Luzhou Moon - Chapter 72
Inside the abandoned temple, Yinglong and the others had all fallen asleep, and Danfeng lay on her side next to Lian Junchu, fast asleep. Lian Junchu leaned against a pillar. To reassure his subordinates, he had deliberately feigned sleep earlier, and only after they all went to rest did he open his eyes, unable to fall asleep himself.
All was silent, save for the faint rustling of a wisp of cold wind seeping through the dilapidated window. Yet, amidst this quiet sound, Lian Junchu seemed to have a strange feeling.
The sound of the wind should have been intermittent, but after it came a rustling noise, as if... as if countless crawling insects were wriggling on the sand.
He sat up abruptly, alert. The sound, masked by the wind, was slowly moving toward them.
"Yinglong."
Lian Junchu called out softly, and Ying Long, who always slept with his longsword in his arms, quickly woke up. As soon as he sat up, the other swordsmen also woke up with a start.
"What is it, young master?"
"There's movement." Lian Junchu leaned against the pillar and stood up, quickly walking to the window. The window paper was already torn to shreds. Lian Junchu stood sideways in the shadows and looked outside through the gap.
Under the dark night sky, the wilderness was deserted, and the abandoned city walls stood silently and isolated, showing no sign of anything amiss.
The swordsmen gathered behind Lian Junchu. Yinglong glanced outside and asked in surprise, "Young Master, are you sure you didn't hear wrong?"
Danfeng was also startled awake at this moment. She groggily opened her eyes and asked, "What happened?"
Lian Junchu frowned, staring at an ancient cypress tree in front of the temple, and said in a very soft voice, "Yinglong, look at that tree again."
Yinglong paused for a moment, then stepped forward. By the faint moonlight, he could see that the ancient cypress was lush and towering, seemingly without any special features. However, upon closer inspection, he could see white spots faintly visible among the branches and leaves. Moreover, those white spots were constantly moving and increasingly occupying the canopy.
Following the cypress branches downwards, there were also specks of white on the ground, resembling snow but not quite, surging towards this place in waves.
"What is that?!" Yinglong took a step back, his face filled with surprise.
Lian Junchu left the window, pondered for a moment, then looked up at Danfeng and said, "Danfeng, you must stay close to Yinglong and the others. Whatever appears outside, do not touch it."
Danfeng agreed, immediately tidied her belongings, and stood behind Yinglong.
"How did you arrange to meet up with the people who stayed near Yinxi Xiaozhu?" Lian Junchu quickly asked Yinglong.
"We agreed to meet outside the south gate of Luzhou City at dawn."
"Alright, drive away from here immediately, don't look back, head towards the south gate, and wait for them to come over there." Lian Junchu said as she walked towards the gate.
"Young Master, aren't you leaving?!" Yinglong and Danfeng asked in unison.
Lian Junchu calmly asked in return, "Is there a problem?"
Danfeng stammered, "Wouldn't we have more help if we stayed...?"
"No need." He quickly and easily dismissed her idea.
The gate slowly opened, and the handsome Lian Junchu stepped out, standing in the cool and quiet moonlight.
Before them, white insects moved faster and faster, gradually gathering like a river.
"Since Valley Master Mo Li has arrived, why hasn't he shown himself yet?" Lian Junchu raised her voice slightly, leaping into the air. Her toes barely touched the stone pier in front of the temple, propelling her several feet over the dense swarm of white insects. At the same time, flames suddenly erupted from inside the temple gate, thick smoke billowing out, and several torches flew out, landing in the open space in front of the gate. The insects that were about to crawl over the threshold were burned by the fire, emitting a pungent, foul stench mixed with hissing sounds.
Before Lian Jun landed on the open ground, several figures flashed out from the broken window on the side of the temple. Ying Long was the first to leap onto the carriage parked behind the temple, and Dan Feng immediately climbed into the carriage. The horse neighed a few times and led the swordsmen to fly away into the distance.
Just then, a sharp whistle suddenly rang out in the silent wilderness, and dark shadows rushed towards Yinglong from all directions. Yinglong swept his whip, forcing back several men, and then heard a whoosh of wind behind him. Turning around, he saw several dark blue lights streaking through the air, striking down several men in black who were about to swing their swords. It was Lian Junchu who flew to his rescue, shooting hidden weapons from her sleeve.
At that moment, another group of men in black leaped out from behind the city wall, their curved blades flashing out like a whirlwind towards the horses' hooves. Lian Junchu leaned back, and the two swords hidden in his sleeves suddenly flew out like arrows, each carrying a silver chain, drawing two pale, gleaming streaks of light in the night sky. The moment the curved blades touched the swords, they shattered into pieces with a soft clang. As if answering his call, the swords suddenly spun back, and Lian Junchu flicked his sleeves upwards, sheathing the swords once more.
In the back and forth, Yinglong had already led the group through several obstacles and headed into the distance. As soon as Lian Junchu turned around, she saw a figure standing gracefully on the ruined city wall not far away.
The man wore a long, dark robe, seemingly blending into the night, but his pale face exuded a chilling aura.
Flames roared behind her. Lian Junchu stepped forward, straightened up, and seeing shadows gathering around the black-robed man, she raised an eyebrow and said, "To deal with me, Valley Master Mo Li, who has been absent from the martial world for so long, has made a special trip here. How rare!"
The man in black coughed lightly, covered his lips with a white handkerchief, and smiled slightly: "Young Master Lian is now in charge of Seven Star Island. Although I, Mo Li, have never fought with you, I will not underestimate you."
"Seven Star Island has had little contact with Bliss Valley in recent years. Does Valley Master Mo Li intend to take advantage of this situation to diminish the prestige of my Lian family, or does he simply want me to die far from home so that he can take the opportunity to annex Seven Star Island?" Lian Junchu spoke slowly and calmly, her voice carrying on the wind at a moderate volume.
Mo Li coughed and laughed, then spread his hands and said, "Young Master Lian really doesn't hold back when he speaks, much like your father." As soon as he finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves, and the figures that had been crouching in the weeds suddenly pounced on Lian Junchu.
In the wilderness, Yue Ruzheng galloped on her horse, the north wind whipping her long hair behind her shoulders. After leaving Yinxi Cottage, she felt as if someone was following her, but unable to find Lian Junchu and the others in the darkness, she could only search along the path leading to the outskirts of the city. Not far ahead was the ancient city wall, when suddenly she heard the clash of weapons and muffled shouts.
She drew closer to the group fighting by the roadside and saw a group of people dressed in black chasing three young men carrying swords. Two of them seemed to be injured and unable to move easily, while the third turned back to fight back, his twin swords striking fiercely. It was none other than Chongming, a guard from Seven Star Island.
At this moment, the sound of hooves approached from behind Yue Ruzheng. Before she could turn around, two riders galloped up from behind. Judging from their attire, they were subordinates of Seven Star Island. One of them wielded a whip and swept it across the black-clad men opposite him, while the other seized the opportunity to rise up, wielding two swords, and blocked the pursuers for Chongming.
Yue Ruzheng was unsure why Chongming had appeared here, nor whether she should offer her help. Just as she was hesitating, a man dressed in black clothes swept out from the slope by the roadside, striking Chongming's back with a fierce palm strike.
Without a second thought, Yue Ruzheng leaped from her stirrups, drawing her sword and forcing the attacker down the slope in a flurry of light and shadow. The man gave a low growl, drawing a gleaming curved blade from his waist and slashing at Yue Ruzheng with a whooshing sound. Now that they were very close, Yue Ruzheng realized that the man's sunken cheeks and sharp eyes revealed him to be none other than Su Muchen from Bliss Valley.
Su Muchen recognized her as well. A smirk played on his lips as he coldly parried the Lonely Fragrance Sword with his curved blade, saying, "Yue Ruzheng, it's been so many years. You're still roaming the martial world?"
Yue Ruzheng exerted force with her right arm, flicking her sword upwards to deflect Su Muchen's curved blade, and unleashed a series of sword strikes aimed at his face. Seeing her fierce attacks, Su Muchen dared not be careless. As the two were fighting, the sound of horses' hooves came from the direction of Yinxi Xiaozhu. Yue Ruzheng blocked Su Muchen's attacks, turned back, and saw Shao Yang leading several men on horseback.
Upon seeing Yue Ruzheng fighting with someone, he immediately led his men into the crowd. After the three groups exchanged blows, the people of Bliss Valley gradually felt overwhelmed. Su Muchen raised his blade and secretly flicked out several jets of black material from his left hand, which flew towards Yue Ruzheng's wrist.
Just as Yue Ruzheng was about to draw her sword, Shao Yang suddenly bumped her elbow, deflecting her. The several black objects missed Yue Ruzheng's blade, fell to the ground, and suddenly emitted wisps of green mist. Everyone hurriedly held their breath and retreated. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Su Muchen led his men to leap onto their horses and head towards the ancient city wall.
Chapter Fifty: The snow in Huainan melts away, yet no one recognizes it.
As the blue mist gradually dissipated, Shao Yang asked anxiously, "Ruzheng, what are you doing going out so late at night?!"
Yue Ruzheng didn't know how to explain, but the two riders had already mounted their horses. One of them said urgently to Chongming, "Master and the others should be nearby. Let's go ahead!" After saying that, the two of them spurred their horses and chased after the direction where Su Muchen and the others had left.
Chongming helped his injured companion up and said to Yue Ruzheng, "Miss, thank you for your help, but we can't discuss this now. Those people from the Valley of Bliss are probably targeting us."
Seeing that he was with two people who had difficulty moving and had no horses, Yue Ruzheng whispered a few words to Shao Yang. Shao Yang frowned, his eyes filled with anger, but seeing Yue Ruzheng's firm attitude, he had no choice but to suppress his dissatisfaction and give the order to give three fast horses to Chongming. Although Chongming had doubts, he had no time to refuse, so he thanked her and rode off with his companions.