"I'll go up and take a look," A Shui whispered softly, her gaze flickering toward the second floor where Lin Bu hung from the shop's signboard. "Maybe I can find a chance to free Master Lin." Yu Tuan'er lowered her voice, "It's too dangerous. There must be many experts up there. How could you possibly save him?" A Shui shook her head, "I'm just going to look. If there's no opportunity, I won't act recklessly." She gently patted Yu Tuan'er, "Little sister, I'm a few years older than you and have seen more of life, so I'm not afraid. You stay here and be careful. If things go wrong, take Feng Feng and escape over the wall." Yu Tuan'er murmured, "I won't run away, but I'll protect Feng Feng." A Shui nodded, stroked her hair, then turned toward the stairs.
Yu Tuan'er sat in the courtyard holding Feng Feng while picking vegetables, watching A Shui's retreating figure. A Shui was slightly taller, her posture graceful, her steps steady. Yu Tuan'er had always felt this elder sister was unfortunate, having endured much hardship. Sometimes she seemed so detached it made her hard to approach—as if she were just an empty shell. Yet at other times, one sensed that beneath her calm exterior, her heart might not be entirely devoid of longing.
A Shui soon retreated back down the stairs and went to the busy kitchen to fetch several cups of tea. From a distance, Yu Tuan'er saw someone ask her a few questions. She couldn't hear the exchange, but the person seemed friendly, gesturing toward the second floor before A Shui carried the tea tray upstairs.
Clutching the soft bundle that was Feng Feng, Yu Tuan'er lost sight of A Shui and suddenly felt at a loss. No one had told her what to do in a place like this, bustling with strangers. She realized she'd been very fortunate—hiding alone in the remote mountains, meeting Liu Yan and Shen Langhun. Though their appearances were frightening, they had treated her well... And afterward, the people she met—Fang Pingzhai, A Shui—all genuinely cared for her, never making her feel lonely. But Elder Sister A Shui... Yu Tuan'er lowered her head to pick vegetables. A Shui had probably never been fortunate.
A Shui carried the tea upstairs to the second floor. The moment she stepped onto it, several blades pressed against her neck. Raising her head, she saw the second floor filled with old acquaintances from the Dissolute Shop, led by Bai Suche. Bai Suche tightened the blade at her throat and asked coldly, "It's you. What are you doing here?" A Shui lowered her head, "I was captured by Peach Girl's subordinates on the road. Hearing the Revered Master would come, she sent me here." Bai Suche's eyes flickered slightly, "Is that true?" A Shui nodded. Bai Suche withdrew her blade, and the others followed suit. "Peach Girl isn't coming here. Why would she send you?" A Shui kept her head down, "I was caught by Xiao Jing." Bai Suche made a sound of understanding, "I see. Sit down. Our scouts report they've found traces of Liu Yan. Sit by the window where you can be seen from all directions." She pointed to the window where Lin Bu hung. A Shui walked over and faced the window, beneath which Lin Bu dangled.On the second floor, someone was holding a plate of pig's trotters, their face already smeared with grease. This person was extraordinarily obese and missing a hand—it was Fu Cui. Seeing Bai Suche directing A Shui to stand by the window, she burst into laughter. "This girl actually didn’t die—how strange! With her standing here, the Revered Master is sure to come! I say, shouldn’t we tie her up and hang her next to Young Master Lin? Such a handsome scholar and a beautiful maiden—what a perfect pair! It’d be a shame not to hang them together."
Another figure on the second floor was clad entirely in black, wearing a human-skin mask. Standing to the side, their sharp eyes swept over A Shui, glinting with intensity. Bai Suche said coolly, "The Dong Princess has a good idea. Let’s hang this girl down as well to avoid complications." Fu Cui nodded eagerly. "I’ll tie her up!" Bai Suche replied coldly, "If you secretly break her limbs and Liu Yan comes back to die for her, can you bear the consequences before the Ghost Lord?" Fu Cui’s throat gurgled as she cackled, "Su Su, you really are the worm in my belly. You do it, then."
Bai Suche took out a white handkerchief from her sleeve, bound A Shui’s hands, then lifted and threw her out the window, suspending her beside Lin Bu. A Shui remained completely docile, offering no resistance. However, shortly after she was thrown out, a murmur rose among the onlookers outside. Sensing something amiss, Bai Suche and Fu Cui both leaned out to look—just as they did, the ropes holding A Shui and Lin Bu suddenly snapped. A Shui cried out, "Little sister, run!" before plummeting downward.
A pale purple handkerchief fluttered up into the wind, bearing two large characters written in eyebrow pencil: "Rescue." It soared higher with the breeze. As A Shui and Lin Bu fell, two figures flashed like lightning, catching them and landing gently. Bai Suche and Fu Cui’s expressions darkened slightly—these two were none other than Wenxiu Shitai of Emei and Cheng Yunpao, the "Frost Sword of Woe."
It turned out that during her first trip upstairs, A Shui had secretly written the word "rescue" on the handkerchief. After writing it, she went downstairs, picked up a tray, and returned upstairs with the handkerchief clenched in her hand, hidden beneath the tea tray. When Bai Suche threw her out, the handkerchief in her palm was released into the wind. The crowd outside consisted of Martial Arts World practitioners—their eyes were sharp, and they instantly grasped the message. Then, by some means, she severed the ropes, causing both her and Lin Bu to fall midair and escape control.
Wenxiu Shitai and Cheng Yunpao were both exceptional martial artists. With prior warning, rescuing them was no challenge. A Shui, caught by Wenxiu Shitai, gasped for breath upon landing and pointed at Lin Bu. "Protect... protect this Young Master Lin." Cheng Yunpao recognized A Shui and knew of her close ties to Tang Lici. With a shout, the Central Plains Sword Association’s forces swiftly encircled A Shui and Lin Bu. By the time Fu Cui and Bai Suche leaned out from upstairs, it was already too late."They are all from the Dissolute Shop and already know about Liu Yan's whereabouts. This Young Master Lin is Liu Yan's benefactor, so they expected he would come to rescue him, which is why they hung him from the tower," A Shui hurriedly explained. "Cheng Daxia, the antidote for the Ape-Demon Nine Heart Pill can only be made by Liu Yan. Everyone in the world wants to capture him alive. And he will surely come to save Young Master Lin, so we must protect his safety at all costs and prevent Liu Yan from falling under the Dissolute Shop's control again."
Wenxiu Shitai asked curiously, "Who are you?"
A Shui stood where she was, lowering her head. "This humble woman is just a commoner..."
Cheng Yunpao tore off the handkerchief binding her hands and said calmly, "This young lady is a friend of Young Master Tang."
A Shui shook her head and spoke urgently, "I also have a younger sister who was inside the Beauty Abode earlier. I don’t know what’s become of her now. Please, Cheng Daxia, send someone to look for her."
Before she could finish speaking, Yu Tuan'er, holding Feng Feng, came running from behind the Beauty Abode. "Sister A Shui!"
Seeing that Yu Tuan'er was unharmed, A Shui sighed in relief and pulled both her and Feng Feng into a tight embrace.
When the green-robed scholar had been hung from the tower earlier, the onlookers had already begun speculating about his identity, and some had even planned to rescue him. However, the Dissolute Shop's experts were seated on the second floor, and the ropes binding the scholar were made of Sulfur Silkworm Silk—no ordinary blade could cut through them. Anyone attempting to rescue him would lose the advantage the moment they struck to sever the ropes, leaving themselves wide open. Without A Shui's clever scheme, saving him would have been nearly impossible. But how had this young woman managed to cut the Sulfur Silkworm Silk ropes? The crowd murmured in confusion, unable to agree on an explanation.
A Shui clutched something tightly in her hand, revealing no trace of it. When Bai Suche had bound her hands, she had slipped something into A Shui's palm before throwing her out the window. It was with this very object that A Shui had cut the ropes, allowing herself and Lin Bu to fall safely.
Why had Bai Suche secretly helped her? Though A Shui didn’t understand, she knew that if this were discovered, Bai Suche would be in grave danger. So she held onto it firmly, not even glancing at it.
It was a small, willow-leaf-shaped knife, delicate and slightly curved, with a tiny mechanism on the hilt. A slight flick would extend the blade from the hilt. The knife could slice through iron as if it were mud, making cutting the ropes effortless for A Shui. Now, the blade had retracted back into the hilt, leaving it looking like nothing more than a smooth, rounded piece of wood in her hand.
Fu Cui, who had leaned out from the second floor, sneered. "This girl actually had the 'Willow Slayer' on her. Su Su, you really slipped up by not searching her properly earlier."
She didn’t find it strange that A Shui carried such a rare weapon. A Shui was closely acquainted with Tang Lici, and Tang Lici, with his vast wealth, might well have given her a fine blade for self-defense.
Bai Suche bowed coldly. "This subordinate was careless."
Fu Cui waved a hand dismissively. "Never mind. No one could have guessed A Shui would be so bold, nor that she’d think to save Lin Bu, much less that she’d be carrying the 'Willow Slayer.' Hah! Willow Slayer, Willow Slayer—has she returned now to kill Liu Yan?"The black-clad figure who had been quietly observing spoke indifferently, "Lin Bu has been rescued, it seems today's plan has changed. However, whether Lin Bu falls into the hands of the Central Plains Sword Association or the Ghost Lord makes little difference." Bai Suche smiled faintly, "The issue today is whether Liu Yan will actually come. If he refuses to appear today, or if he does appear but is captured by others, our preparations to apprehend Wenxiu Shitai, Tian Xunzi, and the Hongmen Sword group will become much more difficult—perhaps even leading to total defeat." Her gaze swept over the faces of those on the second floor. "At present, we’ve already lost control of the situation." Fu Cui giggled, "The Ghost Lord will return soon. Sit, sit. Eat, eat." She dug into the dishes with gusto, while Bai Suche walked over and calmly sipped a cup of wine.
Earlier, thick black smoke had risen in plumes behind the Beauty Abode, spreading over a wide area. Though the various sects had not communicated, they all knew something had happened behind the mountain. Now that Cheng Yunpao and Wenxiu Shitai had rescued Lin Bu, the crowd surged forward, chattering noisily about what exactly had transpired.
"Scholar, who are you?" A beggar draped in sackcloth squeezed up to Cheng Yunpao, his greasy hands groping all over Lin Bu’s body. "How did you end up saving the most notorious villain in the martial world? Don’t you know he’s a lecher who preys on young girls—" Before he could finish, Wenxiu Shitai’s expression darkened. "Xing the Beggar, watch your filthy mouth!" Several disciples of the Emei Sect had been bewitched by Liu Yan and joined the White-Clad Servants, taking the Ape-Demon Nine Heart Pill, yet they had not been defiled. Naturally, they were incensed by Xing the Beggar’s words. The beggar quickly shut his mouth and forced a laugh. "This old beggar deserves death! A beating, a beating! But this scholar looks so refined—how could he be involved with that demon? This old beggar is truly curious."
Lin Bu stood at the center of the crowd. Having encountered many strange people since his capture, he had grown even calmer. He merely smiled, bowed to Cheng Yunpao in gratitude for saving his life, and remained silent. Dong Hubi briefly questioned the various factions. The number of poisoned individuals varied among the sects, totaling around a hundred. Everyone wanted Liu Yan’s antidote, and just as many wanted his life. Cheng Yunpao gripped his sword tightly. At this moment, whether it was the Dissolute Shop’s forces lying in wait or the disorganized martial artists of the righteous path, emotions had been stirred—all waiting for one man’s arrival.
The moment Liu Yan appeared, they would absolutely take him away! They would never let this demon vanish again! Cheng Yunpao clenched his sword with determination, his resolve unshakable.
OpenNovel