Chapter 247: Two Hundred Fifty-Five: The Yue Maiden Seeks the Sword

Two Hundred Fifty-Five: The Yue Maiden Seeks the Sword

The square outside the Scripture Copying Hall was a scene of utter ruin.

Among the rubble lay a young man with closed eyes, his face as pale as paper, his breath faint as a thread.

He lay cradled in the arms of a crimson robe. Too bad.

No one now could fully appreciate the unparalleled comfort of the unknown-material pillow beneath him.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong's short hair was caked in blood, staining the crimson robe on Chenjun Xie Chenjun Xie Lingjiang's chest even darker and wetter—but she had no time to care.

Ru Shixiong is barely clinging to life.

Chenjun Xie Chenjun Xie Lingjiang searched the ground for healing pills, then fed them to Magistrate Ouyang Rong in her arms.

She sat on the ground, tilting her head to press her weary cheek tightly against Magistrate Ouyang Rong's handback, while her two pale hands gripped his right palm, pouring spiritual energy into his palm.

Chenjun Xie Chenjun Xie Lingjiang's starry eyes were bloodshot.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong frowned and glanced over.

As for the grievously wounded youth lying unconscious in the crimson-robed man's arms, Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong spoke coolly.

Sometimes he placed two fingers beneath the youth's nose; sometimes he pressed his ear to the youth's chest, eyes closed, listening.

A clear birdcall rang out across the sea of clouds.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong, perched high above on the rooftop, frowned slightly—he hated such human sentimental attachments, such melodramatic fuss, delaying matters of importance.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong scanned the scene, then moments later, the bright blue light in his eyes flickered and died out. Affairs concerning oneself? Best left unattended.

Holding Ru Shixiong tightly, Red Lotus Sword's voice was hoarse.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong replied: "Bad. But after this, he answers one question from me first."

"Had you lied then, claiming no other urgent matters, I would have been brimming with inner fire, focused solely on saving you—and you might have lived longer, even survived."

No more. Only two possibilities remain.

On the only intact eave of the Scripture Copying Hall, a bronze wind chime rang clearly.

Hou Hou Wushun remained where he was, waiting—no sign of the Ding Sword.

"How much 'qi' do you have left to waste? Speak—do you know where the Ding Sword is? If you know, tell me. I'll save you if I'm satisfied. I'm busy. I have no time to waste on you."

A seventh-rank new Ding Sword? Forget the Tiannan Jianghu of Tiannan—within the Ten Heavenly Dao Realms you know, there are barely a handful.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong finally spoke:

It was that girl—heartless, repulsive, yet mute.

"Ru Shixiong can't move yet—do you have any pills? Bring them all..."

Fortunately, whether the exemplary female disciples of the Ancestral Hall or the strange Yue maidens of the Sword Marsh, all were quiet, obedient, aware of the sect's dire state, and united in enduring hardship.

Chenjun Xie Chenjun Xie Lingjiang frowned in sorrow—she knew only basic medical skills, useful only for battlefield injury assessment.

The sword qi came first.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong's face darkened; he smiled bitterly, then pulled from his sleeve an ancient, weathered bronze seal—the Qiu Woman Seal—identical to the one the old swordsmith carried into the furnace.

Catatonia is akin to the vegetative state of Hou Hou Wushun's future.

Because seventh-rank is the peak of lower-rank Hou Hou Wushun; below that, it's no longer mere legendary figures of Shenzhou.

Ding ling dang~

Red Lotus Sword's almond eyes widened in shock; her whole body trembled. "You've seen a fake?"

I expected this scholar from the academy to be a Confucian book-reader, someone who might speak a few words—but now it seems he's no more reliable.

"His heart pulse is weak, but normal—so why hasn't Ru Shixiong woken yet..."

The color of the light was pure, clear blue, faintly resembling a certain "arc."

"Seize it? It belongs to the Lord's Hall. Now, someone is suspected of stealing your hall's Ding Sword—I must find that person and recover the sect's sacred artifact."

"That man—do you remember you crippled him, then killed him? A first-rank killing an eighth-rank?"

"This youth nearly exhausted his 'qi.' When his abdomen was severely wounded, he should have rested immediately—but instead, he forcibly took medicine to suppress the injury and pushed himself into violent motion."

"And you snuck up the mountain again? How are your sisters guarding you? Do you think the house arrest order is a joke? Go fetch him from Di Gong Pass!"

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong sneered, glanced at the unconscious youth in Hou Hou Wushun's arms, swept his blue eyes over his wounds, and spoke coldly:

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong leapt onto the roof, landed heavily, and ignored Red Lotus Sword and the Qi-refiner entirely.

Red Lotus Sword did not notice that Snow Candle, amid the snow, had turned his head away, face stern, as if both annoyed and amused—this man, nearly at the pinnacle of Tiannan's Tiannan Jianghu, wore a faint expression of... helplessness.

The Wang Wang Lixian family gathered together, relieved to find their kin unharmed, and burst into tears of joy—until they saw Hou Hou Wushun nearby, hugging the Qi-refiner, and immediately froze, clustering around him.

"Hmph." Fox-white Hou Hou Wushun laughed silently.

You only care about the content of the Lotus Tower Pact; everything else is bound by the Great Oath sworn by the Eight Directions.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong suddenly pulled from his sleeve a blue butterfly-shaped paper flower and crushed it in his palm.

"Is he the new Ding Sword of the White Deer Grotto Academy?"

If the old junior's letter was false—perhaps he received some message.

Then that cluster of clear blue light became a concentrated sword qi of Hou Hou Wushun—but for some reason, it transformed into a crude, intricate blue paper butterfly, hidden away.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong found the concentrated sword qi as promised—but found neither the promised Ding Sword nor the qi-rich person nearby.

First possibility: the one who killed the hemp-clad man is weaker than you, possibly a seventh-rank.

Red Lotus Sword hugged Ru Shixiong, straightened up, and a spark of hope ignited in her eyes.

Seeing the crimson-robed man clutching his lover, silent and stunned, he gave a barely perceptible nod—as if in a state of grief deeper than despair.

We are a secluded upper sect, not common debt collectors climbing mountains daily—can these two families really be so shameless?

But back then, though no one yet called those who owed money "young masters," that notion existed.

"Still... it might temporarily stabilize his condition, but requires a seventh-rank new Ding Sword to activate. Right now, I can only help slightly by stabilizing his injuries. You must find a master healer—there's still a chance he'll wake up. Just see how tough his life force is."

So with all these suspicious details, how many guesses are needed? In this vast Longcheng County, what other terrifying mythic power could appear besides the Ding Sword?

It transformed into a cluster of clear blue light.

Red Lotus Sword snapped her head up: "Impossible! You're lying! Ru Shixiong was fine just now—he's just tired, resting a bit, just tired! You're lying!"

The crimson-robed man sighed helplessly, telling them to summon Master Shan Dao and other renowned physicians, and notify County Assistant Official Diao and Du Yanyan Balang.

Fox-white Hou Hou Wushun frowned deeper.

A former lower-rank military Hou Hou Wushun died cleanly, leaving no trace.

"No... I just didn't expect him to be..." He glanced at the man's dazzling golden hair and exotic beauty, paused, then asked: "Did he come too, like Lady Yunmeng Sword, to seize the Ding Sword?"

Just as Red Lotus Sword was about to speak.

She coldly surveyed the ruins of the great hall above.

Now the shock faded; recalling calmly, Ru Shixiong's oddities were many. Yes, he was undeniably handsome—especially when he stood ahead of her, leading the way—but she wished he hadn't been so reckless.

Clearly, Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong is terrible at consoling—he speaks only words that pierce the heart.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong held the Qiu Woman Seal in his right hand, his left fingers gripping a cluster of clear blue light.

Seventh possibility: a first-rank new Ding Sword, wielding some terrifying mythic power, crushed the hemp-clad man into dust.

She walked around the square of the Scripture Copying Hall, finally stopping before a tattered hemp robe. Her embroidered shoe lifted the fabric, and she looked down with a cold gaze.

"Don't try to flatter. Only Lady Yunmeng Yue maidens call each other 'Zhi Lan,' bound eternally. Everyone else—even kin—are strangers. Outsiders."

Red Lotus Sword also frowned and looked.

She did not let the Wang Wang Lixian family crowd around Hou Hou Wushun; instead, she took all healing pills from them.

She raised two fingers, using Qiu Qiu Shenji's sword qi as material, swiftly brushing them across her eyes. Her already azure eyes now glowed brilliantly under the sun, radiating pure blue.

Just now, Magistrate Ouyang Rong, a ninth-rank sword-bearer, slew a sixth-rank military Qi-refiner—in Chenjun Xie Chenjun Xie Lingjiang's eyes, it was unthinkable.

Fox-white Hou Hou Wushun's cold eyes asked again: "Who rescued them from his hands?" He frowned to himself:

"Is he truly Snow Candle?"

"I will find him!" Red Lotus Sword hurriedly said: "Please first stabilize Ru Shixiong's injuries!"

Her dark gaze passed over each detail: the seven-part golden Buddha statue, the rotting Confucian corpse slumped behind the benevolent Buddha's face, the crimson-robed maiden cradling the unconscious youth, the deer-shaped jade ring on the ground.

She hovered above the peak of Mount Mount Dagu, her golden hair and Wu Qun's narrow sleeves fluttering violently in the high-altitude wind.

"You craftsmen dare break your oath?"

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong uttered eight words: "Snow Candle."

Such clinging, dramatic, life-or-death nonsense—if displayed by a Yue maiden of Chenjun Xie Lingze, I'd break their legs.

This was what I found on the grassy slope of Mount Mount Dagu, immediately after sensing Qiu Qiu Shenji's manifestation as a sword-bearer and abandoning the wounded Lady Yunmeng Sword, guided by the Qiu Woman Seal's resonance.

In midair, Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong suddenly retracted the Hou Hou Wushun Seal and looked upward.

Red Lotus Sword pulled out every Chun Chun Pill she had obtained from Gezao Mountain, feeding them one by one to the woman in her arms, continuously pouring spiritual energy to protect her heart pulse.

A Fox-white Hou Hou Wushun, tall and golden-haired, sword on her back, stood silently on the wind-chime eave of the Scripture Copying Hall.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong flicked his sleeve; a snow-white strange bird circled him once, then flew far away. The man turned and returned to the square behind the Scripture Copying Hall.

Above Hou Hou Wushun and the Qi-refiner, a pure white bird glided across the sky, leaving a streak of white against the blue.

Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong paid no mind—separation and death are common in this world. Red Lotus Sword buried her face in the Qi-refiner's body, hugging tightly, shoulders trembling, sobs barely concealed. Just then—

With just a glance downward, Fox-white Magistrate Ouyang Rong, light as a feather, leapt upward, leaving the ruined square, ascending swiftly, piercing through white clouds.

At this moment, Wang Wang Lixian, Wei Mei, and Su Su Dalang had returned one after another; afterward, Su Su Guoer, who had been fed the Chun Chun Pills by Red Lotus Sword, slowly awoke.

Three-one—set—

But regardless.

"Afterward, you presumably fought together to survive, and that one breath you summoned was long-lasting—on the surface, you seemed unharmed, relying on your qi to waste it recklessly. But the longer that one 'qi' lasts, the worse the backlash will be."

Her head bowed, black hair hiding her face, she gently touched the bloodied face of the Qi-refiner. "W... what question?"

Red Lotus Sword's face darkened: "If you find this person... what will happen to these people?"

The blue butterfly paper flower shattered. Qi observation.

Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong stared into the eyes of the Lotus Sword.

"Did he honor the pact, or is it not yet time? … Has he not yet taken action, needing to wait a while? What exactly is the situation? It must be clarified."

Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong's gaze settled beneath Hou Hou Wushun. "His qi has leaked. Advise him not to waste his time."

"The Cauldron… the Cauldron Sword?" Hou Hou Wushun lifted his head, healthily asking: "Did he say who he was? Which of Chenjun Xie Lingjiangze's sons is he?"

You finally responded, though calmly.

"I suspect the Confucian scholars of their academy are prone to lying easily."

You seem utterly oblivious to human customs; your long sleeve raised a jade finger, pointing at the torn hemp robe, continuing to question the grieving man.

Xue Zhongzhu suddenly turned his head toward the southeast.

Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong fell silent, scanning the Lotus Sword up and down, found no serious injuries, shook his head repeatedly, as if also deeming it impossible for him to be wounded in such a state.

Even if the hemp-clad scholar was not your own defeated opponent, if Xing used an ordinary secret technique, Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong himself admitted it would be exceedingly difficult to accomplish.

Temporarily piercing through the obstructing smoke and fire swirling over the Great Mountain, it is not fear of floating clouds obscuring the view—within Longcheng County, all lies beneath your gaze.

Finally, his expression turned both joyful and anxious.

"What happened in Longcheng today? He should know clearly… Ask him whether he knows where Qiu Qiu Shenji has gone."

The aura belongs to a beginner of the fourth-rank—how could he have killed Lady Yunmeng Sword?

Even now, your internal spiritual energy has been nearly drained; health is poor, yet you still give without regard—what little you have, you pass on to me.

The Dao has no emotion. Given Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong's nature, he neither cares about the lives of the swordsmiths nor the Mei family's craft lineage, nor does he care about the extinction of Donglin Temple's incense.

Xue Zhongzhu's eyes were cold, reflecting the seven figures below, his tone flat:

In truth, your ascent today broke the established rules, for once Chenjun Xie Lingjiangze himself finds the "Cauldron Sword," those two families will still be in breach of the pact—and must sever the incense offerings at their ancestral hall.

The man bowed low, yet his presence chilled.

A flicker of disappointment immediately surfaced in his pupils.

The Lotus Sword heard the familiar man's voice approach, as if asking you—his voice alone made one shiver with warmth.

Chenjun Xie Lingjiang lowered his head, murmuring: "Could it be some secret art that awakens latent potential at the cost of lifespan and vital blood? Otherwise, why are his meridians erratic, yet his essence, qi, and spirit inexplicably absent?"

Everyone hurriedly accepted orders and dispersed to attend their duties.

The Lotus Sword hugged his senior brother tighter, lowering his eyes: "Actually, you're familiar with one of the Sword Marsh's young lords—we've had some acquaintance. I don't know if you recognize me."

You nodded: "But the miraculous physician is notoriously eccentric. The price he demands for this miracle cure—you must prepare yourself mentally."

You did not look.

The decline and extinction of the swordsmith Mei family and the Lotus Sect's Donglin Temple over the years, leading to the prolonged absence of the Cauldron Sword, still left the new head of Chenjun Xie Lingjiangze frowning in impatience.

"Once the enemy vanishes or the long-cherished goal is achieved, the mind relaxes, and that overdrawn breath escapes entirely—hence his current unconscious state."

"Chir—!" In the sky, a snow-white flying bird returned again. Observing the aura of the Cauldron Sword.

Only then would the senior brother be so obedient, so still, allowing you to touch his face.

The Lotus Sword shook his head blankly.

A snow-white bird flew back, its clear cry lingering long.

"Too bad—sudden relaxation… has delayed the overdrawn qi too long. The aftereffects are severe. The boy in your arms may yet be saved, but even Soul-Returning Pills won't help—he'll remain permanently rigid. Don't cry. Wasting tears."

In a moment, you saw a distant, unfamiliar Wu Qun silhouette hurrying toward you.

Finally, Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong's gaze settled on a thin, torn hemp robe lying on the square—his pupils showed slight surprise, yet no great disturbance.

The light and shadow shimmered uncertainly, as if dissolving, yet ultimately remained fixed between Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong's seven fingers, refusing to fade.

As his toes touched the ground, Hu Bai Magistrate Ouyang Rong immediately addressed the crimson-clad young man tightly embracing someone: