Asesino sin nombre - Capítulo 37
How many people in the world could injure him so severely with a single punch? Bi Qiuhan coughed up his first mouthful of blood, unable to hold it in any longer, and then a second mouthful of blood gushed out. It seemed he was about to die from vomiting blood in an instant. Qu Zhiliang sighed deeply, showing no mercy, and raised his sword high above his head, ready to strike.
"Stop!" A sharp shout suddenly came from the woods, and a figure darted over like an arrow.
Saint Incense… Bi Qiuhan felt a surge of joy. He didn’t know why, even though he knew that Saint Incense’s stance was the same as Qu Zhiliang’s—that they were both covering up the truth of what happened back then—he still felt a surge of joy when he saw him come before he died. That joy was like the sorrow of seeing new flowers bloom in early spring; even though he was on the verge of death, he was still overjoyed.
But the Candle Room Sword came crashing down on his head.
With a sharp "snap," Shengxiang deftly blocked Quzhiliang's sword with her folding fan. "Who are you?"
He didn't even know that Qu Zhiliang was the assassin from back then? Bi Qiuhan's astonishment flashed by.
Shengxiang parried the sword and stared intently, exclaiming in astonishment, "Qu Zhiliang?!"
Qu Zhiliang remained silent. If he hadn't insisted on an open and honest approach and refused to kill Bi Qiuhan outright, he would never have allowed Shengxiang to discover his midnight murder. Now that he had been caught red-handed, he had no choice but to kill two more people! With a "whoosh," the ancient and sturdy blade of his sword was forced by his internal force to become like a soft sword striking the air, producing a whooshing sound. With Qu Zhiliang's martial arts skills, this sword strike was extremely fierce. A surge of rage, fueled by the realization that his guilty conscience had been exposed, was about to erupt, causing his eyebrows to bristle and his face to contort in a ferocious expression.
"Wait—" Sheng Xiang seemed to have a lot to say, but was silenced by Qu Zhiliang's swordplay, unable to utter a single word. His folding fan had just withstood a powerful blow, and the ribs were already cracked; he absolutely couldn't afford another. But Bi Qiuhan was severely injured within Qu Zhiliang's grasp, and he couldn't abandon him! Gritting his teeth, he ducked under Qu Zhiliang's sword, rushing into Qu Zhiliang's arms, not caring about victory, but only about being able to cry out, "Help—"
Qu Zhiliang had never seen such a way of responding to an attack before. Instead of striking, the man desperately sought an opportunity to cry for help. Sheng Xiang's sudden embrace was completely unexpected; this man was skilled in martial arts but acted erratically. Slightly annoyed, he snapped off his outer garment with a "smack." Regardless of Sheng Xiang's ulterior motives for throwing herself into his arms, this flick sent her garment flying.
Shengxiang only wanted him to throw it away. In an instant, Quzhiliang flung his clothes, and Shengxiang took the opportunity to pounce out, pick up Bi Qiuhan, and roll away from Quzhiliang's side.
So that's how it is. Qu Zhiliang, caught off guard, missed his two intended targets, and a slight jolt ran through him; a sense of awe at the potential of these young men swept over him. Though arrogant by nature, he had weathered many storms and was now indifferent to worldly affairs. Sheng Xiang's quick thinking and plea surprised him slightly, but he still swung his sword down with a second stroke.
Bi Qiuhan stared wide-eyed as the sword slashed down from behind Sheng Xiang. Sheng Xiang was holding him, panting, and her soft exhalation, "Uh..." startled Bi Qiuhan. Sheng Xiang tried to get up, but her face was pale and covered in cold sweat. She paused for a moment.
The heart of the sacred incense—
The feeling was like a sword slicing through Bi Qiuhan's chest—had it stopped beating? For a moment, he had the illusion that Sheng Xiang was already dead, as if he had waited an eternity for that faint beat. That strange feeling chilled him to the bone. Was it his imagination? Why did he feel that Sheng Xiang's heart was beating so slowly…?
Sheng Xiangyi didn't get up, and Liang Jian frowned slightly. Why didn't he dodge?
The fall and roll just now were a matter of life and death in an instant. The excessive tension finally triggered Sheng Xiang's chronic heart disease. He collapsed onto Bi Qiuhan, panting heavily, his mind briefly blank.
"Whoosh—" The sound of the sword wind still lingered in their ears, and the blade had already just touched Shengxiang's clothes. A deep voice suddenly shouted from afar, "Shengxiang!"
Rongrong? Shengxiang's cry for help was meant for Rongyin to hear. In this life-or-death moment, he was startled and knew he couldn't faint now... But then he heard the sound of a sword blade behind him. Even if he had a thousand plans, he couldn't use any of them. Just as countless thoughts were swirling in his mind but none of them worked, suddenly there was a sharp, grating sound of flesh and bone rubbing together. He abruptly opened his eyes—he saw that Bi Qiuhan beneath him was gone, replaced by drops of warm, fresh blood dripping from his back.
That's not his blood.
Shengxiang was startled, but he did not turn around.
“Holy Incense…” The person behind him bent down and took the sword for him. The person he had been carrying as they rolled away had shielded him from the sword at the last moment. “He is the one who killed Li Chenglou… the real culprit…”
A warm sensation on her neck told Shengxiang that blood had flowed down, and Bi Qiuhan's head drooped.
"Didn't you... hate me the most?" In an instant, there was no sadness or tears in Shengxiang's eyes, only a blank, deathly loneliness. "Didn't you threaten me not to hide the truth? How could you die? How could you die?"
“I promised…” Bi Qiuhan seemed to smile slightly, or perhaps it was a bitter smile, “I promised to be your… bodyguard… Bi Qiuhan never… breaks his word…” He persisted until he said the four words “never break his word” before letting out his last breath, closing his eyes and dying.
There were no tears in Shengxiang's eyes.
He never cries.
He didn't move, and after what seemed like an eternity, he murmured, "Fool... I was just kidding... I was just teasing you..."
With a single strike of his sword, Qu Zhiliang shattered Bi Qiuhan's heart, lungs, and neck bones, killing him instantly. But he didn't strike again; instead, he held his sword and quietly watched Sheng Xiang slowly sit up before him.
Bi Qiuhan was still on his back. Shengxiang had his back to Qu Zhiliang. Under the moonlight, the blood on his body and on the ground from Bi Qiuhan was increasing. He quietly said, "You don't actually need to kill him, because he already knew... that it was the founding emperor who ordered the assassination of the Li, Nan, Leng, and Ye families, and he didn't know that the person who did it was you."
Qu Zhiliang gave a nonchalant "Oh," and said, "This was an agreement between the founding emperor and me. How would he know?"
“I told him,” Saint Fragrant replied silently.
"You?" Qu Zhiliang's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "How did you know?"
Shengxiang didn't answer, then after a while gave an irrelevant reply, "Qu Zhiliang... In the palace secrets, Emperor Taizu had a top-notch master who secretly killed people to eliminate his rivals. When Emperor Taizu attacked Luzhou and killed Li Jun and Li Chongjin, the matter implicated the emperor's uncle Du Shenzhao, who assassinated Yao Shu and ordered him to throw his body into the river while still in official robes, demoted Shi Xizai, the military governor of Taihe Army, and later killed the Li, Nan, Leng, and Ye families... You played a significant role in all of that, didn't you?" He said in a low voice, "Qu Zhiliang, Qu Zhiliang, what exactly do you owe Emperor Taizu that you would kill and set fires for him, disregarding your reputation and self-respect, even doing things like murdering in the middle of the night and launching sneak attacks—you're capable of all of that? Weren't you renowned throughout the land, revered by all martial arts practitioners? What was it all for?"
Qu Zhiliang's expression changed, but he remained silent.
"For what?" Shengxiang asked slowly, her eyes closed, carrying Bi Qiuhan's blood on her back.
"You know too much," Qu Zhiliang said calmly. "Those who know too much always die quickly."
"For what!" Shengxiang suddenly closed her eyes and shouted, "For Shangxuan? You can kill Bi Qiuhan just because he says one word? What secrets does the Zhao family know about you that they want you to obey them for life, even after your father and son have died two generations later?"
His sudden shout made Qu Zhiliang's face change color. "You..."
"Don't think that anything in this world can truly be hidden from the heavens!" Sheng Xiang's chest heaved as he clutched his collar. "Who are you eating and talking with at the foot of Wudang Mountain—do you think I don't know? I've been watching him for over twenty years! Although I've always disliked him, even if Zhao Shangxuan wore ten or eight layers of human skin and mastered seventy or eighty kinds of divine skills, I could still see through him at a glance! Go back and ask him—ask him that I know about his ancestors' scoundrels, that I'm his own uncle—go back and ask him if he's going to kill me too?"
Qu Zhiliang stared in horror at the blood-soaked, closed-eyed Shengxiang on the ground. This was the first time he had truly felt the blood-curdling rage and heart-wrenching sorrow of the person on the ground... a pain heavier than the heavens... The shadow of Shengxiang overlapped with that of another person, a pain even more intense than being reborn, and another person who could not cry...
"Qu Zhiliang." A faint voice came from the side, "My surname is Rong, and my given name is Yin. Tell Shangxuan that I am not dead yet."
He was a man with a stern demeanor. Qu Zhiliang chuckled and took two steps back, sword in hand. This was the first time in the world that someone had spoken to him in such an authoritative tone—not even the founding emperor dared to do so!
Rong Yin knelt down on one knee beside Sheng Xiang, helped Bi Qiuhan up and placed him on the ground. He did not reach out to help Sheng Xiang up, and said calmly, "Get up!"
Shengxiang, with her eyes closed, breathed heavily, clutching her clothes tightly to her chest, and stood up unsteadily.
Although he stood awkwardly, he stood firmly and did not fall.
Qu Zhiliang saw this, then with a clang, he drew his sword and left.
“Rongrong…does everyone have to kill to protect what they believe is most important?” Shengxiang asked slowly. “I saw Qu Zhiliang and Shangxuan together, but I never imagined things would turn out this way…”
"It's my fault, I'm a step too late," Rong Yin admitted.
“It’s no one’s fault. I never think that way.” Shengxiang slowly shook her head and said softly, “It is so, so difficult for a person to not live for the dead.”