Feng Jiu’er returned to the boundary of Wind Snow Pass, and before long she was back at the foot of the mountain.
She checked the time — it was almost the hour she’d arranged to meet Qiao Mu, yet there was still no sign of her.
There was still some time before nightfall, so she wasn’t in a hurry. After all, the BBQ gathering was set for the evening, still at least an hour and more away.
Two hours or so — as long as Qiao Mu came back within the next half hour, it would still be easy enough to rush back to the academy.
Perhaps because she’d walked so much, on top of having practiced her cultivation for quite a while earlier, Feng Jiu’er yawned and began to feel a little drowsy.
This was the foot of the mountain, and the weather wasn’t cold at all. She spread the outer robe Granny Xue had given her on the ground and lay down. Before long she began to drift into a hazy half-sleep.
So tired, so sleepy — fortunately, she’d gathered so much spirit fungus…
In her drowsy half-dream, she seemed to hear voices, and with a jolt, Feng Jiu’er snapped awake from her dream.
She thought it was Qiao Mu coming back and was about to scramble up to go find her, but unexpectedly, the voice she heard was clearly not Qiao Mu’s.
“Past here is the road into the imperial city. This time we split into two groups — you all stake out outside the palace, we’ll guard the Imperial Academy. We must take Zhan Yuheng’s head before the Yin Yang Sect makes its move!”
Zhan Yuheng’s head — suddenly Feng Jiu’er’s heart jolted, her five fingers clenching tight in an instant.
They actually intended to assassinate the Crown Prince. And it wasn’t only this group who wanted Zhan Yuheng dead — who else was this “Yin Yang Sect”?
“Yes!” another voice answered, then added, “Boss, we’ve found out — besides the Yin Yang Sect, several other groups of assassins have also taken the order.”
“What? Even the Absolute Kill Order has been issued this time?” another assassin said, his face full of disbelief.
“The target is the current Crown Prince. It’s no surprise an Absolute Kill Order was issued.” The boss snorted and handed two items to his men.
“These are maps of the imperial palace and the Imperial Academy. I went through a great deal of trouble to get them. Take a few of our brothers and keep watch outside. Whenever Zhan Yuheng isn’t leading troops to guard the imperial city, these are the two places he visits most.”
“Boss, I heard the Crown Prince has recently taken quite a liking to a certain young lady. Should we capture this girl first?”
“You mean the Eighth Miss of the Feng family, Feng Qingyin?” Many people already knew about this matter.
But the subordinate shook his head and said, “According to what our man planted at the academy reported back, the Crown Prince’s true interest isn’t Feng Qingyin, but the Ninth Miss of the Feng family, Feng Jiu’er.”
“You mean that ugly wretch, Feng Jiu’er?” The boss frowned, clearly unwilling to believe it.
“Feng Jiu’er is no ugly wretch. Our man saw her with his own eyes — Feng Jiu’er is even more stunning than Feng Qingyin, a true beauty beyond compare. Those ugly rumors before were all false.”
“Really?” The boss’s face immediately split into a wicked grin. “Then good — let’s capture this Ninth Miss Feng first, have some fun with her, then use her against Zhan Yuheng.”
Feng Jiu’er truly felt the urge to charge out and give him a brutal beating.
Trying to take down the Crown Prince — did he even know his own worth? And he dared to fantasize about using her against Zhan Yuheng!
Any man who exploited women was a coward — pah!
But before she could act, suddenly the treetops around her began to sway.
The presence arrived before the person did — clearly someone with formidable skill!
Jiu’er suppressed her breath, blending herself completely with the surroundings.
According to the cultivation method Granny Xue had taught her, the energy within her body was indeed easier to control now. As long as she didn’t make a move on her own and didn’t do anything reckless, those people likely wouldn’t easily discover her presence.
Compared to Feng Jiu’er’s alertness, the boss’s side was far less vigilant. By the time they noticed the black-and-white figures appearing on the treetops, the intruders had already arrived!
“The Black and White Wuchang of the Yin Yang Sect!”
One subordinate cried out in shock and immediately drew his weapon.
The boss hastily drew his longsword too, but the moment it was out, a black shadow flashed before his eyes.
Feng Jiu’er didn’t even see clearly how that black shadow had moved, but a thick smell of blood was already drifting through the air.
Something rolled onto the ground and rolled swiftly away. Before anyone could see clearly what it was, the boss’s body had already crumpled, falling stiffly down.
His neck — there was nothing there at all!
Feng Jiu’er bit down hard on her lip to keep from crying out.
Though this wasn’t the first time she’d seen someone killed, it was the first time she’d witnessed a killing carried out so cruelly!
Black Wuchang gave a single sweep with the strange weapon in his hand, and the boss’s head rolled off, blood spraying everywhere. The sight nearly made her vomit up the stewed meat she’d eaten earlier at Granny Xue’s place.
Truly — too disgusting!
The skill of this Black and White Wuchang was clearly many times higher than the others before them.
After a moment of shock and terror, the boss’s two remaining subordinates immediately collapsed to their knees, legs giving out beneath them. “Lord Black Wuchang, sp-spare us!”
This had only been Black Wuchang acting alone — White Wuchang still stood on the treetop, watching coldly.
If even the boss had been killed in a single strike, how could they possibly be a match for the Black and White Wuchang?
Black Wuchang looked at the two kneeling men and smiled, cold and chilling: “With abilities like yours, you actually dared to try and snatch the task of the Absolute Kill Order?”
The Absolute Kill Order — no one knew exactly when it had begun circulating through the martial world, but it was said that whoever could issue one was neither poor nor lowly born.
A single Absolute Kill Order carried a reward of at least ten million taels. Whoever completed the task would naturally claim that fortune.
The sects of the martial world looked glamorous on the surface, but in truth, most of them were short on funds.
Being people of the martial world, none of them were willing to run some small business or trade — to even speak of such a thing would be the height of humiliation.
So all that was left was to take on assassination jobs, or, for the slightly more righteous ones, to help with paid bounty-hunting of thieves.
Something as outrageously expensive as the Absolute Kill Order hadn’t been used in many years — after all, very few people could afford to spend such an enormous sum.
Now that the Absolute Kill Order had finally appeared, the martial world, quiet for so many years, was suddenly stirred into chaos.
Ten million taels — who wouldn’t want to earn that?
“Lord Black Wuchang, we know our mistake, please spare us!” The two kneeling men trembled all over, even their voices shaking.
Black Wuchang snorted coldly. “Hand over those two maps in your possession, and I might consider not killing you.”
The two exchanged a glance — at a time like this, how could they dare delay?
They immediately offered up the maps the boss had obtained through some method, presenting them with both hands before Black Wuchang. One of them said, trembling, “L-Lord Black Wuchang, we also found out that Zhan Yuheng is very concerned about a certain young lady right now!”