Chapter 56: A Soul in Distance
The young woman darted through the intricate streets and alleys of Bianjing, displaying her light-footed skills and using the crowds as cover to circle around countless times. Only when she looked back several times and saw no one behind her did she realize that the white-clad woman had appeared out of nowhere and followed her, and she breathed a sigh of relief.
She nimbly vaulted over the courtyard wall and returned to her lodgings, a grand mansion, before slipping into her boudoir.
The door closed behind her, temporarily shutting out the heart-pounding sense of defeat she had just experienced in the teahouse. The girl leaned against the wall, her hand on her chest, her rapid breathing gradually subsiding, replaced by a raging fire of anger.
She cursed under her breath, her delicate face contorted with rage, all traces of the sweet and innocent demeanor she displayed in the teahouse now gone. She couldn't stop cursing, "Damn bitch, where did you come from? Daring to ruin my plans and almost hurt me! Just you wait, when I call Ninth Brother, I'll make you wish you were dead!"
"Unfortunately, you won't have that chance."
When fate is unkind, and the unavoidable sounds of life seem to come from nowhere.
The girl turned around in shock, her heart pounding in her chest. She shouted, "Who's there!"
At first glance, she saw that the door to the room was ajar, slowly opening with the wind. The person she hated to the bone and was also terrified of—Bai Feifei—was leaning against the door frame, her face veiled, like a female ghost drifting among humans. She had come without a trace and stood still without a trace, looking at her indifferently.
Fear gripped the girl's heart. Without time to think, the instinct for survival overwhelmed everything. Having practiced martial arts for many years, she knew there was no time to dodge. She moved forward swiftly, her hands moving like butterflies flitting among flowers, aiming directly at Bai Feifei's vital points.
Bai Feifei was still the same arrogant Bai Feifei. She didn't even use any movement techniques. With a slight sway of her body, she casually brushed aside the girl's finger wind, and the butterfly that flitted through the flowers truly flew like a butterfly.
The girl sensed danger and, with a light step, tried to use her old trick to go outside, smashing through the wooden window. This time, Bai Feifei wouldn't give her another chance. The girl landed in the snow-covered courtyard, Bai Feifei following closely behind, a flash of white light blocking her path.
The courtyard was spacious, covered in snow. Two figures clashed again in the open space, the white figure fleeting like a phantom, the red figure ruthless as lightning. The girl's moves became increasingly fierce and vicious, overflowing with reckless madness as she poured out all her skills. Yet Bai Feifei could still move freely and unpredictably through the girl's dense finger shadows, striking rarely but with deadly accuracy.
Bai Feifei even had the urge to speak, questioning, "Why did you kill Long Xiaoyun?"
Feeling like she was being toyed with like prey, the girl's offensive intensified, her tactics becoming increasingly vicious. She gritted her teeth and retorted, "I can kill him if I want, what's it to you? I just don't like him, I find him utterly disgusting. Killing him is like crushing a bug, what's it to you?"
Bai Feifei dodged a gust of wind aimed straight at her throat, then rolled up her sleeves to strike the girl's wrist, forcing her to retreat hastily. Using the momentum, she pressed forward, her moves even faster: "Tell me who the man in black you told him is, and I'll spare your life."
The girl finally understood why she had suffered such a predicament. She narrowly dodged the gust of wind from Bai Feifei's sleeve and cried out venomously, "So that's what you came for. I don't know, but I've seen that person. But I'm not telling you, so don't even think about it!"
After saying this, she twisted and turned her ten fingers at an incredible angle, changing them in a dazzling manner, like a delicate orchid about to bloom. This was a unique skill created by the legendary fairy Ruyi, the Ruyi Orchid Hand. Even the fairy's daughter spent thirty years trying to learn this move, but in the end, she failed and died from the backlash. Now, she had actually mastered it.
This move has caused countless masters to perish!
However, Bai Feifei remained calm under pressure, as if she had expected it. She was not the type to change her expression in the face of adversity. Facing the Ruyi Orchid Hand, she made two moves. One was to suppress the girl's right wrist and skillfully dissipate most of the opponent's force with a flick of her wrist. The other was to strike first with her other hand, meeting the vicious Orchid Hand with her five fingers.
As their energies clashed, Bai Feifei's slender fingers unleashed an extremely yin, soft yet incredibly resilient internal force, so profound that it was among the best of her generation in the martial arts world. Not only did it neutralize the vicious finger force of the Orchid Hand, but it also caused the girl's five fingers to ache terribly, making her wish she could lose an arm.
This is a move even more vicious than Bai Feifei's orchid hand gesture. Even if we're talking about viciousness, which woman in the world can surpass Bai Feifei?
The girl cried out in pain, realizing that she was inferior in every aspect of martial arts, even her killing move had been neutralized, and she was now completely at a disadvantage. For the first time, an incredulous despair appeared in her eyes. The gap between strength and talent was so vast that even a single step could be an insurmountable chasm.
In desperation, the girl could only muster all her strength to call out, "Ninth Brother!"
.
Meanwhile, in the snow-covered glazed pavilion in the corner of the courtyard, Xie Huailing, who had cleaned up the mess at the teahouse, left a letter for Leng Xue, and was finally dragged there by Bai Feifei like a cat, leaned against the cold, carved pavilion pillar, her face pale and her stomach churning. She closed her eyes, trying to calm the intense dizziness and nausea from the high-speed movement, cursing this inhuman feat of light-footed skill a hundred times over in her mind.
After a short while, the world before their eyes was still spinning, with multiple shadows of everything. Su Mengzhen should probably compensate her some money; Xie Huailing was really about to surrender to Bai Feifei.
"Are you feeling unwell?" A calm and gentle male voice came from behind, its tone devoid of emotion.
Xie Huailing barely opened her eyes and noticed a young man standing beside her without making a sound. He was tall and straight, wearing a fine brocade robe and a silver mask that covered most of his face, so she couldn't see his features except for his handsome jawline and thin lips, which hinted at his good looks.
"I feel a little nauseous," Xie Huailing said honestly, her voice still a bit weak.
The young man then asked, "Would you like some water?"
Xie Huailing waved his hand, unable to straighten up, and said weakly, "Forget it, it might be poisonous. Are you the Ninth Brother she was talking about?"
She gestured with her chin toward the girl, and the young man readily admitted, "Yes."
"Oh." Xie Huailing nodded, shifted to a more comfortable position, and actually started chatting with him. "Why do I call you Ninth Brother? You have eight older brothers and sisters?"
What's outrageous is that the young man actually replied, with a concise and clear answer: "Because my name contains the character 'nine'."
"I see." Xie Huailing nodded again, as if he had received a very reasonable explanation.
The two completely ignored the fierce fighting not far away and the situation of their respective teammates. They stood in the pavilion chatting casually like friends, as if one of them was not there to investigate and the other had no intention of saving his sister.
The young man's gaze seemed to linger on her for a moment behind the mask before he asked, "Why did you attack her?"
Xie Huailing followed his gaze, yawned slightly, and said, "If you have any questions, ask her. She's not cooperating."
"You want to kill her?" The young man's voice was unreadable.
Xie Huailing denied it, shaking her head and saying, "No, it was just a question. Maybe she'll want to answer it soon? Girls' moods change very quickly."
The young man nodded in deep agreement and said, "Indeed."
"What the hell are you doing!" Bai Feifei happened to arrive over there and overheard the conversation between the two of them. She couldn't stand it for another second. She had to suppress the girl who was struggling wildly while also enduring the strange atmosphere. Poor thing, she wasn't exactly known for her good temper.
Xie Huailing replied matter-of-factly, having to shout so Bai Feifei could hear, "Chatting is very important; it helps build relationships."
Bai Feifei almost wanted to throw the girl in her arms at her. She was indeed blushing, but it was a completely different kind of blush: "Who asked you to develop feelings for him!"
Xie Huailing shrugged, as if Bai Feifei didn't understand her, looking completely innocent and matter-of-fact. Then she turned to the young man beside her: "What else can we do but cultivate feelings? I can't beat him. What else do we need to talk about?"
The young man paused for a moment before slowly speaking, "We can talk about anything. However, I'm not trying to build a relationship with you." He stated clearly, "I'm holding you hostage."
Xie Huailing blinked, her empty eyes showing no trace of panic from being held hostage, but rather as if she had heard an amusing joke. She nodded: "I know. What a coincidence, me too."
"What……"
The young man reacted swiftly; upon hearing these words, he held his breath and retreated rapidly the instant he realized something was wrong. However, an indescribable, excruciating pain, as if a thousand ants were gnawing at his heart, erupted from the depths of his skin and lungs. The pain was incredibly domineering, soaring upwards with his internal energy, shattering his control over himself. It felt as if all the meridians in his body had been pierced through, and his true energy had completely dissipated.
An uncontrollable groan escaped from behind the mask. The tall, imposing young man swayed, staggered back a few steps, and crashed heavily into a pavilion pillar, barely managing to stay upright. He gripped the railing tightly with both hands, his body trembling uncontrollably, enduring pain far beyond what most people could bear.
Xie Huailing then slowly raised the hand that had been supporting her against the pavilion pillar, bringing it close to her eyes. Tiny white powder remained on her fingertips. Looking at the young man curled up in pain, she said calmly, "Didn't anyone in your family teach you to be cautious around women who dare to be alone with you?"
She added, "Don't act rashly. I've already made other preparations."
No one could see the expression on the young man's face behind the mask; all that could be heard was his heavy breathing. Amidst the overwhelming pain, the faint light flickered like a candle flame in the wind, seemingly about to go out, yet also appearing to burn even brighter. The violent breathing wouldn't stop; he endured it, finally managing to squeeze out a single, strained sentence: "...You're very strong."
Xie Huailing raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised by the reaction, but readily accepted the young man's praise: "Thank you. You have excellent taste."
"Two lunatics!" Bai Feifei's voice rang out again, unable to contain her anger any longer.
"Say it if you want, it won't hurt you." Xie Huailing took out a handkerchief from her sleeve. She had decided her outcome and patiently waited for Bai Feifei. She opened the handkerchief with one hand to wipe the powder off her fingers. The young man leaned against the pavilion pillar, his body convulsing from the continuous, excruciating pain. The tearing agony caused him to break out in a cold sweat that dripped onto the ground. He uttered a few more syllables.
In this twisted situation, the young man raised his head, his gaze from behind the mask fixed on Xie Huailing's face, which was veiled. She noticed his gaze and glanced down at him, but she didn't look at him; she didn't even acknowledge him. Pain washed over him, like a tidal wave, and within that wave was her smoky, misty contempt. His voice was hoarse with pain, and he suddenly asked, "...What do you look like?"
Xie Huailing was hesitating whether to wipe her fingers with a handkerchief. If she did, she wouldn't be able to keep the handkerchief, but she really didn't have a second one with her. She might even have to put it in someone's mouth during interrogation. Hearing the young man's words, she paused. She looked up at the young man and then looked down at the powder on her hands.
Without saying a word, Xie Huailing simply raised her hand and untied the knot of the veil behind her ear.
The young man's breath caught in his throat behind the mask. He couldn't quite articulate what he had seen; the features his gaze had traced intertwined and then separated in his world. What was her skin like? What were her cheeks like? Everything seemed to begin here and end here; everything else had faded, all was gray and white. But most importantly, the most crucial thing was that the pain had never ceased. She revealed her face in agony, looking down on him as lowly as a blade of grass.
Trembling, the youth was trembling.
The veil fell beside him, and Xie Huailing leaned closer, her face magnified in the young man's eyes, allowing him to see her individual eyelashes. Then, she gently blew on her fingertips.
A gentle breeze, along with dust, settled on the young man's mask and neck, bringing with it an even more intense pain. Unable to hold on any longer, the young man slid down the railing, curling up on the cold ground of the pavilion, trembling in agony.
Yet, amidst the extreme pain, the young man's reaction was utterly bizarre. He didn't scream, he didn't curse; instead, while his body trembled violently, a muffled groan escaped his throat. He continued to endure, curled up, pain and morbidity burning within him, seemingly accompanied by a frenzy, like boiling oil in a fire. But if pain was merely the fuel, then what was burning him?
Xie Huailing raised an eyebrow. She knew something was wrong. She wiped the last bit of powder on her hand onto the railing, then changed her posture to see what was wrong with this person.
It wasn't until Bai Feifei broke the eerie atmosphere in the pavilion that she finally tied her defeated opponent to one side like a bundle of grain, stopping herself a few steps away from the pavilion. Knowing that Xie Huailing carried a nasty powder specifically for martial artists, she didn't want to get any on herself.
Xie Huailing asked, "Did you get the answer?"
Bai Feifei shook her head and replied, "No, you're all talk. Do it yourself."
After speaking, the girl started cursing loudly again. Xie Huailing, with her foresight, threw a handkerchief to Bai Feifei, who turned around and went back to stuff it into the girl's mouth. Xie Huailing then tied her veil back up. Since things were almost over, she adjusted her cloak, lifted her foot, and was about to step out of the pavilion, not wanting to stay there any longer.
"Wait...wait!"
The young man, huddled in the shadows of the pavilion corner, struggled with all his might to crawl two steps on his knees, his trembling hands grabbing the hem of Xie Huailing's cloak.
Xie Huailing paused, looking at him coldly.
The young man looked up and knelt down.
He knelt beside Xie Huailing's skirt. Kneeling is a deeply meaningful gesture, a gesture that humiliates oneself and wounds one's self-esteem, especially in this situation, yet he still knelt: "What you want to ask, perhaps I already know. I can tell you, and I can make her tell you, I just want..."
He raised his other hand, grabbed the edge of the silver mask he was wearing, and yanked it off.
This was the face of a noble young master, possessing the innate arrogance and imposing presence of nobility, unlike anyone Xie Huailing had ever seen. His bearing was radiant, his figure graceful and elegant. This was a face most deserving of poetic description; the unapproachable air between his brows could also be described as refined and dignified. Judging by appearance alone, he seemed like the most proud and unapproachable romantic young master. Yet, the emotions held within his eyes overwhelmed everything else. Such a conflict between his inner and outer self, these two extreme and irreconcilable feelings, shaped him.
He knelt there, overwhelmed by fervor, and was undeniably captivated and surrendered.
A howling wind swept through the courtyard, rustling the snow on the bare branches. It was a strange thing, but there are people like that in this world. If anyone else were here, no matter their age, they would probably be quite startled.
Where is Xie Huailing?
Xie Huailing was looking elsewhere.
She wasn't exactly shocked, just a little surprised. She sighed and muttered, "What kind of circle have I ended up in?" Then she bent down and picked up something. It was a jade pendant that had fallen from the young man's body. She played with the pendant in her palm. A jade pendant of this kind, worn by an ordinary person, was a capital offense punishable by the murder of the entire family. Staring at the pendant, she understood.
Xie Huailing turned his hand away and slapped the young man's face with the back of his hand: "The Song Dynasty's royal family is truly finished. Their background is indeed extraordinary, what a pity."
She pressed the jade pendant to the young man's lips and said calmly, "Unfortunately, I've always been rather afraid of these things, and I've also promised my boss, so I don't plan to do this business with you."
The young man opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but Xie Huailing's hand caught his face, and with a gentle push, the jade pendant was stuffed into his mouth. He stared blankly at her, the agonizing pain subsiding; his gaze was fixed on her, everything else fading into insignificance. At least for this moment, she was in control of him.
"Will you cause me trouble because of this?" she asked.
The young man subconsciously bit the jade pendant; it felt very cool to the touch. Then, he shook his head.
"Very good." Xie Huailing withdrew her hand. "That's fine then."
With that, she flung her hand away as if to shake off something dirty, leaving the pavilion and heading towards Bai Feifei. The young man remained kneeling in the pavilion, the pain etched upon him once more. He bent over, panting heavily, but failed to spit out the jade pendant.
Two tears fell to the ground.
Tears streamed down her jade-like, golden face, falling like broken strings.
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That's definitely heavyweight, isn't it? (eyes darting around)
Everyone should have a general idea of how this path led.
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