Parting in life and death - Part 1
After parting ways with his senior brother, Xiang Wu rushed back to the blacksmith shop where he and Lin Zhenna were hiding. However, the swordsmen had already launched an attack, and all that awaited Xiang Wu was a wrecked house and an ambush.
Fortunately, it seems that Nana has already escaped.
Countless swordsmen, speaking different accents and wielding vastly different sword techniques, lay in ambush within Sword Forging City. They were giving it their all, using every trick in the book to surround Xiang Wu, seemingly determined to avenge the humiliation of Lin Zhenna's escape. Xiang Wu struggled to advance, finally finding a way out in the east of the city. The enemies lying in ambush there were clearly less skilled.
Once outside the city from the east, the battle transformed from an overwhelming encirclement into a chase that tested both sides' will and endurance. After nightfall, under the cover of darkness, Xiang Wu finally managed to shake off his pursuers and slipped into an abandoned building beside the main road.
This place seems to have once been a rather grand restaurant. The restaurant had two floors; the first floor was for guests to drink and eat, and the second floor was for guest rooms. The restaurant wasn't tall, but it was spacious enough. In the center of the first floor was an impressive stage, and apart from the stage, there was still plenty of space with about a hundred square tables.
A faint moonlight shone through a hole in the roof of the restaurant. Using this meager light, Xiang Wu walked a little further in and sat down some distance from the stage. Only then did he finally catch his breath.
Besides heavy breathing, the air was filled with the sound of dripping liquid—it was like blood from nowhere. He wasn't sure which wound on his body it was coming from. Was it the wound on his arm? Or a wound on his back from a sneak attack?
"After resting here for the night, I should continue towards Xieyue Mountain." Xiang Wuxin thought, "That's our intended destination. Even if we get separated, Miss Lin should still go there. In any case, we've escaped."
"Is that you?" A clear, cold female voice suddenly rang out in the darkness.
Xiang Wu felt a tightness in his chest, and his heart began to pound. His heart pounded hard, and the blood in his body accelerated.
Lee Na-kyung was standing on the second floor, her hand resting on the top of the railing. She looked silently at Xiang Wu, her gaze more cold and stern than calm.
"Who are you?" Xiang Wucong stood up from the bench, tensing all the muscles in his body.
“I am Lee Na-kyung, the daughter of Lee Zi-zhan, whom you killed.” Lee Na-kyung was silent for a moment, then asked again, “You are Xiang Wu.”
"I am Xiang Wu." The other party seemed to have been waiting here all along, and lying at this point would be pointless.
"Why did you do that?" she asked calmly, her voice devoid of any emotion.
"I didn't," Xiang Wu immediately denied, a statement he had repeated countless times: "Master Li's death has nothing to do with me."
Xiang Wu saw Li Najiong's eye twitch, and then disgust first appeared in those somewhat strange eyes, followed by hatred. Xiang Wu immediately understood that his feeble explanation had failed once again.
The moonlight disappeared.
By the time Xiang Wu's eyes adjusted to the darkness, Li Najiong's figure had already disappeared from the second floor.
"Are you going to take that sword but be a coward who dares to do something but not to take responsibility?"
Following the sound, Lee Na-kyung appeared, not far from Xiang Wu, her sword already drawn. A fierce battle was inevitable.
"I don't understand what you're talking about..." Xiang Wu tried to explain, but Li Najiong had already drawn her sword.
Xiang Wu swung his sword. With a single strike, he struck Lee Na-kyung.
But then something incomprehensible happened. Li Najiong vanished like a phantom, leaving only the clear, tinkling sound of her voice.
"This is the swordsmanship of the Misty Rain Pavilion. It is indeed tricky and exquisite. No wonder no one can catch you." Li Najiong's voice came from Xiang Wu's left.
“But Father shouldn’t have been defeated by a sword like yours.” A second voice came from behind Xiang Wu.
Xiang Wu suddenly turned around, and there were two Li Najiongs in front of him!
"I've heard that your sword intent is moonlight." This was the third voice. "Without the moon, how much of your power could you unleash?"
Before Xiang Wu could react, the "Li Najiong" group moved in unison. Xiang Wu struck two of them, but was wounded in the thigh by the third.
Xiang Wu stared intently at the last remaining "Li Najiong".
"Even if you look at me like that, it won't make a difference."
He clearly saw "Lee Na-kyung" open her mouth, but Xiang Wu heard the voice coming from his right. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a second Lee Na-kyung there.
Xiang Wu unconsciously took a step back and glanced at the door, which had been tightly closed at some point.
"Even if you want to run, you can't." The third Lee Na-kyung appeared on the only way to the restaurant from Xiang Wu. She tilted her head, and the sword in her hand was still dripping with blood, the blood she had just taken from Xiang Wu's thigh.
"This restaurant will be your final resting place." From the darkness, a fourth Lee Na-kyung appeared.
Then came the fifth, the sixth...
In the end, Xiang Wu had lost count of how many Li Najiongs had appeared in the restaurant. They stared intently at Xiang Wu with the gaze of someone scrutinizing an inanimate object, sending chills down his spine.
*
As time passed, a group of people had reached a point less than 700 feet from the restaurant, but they showed no intention of advancing further. This was a team responsible for supporting Lee Na-kyung; once Lee Na-kyung gave the signal, they would swarm into the restaurant.
"Is this all we need to do?" a young man with no eyebrows asked timidly. It was his first time participating in such a large-scale operation. Although he had volunteered with the strong feeling that "I must do something," he couldn't help but feel uneasy when he was actually so close to the murderer.
"Nervous? Is this your first time participating in an operation like this?" The middle-aged man beside him, carrying a blunt, heavy sword, laughed heartily. The sword looked imposing, but it appeared to be unsharpened.
Perhaps the middle-aged man meant to soothe the young man's emotions. But his words only made the young man tremble. He clenched his fists, digging his fingernails into his palms, using all his strength to hide the fact that he was shaking.
"A little," the young man replied reluctantly, knowing that saying even half a word more would likely reveal his inadequacy. His gaze darted around, trying to distract himself. Finally, it settled on the heavy sword, and he thought: How can one fight with an unsharpened sword?
“You have experience before,” an elderly man with graying temples overheard their conversation and joined in. “How many times have you participated in such operations?”
Just by watching the old man's lips move, the middle-aged man could sense a hint of aging and weariness. But the other man was significantly older and present in such an important operation; he was likely a highly respected elder of some sect. The middle-aged man dared not be negligent, clasped his hands deeply in respect, and then answered with utmost deference:
"Senior, this is my fourth time."
The old man squinted at the restaurant in the distance, and after a long while, he slowly said, "With reliable young people like you, we feel much more at ease."
The middle-aged man scratched his neck and said, "You flatter me, senior."
The old man didn't say anything more, but sat down on a nearby fallen tree trunk and closed his eyes. The conversation ended there.
Looking at the old man resting with his eyes closed, the middle-aged man couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Such a calm and composed demeanor was truly worthy of a senior in swordsmanship. "Even if Mount Tai collapses before you, your face will not change color" must be a description of such a person!
The middle-aged man turned his gaze to the young man once again; he had already noticed the young man was fighting. "Relax!" The middle-aged man patted the young man's back, encouraging him, "I'm here for you."
The young man turned to look at the middle-aged man, who was taller and much stronger than him, and nodded with his lips pressed tightly together. "Is it really alright for Master Li to be alone inside?" the young man asked, mustering his courage.
"No problem, that person should be exhausted by now." The middle-aged man was convinced that a man who had just escaped from Sword Forging City could not possibly defeat the Canghai Sword Manor Master who was waiting in comfort.
"Um."
"And you're in luck today." The middle-aged man gave an exaggerated smile.
"Um?"
The middle-aged man pointed into the distance. "See those words on the plaque?"
"Le Lai Restaurant?"
"Yes, Le Lai Restaurant."
"What's so special about this?" the young man asked, puzzled.
"My lucky number is four characters. If that's where my final battle takes place, I definitely won't lose. So you can rest assured." The middle-aged man patted his chest and laughed loudly again.
Is this some kind of evidence? The young man remained silent. He looked at the others who had come with him; their faces showed varying degrees of anxiety, but they all seemed reliable.
I really should act like a man and become a reliable person. The young man straightened his back, his body still trembling, but he no longer tried to hide it.
*
Xiang Wu was covered in blood. New and old wounds flared up at the same time, making every movement accompanied by tearing pain. Despite this, he had no intention of laying down his weapons, surrendering, or being slaughtered, and was still patiently looking for an opportunity to break the deadlock.
"Impressive willpower," praised the "Lee Na-kyung" directly in front of him.
Even if you praise me, it's nothing to be happy about.
“That’s true, but I still have to express my respect for this swordsman’s will.” “Lee Na-kyung” behind me said, “Compared to your cowardly actions, this willpower is truly outstanding.”
“I’ve told you many times, it wasn’t me and Miss Lin who did it.” Xiang Wu was somewhat irritated. He utterly loathed Li Najiong’s methods, though this was certainly partly due to his fear of the unknown and his helplessness.
Each time, twenty "Li Najiong" would launch an attack on Xiang Wu. He could only block about 70% of them, and he could only rely on his physical body to withstand the remaining 30% of the attacks.
The 70% of "Li Na-kyung" who were eliminated would immediately "regenerate." The evidence was that the total number of "Li Na-kyung" standing on the first floor of the restaurant never decreased from beginning to end. From the scene, apart from Xiang Wu being injured, the others were no different from when the battle had just begun.
However, Xiang Wu's blood was not wasted. During the long battle, he slowly began to notice the tinkling sound after shattering the illusion of "Li Najiong," and the subtle changes in their positions.
"If I hadn't fought Liu Mengde before, this battle probably wouldn't have been so easy," said "Li Najiong" to Xiang Wu's left.
“You should be glad you blocked out the moon,” Xiang Wu retorted.
The person on the left, "Lee Na-kyung," said, "That's not wrong either."
"This is a grave specially built for you." The "Lee Na-kyung" from the side and behind slightly raised her longsword, and all the "Lee Na-kyungs" on the first floor made the same gesture, exactly the same. The next round of attacks was about to begin.
"How long are you going to keep playing these tricks?" Xiang Wu shouted, as if afraid that Li Najiong wouldn't hear him.
"Li Najiong" lowered her center of gravity and began running towards Xiang Wu.
A deep, resounding bell tolled from the center of the battlefield, its echoes cutting through the clouds. Xiang Wu, his entire body golden, knew he couldn't maintain this state for long, but now was the decisive moment.
"I've seen through your tricks!" Xiang Wu shouted loudly, his manner arrogant.
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