Changling hadn’t expected him to ask the most useless question. Thinking about how this young master, despite his youth, knew quite a bit about old affairs and wondering what his background was, the words that had reached her lips slipped back. She said, “My hometown is in Jiangdong. I haven’t been back for many years.”

Ye Qi’s smile stiffened. “Miss’s answer is truly… wonderful.”

“What about you?” Changling probed, “Your whip technique seems quite good. I wonder which sect or school you’re from?”

She only asked one question, so Ye Qi had no choice to pick from. “To be honest, I started learning martial arts late, and my foundation isn’t solid. None of the famous sects were willing to take me as a disciple. Later, my family found a way and took me to visit retired seniors living in the mountains. I just learned bits and pieces from here and there—all showy moves, all half-baked knowledge… This whip is called the Infinite Whip. An old monk taught it to me, but he thought I didn’t master it well and refused to let me call him master, so I can’t properly mention his dharma name.”

Changling thought he would gloss over it, but didn’t expect such a serious answer. She deliberately asked, “Could it be a senior monk from Shaolin?”

“No, he came from the Western Regions, the kind whose whereabouts are unpredictable. Ah, to tell the truth, I haven’t seen the old master for many years.”

Uncle-Master Jiagu was indeed an eccentric monk who appeared and disappeared without a trace. Changling knew upon hearing that he wasn’t lying. Thinking of how she might never see her sect again, her heart darkened, and she had no intention of continuing to ask further.

Seeing she didn’t pick up the conversation, Ye Qi tilted his head. “No other questions? After all, we’re traveling together. I’ll certainly answer whatever I can.”

“No.” The questions she wanted to ask couldn’t be asked in a place like this.

Seeing Changling stand up to leave, Ye Qi was about to call out for the waiter to settle the bill when he saw her suddenly turn back and ask, “In the forest earlier, did you ever consider that if I wasn’t one of their people and didn’t come back, but just left directly, then letting me go would mean you couldn’t track down any leads?”

Ye Qi looked at her with bewilderment. “If you had nothing to do with them, shouldn’t I have let you go even more?”

Changling was suddenly stunned. Her gaze flickered for a moment before she turned and said, “Very well, let’s get on the road.”

After speaking, she walked out of the shop without looking back. Ye Qi scratched his head in great confusion. What was wrong with this girl? She only asked questions but never answered them—could they even communicate properly anymore?

It wasn’t that Changling didn’t want to talk to him.

It was just that she’d made not one but several round trips before the King of Hell. She’d long since become accustomed to seeing the unpredictable and sinister human heart. Even those who claimed to be righteous and noble often resorted to unscrupulous means in times of crisis, calling it “taking the big picture into account,” when in reality they were all just seeking advantages and avoiding harm—let alone talking about righteousness or義.

How could this Young Master Ye, being so clever, not know that letting her go was far more troublesome than keeping her?

If this candid demeanor wasn’t an act, then going to the Great Zhao Temple like this, he’d probably be able to get in but not out.

As an “old generation” predecessor, Changling really couldn’t bear to watch a rare new talent get crushed to death on the beach.

But as for rescue… setting aside how many of those eight sect leaders had participated in plotting against the Yue Family, even if they were all honorable and loyal men, trying to bring people away from the Great Zhao Temple filled with masters—did she really have that capability now?

After pondering for a long while, Changling decided not to meddle in other people’s business. When they reached the Great Zhao Temple, if she saw Fu Liujing also imprisoned there, she would kill him. If he wasn’t there, she’d retreat directly back to the Central Plains and absolutely wouldn’t interfere in Ye Qi’s affairs.

With this thought, her expression relaxed slightly. When she turned her head, she found Ye Qi staring at her. “Why are you looking at me?”

Ye Qi increasingly felt that this young lady was truly an extraordinary woman.

The two had been riding horses side by side for so long. Along the way, how many people had cast amazed glances at her, yet how could she continue on her way as if nothing had happened, not feeling uncomfortable at all?

“I know that Miss, being a peerless beauty, must be gazed upon daily and has long since become accustomed to it…” Ye Qi coughed lightly. “But what we’re about to do is no small matter. After all, it’s better to keep a low profile…”

What nonsense was he spouting?

When Changling came back to her senses, she realized all the peddlers and laborers around were stealing glances at her, either openly or covertly. Only then did she realize that her bright red brocade robe was too eye-catching. Coupled with Ye Qi in his flowing white robes beside her, those who didn’t know might think this was some bride running away with a young man.

Ye Qi was still muttering, “I’m just worried that before we even leave this street, we’ll already be discovered by Mingyue Zhou’s people… If we’re unlucky enough to run into Tianhun or Tianpo, I won’t even need to waste energy putting up a futile resistance.”

“Shut up.” Changling glanced at him coolly. “Is there a clothing shop nearby?”

In this kind of place with frequent commercial traffic, ready-made clothing shops naturally existed.

After all, this was in the outskirts. The shop front wasn’t as bright as those in the big cities. Upon entering the shop, Changling’s brow furrowed—it wasn’t that she meant to be picky, but the attire of Yan court women was too troublesome. Every garment had a string of gold or silver beads hanging from the hem. They either exposed the chest or had overly narrow skirts. Looking around, she couldn’t see a single decent piece of clothing.

Having finished tying up the horse, Ye Qi also squeezed into the shop. After just one glance, he said, “If you really wear these to fight a bunch of monks who’ve sworn off worldly desires, and accidentally fling jewelry in their faces, that scene would be quite a sight.”

At this moment, the wooden door at the back of the shop creaked open with a creak. A middle-aged woman wearing a golden yellow dress pushed the door open. Seeing two customers of stunning appearance standing in the shop, her eyes lit up. “Are you two here to buy clothes?”

Changling asked, “Do you have men’s clothing?”

“Our shop only sells young ladies’ skirts. We don’t have men’s clothes. Is it for the young master to wear?”

Ye Qi pointed at Changling. “It’s for her.”

The female shopkeeper looked at Changling in astonishment. “You’re such a beautiful young lady—why would you wear men’s clothes?”

Changling was disgusted by the four words “beautiful young lady.” She immediately looked at Ye Qi. “Let’s try another shop.”

The female shopkeeper’s body jingled as she walked. “For several li around, mine is the only ready-made clothing shop. If Miss leaves like this, you won’t be able to run away from your wedding.”

“…” There really were people who took her for a runaway bride.

The female shopkeeper stared straight at Ye Qi. “Young man, since you’ve lured away someone’s wife, you should at least get her a decent piece of clothing. Our shop’s materials and fabrics are all first-rate goods. If you miss this village, there won’t be this shop.”

Ye Qi smiled. “Shopkeeper truly knows how to do business. How about this—you help pick something out for her. There’s no other requirement. Just choose the cheapest piece, with the darkest color, that looks the ugliest.”

“…” The female shopkeeper’s gaze toward Ye Qi instantly dropped from appreciation to contempt. “Miss, have you really thought this through about running from this marriage…”

Changling had long since lost her patience. “If you have it, bring it. If not, we’ll leave.”

“I’ll go look. You wait here.” The female shopkeeper rolled her eyes. After pulling open the small wooden door and entering the storage room, Ye Qi idly rummaged through piles and piles of dresses. Changling asked, “Who are these Tianhun and Tianpo you mentioned earlier?”

Hearing this, Ye Qi said, “You don’t even know about Tianhun and Tianpo?”

“What’s so strange about not knowing?”

“I thought that someone like Miss who practices martial arts would have at least heard of them…” Ye Qi was extremely surprised. “They’re biological brothers, both Mingyue Zhou’s right and left hands. They use cyclone blades—one called the Soul-Hooking Blade, one called the Spirit-Hooking Blade. Though the blades look like twins too, the blade techniques the two use are vastly different. One is fast, one is ruthless. When they combine their twin blades, their power is boundless. I’ve heard that even Yan Kingdom’s top master would be hard-pressed to determine a victor against them.”

Changling was slightly stunned. “What about separately?”

“Remember when we ambushed the carriage? The people with us?” Ye Qi said, “At that time, only Tianpo was beside Mingyue Zhou, and he used just ten moves to force back the sword formation formed by over thirty of us. Tell me, is that impressive or not?”

Changling’s fingertips unconsciously lifted slightly—this was her reaction whenever she heard about masters: eager to try. But she still knew her own capabilities. This broken body could only bluff people like the worthless Daoist Xu. Anything else was out of the question.

After a brief silence, the female shopkeeper emerged from the storage room carrying a large pile of pitch-black clothing, tossing it onto the table. “These are all unsold. Pick for yourself.”

This batch wasn’t as garishly ornate. They were barely acceptable to look at. Changling took a gray-blue narrow-sleeved dress and was about to go into the back storage to change when the female shopkeeper’s arm blocked her way. “It’s cramped inside, not a place to change clothes.”

Changling’s brow furrowed. Ye Qi understood. “I’ll wait outside first. You take your time.”

Having said this, he stepped out of the small shop, even considerately closing the door behind him before leaving.

This small shop’s entrance was in a side lane. In the entire alley, only this one establishment was open for business. Looking around, it seemed rather cold and deserted.

Ye Qi looked at the sheepskin map for a while, thinking to himself: Looks like tonight we’ll be sleeping in the wilderness.

He fumbled out the last three copper coins from his sleeve, planning to go buy two flatbreads to fill their stomachs on the road. When he looked up, he suddenly noticed a burly man standing far away at the entrance to the alley, with a curved blade fastened at his waist.

That person walked out from the backlight, revealing a gaunt yet cold face.

Ye Qi’s heart gave a “thud.”

It was Tianpo.

Tianpo walked a few steps closer and stopped. Though there was still a distance of three yards between them, Ye Qi didn’t move at all—within five yards, the Spirit-Hooking Blade never missed. Just now, he’d been too busy being stunned and had missed the perfect chance to escape. It was too late to turn and run now.

Tianpo’s gaze fell on Ye Qi’s waist, and he slowly spoke. “I recognize your whip. Where is that young lady?”

Ye Qi thought to himself: I didn’t expect Mingyue Zhou to value this young lady so highly that even his personal confidant is running errands to find her.

He adjusted his sleeves. “I let her go.”

Tianpo’s eyes narrowed slightly. “You abducted her, then let her go. Do you take me for a fool?”

“Believe it or not, it’s up to you. Since that young lady isn’t your nation’s princess, we had no use keeping her, so naturally we let her go. You might want to think about it—if we were still holding her, we would have brought people to negotiate with the Third Prince early on. Why would we drag it out until now?”

Tianpo’s cheek twitched. Whether or not he believed these words was unclear, but he stared straight at Ye Qi. “Very well.”

When Ye Qi heard the word “well,” he had already instinctively taken a step back. But Tianpo’s blade was faster. With only a “whoosh” of air being cut, the Spirit-Hooking Blade had already left his hand and floated forward. Ye Qi leaned back to dodge it. Before he could straighten his back, the blade, as if possessing a telepathic connection, paused in midair and moved first to stab toward his spine.

Ye Qi had no weapon in hand to block it. In desperation, he threw out a copper coin. With excellent accuracy, it struck the Spirit-Hooking Blade. Though the blade’s force was tremendous, it was slightly deflected from its direction. Ye Qi spun to dodge. By the time it returned to Tianpo’s hand, he had already leaped beyond five yards.

Tianpo gave his opponent no chance to catch his breath. His hand suddenly swung, and the blade’s edge, carrying a frosty intent, attacked again. Ye Qi, almost in the same instant, whipped his whip to coil around a roof bracket on the beam. Using the leverage, he launched himself onto the roof. But the blade light shifted directions at lightning speed, making it truly impossible to dodge.

Seeing the blade light transform into a white shadow slashing toward him, Ye Qi pressed himself flat against the roof. The blade face flew past his body. Just as the blade spun around, his eyes were quick and his hands nimble—he actually grabbed the blade handle!

Tianpo’s pupils suddenly contracted.

The Spirit-Hooking Blade was called the number one sacred blade of Great Yan. Aside from the two brothers Tianhun and Tianpo, ordinary people didn’t dare approach within three feet of it. Yet now Ye Qi had grabbed it with his bare hands. How could this not shock him?

Ye Qi’s face remained completely composed, but he broke out in a cold sweat inside.

He knew well that if he gave Tianpo a third chance to attack, he definitely couldn’t escape this calamity. So he used his palm with two copper coins stuck to it to forcibly intercept the Spirit-Hooking Blade. Fortunately, heaven took pity on him and let him bet correctly this once.

Tianpo wasn’t some rookie who became helpless without his blade. He laughed instead of getting angry, his face immediately taking on three parts ferocity. “Interesting.”

As he spoke, he had already swept onto the roof. Palm wind imbued with powerful internal force chopped down from above. With such disparity between enemy and ally, how could Ye Qi dare engage? He swept his long sleeve and threw the Spirit-Hooking Blade with force—those who practice blade techniques always cherish their blades like life. Tianpo was no exception. He suddenly turned and leaped out to catch the flying blade.

Ye Qi was about to take the opportunity to escape. Just as he jumped down from the roof, he suddenly heard a “bang.” A figure burst through the door and crashed heavily into the wall, rolling twice before passing out on the ground. He glanced down at the bundle of gaudy colors at his feet and gave a light “eh.” Looking up again, he saw Changling step out leisurely.

She had already changed into a narrow-sleeved dress. Her waist was slender as plain silk, yet she rubbed her chin while staring at the female shopkeeper on the ground, saying, “I warned her not to force me to act. She didn’t listen. There’s nothing I could do.”

“…”

Sensing Ye Qi’s gaze, Changling raised her eyebrow. Just as she was about to speak, from far away she saw Tianpo land before them like wind beneath his feet, the curved blade in his hand radiating fierce killing intent.

“So Miss has been turned to their side.” Tianpo glanced indifferently at the female shopkeeper collapsed on the ground. “The Prince worried for nothing.”

Changling didn’t understand what “turned to their side” meant, but while changing clothes she had already heard the sounds of fighting outside. Now seeing Ye Qi’s disheveled appearance and catching sight of the cyclone blade in Tianpo’s hand, she immediately understood. “Are you Tianhun or Tianpo?”

“Tianpo.”

Changling gave a meaningful “oh.” “So are you here today to kill him or to find me?”

“The Third Prince ordered this subordinate to bring Miss back. If there are obstacles, kill without mercy.”

“What if I don’t go with you?”

Tianpo looked at her, stroking the blade handle. “Then I can only use force.”

If it were the past, Changling would probably have said “you’re courting death” and already greeted him with her fists. But times had changed. She didn’t want to waste internal energy on this kind of small fry, so she only remained silent for a moment before nodding. “I’ll go with you.”

Tianpo seemed astonished by how quickly Changling surrendered, but he only paused briefly before extending his hand to point outside the alley. “The carriage is waiting outside. Miss, please.”

Changling glanced at Ye Qi. “You take care of yourself.”

Having said this, she strode forward without any hesitation. Tianpo was about to follow when his whole body suddenly stiffened. He tried to take another step forward, but unexpectedly his feet gave out and he immediately knelt on the ground.

Changling stopped and turned around. “What’s wrong?”

Tianpo used his blade to support himself on the ground, barely stabilizing his form. “I…”

“He’s been hit by my Hunyuan Powder and will fall asleep soon.” The low-key Ye Qi, who had been standing silently in the corner, finally spoke up. As soon as he uttered these words, Tianpo’s expression suddenly darkened. He looked up in disbelief. “You… when did you…”

Ye Qi tilted his head and smiled, magnanimously pointing at Tianpo’s blade.

Tianpo lowered his head and only then noticed the white powder on the Spirit-Hooking Blade’s handle. His heart suddenly jumped.

Earlier, seizing the blade had been but a flash of lightning and flint. This fellow barely had time to escape—where would he have found time to apply medicine?

Unless it was even earlier… from the very beginning, he’d already calculated every subsequent step?

Thinking of this, Tianpo’s entire body shook. He thought: That’s right. He could intercept my blade, showing that both his skills and eyesight are extraordinary. Yet at the start, he deliberately acted cornered to lure me into attacking. Could it all have been an act?

Tianpo was inwardly horrified. He looked at Ye Qi as if seeing a ghost. Yet Ye Qi squinted with a pleasant expression, his face full of gentle harmlessness, leaving Changling on the side completely puzzled.

Seeing Tianpo’s upper and lower eyelids busy fighting each other, Ye Qi knew he was about to meet with the Duke of Zhou. So he squatted before him and smiled amiably. “We definitely won’t take advantage to harm anyone. Please rest assured and sleep…”

Having finished speaking in a tone used to coax children, he grabbed the blade from Tianpo’s hand through his sleeve and added, “…However, I must borrow the blade first. One day, if fate permits, you and Brother Blade will meet again.”

Tianpo: “…”

Ye Qi wiped the powder clean from the blade handle, returned the blade to its sheath, and rose to say to Changling, “We can’t let them leak information yet. We can only tie them up in the shop’s storage room first.”

Changling turned around and spat out two words. “As you wish.”

Ye Qi was slightly stunned. He intuitively sensed that Changling was somewhat unhappy, but couldn’t figure out why for the moment. He inexplicably scratched his head.

At this time, Tianpo, barely holding on against the sleep god with his last thread of consciousness, said in a breath as faint as gossamer, “Miss Changling…”

Ye Qi suddenly turned his head.

Tianpo looked at Changling with difficulty. “The Prince is extremely concerned about your safety… You must not do anything to harm him… otherwise…”

Otherwise what—there was no continuation, because Tianpo had already collapsed with a thud, falling backward into sleep.

Changling couldn’t be bothered to pay attention and was about to walk back when she suddenly heard Ye Qi move his lips. “He called you Changling… Is that your name?”

This question was asked in a low, deep voice, completely unlike his usual breezy manner. It actually startled her. She turned her head to see Ye Qi with a stern expression, something seemingly ignited in his eyes. “Your name is Changling?”

Author’s Note:

Answering a common question:

Sister Ling’s appearance has changed greatly. The red flying patterns at the corners of her eyes are gone, her swollen eyelids (single) have gone down (double), her skin has become several shades whiter, and her features are younger and more refined. It’s very normal that old acquaintances don’t recognize her.