Chapter 68 Assassination
The plum garden is covered in silver, the winter plum blossoms are blooming proudly, the accumulated snow bends the slender branches, occasionally a piece of snow falls, and the crisp fragrance lingers.
Ling Zheng and Wen Rensu walked along a snow-covered bluestone path. Ling Zheng wore a dark green brocade robe, and his snow-white fox fur cape blurred the outline of his jaw, adding a harmless illusion.
Wen Rensu was wearing a moon-white robe embroidered with cloud patterns. He strolled leisurely in the garden, without any sense of being a prisoner, and walked side by side with Ling Zheng.
The Plum Garden was cleared and several guards were stationed near the garden gate from a distance.
The two walked into the octagonal pavilion in the garden, and on the stone table was a set of shiny pitching pot equipment.
Ling Zheng rushed into the pavilion first, picked up a feather arrow, weighed it, and brushed his fingertips against the cold arrow shaft. He cast his gaze towards Wen Rensu outside the pavilion with a hint of overly deliberate provocation:
"Back then, you won the pair of Ziwu Mandarin Duck Axes by playing the game of pitching pots." His fingers flew, and the feather arrows spun a few times.
"The snow is beautiful today. Are you in the mood to show off your skills again? Have you lost sight of your skill of shooting an arrow through a hundred paces over the years?"
Wen Rensu smiled faintly, walked slowly into the pavilion, and also picked up a feather arrow. The two of them stood about two and a half arrows away from the touhu.
Ling Zheng raised his eyebrows in satisfaction, shook his wrist, and the feather arrow flew out of his hand, drawing a sharp arc, and entered Hu'er with a "clang".
Ling Zheng chose to throw the more difficult pot ears on his first try, without any error. Obviously, the entertainment of throwing pots is easy for the two of them now, so it is just a prop to reminisce about the past.
Wen Rensu's expression remained unchanged, not even glancing at the mouth of the pot. He lifted his wrist slightly, and the arrow left his hand, moving faster and with greater momentum. It pierced the other side of the pot.
Ling Zheng narrowed his eyes, drew another arrow, and channeled his inner strength into his fingertips. As the arrow pierced the air, it emitted a subtle whistling sound. The tip of the arrow struck Wen Rensu's feathers, splitting them in two before piercing his ear. The force was so great that it even made the copper kettle hum.
Seeing the two bamboo stubbles on the pot's handle that belonged to Wen Rensu, he was not annoyed. Instead, a light laugh escaped from his throat. "My Lord, you have given me a broken arrow. How can you still score a point?"
After saying that, he took out the next arrow and shot it towards Ling Zheng's still trembling arrow, splitting it in two as well. "Well... I appreciate your kindness."
Ling Zheng glanced at Wen Rensu and snorted coldly, but a faint smile appeared on his lips.
The two men exchanged blows, the sound of arrows piercing the air and the crisp thud of water dropping into pots incessantly filling their ears. It was as if invisible sparks flashed where their eyes met, as if ice and snow were melting and an undercurrent was surging.
When Wen Rensu took out another feathered arrow from the quiver, he heard Ling Zheng suddenly say, "Speaking of which, the sandstorms in the Western Regions are much more severe than those in the Central Plains."
"Really?" Wen Rensu responded calmly, his throwing movements smooth and flowing.
Ling Zheng wasn't surprised by his reaction. He glanced at his side face, "I suddenly remembered a time when I was in dire straits. If I hadn't been helped by a noble person, I'd probably be buried in a mass grave."
Wen Rensu turned around and looked directly into Ling Zheng's eyes. There was a noticeable tenderness in his eyes, as if to comfort him: "My Lord, you are blessed by heaven and will be blessed by noble people."
Although I don't know where my flaw is, I will never admit it no matter how hard he tries to criticize me, hehe.
Wenren was complaining in his heart, but unexpectedly he heard a burst of laughter, which came from the depths of Merlin without any warning.
“Hehehe…”
The laughter was ethereal and strange, layer upon layer, with a chill that penetrated deep into the bone marrow, instantly breaking the tranquility of the garden.
Ling Zheng and Wen Rensu's expressions changed slightly, they consciously dropped the topic and exchanged glances.
I saw the snow surging in the plum forest, and dozens of "children" wearing bright red and green jackets and pants and with boyish buns emerged from the snow.
They had exaggerated blush on their faces, their mouths were wide open, revealing strange smiles, but their eyes were empty.
"Boy puppet." Ling Zheng murmured.
The bodies of ordinary puppets are much tougher than fine iron, their movements are as swift as ghosts, and they are painless and insensitive, which makes people very troubled.
The boy puppet here exudes a complex yet powerful strange power, which makes people uneasy.
The sharp black nails were filled with poison, and a strong yin energy mixed with a disgusting fishy wind blew towards him.
The puppets seemed to be specifically targeting them. Wen Rensu, as a forbidden delicacy, did not carry any weapons, and Ling Zheng's poisonous insects could only work on flesh and blood bodies, which was equivalent to weakening half of his arm's strength.
Without thinking too much, Ling Zheng drew out the Ziwu Yuanyang Yue, and with a flash of cold light, he slashed at the puppet that pounced first with his surging internal force.
"clang--"
When the axe blade hit the puppet, there was a sound of metal clashing and sparks flew everywhere.
The puppet was only knocked back with a deep scar on its chest, but it did not break into pieces. After landing, it rolled a few times and pounced forward again without stopping.
Wen Rensu reacted extremely quickly. When the second puppet pounced on his side, he slid sideways like a ghost. At the same time, he used the materials on the spot and thrust out the feather arrow in his hand that had not yet been thrown out like lightning. The arrow, infused with internal force, accurately pierced the puppet's eye socket.
An arrow pierced the brain! The puppet froze, but strangely, it didn't fall down as they expected. Black air leaked from its empty eye sockets, and its movements became even more frantic.
"Their weak spot is not in the head." Wen Rensu said in a deep voice, while dodging the sneak attack of another pair of poisonous claws, and his moon-white robe was almost torn.
Ling Zheng hummed, and also found that this puppet was unusual. He turned around and wielded the axe, then cut off the puppet's wrist, depriving it of its most important weapon.
But more puppets have rushed into the octagonal pavilion like a tide, coordinating their movements tacitly, and the poisonous armor on their ten fingers tried every means to tear off their flesh and blood.
What’s even more terrifying is that the puppet’s laughter seems to be able to penetrate the eardrum and hit the soul, making people dizzy.
The attack was fierce, seemingly a round of exchanges, but in reality, it was only a few breaths. The guards in the distance were startled and rushed in, but were tightly entangled by the puppets on the periphery. These puppets briefly formed a barrier of Yin energy to block the reinforcements.
The space inside the pavilion was small, and these puppets were extremely strange. Ling Zheng and Wen Rensu were back to back and engaged in a tough battle.
Ling Zheng waved his weapon to block most of the attacks. The sharp blade kept slashing at the puppet, making a harsh friction sound.
Wen Rensu waited for the right opportunity and used the bamboo arrows to their full potential, piercing the puppet's weakest joints. The puppet limped but still attacked instinctively, making it extremely difficult to deal with.
Just as Wen Rensu pierced his joint again, the internal force and Yin energy collided, and the bamboo arrow could no longer hold on and turned into powder in an instant.
Seeing this, Wen Ren Su quickly picked up the pitching pot beside him to block it. The next moment, the black armor pierced into the pot half an inch, and corrosive black smoke suddenly emerged from the broken part. If Wen Ren Su had not reacted just now, he would have been scratched.
"Wenren Su!" Ling Zheng's pupils shrank slightly, and he called out his name for the first time.
There was a slight delay in his movement, but the puppet that was entangled with him saw the flaw and grabbed it with a claw. Ling Zheng quickly planted his feet on the ground, putting some distance between himself and Wen Rensu.
The situation was dangerous and the remaining puppets took advantage of the opportunity to surround the two men in an instant, trying to divert and defeat them.
Wen Ren Su had nothing in his hands and could only use brute force to break the puppet's joints with his palms. It was a bit difficult and the efficiency was low, which made him feel annoyed.
He glanced around, looking for a breakthrough.
Seeing Wenren Su dodging in panic again, Ling Zheng's cruel eyes were covered with a layer of haze. He kicked the puppets to the left and right, used the force to jump up, and swung the left axe in his hand towards Wenren Su.
"then--"
Hearing the sound, he turned around and grasped the axe handle accurately, and even had the mind to tease: "My lord, your great kindness and virtue will never be forgotten."
"Stop talking nonsense!" Ling Zheng growled, with his left hand behind his back. Due to the unfamiliarity, the fox fur coat had several more holes and was corroded to a charred black.
He made a "tsk" sound, quickly took off his fox fur coat, and went into battle lightly, his attack becoming even more ferocious.
There are not many men with us on this trip, so for now we can only check and balance each other, and we are in a dilemma.
Wen Rensu swung the short weapon a few times, and the moves were similar. Although he was not as proficient as Ling Zheng, he was much better than before.
Fortunately, this Ziwu Yuanyang Axe was blessed with thousand-year-old glacial black iron, otherwise it would have really cracked.
The two men's cooperation gradually became tacit, but there were too many puppets, and their physical strength and internal energy were being consumed rapidly. The pavilion was already in a mess, the stone table was overturned, and the pillars were covered with scratches and poison stains.
If they continue like this, they will be dragged to death sooner or later. Wen Rensu scanned the surroundings again and again, and finally found a figure hidden very deeply in a plum tree in the distance. Among the swaying shadows of the tree, it stood silently on the snow-capped branches.
The man was wearing a dark grey cloak, with a wide hat brim covering most of his face. He also had a black veil covering his face, revealing only a pair of sinister and cold eyes.
He held a dark red soul-calling flag in his hand. The flag fluttered without wind, and there was a faint black mist lingering around it.
Wen Rensu narrowed his eyes and looked into the distance. The flag looked very similar to the one he had destroyed with his own hands in Qingmu Village. The identity of the person on the tree was obvious.
He instantly understood what the strange power used by the puppet was. It was the power of faith of the Ruyijing Buddhists. The national master took advantage of the people's blind trust and created these insidious things.
The boys and girls were once living people, but now they have been turned into puppets. The people who are ignorant and act as accomplices to the evil will also be contaminated by karma.
Such means are extremely vicious.
Ling Zheng always paid some attention to Wen Rensu. Now, following his gaze, he also discovered the sneaky figure on the treetop.
"National Master Huizhu." Wen Rensu reminded, his voice filled with cold murderous intent.
Ling Zheng said sinisterly, "He actually dared to come back. Then he will never come back!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he gave Wen Rensu a look, and the two of them reached a tacit understanding in an instant.
Ling Zhengyue's momentum suddenly changed. He no longer sought to kill the puppets, but instead rushed forward, forcibly cutting a path through the sea of puppets.
Wen Ren Su followed closely behind, with superb skills. He used the gap opened by Ling Zheng to remove the puppet joints that blocked his way. The two of them rushed towards the direction of the plum tree like a pair of swords.
On the treetop, as Wenren Su and the other two discovered him and were approaching with murderous intent, the Imperial Master's rugged face showed a trace of panic with difficulty.
He waved the soul-summoning flag in his hand more quickly, trying to mobilize more puppets to intercept.
However, Ling Zheng and Wen Rensu cooperated perfectly and managed to withstand the puppet's crazy counterattack and kill them under the plum tree.
"Die!"
Ling Zheng roared angrily, stomped his feet hard, and soared into the sky. Holding the exchanged weapons in both hands, he rushed straight to the imperial teacher on the treetop with a rage that could burn everything.
Wen Rensu also attacked at the same time. Although he had no weapon, his fingers were like swords. A condensed and substantial finger wind came from behind and arrived first, directly hitting the heart meridian of the national teacher.
The Imperial Master was horrified and hastily waved the soul-summoning banner to block.
"clang--"
“Puff—”
Ling Zheng's axe struck the flagpole with such force that the Imperial Preceptor's arm went numb. Wen Rensu's finger wind caught the Imperial Preceptor off guard and struck him on the left shoulder.
The Imperial Master let out a shrill scream, and a bloody hole was instantly pierced through his left shoulder, splattering blood.
His body shook violently, and he could no longer stand on the treetop. He fell from a great height like a kite with a broken string, and landed heavily on the snow with a "bang". The soul-calling flag in his hand also flew out of his hand.
Ling Zheng and Wen Ren Su jumped down from the treetop and surrounded the seriously injured and bleeding imperial teacher.
"Ahem...Puff..."
The Imperial Master collapsed in the snow, blood gushing from his left shoulder. His veil had long since fallen off, revealing his unrecognizable face. He glared at the two of them with resentment and hissed, "You...will not die a good death..."
Ling Zheng's eyes were filled with murderous intent, and just when he was about to put an end to this beast——
Mutation regeneration!
A vast and boundless will suddenly descended, and the space of the entire plum garden seemed to solidify in an instant.
The wind and snow stopped, the falling plum petals hung in the air, and even the puppets that were attacking frantically began to slow down in their movements.
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Author's note: Story 2 is about to be finished, so I'm stuck again, please forgive me [burst into tears]
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