Chapter 6: Turning Back

I stood up and gave a faint smile to the Meng Kuo troops, still stunned by the sudden shift before their eyes; the several ferocious knife scars on my face lay bare in the air, and they genuinely shuddered.

"General Meng... sir, Bu Sha is about to escape; we must chase after him!" a soldier who had just come to his senses urged urgently.

"What are you chasing?!" Meng Kuo barked, then looked at me with a mix of admiration and smiled, saying, "I never expected a young lady like you to possess such profound scheming and intellect, even causing Bu Sha to mistakenly trust you—truly, one cannot judge a book by its cover!"

I twitched the corner of my mouth and replied with a hollow smile, "Compared to the disguised General Meng and your troops, what is my little scheme worth?"

Meng Kuo's tiger eyes narrowed, a flash of ferocity crossing his gaze as he spoke in a low voice: "How could you possibly know..."

Seeing the sly smile on my lips, his voice halted abruptly, and he shouted in exasperation, "You dare to put words in my mouth?!"

"Eh! Weren't you the one who insisted on telling me? I haven't said a word!"

"You wretched girl!" Meng Kuo exploded, "If you're sensible, hand over the Xuanwu Stone quickly, or I'll make you wish you were dead."

"General Meng!" I shouted.

"Yes!"

A group of soldiers behind them finally couldn't help laughing out loud. Sigh! It's hopeless, the conditioned reflex of a born soldier—I shook my head.

Meng Kuo glared fiercely at the crowd behind him, his voice immediately dying away—truly befitting well-trained soldiers.

"General Meng, you've seen my face as well." I gave a sinister smile, "If you hadn't interfered, I could have gradually coaxed this stone into my hands, but now I must change the whole plan. What do you think? If a woman doesn't even care about this, what else could threaten her with a fate worse than death?"

Of course, I was misleading him with those words, making Meng Kuo believe that I had scarred my own face to get close to Bu Sha and obtain the Xuanwu Stone. Faced with such a person who would stop at nothing to achieve his goal, he couldn't help but feel apprehensive.

Meng Kuo supported his aching arm, his face alternating between pallor and ashen. After a long while he narrowed his eyes and said harshly, "Even without any tricks, if I simply seize it by force, do you think you can make off with the Xuanwu Stone?"

I smiled. "Of course not. But, General Meng, do you recall there being a river not far from where I am?" I finished with an indifferent expression.

Meng Kuo's expression changed, for right ahead of the inn, not far away, lay a moat. Yet he still put up a tough front: "You went to such lengths to trick that stone from Bu Sha—how could you bear to just throw it away?"

My smile remained, even brighter: "That's still better than handing it over willingly!"

"Speak!" Meng Kuo finally admitted defeat, "What exactly do you want in exchange for handing over the Xuanwu Stone?"

I smirked inwardly; this stubborn military oaf couldn't possibly match me in guile. I also didn't know who had taught him those methods of threatening Bu Sha...

Who... taught him? My heart suddenly seized with inexplicable panic, my nerves instantly tensing, every pore constricting. I knew all too well that the instinctive sense of danger forged in the assassin training camp of years past had kicked in.

No one could comprehend the extent of my loathing and fear for this awareness. Its appearance constantly reminds me of the past I desperately tried to forget, yet which haunts me like a never-ending nightmare.

The hand gripping my dagger oozed cold sweat, the incessant "thump-thump" in my chest nearly robbing me of thought. I dug my nails deep into my flesh, the sharp pain bringing me slightly back to my senses.

I wore a careless smile on my face, yet I was fully on guard.

Meng Kuo was so infuriated by my air of assured victory that he nearly jumped up, his blood‑stained beard trembling in an oddly endearing way.

Although it was only March, the sunlight was unexpectedly glaring.

A sudden change arose abruptly.

Under the blazing sun, I actually felt a chill invade my body. A cold gleam flashed, and acting on instinct I raised my dagger to block.

However, the expected clang of metal on metal never came; I sensed something wrong. A sharp pain shot through my shoulder, and without thinking I lurched backward.

The pain of torn skin on my shoulder made me dizzy.

I barely managed to stay on my feet, gritting my teeth as I stared at the smirking youth before me.

He looked about twenty‑six or twenty‑seven, rather handsome and suave, but his eyes flickered unpredictably, their light too dark and elusive. His skin was unnaturally pale all over, especially his hands, which were more delicate and refined than a woman's. At that moment he gripped the longsword stained with my blood, playing with it satisfied.

Damn it! I lowered my head to view my mangled shoulder and couldn't help cursing inwardly. The blade was actually covered in barbs.

I was about to speak when he suddenly licked the blood off his sword, revealing a sinister smile and said, "Not bad—it's exactly the flavor I like. Although you're a bit ugly..."

His voice wasn't unpleasant to hear, but his tone and expression gave me gooseflesh all over.

But the next second, I no longer had the right to be picky.

He clamped one hand tightly around my throat; from the blood loss my mind was already hazy, so I had no idea how he had reached my side and subdued me. All I felt was a suffocating wave of pain in my chest, making further thought impossible.

"Meng Kuo, hurry up and search her!"

Meng Kuo glared at him with hatred and snapped in a resentful tone, "Qin Ye, you're only responsible for planning this operation—what gives you the right to order me? Don't think that because the Emperor's... master favors you, you can act lawlessly!"

"On what basis?" Qin Ye gave a heh‑heh laugh, "Just because you let this ugly freak jerk you around, whereas I subdued her the moment I appeared!"

Meng Kuo gritted his teeth, his face deathly pale, yet he obediently complied. Sigh! Knowing it wasn't right, I found myself beginning to pity this old oaf.

"Miss, excuse me!" he said, stepping before me and clasping his fists.

My throat was constricted, my face flushed red, yet I managed a weak smile and replied in a hoarse voice, "General Meng, it's nothing…… cough…… an offense, but still better than being searched by this…… pervert!"

Hearing my words, Meng Kuo couldn't help but smile, his expression softening considerably.

However, the one choking my neck wasn't pleased at all; he suddenly increased his grip, and my face turned from red to purple. My lungs, starved of oxygen, spasmed with painful coughs, but the sound was stifled in my throat.

I struggled to hold my breath and sneered, "How so? Don't you like…… cough cough…… being called a pervert? Or would you prefer…… being called a hermaphrodite?"

"Smack!" a hard slap landed on my face, as if my teeth were loosening.

I paid no heed to the blood trickling from the corner of my mouth, merely mocking his twisted visage.

Qin Ye didn't get angry; instead he laughed, releasing my throat and taking hold of my chin, his lecherous gaze scanning me for a moment. He chuckled, "I've been wondering what makes a woman that Bu Sha takes a liking to so special."

I closed my eyes, ignoring his idle chatter, while my mind raced through a thousand possibilities, desperately seeking a way to escape.

"But I never imagined it would be a disfigured ugly freak. You've really disappointed me!"

Feeling a cold, wet thing pressed against my cheek, I opened my eyes to see the very sword stained with my blood. He gave a triumphant smile, forcing me to lift my face to meet his.

"Now that I take a closer look, you might actually have been a beauty before! And since you could attract Bu Sha, your bedroom skills are probably not bad either."

I gave a cold smile and replied, "Whether or not I'm a beauty is beside the point. One thing is certain: past, present, or future, I could never be a hermaphrodite!"

"Heh heh!" Meng Kuo and the soldiers finally couldn't help laughing out loud.

"You filthy slut!" Qin Ye, flushed with shame and anger, slashed his sword violently; his face already bore a stream of fresh and old blood that trickled into the corner of my mouth. "Don't put on an airs of superiority—you're only cozying up to Bu Sha for the Xuanwu Stone!"

"Yes." I replied with a fading voice, "Of course I'm nothing like you."

"Even if you tried to act high and mighty, you couldn't pull it off. I know with my knee that those low‑down tricks are the ones you taught Meng Kuo, right?"

I didn't care about the wounds on my face. But that sword thrust to my shoulder was deep, the barbs on the blade tearing several arteries. Blood flowed steadily and wouldn't stop, clouding my consciousness; things before me turned yellow and even spun. I knew I couldn't last much longer, yet I absolutely refused to collapse in disgrace before such trash.

"Meng Kuo!" Qin Ye shouted, a hint of evil smirking at the corner of his mouth, "You're not going to search her? Then I'll do it!"

Hiss—pop—

I didn't even have time to panic before I heard a huge sound coming from my body, but for a moment I couldn't react to what had happened!

Waves of chill spread through my body; watching Qin Ye's cloth fluttering in the wind, I couldn't help trembling like chaff in a sieve.

"How?" Qin Ye tossed aside the torn clothing in his hand, his lecherous gaze fixed on my half-exposed chest, smiling triumphantly, "You weren't so tight-lipped before? Now you dare not speak?"

Qin Ye's blade still rested at my throat; I had to admit, my fear had reached its peak. I don't fear death, for I have endured too many things more terrifying than death, so sometimes I feel death is a release. But now I do not want to die; if I were to die humiliated before a scoundrel like this, I would never close my eyes in peace.

Without lowering my head I could see that the tattered clothing on my chest could no longer cover my body; the red bellyband shone brilliantly in the sunlight, especially eye-catching—this was the bellyband I had secretly bought a few days ago for fun, behind Qi Ran and Bu Sha's backs.

My fair shoulders contrasted with the scarlet, glaring wound, making my eyes sting.

Qin Ye suddenly swallowed, his voice hoarse with hatred as he cursed: "Dirty slut, you're indeed a natural-born temptress—no wonder Bu Sha's been spinning around you. Look at this delicate skin…" Those hands, more delicate than a woman's but to me more terrifying than a venomous snake, slowly reached for my chest……

Meng Kuo suddenly realized what vile act Qin Ye was about to commit, and cried out in panic: "Qin Ye, what are you doing?"

Just as he was about to rush forward, he was tightly held back by a lackey behind him.

"General, given your current situation, it's really not suitable to confront Qin… Young Master directly!"

Meng Kuo's hurried footsteps finally came to a stop, his eyes filled with endless regret and self-reproach.

I heard and saw nothing; I simply clenched my bloodied lower lip until the fresh metallic taste spread across my tongue, and my scattered thoughts finally reconvened.

I slowly lifted my right hand to my abdomen, and my left hand silently joined it.

If I could, I truly wouldn't want to take this step, but it's the only thing my remaining will can accomplish!

Rather than be consumed by despair, I would launch a desperate counterattack. I kept repeating those words to myself.

Suddenly, the wind rose.

A shadow like a black curtain flashed before my eyes, drifting down as lightly as goose down, yet falling as swiftly as a meteor.

Yet the sudden gust it kicked up, though sharp as a blade, felt to me like a spring breeze, directly blowing my despondent heart awake again.

As scarlet spray like falling rain drenched my face, and just as the previously arrogant voice let out a piercing shriek, a slender black dagger dripping with blood suddenly sliced horizontally before my eyes.

I couldn't investigate where that blood came from; I only worried that my blurred vision might be conjuring a beautiful illusion, making it almost impossible for me to believe what I was seeing.

Was that… the Bloodsucking Blade?

I slowly lifted my head, feeling as if it took ten thousand years, as if I had exhausted all my strength.

Black clothes, black hair, black pupils stared at me coldly.

But how much anger, heartache, and guilt lay beneath that coldness, I could no longer discern.

I suppressed the trembling of my whole body, gave a faint smile, and my voice was softer and more gentle than ever before.

I said: "Bu Sha, is Qi Ran all right?"

(End of chapter)