Chapter 563: [Severed Arm] (Part 2)

Hu Xiaotian employed the Dog-Dodging Steps, but though Li Chang'an shouldn't have been able to catch him quickly, Hu Xiaotian had only taken a few steps when a sudden wind sounded above him—the Snow Eagle raised its claws to strike his face; caught between front and back, he panicked, feeling a chill at his neck—Li Chang'an's Lone Moon Slash already pressed there—and Li Chang'an whispered, 'Move again and I'll cut off your head.'

Hu Xiaotian cursed his bad luck; he had thought he'd escaped by chance, but he hadn't expected to fall into enemy hands again.

Just now Li Chang'an hadn't yet wanted to kill him, but the situation had completely changed. Hu Xiaotian then realized Li Chang'an was missing an arm, half his body drenched in blood, his face deathly pale.

Sumitian looked at Li Chang'an, a sneer touching his lips: 'Li Chang'an, do you think I care whether he lives or dies?'

In a short time, Hu Xiaotian had twice become a hostage, though the captors differed and the targets differed. Earlier, Sumitian used him to threaten Li Chang'an, but Li Chang'an didn't care about his life; now it had turned into Li Chang'an threatening Sumitian. Hu Xiaotian silently cursed, looking pleadingly at Sumitian. Although he knew Sumitian was ruthless and wouldn't spare his life at a critical moment, he still harbored a sliver of hope, after all he was still useful to her—more precisely, his lifeline was still useful to her.

Li Chang'an said, 'I don't care whether you care, but you must know this: before I die I still have enough strength to chop off his head.'

Hu Xiaotian burst out with resentment: 'What does it have to do with me! Your grudge, what does it have to do with me!'

Li Chang'an snapped, 'Shut up!'

At that moment, flickering firelight outside showed that the city's warriors had noticed the commotion and were rushing over.

Li Chang'an sealed Hu Xiaotian's acupressure point, clamped his body with one arm, leapt onto the Snow Eagle, whose divine strength was astonishing; even bearing two people, it could still flap its wings and rise.

Sumitian bit his lip; though his eyes glittered with killing intent, he ultimately did not rush forward to attack Li Chang'an.

Outside the City God Temple came the shouts of the crowd, a voice yelled, 'Smash the gate open!'—it was Wen Boyuan giving the order. Before the soldiers could carry out his order, they saw a huge Snow Eagle swooping past overhead. The Snow Eagle, burdened with two people on its back, could take off but lacked the strength to fly high. Hu Xiaotian wailed, 'Help… help…' Many saw clearly what was on the Snow Eagle's back, and someone exclaimed, 'It's Eunuch Hu!'

Wen Boyuan reacted instantly, drawing his bow and aiming upward—whoosh! —an arrow flew. His arrow was aimed not at the Snow Eagle nor Li Chang'an, but at Hu Xiaotian; ostensibly to rescue him, but actually to seize the chance to kill him with a single shot at this close range. Given his skill, he should have been able to do it unfailingly, and a feeling of vengeful joy rose in Wen Boyuan's heart. 'Hu Xiaotian, Hu Xiaotian!' he thought, 'Today next year will be your memorial day.'

The feathered arrow shot toward the sky with astonishing speed, and while Wen Boyuan was drawing his bow, a concerned voice shouted, 'No archery!'—the speaker was Zhan Peng. Although the Snow Eagle's flight height wasn't great, falling from that height Hu Xiaotian would not die but would surely be seriously injured; moreover, once a volley of arrows was loosed, it was hard to say friendly fire wouldn't occur. But Zhan Peng's words had no effect, and Wen Boyuan still loosed the arrow.

While Zhan Peng was trying to stop everyone from shooting arrows, he also nocked an arrow. He had a premonition that something bad might happen, and sure enough, Wen Boyuan still shot this arrow.

Zhan Peng bit his lip, aimed at the glowing trail of the arrow in the air, and shot another arrow; the feathered arrow chased like wind and lightning, colliding with Wen Boyuan's arrow at the Snow Eagle's tail feathers, sparks flying. After the two arrows struck, they canceled each other's momentum and fell downward.

Wen Boyuan had already drawn another arrow from his quiver, trying to fire a second shot. At that moment he saw Zhan Peng aiming his bow at him; the icy tip of the arrowhead flashed and stung his eyes, Wen Boyuan's pupils contracted sharply, and in an instant he fully understood, coldly staring at Zhan Peng: 'Bastard!'

Zhan Peng's face was expressionless, his gaze sharper than the arrowhead, and he said word by word, 'Let's see who's faster.' By now he could no longer conceal his aura.

The Snow Eagle strained to fly far away; beneath it, a troop was straining to give chase, with Wen Boyuan and Zhan Peng among them. Though they pursued with all their might, the winding roads prevented them from maneuvering as freely as the Snow Eagle, and soon the bird pulled far ahead. They watched helplessly as it became a tiny white dot in the night sky, finally vanishing completely into the darkness.

Wen Boyuan reined in his horse, glaring tigerishly at Zhan Peng, but Zhan Peng treated him as if he were air, continuing to gallop in the direction the Snow Eagle had flown.

Dong Tieshan lifted his reins and rode up to Wen Boyuan's side, lowering his voice: 'General Wen, what should we do? Should we keep pursuing?'

Wen Boyuan pondered a moment, then said softly, 'Protecting the lord is paramount; I'll return first, lest we fall into the enemy's lure-the-tiger-away-from-the-mountain ploy. You take a few brothers and pursue along the direction the Snow Eagle went. Remember, whether Eunuch Hu is dead or alive, you must bring him back.'

'Yes!'

The Snow Eagle flew out of Cangmu City; exhausted from overuse, it sank lower and lower until it finally landed in a patch of withered reed marsh. Li Chang'an leapt from its back, but his steps were unsteady, his knee gave way with a thud and he fell to his knees on the ice. He tried to prop himself up with his hands, then forgot he had lost his right arm, and his body slumped sideways onto the ice.

Seeing his master in such a state, the Snow Eagle hastily folded its wings and waddled over; Hu Xiaotian, due to the bird's motion, rolled off its back and lay on the ice, watching Li Chang'an helplessly—his acupressure point was sealed, so he could not move at all.

The Snow Eagle seized Li Chang'an's collar in its beak, trying to help him sit up, but Li Chang'an weakly shook his left arm and murmured, 'Never mind me… let me rest…'

The Snow Eagle let out a mournful cry, turned back, and approached Hu Xiaotian again. Seeing its icy, sharp beak glinting as it drew near his face, he panicked and shut his eyes, fearing the bird might retaliate and peck out his eyeballs—after all, with his acupressure point sealed he could not move, left only to be slaughtered.

At that moment Li Chang'an's throat emitted a strange sound; the Snow Eagle raised its head, spread its wings, and gave a sudden shake, sending a fierce gust that struck Hu Xiaotian's body. He opened his eyes a slit, only to see the Snow Eagle already soaring upward—relieved of the weight of the two people, its flight became much more agile, and in an instant it vanished into the night.

Hu Xiaotian had broken out in a cold sweat; Li Chang'an slowly sat up, his body extremely weak from blood loss, paying no heed to Hu Xiaotian, he sat cross-legged on the ice and began to heal his wounds with internal energy.

Although Hu Xiaotian had temporarily escaped disaster, he dared not relax in the slightest, Li Chang'an's revenge attempt had failed, and instead he had lost an arm. He is called the Feather Demon; how could a demon be a good person? Once he recovers, his first act might well be to take revenge on me. Hu Xiaotian lay on the icy ice, secretly hoping someone would come quickly to rescue him, but he realized this chance was slim. In this situation, he didn't know whether feigning death could get him through this ordeal, the cold beneath him grew ever stronger; if this continued, even if Li Chang'an didn't kill him, he would freeze to death on the ice.

Just as Hu Xiaotian was cursing his misfortune, a warm current spontaneously arose in his Dantian Qi Sea, a human body naturally produces a counterresponse when faced with environmental change; ordinary people might not notice it, but for Hu Xiaotian, who has cultivated the Formless Divine Skill, his bodily counterresponse is stronger than most people's, for the cold prompts his body to spontaneously generate internal energy to oppose it. At first it was merely a trickle, then it grew into a mighty surge; this internal heat flow streamed from his Dantian Qi Sea through his meridians, dispelling the chill in his body and simultaneously breaking open the sealed acupressure points. Hu Xiaotian quietly moved a few fingers; though they were somewhat numb, he could now move them.

Hu Xiaotian secretly rejoiced; if he could regain freedom before Li Chang'an, his Dog-Dodging Eighteen Steps would certainly let him escape with ease. Now Li Chang'an had lost his right arm, his condition was terrible, and between them it was a case of one's gain the other's loss—even if he wanted to kill Li Chang'an, he might have a chance.

Hu Xiaotian was feeling pleased when he suddenly heard the ice beneath him crack; his body jolted. Only then did he realize his whole body had been soaked by meltwater, for the cold ice had triggered an internal defensive reaction that not only drove out the chill and unsealed his acupressure points but also, unbeknownst to him, melted the ice beneath him. The ice grew thinner and thinner until it could no longer bear his weight, and it shattered and collapsed.

Li Chang'an also sensed the vibration beneath him, his eyes snapping open. First he saw Hu Xiaotian plunge through the ice, then he saw the fissures radiating from where Hu Xiaotian had been, spreading all the way to his own position. Before he could react, he too fell through the ice into the water.

They were in water about two zhang deep; normally such depth would not trap Li Chang'an, but he was cultivating to heal his wounds and had not expected this situation. Moreover, in his haste his true qi went awry, and his body, suddenly shocked by the cold water, lost all ability to move, sinking slowly toward the bottom.

Zhangyu was muddled—this is the second update, this little matter I'm sure you won't quibble over; the important thing is that the second update has arrived.

After much effort we finally surged onto the weekly recommendation list, only to see it likely to fall again. Recommendation tickets are free; everyone has some, so please don't mind the trouble—cast a few more votes so the Medical Union can stay on the list for a full week! (To be continued~^~)