The two quietly retreated to their room, preparing for battle.
The ship had just left Bianjing. If it truly was Yelü Huangwu, she wouldn’t cause trouble near the capital, at least not until they reached an isolated area.
Chu Dingjiang needed to be considered carefully. More than one person wanted him dead. Could this be a trap set for him to fall into?
Konghejun missions were confidential. If he became a wanted criminal pursued by officials, Konghejun wouldn’t help clear his name and might question Shadow’s competence. Exposing his identity and mission was a capital offense. If this woman was a false Yelü Huangwu and Chu Dingjiang initiated an assassination, becoming a wanted criminal as a result, the consequences would be dire.
After packing their things, An Jiu asked, “What’s your plan?”
An Jiu’s readiness to fight stemmed purely from her trust in Chu Dingjiang’s abilities. She had no perfect battle plan in mind and was curious about his confidence in facing so many skilled opponents with his inner power restricted.
“When I healed you last time, I discovered you could absorb my inner power and true qi,” Chu Dingjiang glanced at the Fulong Bow. “Our target is Yelü Huangwu. There’s no need for a confrontation. Let’s try using Jingxian.”
“I can still use Jingxian?” An Jiu was surprised, then realized why Chu Dingjiang, despite his high spiritual power, said he needed hers. “You’ve always known I had this ability, haven’t you?”
Since he was exposed, Chu Dingjiang didn’t deny it. “Yes, I secretly probed with my true qi when we made contact before, but I was careful not to let you notice. I only confirmed it when I healed you last time.”
“I can try,” An Jiu said.
Seeing her unexpected reaction, Chu Dingjiang couldn’t help asking, “Don’t you feel I deceived you?”
“It’s a fact. Should I feel something about it?” An Jiu felt a little uncomfortable but quickly suppressed it. “At least I know why you value me.”
Chu Dingjiang’s heart sank. “I didn’t keep you around just to use you.”
“That’s not important,” An Jiu said coolly. “Whether it’s intentional use or incidental use, isn’t it all the same?”
This relationship was never pure, to begin with. Trying to explain verbally would only seem like a cover-up. Chu Dingjiang decided not to pursue the topic further. “I specifically looked into Jingxian. At its peak, it can hit targets without seeing them.”
Seeing her attentive expression, Chu Dingjiang continued, “With strong enough spiritual power, you can discern subtle differences between people. Jingxian can penetrate layers of obstacles to reach its target. Besides distinguishing the madman’s spiritual power, can you recognize others?”
An Jiu thought for a moment and said, “You.”
They shared one thing in common: both were in the realm of transformation.
“First, check how many people are on this ship.” Each person’s spiritual power was different. Chu Dingjiang could only guide her, unable to teach her the exact method.
An Jiu closed her eyes and probed for a moment. Her answer seemed unbelievable even to herself. “Sixty-one. Among them, fifty-five know martial arts.”
She had seen with her own eyes that the lower deck alone housed sixty to seventy people. Adding those in private cabins and the ship’s crew, there should be over a hundred.
“I think I can only distinguish people with levels of spiritual power or inner force,” An Jiu said.
Among those who didn’t practice martial arts, she could also identify those with higher spiritual power.
“We’re exactly the opposite,” Chu Dingjiang said. “I can sense everyone, even what they’re doing. Through heartbeats and breathing, I can roughly judge if they know martial arts, but I can’t directly find these people by spiritual power alone.”
Chu Dingjiang was accustomed to seeing the big picture, and not missing any details. It was thorough but mentally taxing. While An Jiu couldn’t sense everyone, she could easily filter out potentially dangerous individuals. This was closely related to her sniping skills; targets were always clearest in her eyes.
Both had spiritual power in the realm of transformation, but Chu Dingjiang’s focused attack power was far inferior to An Jiu’s. This was the main reason why An Jiu could easily shoot Jingxian and spiritual Jingxian while others couldn’t.
Given their differences, Chu Dingjiang changed his approach. “You said the woman in purple was different. Can you distinguish her among these sixty-one people?”
An Jiu tried and confirmed, “Yes, I can.”
Chu Dingjiang was delighted. “Excellent!”
“I’m curious why the madman hasn’t discovered me all this time,” An Jiu found this strange and couldn’t relax. “After I assassinated Li Ting and escaped, the madman could intercept me, which means he could identify me too.”
The madman had always been fixated on competing in archery with An Jiu. If he discovered her, he would surely rush over.
Chu Dingjiang said, “If you’re certain that’s the madman, I can only think of two possibilities. One, someone ordered him not to act rashly. Two, he no longer remembers you.”
An Jiu found his reasoning sound.
The madman usually sought out strong opponents, always choosing those with powerful inner force. An Jiu was the only exception. He was obsessed with losing to her at the ancient temple. If they met by chance, he definitely wouldn’t give up easily. The best explanation was that he had forgotten about it. But seeing the madman’s “docile” behavior earlier, they couldn’t rule out the possibility that he was obeying Yelü Huangwu’s orders.
Chu Dingjiang said, “We only have one chance. If we fail, we must leave immediately.”
An Jiu agreed.
Since using the Fulong Bow to shoot the spiritual Jingxian last time, An Jiu discovered that even drawing it a few inches made it several times more powerful than ordinary bows. So she planned to use it again this time.
“We’ll wait for the right moment,” Chu Dingjiang said softly.
Whether the madman had amnesia or something else, his skills remained. As long as he was near Yelü Huangwu, the chances of a successful sneak attack would be lower. If they failed, it would also hinder their retreat.
Having agreed on their battle plan, the two waited in their room.
The moonlit night was clear.
A river breeze carried a faint smell of aquatic plants.
At the bow of the ship, Yelü Huangwu sat on the deck, her long ivory-white dress spread out, her hair cascading like a waterfall. Her skin was as white as snow, her lips red as cherries, clean yet alluring. Beside her was a basin of clear water with a clean cloth draped over its edge.
The madman sat opposite her, hugging a wine jar. He wore tattered robes, his grey-white hair in a messy bun loosely tied with a black cloth strip. He sat quietly now, allowing Yelü Huangwu to shave off his wild, beard-like facial hair with a sharp dagger.
With each of her movements, whiskers flew in the wind, revealing a handsome face beneath.
Yelü Huangwu put down the dagger, wet the cloth, and wiped the madman’s face. He narrowed his eyes like a cat enjoying caresses, looking very content.
“Why did you listen to Lu Danzhi?” Yelü Huangwu asked.
The madman smiled, “He’s my uncle.”
“He’s deceiving you,” Yelü Huangwu’s tone turned cold.
The madman looked a bit helpless, pouting with grievance, “But he knows about the birthmark on my bottom.”
“Your surname is Cui, his is Lu. How could he be your uncle? He first tricked me into revealing this secret, then went to deceive you.” Yelü Huangwu threw the cloth into the basin, water splashing. “Don’t you trust me anymore?”