Chapter 97 097 "Promise me, don't die."
Jiang Ling'er froze, unable to resist taking another look, wondering if she had seen it wrong.
Ever since she saw the young monk, he had been constantly beaten until his face was bruised and swollen. At this moment, the main hall was pitch black, with only the faint moonlight shining through. The moonlight was indistinct and not very clear.
Upon closer inspection, his brow looked more like a lump of mud, with no lotus mark whatsoever.
While fighting off the enemy, Jiang Ling'er suddenly remembered that she hadn't asked the little monk his name yet.
Pei Xuan, who was also fighting in the crowd, suddenly said to her:
"Take him with you."
Jiang Ling'er disliked all that fussy, mother-in-law stuff; if he wanted to go, then let him go.
"Okay, let's go!"
Just then, a group of demons attacked head-on, forcing Jiang Ling to release the young monk's hand to avoid their attack. When she turned around after defeating the attackers, the young monk had already disappeared.
Jiang Ling'er paused, then flew into a rage: "That stupid bald monk! Why is he running around like that without knowing any martial arts!"
Hearing Jiang Ling'er's complaints, Pei Xuan frowned, leaped in front of her, stood back to back, and said in a deep voice:
"We must find him."
The two intertwined their backs, and Jiang Ling'er frowned:
"You told me to go to the martial arts arena to stop the Demon of the Qin..."
Pei Xuan interrupted her: "Don't you think the little monk is strange? I don't think he's being grateful to the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort), but more like... atonement."
As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Ling'er froze.
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Martial arts arena.
The light from the clusters of torches almost turned the night into day.
The yellow-robed Taoist priest, Wenshan Zhenjun, pierced through the body of a young man wearing the same yellow robe as him with his long sword. Soon the young man fell down, and another corpse appeared on the martial arts field.
To this day, countless martial arts heroes have fallen, most of whom were disciples of Danxia Cave.
Danxia Cave Master Zongshan roared angrily, his face pale: "I will surely kill you, you traitor who betrayed your master and ancestors!"
Wenshan Zhenjun glanced at Zongshan Zhenjun and said, "Considering our brotherhood, I will not kill you."
Turning to the other sects before him, he sneered and pointed his sword at them:
"You've all seen what will happen. When the Jin soldiers arrive, none of you will escape! You'd better confess honestly to avoid losing your lives!"
Throughout this time, Qin Mo Kong Wu held her zither and rested her chin on her hand, observing the expressions of everyone begging for mercy and struggling, occasionally letting out soft laughter.
Someone recognized it as the "Hao Zhong," ranked number one among the top ten ancient zithers, and the person holding it...
It must be Kong Wu, the Qin Demon, one of the ten greatest assassins of the Demonic Cult!
The Demonic Sect, having colluded with the Jurchens, had no chance of survival. Many smaller sects had already begged for mercy: "True Lord Wenshan, we truly... truly do not know who the Immortal Child is, nor do we know where the 'Longevity Manual' is!"
Upon hearing this, Wenshan Zhenjun merely sneered:
"It's alright, those who understand will naturally know what I'm talking about."
Unlike the disciples of other sects who were begging for mercy or looking puzzled, the Shaolin Temple and Sun Moon Fortress sects remained unmoved even though they were bound on the field and faced with the threat of life and death.
Finally, Wenshan Zhenjun arrived in front of Riyue Fortress with his sword.
They arrived before Ji Yunshu, the sickly young master of Sun and Moon Fortress, and Gao Yang.
Wenshan Zhenjun held his knife to Ji Yunshu's neck, instantly drawing a bloody line.
Gao Yang's brow twitched suddenly. Just as he was about to leap up, Ji Yunshu shook his head and told him not to move rashly. The two of them were carried behind his back, and there was a pool of liquid under their hands. They were using their internal energy to force out the effects of the medicine in their bodies.
Seeing this, Gao Yang had no choice but to swallow his anger.
Wenshan Zhenjun patted the young fortress lord on the shoulder with the back of his sword:
"Young Master, what do you mean?"
Ji Yunshu ignored the knife held to her neck and chuckled lightly:
"You cowardly rat, you dare not touch me."
Wenshan Zhenjun's face suddenly contorted with rage, yet he truly dared not strike, just as Ji Yunshu had said. Although he had drugged the many experts, each of them carried the risk of retaliation from their respective sects. In particular, Sun Moon Fortress had numerous disciples scattered across the land, and he... truly dared not touch this young fortress lord.
"I'll spare your life until the very end!"
Despite his furious rage, Wenshan Zhenjun eventually removed the sword from Ji Yunshu's shoulder. Instead, he grabbed a young novice monk as if venting his anger. The monk had escaped from the dungeon and was then brought back to the martial arts arena by Jiming Temple.
Wenshan Zhenjun held his sword to the young novice's neck, threatening the bound Abbot Jinghai:
"You old bald monk, I've already killed quite a few of your monks, and you still dare to stammer and hide the truth?"
Ji Yunshu glanced sideways, her peach-blossom eyes narrowing slightly.
The young novice monk cried and begged for mercy: "Abbot...Abbot, save me...Abbot, save me!"
Abbot Jinghai simply closed his eyes, his face was pale, he sat cross-legged on the martial arts field with his hands clasped together, and kept chanting "Amitabha". If you looked closely, his hands were trembling.
The seven disciples of Xiaolingxiao were all filled with indignation, but unfortunately they were bound to the martial arts arena and powerless to do anything about it.
The True Lord of Wenshan was so angry that his face twisted in disbelief. He repeatedly said "good" three times, and then said in a sinister tone:
"You old bald monk, you asked for this!"
Just as Wenshan Zhenjun raised his sword to strike the young novice monk's neck, a slightly immature, youthful voice suddenly rang out from below the stage.
"Don't kill him!"
The crowd in the martial arts arena paused, and looking over, they saw a thin, frail young monk standing below the arena.
The young monk's face was deathly pale, almost bloodless. As if he had made up his mind, he gritted his teeth, wiped the mud from between his brows with his fingertips, and slowly lifted his robe to reveal densely packed, tiny characters beneath. His voice wasn't loud, but each word was clear:
"The person you're looking for is me... Don't harm innocent people."
Ji Yunshu and Gao Yang quickly exchanged a glance.
Kong Wu, the "Music Demon," who had been playing her zither and watching the play, suddenly brightened up when she saw the little monk's exposed forearm:
"That's right, it's the 'Longevity Manual' without a doubt... It's you, you little bald monk? I've been looking for you for ages!"
The moment Abbot Jinghai opened his eyes and saw the young monk, he trembled violently, his voice trembling:
"This old monk clearly... why didn't you go to Qixia Temple..."
The young monk knelt before Abbot Jinghai and respectfully kowtowed three times:
"I am ashamed before Abbot Fang. All of this is because of me. Too many people have died because of me. Lian Sheng... I don't want to run away anymore."
Seeing the reactions of the Qin Demon and Abbot Jinghai, True Lord Wenshan realized he had finally found the person. He released the little novice and laughed heartily.
"You're smart enough to know your place!" Wenshan Zhenjun leaped down from the martial arts arena, drew his sword, and walked toward the young monk. Only when he got closer did he realize that the young monk had a dagger pressed against his throat.
"What...what do you want to do?"
The Demon of the Qin commanded in a deep voice, "Stop him! I want him alive!"
Wenshan Zhenjun gritted his teeth and used his lightness skill to rush over. The little monk seemed to have made up his mind to commit suicide. At a distance of a hundred feet, Wenshan Zhenjun was powerless and could only watch helplessly as the little monk was about to slit his own throat. Suddenly, a pebble flew through the air!
A dagger was knocked from the little monk's palm!
Jiang Ling'er, using the Mysterious Steps, moved with an ethereal grace, appearing both like a fairy and a ghost, and in the blink of an eye, she was beside the young monk.
The young monk turned pale the moment he saw Jiang Ling'er.
Many people in the martial arts arena recognized Jiang Ling'er by her attire as the foreign youth who had severely injured Zhao Xiao during the day. However, Jiang Ling'er was not wearing a veil or a ridiculous cloth, so her face was completely exposed to the blazing torches without any warning.
Immediately, a disciple of the world's number one镖师 (bodyguard/escort) exclaimed in surprise: "Young镖师!"
Some disciples of Sun and Moon Fortress exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that... the young mistress!"
The moment Ji Yunshu saw Jiang Ling'er appear, he was terrified, and the young master of the fortress, who had remained unmoved until now, finally showed an expression.
Everyone saw that Jiang Ling'er was gradually coming to her senses:
"You...you are Jiang Ling'er?"
Jiang Ling'er is not dead!
"Jiang Ling'er didn't die with the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort)... she's actually still alive!"
Master Ma and the others also recognized Jiang Ling'er.
"How come I ran into Anu here too!"
Jiang Ling'er paid no attention to the reactions of the crowd, nor did she care that her identity had been completely exposed. She only stared at the lotus mark between the young monk's eyebrows, murmuring to herself:
"It really was you... It was you!"
Recalling the young monk's strange behavior, why he risked his life to chant the Rebirth Mantra for the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) and to defend him...
So that's what the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) did for him!
Jiang Ling'er stared blankly at the young monk in front of her, then suddenly laughed—a laugh of anger.
She grabbed the young monk by the collar, pulled him up, forehead to forehead, their eyes locked, her almond-shaped eyes practically spitting fire:
"Why didn't you stay hidden and instead showed yourself? And you even dared to attempt suicide?!"
The young monk, Lian Sheng, turned pale from the shout and stared blankly at the fiery almond-shaped eyes before him, not daring to speak.
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out. It was Zhao Xiao, being helped over by the disciples of the White Tiger Hall, glaring at her angrily.
"Jiang Ling'er, you really are alive! You infiltrated the Number One Escort Agency, colluded with the Demonic Sect and the Jurchens, severely injured me, and put on a good show. You really came for the 'Longevity Manual'!" Turning to the heroes bound in the martial arts arena, he loudly proclaimed, "It was my negligence, Zhao, that allowed this traitor to infiltrate, causing you all to be implicated! I am ashamed to be the Chief Escort, and I deserve to die a thousand deaths for this crime!"
Jiang Ling'er was caught off guard when Zhao Xiao caught up with her, bringing with him a basin of dirty water. It was a case of mistaken identity, and it seemed that the dirty water could not be completely washed away.
In fact, Pei Xuan had just recovered from a serious illness and had lost all his internal strength. She knew that he was carrying a heavy burden and it was already difficult for him to protect himself, let alone Yuan Zao.
She suppressed her anger and circled around Zhao Xiao, but didn't see Pei Xuan and Yuan Zao. She figured they must be together. Pei Xuan kept his promise and protected Yuan Zao, which calmed her down a bit.
She believed that Pei Xuan could protect Yuan Zao, so she didn't need to worry about them for the time being; right now, she had to get Lian Sheng out of the encirclement...
Jiang Ling'er suddenly reached into her belt, then paused, remembering that she had long ago pawned the golden dart the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) had left her. Somewhat annoyed, she scratched her head. Having nothing of value on her, she could only hold out one hand to Lian Sheng, saying impatiently:
"Just give me anything!"
“You already know that the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort) died because of me…” Lian Sheng knelt on the ground, his face deathly pale. He thought Jiang Ling’er wanted to avenge her father herself, and he trembled as he picked up the dagger and handed it to her. “I killed the old镖头, and I killed your father. It’s best if you take my life…”
Jiang Ling'er casually took the dagger and immediately frowned:
What would I need this thing for?
Lian Sheng froze, staring at her in confusion: "...What?"
Jiang Ling'er looked at the young monk's innocent and confused face, finally sighed, tucked the dagger into her waistband, glanced at Lian Sheng from head to toe, and suddenly pointed at the Buddhist prayer beads wrapped around his left wrist:
"Take off your prayer beads and give them to me."
Lian Sheng followed her fingertip to the prayer beads, completely bewildered. Jiang Ling'er, unable to bear his dawdling, directly removed the prayer beads from his left wrist, abruptly raising her eyes to stare intently at him:
"You said too many people died because of you... and you want to atone for your sins, is that it?"
Under Jiang Ling'er's gaze... Lian Sheng nodded subconsciously.
"Alright!" Jiang Ling'er grasped his shoulders and helped him up. "Then stand up! Stand up upright and clear the old镖头's name!"
The blazing firelight reflected on Jiang Ling'er's fair face, but the light in her eyes was a hundred times brighter than the firelight!
Even though a horde of men with knives were charging at him from behind, even with a knife to his neck and an arrow on the bowstring, Lian Sheng stared blankly at Jiang Ling'er in front of him, and could only see her.
Jiang Ling'er gripped the Buddhist prayer beads tightly in her palm, staring straight into his eyes, and said, word by word:
"Today, before the world, we forge a bond of镖师 (bodyguards/escorts). If Father wants you to live, I will certainly not let you die! What Father failed to accomplish... I will do! From this day forward, I will protect you!"
The firelight flickered, and Lian Sheng stared blankly at the incomparably beautiful yet spirited face before him, as if in a daze he saw...
The figure of the old镖头 (bodyguard/escort).
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Author's Note: One more chapter to go!
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