Pre-dawn, the darkest hour.

Feng Zhiwei parted ways with those few people at a corridor in the rear courtyard, returning to her room to change clothes—having slept like the dead for three days, her garments were disheveled and reeking of alcohol. It truly wasn’t appropriate to appear before others like this.

Actually, changing clothes was false. She was now considering whether to take this opportunity to secretly slip away from the academy. So halfway there, she claimed she needed to use the latrine and shook off Yan Huaishi who was following her.

The wine’s effects had not yet dissipated. That wine’s intensity was second to none in the Tiansheng Imperial Dynasty—no matter how good one’s alcohol tolerance, three cups was the limit. Having walked for a while, Feng Zhiwei’s stomach suddenly churned violently. She hurriedly found a corner to vomit heavily. After vomiting for a bit and raising her head, she suddenly discovered the scenery before her eyes was unusual.

On all sides, flowers and trees grew luxuriantly, concealing a small building. The small building was silent in the darkness, completely without lamplight.

It appeared nothing unusual, yet Feng Zhiwei’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Around this building, there seemed to be an array formation… It looked very close, but to truly approach would be harder than ascending to heaven.

She could walk to here only by relying on that manual. Having frequently perused it recently, some array formations and footwork methods had deeply entered her heart.

Had she unintentionally intruded upon the perimeter of some important place?

Feng Zhiwei immediately wanted to leave. Then her body had just risen halfway when she immediately crouched back down.

Nearby, there were orderly footstep sounds, and also sounds of garments carried by wind.

The flowers and trees underwent a slight trembling, dispersing light and shadow shooting from the distance. Only that trembling was extremely strange—it actually wasn’t the movement of branches and leaves. An entire patch of dark, low shrubs was slightly moving.

Then, another patch of dark things emerged from between the shifting shrubs.

The air on all sides suddenly became several degrees heavier.

In darkness, beneath the ground, unknown objects silently emerged, carrying an iron-rust-like forest-cold killing aura rising from underground—this scene was truly somewhat eerie.

Feng Zhiwei pressed tightly against the ground without moving. As those objects gradually rose higher, appearing above the ground level, only then did she recognize those dark masses were all human heads.

An army walking out from underground?

Her breathing became increasingly light and fine, almost soundless.

Overhead, suddenly sounds of garments carried by wind swept past. A black shadow bat-like traversed the sky above, sweeping to the peak of the small building. Midair, turning around, a stiff wooden mask was concealed in dim faint light.

It was that black-robed person in dark red garments who three days ago in the dining hall had used a flying sword to block Gu Nanyi’s finger strike. At that time he had stood behind Xin Ziyan, immovable as a mountain.

That person stood remotely at the peak of the small building’s flying eaves, light as a falling leaf, steady as a boulder. He turned back in midair, his gaze falling precisely on the flowers and trees where Feng Zhiwei was hiding.

Feng Zhiwei’s breathing tightened. Even her eyes closed—encountering this kind of expert, even one’s gaze would alert him.

That person stood quietly at the eave corner, never moving, not leaving. The great wind from on high blew his garments flying. His gaze was hard as if substantial, carrying heavy doubt, striking like a heavy hammer on the ground over ten zhang away.

Cold sweat gradually seeped from Feng Zhiwei’s back.

Judging from that person’s lightness skill, killing her would truly be as easy as turning over his palm.

This moment, a matter of life and death.

“Creak”—a window-pushing sound, not loud, yet startled night birds into flight. The second-floor window of the pitch-black small building was suddenly pushed open. A hand extended out, grabbed that person in dark red robes, and lightly, skillfully pulled him inside.

Vaguely, wide robe sleeves flashed, revealing a pale white arm.

Feng Zhiwei lay on the ground, releasing a breath, not minding that she had nearly eaten a mouthful of dirt.

The one who had unintentionally saved her life just now was Xin Ziyan, right? Besides him, who else could drag away that iron-stone-like person?

From the ground’s split tunnel, even more people walked out, gathering remotely beneath the small building. After a while, they soundlessly dispersed.

These people were well-trained, their actions clean and efficient. Even their weapons were wrapped in black cloth to avoid reflecting light in the night and being discovered.

As for where they went and what they would do, Feng Zhiwei no longer dared guess.

After daybreak would be the academy examination…

Lin Shao’s earlier sentence suddenly rushed into her mind. She broke out in another cold sweat.

Seeing the crowd disperse and security on all sides lowering, she slowly moved her body, attempting to withdraw without drawing attention.

Tonight she must leave the academy!

However, her body suddenly stiffened.

She froze there. Instantly her mind went blank, completely forgetting all movements!

She was wrong!

She shouldn’t have moved now!

That ground shrub mechanism hadn’t closed yet—that meant more people would still emerge!

The last one to emerge would definitely be…

Various thoughts chaotically flashed through her mind. She could no longer move slowly. Her body lunged. The internal energy current naturally cultivated during this period turned, and in an instant she rushed out.

Flee!

However, behind her came a low laugh.

The laugh was very cool—not that kind of bone-piercing cold, but cool, like a thin flower leaf upon which had just fallen a thin layer of snow. Looking at that flower leaf, fresh and warm, yet touching it was penetratingly piercing to the hand.

A deep black cloak was rolled up by the night wind, flying inversely before Feng Zhiwei’s eyes. Vaguely distorted, exaggerated pale gold flower petals flashed.

Those flower petals danced flamboyantly before Feng Zhiwei’s eyes, transmitting a gorgeous, cool aura.

Feng Zhiwei immediately knew who it was, but simply had no time to think. This time was not like the previous three times—those matters he could turn a blind eye and let pass. This matter, however, could no longer be fortunate.

That person’s hand behind her had already struck toward her crown.

Feng Zhiwei suddenly dropped down.

That drop was without warning and without pity. Her entire person in a dog-eating-mud posture lay flat against the ground. That person’s strike immediately missed.

A slightly surprised and doubtful “mm” sound came, clearly showing that person was also very surprised by this move. Obviously Feng Zhiwei’s martial arts were mediocre—he hadn’t expected such quick thinking.

Feng Zhiwei’s quick thinking didn’t stop there.

Her dog-eating style wasn’t so simple. It came from that omnipotent manual. The manual’s owner seemed very interested in unorthodox martial arts, and also seemed to have no self-regard for status—as long as it could injure people and save life, he didn’t mind trying anything. So this dog-eating style was an improved dog-eating move. After landing, all skin and joints immediately shifted and swam, able to change direction on the ground and move horizontally several zhang away.

Feng Zhiwei naturally couldn’t achieve this now. Using all her strength, she only swam five chi. However, this was also enough. As her body rolled, she had already rolled herself away.

Earlier she had already surveyed the terrain. The direction she rolled had ground slightly sloped. This roll was another several zhang. Then she jumped up and ran.

That person behind her didn’t seem urgent, leisurely watching her flee in disarray. When her figure was about to sweep beyond his field of vision, he suddenly beckoned with his hand. Between his fingers, at some point, he had already mounted a peculiar, exquisite small crossbow.

The small crossbow didn’t seem of Central Plains make. Both sides had snake shapes hanging red tassels. Upon it, crossbow arrows of varying lengths had a slightly red luster, flowing like blood in the night.

Hooking finger, drawing string, mounting arrow—wind blew hair and crossbow red tassels flying, brushing against that person’s smooth cheeks. In darkness, this person was like the moon; in moonlight bloomed pale gold mandala flowers.

The arrow tip sharp, aimed at Feng Zhiwei’s back.

Distantly, Feng Zhiwei suddenly raised a hand. Without turning her head, back to that person, she held something high.

That thing was round and long, flashing with metallic luster. At the top could vaguely be seen a pull ring. Her fingers were tightly gripping the pull ring.

It looked like a signal flare rocket.

The dark red crossbow suddenly paused. As the crossbow arrow was about to release but hadn’t yet, that person’s fingers withdrew, instantly putting away the bow.

Just in this pause, Feng Zhiwei had already run away. That person stood in the dense night, watching Feng Zhiwei’s nimble figure very skillfully traverse those array formations that seemed simple but were actually complex, soundlessly running into the distance.

At the horizon’s edge, a line of fish-belly white remotely appeared. In the dawn light, his brows were elegant and refined, his gaze forest-somber and condensed.

Passing through forest and pavilion, Feng Zhiwei ran until covered in sweat. Morning wind blew, her whole body ice-cold.

Just now, if she hadn’t produced the rocket, that incomparably sharp arrow would definitely have already penetrated her back.

That raise of hers told him—you can kill me, but before the crossbow arrow penetrates my back, I will definitely have time to shoot the flare.

At this extraordinary moment, the slightest disturbance could trigger great waves, and he had definitely prepared for a long time, definitely unwilling to let this rocket disrupt his plans, rendering all his painstaking efforts wasted.

Feng Zhiwei believed he would rather slowly investigate and kill to silence witnesses afterward than let her shoot this flare.

Everyone was smart—why perish together?

Feng Zhiwei stroked that cylinder, sighing in her heart. This thing she had still obtained from Yan Huaishi. That fellow had his own guards in the capital, but because bringing them into Qingming Academy was inconvenient, he left this for emergency use and also gave her one. Unexpectedly today it actually saved her life.

She dared not stay longer. Standing still to discern direction, attempting to leave the academy from the rear courtyard, just turning past a corridor, suddenly someone jumped out, laughing: “Searched for you for ages—you’re here! Come, let’s watch the excitement!”

It was Chunyu Meng.

Feng Zhiwei looked at him, sighing in her heart. After a long while she said: “We’re still confined. How can we appear at that occasion?”

“No problem, we’ll watch secretly. Besides, even if we participate, it’s nothing. If we do well, the Director will also be happy—maybe he’ll even exempt our punishment.” Chunyu Meng carelessly came to pull her. “Let’s go!”

This child—doesn’t even know how he’ll die…

Feng Zhiwei raised her eyes to look at the sky, anxious in her heart. Patiently and tactfully hinting: “Better not to meddle. This kind of occasion, imperial family and noble persons gathering—we can’t get involved…”

“Imperial family gathering—why can’t we get involved?”

From behind the corridor, suddenly a person turned around. Brocade robes elegant and refined, garment lapels lightly flying. In the dawn light, a line of clear radiance rested on his brow, as if from the vast sky were born ten thousand clouds of rosy light.

Chunyu Meng delightedly stepped forward to pay respects: “Ah, you’ve already arrived first…”

Upon seeing that person, Feng Zhiwei’s mind boomed thunderously. In her panic, she retreated two steps. That person stood in place, smiling with hands clasped behind his back, looking over faintly.

He spoke to Chunyu Meng with a smile, yet his gaze didn’t shift one bit from falling on her. That gaze, sharp as a needle tip, without the slightest trace of smile.

“Since we’ve encountered you, let’s go together then.”