Chapter 12
Yin Qiu had a strip of cloth stuffed in his mouth, his hands were tied, and he was laid horizontally on the horse's back.
The night was endless, with no stars or moon, only the biting wind and the resounding clatter of horses' hooves echoing in my ears.
Her arms and waist were tightly bound by ropes, the other end of which was held by the rider. This rider had secretly covered her mouth and nose while Man Jiangxue was fighting. Yin Qiu lost consciousness almost instantly, and when she woke up again, she was already being jostled on the road.
Yin Qiu felt terrible; her stomach was churning, but her mouth was blocked, so she couldn't vomit and could only breathe rapidly through her nose.
She didn't know how much time had passed, so long that Yin Qiu was about to faint from exhaustion, when suddenly a hazy halo appeared in her vision. She forced herself to look and saw that the halo was a small torch stuck on the outer wall of a dilapidated mountain god temple.
The rider picked up Yin Qiu and carried him to the mountain god temple. Instead of landing, he flew to a tree trunk and crouched down. Before moving, he kicked the horse. As the two flew towards the mountain god temple without touching the ground, the horse had already rushed into the woods in the opposite direction.
This person had excellent lightness skills. He used the branches to help Yin Qiu land above the temple gate, extinguished the torch with his palm, and then whistled into the temple.
Then he left, throwing Yin Qiu to the ground, and without looking back, he trudged through the snow, heading in the opposite direction from the horse.
Yin Qiu lay in the thick snow, half of her body submerged. She was suffocating, her bones aching all over, feeling like they were about to fall apart.
A moment later, a figure flew down from the roof of the temple, picked up Yin Qiu, and left, not forgetting to sweep the snow off the ground to cover up the traces.
The man carried a scent of perfume. Yin Qiu's eyes were blurred with tears from being strangled. Through her blurred vision, she caught a glimpse of the large knife tucked into the man's waist, and alarm bells rang in her mind instantly.
It's Wen Chaoyu! It's her again!
Without touching the ground, the two leaped through the forest and soon arrived at a cave. Inside, a campfire was burning, and several men in black were sitting on the ground. Upon seeing the two figures, they all stood up.
"It's done!"
"The Dharma Protector has finally returned!"
"Haha! Man Jiangxue really fell for the trap!"
Wen Chaoyu chuckled, put Yin Qiu on the ground, pulled the gag out of her mouth, and said, "We meet again, Little Master."
Yin Qiu took a quick breath and looked at her with a terrified expression.
"Give her some hot water to drink first," Wen Chaoyu said with a contented smile.
A subordinate brought hot water to Yin Qiu's lips, but Yin Qiu turned her head away and bit her lower lip tightly.
Meeting Yin Qiu's hateful yet fearful gaze, Wen Chaoyu took off her outer robe and wrapped it around her, saying with a smile, "Don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person, I'm going to take you home."
Yin Qiu was trembling, her heart pounding, and she gasped, "Why did you arrest me?"
Wen Chaoyu pinched her cheek and said, "Didn't I tell you a long time ago? Your father and I were good friends. Now that your father is gone, it's only right and proper for me to take care of you. The Ziwei Sect is the right place for you."
Unable to move, Yin Qiu was furious and couldn't help but shout angrily, "I don't want to go with you! Let me go!"
Wen Chaoyu seemed to find her angry expression amusing and said with a smile, "Don't be angry. When we get to the Ziwei Sect, I will untie you. You must be very cold, right? Drink some hot water to warm yourself up."
She took the hot water from her subordinate to feed Yin Qiu, but Yin Qiu looked disgusted and bit her wrist.
"Hey, don't bite!" Wen Chaoyu slapped Yin Qiu away, looking at the neat row of teeth marks. "Are you a dog or something?"
She didn't hit him hard; she just used a clever trick to make Yin Qiu let go. Yin Qiu's eyes reddened, and she immediately burst into tears.
"Uncle-Master! I want Uncle-Master!" Yin Qiu cried, heartbroken.
Wen Chaoyu dropped her bowl, looking slightly flustered. She rubbed her forehead and said, "Oh no, she's starting to cry." She turned to her subordinates and asked, "Who knows how to comfort a child?"
His subordinates all shook their heads, indicating that they could not help him.
“I’ve never taken care of such a young child before,” Wen Chaoyu frowned. “Wan Shu never cried when she was little. What should we do?”
"Uncle-Master...I want Uncle-Master..." Yin Qiu continued to cry out.
"Oh, please stop crying, I beg you," Wen Chaoyu said with a headache. "What's so good about Man Jiangxue? She's a serial killer. You won't learn anything good by following her. They must have said a lot of bad things about the Ziwei Sect to you. Actually, the Ziwei Sect is full of kind people who love pretty and cute little girls like you. So many people would love to join them. Please stop crying."
No matter how kindly she coaxed her, Yin Qiu didn't respond at all, only calling out "Shishu" repeatedly, ignoring Wen Chaoyu's words, and crying her heart out.
Having no other choice, Wen Chaoyu pulled out another handkerchief and stuffed it back into Yin Qiu's mouth.
"Finally, some peace and quiet," Wen Chaoyu said with a sigh of relief. "Kids are truly my greatest weapon."
Unexpectedly, her handkerchief was made of silk, which was not as effective as a strip of cloth. Yin Qiu vomited it out with a forceful effort and began to cry incessantly again.
"Master Uncle... give me back my Master Uncle..."
·
"Alright, stop crying!" Wen Chaoyu feigned anger, drawing a large knife. "If you cry again, believe me, I'll chop you up and make you into steamed buns!"
Yin Qiu was startled by the cold glint of the blade and trembled. Sure enough, she dared not cry out loud anymore and could only sob softly.
“That’s right,” Wen Chaoyu said quickly, putting on a smile. “If you keep crying and making a fuss, you’ll use up all your energy and suffer on the journey later.”
Yin Qiu looked at her with red eyes, sobbing and unable to speak.
One of his subordinates asked, "Guardian, when are we leaving?"
Wen Chaoyu sat down against the stone wall, thought for a moment and said, "With them outside attracting attention, Man Jiangxue will definitely not be able to find this place in a short time." She glanced at Yin Qiu, "Let her warm up first."
The group sat down around the campfire. Yin Qiu cried for a while, finally venting most of her emotions and stopping her tears. She sat by the wall with a bitter face, secretly hoping that Man Jiangxue would come to rescue her soon.
Yin Qiu was very worried about Man Jiangxue, fearing that she was outnumbered and unable to defeat those people.
"Is there any beef left?" Wen Chaoyu asked. "Take some out for her to eat, don't let her go hungry."
A subordinate took out several pieces of dried beef from his bundle, but instead of feeding them directly to Yin Qiu, he handed them to Wen Chaoyu and said, "Protector, please do it."
Wen Chaoyu handed the beef to Yin Qiu, then pulled her hand back and said, "Don't bite anymore."
Yin Qiu didn't even want to look at her, and said angrily, "I won't eat your food."
“It smells wonderful,” Wen Chaoyu said, raising her hand and waving it near Yin Qiu’s nose. “Smell it.”
Yin Qiu had no interest in paying attention to her and remained unmoved.
"Really not going to eat?" Wen Chaoyu raised an eyebrow, smiling mischievously. "You only get to eat coarse rations when you're with Man Jiangxue, nothing compares to what I have."
Yin Qiu was practically raised on hunger, so how could she be tempted by a piece of dry, hard beef?
Yin Qiu snorted: "I won't eat it. Who knows if you'll poison it?"
Wen Chaoyu found it amusing: "If I wanted to kill you, would I need to go to such lengths? Food is expensive, why would I use poison?"
Yin Qiu's face was full of resistance: "You are all bad people, I don't eat food from bad people."
“What bad guy would give you such good beef?” Wen Chaoyu said. “Fine, I’ll eat it myself.”
She actually started eating by herself, deliberately making a lot of noise, glancing at Yin Qiu while eating, and smacking her lips incessantly.
"Really not going to eat?" Wen Chaoyu persisted.
"I said I won't eat it, and I won't!" Yin Qiu suddenly flew into a rage.
Her shout startled Wen Chaoyu, who then laughed and cried at the same time, saying, "I didn't realize you were so fierce. When I see you with Man Jiangxue, you're as well-behaved as a kitten, but with me, you're like a little wolf cub that you can't mess with. The difference is too great."
“Uncle-Master is a good person,” Yin Qiu said curtly, “you are a bad person.”
“Man Jiangxue is the bad guy,” Wen Chaoyu said. “You’ve only known her for a short time, how do you know she must be a good person?”
Yin Qiu couldn't stand her speaking ill of Man Jiangxue, and said coldly, "You killed Meng Jing's parents and everyone in the Su family. Now you want to harm me? Don't think I'm easy to fool just because I'm young. I won't believe you."
“You’ve been bewitched by Man Jiangxue,” Wen Chaoyu laughed, shaking her head. “It’s also my fault for being a step too slow, letting her find you first. Otherwise, the person you trust now should be me.”
Yin Qiu has gradually calmed down. She has had a hard life and a bumpy fate. She was sold into prostitution and ended up working as a servant in a brothel. She has experienced many storms. In the past, she was terrified when she faced danger. But she doesn't know why, but she is not afraid of Wen Chaoyu. Instead, she has the confidence to argue with her.
“If Martial Uncle were truly a bad person, Senior Sister Ji wouldn’t have followed her,” Yin Qiu said. “Otherwise, why wouldn’t Senior Sister Ji have gone to the Ziwei Sect with you?”
Wen Chaoyu had seriously underestimated Yin Qiu. She hadn't expected that Yin Qiu could use Ji Wanshu to intimidate her. She put her hands on her hips and said, "How can Man Jiangxue be so gossipy! It's immoral to talk badly about people behind their backs. It shows that she has bad character!"
Yin Qiu thought to herself that she had said even more bad things about Man Jiangxue, and lowered her eyes without saying a word.
Finding herself unable to argue with a ten-year-old child, Wen Chaoyu felt quite frustrated, so she stood up and said, "You're sharp-tongued, aren't you afraid of me? Since you're in such good spirits, let's not delay any longer and get going."
She pulled on the end of the rope that was left on Yin Qiu's wrist, and pulled Yin Qiu up like she was pulling a small dog. Several of her subordinates took torches to light the way outside the cave and stood in two rows at the cave entrance to protect her.
Suddenly, as if a gust of wind had blown out of nowhere, it swept in with snowflakes and extinguished all the flames in an instant.
The area outside the cave was immediately plunged into darkness.
The subordinates' brows furrowed, and they drew their swords, glancing around. Wen Chaoyu looked outside and narrowed his eyes slightly.
·
Soon, several muffled groans were heard, followed by the sound of bodies falling to the ground one after another. At the same time, a bloodstained longsword slowly emerged from the darkness, followed by a pair of cloud boots stained with snow mud, and above that, a fluttering hem of a snow-white skirt.
Inside the cave, a bright campfire still burned, and the firelight and the shadows of Wen Chaoyu and Yin Qiu flickered on the four walls. Man Jiangxue, sword in hand, walked lightly step by step, covered in frost and cold killing intent, and stood at the cave entrance with an icy expression.
Upon seeing her, Yin Qiu was overjoyed and hurriedly called out, "Uncle-Master!"
Wen Chaoyu pulled Yin Qiu behind him and said with a forced smile, "You caught up so quickly?"
Man Jiangxue glanced at Yin Qiu first, and after confirming that she was alright, she gave a light, cold laugh: "Should I call you stupid, or should I call you dumb?"
Wen Chaoyu's schemes were all for naught. He had tried to lure her away from the mountain and left so many traces to deliberately mislead her, but she still managed to find him.
“None of these are nice things to say, so let’s not say them,” Wen Chaoyu said, weighing his long sword in his hand with a provocative expression. “This time, Wan Shu isn’t here, so I won’t let go easily. Man Jiangxue, if you try to take her by force, I’ll have no choice but to kill her on the spot. Neither of us will get away with it.”
“Your knife is no match for my sword,” Man Jiangxue said. “Even if we die, it will only be you who dies.”
“If you kill me, Wan Shu will hold a grudge against you for the rest of her life,” Wen Chaoyu retorted defiantly. “Do you dare?”
The orange-red firelight reflected on her cheeks, like diluted blood, making Man Jiangxue's face look somewhat dangerous. She was almost out of patience with Wen Chaoyu, and her eyes were unpredictable, as if she really wanted to kill Wen Chaoyu.
"Don't test my limits," Man Jiangxue said coldly.
Meeting her intimidating gaze, Wen Chaoyu abandoned his usual carefree demeanor, became serious, and sized her up for a moment before saying, "I'd also like to know what level your kung fu has reached over the years."
As soon as she finished speaking, Man Jiangxue flashed in. Ning Shuang emitted a low sword cry, carrying a powerful killing intent, and went straight for Wen Chaoyu. Wen Chaoyu was so agitated by the aura that her blood boiled. She immediately raised her broadsword to block and flew to the outside of the cave.
Man Jiangxue followed closely behind. The two were in sync, neither wanting to involve Yin Qiu, and they landed on the snow to fight.
Yin Qiu quickly ran to the cave entrance to look around, his eyes following Man Jiangxue's figure. However, the two of them moved so fast that he could only see blurry afterimages. Yin Qiu couldn't tell who was who for a moment, so he could only raise his voice and shout, "Uncle-Master, be careful!"
A silvery-white sword light grazed past her ear, and a strand of black hair fell from her shoulder. Wen Chaoyu raised her hand to touch the side of her neck and felt a warm, damp patch. She dared not underestimate her opponent. She wielded her broadsword skillfully and without clumsiness, and fiercely blocked Ning Shuang's thin blade, drawing out a string of dazzling sparks.
Man Jiangxue leaped into the air and unleashed a dazzling sword aura. Just as the sword aura was about to strike Wen Chaoyu, she suddenly vanished into thin air, appearing silently behind Wen Chaoyu like a ghost.
The sword, like a rainbow, pierced straight through.
Wen Chaoyu had just blocked the sword energy and hadn't yet noticed that Man Jiangxue had disappeared from her sight. She only felt a chill on her back, and the coldness crawled up to her heart like a cold-blooded snake. Wen Chaoyu immediately turned her hand and blocked with the back of her knife, hitting the tip of Ning Shuang's sword. She was knocked off balance by the force and a metallic taste immediately rose to her throat.
Man Jiangxue gave her no chance to catch her breath, stabbing Wen Chaoyu in the left shoulder with her sword. Blood gushed out immediately, and an unbearable pain spread. Wen Chaoyu's face turned pale, and she rolled over to avoid the attack, using her knife to brace herself against the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
“You are indeed very strong,” Wen Chaoyu coughed twice and wiped the blood from his lips, “but your skills could not have been learned from Yunhua Palace.”
In the evening breeze, Man Jiangxue's skirt fluttered, her expression indifferent. She walked up to Wen Chaoyu, kicked away her large knife, and looked down at her.
"You have lost."
Wen Chaoyu chuckled softly, looked up at Man Jiangxue, and said, "Although I had already experienced your prowess, I never expected that I couldn't even last a hundred moves against you. My defeat wasn't too bad."
Man Jiangxue lowered her eyes and looked back at her, remaining silent.
“Ten years,” Wen Chaoyu straightened up. “I’ve wanted to ask you this for a long time: who exactly are you?”
Man Jiangxue said calmly, "Someone you can't afford to offend."
Wen Chaoyu laughed again, her expression returning to normal. She said with a grin, "It's not too late to know now. Hey, lady, will you show some mercy?"
Man Jiangxue glanced at her, then turned away: "If there's a next time, you'd better prepare a coffin in advance."
After she finished speaking, she walked to the cave entrance, picked up Yin Qiu steadily, threw away the outer robe that Wen Chaoyu had given Yin Qiu, and left the place without looking back.
Seeing the two figures gradually blend into the darkness until they disappeared, Wen Chaoyu's smile vanished, and she slumped to the ground.
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