clash between the two sides
The moon was bright and the stars were few. Sui Zhixu sat up. It seemed she would have to go find Yueling when she got back. That annoying Yueling, she must know something.
Jiang Li slowly woke up and met Sui Zhixu's resentful gaze.
"Ah Ling, what's wrong?"
Knowing that Xu was being unreasonable, she lunged at Jiang Li, crying, "I dreamt that in my past life you didn't love me anymore, and you bullied me!"
“How could that be!” Jiang Li caught her and firmly rejected this rebuttal.
“Yes,” Sui Zhixu said in a muffled voice, “If I were just Sui Zhixu, and not the same person I used to be, you wouldn’t love me.”
"Nonsense, no matter who you are or what you look like, Ah Niang will love you."
"No, nonsense!" Sui Zhixu turned her head away, immersed in her past life, she felt terrible.
Seeing her downcast, Jiang Li became anxious. "I'm not talking nonsense. How could A-Nian not love you? You are very important to A-Nian, extremely important."
"Without me, you wouldn't have been injured, you wouldn't have gone into seclusion. You would have been stronger than before, and might even have joined forces with Sima Xian to push Miao territory into the Central Plains..."
"What use would I have for all that nonsense? What's the point of pushing it to the Central Plains? To me, only A-Ling is the most important." Jiang Li gently stroked Sui Zhixu's hair. "Before I met you, I never thought I would become a mother. I have no mother; my father only used me as a tool for refining Gu. Managing Miao territory is not enough; why would I want to expand my influence?"
"The moment you first called me A-Niang, you were already an indispensable part of me. Without you, how could I be called Jiang Li?"
Sui Zhixu peeked out from under the covers, her wet, bright peach blossom eyes sparkling. She sniffed, "You're not allowed to lie to me."
“I’m not lying to you. If the A-Niang in your dream is evil, then let’s ignore her. She’s not Jiang Li; she’s just a Gu person in Jiang Li’s body. A-Niang is only alive because of you.”
Sui Zhixu hugged Jiang Li and sobbed softly, "Waaah, I'm dead again."
And then he died with nothing left.
"No, Ah Niang is here." Jiang Li hugged her and touched her forehead with his, his eyes showing comfort, just like when she was a child and was afraid of snakes and hid from Xiao Qing all day, and was scared by Xiao Qing and cried while hugging Jiang Li.
When Xu woke up in the morning, her eyes were red. Jiang Li looked at her with amusement and rubbed an egg around her eyes.
"Stop laughing."
"No, red eyes are cute too."
Jiang Li rolled an egg, reached out and pinched her cheek, which made Sui Zhixu even angrier, and she puffed out her cheeks in protest.
Jiang Li instantly thought of eight hundred outfits and jewelry sets that she could put together for Sui Zhixu.
"Like a little rabbit, with red eyes, chubby cheeks, and a fiery temper."
Sui Zhixu: "What? Are you going to eat me?"
"Ouch, I'll eat it all in one bite." Jiang Li pretended to open her mouth.
Su Zhixu pretended to avoid him, and the two of them joked and played around. Suddenly, Fan Lingzhang pushed open the door, holding a boiled egg in his hand.
"Ah Ling, Sima Xian has arrived."
The two stopped their playful banter. Sui Zhixu stood by the window and looked down. Xiao Qing was coiled around the wooden pillar by the door, and Sima Xian stood gracefully in front of the house amidst the vast white snow, his pale blue robes billowing in the wind. Truly, he was a gentleman of unparalleled elegance, a figure of unparalleled grace.
Time had left no trace on his face. He lowered his eyes and smiled lightly, then looked up to meet Sui Zhixu's gaze.
Just like before.
Then Xu snapped the window shut.
Outside the window, Jin, Yin, and Agate stood at the front, their eyes flashing with surprise. Although this person's face did not resemble Lu Kou's, their temperament was exactly the same. Moreover, let alone a king, even a saintess would not be so gentle towards her.
Could it be that the old friend is really not dead?
The door downstairs suddenly opened with a bang, and a sudden palm strike from the void rushed towards Sima Xian, the aftershocks sending up layers of fallen leaves.
Agate stepped in front of Sima Xian to receive the palm strike from thin air, his shock now confirmed in his eyes, "It really was you!"
"How is that possible!"
They watched her die with their own eyes; how can the dead come back to life?
"Enough with the nonsense." Sui Zhixu took the sword from Fan Lingzhang, made a sword gesture with his left hand, and thrust the long sword straight out with his right hand. The tip of the sword moved like a serpent, scattering layers of sword light.
Under the sunlight, Xu Zhixu single-handedly fought three opponents. His swordsmanship was unpredictable, and each move, seemingly without any pattern, was deadly, with every strike containing murderous intent.
Agate dodged to the side. Back then, she was seriously injured, and even with the full strength of the entire building, they could only barely suppress her. They relied on a series of battles to wear her down, and it was only with the help of the building master that they were finally able to kill her. Now that she is at her peak, how could the three of them possibly defeat her?
"Ninth day! Aren't you going to attack? Are you just going to watch the three of us retreat step by step?"
Chu Jiu suppressed Wen Ke's arrival, and he shouldn't have been soft-hearted and informed Wen Ke. If Wen Ke hadn't repeatedly told him about the dangers of Miao Jiang and the need to protect Sima Xian, he wouldn't have thought of leaving the sick and weak Madam with her and escorting the king himself.
As Sui Zhixu had predicted, Sima Xian allowed Chu Jiu to escort him, but in reality, there were many people surrounding him. However, he did not expect that Sui Zhixu would forcibly remove the drug.
"Madam, Wen Ke is in my hands!" Chu Jiu held his sword to Wen Ke's neck. He had never done anything like this before, and his clear voice trembled slightly.
Wen Ke is truly hateful; she knew he wasn't smart, yet she still lied to him.
Taking advantage of Sui Zhixu's momentary lapse in concentration, Manao swiftly leaped to the second floor in front of Fan Lingzhang. Sui Zhixu's sword was faster than her, and her longsword flew out, blocking Manao's attack. She then leaped around Fan Lingzhang, guarding against Manao's attacks from all sides.
Fan Lingzhang stood in the center, unaffected by the slightest gust of sword wind. Seeing the situation was turning against him, Chu Jiu, sitting to his left, pressed his sword close to Wen Ke's neck and shouted, "If Madam doesn't stop, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Su Zhixu glanced down at Wen Ke, who was being held hostage by Chu Jiu, with bloodstains already visible on her neck.
The longsword pierced the air, slicing through Chu Jiu's hand that was holding Wen Ke hostage with lightning speed, allowing Wen Ke to slip away.
With another sword positioned beside Jin and Yin, who were entangled with Jiang Yun, she seized the opportunity and struck Manao on the shoulder with a palm, knocking her off the railing.
Xiaoqing defeated wave after wave of people, her scarlet core spitting out...
Sima Xian remained calm and composed throughout, keeping a distance from Jiang Li. Jiang Li slightly raised her chin, her eyes filled with arrogance.
A barely perceptible glint flashed in his eyes. "Jiang Li, don't forget what you promised."
"What's wrong? What is it? I don't know."
Sima Xian's eyes darkened. He waved his hand, and a long wind blew through the air behind him, raising a cloud of white snow.
A silver light flashed from the shadows and slashed towards Sui Zhixu. Sui Zhixu dodged to the side, and the pillar behind him was shattered by the fierce sword.
Magnolia.
As soon as Xu recognized the person, he saw a woman in black clothes, her body swirling in the air. She was dressed in a dark, fitted outfit with a jade belt around her waist and her dark hair styled into a neat bun. She looked incredibly dashing and heroic. It was none other than Xin Yi.
“A person with innate talent and good fortune, you even have someone to help you be reborn,” Xin Yi said. “But it’s a pity, I don’t know if you will have another chance to start over.”
"Xin Yi!" Jiang Li stepped forward and called out to Xin Yi, but was blocked by Agate.
The agate sword's moves were fierce, each strike aimed directly at vital points. Left with no other choice, Jiang Li had to take out his umbrella and was forced to engage her in a fierce battle.
Jin, Yin, and the others continued to wrestle with Xiaoqing. Xiaoqing was extremely annoyed by their harassment. Her thick snake tail swept across the group, and her mouth opened wide to tear at their limbs, causing countless screams to erupt.
Fan Lingzhang was suddenly alone. He glanced at the situation, then rolled under the table, silently praying that he wouldn't see him, while still unable to resist peeking through the corner of the tablecloth.
In no time, the second-floor railing crumbled and shattered, the remains of the wooden railing crashing down to Fan Lingzhang's feet. He lifted the tablecloth to peek at a corner of the sky outside.
Snowflakes fell heavily from the sky, the extreme white contrasting sharply with the vibrant red of the ground, creating a scene of endless battle and wailing between heaven and earth.
The violent shockwaves affected the neighboring Shan and Yue tribes, who reacted with conflicting attitudes. Shania paced anxiously in the Shan tribe's stronghold.
Seeing that the person who had been gathering information outside had returned, he quickly stepped forward and grabbed her hand, "How is it? What happened next door?"
"The Holy Maiden is fighting with the outsider. There are two people fighting back and forth on the roof, and one of them looks like Madam Lu!"
Sonia's eyes darted around, her grip tightening. "Is it Lu Kou's little building?"
"Yes, yes, Ayi forgot to mention that."
"That must be it. If the outsiders weren't brought in by the Holy Maiden, why are they all fighting?"
"The Holy Maiden went into seclusion as soon as she returned to Miao territory. Now that she has emerged from seclusion, she has gotten into a dispute with outsiders. It must be that the outsiders deceived the Holy Maiden."
Shania nodded. "Uncle Ji is right. No wonder that guy surnamed Xi from the Yamabe family left. But wasn't it said that the outsider was A-Ling's father? How could A-Ling have fought with him?"
Aji paused for a moment, "This...this is unknown. Perhaps the outsider deceived the Holy Maiden, intending to usurp Miao territory. After all, Madam Lu grew up in Miao territory and would not side with the outsider."
Shania nodded, looking as if she had just realized something, but before she could fully understand, she suddenly shouted, "Wait a minute, what are you standing there for? We need to send reinforcements right away! Uncle Ji, Uncle Ji, hurry up and find some people, find the bravest warriors in the village. Even though we can't beat the strongest ones, we can still take care of those small fry."
Aji's lips twitched. "My lady, there's no need to be so direct. Alright, I'll go and make the arrangements right away."
"Yes, yes, oh well, never mind that, let's go! Although Ah Ling is powerful, she's not a mountain god after all. With so many of them, they can wear her down with a series of attacks."
Shania urged Aji and the people outside to leave, but she was still worried. However, she knew that she was not smart and had no martial arts skills, so she could not be of much help.
So she decided to pray to the mountain god instead.
According to their mountain tribe's custom, brave warriors should pray to the mountain god before battle. Since they were in a hurry and did not pray to the mountain god, then let her do it.
Sonia knelt on the prayer mat, incense smoke curling around her face, soft white smoke drifting through her hair, as if the mountain god she worshipped had heard her prayers and was embracing her.
At the same time, Yue Bu, who was hiding inside the house, quietly waved to the people outside and whispered, "How's it going over there?"
"They're fighting fiercely. Old Yue, are we really not going to intervene?"
Old Yue stroked his white beard, saying meaningfully, "No rush, no rush."
"But what if the saintess is punished afterward?"
"Did I say I wouldn't go? We need to find the right time, you understand? If you don't understand, then don't talk nonsense."
"Oh." The young man lowered his head and muttered to himself, "I don't understand, but the neighboring mountain tribe has already gone there."
"That's right!"
"Can you stop making such a fuss?" Old Yue was startled by his sudden shout and leaned against the doorframe, clutching his heart.
"Oh." His voice softened. "The older Yue, hasn't he cured the Holy Son's Gu worms yet?"
"Go! Go now!" Old Yue suddenly ordered, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes as he looked up.
"The older I get, the more the snow... the snow seems to have stopped."
As Xu and Xinyi simultaneously unleashed their inner strength on the rooftop, the two powerful energies collided in mid-air, and for a moment, the world seemed to freeze under this overwhelming force.
Thousands of snowflakes hung silently in the air, shimmering faintly in the misty light.
Tranquil and serene.
In an instant, everyone's eyes fell on the two people locked in a stalemate on the rooftop.
Sui Zhixu's gaze was complex and incredulous. She slowly asked, "Who are you?"
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