8 008

The faint palm that extinguished the candle’s flame, when compared to the palm forces exchanged during the assassination on the long street earlier, might as well have been an ant trying to shake a tree. Yet, to Shi Qingruo, it was undeniably a leap from zero to one.

The flickering fire from the candle’s smoke slowly rose, finally dissipating into the shadows of the corridor’s night, and Shi Qingruo stared fixedly for quite some time.

It wasn’t until Guan Qi stepped before her.

Shi Qingruo turned her head and saw the moonlight illuminating the frost at the tips of his hair and eyebrows, casting a clear glow on the vacant, confused expression on his face.

She did not resist, allowing him to place his hand gently on her wrist.

“…There’s internal energy now?”

“Yes,” Shi Qingruo’s lips curved into a more pronounced smile.

She had considered abandoning the system and learning martial arts through her own efforts alone. Even if she started later than those already renowned in the martial world, it would not matter.

If the power distribution in this world was no different from the games she had played before, she knew that mastering several martial techniques and secret medicines could rapidly build up her internal energy, allowing her to close the gap.

At the level of Guan Qi and the Divine Marquis Zhuge, it was even possible to transfer internal energy to others, creating a martial arts prodigy.

Unfortunately, shortly after arriving in this world, she had heard an evaluation from a young master trained by a top expert.

He said her meridians were extremely delicate, utterly unsuitable for martial arts. Forcing the internal energy would only lead to self-destruction by playing with fire.

Rather than gambling on the chance that her meridians might open, risking chaos and bodily explosion, it was better to live as an ordinary person without martial skills.

But the one who judged did not know, and even Guan Qi was unaware—

What man cannot achieve might be attained through mysterious, unnatural means.

For instance, today, when an undercover agent from the Golden Wind and Gentle Rain Pavilion within the Misty Sky Alliance submitted a signal of surrender and allegiance to Shi Qingruo under Su Mengzhen’s orders, a long-sealed part of the system panel was unlocked.

Having been recognized as the master by personnel of the Golden Wind and Gentle Rain Pavilion, Shi Qingruo, as the system’s host, could distinctly feel an incredible internal energy spontaneously appear and slowly circulate through her meridians.

It was like a trickle of heavenly nectar descending upon parched soil, flowing irresistibly until it permeated her entire body, forming a complete cycle.

When she circulated this internal energy herself, it even grew imperceptibly stronger.

This made her certain that if—

If she could gather all three factions’ subordinates under her command, perhaps this body unsuitable for martial arts could leap to become a prodigy!

Or perhaps, the system that came with her through the crossing held many more functions yet to be explored.

For example—

Those eyes, growing darker and more brilliant in the moonlight, fixed their gaze on Guan Qi.

As if sensing the look, he raised his head.

“Brother Qi, today Lei Sun came to test the waters—”

Guan Qi’s brows immediately knitted tightly, as if recalling the malicious guest at the wedding banquet earlier.

Shi Qingruo promptly grabbed his arm to prevent this somewhat unsteady man from rushing straight to the Six and a Half Hall.

Such recklessness would achieve nothing.

She gently advised, “Listen to me first.”

“He came to test him; we mind our own affairs. Now that I have a chance to learn martial arts, if I can protect myself, no matter what schemes he has, they will surely fail, won’t they?”

Perhaps because the wedding banquet, though fraught with turmoil, had been successfully held, Guan Qi’s temper was now easier to manage and far calmer.

He did not fully grasp the subtleties in Shi Qingruo’s words, but before her smiling face, he instinctively nodded. “Alright, I’ll teach you.”

“Not only me, the people of the Misty Sky Alliance will also do their utmost to protect your safety.”

After the wedding ceremony, she was now legitimately half the master within the Misty Sky Alliance.

...

The colored paper and red silk along the streets of Bianjing City had yet to be completely taken down, signaling that just yesterday a grand wedding had taken place here.

However, in the martial world, there were always fresh happenings, and common folk had new gossip to share. If one walked the streets, most of the talk was no longer about that event.

Even more so than the grudges between the Seven Lords of the Misty Sky Alliance and the leader of the Six and a Half Hall’s Thunder Sect...

When Wang Xiaoshi helped Bai Choufei hang calligraphy and paintings on wooden racks to set up their stall, he heard people mostly speaking of the beauty of the Sacred Lord’s wife.

Of course, that had nothing to do with them.

During the fierce clashes the previous day, the two planned to seize an opportunity to make a name for themselves. Unexpectedly, the ruthless chief constable suddenly appeared in the bride’s sedan chair, startling the assassins and leaving them both so shocked that they forgot what they were supposed to do.

In the end, they did nothing.

As for the wedding banquet that followed, since they had no connections, it was utterly unrelated to them.

Those destined to be imprisoned by the Six Doors went to prison; those needing to recuperate went to heal. The two of them had to continue scraping by in Bianjing City.

He was about to pick up the medicine basket at his feet to leave when a shadow suddenly stretched before his eyes.

“If you want to ask about the calligraphy and paintings—”

“Wrong. I’m not here to buy paintings. I’m here to see you.”

Wang Xiaoshi looked up sharply.

The woman standing before him had a face as pure and ethereal as a dream, and as she said, she didn’t glance at the displayed paintings but instead examined him and Bai Choufei with a strangely calm gaze. She was clearly not here to solicit business.

What truly shocked Wang Xiaoshi was not her sudden appearance at their stall, but that in the brief moment of meeting, he recognized her identity from her figure.

Among the Sacred Lords of the Misty Sky Alliance who fought openly yesterday, all wore masks. This second Sacred Lord was none other than this uninvited guest!

Bai Choufei also noticed and quietly gathered his fingers inside his sleeve.

Anyone familiar with him would know this meant he was ready to strike at any moment.

Zhu Xiaoyao, noting their wariness, smiled and said, “You two need not be so guarded. I’m merely delivering a message. My lady requests your presence. Please come with me.”

Bai Choufei did not move and asked solemnly, “What if we refuse?”

From their martial skills, both could see that the invitation carried no overt coercion.

Otherwise, she could have stationed Misty Sky Alliance men around to prevent their escape. Yet no martial artists around showed any sign of movement.

It was unlikely that the second Sacred Lord, having come personally, underestimated their abilities so much as to come alone to fetch them.

Zhu Xiaoyao lowered her voice, a playful glint in her eyes: “Bai Choufei, twenty-eight years old, once performed under the name Bai Youmeng in Luoyang, disguised as Bai Yingyang when working as an escort at the Golden Flower Escort Agency, and also known as Bai Jinlong, highly favored by General Helian’s household, but unfortunately—”

“Enough, no need to go on,” Bai Choufei interrupted, frowning, but as Zhu Xiaoyao paused, she turned to Wang Xiaoshi and began, “Wang Xiaoshi, now twenty-three, disciple of Elder Xu Xiaoyi of the Heavenly One Hermitage, wields the legendary sword that clashes with Lei Sun’s treasured blade—”

“Stop, stop!” Wang Xiaoshi threw down the medicine basket and flipped over the calligraphy stall, fearing Zhu Xiaoyao would continue. “You’re going too far. We asked why we should go with you, but you’ve just laid out all our secrets.”

Zhu Xiaoyao replied casually, “Young hero Wang, you’re mistaken. If I truly revealed everything, I’d mention how Bai Choufei was once a wanted criminal by the Ministry of War, or how you, Wang, have been in love since age eight but have gone through over fifteen heartbreaks... I only wish to show you that because I understand you so well, I feel it necessary to invite you personally.”

Wang Xiaoshi sighed, covering his face.

What should have been a serious occasion was, thanks to Zhu Xiaoyao’s words, turning comical, even Bai Choufei glanced at his expression, trying to discern if Zhu Xiaoyao’s words were true.

What sort of situation was this?

Wasn’t the Misty Sky Alliance, due to the Six and a Half Hall’s suppression, largely cornered in the capital in recent years and forced to keep a low profile? How could they have time to take an interest in small fry like them, and even in such trivial details?

Yet he had no idea that Zhu Xiaoyao, who came to invite them, was officially part of the Misty Sky Alliance, but the information she recited came from the White Pavilion of the Golden Wind and Gentle Rain Pavilion.

If it weren’t inappropriate to say everything aloud in public, she could even reveal that she knew about the flesh tumor beneath Bai Choufei’s left breast.

This was the terrifying power the Golden Wind and Gentle Rain Pavilion had maintained in the capital for many years.

Yet within such an intelligence department, there was no data on Miss Shi.

Nor did anyone know why, in just a few days, she had shifted from sympathizing with Miss Shi’s situation to working on her behalf.

Zhu Xiaoyao grumbled inwardly but glanced at Wang Xiaoshi’s even more bewildered face, resembling a clueless goose, and felt somewhat reassured. At least she was not the most clueless.

She led the two through the Misty Sky Alliance’s base, stopping before a reception hall.

“This is the place,” she said.

Zhu Xiaoyao paused, nodding at Wang Xiaoshi’s questioning look. “My lady has ordered me not to accompany you further. She says old friends catching up don’t need so many attendants.”

Old friends?

Wang Xiaoshi was puzzled—when had this Sacred Lord’s wife ever met him to call him an old friend?

But now that he was here, perhaps from the moment he entered the alliance, those watching him had marked him, leaving no way to retreat.

He glanced at Bai Choufei, reading the same emotion in his eyes.

If this Sacred Lord’s wife harbored any ill intentions, the two had a chance to fight their way out and maybe even make a name in the capital. So risking it was worth it.

They went in.

What struck them as unusual was that not only did Zhu Xiaoyao arrive with few attendants, but the hall itself, as she said, was largely undefended, as if to avoid disturbing their conversation.

Inside the room, stripped of wedding decorations, the most striking figure was one standing with her back to the door.

When the door opened, the breeze swept through, fluttering her red and green robe, making her appear slender and delicate. Yet the gold and green bird-shaped hairpin in her hair, shimmering with red, black, gold, and green hues, lent her an airy grace.

Hearing the door open behind her, she slowly turned to face the newcomer.

Wang Xiaoshi immediately exclaimed, “Miss Shi, it’s you?”

At the moment her face, made more splendid by her attire, turned toward him, he was struck by her beauty. After the shock, he immediately realized that the “old friend” Zhu Xiaoyao mentioned was no empty phrase but reality.

When he had just left his master’s side to venture out, he had fought human traffickers in Hubei and rescued a mud-streaked, untrained girl.

After escaping danger, he was told her name was Shi Qingruo, a victim of abduction.

Unfortunately, during their journey to the capital, the warm-hearted Miss Wen, whom they had fought and befriended, had left, and the Miss Tian they saved from the river had quietly departed. Miss Shi, citing the dangers of the capital, told them she planned to live in seclusion and left as well.

Only he and Bai Choufei remained to wander the martial world and survive in Bianjing City.

Because of this, he never expected that when he met Shi Qingruo again, her identity would have transformed so completely—now the Sacred Lord’s wife of the Misty Sky Alliance, and precisely—

The protagonist of yesterday’s wedding banquet.

If she did not look so unconstrained and her expression no longer anxious, Wang Xiaoshi might have suspected she had been taken here by Guan Qi of the Misty Sky Alliance.

Yet she seemed well.

When she folded her sleeves and sat down, the flowing green waves spread beside her, reflecting golden-red patterns. It suited her a hundred times better than the simple cloth skirt she once wore.

This stunningly beautiful face seemed as if it was destined to be adorned with silks and brocades, needing only a smile to captivate.

And at this moment, she did smile.

“That day on the river, I was fortunate to hear the ambitions of Young Master Wang and Young Master Bai. Now that some have been realized, I hope you won’t mind my sudden invitation.”

“Young Master Bai said that a man who cannot establish a lasting legacy and make a name in the world lives without meaning. Young Master Wang said you only want to try, that you don’t care about fame or legacy, but it’s a pity to give up without trying.”

“Has that sentiment changed today?”

The clear wind on the river, the bright moon over the mountains, the flowing waves reflecting shadows, lifting cups in toast.

That was a conversation just before arriving in the capital, remembered clearly even after long silence in Bianjing City.

Perhaps because they had since “lost touch,” it had only grown more vivid in memory.

Wang Xiaoshi never expected to hear those words from Shi Qingruo’s lips.

But as she spoke them, it seemed he suddenly recalled the scene from that day.

Shi Qingruo had sat at the stern of the boat like the legendary Xi Shi who could lure fish beneath the waves. Now, she sat in a grand hall, transformed into a noble looking down upon them.

Bai Choufei’s breath grew heavy for a moment before replying, “Even if it hasn’t changed, it doesn’t have to be the Misty Sky Alliance.”

Shi Qingruo shook her head, “Only the Misty Sky Alliance, with so much to rebuild, can offer you...”

“The most irreplaceable position.”