Chapter 13: Girl, May I Borrow Your Sword

At this moment, the western sunset had already fully set, and the distant village was already silent, with only bursts of raging fire still burning, the flames fierce and leaping skyward.

It was obvious that the man in sturdy armor wielding a sword was the leader among these jianghu folk.

In any era, among those with some background, there are always a few wanton, law‑breaking rascals.

In Beidi, there are official collaborators of the Jin State. In the Great Song, there is the Iron Palm Sect as a first‑rate backing force.

No wonder they, in broad daylight, dared to treat Han villagers as non‑people and slaughter them completely.

Niu Dingtian was not surprised that the Iron Palm Sect appeared within Jin State's borders and colluded with the Jin.

He recalled that the Iron Palm Sect leader Qiu Qianren had once colluded with the Jin State's Prince Zhao Wanyan Honglie, the mastermind behind the Niu Clan Village massacre.

Previously, Qiu Qianren had been petty in his development, even outright refusing the first invitation from Huashan's King Chongyang, feigning unfinished cultivation.

Niu Dingtian did not expect that the old fellow had already begun secret dealings with Wanyan Honglie.

And now, opposite them, besides the armored man, there were four accomplices.

"Oh?"

The leader, upon hearing Han Xiao Ying's proclaimed title, narrowed his eyes like a hawk and wolf, and let out a slight gasp.

It seemed he had also heard of the "Yue Woman Sword" title.

Then he paid little heed, for when he looked around he saw no seven men, only a woman, and she was accompanied by a useless one.

Clearly, he did not regard Niu Dingtian or the Han heroine in his mind.

This made Niu Dingtian, lying in the carriage, slightly irritated: even though he was down on his luck, he was not someone the few soy‑sauce thugs could bully.

"So you are the famed Yue Woman Sword of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan. I am Shangguan Ying, disciple of Iron Palm Sect leader Qiu Qianren."

Shangguan Ying's cold eyes flickered slightly; after bowing to Han Xiao Ying, he began to flatter:

"When we passed through this village to lodge, we were poisoned by local ruffians, so we slew our enemies, never expecting a misunderstanding with you."

He thought he'd see whether this little lady knew her place; though night had fallen, the road was not empty, and if he weren't worried about unforeseen complications delaying his master's important matters, he wouldn't let the pretty lady before him get away.

If the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan were present, he might not dare to act recklessly, but facing the weakest martial artist, a woman, it was a different matter.

No wonder he was arrogant; Shangguan Ying is the senior disciple of the Iron Palm Sect, his iron palms inheriting Qiu Qianren's true teachings, making him a rare opponent within the sect.

On this mission to the Jin State by his master's order, he and the accompanying Jin soldiers came upon a remote village in the wilderness, and on a whim committed a heinous crime, never expecting to encounter two meddlesome ones.

"Traitor! Stop making excuses!"

Han Xiao Ying, hearing the scoundrel's shameless words, flushed with anger, tightened her grip on the iron sword, and glared with beautiful eyes, scolding:

"The famed Iron Palm Sect never expected such a beast! Colluding with Jin thieves is downright murderous!"

It seemed that making this gentle, dignified Han heroine lose her composure was truly infuriating.

Lying in the carriage, Niu Dingtian saw this and silently praised: the Han heroine is indeed beautiful and clever, her insults hit the mark, truly a nest of snakes and rats.

Shangguan Ying, seeing this filthy harlot's ingratitude, harbored secret hatred, his face darkening instantly.

Indeed, to him she was a filthy harlot; he had cursed her countless times in his mind, and now his restraint broke, spewing viciously without hesitation:

"Filthy harlot! Ungrateful! Soon you'll be so thrilled you'll weep!"

"Don't kill that pretty boy! Just let him lie there watching!"

Saying so, he ordered his subordinates, murderous aura blazing, to surround them.

Han Xiao Ying, seeing the enemy's numbers and that they were not ordinary soldiers, dared not underestimate them, quickly assessed the situation and decided to strike first.

She then used lightness skill to dodge Shangguan Ying's sudden charge, darted toward nearby sect members, slashing one after another so she would not be outnumbered.

The sect members, seeing Han Xiao Ying's sword flash like a swift swallow, were thrown into chaos.

In their haste they raised their blades to block, but the opponent feigned, then swung; a flash of cold light struck, and they lost consciousness.

At that moment, the remaining four quickly surrounded Han Xiao Ying.

"Slice this wretch for me!"

Shangguan Ying let out a roar, brandishing his blade first. In an instant, blades flew chaotically, each deadly; Han Xiao Ying, refusing to be careless, unleashed the Yue Woman Sword Technique, its forty‑nine sword moves swirling back and forth.

The origin of this sword technique dates back to the Spring‑and‑Autumn wars between Wu and Yue; in the Yue capital Kuaiji, a shepherd girl learned the Yue Woman Sword Technique through interaction with a white ape.

The Yue Woman Sword Technique was extraordinarily exquisite; when Fan Li first saw it, he regarded it as a treasure and invited the girl to the Yue Kingdom's royal palace to teach it.

After two days of live demonstrations with palace swordsmen, the Yue swordsmen compiled a sword method from memory, which later spread throughout the Wu‑Yue region as the Yue Woman Sword Technique.

However, the thirty‑six sword moves that survived were suited only for battlefield clashes, not jianghu duels; Han Xiao Ying later innovated the inherited moves, creating the current forty‑nine sword moves she now employs.

"Chop that pretty boy for me!"

Seeing he could not subdue Han Xiao Ying for a moment, Shangguan Ying devised a scheme to unsettle her, shouting a subordinate to go slaughter Niu Xiucai.

Niu Dingtian, who was silently cultivating to heal his wounds nearby, raised an eyebrow and thought, "This is bad!"

Sure enough.

Han Xiao Ying, fooled by the words, blocked the incoming blade, then swiftly turned, leapt, and lunged toward the sect members closing in on the ox carriage.

Shangguan Ying, having anticipated this, gathered his palm power and struck Han Xiao Ying's left shoulder with his iron palm.

Han Xiao Ying felt a piercing pain radiate from her shoulder, but she clenched her silver teeth, endured the agony, and still lunged forward, stabbing the man in the heart from behind.

Afterwards,

She turned again, standing upright, sword in hand.

She stood motionless in front of Niu Dingtian.

Relying on her high lightness skill, she could have escaped alone, but she was unwilling.

Seeing Shangguan Ying lunge again, Han Xiao Ying thought: this time is likely doomed, and I've only dragged the person behind me into trouble.

Just as she prepared to fight desperately, a cold voice suddenly sounded beside her:

"Girl, may I borrow your sword for a moment?"

(End of Chapter)