Xuanli
The night was as dark as ink, and in the temporary camp near Takitan Ferry, only a few campfires flickered in the night wind.
Three hours had passed since Jiang Cheng and his men left, and the camp seemed much emptier. Xie Linyang's temporary residence was a simple stone room, originally a sentry post at the ferry crossing. Apart from a bed, a table, and a chair, there was nothing else. An oil lamp on the table cast a dim, yellowish light, softening the contours of her profile, while her eyes, clear and bright as jade, gazed intently at a simple map spread out on the table.
A soft knock sounded on the door, neither hurried nor slow.
"Come in." Xie Linyang said without looking up.
The door was gently pushed open, and Meng Yao walked in carrying a lamp. The lamplight cast a soft shadow on his face, but it couldn't hide the weariness in his eyes. He had spent the entire day coordinating the allocation of supplies and reviewing the casualty lists of each family. Even his temples were streaked with dust, yet he still maintained his composure, bowing respectfully: "Master, it's late. Haven't you rested yet?"
"How's the situation with the stronghold?" Xie Linyang didn't beat around the bush and pushed a scroll of secret reports over directly. "The Nie clan disciples said that the stronghold's defensive array was temporarily shut down by an internal token. Besides the Nie clan elders, only..."
“Only non-clan cultivators assisting with the deployment.” Meng Yao took the secret report, her fingertips tracing the line “List of Lan Clan Cultivators”, her voice low, “I checked today, and among the twelve people sent by the Lan Clan this time, Su She was punished by Lan Qiren with confinement three years ago, and has been frustrated ever since.”
Xie Linyang picked up her teacup, the steam obscuring her features: "Su She... I remember him. In Xuanwu Cave, he stopped us from killing Wen Zhuliu and attacking Jiangcheng at a crucial moment."
"What did Wen Ruohan promise him? Was it 'leaving the Lan Clan and becoming an elder in the Wen Clan,' or 'helping him avenge the punishment he suffered at the hands of the Lan Clan back then'?"
Meng Yao lowered her eyes, placed the secret report on the table, and said with a hint of coldness in her voice, "No matter what was promised, keeping this person around will only bring trouble. I've already had people monitoring his movements. Should we..."
“No need.” Xie Linyang put down her teacup, the lamplight flickering in her eyes. “Su She is just a pawn. Since Wen Ruohan has planted a mole, he can’t be the only one. If we move against him now, we’ll alert him and won’t be able to find out the connections behind it.”
She looked up at Meng Yao and asked, "What do you think Su She will do next?"
Meng Yao pondered for a moment, then suddenly coughed twice, covered his mouth with a handkerchief, and his face appeared somewhat pale in the lamplight: "Now that he has revealed the location of the stronghold, the next step... might be to pass on our deployment map?" As he said the last sentence, he coughed twice more, this time more rapidly, and his shoulders trembled slightly.
Xie Linyang frowned slightly, got up and walked to his side, reached out and touched his forehead. When their fingertips touched, Meng Yao's eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly.
"It's a little hot." Xie Linyang withdrew his hand, his tone carrying the usual sternness of a master, but with a touch of genuine concern. "You've barely slept these past few days, coordinating with the family and taking stock of the casualties. Even an iron body can't withstand this."
She took out the pills, poured out three, and handed them to him. "Take them with warm water. You are not allowed to handle any official business tonight. Go back and rest immediately."
Meng Yao took the pill, his fingertips deliberately brushing against her palm. The soft touch made his heart skip a beat, but he maintained his humble posture, lowering his eyes and saying, "Thank you for your concern, Master. However, the traitor hasn't been eliminated yet, and we haven't..."
“I said, go back and rest,” Xie Linyang interrupted him, her tone leaving no room for argument.
Meng Yao's breath hitched, and she looked up at her with a mixture of emotions surging in her eyes: admiration, gratitude, and a deeply hidden possessiveness.
The light fell precisely on Xie Linyang's profile. Her eyelashes were long, fluttering like startled feathers when she lowered her eyes. Her nose was straight, and her lips were pale from staying up all night, yet she was still breathtakingly beautiful. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but in the end, he only said softly, "...Yes, disciple will obey Master."
Xie Linyang didn't notice his strange behavior and looked out the window, wondering how Jiang Cheng was doing.
Meng Yao bid farewell to Xie Linyang, the door was gently closed, and silence returned to the room.
Inside the karst cave at Takitan Ferry.
Jiang Cheng kicked open the door to the council hall, holding Sandu in his hand, his face grim. Behind him, Wei Wuxian helped the last surviving Nie Clan disciple stagger in; the disciple's left arm was severed at the shoulder, the wound oozing black blood.
“The strongholds are all gone.” Jiang Cheng slammed a blood-stained defense map onto the stone table, his voice hoarse as if it had been sanded. “The black mist is full of puppets. They can’t be killed by swords, and talismans are useless. We sent thirty men, and only seven came back.”
The cave fell silent instantly. Jiang Fengmian frowned as he looked at the one-armed disciple: "Wen Ruohan's Yin Iron can actually control living puppets?"
“Not just the living.” Wei Wuxian wiped the blood from his face and threw a broken piece of puppet remains from his sleeve. “These are members of the Zhao clan from Quanzhou who were massacred by the Wen clan three years ago. Their bones are embedded with fragments of Yin Iron, and they have been turned into walking corpses.”
Nie Mingjue slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly, the Baxia Blade humming so loudly that dust fell from the cave: "We can't wait any longer! At dawn tomorrow, we'll concentrate the main forces of the three families and launch a surprise attack on the Wen family's outpost in Nevernight! Even if we can't kill Wen Ruohan, we must burn his puppet army!"
No one objected. In the darkness, the Alliance monks mustered their forces overnight, torches illuminating their young and old faces, all filled with resolute determination.
The core members of the alliance held an emergency meeting overnight, and their suppressed anger and sense of crisis finally culminated in a decision to launch a proactive attack. They could not sit idly by and wait for their doom! Led by several experienced clan leaders, and with the cooperation of outstanding members of the younger generation such as Jiang Cheng, Wei Wuxian, Jin Zixuan, and Lan Wangji, they planned to launch a surprise attack on Wen Ruohan's vanguard and blunt his momentum.
However, they still underestimated the terror of the Yin Iron. On the battlefield, Wen Ruohan hadn't even shown his face. The next moment, countless cultivators with empty eyes and stiff movements surged in like a tide.
They are not living people, but puppets controlled by the power of Yin Iron! These puppets are not afraid of pain or death, and the resentful aura surrounding them is constantly eroding the spiritual power and will of the immortal cultivators.
The formation crumbled under the impact, and sword light severed the puppets' arms, yet they still managed to lunge forward with their mangled bodies. The alliance suffered an unprecedented defeat, with heavy casualties; if it weren't for the sect leaders risking their lives to cover the retreat, perhaps none would have made it back.
The atmosphere at the camp on the retreating Longtan Ferry was so heavy it was almost suffocating. The groans of the wounded, the weeping of those who had lost their comrades, and the lingering fear of the unknown forces weighed heavily on everyone's hearts, the shadow of defeat looming like a dark cloud.
A fragrant aroma wafted over as two women and children brought everyone their evening meal.
Smelling the familiar aroma, Jiang Cheng looked up abruptly. He saw a figure in a light purple dress standing against the light at the cave entrance, carrying a food box. Her skirt was stained with mud, but she smiled gently. Behind her were several servants from Lotus Pier, carrying several large buckets of steaming soup, and the aroma was coming from there.
"Sister? What brings you here?" Jiang Cheng rushed over in a few steps, "Lotus Pier..."
“My mother sent me.” Jiang Yanli put down the food box. “Madam Yu said that you are all risking your lives on the front lines, so you can’t not even have a hot soup to drink. She asked me to bring some medicinal herbs and a cook to provide logistical support for everyone.”
"How is your mother?" Jiang Fengmian asked, concealing the weariness between her brows as she saw her daughter arrive.
"Everything is fine at home. Mother said she's holding Lotus Pier together, so you can rest assured here and don't need to worry about home."
Jiang Fengmian knew that although his daughter said those words, Yu Ziyuan behind her back would not say the same thing.
She opened the food box, inside were bowls of lotus root and pork rib soup. The lotus root slices were snow-white, the pork ribs were stewed until tender, and a layer of golden oil floated on the surface of the soup.
Xie Linyang stepped forward and took Jiang Yanli's slightly cool hand: "Ali, what brings you here?"
Jiang Yanli's eyes shone with a gentle smile: "I heard about what happened up ahead, and I was really worried. I can't be of much help, so I thought I'd come over to cook something for everyone and take care of the wounded. Lin Yang, you're working so hard all by yourself." She looked at the wounded and dejected cultivators around her, her tone firm yet warm, "Someone has to make sure everyone has something hot to eat."
When Wei Wuxian saw his senior sister arrive, his earlier exhaustion seemed to vanish without a trace. He pestered Jiang Yanli to make him a bowl of soup with the most meat.
The monks held their bowls of soup, sipping it slowly. One of them wiped away a tear, saying, "It's been so long since I've had such warm soup..."
Jin Zixuan silently held the soup bowl in the crowd, glanced at the purple-clad figure on the other side of the Yunmeng River, and drank the warm soup in his hand.
From then on, Jiang Yanli became the busiest and gentlest figure in the camp. She not only took meticulous care of the wounded, but also personally cooked a large pot of lotus root and pork rib soup every day. The familiar and warm aroma wafted through the camp, as if temporarily dispelling the bloodshed of the battlefield and the gloom of defeat, warming the stomachs and hearts of countless cultivators.
But the observant Xie Lin Yang noticed that her senior sister would secretly use the small medicine pot she brought to carefully stew several special medicinal meals. Three of these were naturally for Wei Wuxian, who was suffering from severe depletion of spiritual energy and often faced danger; Jiang Cheng, whose old injuries had not yet healed and who was now suffering from new fatigue; and herself.
However, there was another portion, made with exceptionally fine ingredients, which Jiang Yanli always secretly placed in a clean celadon bowl and mixed into the food boxes sent to the Jin clan disciples. Watching her slightly flushed profile and careful movements as she did this, Xie Linyang understood, but only felt that her senior sister was devoted, gentle, and heartbreaking.
Jin Zixuan is really lucky!
The peace was shattered by a sudden conflict. That afternoon, Jin Zixuan's angry voice rang out from a corner of the camp:
"Miss Jiang! Please explain yourself!"
Everyone looked over and saw Jin Zixuan standing in front of Jiang Yanli with an unhappy expression. Beside him was a female cultivator from the Jin clan, who was bowing her head and twisting the hem of her clothes. Jiang Yanli was holding a bowl of medicinal food in her hand. Her face turned pale instantly, and her lips trembled slightly. Faced with Jin Zixuan's questioning, she was speechless for a moment.
"This medicinal diet to regulate my internal energy, A-Yun said, was prepared by her with great care, and I am grateful. Why would Miss Jiang claim that she made it? Such behavior is not the act of a gentleman. It is rather... rather improper!" Jin Zixuan's words were sharp. He had been admired since childhood and hated such things as vying for credit, shifting blame, and confusing right and wrong. He especially hated being deceived.
Jiang Yanli had never been publicly rebuked like this before, especially by someone she had always cared about. A wave of grievance and embarrassment washed over her, her eyes instantly reddening, tears welling up but stubbornly refusing to fall.
"Jin Zixuan, what nonsense are you spouting!" Wei Wuxian was the first to jump out, but Jiang Cheng grabbed him and held him down.
Jiang Cheng's face was dark, his eyes were as cold as knives, and he stared intently at Jin Zixuan: "Take back what you said!"
Xie Linyang strode forward and pulled the slightly trembling Jiang Yanli behind him. His gaze was calm but carried an undeniable power as he looked at Jin Zixuan: "Young Master Jin, the matter has not yet been investigated. Is it too arbitrary to draw conclusions based on only one side's story? What if we wrongly accuse Senior Sister?"
"Injustice?" Jin Zixuan frowned, pointing to the female cultivator A-Yun beside him. "A-Yun admitted it herself, how could it be false?"
Ah Yun lowered her head even further, her voice barely a whisper: "It...it was prepared for you, young master..."
Xie Lin Yang said no more. She first carefully examined the celadon bowl that used to hold medicinal dishes. Her fingertips could feel a trace of the gentle spiritual energy that Jiang Yanli had left when she processed the medicinal materials.
Afterwards, she invited the Lan Clan disciple in charge of managing supplies to check the medicinal herb requisition records on the spot. The records clearly showed that the female cultivator named A-Yun had received far too few types and quantities of medicinal herbs in recent days to support the preparation of such a potent and precisely cooked medicinal meal.
Faced with the evidence, A-Yun turned pale and finally couldn't bear the pressure. She knelt down with a thud, crying, "It was me... I was bewitched! Seeing that the young master seemed to value the medicinal cuisine, I thought... I thought I made it to please the young master... The medicinal cuisine, it really... it really was made by Miss Jiang..."
The truth came to light, and all was silent.
Jin Zixuan stood frozen in place, watching the silent tears streaming down Jiang Yanli's pale face. He recalled the smooth flow of his spiritual energy and the peace of mind he had felt after taking the medicinal food, and his righteous accusations just moments before… A wave of immense regret and shame washed over him like ice water, instantly sobering him up. He opened his mouth, but the word "I'm sorry" stuck in his throat, impossible to utter.
Jiang Yanli didn't look at him again. She silently walked out from behind Xie Linyang, gave a slight bow to everyone, and then turned and left, her back slender yet straight. Wei Wuxian glared fiercely at Jin Zixuan and quickly followed. Jiang Cheng snorted coldly, his gaze sweeping over Jin Zixuan like a knife, and also turned and left.
Xie Linyang coldly said to Jin Zixuan, "If Young Master Jin has no intention, make it clear as soon as possible, so that Senior Sister doesn't suffer for nothing and also chill people's hearts."
Since that day, the lotus root and pork rib soup in the camp still smelled delicious, but Jin Zixuan became much more silent.
He no longer took the special medicinal meal for granted, and sometimes he would even take the initiative to help distribute the food. His eyes would always involuntarily follow Jiang Yanli's busy figure, with mixed feelings of guilt and a re-examination in his gaze that he himself had not fully understood.
Jiang Yanli continued to treat everyone with gentleness, including the cultivators of the Jin clan, but when facing Jin Zixuan, she showed a subtle distance.
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