Amidst the misty air, the man in black looked at Shen Lixue. The warm smile on her lips deeply stung his eyes. Facing him, she was only sharp and cold. But when she saw Dongfang Heng, her eyes and brows were full of smiles. They were both men from the Qingyan royal family, yet her attitude towards them was worlds apart.
Dongfang Heng, his destined rival, almost stole everything that belonged to him!
A fierce rage ignited within the man in black, and his powerful inner force stirred the clear lake water, sweeping towards Dongfang Heng like a tidal wave.
Dongfang Heng's gaze darkened slightly, and he quickly and gently pushed Shen Lixue forward: "Catch Lixue."
The moment Shen Lixue moved away from Dongfang Heng, his sleeves fluttered in the wind. With each opening and closing of his fingers, though nothing could be seen, sharp gusts of wind emanated from his sleeves, scattering the rising waves and attacking the man in black from all directions with the most precise and fastest techniques.
Looking at the man in black again, his eyes were cold and sharp. Every move he made exuded an indescribable elegance and nobility, but the hidden killing intent could be fatal in an instant, making him someone not to be underestimated.
A duel between masters may not involve fierce weapon clashes or brutal bloodshed, but it is extremely dangerous and difficult. If one is distracted even slightly, their weakness will be exploited, and a single defeat will mean certain death.
Suddenly, her arm tightened, and Shen Lixue landed steadily, her feet touching solid ground. Looking down, she saw that she was standing on a small boat, about three or four meters long. The bow was clean, with two oars. A familiar male voice sounded in her ear: "Lixue, are you alright?"
Shen Lixue turned around and met Lin Yan's concerned eyes. She smiled gently and said, "I'm fine. When did you arrive?"
"Just now." Lin Yan smiled slightly, raised his eyes to look at Dongfang Heng and the man in black. Both of them were peerless masters, and their martial arts seemed to be evenly matched, making it difficult to determine a winner in a short time.
Turning back to look at the painted boat, dozens of guards from the Holy King's Mansion descended from the sky, landing on the outermost edge. Together with Zi Mo and the other three, they slaughtered the men in black. In an instant, blood splattered and dripped into the clear water, creating light-colored splashes.
Five or six meters away, Nangong Xiao glanced at the unharmed Shen Lixue and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He suddenly stopped and turned to meet Qin Junhao, who was flying towards him. His devilish face was full of an annoying smile: "Crown Prince Qin, the beauty is unharmed. This young master has time to have a proper match with you."
"You're asking for death." Qin Junhao was seething with anger and wanted to vent it on someone when he saw Nangong Xiao. His eyes turned cold and a sharp palm strike came fiercely at him.
For a time, the three locations on Qingshui Lake were each in their own battlegrounds, and the fierce fighting was dazzling and overwhelming to watch, with large splashes of water constantly rising from the clear water.
A wisp of black cyan mixed with the pale yellow hem of a garment floated up and down, and Shen Lixue suddenly remembered that Chu Youran was still in the water, and that the clothes and hair belonged to Chu Youran: "Cousin Yan, quickly save Youran, she can't hold on any longer."
"You Ran?" Lin Yan was taken aback. He knew the pleasure boat belonged to Chu You Ran. The deck was in chaos, and he thought she had gone into the cabin to hide, but he didn't expect her to have fallen into the lake. A sense of panic rose in his heart: "Where is she?"
"Over there." Shen Lixue pointed to the spot where Chu Youran had fallen into the water, and her clothes could be vaguely seen.
Lin Yan's expression darkened slightly. He gently supported Shen Lixue with one hand, while his other hand unleashed a powerful palm strike to the water's surface. The small boat, propelled by the water's force, sped towards Chu Youran like an arrow.
Chu Youran had been steeping two cups of tea in the water. She couldn't swim and should have sunk, but the powerful palm strikes kept hitting the surface of the water, and she floated up and down with the waves, without sinking into the deep water.
The small boat came to her side, and Lin Yan reached out and pulled her up. She was unconscious with her eyes closed, and her clothes and hair were soaked and clung to her body. A cold wind blew by, and her lips turned blue from the cold.
Lin Yan took off his coat and covered her with it. He pressed his hands against her chest, patting and patting her chest. His eyes flashed with anxiety and worry that he himself did not realize. "You Ran, please don't let anything happen to you."
Chu Youran spat out mouthfuls of turbid water, her eyelids still tightly closed, her breath weak, showing no sign of waking up.
Lin Yan's forehead was covered in a fine layer of cold sweat. Looking at her tightly closed eyes, a sense of panic rose in his heart. He gently patted her face and called out urgently, "You Ran, You Ran!"
Chu Youran pursed her lips and lay quietly without any reaction.
Lin Yan clenched his slightly rough hands tightly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
“Cousin Yan, You Ran has been in the lake for quite some time, so she must have swallowed a lot of water. The reason she hasn’t woken up is probably because she hasn’t vomited all the water. Turn her over so that she’s face down and vomits out all the turbid water from her stomach. She should wake up then.”
Modern medicine is far more advanced than that of ancient times. There are excellent methods for treating drowning people. Chu Youran is still alive, so she can definitely be saved.
"Really?" Lin Yan's eyes lit up. He grabbed Chu Youran's shoulders and turned her over so she was face down, then patted her back with moderate force.
After spitting out a few mouthfuls of murky water, Chu Youran's eyelashes trembled, and she slowly opened her eyes. Her blurry vision met Shen Lixue's beautiful and anxious face. She forced a smile and said weakly, "Li...xue!"
"You're awake!" Shen Lixue breathed a sigh of relief, her ambiguous gaze shifting back and forth between Lin Yan and Chu Youran. "Thank goodness Cousin Yan arrived in time!" When Chu Youran was unconscious, Lin Yan's eyes flickered with anxiety and worry. He had some feelings for her, but he hadn't realized it himself. After this incident, the two of them might get closer.
Lin Yan! Chu Youran was startled and turned around with all her might. Lin Yan was standing next to her. When he saw her open her eyes and look at him, he breathed a sigh of relief and looked at her with concern: "It's good that you're awake. Is there anything wrong with your body?"
"It's alright, nothing serious." Chu Youran smiled gently, two blushes appearing on her pale face: "Thank you for saving me, Young Master Lin." He saved her again.
Chu Youran was taken aback when her gaze fell on the blue outer robe she was wearing. A mix of shyness and sweetness welled up in her heart. This was Young Master Lin's robe; he had been wearing it when they met that afternoon.
Her cherry lips moved as she was about to express her gratitude, but then a loud "bang!" rang out, sending countless splashes of water up the surface, causing the small boat to rock violently, and her frail body swayed with it.
Shen Lixue staggered a few steps, looked up and saw that all the men in black on the painted boat had been killed. The guards of the Holy King's Mansion had won a complete victory. Zi Mo had sent Li Youlan flying with a single palm strike. Her scarlet figure drew a beautiful arc in mid-air before falling heavily into the dense lotus bushes, splashing water droplets.
"Help...help..." Li Youlan poked her head out from the lotus bushes, thrashing about wildly and shouting in panic. She broke off large patches of lotus leaves and branches, and was surrounded by withered lotus leaves and rotten lotus flowers, looking extremely disheveled.
Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow. In ancient times, noble ladies were most skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and prose. Some, like Li Youlan, were proficient in martial arts and poisons. However, as noble ladies, they were very reserved. If they took off their clothes and swam back and forth in the water, it would be impolite and improper. Therefore, very few of them knew how to swim.
The men in black are all dead. Li Youlan's only remaining accomplices are Qin Junhao and Dongfang Zhan. Both of them are fighting against powerful opponents, so it's likely that no one can spare the time to save her. Will she drown in the lake?
She seemed to have said that being forever asleep in the beautiful lotus flowers and turning into lotus mud would be one of life's greatest pleasures. Since she liked it so much, I'll grant her wish and let her sink down to become lotus mud, instead of going through the trouble of saving people.
She glanced sideways at Qin Junhao, who was closer by. He was locked in a fierce battle with Nangong Xiao and didn't even look at Li Youlan, who was struggling desperately in the lotus bushes, let alone go to her rescue.
On the contrary, Nangong Xiao looked at Li Youlan, who was struggling desperately and looking disheveled beside the lotus leaf, and laughed: "Oh, both the man in black and Li Youlan have lost. It seems that I, the young master, need to speed things up and take you, Qin Junhao, down as soon as possible."
His casual tone revealed contempt and disdain, as if he didn't take his opponent seriously, which made Qin Junhao furious: "Nangong Xiao, don't be so smug. Li Youlan lost because she was incompetent. I will never lose to you."
"Still trying to be tough? Qin Junhao, you'll lose soon." Nangong Xiao's wicked eyes narrowed slightly, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. Qin Junhao felt a chill run down his spine, realizing that Nangong Xiao might be about to use a vicious move. Just as he was about to dodge, a heavy punch suddenly landed on his shoulder. His shoulder burned with pain, and his entire arm instantly went numb, losing all feeling.
Qin Junhao was greatly alarmed. He had been keeping a close eye on Nangong Xiao, but he hadn't even seen how he made his move. Nangong Xiao had a backup plan, and his martial arts were even more unfathomable. It was not advisable for Qin Junhao to confront him head-on again...
Just then, he was struck on the right shoulder by the fan again, and most of his right arm went numb.
"Nangong Xiao!" Qin Junhao glared fiercely at Nangong Xiao, his anger soaring. Did he want to numb his arm, rendering him powerless, and then slowly torture him like a cat toying with a mouse? How utterly despicable.
"Your Highness, there's no need to shout so loudly at me. I'm not deaf; I can hear you." Nangong Xiao pretended not to notice, rubbing his ears. A wicked glint flashed in his cold eyes, and he suddenly swung out a palm, striking Qin Junhao hard.
Qin Junhao showed no weakness, his sharp gaze and rage meeting Nangong Xiao's palm strike head-on.
While fighting Dongfang Heng, the man in black observed the entire battlefield. The annihilation of all the men in black and the drowning of Li Youlan were minor figures, not worth his attention. But now, Qin Junhao had been ambushed by Nangong Xiao and could not exert even half of his usual strength. He was being beaten back step by step and was in grave danger. It was only a matter of time before he was defeated.
Nangong Xiao's martial arts skills were beyond his expectations. Once Qin Junhao was defeated, he would join forces with Dongfang Heng to deal with him. At that time, he would definitely be defeated.