Chapter 13: Aid

As the voice faded, the blood on the ground stirred again, and several characters changed:

“Qi Xia rescued Ding Changsheng from the torment of the Heart-Stealing Pill’s control, completing one of the side quests, rewarded with ten virtue points.”

Eh? Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei were stunned again, not expecting the outcome of someone else completing a side quest to appear before them.

“Phew, Sister Qi is indeed more alert than me,” Jiang Zhiwei sighed in relief, speaking with a touch of self-mockery amid her joy.

After saying this, her face blossomed into a smile, and she happily continued, “Brother Zhang, Qingjing, and others probably can see the prompt about us completing our task too. We don’t need to worry about them being ambushed by heroes Ma and Tan.”

“Not necessarily. Perhaps only those who have already completed this side quest can see the prompt. Otherwise, it would be too easy for others attempting the same quest,” Meng Qi frowned, unwilling to believe the Master of the Six Dao Reincarnation would be so kind. Although heroes like Cheng Yong possessed formidable martial arts skills, from Meng Qi’s current, relatively limited perspective, they were still significantly inferior to Jiang Zhiwei, Zhang Yuanshan, and others. Even Qi Xia could kill Ding Changsheng.

Therefore, if they had known beforehand that they were under the control of the Heart-Stealing Pill, even if Zhang Yuanshan and Qingjing had split up, they wouldn’t have encountered any mishaps.

After thinking about it, Jiang Zhiwei also realized they shouldn’t regard the Master of the Six Dao Reincarnation as a benevolent figure, so she nodded and said, “Let’s first regroup with Sister Qi, then head to the central location. Keep an eye out for prompts indicating task completion along the way.”

“Oh,” she suddenly exclaimed as she was speaking, “If heroes like Cheng Yong have already been controlled by the Heart-Stealing Pill, why would the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord still ‘imprison’ them in a secret room? Could it be that he anticipated our arrival to complete the mission and set a trap for us?”

Reminded by Jiang Zhiwei, Meng Qi also sensed something amiss and blurted out, “Unless the trap isn’t meant for us!”

Jiang Zhiwei pursed her pale lips from injury, “It should be so.”

After a pause, she continued, “When I initially accepted the mission, I was somewhat puzzled why heroes Ma and the other four would recklessly storm the Hidden Emperor Fortress alone instead of seeking additional help. Surely, the advantage of having more people should not be something only we understand.”

“It must be due to time constraints. They had to act quickly to stop the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord’s plan, perhaps related to the strange occurrences currently happening in the central hall. So they came first and left a letter informing their friends to await reinforcements. Therefore, there might be a large group of martial artists arriving shortly, and the trap is actually meant for them.” Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei exchanged guesses about the truth of the matter.

“Regardless, we still need to complete the mission,” Jiang Zhiwei shook her head and struggled to stand with support from the stone door.

“Miss Jiang, how severe is your injury?” Meng Qi asked with concern. Although he had just killed the expert Cheng Yong, he remained self-aware and not the least bit arrogant, understanding that without Jiang Zhiwei’s protection, even two random black-clad assassins could eliminate him. Of course, this was also due to the deep camaraderie they had developed through fighting side by side and enduring life-and-death situations together.

Jiang Zhiwei seemed to abandon her usual protests about being called “Miss Jiang,” gathered her energy, and on her pretty face, a mixture of regret and bitter laughter appeared, “The upper half of my body is fine, and my ability to channel energy and wield my sword is only slightly weakened. However, my lower body feels weak and numb. I can’t even walk normally, let alone sprint or leap across rooftops. I need to take some medicinal pills and rest for a while before I can recover.”

During the lightning-fast moment when Cheng Yong launched his surprise attack, she had displayed her resolute and decisive side. Instead of passively defending, she had attacked with her sword, risking her life to force Cheng Yong to pull back most of his palm force to avoid being pierced through the chest. As a result, her injuries were much lighter than Meng Qi had anticipated, and she still had the strength to fight with her sword, although her lower abdomen was injured, making walking difficult.

“Miss Jiang, how about I carry you for now, serving as your legs temporarily,” Meng Qi, prioritizing their safety, proposed this suggestion after a moment’s thought.

Jiang Zhiwei let out a surprised “Ah,” then bit her neatly aligned white teeth with her lips, “Little monk, I appreciate your kindness.”

Her choice of words sounded like a bold and righteous hero, but there were two suspiciously red tints on her cheeks.

Coming from modern times, Meng Qi naturally held relatively liberal views and teased with a grin, “Miss Jiang, in the martial arts world, we should not be bound by trivialities.”

As he spoke, he walked over to Jiang Zhiwei’s side and handed her his sword reversed.

“Do you think I don’t understand this reasoning?” Jiang Zhiwei lifted her head, gazing at the upper stone wall, her long, fair neck seemingly tinged with a thin layer of red.

Meng Qi turned around, squatted down, heard the rustling of clothes for a moment, then felt a body lighter than expected leaning onto him.

He supported Jiang Zhiwei’s legs and slowly stood up, suddenly chuckling, “You’re lighter than the water buckets I used to carry.”

“Ha!” Jiang Zhiwei couldn’t help but laugh, “Were the buckets you carried made of iron?”

Meng Qi’s teasing lightened the awkward atmosphere, and she laughed along.

“Wooden buckets, but carrying water can’t be compared to carrying a person,” Meng Qi honestly replied.

Jiang Zhiwei drew out an elongated “Oh…” and said, “Indeed… Honestly speaking, I feel quite guilty burdening you, a young boy.”

As she spoke, she practiced with her sword to adapt to the current situation.

The long sword spun in graceful arcs, weaving streams of light and shadow. Meng Qi studied it with rapt attention, striving to comprehend its profound intricacies. Jiang Zhiwei made no move to prevent him, generously permitting Meng Qi to observe—for without the corresponding internal cultivation method, he could only grasp the external forms at most.

Otherwise, during combat, the sword techniques of the Xijian Pavilion would have been completely copied.

“Alright, I can probably exert about fifty to sixty percent of my usual strength. That should be enough for a fight,” Jiang Zhiwei assessed after adapting.

Suddenly, she patted Meng Qi’s shoulder and whispered, “Be careful, someone’s coming.”

Meng Qi was quite surprised. After several breaths, he finally heard footsteps and someone speaking, “Left three, right four, don’t make a mistake.”

It seemed that even without activating the “ear passage,” with cultivation of inner techniques and reaching the Qi Accumulation stage, one’s hearing would significantly improve… Meng Qi speculated inwardly.

“Block the entrance,” Jiang Zhiwei whispered.

Without hesitation, Meng Qi stepped forward and stood beside the stone door, effectively trapping the group inside the toxic gas corridor, unable to advance or retreat.

There were seven or eight of them, all dressed lightly, with a middle-aged scholar leading them. He held hidden weapons in his left hand and asked, “Why do you two young friends block our path? Have you seen Brother Cheng Yong?”

At this moment, a man with a sharp face and monkey-like features looked through the gap and saw Cheng Yong’s corpse, exclaiming in shock, “Master Ge, they’ve killed Hero Cheng! I recognize those boots!”

Jiang Zhiwei’s clear voice sounded slightly low as she spoke, “Esteemed seniors, my name is Jiang Zhiwei. I came here with my master and others to assist heroes Ma and company.”

She looked her age, around sixteen, and had no difficulty addressing the martial artists before her, all of whom were at least thirty, as seniors.

The leading Master Ge didn’t seem impulsive. He raised his hand to stop his men from launching hidden weapons and gestured for Jiang Zhiwei to continue explaining.

“After entering the Hidden Emperor Fortress, we captured a prisoner who informed us that heroes Ma and others were separately trapped in different parts of the fortress. So my master instructed us to split up and rescue them, while he headed straight for the Hidden Emperor Fortress Lord’s location.”

“I arrived here, opened the stone door, and found Hero Cheng. However, Hero Cheng had been controlled by the Heart-Stealing Pill and secretly attacked me, leaving me severely injured. In my counterattack, Hero Cheng was gravely wounded and was ultimately slain by my junior brother Zhen Ding during his desperate last strike.”

Jiang Zhiwei half-truthfully and half-deceptively recounted the events and their origins to the group.

“How could that be?” The sharp-faced man couldn’t believe it and said, “Young lady, you’re so young. Even if you started training from the moment you were born in your mother’s womb, you couldn’t possibly defeat Hero Cheng!”

He inwardly lamented that this beautiful young girl was such a skilled liar.

Jiang Zhiwei didn’t say a word. She straightened her back and swiftly thrust her sword out like lightning, then inexplicably withdrew it.

“What are you doing?” The sharp-faced man angrily and confusedly demanded.

Master Ge raised his right hand to signal him to stay calm, then clasped his hands in salute and said, “Heroes emerge at a young age. Miss Jiang, your swordsmanship alone is enough to earn you the title of a master. Alas, the younger generation is pushing the older one aside. Seeing young friends like you with such remarkable talents makes me feel old indeed. May I ask for your master’s name?”

“My master is Su Wuming, who has lived in seclusion for many years. Master Ge might not have heard of him. However, my master had a nickname in his younger days, known as the ‘Heavenly Sword Beyond the World.’ Have you heard of him?” Meng Qi clearly detected Jiang Zhiwei’s hidden amusement in her words and immediately understood she was giving her real master’s name, though this group probably hadn’t heard of him anyway.

Although his back was to Jiang Zhiwei, Meng Qi could almost visualize her mischievous smile.

Su Wuming… Hmm, didn’t I seem to hear Master Xuankxin mention that name before? Meng Qi’s mind stirred.

“Indeed, I am quite ignorant and have never had the honor of seeing your master’s heroic bearing. Please allow me to meet him later,” Master Ge, seeing Jiang Zhiwei speaking with such conviction, temporarily set aside his suspicions and decided to test her later. Then, he introduced himself, “I am Ge Chongshan, the Lord of Luoyan Manor. I received letters from good friends Ma Lianghan, Cheng Yong, and others, inviting many capable individuals to come to their aid. Unfortunately, we arrived a day late and failed to meet up with them. Please, young friends, allow us to pass so we may see our friends one last time.”

Jiang Zhiwei whispered in Meng Qi’s ear, “Let them in, but one by one.”

Meng Qi stepped aside, clearing the way while remaining vigilant toward the group. Once Ge Chongshan and others entered the secret room and examined Cheng Yong’s body, he quietly said to Jiang Zhiwei, “I understand now. The side quest was meant to make us waste time. Only by doing so would we wait for reinforcements. If we had gone directly to the central hall, we might already be fighting the fortress lord alone and outnumbered.”

“The trap is indeed meant for them,” Jiang Zhiwei softly replied.

After Ge Chongshan finished examining the body and confirmed that the wounds matched Jiang Zhiwei’s description, he sighed, “If it weren’t for you two young friends opening this stone door first, I might have been severely injured or even killed.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he and Jiang Zhiwei simultaneously turned their heads toward the outside of the stone house, where another secret door was located. From there, Qi Xia emerged alongside a group of people dressed as martial artists.

“Sister Qi, are you alright?” Jiang Zhiwei happily greeted.

“Brother Liu, where is your elder brother?” Ge Chongshan asked the man walking beside Qi Xia.

The man had dark skin and was dressed as a fisherman. He sorrowfully replied, “My elder brother was killed by Ding Changsheng!”

“What?” Ge Chongshan and the others were immediately stunned.

Qi Xia, with a hint of lingering fear, said, “Little Zhiwei, I didn’t expect that Hero Ding had already been controlled by the Heart-Stealing Pill. If it weren’t for Brother Liu going in first, I probably wouldn’t have survived. I was just worried about you two earlier…”

Seeing Jiang Zhiwei’s pale face but normal breathing, she secretly let out a sigh of relief.

After regrouping, everyone rushed toward the central hall. Along the way, only scattered black-clad men blocked their path, easily dealt with.

Throughout this process, Jiang Zhiwei continuously practiced coordination with Meng Qi. By the end, as long as she called out simple and vague directions like “Left three, right diagonal four, back two,” Meng Qi could quickly complete the corresponding steps—these commands were intentionally kept simple and ambiguous, only understandable between the two of them to prevent enemies from anticipating their movements like Cheng Yong had done.

“It’s a pity you don’t understand the Eight Trigrams’ positions. Our coordination can only be this simple…” Jiang Zhiwei sighed to Meng Qi.

Earlier, she had suggested using the Eight Trigrams to indicate directions, which would have allowed more flexible movements instead of being limited to straightforward advances and retreats. Unfortunately, Meng Qi had limited knowledge of the Eight Trigrams and couldn’t learn them quickly.

“It’s still better than nothing,” Meng Qi comforted her.

Jiang Zhiwei looked up at this stone room, then at Ge Chongshan and others scouting ahead, slightly worriedly said, “This was our agreed meeting place. Why haven’t Master Zhang and the others arrived yet? We haven’t seen any task completion prompts along the way either.”

From Qi Xia, she and Meng Qi confirmed that only those who had completed a side quest could see the corresponding prompts.

“Don’t worry. Master Zhang is highly skilled and will be fine,” Qi Xia worriedly reassured her.

Pak!

Something flew in from outside the room. Jiang Zhiwei extended her sword and struck it down to the ground.

“Ahh!” As soon as Jiang Zhiwei and Qi Xia saw what it was, they cried out in shock. Meng Qi was also extremely startled and uneasy.

On the dusty stone floor, Qingjing’s eyebrows were furrowed and his eyes wide open, staring at everyone—but only his head remained!