Master Xingfeng
However, Ghost Blade was ordered to conceal his identity and ambush Li Chongyu. He was careful to hide his whereabouts and never wanted to go on a killing spree to attract the attention of the government and the martial arts world. At that time, it would be difficult for the actions of the Hidden Moon Clan over the years to be kept secret from the eyes of everyone in both the legitimate and criminal worlds.
Therefore, although he could handle the Thirteen Shadows on his own, he hoped they would know when to back down, so as to save him the energy and time to deal with Li Chongyu and avoid making things worse.
Although he didn't know the background of the thirteen men in white opposite him, he could tell from their measured movements and well-trained manner that they were not from a small family. If he really killed all thirteen of them, he wondered what kind of important figure would be brought out.
However, Ghost Blade lived in seclusion in the remote desert of the northern frontier and was unfamiliar with the martial arts world of Jiangzuo. The Thirteen Shadows of Divine Weapons were assassins who hid by day and night, and were not the kind of chivalrous people who frequently traveled the martial arts world to make friends with martial artists, fearing that their names would not be known.
Thus, the comical scene unfolded where Ghost Blade pointed at the assassin from the Divine Weapon Hall and announced the name of the leader of the Punishment Wind Hall.
Scorpion Shadow was not good with words, and for a moment he didn't know how to argue. But since the other party told him to get lost, he said dryly, "You are neither the leader of Mo Yi Hall nor a member of Lanling Hall. We can't just leave as you say. There's no point in talking nonsense. If you want to fight, then fight."
Ghost Blade's purpose in coming here was to severely injure Li Chongyu, leaving him in a situation where he could not protect himself in Jianzhang. He remembered clearly that Su Rouhua's instructions were as follows: "It is necessary to make him look disheveled and put his life in danger at every turn before he will put aside his pride as the son of Li Mingyuan and cooperate with our Hidden Moon Clan."
This is why Su Rouhua chose to take action in Jianzhang, rather than on Li Chongyu's territory in the northern frontier.
Only when he was surrounded by enemies and faced constant danger, and was severely wounded, would Li Chongyu be forced to make allies.
Li Chongyu took his attack head-on the moment they met, and had already suffered serious internal injuries, but the severity of the injuries was not as bad as he had expected. Therefore, he could not possibly stop at this point.
Ghost Blade laughed, "Then I'll just have to deal with you kids too!" He said sternly, "Come on!"
Suddenly, the entire official road seemed to become impenetrable, and the air was filled with a suffocating sense of oppression.
The thirteen shadows of the Divine Weapon Hall, along with Li Chongyu, held their breath and waited, not daring to carry even the slightest bit of equipment.
The opponent simply stood with his sword held horizontally, which had already locked down the shadow formation that the Divine Weapon Hall had set up at this moment with his aura.
Li Chongyu was trapped in the formation and could no longer leave even if he wanted to.
Ghost Blade's eyes flashed with a fierce brownish-green light, a phenomenon caused by the Hidden Moon Clan's technique being pushed to its limit.
A fierce wind arose, and the crescent blade, flashing with yellow light, swept out in an arc, sweeping across the three people led by Scorpion Shadow.
Scorpion Shadow spat out a scorpion tail whip with his right hand, and a silver light, like a venomous snake, emerged in front of him, creating circles of whip shadows that twisted straight towards the crescent blade.
The two men on either side of him also drew their weapons and joined forces to withstand the attack of the crescent blade.
The formation was perfectly integrated; moving one part would affect the whole. The three in the lead couldn't avoid it, because any movement would affect the others behind them, leaving them with no choice but to endure it.
The moment the scorpion whip wrapped around the crescent blade, Scorpion Shadow felt a terrifying, immense suction force pull him in, and the whip flew out of his hand uncontrollably.
Otherwise, he would have been dragged into the blade.
The two men on either side were in no better shape; their weapons fell from their hands, and they staggered and dodged.
This was Ghost Blade's strategy for a swift and decisive victory, aiming to tear open the shadow formation in the shortest possible time and directly target Li Chongyu within it.
As Scorpion Shadow was forced to step aside, he sighed inwardly.
They had done their best, but they couldn't withstand a master-level expert.
In the face of such a master, many people are not as flexible and unpredictable as one person, who is impossible to defend against.
He thought to himself, "Master, Thirteen Shadows has failed in his mission."
Having defeated three opponents, Ghost Blade slipped forward, only to encounter his greatest obstacle at this moment.
Li Chongyu's all-out longsword strike burst forth with astonishing light, swirling as it landed, as if waiting for him behind the scorpion shadow.
The direction he aimed was absolutely precise, precisely targeting the weakness in his current movement.
Although Li Chongyu was also a skilled martial artist, his true strength lay in battlefield combat. In one-on-one duels, his speed of response and fighting techniques far surpassed those of reclusive masters like Gui Dao and Su Rouhua, who were elusive and unpredictable.
Therefore, after exchanging a blow with him, Ghost Blade learned of his true strength and became somewhat complacent.
But what he didn't expect was that Li Chongyu, lying in the shadow formation, had switched to his most proficient fighting style.
That is, cooperating with other soldiers. The vanguard can dampen the enemy's momentum, while the left and right flanks can provide cover and support, which is enough to make up for Li Chongyu's weaknesses in adaptability and skills.
Observing Ghost Blade's movements, he knew that Ghost Blade would definitely take down the three strongest members of the formation first, and that Scorpion Shadow and his two companions would certainly not be able to stop him.
Therefore, he lay in ambush behind Scorpion Shadow, his full-force strike prepared for the moment when Scorpion Shadow was defeated, and Ghost Blade had just fought back and was too exhausted to recover.
Using one's superior horse against the opponent's average horse, one gambles on having the upper hand and going all out for a decisive strike, while facing the opponent's hasty and unprepared attack.
Ghost Blade let out a muffled groan, and was once again cleaved out of the formation by Li Chongyu's earth-shattering, sudden strike.
Despite their internal injuries, the three Scorpion Shadows immediately regrouped and surrounded him.
At this moment, Scorpion Shadow felt quite strange.
From Li Chongyu's skillful, well-planned, and decisive strike, it is clear that Li Chongyu truly had no intention of escaping.
He was determined to stand with them through thick and thin, so he remained calm and focused, observing the battle situation with keen insight and devising a strategy for the battle.
As an assassin, the principle most of the time is to only care about yourself and not others.
This is not simply selfishness, but rather determined by the nature of assassination.
Just now, Ghost Blade suddenly broke into the formation, and he sighed that the Shadow Battle Formation had been broken and there was no way to reverse the situation.
But when Li Chongyu cleaved the Ghost Blade out of the formation with a single strike, turning the impossible into possible, he almost instinctively leaped back into the formation to restore its original shape.
He could also sense that the others in the group felt the same way he did.
Everyone's spirits were greatly lifted, and they resolved to do everything in their power to resist this top expert who came from nowhere and was impersonating Mo Yimingyue.
The Thirteen Shadows of the Divine Weapon Hall have killed many people, but saved none.
Li Chongyu was the first.
Ghost Blade spat out a mouthful of blood, but his unconventional demeanor remained unchanged. He stood tall, his eyes suddenly brightening as he scanned the fourteen people one by one.
Anyone whose gaze fell upon him, even those who were themselves daring assassins, couldn't help but feel a chill.
After all, they were facing one of the top assassins of the Hidden Moon Clan, a master-level assassin.
The outcome of today's battle was completely unexpected.
This also stirred his ruthless heart.
Although Ghost Blade lived in seclusion, he moved like the wind across the desert, and never left a survivor of anyone he wanted to kill.
The crescent blade rippled slightly, producing a clear, ringing sound.
Ghost Blade looked up at the sky and sighed, "Tonight, this place is destined to turn into a sea of blood."
The thirteen shadows of the Divine Weapon Hall were all shaken upon hearing this, yet none of them retreated.
The life of an assassin is a constant trial by fire, a relentless test of life and death.
Act when you should act, and stop when you should stop.
His life existed silently like a shadow, and to be buried alongside the renowned Marquis of Shuofang Army at this moment could perhaps be considered a decent death.
For some reason, the only thought in Scorpion Shadow's mind was: "If we all perish here tonight, the Hall Master will have a hard time reporting back to Venerable Wanqi."
The crescent blade appeared again, shooting towards the scorpion shadow with a terrifying yellow light.
Now that we know where the gap in this formation is, we can simply keep tearing at it from the same gap.
Scorpion Shadow mustered his strength and raised his whip in response.
A deafening clang reverberated, the sound of metal clashing against metal so loud it felt like my eardrums would shatter.
A gleaming sword light, intercepted by the horizontal thrust, struck the blade before the crescent-shaped blade could reach the scorpion shadow.
That is the peerless sword of the young master Gu Yi, the sword that can cut through clouds and carve the moon—Carving Moon.
Upon seeing the sword, Scorpion Shadow immediately understood its significance.
Ghost Blade's eyes flashed with lightning as he stared intently at the palace-dressed girl who had appeared before him, sword in hand. Knowing that this battle was unlikely to end well, he still asked in a hostile tone, "Who goes there?"
A Qiu smiled and said, "If you were Mo Yimingyue, you would definitely recognize me."
Ghost Blade was greatly alarmed, because if his identity were exposed during this assassination attempt, it would be just as disastrous as being captured.
He finally began to understand where he had gone wrong in this assassination attempt.
He was still too unfamiliar with the people and affairs of Jiangzuo.
The Hidden Moon Clan believed that Li Chongyu would have no friends in Jiangdong, and that the Southern Dynasty people would only want to use him, but would not genuinely protect him.
Therefore, a group of white-clad men of unknown origin arrived first, determined to protect Li Chongyu at all costs.
Then, the beautiful palace-dressed girl, alone and wielding a sword, suddenly appeared in the night.
This surprised him more than any ghostly apparition he might encounter on the road.
Ghost Blade was now in a difficult position; even if he killed him now, he could not admit that he was Ghost Blade of the Hidden Moon Clan.
While secretly planning his escape, he laughed loudly, "Where did this girl come from? She doesn't even realize she's about to die."
A Qiu gently trembled the carved moon in her hand, and points of cold light lit up, eventually forming a beautiful stream of light like a waterfall.
She smiled and said softly, "I hope Elder Ghost Blade will know that the sword before you is the sword of Gu Yi, the Junior Master of the Great Yan Dynasty. His successor, Shi Wanqiu, was ordered by his master to quell foreign rebels and protect the Marquis within the pass."
Before Ghost Blade could react, she moved with her sword, leaped into the air, and pointed behind him, her sword intent flowing, preemptively blocking his path.
This leaves no way out; they are determined to kill him here.
The thirteen shadows of the Divine Weapon Hall, under the command of A Qiu, understood the Hall Master's intentions upon seeing his actions. They automatically dispersed the protective aura surrounding Li Chongyu and instead formed a formation to surround the Ghost Blade in the center.
The formation split up and then regrouped in an instant, turning defense into offense, all in the blink of an eye.
Ghost Blade's brow twitched slightly, but his hand holding the crescent blade remained motionless.
The one now sharing the same sentiment as Li Chongyu was him: having just set foot on the Southern Dynasty's territory, he unexpectedly faced mortal danger. Not only was his identity exposed, but he was also destined to perish under the Crescent Moon Sword of Gu Yi, the foremost figure in the Southern Dynasty.
For a master who has spent many years in seclusion in the northern desert, this must have been incredibly frustrating.
Ultimately, the Hidden Moon Clan had no life-or-death feud with either Gu Yi or Li Chongyu.
Ah Qiu said softly, "Do you know why I must kill you here?"
Ghost Blade's expression finally changed, and he said in a deep voice, "Miss, could you please show mercy?"
A Qiu said, "First, you shouldn't have used Mo Yimingyue's name. Second, you shouldn't have harbored murderous intentions towards them." She pointed her chin at the Thirteen Shadows of the Divine Weapon Hall and continued:
“If I hadn’t come, some of them would have died. You can kill them, and I can kill you. It’s perfectly fair.”
When she said that, Ghost Blade was speechless; to say anything more would be cowardly and afraid of death.
But to be honest, Ghost Blade felt extremely wronged.
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