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Who would want to marry that inkstone! I'm innocent...

Just as I was about to speak in rebuttal, I saw his lips droop slightly, his wrist flick, and he was about to stab me with his sword.

The scent of death rushed towards me, and I instinctively closed my eyes. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew from the side, and with a clang, I opened my eyes wide. I seemed to see sparks flying everywhere, but when I blinked again, I realized it was a gleaming silver spear that had been thrown at me. The spearhead was aimed directly at the sword tip, and the force of the blow sent the sword flying.

Without Yi Xiaojin holding me back, and in order to avoid the sword tip, I was already hanging precariously on the wall. Then, I was hit by two forces and fell down. Someone reached out to catch me, and our bodies pressed together. Even their breathing was familiar. I felt a sense of relief, and then there was a heavy thud as I fell to the ground.

It was me and the monsoon that fell to the ground together.

As soon as I landed, I turned around in a panic to look at Ji Feng. He was faster than me, almost leaping up. A snake pounced over and was about to entangle us, but he didn't dodge. He grabbed one of them with one hand and threw it away.

I was about to warn him to be careful not to get bitten when I noticed small bloodstains on the back of his hand, clearly the marks of a snake bite.

There was a whooshing sound behind me, and the black-clad man lunged forward. The monsoon lifted me into the air. There was the sound of horses' hooves, like thunder, and some orderly whistles. Black iron cavalry rushed out of the manor like a dark cloud, a dense mass of them. They were the soldiers from the Mo Kingdom who were escorting the bride. The black-robed general was at the forefront, shouting, "Traitor, don't harm the Crown Princess!" Then he drew his bow and shot an arrow at the black-clad man who was about to kill me.

The man responded with lightning speed. His sword, which had been aimed directly at us, struck the arrow and sent it flying. But he was still momentarily blocked. Ji Feng was incredibly fast as he leaped, and in the blink of an eye, he was in the woods outside the manor. When I looked back, I could only vaguely see the snake driver and the man in black surrounded by the iron cavalry, amidst a chaotic mix of shouts and screams.

Monsoon flew forward without touching the ground. The sky was already beginning to brighten, but the forest was dense and the canopy was thick with fog. Once inside, it was almost pitch black. I simply closed my eyes, hugged Monsoon's neck, and felt his heartbeat beside my face and his breath above my head. He was using all his strength, his heart was beating fast, and his breathing was rapid, but listening to him made me feel calm. Everything was quiet and peaceful.

Then suddenly a bright light appeared before my eyes. When I opened them, the thin light was dazzling. It turned out that we had left the forest and were facing a cliff in the mountains, which was straight up and down. I could hear the roar of water in my ears. If I listened carefully, I could hear that it was coming from the other side of the cliff. I could vaguely see a waterfall blocking the road on the other side of the cliff. Water vapor was rising and the light was changing in the thin morning mist.

I was dazzled by the beautiful scenery and wanted to say something to Ji Feng, but I couldn't find the words. As I landed, he gently put me on the ground. There were huge rocks everywhere on the cliff. I felt my legs were weak when I landed and sat down. I looked up and saw that his face was pale. I was shocked. I thought he was just tired from running. I immediately took his hand and wanted him to sit down next to me and rest.

He slowly sat down, leaning his shoulder against mine. He didn't speak, just looked at me silently, his eyes dim and so still. In the morning light, the light and shadow were like water, full to the brim, as if they were about to overflow.

I felt strange. I held his hands tightly and forgot to let go. But his fingers were so cold that my fingertips trembled. I suddenly felt a sense of panic. I looked down at his hands and saw the clear teeth marks from the snake bite on the back of his hand. The marks were black and stretched out as black lines, crisscrossing and disappearing into his sleeve.

I stared motionless at the darkness, bewildered and terrified. The more I tried to see clearly, the more blurry and shaky my vision became. Then I realized it was my own hands trembling uncontrollably.

My palm suddenly felt empty; he had pulled his hand back and placed it at his side, out of my sight.

"Peace." He finally spoke, taking a deep breath, but his voice was still low.

He said, “Stand up, keep walking. There’s a path behind the waterfall. Chengping and the others are waiting for you at the water source at the end.”

I shook my head and took his hand again. "Let's walk together. Can't you walk anymore? I'll carry you."

He stopped looking at me, turned his head away, revealing the dark blue veins on the side of his neck, and lowered his voice, "No, you go first, I'll be right there."

I stubbornly crawled over his legs to get to him. Thinking that it was better to take action than to talk nonsense, I squatted down and tried to help him up, trying to drag his arm onto me.

Suddenly there was a strange noise in the woods. I turned around sharply and saw flickering lights. I wondered how many people were rushing towards us.

Chapter 42

I panicked even more, and with a burst of strength from who knows where, I managed to pull Ji Feng up. The ground was covered in loose stones, and I stumbled after only a few steps. We both fell forward together down a steep slope. I lost my footing and couldn't stop in time. I slid down and rolled with him into a huge crevice. The crevice was split open like a mouth, and it was surprisingly deep inside. I saw stars when I fell.

Fortunately, Ji Feng caught me, absorbing most of the force. After landing, I immediately turned over to look at him. His face was covered in cold sweat, his lips were pale, and he held me in his arms, staring at my face. The light in the crevice was dim, and he looked at me for a long time, as if he couldn't see me clearly. Finally, his eyes met mine, and he breathed a sigh of relief, spitting out a mouthful of blood at the same time.

I dared not move, I only felt cold. I held his face in my hands and was about to speak when a mouthful of blood fell onto my hands, making me instantly speechless.

"Peace." He spoke, his voice low, right next to my ear.

I looked down at my hand, and the blood was black, flowing down my skin with a burning, boiling sensation that spread to every part of my body. The pain brought tears to my eyes, which I couldn't stop.

I felt a cool breeze beside my ear; it was the monsoon. It turned its head and called my name again, "Ping An, stand up."

A cold wind blew from the other side, carrying damp moisture. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see dark, bottomless cracks in the rocks to the side.

"The passage is here?" I was overjoyed. I struggled to my feet and moved my arms and legs. Although I was in pain all over, it didn't matter, as long as I could still walk.

“Let’s go find Chengping and Chengwei, they’ll definitely have a solution.” I said confidently, and pulled him back.

But suddenly, I heard a flurry of footsteps overhead, as if someone was searching the entire mountain. There was a familiar voice, speaking broken Chinese, which seemed to echo as it fell into the cracks in the rocks. It was the black-clad general who had escorted me out of the pass.

"Master Li, where is everyone? Could that guard have already led the princess across the waterfall?"

The old voice of Master Li rang out, “General, there is no need to rush. The snake formation set up by the two traitors was extremely poisonous. When the guard who took the princess away threw his spear and sword, I saw him being bitten by snakes. He must have been poisoned. Afterwards, he ran at full speed, which made the poison spread even faster. He must be exhausted by now and has no ability to carry the princess across this cliff.”

They were talking as they walked, their voices drawing ever closer to my head. I dared not move, afraid that any sound would alert me. I simply knelt beside Ji Feng, holding him and holding my breath as I listened. At this point, I suddenly began to tremble, my fingers spasming. I wanted to jump out and tell them to shut up, but my heart was in excruciating pain. The pain was so intense that I could only lean down, to the lowest possible position, clinging to Ji Feng, my face pressed against his cheek, my arms tightly wrapped around his neck. It felt as if I were a tiny baby, terrified that I would lose even the only thing I could hold onto, filled with utter despair.

Ji Feng hadn't spoken a word, his breathing slow and intermittent in my ear. Suddenly, he slowly reached out and gently embraced me. I knew he wanted to comfort me, but his fingers were cold and weak, making my heart ache even more.

The voice above continued, still that of the general, "How hateful! This snake formation and assassins must have been sent by the Second Prince's men. The Emperor is old and seriously ill, and the First Prince has married the princess of the Heavenly Dynasty. The throne is within reach. The Second Prince actually used the abduction and murder of the princess to sow discord between the First Prince and the new Emperor of the Heavenly Dynasty, trying to seize the position of Crown Prince in the chaos. It is truly hateful."

I was shocked and finally understood what the man in black meant by "You cannot marry Mo Fei." I also remembered that he had tried to kill me once before in the capital, and I gritted my teeth in anger.

"General, there is no need to worry. Now, as long as we find the princess and send her to Dadu as soon as possible, the Second Prince's conspiracy will be exposed immediately."

“Master Li is right. Fortunately, Master Li is well-versed in pharmacology and was able to cure us of the poison in time. I didn’t expect the Second Prince to be so meticulous in his planning, even putting a sleeping potion in the water source. I wonder if the princess is alright. I’m a little worried. The princess was also caught in the snake formation earlier…”

Their words lingered in my ears. I already understood what had happened and didn't want to listen anymore. I just tried to suppress the throbbing pain in my heart and got up. Then I carefully pulled Ji Feng away, wanting to leave this place with him as soon as possible.

But after all that tumbling and rolling, I was filled with fear, and at this point my limbs felt weak, and I couldn't lift him up no matter what I did. Instead, I fell down myself, and I heard a voice above me, "Master, there's a crevice in the rock here, should we go down and take a look?"

In a moment of panic, I reached out to pull him back, but he grabbed my wrist and pushed me toward another crevice. This place was perpetually damp and slippery; I lost my footing and nearly fell in.

If it weren't for the chaotic noise above me, I would have screamed at him. But Ji Feng propped himself up, his voice right next to my ear, his eyes practically looking into my heart.

He said, "Go find them, tell them to come. If you keep doing this, none of us can leave. Be safe and listen to me."

This was the first time he had spoken to me in such a tone, telling me to be obedient and no longer treating me like a princess. He sounded impatient and even more eager, completely lacking his usual composure.

I didn't want to move forward, and struggled to look back at him, but his grip was surprisingly strong, his fingers almost digging into my flesh. I gasped in pain, and then he suddenly loosened his grip, turned his head to look at me, and this time there was a hint of pleading in his eyes.

The chaotic footsteps overhead continued, then suddenly there were screams, followed by the clash of weapons. Someone shouted, "Master, there are snakes again!"

"General, there are archers!"

"A surprise attack! A surprise attack!"

My head was a mess, and I finally got a chance to speak, but Ji Feng beat me to it again.

"Ping An, you can't carry me. Can you find someone else to help? Please find someone else, okay?"

His breath grew weaker and weaker, and he forced himself to speak, as if the sentences would break at any moment. I looked into his eyes and saw only my own deathly pale reflection, which was gradually submerged by his deep, dark pupils.

I was terrified and just wanted him to stop talking and agree to his request immediately.

"Okay, I'll go get them. Wait for me, you must wait for me."

He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and his whole body immediately softened. He was still looking at me, urging me to leave. I knew he was right, and I knew the situation was critical. Finally, I made up my mind, gritted my teeth, wiped away my tears with my sleeve, gave him one last look, and turned to leave.

It was pitch black in the cracks between the rocks. I ran forward with all my might, feeling my way along the damp rock face. All I could see was the last image of Ji Feng looking at me. The passage was winding and the ground was slippery. I don't know how many times I fell, then got up and continued. My whole body ached terribly, and gradually even breathing became painful.

But all of this was nothing compared to the urgency and pain that was tormenting every inch of my body. I ran headlong, using all the strength I had left. Suddenly there was light ahead, followed by voices. I couldn't stop in time and crashed into someone coming from the opposite direction. A scream rang out in the passage at the same time as mine, echoing back and forth.

Someone grabbed my shoulder, and as I was about to struggle, another voice came from behind me, "Is it Ping An? Is it Ping An?"

That voice—it was Cheng Wei.

I felt a sense of relief, but my legs went weak. My shoulder was still in someone's hand when I was grabbed again. This time, it was that little girl from the Yi family who spoke, and she was full of resentment.

"It's you? Where's my sister?"

I couldn't be bothered to answer her. I jumped over her and pounced on Cheng Wei, ignoring the other people who kept pouring in behind him, and yelled at him.

"The monsoon is still over there, hurry, come with me!"

Cheng Wei reached out to support me and whispered reassuringly, "We're on our way, don't rush."

Don't rush? I'm about to go crazy, and this man is telling me not to rush!

I pulled him around and ran back the way we came. Before we even took a step, a sound like muffled thunder suddenly exploded in our ears. Stones scattered in the passage, the ground shook violently, and the whole world seemed to be trembling violently.

"Earth dragon!" Everyone exclaimed in alarm and chaos, then a strange, clear voice suddenly rang out.

"This isn't an earthworm, it's gunpowder! Back up, the tunnel is going to collapse!"

Cheng Wei swiftly dragged me backward, in the exact opposite direction I wanted to go. I struggled and screamed, then felt a numbness all over my body as someone reached out and pressed my pressure point.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. The sunlight shone brightly on my face again. My body went limp, and I watched helplessly as the passage was engulfed by falling rocks and disappeared into the dust.

Everything crumbled before my eyes, and I could only stare motionlessly at that place, gradually losing sight of everything. My vision was completely empty—no, it was me, my entire being was empty, with nothing solid left.

Someone shook my body and called my name, but I didn't hear them. I just stared in that direction. What else was worth listening to? What else was worth caring about? Nothing. I had lost everything I had. In a world without the monsoon, I would rather it didn't have me either.

...

Hai: Finally finished writing this section!!! Whew, long breath, wipes sweat, stomps feet, hands on hips laughing, and then it all flows smoothly, oh ho ho

Narrator: Please forgive her, she's been through a lot lately...

Chapter 43

When I regained consciousness, I was already at Qingcheng Mountain.

This is the so-called sacred land of the martial arts world, the residence of the leaders of the Three Manors and Nine Schools Alliance. Cheng Ping, Cheng Wei, and the Yi sisters are all here. I also met the legendary Alliance Leader Wen De, a man dressed in white, as cool as the cold moon, who spoke to me in the same clear, cold voice I had heard in the passage.

He only said three sentences to me at my bedside.

The first sentence states that three days ago, the wedding procession was ambushed by Mexican rebels. During the battle, someone detonated gunpowder, causing the mountaintop to collapse, and no one survived.

The second sentence states that the princess is now dead and everyone knows it. The situation between the two countries is tense, and from now on, there will be no more Princess Ping'an in the world, so as to avoid further trouble.

The third sentence is that the Ji family had entrusted me to him before, and he would keep his promise and allow me to stay. We would then choose a day to enter the sect. On Qingcheng Mountain, there is no distinction between noble and lowly births, only seniority within the sect. I should keep this in mind.

He left as soon as he finished speaking, sparing with his words, as if saying so much in one breath was a great achievement. I was even more impressive than him, as I didn't utter a single word, which made Cheng Wei think I was mute. After that, he would use gold needles to trace patterns on my body every day, and keep talking to himself, saying that the blockage in the meridians was what caused my inability to speak.

I let him do as he pleased. He would give me acupuncture every day and ramble on about Zen principles, such as taking life and death lightly and the cycle of time.

Chengping and the Yi sisters would occasionally come to see me, but everyone seemed to have an unspoken agreement not to mention what had happened before, let alone Jifeng. I knew they were afraid I would be heartbroken and contemplate suicide, but I didn't want to die at all; I was just too lazy to talk to them.

I lay in bed for three months, feeling drowsy all day. When no one was around, I would always cover my chest with my hands, as if there was a most tender secret inside.

How could they know that I have the thing I most want to keep in this world inside me? It was the last gift my brother gave me, and it is my unwavering devotion to him.

My elder brother said that as long as I live, Ji Feng will always return to my side; as long as I live, I will see him one day; as long as I live…

I know Ji Feng isn't dead. He never lies to me; he promised to wait for me to return, and he always keeps his promise. He must be quietly waiting for me somewhere, but no one knows. I can't find him now, but I will definitely find him someday. By then, I will no longer be Princess Ping An, and he will no longer be Ji Feng, the servant. We will just be ordinary people, able to hold hands anytime, anywhere, and enjoy a simple, hearty meal of beef.

Whenever I think of this, I feel happy, and sometimes I even smile to myself. Once, Yi Xiaojin saw me, and that ignorant guy was so frightened that he ran away, which made me even less inclined to say another word to them.

I had originally planned to go down the mountain to find Ji Feng as soon as I recovered, but things didn't go as planned. The alliance leader named Wen De forced me to become a disciple as soon as I was able to get out of bed. I was the last to join the sect and my identity was kept secret. Most people on Qingcheng Mountain just thought of me as a new girl and would come up to me with a smile and call me "Junior Sister," which made me feel annoyed.

On the day I became an apprentice, Cheng He and Wei Yi were both there. They knew how much I wanted to leave the mountain, but hatefully, not one of them spoke up for me. I wanted to show my determination with my actions, so I turned around and ran out in the main hall. But Wen De, dressed in white, flicked his finger, and a wisp of wind from his finger immobilized me. Then, in front of everyone, I was dazed as someone draped a green robe over my head and tied up my hair. When it was time to perform the apprenticeship ceremony, Wen De actually stood up and said, "The formalities are unnecessary. From now on, Junior Sister will be the last disciple of Qingcheng Mountain. Each of you has a responsibility to teach her well."

After saying that, he walked over, flicked his sleeves, and took me away.

A powerful force surged from his sleeves, and I was completely unable to control myself. He swept me away, and even after I passed, there were still shouts of "Respectfully bidding farewell to Master, Junior Sister, may you have a safe journey!" in the background. Didn't anyone realize that I was unwilling? It truly made me want to vomit blood.