In the woods, shadows gathered.
A dark figure appeared beneath the canopy.
He hid in the shade of the trunk, observing the man suspended from the branches.
Blood dripped from the man's wrists and ankles onto the ground, the soil beneath him softened and soaked by the crimson rain.
His gaze was deep and cold. He bent down, picked up a stone, and flicked it away. The stone whistled through the air, severing the vines that bound the man's legs. The man plunged downward, headfirst, smashing violently onto the ground.
His head instantly burst open.
The dark figure did not approach to check. Having completed his task, he retreated swiftly.
Shadow One watched the dark figure from above. Bathed in moonlight, the dark figure weaved through the shadows like a phantom. Shadow One leaped up, his movements as light as a feather, flitting through the treetops. Like a shadow, he followed in pursuit.
...
Qing Zhu led Nan Shiying to the cliff where the blood ginseng had been discovered. In the moonlight, a protruding stone platform could be faintly discerned halfway up the mountain.
"It's there!"
Qing Zhu lay at the edge of the cliff, pointing to the stone platform.
Nan Shiying gauged the distance from here to the platform and turned to pull down several white vines clinging to the tree trunk, tying them together to make a rope.
She tied one end of the white vine to the tree trunk and the other end around her waist.
"Martial Uncle, what are you doing?"
Qing Zhu grabbed Nan Shiying's sleeve and asked.
Nan Shiying glanced at Qing Zhu, pointing at the white vine around her, implying, "Don't you see what I'm doing?"
Qing Zhu's mind went blank. No, I'm not really asking what you're doing! I'm asking because I know what you're going to do!!!
This isn't an inquiry, it's an attempt to stop you!!
"Martial Uncle..."
Qing Zhu paused for a second, and as he started to speak, managing only to utter "Martial Uncle," he saw the person before him swiftly and without hesitation leap off the cliff. Qing Zhu's eyes widened, so shocked that he swallowed the rest of his words.
Wait, Martial Uncle, isn't this a bit too hasty? What if those masked people are still in the cave connected to the platform?
As Qing Zhu was thinking this, two gusts of wind brushed past his ears, and two figures flew past him on either side, leaping off the cliff like great roc.
Qing Zhu stared, his eyes wide with horror, feeling as though his blood had instantly frozen. Was it them? Had they been discovered? Was Martial Uncle in danger?
Qing Zhu didn't know why they hadn't killed him immediately. In that moment, he couldn't think of anything else. The only thought in his mind was to warn them.
"Martial Uncle, Li..."
An icy hand covered Qing Zhu's mouth from behind. Qing Zhu trembled violently, a chill seeping into his body from that hand. Fear instantly surged and spread, the cruel scene he had witnessed that day replaying in his mind. His fear and anger reached their peak at that moment. He let out an inexpressible roar, suddenly turned, grabbed the person's waist, and then leaped backward, attempting to drag them both off the cliff in a mutual destruction.
The person behind him merely raised another hand and placed it on Qing Zhu's shoulder, pressing him back to the ground.
A look of despair welled up in Qing Zhu's eyes, but he heard a light laugh, a melodious tinkling sound: "Don't struggle. If you move, I'll skin you."
Hearing the most melodious voice utter the most cruel words, Qing Zhu felt an intense chill in his heart. His eyes welled up with blood, his arms loosened from the person's waist. His right hand swiftly reached for the wrist of the hand pressing on his shoulder and forcefully bent it.
A physician, bone-setting.
It can save lives, and it can kill.
His technique of dislocating bones was not yet perfected, but if caught off guard, he could still dislocate the opponent's wrist.
"Heh~"
Qing Zhu heard a soft laugh, and then his wrist was caught and twisted.
"Don't struggle!"
The person's voice was tinged with amusement. Qing Zhu felt a sharp pain in his wrist and heard the person's laughter again, "I am Ying Thirteen."
Ying?
Thirteen?
What kind of stupid name is that?
So, the King's mansion's secret guards are all named according to numbers?
Almost the moment he heard the name Ying Thirteen, Qing Zhu knew the person's identity. After the fear and hatred subsided, the first thought that entered his mind was to ridicule Ji Jinmo's naming convention.
Nan Shiying descended to the stone platform using the vine, and almost at the same time, the shadow guards landed behind her.
This journey to Liaojiang.
Nan Shiying, Xiao Man, and Situ Kong traveled on the Hengyuan Chamber of Commerce's cargo ship. Ying Wu and Ying Liu were left at the border, while Ying Yi and the other shadow guards traveled by official routes on a separate government ship.
Appearing behind her were Ying Ten and Ying Twelve.
Nan Shiying untied the white vine. She did not enter the cave but, using the moonlight, glanced at the stone platform. The platform showed no discernible traces anymore. At least, hidden by the moonlight, the blood and brutality of that day were not visible. However, the occasional breeze still carried faint traces of blood. Nan Shiying closed her eyes. The wind blew into the cave, stirring up echoes that sounded like desperate cries.
She opened her eyes and strode towards the cave.
Ying Ten and Ying Twelve quickly moved in front of Nan Shiying and took out luminous pearls from their bosoms, holding them in their palms to illuminate the path ahead.
The further they went, the more pungent the smell of blood became. After passing through a narrow stone path, they entered a cavern. Inside, corpses of all sizes were piled together like trash. Nan Shiying took the luminous pearl from Ying Ten and walked up to the bodies.
The naked corpses had their wrists, ankles, and necks cut open. They had indeed been bled dry, dying from blood loss.
Nan Shiying could not confirm if they were Liaojiang citizens or Lin Yuan citizens.
But regardless of whether they were Liaojiang or Lin Yuan people, to be so brutally murdered, the killer deserved to die!
Since the perpetrator had discarded the bodies so carelessly, this was not their stronghold. This place might have been chosen temporarily for a sacrificial ritual, or it might be a specific location at a specific time; these details were yet unknown. What Nan Shiying wanted to understand most was one thing: what was the perpetrator trying to awaken with this ritual of sacrificing living people!
...
Buri Gude surrounded Changming Mountain but did not lead his troops into it.
He sat at his desk, quietly looking at the corpse of the Turkic Eagle, carried back from the woods by the soldiers.
Buri Gude had not expected to see the Turkic Eagle again so soon, only to find his corpse. Gurejiti brought a jar of wine, the same wine the Turkic Eagle had bought that day. He tilted his head back, poured the wine down his throat, and after draining the jar, slammed it to the ground and knelt down, volunteering to enter the mountain!