and comfortable all over, she opened her eyes and looked toward the source of the breathing.
A man was crouched beside her, his sapphire-blue robe torn open at the chest. His handsome face shone like the ancient moon, his starry eyes gleaming with excitement as he stared at her. "Heroine—"
An Jiu abruptly covered his mouth with her hand, glaring coldly at him in warning to stay silent.
The warmth of his breath sprayed against her palm, sending a tingling sensation up her arm and spreading rapidly through her body.
The young man understood her meaning and nodded quickly.
An Jiu released him, staring at his mouth for a moment with a strange expression.
The young man touched his lips, puzzled—what was wrong with them?
An Jiu glanced back at the commotion and, seeing everyone still occupied, grabbed the young man by the collar and dragged him away.
After walking a hundred paces, she threw him to the ground. "Get lost."
The young man opened his mouth to speak, but An Jiu cut him off. "I’ll count to three. If you’re not gone by then, I’ll kill you."
Before she even finished speaking, a dagger was already pressed against his neck.
The young man hadn’t even seen her draw it, confirming that he’d stumbled upon a martial arts master training here. "Heroine, I’m lost."
"One."
"My family is a prominent household in Bianjing. If you escort me out, I’ll reward you with ten thousand gold."
Even imperial disaster relief only amounted to ten thousand taels of silver, yet he casually offered ten thousand taels of gold. An ordinary person would have realized his family was no ordinary household, but unfortunately, he’d encountered someone who had absolutely no concept of money.
An Jiu had once possessed vast wealth, yet she ate only the simplest food provided by her organization. She had never needed to buy anything. "Two."
The young man widened his eyes and declared with great bravado, "My surname is Hua!"
An Jiu increased the pressure on the dagger, and the young man hastily scrambled back—but not before blood welled up on his neck.
An Jiu turned and walked away.
"Heroine, save me! If you abandon me, I’ll die!" The young man clutched his neck, his face deathly pale, cautiously following her.
She stopped and turned her head, giving him a cold look. "If you want to die now, keep following."
The young man stood frozen, watching her resolute departure. Only when she was out of sight did his expression darken, and he muttered angrily, "Witch."
Thwack!
A stone the size of a baby’s fist struck his head with pinpoint accuracy, instantly raising a large lump on his smooth, jade-like forehead.
Clutching his forehead with one hand and his neck with the other, the young man dared not speak another word. His dark eyes fixed on the direction An Jiu had gone.He recalled the plum blossom embroidered on the young girl's shoe and his eyes gleamed slightly.
He had seen many beauties hailed as capable of toppling cities and kingdoms, yet none could compare to that girl just now—her beauty was neither overly flamboyant with an extra touch nor too plain with one less. With her slender neck and a figure just beginning to show grace, her peerless elegance was beyond compare, and even her killing intent held a unique charm. What stood out most were her eyes—utterly pure, containing nothing but that lethal aura.
After a moment of contemplation, the young man clutched his neck and ran eastward—if he didn't bandage it soon, he really would die! (To be continued...)
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