Chapter 858

Hu Xiaotian laughed and said, "My body isn't that precious; hurry back and change your clothes."

Huo Shengnan entered the room opposite Hu Xiaotian's; Hu Xiaotian looked up at the pouring rain outside, then quickly went into his own room. Not long after, Liang Da Zhuang brought four servants with hot water.

Having grown accustomed to serving people in the palace, Hu Xiaotian now found returning to his former life of ease somewhat uncomfortable; he had Liang Da Zhuang first send some hot water to Huo Shengnan. Indeed, taking a bath in this era is no easy feat—just heating the water and filling the tub requires considerable effort.

After fussing for about half an hour, Hu Xiaotian finally soaked comfortably in the tub, his mind replaying what Qiqi had just said to him. It seemed Qiqi remained wary of the emperor, which was strange—what exactly was their relationship? Initially, Emperor Long Xuan'en had wanted nothing more than to do away with Qiqi, yet suddenly he changed his attitude and even teamed up with her to eliminate Ji Feihua. Senior Eunuch Quan De'an should be loyal to Qiqi and ought to know the inside story, though he might not tell Hu Xiaotian the truth. The relationships within the imperial household are truly tangled; dealing with these people requires extreme caution, or one risks disaster.

Just thinking about accompanying the emperor to Tianlong Temple for a vegetarian meal and Buddhist chanting made Hu Xiaotian feel somewhat gloomy; then a knock came at the door—it was Liang Da Zhuang bringing clean clothes.

Hu Xiaotian told him to set the clothes down and leave, then he got up and changed. Liang Da Zhuang then brought people in to carry away the tub he had just used and dump it out.

As he opened the door, Hu Xiaotian happened to see Huo Shengnan walking from the opposite side onto the corridor. The two gazed at each other across the courtyard, the rain like a bead curtain blurring their figures; Hu Xiaotian smiled, seeing Huo Shengnan also smiling, though her smile was somewhat indistinct.

Huo Shengnan had just washed her hair, which was still damp and hung over her shoulders; she wore that mask, having grown accustomed to living behind a false face. Seeing Huo Xiaotian across from her give Liang Da Zhuang a few instructions, shortly thereafter Liang Da Zhuang arrived with kitchen staff carrying a food box of dishes and drink. Hu Xiaotian had the food set out in his room, then sent the others away and bolted the courtyard gate from inside. Though the rain had lessened, night had quietly fallen.

Hu Xiaotian called out to Huo Shengnan across from him, "Brother Feihong, why not come over and have a couple of drinks with me?"

Huo Shengnan nodded and walked along the wind-and-rain corridor to Hu Xiaotian's room.

Hu Xiaotian had already lit the lamps and set out the food and drink; he smiled and said, "There's no one else here—you may take off your mask."

Huo Shengnan turned away, removed the mask from her face, and felt a pang of loss. "Must I spend my whole life wearing this mask?" she wondered.

Hu Xiaotian picked up the wine jug, filled the cups on the table, and called out, "Sit!"

As Huo Shengnan walked over, her foot stepped on something; she bent down and picked it up, discovering it was a thin silk scroll. Her heart raced—could this be the "Archery of the Sun True Classic" that Hu Xiaotian had obtained from Lin Jinyu? She glanced at it furtively by the lamplight. Indeed, it was that very thing, filling her with both shame and anger. She couldn't believe Hu Xiaotian had kept such obscene material on his person all this time—utterly shameless. Had he deliberately tossed it on the floor for her to find? What a devious mind.

Hu Xiaotian hadn't noticed what Huo Shengnan had found; in fact, the thin silk was something he had concealed on his person, and he had accidentally dropped it while changing clothes. Seeing Huo Shengnan walk toward a nearby candle, Hu Xiaotian exclaimed in astonishment, "Why aren't you coming over to sit? What are you doing over there?"

Huo Shengnan ignored him, lifted the silk and held it over the candle flame, intending to burn the obscene thing so Hu Xiaotian could never use it to tease her again.

Only then did Hu Xiaotian see what she was doing, and he was utterly baffled. He had put it away properly—how had it ended up in her hands? It must have slipped out while he was changing clothes. He hurried to stop her: "Don't burn it—I haven't examined it closely yet." Indeed, the scroll depicted many poses, quite inventive; some difficulty levels surely surpassed the paperclip in Lust, Caution by far.

Huo Shengnan had expected the silk to ignite at a touch, but after holding it in the flame for a while nothing happened—not only did it not burn, but part of it changed color under the candle's heat.

Hu Xiaotian quickly stepped to her side, intending to snatch the silk from her hand, but also saw the strange sight and couldn't help clucking his tongue in wonder: "So the secret lies right here."

Hu Xiaotian took the silk, spread it flat on the table, and the portion that had been heated by the candle had turned red, revealing a line of tiny characters.

Huo Shengnan was also intensely curious, her beautiful eyes fixed on the silk. Although characters had appeared, the original pictures remained—seeing one after another of erotic male-female scenes, she blushed so deeply she felt she had nowhere to hide, stamped her foot, and said, "You look at it yourself; I'm leaving."

Hu Xiaotian seized her wrist in one grip: "Don't rush off—the secret might be in there."

Though Huo Shengnan was curious, the images on the silk were too embarrassing; she wrenched her wrist free from his grasp, though she didn't leave. She watched as Hu Xiaotian unfolded the silk and moved it back and forth over the candle flame. After a while, characters appeared all over the silk. Hu Xiaotian exclaimed, "Strange—I don't recognize a single character; they're all like tadpoles!"

Huo Shengnan hadn't intended to look, but hearing his remark she couldn't help glancing up. She saw that the patterns on the silk, after being heated by the candle, had become even clearer than before, the figures lifelike. Gazing at them made her face flush and her heart race; the characters that had only just emerged after the heating were actually in the Black Barbarian script—no wonder Hu Xiaotian couldn't read them.

Huo Shengnan said, "This is Black Barbarian script."

Hu Xiaotian asked, "What does it say?"

Huo Shengnan silently reminded herself there was nothing to fear—it was just a picture; as long as her mind was pure, she needn't worry about Hu Xiaotian having any ulterior motives. Then she thought, He dares! I, too, am skilled in martial arts; what could he do to me? With that thought she grew bolder, took the picture from Hu Xiaotian's hand, studied it for a moment, and exclaimed delightedly, "Sure enough, it's a manual for archery cultivation!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Xiaotian was overjoyed and asked Huo Shengnan to translate it for him.

Huo Shengnan had him fetch brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, then translated directly onto the paper.

Huo Shengnan wrote a few lines, and the characters on the silk began to fade, disappearing entirely; to see them again she had to reheat the silk over the candle. Repeating this process, she spent nearly an hour before she had fully translated all the text recorded thereon.

Hu Xiaotian took the paper Huo Shengnan had translated, read it from beginning to end—it explained archery techniques and methods, as well as how to control arrows with qi; it must be the legendary Archery of the Sun True Classic.

Huo Shengnan said, "This archery method was created by a couple—a Black Barbarian man and a Han woman. The Black Barbarian excels at horseback archery, the Han at internal energy; together they absorbed the strengths of many schools and developed this set of archery techniques."

Hu Xiaotian said, "So this is the Archery of the Sun True Classic—a name that sounds rather indelicate."

Huo Shengnan's pretty face flushed red; she glared at him and said, "It's your own dirty mind— the name Archery of the Sun True Classic comes from the archery deity Hou Yi."

Hu Xiaotian laughed heartily; he of course knew the tale of Hou Yi shooting the suns, but he was just feigning ignorance and cracking jokes.

Seeing his smug grin, Huo Shengnan knew he was teasing her; she reached out to tug his ear, but Hu Xiaotian deftly dodged, then, as she reached out, he caught her wrist, pulled her toward him, and she lost her balance, tumbling into his embrace with a soft "Eh!" As she tried to wriggle free, Hu Xiaotian whispered, "Don't move!" Her heart pounded—what was he up to? He sent a mental transmission to her ear: "Someone's on the roof!"

Huo Shengnan was already flustered, and with the wind and rain raging outside she hadn't noticed any change on the roof. Hu Xiaotian, however, thanks to his progress in the Formless Divine Skill, had heightened his perception to a new level; even while he and Huo Shengnan were flirtatiously sparring inside the room, he immediately sensed movement on the roof—someone must have just landed there, the faint tread of their soles on the tiles escaping his ears? No, it did not escape him.

Hu Xiaotian told Huo Shengnan, "I'll draw his attention from the front door; you sneak out the back window and see who dares to do this."

Huo Shengnan nodded, went behind the screen, put her human-skin mask back on, took down the decorative bow and arrow from the wall, and gave Hu Xiaotian a signal.

Hu Xiaotian came to the door and pulled it open; by now the rain was heavier than before.

Hu Xiaotian suddenly stepped forward, planted his right foot, and sprang upward; he grabbed the eaves with both hands reversed, exerted a little force, and his body shot upward, leaping two zhang high in the torrential rain‑soaked night, then he spread his arms and dove toward the eaves like a great bird.

On the eaves a gray‑clad figure stood motionless, bent forward. Seeing Hu Xiaotian's silhouette appear like a heavenly flying dragon in the night sky, his brows knit, a cold light flashed in his eyes—he had no intention of fleeing. Slowly he drew a three‑foot saber from his waist, tapped the eaves with his toe, and launched himself like a leopard toward Hu Xiaotian, the blade tracing a lurid arc in the darkness as it aimed straight at his waist.

Hu Xiaotian's appearance was merely meant to lure the target; he had thought showing himself would scare off the hidden eavesdropper, but instead the opponent did not retreat—he advanced and launched an active attack. Hu Xiaotian drew a soft sword from his waist, gave his right hand a slight shake, and the blade pierced the wind and rain, emitting a hissing like a poisonous snake's tongue, twisting and winding as it met the opponent's saber. Before blade and steel actually clashed, their invisible sword and saber qi had already collided, triggering a series of explosive bursts; the shockwaves from their colliding internal forces sent the pouring rain scattering in all directions. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please come and)

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