The black-clad figure sheathed the sword but instantly raised their left hand, sending a chain-linked sickle flying toward Su Muyu’s face.

“The Flying Sickle Sword?” Su Muyu called out, grabbing his paper umbrella to the counter.

“Good eye.” The black-clad figure’s right hand whipped sharply, the chain wrapping inch by inch around the paper umbrella. With a flash of cold light, the sickle slashed toward Su Muyu’s neck. Su Muyu extended two fingers, shooting out a stream of frost qi that directly blocked the sickle.

“Hah!” A thunderous shout rang from above as the roof crashed in. A burly man wielding a meteor hammer smashed down toward Su Muyu’s head. Su Muyu immediately threw a flying blade, forcing the black-clad figure to withdraw the sickle and retreat. He then opened his oil-paper umbrella and raised it overhead. The burly man’s hammer struck the umbrella but couldn’t damage it in the slightest. Su Muyu gently lifted the umbrella and stepped back three paces.

Two long sabers appeared behind him, slashing at his waist. Su Muyu flipped upward, but two more swords blocked his escape route. He sighed softly, gently twisted the umbrella handle, and seventeen blades shot out simultaneously, forcing back both the sabers and swords while also blocking the paths of the burly man and the black-clad figure.

Though the room was spacious, with seventeen blades connected by puppet strings embedded in the walls, every corner had become his killing ground.

The black-clad figure laughed. “So this is the legendary Eighteen Sword Formation. Impressive—it eliminates all hope of survival in an instant.”

“Eagle Eye, First Guard Unit of Tianqi City’s Shadow Sect,” Su Muyu said gravely. “I’ve heard your name too. So you’re the ones standing behind Dark River.”

The black-clad figure smiled. “I’m called Crow, here on the Sect Master’s orders to meet you.”

Su Muyu frowned slightly. “Shadow Sect Master Yi Bu?”

The black-clad figure nodded. “We dare not speak the Sect Master’s name directly.”

“The Imperial Father-in-law is quite distinguished.” The window suddenly opened, and a tall, thin man sat on the windowsill, leisurely smoking.

“Uncle Ze.” Su Muyu started slightly.

Crow was also startled. “You’re Su Ze?”

“Young one, where are your manners?” Su Ze flipped into the room, walking directly past Crow.

Crow felt a powerful pressure suddenly sweep over him, making even breathing difficult. He wiped cold sweat from his forehead. “So Dark River sent more than one person to Tianqi City.”

“I just arrived, tired from the journey,” Su Ze yawned. “You all, come back tomorrow.”

“The Sect Master said…” Crow tried to speak.

“Didn’t I say, come back tomorrow?” Su Ze lightly flicked his Buddhist staff, sending a golden ring flying toward Crow’s face. Crow snorted coldly and grabbed the ring.

“No!” The meteor hammer wielder cried out, but it was too late. The moment Crow gripped the ring, it began spinning rapidly in his hand, instantly stripping away a piece of flesh. He screamed and released it, the ring flying back to Su Ze’s staff.

Su Ze snorted coldly. “Know your limits.”

“Those four words in the official speech were quite standard,” Su Muyu smiled.

“Fine. We’ll return tomorrow.” The meteor hammer wielder grabbed Crow and retreated through the window, the other four shadow guards silently departing as well.

Su Muyu reached out to retrieve the Eighteen Sword Formation. Su Ze shook his head helplessly. “Your sword formation—fighting once, picking up the pieces once. Couldn’t you learn a different sword technique?”

Su Muyu smiled faintly. “I’m used to it. Why are you here, Uncle Ze? Hadn’t you left Dark River? Physician Bai is still waiting for you in Qiantang City.”

“I saw her first, then came to find you,” Su Ze said, smoking leisurely.

“What happened?” Su Muyu asked.

Su Ze found a stool and sat down. “I’ll speak slowly about what follows, in my most serious official speech. That day in the Spider’s Nest, He Huai found a book.”

Su Muyu nodded. “I remember this.”

“At first, He Huai thought it was just a novel for entertainment. But when the Scholarly Sword Immortal Xie Xuan saw it, he said it was a historical record—everything in it was true.” Su Ze deliberately lowered his voice.

Su Muyu also sat down. “Uncle Ze, don’t deliberately lower your voice. It seems strange.”

“Got to set the mood,” Su Ze took a drag on his pipe. “Three hundred years ago, the Xiao ancestor Xiao Yi rose from humble beginnings. During the chaotic era, he led his army, carving a path to the imperial city, ultimately overthrowing the Great Qin Dynasty’s rule and establishing an unprecedentedly powerful dynasty—our current Northern Departure. The seventeen most famous founding ministers who stood behind Xiao Yi were known as the Five Pillar Lords and Twelve Generals. This is history we both know.”

Su Muyu nodded. “The teahouses have worn out this tale of Xiao Yi’s founding.”

Su Ze nodded. “But what the storytellers don’t know is that initially, Xiao Yi wanted to establish Six Pillar Lords, but one person willingly stepped down, saying he was ‘accustomed to being a shadow and didn’t wish to step into the sunlight.’ This person was Yi Shuihan. During Xiao Yi’s uprising, he wasn’t always victorious—several times he faced desperate situations, but enemy generals would suddenly be assassinated. This was the work of Yi Shuihan and his Shadow Corps.”

Su Muyu’s brow furrowed deeply. “Could it be…”

“After Northern Departure’s founding, Yi Shuihan established the Shadow Sect to protect Tianqi. Since Tianqi City had shadow guardians, the vast jianghu needed such a shadow even more. So Yi Shuihan’s three top assassins led their subordinates into the jianghu. The book’s story ends there, but you and I can guess what followed—these three split into three families, establishing their clans: the Su, Xie, and Mu families we know well. This shadow protecting the jianghu for the Xiao imperial family became Dark River.” Su Ze laughed loudly. “Surprising, isn’t it? We’ve killed people all our lives, thinking ourselves thoroughly evil, but looking carefully now, we’ve been eating imperial grain all along!”

After a long silence, Su Muyu spoke slowly. “In the jianghu, they always said Dark River would kill anyone—whether noble officials from court or black and white dragon heads from the jianghu. For enough money, we could even kill an emperor. Yet in truth, we were the shadow-clearing obstacles across the realm for the emperor. This seems rather… ironic.”

“Some people can’t be killed openly but must die in the shadows,” Su Ze smiled self-mockingly. “After learning all this, I think I’d rather just be a killer who takes money for lives.”