Chapter 41 Blood Hibiscus: Tang Yiqing
Blood Hibiscus... perhaps it was a trap they set from the very beginning.
The group of people running through the woods startled the birds that were roosting there. Their sharp and mournful cries echoed through the dark, shady forest, making their hearts tighten and their steps quicken.
Even though Tang Yu was very familiar with this place, he couldn't compare to these spiders that were born to live in nature. They could not only accurately locate the group, but they were also extremely fast and numerous.
Guided by the spiders, another group of strange black shadows quickly followed.
Wang Shanyue drew his longsword, a flash of cold light, and with a flick of his wrist, severed the neck of an approaching man.
But Tang Yu knew in her heart that even if they mastered the method to deal with these shadowy figures, they were outnumbered and outmatched. How could they withstand the wave after wave of attacks? Once their strength was exhausted, they would be trapped like turtles in a jar, with no chance to even hide.
"Look at the mountains! Run to the other side!" she shouted sternly.
Wang Shanyue hurriedly looked back, a hint of worry flashing in his eyes, but he also knew that separating now was the only way to survive. He quickly gritted his teeth and led Xiao Fangliang into the path on the left.
Tang Yu held Xie Xingzheng's hand tightly and continued running forward. Sure enough, the spiders, and even the shadowy figures, seemed to have chosen the two of them and followed them closely.
What exactly is the reason?
Her mind raced, processing every possibility, but she couldn't find an answer. The prolonged, high-intensity run had taken its toll on her stamina, and her steps were growing heavy. Under the combined pressure of mind and body, Tang Yu unconsciously clenched her fists.
Xie Xingzheng noticed her unease and gently squeezed her hand back.
In that instant, her chaotic thoughts seemed to be soothed. Tang Yu turned her gaze and saw his empty eyes but fearless expression, and suddenly the fear in her heart also faded a lot.
The warmth emanating from his palm even dispelled the chill and dampness deep within the forest.
Suddenly, some details that she had previously overlooked came to mind.
When she descended from the ruins, she was injured and bleeding, and the snakes dared not approach her; later, in the blood pool, after she was stabbed, the Gu worms also seemed to become restless and scatter.
If Ruoyue Qimeng is really herself, could it be... that her blood can cure the worm-like poison?
A crazy thought flashed through my mind:
Should I try cutting myself?
Just as I was hesitating, a gentle breeze brought a few crisp sounds, sometimes near, sometimes far, like the sound of bells, but they were intermittent and indistinct.
The withered leaves fluttered down in the wind, and a sweet floral fragrance followed, diluting the damp and decaying smell of the forest, and instead revealing a hint of eeriness.
Xie Xingzheng became alert, his fingertips tensed subconsciously, he grabbed Tang Yu, raised his sword to block in front of him, and his murderous aura suddenly intensified.
"jingle--"
The sound reached their ears again, clearer than before. Xie Xingzheng realized that it didn't seem to be the bell from the Southern Frontier, but rather a clearer and more melodious sound, like the clinking of silverware.
Tang Yu stopped and looked back. The black spiders that had been relentlessly pursuing her now seemed to have suddenly lost their way, some even darting around in circles. The spider silk that had been guiding her was now a tangled mess.
Not to mention that the group of shadowy figures who were originally moving quickly had slowed down, as if they could not see the two people not far away.
As the shadows of the trees swayed, several figures leaped from the treetops, flying towards the group of shadowy figures. Swords and blades slid downwards, slashing fiercely at the sides of the necks, spraying black blood and filling the air with a stench.
Xie Xingzheng frowned slightly, momentarily unable to understand the current situation.
At that moment, a slender figure, holding an umbrella made entirely of silver, slowly drifted down from the treetop. Several silver tassels hung from the edge of the umbrella, swaying and colliding with each other, making a light, crisp tinkling sound.
Her features were delicate and beautiful, her smile gentle and warm. With a silver umbrella in hand, she lightly touched the ground with her toes, like a fairy descending from the clouds.
Tang Yu's eyes suddenly lit up, and she exclaimed in surprise, "Sister Yiqing!"
Tang Yiqing, holding an umbrella, turned her head and smiled: "Xiaoyu, you're back."
Through Tang Yu's introduction, Xie Xingzheng learned that this person was none other than Tang Yiqing, the eldest daughter of the Tang family and the only daughter of the sect leader. And the thing that made the clear, ringing sound was her weapon, the Thousand Chance Umbrella.
"This umbrella was designed and made by Xiaoyu; it's all her ingenuity." Tang Yiqing, as the eldest among the younger generation, was kind-hearted and always wore a gentle smile. Even in this dangerous place, she didn't forget to praise Tang Yu in front of outsiders.
A smug look flashed across Tang Yu's face, but she quickly concealed it and reminded the group who were dealing with the spider and the shadow: "Don't kill them all, leave a few for me!"
It wasn't the right time for pleasantries; she needed to figure out what was causing these spiders to be able to pinpoint their location so precisely.
A moment later, the Tang Clan disciples had collected dozens of black spiders into a box. Tang Yu took it, led Xie Xingzheng to where the fragrance of the flowers had dissipated, and made him stand a little further away from her before tossing the spiders out of the box.
The spiders were confused for a moment, then as if they sensed something, they all came toward Tang Yu.
Tang Yu's heart skipped a beat. She took a few steps back, pulled an iron box from her bosom, and tossed it to Xie Xingzheng. But the spiders didn't stop for a second.
Neither.
It wasn't the iron box...it wasn't Xie Xingzheng...and it certainly wasn't her blood.
So what exactly is it?
Tang Yu paused, then suddenly remembered something, took out another small box and tossed it out. The moment the box passed the spiders in the air, they reacted like hounds spotting a bone, abruptly turning and heading towards Xie Xingzheng.
Tang Yu gasped. The box contained the very blood hibiscus petals she had gone to great lengths to obtain.
In an instant, all the previous doubts connected in my mind:
That "coincidental" letter from the Tang Clan; his precise grasp of the matter of obtaining the Blood Hibiscus; and the ambush he had set up in Shu in advance.
Blood Hibiscus... perhaps it was a trap they set from the very beginning.
If the Southern Frontier people who initially intruded into Yunling Mountain were in league with the remnants of the Southern Moon Clan, and they were responsible for Tang Yang's poisoning, they would naturally know why she came down the mountain to find medicine. And in order to find her, they used the delegation's visit to the capital as an opportunity to present Blood Hibiscus as tribute, thus luring her into their scheme.
She will surely be attracted to her brother's antidote, and they will be able to use this to track her whereabouts and capture her outside of Sichuan.
In other words, from the moment she descended the mountain, she had already fallen into the trap set by the southern border.
Tang Yu's expression was cold and stern as he looked at the headless black corpses on the ground. He was almost certain that these were the Gu people created by the evil magic of the Southern Frontier.
However, before she could think about it, there seemed to be a slight wriggling under the skin at the severed neck, and it even seemed to be climbing towards the cut.
Tang Yu's expression changed drastically, and she immediately shouted, "Get away from those corpses!"
Before he could finish speaking, a strange sound came from the wound in his throat, accompanied by foul-smelling black blood being drawn out. Several dark red Gu worms flew out from the severed flesh and buzzed as they attacked him.
The Blood Hibiscus was currently on Xie Xingzheng's body, attracting almost all the Gu worms. The sounds were so numerous and varied that he couldn't immediately discern how to avoid them.
Tang Yu reacted extremely quickly, leaping to his side in an instant, grabbing his waist tightly, and with a powerful kick, her long whip lashed out, tearing a gap in the swarm of insects ahead, narrowly avoiding them.
But the Gu worms obviously wouldn't give up so easily. After circling in the air, they swooped down again.
At that moment, Tang Yiqing had already swiftly reached the two of them. Her silver umbrella unfurled and spun lightly, its surface displaying beautiful and delicate patterns, yet also sharp as a blade, forcefully blocking and shredding the oncoming Gu worms. However, a few still managed to flank them from the sides, attempting to attack the two from the flanks.
Tang Yiqing turned the umbrella handle, and the silver tassels instantly transformed into countless silver needles, shooting out along the umbrella surface to form a barrier that blocked the remaining Gu worms.
The Tang Clan disciples remained calm, pulling out silk threads, applying tung oil, weaving them into a fire net, lighting it, and then setting it up to trap the swarming insects inside.
The Gu worms are most afraid of fire. Before long, a burnt smell came from the net, and the worms' chirping gradually stopped, with no signs of struggling.
Tang Yu's attention was focused on the flames burning with Gu worms, and she didn't notice that she was still holding Xie Xingzheng tightly in an ambiguous and intimate posture.
Meanwhile, a subtle hue crept onto Xie Xingzheng's earlobes.
*
An hour later, Tang Yu and her group of four were all unharmed and arrived at the Tang Clan with Tang Yiqing.
The Tang Clan's layout follows the principles of Qimen Dunjia, divided into inner and outer sections. The outer gate, where ordinary disciples reside, is bustling with activity; however, once inside the inner gate, where the direct descendants reside, it suddenly falls silent. The green tiles, white walls, pavilions, and waterside terraces are eerily quiet and deserted.
The place is riddled with countless hidden passages and mazes. Without a guide, even someone as skilled in martial arts as Xie Xingzheng would be trapped here, or even lose his way and die.
Wang Shanyue marveled at the sight, but what shocked him even more was Tang Yu's identity.
"W-What! Brother Su, you're actually a woman?!"
He turned to look at the other two, only to see that Xiao Fangliang and Xie Xingzheng both had calm expressions, clearly indicating that they already knew.
Wang Shanyue instantly wilted like a frostbitten eggplant, muttering, "You guys are really not fair. You all knew, but you kept it from me."
Xiao Fangliang's lips curled up, and he mocked without any politeness: "Your own stupidity in keeping you in the dark only adds to my amusement."
Tang Yu ignored Xiao Fangliang's teasing and instead sincerely apologized to Wang Shanyue. Fortunately, Wang Shanyue didn't mind and instead admired her even more, his tone full of sincere admiration: "I never expected Brother Su... no, Tang Yu! Not only is she proficient in medicine, but she can also make hidden weapons and is skilled in martial arts. Indeed, my father's saying that the martial world is full of hidden talents is true!"
Tang Yu smiled gently, and the misunderstanding between them was resolved.
At this moment, Tang Yiqing smiled and said, "Guests are welcome, so please stay at the Tang Clan for the time being. I've instructed someone to prepare the guest rooms, and Xiaoyu's room also needs to be cleaned again."
Tang Yu frowned slightly and asked in confusion, "Sister Yiqing, didn't you know I was coming back?"
"I don't know." Tang Yiqing shook her head with a smile, her tone still gentle: "Recently, people from the Southern Frontier have been seen in many places in Sichuan, so Father ordered us to split into teams to patrol. It was a coincidence that we met you in the forest today."
Tang Yu hesitated for a moment, then suddenly took out the letter from her bosom and handed it to her: "Take a look at this."
Tang Yiqing glanced down at it, her smile vanished, and her expression turned serious: "This is indeed Father's handwriting, and the letter was indeed sent by the Tang Clan."
She looked up and added earnestly, "But this letter isn't for you. It's from Father asking Doctor Si to examine Xiao Yang."
Although she had suspected the letter was a trap, she hadn't expected the Southern Frontier to go to such lengths, which only confirmed to her that their scheme was far from small-scale.
But now there is something else that worries her more.
"Is Yangyang's poisoning very serious?" she asked anxiously.
Before he could finish speaking, hurried footsteps rushed in. A young boy, dressed in dark blue, entered with a thorny branch in his hand. He knelt down with a thud as soon as he entered.
"Sister Tang Yu, Yangyang is all my fault! Hit me!"
Tang Yu was stunned, unable to grasp the situation, and became even more worried about Tang Yang's injuries.
Tang Yiqing almost burst out laughing, but quickly reassured her, "Don't worry, Doctor Si has already suppressed Xiao Yang's poison."
Suppressing a laugh, she teased Tang Ge, who was kneeling on the ground, "Xiao Yu doesn't even know what happened to you two. Even if she did, who in the Tang family would have the heart to hit you?"
Tang Yu was relieved to hear this and quickly helped Tang Ge up, asking curiously, "How could Yangyang's poison have relapsed?"
Tang Ge seemed to have thought of something, his expression full of anger, and he gritted his teeth and said, "We encountered a ghost! Yangyang was forced to mobilize his internal energy in order to prevent the ghost from hurting me... As a result, the poison took effect."
"ghost?"
Tang Yu and the others looked at each other in bewilderment.
But having experienced several strange events together, neither of them now readily believes in ghosts. Yet, the fear in Tang Ge's eyes seemed genuine.
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