"Ride!"
Yun Shan, riding a tall horse, was not stingy with the horse's energy at all. With only one arm left, she controlled the steed under her while her dangling empty sleeve protected Su Qiluo, letting her cling tightly to her embrace.
Su Qiluo, with a medicinal pellet in her mouth, looked up at Yun Shan's taut face and silently lowered her head again.
She could not add to Yun Shan's troubles now.
The pellet Yun Shan had put in her mouth was pressed under her tongue. It was slightly bitter but gave off a cooling sensation.
Her previously paralyzed body was gradually recovering and her recently condensed inner power was also being restored over time.
In about a moment longer, she would be able to completely eliminate the toxicity of that strange fragrance she had smelled at the inn.
When Su Qiluo lowered her head again, Yun Shan also saw the city gate.
Galloping down the main avenue of the city, Yun Shan did not care about the dense crowds. She drove the horse to charge forward recklessly, causing chaos of screaming people and stomping horses all over the main avenue.
Leaving behind a trail of complaints and curses, Yun Shan flicked the reins towards the city guards assembling in front of the city gate and launched a Yunhe Palm Strike.
With the crane-beak finger pointing forward, several bloody masses exploded on the city gate while Yun Shan released her palm and pulled the reins again, rushing out of Jing Yun City’s gate.
As long as Su Qiluo was safe, she would stop at nothing to kill however many people needed.
In this human world, people have their places above and below, nobility and commoners.
Those as lowly as blades of grass, if dead, would just be dead!
.........
Jing Yun City, the City Lord’s Residence
Amidst the chirping of a golden bird in a cage, an old man in a room full of potted plants and carved roots was carefully pruning a potted plant almost a person tall.
With one hand holding onto the sideways growing branches and leaves while the other held scissors snipping away, a middle-aged man entered from outside.
"Father, I just received news that those people have made a move."
"Oh."
The old man just gave a mild hmm without turning his head.
Seeing his father's attitude, the middle-aged man couldn't help asking, "Father, why did you let those people run amok in Jing Yun City?"
"You find it offensive to your eyes?"
The old man stopped pruning the potted plant, put down the scissors and turned around slowly. The middle-aged man hurriedly stepped forward and handed his father a wet towel.
"No, my child only feels it's inappropriate."
"Ha, you feel it's inappropriate, but do those higher-ups care about your opinion?"
Hearing his father's words, the middle-aged man's expression froze as he became uneasy.
He knew who his father meant by "those higher-ups". Although in Jing Yun City their City Lord's Residence called the shots, those people up there were the rulers of all of Yunzhou, even the whole world.
Now Long Life Celestial Dynasty was nothing more than an empty shell under those people's control, just clinging onto its name.
In fact, it had already become so more than twenty years ago.
Over twenty years ago, those people still allowed Long Life Celestial Dynasty some autonomy. The administrators of cities were not the city lords but officials appointed by the royal court instead.
However, due to certain reasons, all those officials were withdrawn and not only were rules added to strengthen city lords’ governance, the city lords were also used to restrain those celestial officials.
In just twenty short years, the royal family had also gradually lost control over the twenty-eight provinces and cities across the land.
Now the royal clan could only seclude themselves in a corner of Dizhou, dreaming their arrogant dream of royalty supremacy.
"They won't..." the middle-aged man murmured softly. His father slapped the wet towel he had wiped his hands on right in his son's face.
"Then don't pry excessively into things, just pretend to be deaf, blind and mute like us.”
“It’s not our place to meddle in their entanglements and conflicts.”
“The best course of action is to play deaf, dumb and blind.”
“Just let them make trouble themselves. As long as it doesn't affect us, anything goes."
"Yes, Father."
"Alright, you can leave. Don't bother with city affairs these next days." The old man sighed. "The struggle over Yun Family heir has begun. We city lords are going to get roasted over the fire again."
"If we choose correctly, things will be fine. But if we choose wrong, then we'll be doomed for eternity."
The old man looked at the potted plant he had just pruned, with its lush, flourishing branches and dragon-like trunk reflecting in his eyes.
"So the best option is to be as tidy as the branches and leaves on this potted plant, strictly proper."
"If there are improper intentions, there can only be one outcome.”
The old man picked up the shears again and cut off the stray shoots.
..........
Outside Jing Yun City, 15 li from the official road
Clippity clop, clippity clop...
Amidst the dense sound of horse hooves, Yun Shan protected Su Qiluo while riding her steed galloping down the official road.
The spirited horse swept past like the wind, leaving rolling clouds of dust behind.
"Auntie..." Su Qiluo had just wanted to speak when Yun Shan said in a low voice, "Young lady, now is not the time to relax, don't..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yun Shan flicked away the reins in her hand. Her five fingers pressed together, palm facing down and pushed down.
The horse's body immediately collapsed downward with cracking sounds from its four limbs while Yun Shan used that momentum to float upward.
As the horse's body fell, its chest was sliced into upper and lower halves due to momentum before it could stop galloping forward.
Even so, the lower half of the horse continued running forward another dozen steps before crashing with a rumble, its blood dyeing the ground red.
Carrying Su Qiluo, Yun Shan swiftly landed and looked unpleasantly at what had sliced her horse in two halves, leaving bloody traces.
If she hadn't noticed it earlier, she would have likely shared the horse's fate of being bisected at the waist.
Withdrawing her gaze, Yun Shan also looked to both sides of the road.
"Can the young lady move?"
"I can..." Su Qiluo softly replied. Yun Shan immediately said, "Then hold on tight to me."
As soon as her words fell, dense swarms of arrows shot out from the roadsides, so thick they obscured the view.
"Young lady!"
Reminding Su Qiluo, Yun Shan immediately felt her cling tightly to herself. She spun rapidly like a top, her robust inner power bursting out. The incoming arrows were bounced away by her sleeves in the blink of an eye.
When she finally steadied herself, the dense arrows covered the ground like weeds.
Then Yun Shan’s ears twitched slightly.
Buzz buzz buzz!!
Amidst the thunderous buzz, Yun Shan's expression changed drastically.
That was the vibration of bowstrings, which only bows above ten stones could produce.
One would need decades of archery mastery to be able to handle such powerful bows.
And every person who could was an ace archer.
Hearing the bowstrings, Yun Shan wanted to react but saw the arrow already in front of her.
So fast it cut the air like thunder, showing itself then making sound.
Seeing she couldn’t defend in time, Yun Shan gritted her teeth and lowered her center of gravity, dodging sharply to one side.
Puff!
The arrow pierced Yun Shan’s left shoulder, bringing out a string of bright red beads before disappearing into the forest behind her on the official road.
With her left shoulder pierced through, Yun Shan only felt her entire shoulder go numb.
Undoubtedly, the arrow was poisoned.
Just as Yun Shan was about to take out an antidote pellet to consume, the second arrow arrived before her.
Facing the second arrow, Yun Shan grabbed Su Qiluo’s arm and shouted, “Young lady, let go!”
Su Qiluo subconsciously let go, and Yun Shan immediately flung the maid to one side.
The maid had just been flung out when an arrow pierced through Yun Shan's chest, and the tremendous force contained within the arrow also sent her body flying backward.
After flying backward a distance, the powerless Yun Shan fell to the ground.
"Young miss...."
Yun Shan had just opened her mouth to speak when a mouthful of blood sprayed out.
"Auntie!"
Su Qiluo, who had just been flung out by Yun Shan, had just called out when the thunderous twang of a bowstring rang out once more in the air above the official road.
Clink!
The powerful arrow was blocked half a foot in front of Su Qiluo, and a golden radiance enveloped and protected her within.
Seeing this golden radiance appear, Yun Shan also raised her head and shouted loudly, "Young miss, run quickly!"
"Hurry up!"
Amidst Yun Shan's hoarse shouts, Su Qiluo took a look at Yun Shan who had been by her side since she was little. She painfully turned her head and fled toward the dense forest by the side of the official road.
As the maid was escaping, the golden radiance continued to protect her.
Buzz buzz buzz buzz!
The thunderous twang of bowstrings rang out continuously, powerful arrows front and back, continuously striking the golden radiance shrouding the maid.
But when the arrows touched the golden radiance, it was as if a powerful fist had hit cotton. Not only were they completely ineffective, they were also unable to harm the maid within the radiance at all.
Noticing this, the ground on both sides of the official road was flipped open, and dozens of assassins jumped out.
Without even glancing at Yun Shan, all the assassins headed straight for Su Qiluo in the woods.
Seeing this scene, Yun Shan's beautiful eyes opened wide in shock, on the verge of splitting open.
She hadn't expected that in addition to the hidden divine archer, so many assassins had actually been lying in ambush around her.
The assassins didn't even look at Yun Shan, their target fixed on Su Qiluo.
Yun Shan raised her arm, trying her best to form the Yunhe seal at the assassins she could see.
But before she could take any action, an arrow pierced through her arm, nailing it to the ground.
"Ah!!!"
With her arm pierced through, Yun Shan let out a miserable shriek, which carried far, making Su Qiluo's body shudder as she fled for her life.
But Su Qiluo didn't dare stop. If she stopped, then all of Yun Shan's sacrifices for her would have been completely in vain.
Su Qiluo's little legs moved extremely quickly as she fled desperately in the woods, while the assassins chasing behind her steadily closed in on Su Qiluo.
Although Su Qiluo was extremely talented, with martial arts cultivation that had already entered the stage of strengthening internal organs, having completed over ten years of progress by other people when she wasn't even ten years old yet.
But she was still just a child in the end.
In her desperate flight, Su Qiluo didn't notice that the assassins behind her were gradually enclosing her like a tightening sack.
At the same time, hooked chains with barbs came flying out from the woods towards Su Qiluo, not only smashing down on her but large nets with holes as tiny as beans also dropped down to trap her.
Su Qiluo had just heard the sound of the chains swinging when dozens of hooked chains had already blocked her way forward, while the large nets also dropped down from the sky to envelope her below.
Although Su Qiluo, protected by the golden radiance, was unharmed, her footsteps were still trapped.
And as time passed, the golden radiance around her body gradually grew thinner.
Just as Su Qiluo was trapped here, the sounds of leaves being crushed underfoot continuously rang out around Su Qiluo.
As Su Qiluo struggled to break free from the large net and looked left and right, she saw countless assassins slowly walking towards her.
The assassins in front held shields in one hand and blades in the other. As they closed in, the thunderous twangs of strong crossbows continuously rang out.
The dense crossbow bolts landed on the golden radiance. Although they were unable to harm Su Qiluo, facing the assassins closing in step by step and listening to the twangs of the strong crossbows, Su Qiluo still collapsed to the ground.
The terrified maid lay limply on the ground, fearfully watching the assassins surround her. The tears welling up in her eyes also slid uncontrollably down her cheeks.
"General...."
Su Qiluo whispered softly, "I'm so scared...."
"General....."
"General, where are you?!"
Faced with the assassins surging forward with raised blades, Su Qiluo could no longer control the terror in her heart.
"General, where are you?!"
Amidst the loud wailing cries, a flagpole suddenly shot over from the distance, stabbing right in front of Su Qiluo.
As the flagpole trembled, the flag wrapped around it was also shaken open and raised.
The moment this flag that had shot out from the wilderness unfurled, the sound of galloping horses also came thundering from the distance.
The sound of galloping hooves rumbled like beating drums, shaking the earth.
The first thing that Su Qiluo and the assassins heard upon hearing the sound of galloping hooves was several over ten-foot-tall majestic horses forcing their way wildly into the woods.
Atop the head of the lead warhorse stood a white cat.
As the white cat's eyes reflected Su Qiluo surrounded by the gang of bandits, it also roared loudly.
"This general is here, I'd like to see who dares be impudent!!"