The crowd below couldn’t see how He Yan and Ba Zhu determined their victory. They only saw the two wrestling together, Ba Zhu striking He Yan with his palm, and He Yan piercing Ba Zhu’s neck with some concealed weapon.

Though not entirely honorable, it was still a victory.

“Brother He is amazing!” Cheng Li Su was the first to cheer. “Well fought! Well fought!”

“Shut up!” Song Tao Tao scolded from the side.

Cheng Li Su protested, “What’s wrong with cheering for my brother?”

“It’s not time to relax yet.” Song Tao Tao shook her head. Being a girl, she was more observant than the boys and noticed He Yan’s face was paler than before. Her heart skipped a beat, suspecting He Yan was injured. However, due to his black clothing, she couldn’t determine where the injury might be.

On the platform, the youth in black martial attire lifted his chin and smiled, asking, “Is no one else brave enough to come up?”

At that moment, Ri Da Mu Zi suddenly burst into loud laughter, clapping his hands. “Interesting, interesting! I never expected Liangzhou Guard to have such an interesting person!” Before his words faded, he rode his horse toward the martial arts platform.

His movement was so swift that those around him were caught off guard. Several Liangzhou recruits nearly got trampled under his horse’s hooves and, fortunately, pulled away by others nearby. Ri Da Mu Zi abruptly reined in his horse one step from the platform and leaped up, landing before He Yan.

“Surely Commander doesn’t intend to personally enter the fight?” the youth asked in surprise. “I’m just a mere recruit, how could I deserve such honor?”

“You killed two of my warriors, hardly seeming like an ordinary recruit,” Ri Da Mu Zi laughed, showing no displeasure at losing his beloved generals.

“Just luck, nothing more.”

“No need for modesty. I watched you fight with both of them, you truly deserve to be called Liangzhou Guard’s finest!” Ri Da Mu Zi said, looking down at the crowd below with a contemptuous smile. “I see you’re the only one here worthy of being called brave and clever. However…” his tone shifted, “I wonder how long you can endure with that wound at your waist?”

He Yan remained silent.

Ri Da Mu Zi studied him with interest. “Ba Zhu was my most capable subordinate. He attacked your waist twice just now, suggesting you have an old wound there. The last time, when you drove your hidden weapon into his throat, he…” He walked to Ba Zhu’s side and nudged the corpse with his foot. Ba Zhu rolled over onto his back. “His hand loosened, but what did he stab into your waist? A knife?”

Ri Da Mu Zi asked with feigned concern, “Oh my, it must hurt terribly?”

“It’s not so bad,” He Yan smiled. “Not as painful as his condition.”

Ri Da Mu Zi stared at him for a moment, then smiled. “Very good. I like tough bones like you – they’re especially sweet when crushed.” Just as Ba Zhu had done to Wa La earlier, he kicked Ba Zhu’s corpse off the platform, chuckling, “Useless waste.”

Then he slowly drew the curved blade from his waist.

Seeing this, Shen Han’s eyes narrowed in anger. “Ri Da Mu Zi, as a Commander, how can you fight with our Liangzhou Guard recruit? If you want to test skills, I’ll be your opponent!”

“You?” Ri Da Mu Zi slowly shook his head. “You’re not even as good as him. I want him – this He Yan.”

“Master Instructor Shen, let me handle this,” He Yan said.

Whatever He Yan and Shen Han said didn’t matter – Ri Da Mu Zi had already set his sights on He Yan. This was the worst possible situation, but simultaneously fortunate, as it would give them more time.

“Won’t you change your weapon?” Ri Da Mu Zi smiled. “My blade will cut through your whip.”

“Perhaps my whip will snap your blade instead,” He Yan replied with a bright smile, gripping the whip with both hands and holding it before his eyes.

The Qiang soldiers all used curved blades, each different from the others. Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade was extremely large and long, standing half as tall as a person. Its surface, stained with countless people’s blood, had taken on a dark red hue. As soon as it left its sheath, the sunlight falling on it gave off a bloody aura.

He Yan could only choose the whip. In those years fighting the Qiang people, she had always used a sword. If anyone here had seen the “Flying Swan General” before, they would immediately recognize that her sword technique was identical. As for using a blade – the Qiang people excelled at blade techniques. Using a blade against them would be like attacking their strength with one’s weakness, asking for trouble. After consideration, the iron whip seemed the only viable option.

Ri Da Mu Zi charged forward with his blade.

His footwork was quick, and despite his robust build, his movements were incredibly agile. He was also cunning, maintaining a distance just beyond He Yan’s whip range.

When He Yan tried to wrap her whip around his blade, Ri Da Mu Zi dodged and countered with a slash against the iron whip. Though the whip didn’t break, the loud “bang” was heart-stopping.

At this rate, who knew how long the whip would last? The weapons on the rack were meant for soldiers’ practice – sturdy and durable was enough. But Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade was a treasure, incomparable to ordinary weapons.

He laughed heartily as he swung his blade horizontally. He Yan’s whip caught the blade but couldn’t pull it away – Ri Da Mu Zi was too strong. He said, “How naive!” and pulled the blade toward himself, forcing He Yan’s body to fly in his direction.

“Brother He, be careful!” Xiao Mai couldn’t help but cry out.

As He Yan flew toward Ri Da Mu Zi, seemingly about to collide with his blade’s edge, the youth suddenly smiled. The whip traced a graceful arc, slipping under the blade’s edge, and struck Ri Da Mu Zi’s face. Meanwhile, He Yan used the momentum to soar over Ri Da Mu Zi’s head, rolling once on the ground before coming to a stop.

The crowd below finally let out their held breath.

Ri Da Mu Zi slowly turned his head.

His naturally fierce and brutal features, now with blood flowing down his cheek from He Yan’s whip strike, made him even more terrifying. Ri Da Mu Zi seemed completely unfazed, casually wiping the blood and licking what had reached his lips. He stared intently at He Yan and said, “You’re quite skilled.”

His voice was soft, but it sent chills down everyone’s spine.

He Yan replied, “The feeling is mutual.”

The wound at her waist hurt with every movement. The recent roll had driven the blade fragment deeper into her body. But she couldn’t remove it now – firstly, there was no time in this situation, and secondly, if she pulled it out, the bleeding wouldn’t stop, and she’d quickly lose strength.

But now, He Yan wasn’t as composed as she appeared. The dagger Ba Zhu had thrust into her body wasn’t long – short and delicate, about a finger’s width, and thrust in horizontally. Though it missed vital organs, it had struck right over an old wound. The original wound had reopened, and her combat movements on the martial arts platform had caused the blade to sink deeper, like experiencing flesh being cut while fully conscious.

She looked down, quickly bit her lip to restore its color, and once again appeared as the spirited youth.

“How much longer can you hold out?” Ri Da Mu Zi asked without concern, smiling. “You’ve nearly sweated yourself dry.”

“Is that so?” He Yan wiped her brow. “Must be the hot weather.”

Ri Da Mu Zi slowly raised his blade, grinning viciously as he lunged forward. “Your blood will run dry too!”

He Yan charged to meet him.

Below, the Liangzhou Guard recruits watched with bated breath. He Yan wasn’t handling Ri Da Mu Zi with the same ease as the previous two opponents. Ri Da Mu Zi was cunning and ruthless, and no matter how skilled He Yan usually was, she was still just a sixteen-year-old youth.

Jiang Jiao mumbled, “He can’t hold on much longer.”

“Probably injured,” Huang Xiong furrowed his brow. “If things get worse,” he touched the gold-backed broadsword at his side, “we’ll charge up together. We can’t watch him die for nothing.”

Wang Ba cursed, “Damn! How can these instructors just stand by and let a kid fight? Aren’t they ashamed?”

Shen Han stood among the crowd, eyes fixed on He Yan’s figure, nearly crushing the paper in his hand. Beside him, Liang Ping anxiously whispered, “Master Instructor, we can’t keep waiting. We can’t let these Western Qiang people dominate. Perhaps we should…”

“Don’t act on your own!” Shen Han hissed. “Wait a bit longer.”

Wait? Wait for what?

On the platform, He Yan exchanged another dozen moves with Ri Da Mu Zi.

Her movements weren’t as swift as before, noticeably slower. She had been grazed by several of Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade strikes on her arms, barely avoiding them each time, but still bearing injuries.

Yet her smile never wavered from start to finish. It was as if this wasn’t a life-or-death battle, but just a casual, joyful sparring match with companions after daily training.

This puzzled Ri Da Mu Zi.

He said, “Are all Central Plains people as good at pretending as you?”

“Not quite,” He Yan’s voice was unsteady from pain, but she smiled. “I’m especially good at pretending.”

Ri Da Mu Zi’s smile lost some of its earlier ease.

He Yan didn’t dare relax her vigilance against him.

During the past wars with the Western Qiang, their commander Ri Da Mu Ji had been brutal, his curved blade claiming countless lives. Wherever he went, bones piled up. Ri Da Mu Ji’s favorite activity was beheading captives with his curved blade and tying their heads to his horse’s tail. These bloody, mangled heads became lifelong nightmares for many Central Plains civilians.

The Fuyue Army led by He Yan had fought numerous fierce battles with Ri Da Mu Ji’s Qiang troops. In every encounter, He Yan could sense his cunning and terrifying nature.

In the final battle, Ri Da Mu Ji died at He Yan’s hand.

In life, he had loved beheading others, probably never imagining that in death, his head would be severed, placed in a jewel-encrusted box, and brought to the imperial palace in the capital. Presented before the emperor, it became a general’s military achievement, exchanged for rich rewards.

After Ri Da Mu Ji’s death, the Western Qiang lost their leader, and the rebellion was quickly suppressed. Now this man called Ri Da Mu Zi bore a face identical to Ri Da Mu Ji’s.

He Yan had watched Ri Da Mu Ji breathe his last – he couldn’t have come back to life. Moreover, Ri Da Mu Ji’s eyes had been dark green, while Ri Da Mu Zi’s were dark blue. He Yan recalled hearing that Ri Da Mu Ji had a twin brother, naturally endowed with brute strength and known for his viciousness. However, due to conflicts with Ri Da Mu Ji over the commander position, he left early on, his whereabouts unknown.

Now it seemed this was indeed Ri Da Mu Ji’s twin brother, Ri Da Mu Zi.

He probably learned of his brother’s death and gathered the remaining Qiang troops before leading his forces to Liangzhou Guard. He was also cunning, learning from spies that Xiao Jue wasn’t currently at Liangzhou Guard and that the recruits were inexperienced, which made him bold enough to act so openly.

But Ri Da Mu Zi wasn’t a fool. Even if his subordinates were brave and fierce, a thousand men couldn’t defeat Liangzhou Guard’s tens of thousands of elite soldiers. Therefore, his forces must be far greater than what was visible. This was a carefully planned trap against the Liangzhou Guard. With White Moon Mountain in front and Five Deer River behind, if they had troops, crossing through White Moon Mountain in such heavy snow would be impossible. Thus, the most likely approach would be using the closest waterway at night, crossing over by river.

He Yan had never met Ri Da Mu Zi before, but after numerous encounters with Ri Da Mu Ji, she knew his methods well. He loved setting up fighting platforms, claiming to test skills while using vicious tactics. Central Plains warriors who fought honorably usually fell to his schemes, losing morale before the real battle began. Once the fear of the Qiang people took root, defeat often followed. Many Great Wei commanders had fallen for Ri Da Mu Ji’s tricks.

In warfare, deception is expected, but morale is crucial. He Yan understood clearly that although Ri Da Mu Zi was estranged from his brother, their methods were identical. Liangzhou Guard’s recruits would inevitably face a fierce battle with Ri Da Mu Zi’s forces today. She had done everything possible, and the last task was to build up their fighting spirit here on this martial arts platform.

With high morale, they would show their true strength in their first battle.

“I hate pretentious Central Plains people the most.” Ri Da Mu Zi finally lost patience. He glanced into the distance, seemingly waiting for some news, but receiving none, he turned back and said, “Let’s end this quickly!”

He Yan smiled, “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

She reached down to tighten her belt over the wound, preventing excessive bleeding, though this made it more painful and uncomfortable.

Watching her movements, Ri Da Mu Zi suddenly said, “You remind me of someone.”

He Yan asked, “Who?”

“Though I never met him, my unfortunate brother once spoke of a Central Plains general called He Ru Fei, who could continue commanding battles even after being shot with arrows. He ultimately died at He Ru Fei’s hand. You’re very similar to that person.”

Hearing this, He Yan smiled, “You’re wrong. I’m not He Ru Fei, nor am I like him.”

She glanced at the Liangzhou crowd below: “But every son of Great Wei is like me – as long as we’re not dead, we’ll fight to the end! The Central Plains will have thousands upon thousands of Flying Swan Generals, but your Western Qiang,” she looked up mockingly, “how many can you produce?”

With that, she swung her iron whip and charged straight at Ri Da Mu Zi!

Ri Da Mu Zi sneered, unconcerned. In his view, He Yan was already wounded, old injuries and new – just the last desperate struggle of a spent force. Though her endurance was surprising, she couldn’t last much longer.

The curved blade and iron whip entangled, producing metallic clashing sounds.

“Brother He…” Xiao Mai watched from below, heart clenched with worry.

He Yan’s movements became faster.

Her whip strikes grew increasingly rapid, surpassing Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade movements. Though the curved blade was large and heavy, Ri Da Mu Zi’s movements were already quick by normal standards. But they couldn’t match the steel whip, which found its way through every gap before the blade could swing, striking Ri Da Mu Zi’s face. Earlier there had been just one bloody mark, but now several adorned his face.

“Is this all you can do?!” Ri Da Mu Zi was enraged by the successive whip strikes, his expression turning savage. His curved blade went straight for He Yan’s neck, but her small frame easily avoided it.

“You’re not so great yourself,” the youth even had time to taunt.

What was happening? Ri Da Mu Zi grew increasingly bewildered – how could He Yan’s movements be getting faster as time passed? Wasn’t he injured? How could he still move so nimbly, showing no signs of being affected? Had he been faking earlier? Did this youngster have no old injuries at all?

He Yan dodged the blade tip, her toes touching the ground as she circled behind Ri Da Mu Zi.

His armor was impenetrable – He Yan’s whip had struck him several times but left no mark on the armor.

Then, like Ba Zhu and Wa La, he had only one weakness left.

Her eyes narrowed as she attacked from behind.

Ri Da Mu Zi turned and blocked He Yan’s iron whip with his blade, sending her flying, but in the blink of an eye, she used the momentum to launch herself back at him.

This seemed like a reckless fighting style, all offense with no defense.

“Could he be trying to die together?” Jiang Jiao mumbled.

Though it appeared desperate to onlookers, He Yan wasn’t actually in such dire straits. Rather, it was Ri Da Mu Zi who had gone from certain victory to gradually losing ground.

The youth seemed to know every trace of his blade movements, avoiding them early in each exchange while quickly identifying and exploiting the weaknesses in Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade technique, leaving him somewhat flustered.

How old was he? Fifteen or sixteen? To spot one’s weaknesses so quickly and counter them – what a terrifying enemy. And if, as this youth said, the Central Plains had countless others like him, what about Western Qiang? How many such prodigies could they produce? None – not a single one.

For a moment, Ri Da Mu Zi felt the urge to retreat.

His morale had crumbled.

But in this, he wronged He Yan. No matter how skilled she was, she couldn’t judge an opponent’s patterns after just a few exchanges, especially someone like Ri Da Mu Zi. It was because, whether due to their twin blood relation or sharing the same teacher, Ri Da Mu Zi’s blade technique was identical to Ri Da Mu Ji’s.

In her previous life, He Yan had fought countless times with Ri Da Mu Ji, knowing him inside and out, his moves memorized by heart. This knowledge now served her well against Ri Da Mu Zi. The fear this induced in him played right into He Yan’s hands.

It was simply using his methods against him.

They were used to crushing others’ morale to boost their own. Now they finally experienced the taste of despair themselves – this was the opportunity.

He Yan’s whip strikes grew faster and faster, so quick that onlookers could barely follow. To Ri Da Mu Zi, the iron whip seemed to become a living snake, coiling and dancing before him, its shadows flickering. His blade swept through empty air while a whip struck his forehead – the real whip was there.

He furiously slashed at He Yan, but the youth had already circled behind him. This move had appeared earlier when dealing with Wa La. Ri Da Mu Zi’s heart sank, seeing the iron whip dancing before his eyes like heavy chains about to loop around his neck.

Then, with one pull, his throat would be crushed, and he would die like Wa La.

At the crucial moment, he shouted, “Ke Mu Zhi—”

This seemed to be the name of one of his subordinates. The next moment, a woman’s cry rang out on the martial arts platform – it was Song Tao Tao, thrown up onto the platform by a Qiang warrior.

The Qiang warrior was robust, while Song Tao Tao was just a slender young girl. Being suddenly thrown up like cargo, if she fell, she would be severely injured if not killed.

No one below could reach her in time.

The whip in He Yan’s hands turned away from Ri Da Mu Zi’s neck, flying toward Song Tao Tao as she lunged in that direction.

The iron whip wrapped around Song Tao Tao’s body as He Yan flew over, catching her in her arms. They crashed heavily to the ground together, He Yan cushioning Song Tao Tao’s body. The impact drove the wound in her waist deeper, and she couldn’t help but let out a sharp hiss of pain.

“Brother, watch out!” Cheng Li Su’s shout suddenly rang out.

“He Yan!”

“Brother He!”

Anxious voices came from all directions. Liang Ping’s voice was particularly shrill. He Yan turned her head to see a flash of blade light rushing toward her.

When she caught Song Tao Tao, her back was exposed. Ri Da Mu Zi’s curved blade fell viciously, about to cut her in two.

He Yan pushed Song Tao Tao away and closed her eyes against the blade wind.

She had no strength left to move.

“Die!”

“Bang—”

There was no expected pain, no blood spraying. Something had knocked the curved blade away, and someone seemed to be standing in front of her.

He Yan slowly opened her eyes.

A familiar figure in dark blue robes adorned with silver-threaded serpents stood before her, straight as a pine tree, his calmness reassuring. The long sword in his hand was still sheathed, crystalline-like ice and snow, radiating brilliant light.

This slim, thin Drinking Autumn sword had deflected the murderous blade.

“Commander… Commander! It’s the Commander!” The crowd below was stunned for a moment before erupting.

“The Commander is back!”

“Uncle!”

Xiao Jue… had returned?

He Yan looked over, her vision already blurring.

Xiao Jue pulled her up from the ground. He Yan had no strength left and slumped softly against him. Xiao Jue supported her waist, seeming to notice something, and looked down.

The youth in black martial attire appeared only weak, with no visible wounds, but when Xiao Jue’s hand touched He Yan’s waist, it felt wet.

His hand was covered in blood.

His expression shifted slightly as he slowly looked at Ri Da Mu Zi, though his words were directed at He Yan, with his usual sarcasm: “Why is it that every time I meet you, you manage to get yourself into such a miserable state?”

“…”

He Yan smiled slightly and said softly, “Maybe it’s because I always know you’ll come to save me.”