The horse stopped just outside the archers’ range, whether by design or coincidence. The person on horseback wore a red robe, but not the wide, flowing sleeves. The cuffs were tied tight. Rather than calling it a red robe, it was more like a suit of red armor. Jiang Li had never seen Ji Heng like this. Stripped of that layer of frivolous ambiguity, he looked as if he were a born general. In an instant, Jiang Li recalled the legends about Ji Minghan. Although people said Ji Heng’s appearance resembled Yu Hongye and wasn’t particularly similar to Ji Minghan, at this moment, Jiang Li saw the shadow of the young General of the Golden Guards in him.

The same extraordinary pride, as if nothing could harm him.

Yin Zhili stood in the snow. His black armor was cold and somber in color, his gaze even colder. He said, “The Duke of Su has quite the audacity.”

“Is that so?” Ji Heng gave a mocking smile. “That’s exactly what I want to say to you. You even dared to take my wife. It seems the Prince’s heir doesn’t value his life.”

“Your wife?” Yin Zhili was enraged by this term. He said, “I’m afraid you won’t have the chance to make her your wife.”

These words were full of murderous intent. Jiang Li couldn’t help but call out from the tent, “Ji Heng! Don’t come over. There are archers lying in ambush on all sides. They want your life! Don’t fall for the trap. Leave quickly. Yin Zhili won’t kill me, but he will kill you!”

Yin Zhili didn’t stop Jiang Li from speaking. Instead, he looked at Ji Heng and smiled. “You see, even Miss Jiang knows this. Do you plan to come forward, or do you plan to leave?”

If he came forward, Ji Heng would surely die. If he left, in Jiang Li’s heart, Ji Heng would have abandoned her. For Ji Heng, neither choice was good. The young man on horseback laughed, his smile full of mockery. He said, “Yin Zhili, compared to your father, you’re really too indecisive. Even your mother is much more decisive than you. If your mother were here, no matter what price had to be paid, she wouldn’t give me a chance to survive.”

Yin Zhili’s expression immediately darkened. His parents were his shame. Because of Yin Zhan and the Empress Dowager, he bore a fate forced upon him. Since learning of his origins, not a moment had passed without resentment and anger. He was ashamed to mention anything about himself, yet Ji Heng spoke it out in front of so many people, undoubtedly exposing what he feared most for everyone to see.

He hated Ji Heng with extreme intensity.

Jiang Li was puzzled. Setting aside Yin Zhili’s father, what about Yin Zhili’s mother? Wasn’t Yin Zhili’s birth mother already dead? What grudge did she have with Ji Heng? No one could answer these questions for Jiang Li. Before her still stood sword-bearing guards. She was the best bait. She didn’t even need to do anything, and Ji Heng would obediently step into the trap.

On the other side, Yin Zhiqing was struggling desperately to break through. Madam Yin grabbed her arm and urged, “Zhiqing, don’t go!”

“Mother!” Yin Zhiqing’s eyes turned red with urgency.

Madam Yin’s eyes also reddened. “Now that your father is gone, Mother only has you as a daughter. I know you like the Duke of Su, but he’s now your brother’s enemy. He wants your brother’s life. How can you be forgiven? Besides, what could you do if you went? It would just be wasted effort.”

“Precisely because I can’t do anything, I must go do it!” Yin Zhiqing broke free from Madam Yin’s hand and said, “Mother, you don’t understand!”

Madam Yin didn’t know about the past between the Ji family and Yin family. She didn’t even know about Yin Zhan and the Empress Dowager. Yin Zhiqing hadn’t told her these things. She always felt that once she told Madam Yin, Madam Yin would completely collapse. It was better to continue in error as things were now. Perhaps not knowing the truth was actually a kind of relief for her.

She ran to the outside of the tent but was also stopped by soldiers, unable to get close. She could only watch Ji Heng from afar.

For a moment, Yin Zhiqing couldn’t help but envy Jiang Li again. She had such a peerlessly magnificent fiancé, and this villain who was ruthless and heartless in the eyes of the world was willing to risk himself for her, coming to rescue her from fire and water regardless of consequences. How could such a person exist in this world?

“Duke of Su,” Yin Zhili said, “since you came today, don’t leave.”

Ji Heng raised an eyebrow. “That depends on whether you can keep me.”

“My Yin family troops…”

“Your Yin family troops at the northern border of Qingzhou are currently having a friendly exchange with my Golden Guards,” Ji Heng said with a faint smile. “Within a few hours, they probably won’t be able to make it here.”

Yin Zhili’s expression changed. “The Golden Guards?”

The legendary Golden Guards hadn’t been seen for many years. Since General of the Golden Guards Ji Minghan disappeared, the tiger tally of the Golden Guards also vanished. The entire court seemed to have tacitly accepted a fact—that the Golden Guards had long since retired and returned to their fields, and there were no more Golden Guards in the world. Even Yin Zhan investigated for a long time but confirmed that the Golden Guards would never appear again, so Yin Zhan was confident that as long as he eliminated Ji Heng, he could rest easy. The soldiers and imperial guards in Yanjing were merely nominal, unable to withstand a single blow, incomparable to these resolute men who had killed their way out of seas of blood.

If Yin Zhan had known the Golden Guards still existed, he surely wouldn’t have arranged things this way. He wouldn’t have rashly chosen the path of mutual destruction with Ji Heng, but would have made other plans. Now Yin Zhan was already dead, yet the Golden Guards suddenly appeared. For Yin Zhili, this was an enormous blow. Indeed, Yin Zhili looked at Ji Heng, his expression both shocked and furious. “You deceived him!”

“All’s fair in war,” Ji Heng smiled faintly. “The most foolish method in this world is trading life for life.”

He did it deliberately! People said the Duke of Su was shrewd and ruthless, and it truly wasn’t just rumor. He had truly brought scheming to its extreme. Even on that day at the red building confrontation, what seemed like putting all his eggs in one basket actually concealed hidden moves. Having watched so many plays, his skill at play-acting was also unparalleled, deceiving everyone. He would never take out his biggest bargaining chip first. It was merely luring the enemy deep, then swallowing them bit by bit.

Yin Zhili suddenly burst out laughing. Whether this laughter was self-mocking or sarcastic was unclear. He said, “My father schemed exhaustively yet was defeated by your hand. It seems you’re also a capable person, worthy of being my opponent. Today is your day to die!” He waved his hand, and those archers immediately aimed at Ji Heng.

Even with the Golden Guards restraining the Yin family troops, at this moment on Luye, there were still several hundred archers and soldiers, while Ji Heng was alone. The few against the many, two fists unable to defeat four hands—how could he fight his way through and still take Jiang Li away?

Jiang Li was desperately anxious.

Ji Heng gave a cold smile. Then Yin Zhili’s voice rang out: “Release arrows!” Immediately, dense masses of arrows shot up into the sky, all heading straight for Ji Heng alone. But Ji Heng suddenly bent low against the horse’s back, raising a shield from behind him. That shield blocked some of the arrows, while he drew the precious sword at his waist.

From their first meeting to acquaintance to friendship, whenever Jiang Li saw Ji Heng kill, he only ever used that gorgeous fan. This was the first time she saw Ji Heng use a sword. That precious sword gleamed with a bluish light. As it was drawn inch by inch from its sheath, even from far away one could feel the cold intent within. With shield in one hand and sword in the other, he was like a young, valiant general, in an unstoppable posture, crossing through chaotic arrows and blades, from mountain peaks and seas of fire, charging straight through all the way, invincible in his advance.

Yin Zhili frowned tightly, seemingly not expecting Ji Heng to be so bold as to charge straight through the rain of arrows. On the snowy plain, that single person and horse came galloping from distance to proximity. Just then, suddenly, an archer lying in ambush cried out, clutched his throat, and fell down. By his side appeared a ghostly shadow. That shadow moved extremely fast, quickly darting to other people’s sides.

“Death warriors! They’re death warriors!” someone cried out in alarm.

Yin Zhili said, “You brought others?”

“Not many,” Ji Heng said lazily from horseback. “Back then, my seventy-two Flying Dragon Riders were completely annihilated. The Flying Dragon Riders I’ve rebuilt now don’t total even half of what they were. Fortunately, they’re more than enough to deal with you.” He mocked, “How about it, Young Master Yin?”

With this smile, even the flying snow in the sky seemed to come alive. In those amber-colored eyes, only callousness and ruthlessness remained. Those Flying Dragon Riders appeared and disappeared like ghosts, emerging from who knows where, slitting archers’ throats with one slash. But the archers had to concentrate fully on dealing with Ji Heng, so more and more people fell. Yet even so, Ji Heng alone could hardly withstand so many arrows. Some arrows still injured him, but he paid no heed, not until the horse was almost at Jiang Li’s tent. Then Yin Zhili’s expression became even colder and grimmer. Even from his voice, a hint of exasperation emerged. He said, “Everyone, attack!”

He wanted Ji Heng to die right before Jiang Li’s tent, watching Jiang Li helplessly but unable to take her away. He wanted the lovers separated by heaven and earth forever. He wanted Ji Heng to die with unresigned eyes!

The arrows suddenly intensified, until Ji Heng’s figure was almost invisible. It created the illusion—was what fell from the sky white flying snow or black rain of arrows? Under such circumstances, Ji Heng could hardly survive. Jiang Li screamed. Yin Zhiqing on the side finally took advantage of the chaos when no one was watching her and rushed over. She said, “Brother, I beg you to release the Duke of Su!”

“Yin Zhiqing!” Yin Zhili shouted angrily, “Get back!”

He had never spoken to Yin Zhiqing like this before, but Yin Zhiqing paid no mind. She only looked at Ji Heng in panic. “Brother, please let him go!”

“Yin Zhiqing, don’t forget your surname is Yin. Even you want to stand on his side!” Yin Zhili said, “You’re crazy!”

“The crazy one is you!” Yin Zhiqing persisted relentlessly. “Do you know what you’re doing? You’ll regret it. If you kill Jiang Li, you’ll regret it!”

“If she’s destined not to belong to me, what harm is there in killing her? I won’t regret it, because I’m different from you!” His tone became completely mad.

In this moment, a murderous intent toward Jiang Li truly arose in Yin Zhili’s heart. He loved Jiang Li. From before he had even met her in person, just hearing about her deeds, he had fallen for her. For the first time in his life, he had been so fond of and admiring of a girl. Unfortunately, though she seemed gentle on the surface, her eyes held no room for him at all.

No matter what methods he used, her heart was as hard as rock, immovable. Yin Zhili thought, since he couldn’t stop Jiang Li’s feelings for Ji Heng, then he would destroy Jiang Li. At least what he couldn’t obtain, Ji Heng couldn’t obtain either. It was at this moment that Yin Zhili suddenly discovered that the same blood as Yin Zhan and the Empress Dowager truly flowed in his bones. They were equally selfish and heartless—better that I betray the world than the world betray me.

Those dark, obscure instincts had actually been hidden in his bones all along. His graceful nobility and concern for the world were actually worthless before reality. When someone was destined to be sacrificed, Yin Zhili would still immediately sacrifice others to preserve himself, following his heart’s true inclination. Just like this fate forced upon him—when it came down to it, did he really have no choice? Even if Yin Zhan forced him, even if fate forced him, if Yin Zhili was willing to give up everything, it actually wouldn’t have come to this outcome.

It was nothing more than the unwillingness in his heart. Because of this unwillingness, he accepted this outcome. He knew that taking this path might ruin his reputation, but at the same time, he might also be able to obtain everything through this—obtain the empire, and obtain her.

Jiang Li didn’t care about Yin Zhili’s thoughts. She only saw the person on horseback drawing closer and closer to her. His three-foot precious sword gleamed cold and bright, as if it could sever everything. He came charging passionately from the boundless snowy plain, like a ball of fire, drawing closer and closer to her. Jiang Li used all her strength trying to break free from the two soldiers’ grasp. The next moment, she saw Ji Heng’s precious sword slash across a soldier’s throat. He reached out to Jiang Li from horseback. The steed almost crashed into the tent. Jiang Li desperately reached out her hand to him. He grasped Jiang Li’s hand and pulled her onto the horse. At the same time, by Jiang Li’s ear came Yin Zhiqing’s piercing scream: “No!”

Then came Madam Yin’s anguished cry: “Zhiqing!”

The horse didn’t stop. It turned around extremely quickly. Jiang Li twisted her head to look and saw the blade in Yin Zhili’s hand had pierced through Yin Zhiqing’s chest. He was dumbstruck, seemingly not expecting this either.

No wonder when Ji Heng charged over earlier, Yin Zhili hadn’t blocked him. He had intended to stab from behind, never imagining Yin Zhiqing would block the blow for Ji Heng.

Jiang Li couldn’t help but turn back to look, her heart aching. She didn’t dare say anything here lest Ji Heng be distracted, yet she couldn’t let go of concern for Yin Zhiqing. She didn’t know how severe Yin Zhiqing’s injuries were, but she truly did like Ji Heng. If she died like this… Jiang Li couldn’t describe what she felt.

Madam Yin let out a wailing cry and quickly rushed over. Yin Zhili stood there stunned and released his grip, retreating a step. From Yin Zhiqing’s mouth, fresh blood kept flowing out. She gasped for breath and said with difficulty, “Yin Zhili, you… let them go… and let yourself go too…”

“Why?” Yin Zhili asked numbly.

“I… I don’t want him… to be hurt…” Yin Zhiqing spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood. The rise and fall of her chest gradually stopped. She stopped breathing. Her eyes remained wide open, but her head tilted to the side and moved no more.

This girl as beautiful and vivid as a ball of fire just lay in the snow like this, no longer having her former vitality and charm. Profuse snowflakes fell down, quickly covering her face. Soon her body seemed to grow cold as well. From life to death was just this instant.

Madam Yin’s grief-stricken cries echoed between heaven and earth. Yin Zhili suddenly burst into loud laughter. His eyes were ice-cold. He turned around and commanded all the living people, pointing at Ji Heng’s retreating figure, saying, “Kill him!”

But he himself stood on high ground, taking a bow from a subordinate’s hands. He nocked an arrow. The arrow pointed far away at Ji Heng. His hand suddenly shifted, re-aiming at Jiang Li instead.

He slowly drew back the longbow.

Jiang Li was held by Ji Heng. Ji Heng sat behind her. The horse ran very fast. She could only see arrows flying like rain all around. Those arrows fell into the snow, seemingly covering a layer of the accumulated snow. Some of the death warriors Ji Heng brought died. More of those who died were archers. Corpses lay scattered across the plain. The snow beneath them was gradually stained red.

This place clearly wasn’t a battlefield, yet it was even more tragic than a battlefield. The disparity in strength meant this battle was destined to be a desperate struggle sacrificing lives. Ji Heng’s mocking words and relaxed posture, facing Yin Zhili without taking him seriously at all—but only Jiang Li beside Ji Heng could clearly sense that at this moment, he was truly using all his strength to protect her safety.

He actually wasn’t certain either. He couldn’t be completely sure they would truly be safe and sound, but he was trying his utmost not to let Jiang Li suffer the slightest harm.

Just at this moment, she suddenly felt Ji Heng behind her lurch forward violently, as if something had struck his back. Jiang Li’s heart tightened. Just as she was about to turn back, Ji Heng’s voice sounded by her ear. His voice was gentle, and at this moment still carried comforting laughter. He said, “Don’t turn back.”

“Ji…” Jiang Li’s voice began to tremble.

“Mm?” He said with a smile, “It’s fine now. We’ve gotten out.”

His horse leaped past the arrows shot by those archers. The death warriors behind also no longer lingered in battle, like a surprise attack—after killing people and burning supplies, they left with panache. Unfortunately, the difference was that surprise attacks caught people unprepared, whereas they had clearly known there were death warriors and traps ahead, yet still ventured into danger as if on flat ground.

How could this work?

Behind the vast white plain was a forest dyed white with frost by the snow. Ji Heng’s horse plunged straight into it. Behind them, people seemed to be pursuing. Jiang Li’s heart pounded. She couldn’t say anything. At this time, distracting Ji Heng would only add to his troubles. But equally at this moment, she suddenly hated her own powerlessness. She regretted that back when Xue Zhao was learning martial arts, she hadn’t followed along to learn even a little bit. Then she wouldn’t be so passive now, being used as a bargaining chip to threaten Ji Heng.

She hadn’t accomplished anything good, yet had caused him to be completely disheveled.

Her head was suddenly tapped. As if he could see into Jiang Li’s heart, he smiled and said, “Don’t think wild thoughts. You haven’t wronged me in any way.”

Jiang Li forced out a smile. “Have we… shaken off those people?”

“Not yet,” Ji Heng smiled faintly. “That boy Yin Zhili isn’t as vicious as his old man, but he has more brains than Yin Zhan. To be completely safe, we should go a bit further in. Once Wen Ji makes contact with me, we’ll be safe.”

Jiang Li said nothing more.

On the other side, Yin Zhili looked before him. Some of those death warriors who hadn’t managed to retreat in time were shot by the combined efforts of archers. The rest swarmed forward and killed them. But some had escaped very quickly. They didn’t linger in battle. They weren’t true soldiers, but seemed merely killing tools. Their strikes were also vicious moves, their methods cunning and strange. He had also heard legends of the seventy-two Flying Dragon Riders under the General of the Golden Guards, but those seventy-two Flying Dragon Riders had been completely annihilated during the Hongshan Temple ambush. Ji Heng had actually rebuilt another unit. This unit of Flying Dragon Riders wasn’t as valiant as the one under his father, but was even more vicious and cruel.

Fewer than forty of them had caused these several hundred to suffer heavy losses. Bodies lay scattered all over the ground. And he could only watch helplessly as Ji Heng took Jiang Li and flew far away, disappearing into that forest. Before his death, Yin Zhan had calculated everything, but alone failed to calculate that Ji Heng had such a fearsome force in his hands. He failed to calculate even more that the Golden Guards hadn’t declined, the tiger tally hadn’t disappeared, and Ji Heng secretly controlled troops precisely for today.

In this game of chess, who ultimately had more patience? Who was the oriole behind the praying mantis?

Yin Zhili waved his hand, having some people pursue. He himself also wanted to personally track them, but was persuaded to stay by the trusted aide Yin Zhan had left him. If he pursued at this time and fell for Ji Heng’s trick, once Yin Zhili had an accident, the Yin family troops would truly be leaderless dragons and would quickly become scattered sand. Never mind Emperor Hongxiao sending people to war—the Yin family troops’ own internal factions would start fighting first.

For the greater good, he had to give up.

Yin Zhili retreated back to the tent’s edge. His gaze fell to the ground. There, hair ornaments and jewelry were scattered about, along with a large pool of fresh blood. Above the fresh blood, right here, Yin Zhiqing had been stabbed in the heart by his blade. He stared blankly at the fresh blood on the ground. The madness in his eyes gradually faded, as if he finally understood what he had actually done. He staggered back two steps.

Madam Yin had carried Yin Zhiqing’s body back into the tent. It was too cold outside. She feared freezing her daughter. Yin Zhili stood outside the tent, actually lacking the courage to take even one step inside. He had killed his own sister. Regardless of whether there was a blood relationship between him and Yin Zhiqing, it didn’t matter. They had grown up together in the Yin family, sharing joys and sorrows… Now he had personally killed her, even if it wasn’t intentional.

He stood outside the tent for a long time. Finally, he lifted the curtain and walked in.

Inside the tent, shut off from wind and snow, it didn’t seem much warmer for it. The brazier had long since gone out, leaving only cold ashes. Yin Zhiqing lay on the ground. Beside her, Madam Yin was collapsed over her body, as if she had fainted from heartbreak.

Yin Zhili walked over. He called out in a trembling voice, “Mother.”

Madam Yin didn’t answer him. Yin Zhili crouched down. Suddenly, his hands began trembling. A miserable cry escaped from his throat. He reached out and turned Madam Yin over from Yin Zhiqing’s body.

Madam Yin’s face still bore teardrops. Her body still had residual warmth. On her neck was a line of blood. That blade lay on the ground. The new bloodstains hadn’t yet dried. Madam Yin had slit her own throat before her daughter, using the very blade Yin Zhili had used to kill Yin Zhiqing.

“No—” Yin Zhili cried out in despair.

Madam Yin was dead. What else could Madam Yin do? For her, her husband was dead. Even though he had ignored her before, he was still her pillar of support. Even unto death, she believed it was her own fault that Yin Zhan had neglected her. Now her daughter had died tragically before her eyes. She couldn’t kill Yin Zhili because Yin Zhili hadn’t done it intentionally, and moreover, Yin Zhili was the Yin family’s future hope. But she absolutely couldn’t accept it, so she chose suicide, expressing her rage and sorrow with this resolute attitude.

Yin Zhili broke down crying.

He had accidentally killed his own sister—it was his fault. Now Madam Yin had committed suicide. Before coming to Yunzhong, he had thought himself no different from any other family. But in one night, everything changed. The people around him left one by one, as if debts owed in a previous life had all arrived at the moment of repayment. Looking back, the Yin family was left with only him alone.

In this world, it seemed only he remained alone.

Ji Heng still had Jiang Li, but what did he have? He had nothing left. He picked up the blade from the ground. His expression became dazed in an instant. Tottering, he held that blade and placed it at his own throat.

Just one stroke would bring release. All these damned fates, all these responsibilities that must be fulfilled—let them all disappear!

Yin Zhili closed his eyes. Outside, the sound of wind and snow seemed like wailing ghosts and howling wolves, wanting to rush in at any moment. It was also like a demon’s seduction, enticing him to fall together into a dark vortex, never able to see light again for all eternity.

With a “pa” sound, the blade in his hand dropped to his feet. Yin Zhili opened his eyes again.

It was different. Different.

Since so much had already been sacrificed, if he didn’t turn things around, he would be too much of a coward. Because Ji Heng had Jiang Li, he now had a weakness. But he was just the opposite. He had lost everything. The deaths of Yin Zhiqing and Madam Yin caused the last trace of softness in his heart to vanish completely. From this day forth, his heart was hard as iron. He had become a true member of the Yin family.

Perhaps this was what Yin Zhan had hoped to see.

As he wished. Yin Zhili slowly stood up. He no longer looked at the two corpses on the ground. His expression gradually became cold and twisted. He would take back everything that originally belonged to him. No matter what, unless he died, he would never turn back.

…

The sky gradually darkened. In the wilderness, the road was difficult to discern. Jiang Li and Ji Heng stopped before a mountain cave.

“Let’s rest here for a bit,” Jiang Li said softly. “Those people seem to have been shaken off. Yunzhong is desert. Yin Zhili is presumably unfamiliar with forests and won’t dare venture deep easily. Let’s rest a bit and wait here for news from Wen Ji.”

After a long moment with no answer from Ji Heng, Jiang Li turned back to look. She felt Ji Heng’s head resting on her shoulder. His hand still grasped hers, gripping very tightly, but the person had lost consciousness.

“Ji Heng!” Her heart clenched. She could no longer care about anything else. She reined in the horse to stop, trying to pry open Ji Heng’s hand, wanting to dismount first to check on Ji Heng’s condition. But Ji Heng’s hand gripped too tightly. Jiang Li struggled with difficulty to free her hand. Ji Heng then tumbled headfirst off the horse.

Jiang Li was shocked.

On Ji Heng’s back was still a black arrow. That arrow had pierced into his back, slightly downward. The blood had almost congealed. It had penetrated halfway, shocking to see, bloody and gory. All along the way, he hadn’t uttered a single word. Instead, he had smiled in response to her.

It turned out it was all just forcing himself to hold on.