Since Jiang Cheng planned to visit some sects along the way to the south, the group didn’t linger for long. Even though there was still some time before the martial arts conference, they soon set out on their journey.
The four of them traveled light, but because Ye Lihen’s internal injuries made riding a horse difficult, he had to travel by carriage. This made it harder to stay hidden, but given that at least two of the top five martial artists in the world were among their group, they didn’t bother trying to conceal their movements. That night, the four of them stayed at an inn. Since there weren’t exactly four adjacent rooms available, they decided to split up in pairs. Jiang Cheng, possibly still wary of Ye Lihen, chose to stay in the east wing with him, while Bai Jinshu stayed in the west wing to keep an eye on Lin Ling. Whether Jiang Cheng had reservations about Ye Lihen’s identity or not, Bai Jinshu trusted his Shishu’s judgment. Since Jiang Cheng was keeping Ye Lihen close, Bai Jinshu didn’t question the arrangement.
That night, Bai Jinshu, a light sleeper, lay on his bed, fully dressed, with his sword beside him, ready to respond to any sudden disturbances. However, instead of hearing the quiet footsteps of an intruder or sensing the presence of danger, he woke to the faint smell of smoke.
For a moment, Bai Jinshu wasn’t sure what was happening. Even in the martial world, where danger was a constant, fires weren’t something he often encountered. But before he could open the window to check, he heard Jiang Cheng’s voice, amplified with internal energy, echoing through the inn.
“Fire! Everyone, evacuate!”
Fully awake now, Bai Jinshu immediately went to the next room to find Lin Ling. They escaped through the nearest window and, once outside, saw that the ground floor of the east wing was already engulfed in flames, with the fire rapidly spreading toward the west wing. Bai Jinshu assumed that Jiang Cheng had already taken Ye Lihen to safety, so he didn’t stop to check. He instructed Lin Ling to stay where she was and hurried off to help with the rescue efforts.
The fire had started suddenly and spread quickly, and throwing buckets of water on it was proving futile. Bai Jinshu decided to stop worrying about the flames and, relying on his martial skills, rushed into the burning building to save those trapped inside.
In the collapsing, flame-engulfed east wing, only Bai Jinshu and Jiang Cheng dared to enter. After ensuring that no more survivors remained inside, Bai Jinshu saw Jiang Cheng still risking his life to carry out the bodies of those who had already perished. To Bai Jinshu, grand ideals like chivalry had always felt like empty words, but he respected his Shishu, the leader of the martial world, precisely because of such actions—small, yet difficult to judge. However, at that moment, seeing Jiang Cheng’s determined figure, an unsettling premonition struck Bai Jinshu.
—Was this sudden fire really just a natural disaster?
Ye Lihen had previously infiltrated the lair of those who tried to assassinate Bai Jinshu. Whether or not he had uncovered anything, the enemy behind it all might be trying to silence him. With Jiang Cheng and Bai Jinshu around, killing Ye Lihen wouldn’t be easy. So they chose to start a fire. Not only would this distract them, but it would also obscure their true intentions by targeting a seemingly unrelated location, forcing Jiang Cheng and Bai Jinshu to focus on saving lives rather than protecting their companion. Their real target was…
Alarmed, Bai Jinshu rushed to catch up with Jiang Cheng, not bothering with formalities as he asked, “Where did you leave Ye Lihen?”
Jiang Cheng, with his extensive experience in the martial world, immediately understood what Bai Jinshu was worried about. His expression darkened as he carried the body out of the fire and said, “Follow me.”
After placing the body outside, Jiang Cheng headed straight for the back courtyard. Not knowing where to go, Bai Jinshu followed closely behind until he saw a figure hiding in a distant corner. He shot past his Shishu like an arrow.
When he reached the corner, the first thing Bai Jinshu saw was Ye Lihen sitting on the ground. Though Ye Lihen’s gaze was clear, a long sword had pierced his chest, and blood was gushing from the wound. In front of him lay a black-clad figure, still alive but unconscious.
Bai Jinshu moved with lightning speed, using his finger to seal the acupoints around Ye Lihen’s wound to stop the bleeding. After confirming that the wound hadn’t hit any vital organs, he took stock of the situation.
“Did you drug this guy?”
The black-clad man had no visible injuries, so it seemed the only reason for his unconsciousness was that Ye Lihen had poisoned him. Bai Jinshu had never seen Ye Lihen use poison before, but it seemed that in this case, it had been his only option.
—But then again, even if the enemy was only dealing with an injured Ye Lihen, they wouldn’t send an amateur. Someone capable of becoming an assassin wouldn’t be easily drugged by someone with no internal strength left.
Bai Jinshu looked at the sword embedded in Ye Lihen’s body. It had been thrust into him from behind. If Ye Lihen had truly been ambushed, there was no way a professional assassin would have missed. Ye Lihen should have been dead. Yet he had managed to knock out his attacker. It was clear that he had been prepared. In fact, he must have deliberately lured the attacker into stabbing him, avoiding the vital areas, and then used poison when the assassin hesitated to withdraw the sword.
“When did you realize someone was going to kill you?” Bai Jinshu’s voice grew cold. “Did you sense the danger and intentionally take that sword so you could drug the attacker?” But it wasn’t just that. If Ye Lihen had waited until the assassin struck to use the poison, the assassin, seeing his movements, would never have fallen for it. That meant Ye Lihen must have prepared everything in advance, before the assassin even appeared. “Should I just say that when the fire broke out, you already expected this to happen but chose not to say anything?”
“Jinshu, it’s my fault for not being thorough enough. I didn’t give Ye Xiaoxiong a chance to speak before I left. He did what he had to do to protect himself. Let’s focus on removing the sword first.”
After discovering Ye Lihen, Jiang Cheng had immediately gone back to find Lin Ling. Now, the two of them returned just in time to hear Bai Jinshu questioning Ye Lihen. Feeling guilty, Jiang Cheng stepped in to defend Ye Lihen. In truth, Bai Jinshu knew that Jiang Cheng was simply taking the blame onto himself. If Ye Lihen had wanted to speak up, he had had plenty of opportunities. But seeing the other’s pale face, with a sword still lodged in his body, Bai Jinshu forced down his anger. He carefully broke off the exposed tip of the sword before swiftly pulling out the remaining piece. Since Ye Lihen still needed his earlier wounds tended to, Bai Jinshu had bandages with him. He quickly applied medicine and bandaged the injury to stop the bleeding.
Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng’s face was grave as he pressed several acupoints on the assassin’s body. “If all the attacks were only aimed at us, that would be one thing. But now innocent bystanders have been dragged into this. I think it’s best we avoid populated areas from now on.”
Hearing this, Bai Jinshu glanced down at Ye Lihen again. The man on the ground remained silent, offering no opinions. Bai Jinshu felt a deep sense of guilt over what had happened that night and was determined not to let any more innocents suffer. But at the same time, he hesitated over their next course of action. Ye Lihen was already somewhat fragile, and with his injuries piling up, he needed a better environment for recovery.
Sensing Bai Jinshu’s concerns, Jiang Cheng added, “I know of an old friend’s abandoned residence near the foot of the mountain. It’s deserted now, but with a little cleaning, it should be livable.” Originally, Jiang Cheng hadn’t planned on intruding without an invitation, but out of guilt toward Ye Lihen, he made an exception.
With that, Bai Jinshu had no further objections. To cover their tracks, they abandoned the carriage they had been using. Since Ye Lihen’s condition made horseback riding too harsh, Jiang Cheng offered to carry him using his qinggong. With his exceptional skills, Jiang Cheng was able to move swiftly while holding Ye Lihen, making the journey seem effortless. By the time they reached their destination, Ye Lihen had already fallen asleep.
Bai Jinshu, who had been in charge of escorting the unconscious assassin, felt a mix of emotions as he checked on Ye Lihen. He had assumed that Ye Lihen only trusted and relied on him, but now he saw that the other had fallen asleep so easily in Jiang Cheng’s arms, only waking up when they arrived.
Jiang Cheng led them to an abandoned manor that must have once belonged to a wealthy family. Nestled in a quiet, picturesque setting, it was now in disrepair, but after cleaning up a few rooms, it became a suitable place for them to rest.
After such an ordeal, dawn had already broken. Although none of them had slept well that night, they were all too awake to return to bed. They had an unconscious prisoner on their hands, and before deciding whether to release or keep him, the immediate task was to interrogate him.
Bai Jinshu had assumed the assassin had only been drugged with something simple, but it wasn’t until Ye Lihen personally administered the antidote that the man slowly opened his eyes. When he saw himself surrounded by the four of them, his expression didn’t change. Before anyone could question him, he spoke harshly.
“I am a disciple of the Huolian Sect. We are not afraid of death. Kill me if you must—there’s no need for words!”
Normally silent, Ye Lihen surprised Bai Jinshu by speaking up. “We hadn’t even asked you anything yet, but you’ve already declared your identity. Are you worried we might not believe you’re from the Huolian Sect?”
Ye Lihen’s calm questioning caught the assassin off guard, and he hesitated for a moment before responding gruffly, “A disciple of the Huolian Sect has nothing to hide.”
“If you really are from the Huolian Sect, then tell me—who is the Left Protector of the sect?”
“Our Left Protector is known in the martial world as the Sleeve-Bound Demon Blade. His name is feared far and wide. You wouldn’t dare face him in battle.”
Ye Lihen suddenly let out a cold laugh. “You claim to be a disciple of the Huolian Sect, yet you don’t even know that the Left Protector has already been stripped of his power by the Sect Leader. If you’re going to lie, at least do your homework first.”
The assassin froze for a moment, then stared at Ye Lihen in shock. “How do you know about the internal affairs of the Huolian Sect?”
Ye Lihen shrugged casually. “I don’t. I made it up. The Huolian Sect is facing a crisis right now. Why would the Sect Leader weaken his own forces by cutting off one of his right-hand men?”
Despite his attempts to stay calm, the assassin was left speechless. Anger flickered in his eyes, unable to fully conceal his frustration at being toyed with.
If Bai Jinshu had had any doubts before, the truth was now obvious.
Jiang Cheng seemed to think the same as he approached the assassin. “Who really sent you?”
The assassin scowled and replied, “I already told you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe me.”
Jiang Cheng slowly reached out, pressing his fingers against the assassin’s Quchi acupoint. The assassin, who had been sitting stiffly, immediately curled up in pain. He gritted his teeth, trying to suppress his screams, but couldn’t stop a groan from escaping.
“I don’t want to torture you. If you’re willing to talk, I’ll release your acupoints right away.” Jiang Cheng said, his voice low and serious.
The assassin stubbornly replied, “I—I already told you. I’m from the Huolian Sect. What else is there to say?”
“My technique won’t cause any lasting harm to your body, so even if I leave you like this for a day and a night, you’ll survive. The question is, can you endure it for that long?”
“Go ahead and kill me! I have nothing more to say!” Despite his defiance, the assassin finally let out a scream of pain as he writhed on the ground.
Watching from the side, Lin Ling couldn’t bear it any longer. “Shishu, maybe he really is from the demon sect. Couldn’t we give him a break for now?”
Jiang Cheng, unwilling to be too cruel, saw that the assassin was already exhausted and released his acupoints. The man collapsed on the ground, completely drained. In this state, there was no point in continuing the interrogation, so Ye Lihen quietly left the room.
Bai Jinshu had intended to discuss their next steps with his Shishu, but seeing Ye Lihen walk away, he hesitated for a moment before choosing to follow.
The two of them walked through the corridor and stopped to rest in a pavilion. Not expecting the unhappy Ye Lihen to speak first, Bai Jinshu tried to comfort him. “I want to know the truth just as much as you do. But if we really resort to torture to get answers, then how are we any different from the demon sect?”
Ye Lihen kept his head down, saying nothing.
“I know you put a lot of effort into capturing this guy alive, even risking your own life.” Bai Jinshu began with the intention of soothing him, but as he continued, the memory of what had happened reignited the anger he had been trying to suppress. “But don’t you realize how foolish you were? You knew someone was going to kill you, yet you didn’t say a word. Do you just not care about anyone else?”
“I know I was wrong.” Faced with Bai Jinshu’s scolding, Ye Lihen responded softly.
This wasn’t the first time Bai Jinshu had seen Ye Lihen admit to being wrong. The first time, when Ye Lihen had accused Lin Ling, Bai Jinshu had assumed that someone as proud as him wouldn’t apologize unless he truly believed he was wrong. But now, it seemed that Ye Lihen was merely brushing him off.
“Then tell me, what exactly did you do wrong?” Bai Jinshu pressed on, unwilling to let it go.
Ye Lihen didn’t answer, remaining silent.
The image of Ye Lihen sitting on the ground, impaled by a sword, flashed through Bai Jinshu’s mind, and his anger flared again. “So you don’t even know what you did wrong!”
“That’s because I wasn’t wrong.” Ye Lihen suddenly countered, his voice cold and distant, devoid of much emotion, yet somehow creating an almost unreachable sense of detachment. “I apologized because you were angry, but that doesn’t mean I was wrong. It also doesn’t mean I’m not angry, too.” With that, Ye Lihen calmly stood up and walked away.
By the time Bai Jinshu regained his composure, Ye Lihen was already out of sight. For a moment, he considered going after him, but then he realized something important. All along, it had always been him making the effort to approach Ye Lihen, trying to befriend him and start conversations. But without Ye Lihen opening the door for him, he wouldn’t have been able to do any of that. Now, in this moment, Bai Jinshu wanted to chase after him and have a calm discussion about the tension between them. But he knew, deep down, that he wouldn’t get the chance.
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