linfengchun - Capítulo 34
The scene inside was horrific. The floor was littered with mutilated human bodies, the smooth jade walls were stained with blood, and broken organs were stuck to some places. The dark red liquid was so thick that it was impossible to walk on it, and the smell of blood was so strong that it was almost suffocating.
The elite troops they brought in had all perished, leaving only three people in the vast room to confront the Pope.
The once aloof and noble Pope no longer possessed the demeanor of a god. His gray hair was disheveled, his thin hands were stained with blood, his long nails were menacing, and a murderous aura filled the room. His sinister smile was like that of a demon.
Qianming's shoulder bone was shattered by his palm strike. Zi Su's sword, which was meant to sever the cult leader's arm, was deflected, leaving only a shallow cut. Jia Ye's short sword suddenly attacked his back, forcing him to release Qianming. For the first time, the three of them joined forces, setting aside all their differences, and focused on killing the demon before them.
Zi Su, who always cared most about her appearance, had disheveled hair and a scratch on her face. Perhaps due to the prolonged attack, she was panting heavily, her hands were trembling, and she was cursing bitterly.
"Monster, you're still not dead?"
The black-clad king was stabbed in the abdomen and his left leg was severely injured. He barely managed to stay upright, but his moves were still fierce and deadly. His eyes were bloodshot and terrifying to behold.
Qianming's face was as white as paper, he coughed up a little blood, and he could no longer lift one hand.
"He's almost gone too, he won't last much longer."
Jia Ye's movements were like a ghost, appearing and disappearing in an instant, his attacks unpredictable. Even after a long battle, he remained agile, surpassing Ri's level considerably. All three were in a sorry state, covered in countless large and small bloody wounds, enduring only through sheer willpower.
Losing her attention, she was kicked and sent flying, about to crash into the jade wall.
He abandoned Jiuwei and leaped away, reaching out to grab her and pull her into his arms. With a little effort, he dissipated the force of the impact, rolled a few times on the ground, and got covered in blood and grime.
Jia Ye trembled in pain before he realized something was wrong.
With a gentle press, the slender arm in his palm was broken off by the King.
"What are you doing back here!" Her voice was broken from the pain, but she shouted out the same words as Jiuwei.
Knowing the timing was inappropriate, he couldn't help but want to laugh, but stopped himself after checking his arm injury.
"I'm worried."
"Idiot!" She glared at him, her anger igniting in her dark eyes. A rare outburst of rage erupted, and if it weren't for the inconvenience of being held in his arms, it wouldn't be surprising if she slapped him.
There was no time to say anything more. Qianming Zisu was already in danger multiple times, so he drew his sword and joined the attack.
The five attacked simultaneously, and even with his profound skill, the sect leader couldn't withstand the relentless assault. Coupled with his weakened legs, he was soon severely injured, letting out a deafening roar as he launched a frenzied attack. Wherever his internal force passed, the hard jade walls shattered and scattered, striking him like heavy hammer blows.
Taking advantage of the attack from the front, the Pope was distracted by his extreme pain. Jia Ye silently appeared behind him, a flash of cold light, and swiftly severed his left arm. The cost was that the recoil injured his internal organs, sending him flying several feet away, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Jiu Wei lunged forward, shattering the sword with her inner force, transforming it into a flurry of flying blades that attacked her opponent. Even with the loss of her left arm, her power remained. The Pope spread his fingers wide, intercepting the flying blades with his bare hands, producing a metallic clang. Such skill despite his severe injuries caused everyone to pale in fear.
Qianming and Zisu charged forward, relying on their years of honed sniping skills to fight back. They barely managed to withstand the attack, which exposed a weakness in the King's chest. He grabbed the longsword that had fallen to the ground and threw it. Three sword strikes flew like white rainbows piercing the sun, and the last sword finally struck through the gap, pinning the King, who was writhing in pain, to his throne.
The demonic sect's sword had a specially made blood groove. The blade pierced through his chest, and blood gushed out continuously, quickly taking away his terrifying power. The once invincible old man was clearly weakened, and purplish-black blood foam seeped from the corner of his mouth, irreversibly heading towards his end.
Inside, only the sound of heavy, choking coughs could be heard. Each cough seemed to extinguish a life force, and a large amount of blood was being lost at an alarming rate, quickly forming a pool of blood beneath the jade throne.
The five people watched silently, and no one made a move.
Having witnessed countless deaths, everyone knows that running out of fuel is only a matter of time before one's life ends.
After catching his breath for a long time, his demonic eyes gradually dimmed, and an aged voice rang out.
"...Alright...Alright, all four of you together...I underestimated you..."
"You old codger, you've finally met your match." Zi Su sneered, flicking the severed arm with the tip of her sword and throwing it in front of his face. "Where did your invincible arrogance go?"
"You've sat in this position long enough; it's time to give it to someone else." Despite his pale face, Qian Ming still mocked with glee. He had waited far too long for this day, enduring such oppression.
“You deserve it, you got what you deserved.” Jiuwei relaxed slightly. “You also ascended the throne by killing the previous king.”
Jia Ye remained silent, leaning against him, coldly watching the dying old man.
“…Ambition…desire…tempting bait…” The person who couldn’t move coughed, spitting out mouthfuls of purple foam. “…You are all…”
After a moment of silence, Jiuwei suddenly laughed.
“We were indeed driven by ambition, but Jia Ye wasn’t. You never thought you’d fall into her hands, did you? I wanted to kill you, but I didn’t intend to act so quickly. I was planning to let you live a few more years.” He turned to look at the silent girl. “Now you’ve got what you wanted.”
“…Ga…Ye…” His dying eyes flickered, “…Why……”
Qianming Zisu couldn't help but show curiosity, waiting for her answer.
Jia Ye struggled to sit up, holding his sword horizontally to his chest.
The clear, bright blade resembled a pool of autumn water.
"You bestowed this sword upon me, you should have expected that one day it would pierce your body." His dark eyes were ruthless and sharp. "Do you remember its origins?"
For a moment, there was a deathly silence, then the breathing grew heavier and heavier, and the cloudy eyes gradually came to their senses.
“My mother’s sword.” She lowered her hand, and the tip of the sword fell to the ground with a metallic clang.
"You think a five-year-old child is insignificant? How dare you bestow him upon me?" The words seemed to burst forth from the depths of his heart, his pale face filled with deep-seated hatred, and his dark eyes gleaming terrifyingly.
“...You...couldn't...remember...…”
"You underestimate my mother. You think she's a weak woman with nothing but beauty?" Jia Ye approached step by step, her fingers resting on the longsword piercing her chest, revealing a venom she had never shown before. "She has a way to make me forget, and she also has a way to make me remember. What makes you think I would willingly serve my enemy?"
“…You…will…”
With a sharp twist of his five fingers, the longsword flipped, shattering his heart and lungs, and forcing out a weak, lingering gasp.
"This sword was for Huaiyi, and you forced me to kill him." His cold gaze fixed on the convulsing old man, as if he were a pile of mangled, rotting flesh. "From that moment on, I swore to kill you."
"Don't you enjoy deciding other people's fates? Now it's your turn to go."
"...You...you killed your mother...murdered your superior...you will not have a good end." The pulsating mouth uttered indistinct words, like a curse.
Jia Ye burst into laughter, laughing so hard she could barely stand.
"Who would have thought it would end well?"
"My only wish is to die with you."
"To see you die today is enough to satisfy me."
As the cruel yet triumphant words fell, a sharp dagger slashed through the air, severing the gray head at the neck. The head rolled to the ground amidst the chaos, its eyes still filled with resentment.
With a bare face and no expression, she stared fixedly at the headless corpse. Her white clothes were stained with blood, making it almost impossible to recognize her original color. Her weak feet staggered and stepped into the pool of blood, making a soft crunching sound.
He watched silently, then stepped forward and helped her up.
As if she had exhausted all her strength, her small body trembled in my arms.
After a long while, he closed his eyes wearily.
Author's Note: Uh... Did I kill the king too quickly? *sweat*
Some might think defeating the boss is a bit too easy, but with all four envoys betraying you, even the most cunning strategist can't catch you off guard.
After all, strength comes first... Well, of course, that's just my lazy excuse.
Don't smash the eggs... As for the tomatoes, I'll just treat them as a beauty treatment... —_—
Seize the opportunity
The sword is 1 foot 3 inches long and 2 fingers wide, and the blade is extremely light.
The wrist is wrapped in gold thread, and the handle is engraved with strange characters. Even after staring at it for a long time, I still cannot make out its meaning.
The sword tip gleamed with a cold light, chilling and penetrating to the hairs on one's body, like a solidified, clear light. The scabbard was made of an unknown type of wood, its form ancient and simple, its black surface fine and smooth, its quality surpassing that of metal and stone, and it produced a deep, resonant sound when struck.
He gently stroked the two slightly raised inscriptions with his fingertips, lost in thought.
The bed curtains stirred slightly, and Jia Ye opened her eyes, propping herself up with one hand to sit up. Her pale face was dazed, as if she had lost all strength, and she tried to move her bandaged injured arm.
"Don't move." He helped her sit up and leaned her against his chest. "The bones have just been set; it will take at least several dozen days."
"The King of Pope... is he really dead?" Her voice was slightly hoarse, and even after a long sleep, there was still an unyielding weariness.
"Hmm." Not only her, but he also felt it was somewhat unreal.
After a long silence, he spoke.
"Your forehead feels a little hot, do you want to sleep a little longer?"
Jia Ye shook her head. Her long-cherished wish had been fulfilled, but all that remained was exhaustion and emptiness. Not wanting to remain silent and lost in thought, she finally managed to bring up a topic after a long while.
"What about the four wings? Were they released to the Central Plains?"
"They wanted to come back with us, but I was afraid it wouldn't be appropriate."
She smiled wearily, unsurprised, but it reminded him of another lingering question.
“I know that Xuan Yuan is the King’s man, but what about Chi Diao?”
He gently held her hand, but Jia Ye remained calm.
"The Crimson Eagle is the same; it is more valued by the King than the Black Kite and is kept hidden even deeper."
"How did you know?" He thought back on everything, but couldn't find the slightest flaw.
"Qian Ming said it." A slight, cold laugh followed. "Do you still remember when you went to assassinate the King of Shanshan?"
"That failure had nothing to do with him; it was my own mistake."
"That's right, but if he hadn't failed, he would have secretly told the National Preceptor of Shanshan where he was hiding afterward, and he would never have let you return to Tianshan alive."
"The King wants to kill me." Upon hearing this, he was stunned for a long time. "It's because..."
“Me.” She closed her eyes gently. “If you want to weaken my power, you will naturally be the first to bear the brunt. Of course, it would be best if the assassination failed, so that the Pope could show leniency and not hold me accountable for my dereliction of duty, but use this as a reason to incorporate the Six Wings into the Assassination Group… If I lose the ability to act independently, I will certainly be subject to the control of the Nine Minorities.”
The King of the Sect knew that Jiuwei and he were close friends. Once he died, Jiuwei would definitely take her anger out on Jiaye for constantly hindering her. She was too busy to help herself and could only restrain her actions. She could no longer help Qianming. What a cunning plan. No wonder Chidiao kept urging him to escape back to the Central Plains.
Her delicate brows relaxed slightly, a touch of warmth appearing on them. She had never imagined that he would make a mistake... yet choose to return and share the burden with her.
"When will you find out?"
"After you went down the mountain, Qianming secretly informed me, but it was too late..." she sighed. "I... I regret not going myself."
Despite being in grave danger, the truth could not be revealed. On the surface, everything had to remain normal, and the Red Eagle was given important confidants. This level of patience was truly unparalleled. Otherwise, how could they have kept it from the King of the Sect? That ruler was always cunning and scheming. If the four envoys had not set aside their past grievances and joined forces to launch an attack, they might not have been able to assassinate him. The risks involved in this operation were indeed alarming.
He felt a pang of sympathy inwardly, suppressing a sigh, and when he saw her reaching for the dagger, he unconsciously asked her a question.
"What...words are on this sword?"
“Inch of Light.” Unexpectedly, she gave her answer. “The name of this sword.”
"Where is this script from?" The characters are so convoluted and winding, like vines and snakes, that it's impossible to make out.
“Deep in the mountains and marshes of southern Yue, there are some hidden little kingdoms, each with its own writing system and customs.” Jia Ye gazed at the sword with affection. “I don’t recognize it either; my mother told me.”
"Where is your mother from?"
"She was the only survivor of her clan." Such a distant past, devoid of emotion, was merely stated in a flat tone. "The rest were all destroyed by neighboring countries, their houses reduced to ruins, everything turned to ashes, and they could never go back."