But the situation didn't allow her time to think; she had to focus on dealing with the group. The person in the carriage was less skilled than her and should have been detected, but he concealed his presence with his sword, catching her off guard. Clearly, the person in the carriage was their leader. Her actions had stirred up a hornet's nest.
Mo Xi didn't know if it was because of her own turbulent emotions or because the clash between Cheng Ying and that sword had aroused its own fierce sword energy, but Cheng Ying, which was always known for its elegance, was now dancing with a murderous intent that penetrated to the bone.
With a flick of his left toes, he spun around. One sword, just one sword, the slightly deflected blade of Cheng Ying's sword flashed in a lightning-fast arc, accurately grazing the tips of the twelve swords. In an instant, the twelve swords fell to the ground almost simultaneously.
Since they were his guards, Mo Xi only wanted to escape.
After dealing with those people, she still wanted to lift the curtain and ask the person in the carriage a question, but she no longer had the chance.
Suddenly, a barrage of arrows rained down like locusts, forcing Mo Xi to create a net of swords to protect herself and retreat swiftly.
Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure locked in combat in the distance, now shrouded in the shadow of a volley of arrows hurtling through the air behind him. She leaped forward, but it was too late. She could only watch helplessly as two arrows pierced his back, embedding themselves deep within him, and then watch him collapse onto the muddy ground, soaked with rain and blood.
Just one step away.
He removed the black veil covering his face, revealing a face that was always slightly melancholic, but now unusually calm—it was indeed Shuidaosi. He seemed to recognize Mo Xi's eyes, but only managed to utter two words softly: "Go quickly..." before falling silent.
Mo Xi gently closed his eyes. Looking around, the bloody battle continued, the arrows flying indiscriminately towards the battlefield, the sound of them piercing the air constantly breaking the tranquility woven by the spring rain.
The legendary second reinforcements have yet to arrive. Those remaining on the battlefield, friend or foe alike, are now few in number. Indeed, swords and spears are indiscriminate, treating everyone equally.
If the arrows shot elsewhere were as dense as locusts, then the arrows aimed at the carriage that Mo Xi had just scouted were so dense that there was no gap between them. Mo Xi gritted his teeth and was about to turn back when he saw a copper wall formed by two rows of armored figures moving rapidly toward the carriage, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
If not now, when?
With Mo Xi's current martial arts skills, if she were determined to retreat, not even a thousand troops could stop her. Amidst a flash of sword light, she broke through the encirclement with unstoppable momentum and flew away.
The fine, transparent rain continued to fall, but the stench of blood in the air only grew stronger instead of being washed away…
Author's Note: This chapter was revised repeatedly by the author and was written very slowly. ^^
Some readers might feel there's a lack of transitions between stories. However, after some consideration, I think transitional chapters are sometimes just filler, and unless it's too abrupt, it's best to omit them. Writing filler isn't my style. Hehe, I hope everyone can get used to this kind of jumpy writing.
The original text reads: “The blade is frosty, like the dawn of a twilight... The sword body is washed with ink, accumulating the thick purity of heaven and earth... Still, it resembles a subdued turtle, its wielder feeling as if winter has arrived; in motion, it surpasses a nimble serpent, its dance flowing with the spirit of spring.” — “Ode to Zhanlu from the Eight Swords Chapter”. The author is currently unknown.
Gu An
( ) A short while later, the copper wall made of six shields arrived in front of the carriage.
A deep, steady voice came from inside the car: "Is the old man dead?"
"Yes, my lord."
"Walk!"
The man in the black robe, under the cover of the twelve men, swiftly emerged from the carriage. The group, maintaining perfect formation, sped forward, breaking through the encirclement amidst a hail of arrows. With a clear whistle, a pure black Akhal-Teke horse galloped down from a nearby hill, reaching him in an instant. He leaped onto its back, instantly leaving the rest of the group in the dust. The other twelve men discarded their shields, mounted their horses, and followed the young man in the black robe, galloping away. The group didn't even glance back at the carriage, quickly disappearing into the pouring rain.
Seeing that they couldn't catch up, the archers lying in ambush nearby quickly regrouped and surged into the arena like a tide to collect the spoils. At a glance, there were at least four hundred people. The eight iron boxes carried on the eight carriages were unloaded in an orderly manner and placed on eight other carriages that had been prepared in advance and covered with coarse blue cloth.
A body dressed in fine clothes was thrown out of one of the carriages.
In a short while, the four hundred people had split into eight groups, each guarding a vehicle, and dispersed in eight different directions. In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, they had all disappeared like the receding tide.
Seeing that all the demons and monsters had been cleared out, Mo Xi leaped down from a lush tree in the distance and returned to the center of the field. A short while later, he accurately located the corpse that had been sleeping soundly.
Mo Xi carried him calmly through the rain, but didn't go far, only climbing a nearby sunny hillside. He remembered the boy once asking Mo Xi if he believed in an afterlife, and the boy said he did, because it would allow him to live again. He said he hoped to live under the sun every day in his next life. He also hoped to be a poor, uneducated scholar, unable to carry anything heavy, never touching a sword, marrying, having children, and living a simple life with his family. Thinking of this, Mo Xi slowly began to search his body, taking out a bundle of hundred-foot locks and a dagger, which he threw far away.
When Mo Xi found the mission order tucked in his pocket, he took it out and read it carefully. The entire paper was already mostly wet, so most of the ink had been washed away by the water, leaving only the last line: "Rewards will be collected at Shili Slope outside Jinling City in three days."
Mo Xi frowned. She was certain that this phrase wasn't on her mission order. Over the years, she had developed a habit of repeatedly reading her mission orders aloud until she knew them by heart before washing the ink away. Therefore, there was absolutely no possibility of her misremembering. She thought to herself: It seems I'll have to make a trip in three days to find out.
Shuidaosi's body was still warm. To prevent blood from splattering, Mo Xi turned him over, pressed two acupoints around the wound on his back, and then gently pulled out the arrow. However, he only managed to pull out two arrow shafts; the deadly arrowheads remained broken off inside. After carefully examining the arrow shafts and finding nothing unusual, he tossed them aside.
Mo Xi drew his dagger and deftly removed the two arrowheads. They were Golden Arrowheads with Iron Bones. At first glance, these arrows looked no different from ordinary arrows, except that their metal arrowheads were narrow and exceptionally sharp, capable of piercing ordinary armor. They were also known as "Iron Bones Cone Arrows," a type of crossbow bolt. However, the two arrowheads in Mo Xi's hand were clearly modified "Iron Bones Cone Arrows," with a raised central ridge and grooves on both sides.
Mo Xi pondered to himself: This groove must be used to store poison. The thin shaft attached to the arrowhead is so loose, easily pulled out, that it must be a special design. The ingenuity of this design is that once the arrow enters the body, the shaft is easily pulled out, while the arrowhead remains embedded in the flesh, ensuring the victim is immediately poisoned. The grooves on these two arrows in his hand must be poisoned; otherwise, Shui Daosi's wounds weren't fatal, and with his skill, he wouldn't have died so quickly. Moreover, this poison must be quite potent; the victim's blood didn't change color, remaining bright red, making it difficult to detect.
Mo Xi secretly rejoiced that she possessed the Jade Bead; otherwise, her careless handling of it would have inevitably led to her being poisoned. Now, however, she could examine the details without any qualms. She thought to herself, "It's a pity I don't know poison. I should have Tang Huan examine it sometime; perhaps this clue could reveal the origins of the crossbowmen." As she pondered this, she wrapped the two arrowheads in cloth and tucked them into her bosom.
Digging takes more effort in the rain than in the sun. After burying the waterway, Mo Xi said softly, "Now no one will disturb your sleep."
She walked to the body that had been thrown from the carriage and turned the obese corpse over to examine it closely. Judging from the face, it was a middle-aged man in his forties, with smooth skin and no beard. Mo Xi considered a possibility, reached out to check, and indeed, it was. Looking at his clothes, they were slightly disheveled, clearly having been searched. She secretly guessed: perhaps something that could identify him had been taken by the group of guards. To be on the safe side, she searched again, but found nothing.
She quickly scanned the corpses on the ground. The twenty men the organization had assigned to the operation were all top-tier fighters, and after the bloodbath, at least half of them had perished. Mo Xi circled the carnage before her, picked up a knight's dagger, and tested it. While not quite a razor-sharp blade, it was exceptionally sharp—rarely seen as high-quality equipment for a cavalry unit. She pondered to herself: the archers and the caravan were clearly no ordinary people. But what exactly was this shipment protecting that warranted such a massive investment from both sides?
Looking around and seeing that nothing had been missed, Mo Xi returned to the tree where she had hidden beforehand, changed out of her blood-stained outfit, and in the blink of an eye, she became an ordinary girl again. Before the city gates were locked, she calmly returned to Jinling City.
Mo Xi returned to her small courtyard, washed up, and then took out the two roast chickens she had just bought from the street. Before she could even whistle, a white-tailed eagle swooped down from the sky and approached her.
Mo Xi patted its head and laughed, "Look how anxious you are. This whole one is yours, no one will take it from you."
The sea statue seemed to understand. It folded its wings, landed on the ground, and squatted down like Mo Xi, its small eyes still fixed on the roast chicken in Mo Xi's hand.
Mo Xi laughed, "The Tang Clan's food and benefits are still better. He insisted on coming back to Jinling with me. Now he regrets it." After a pause, she added, "That guy asked me to name you. What do you think you should be called? Maybe I should write to him and ask." She said this very softly, and it was unclear whether she was speaking to herself or to the eagle.
In the pale moonlight, a person and a bird sat facing each other, eating.
It was late at night.
Mo Xi suddenly heard someone moving around in the courtyard, jumped up, and rushed out the door.
In the silvery moonlight, Gu An stood beneath the cherry blossom tree, smiling gently as he asked her, "I gave you my life, yet why have you forgotten me so quickly?" Before she could answer, Gu An walked over and gently stroked her head, saying, "Don't be like this. I can't bear to see you suffer. You know, ever since I met you when I was nine, I've given you everything you wanted. This time is no different. You like him, so naturally I'll let you go. But the fact that you like someone else makes me indescribably sad, and I can only force myself to forget you. Don't blame me, don't blame me."
Seeing him turn and leave, Mo Xi tried to stop him, but Gu An's movements were faster than ever before, and Mo Xi couldn't catch up no matter what she did. She wanted him to wait, but she couldn't make a sound. She broke out in a cold sweat.
Suddenly, she sat up abruptly, realizing it had all been a dream. Her clothes were soaked with cold sweat, and in the early spring night, the chill was almost penetrating.
Mo Xi recalled the upheaval that occurred when she was thirteen. At that time, the organization suddenly announced an internal assessment system based on survival of the fittest. Former partners who had spent every day together were forced into a life-or-death struggle; pairings were determined by drawing lots, and only one of them could graduate alive. According to the rules, it was a battle destined to be a fight to the death.
Mo Xi remembered it as a rare sunny day after countless spring rains. She had only one thought at that moment: it didn't matter who it was, whether they lived or died, just not Gu An. So when she drew Gu An's number, she almost thought it was a cruel fate. In the countless nights that followed, she thought: fate had decreed that she must take away the only warmth in her life.