The only sound was breathing, punctuated by the sharp crackle of hundreds of torches blazing fiercely, their light reflecting in countless pairs of eyes, all fixed with sharp intensity upon Li Muzhan.
The area was lit as if by daylight. Li Muzhan stood in the center, clad in simple grey monastic robes, his left hand slowly moving prayer beads, his demeanor calm and composed.
He looked at Ximen Zhan with quiet gentleness, then suddenly smiled. “General Ximen possesses remarkably sharp intuition; to evade all three of my arrows—I am impressed!”
“It is you!” Ximen Zhan’s sword-like brows rose slightly. He asked coolly, “Who exactly are you...?”
“My name is not worth mentioning...” Li Muzhan shook his head. “The Eastern Chu has placed a bounty on assassinating my Great Yan General. I thought the General might enjoy sampling what it feels like to be hunted...”
Li Muzhan then chuckled. “Well, how are you faring?”
“You are Hua Yiping’s guard...” Ximen Zhan offered a faint smile.
Li Muzhan nodded and smiled. “Indeed. On behalf of my General, I bid you well!”
Ximen Zhan’s face instantly darkened, his brows knitting together. He waved a dismissive hand. “Go! Kill him!”
…………………………………………………………
Several streaks of silver light shot towards Li Muzhan, and the surroundings dimmed as a chilling cold seemed to press down upon the torches.
“Hahahaha...” Amidst Li Muzhan’s loud laughter, his bow and arrow were already in hand. With a sharp hiss, Ximen Zhan was sent flying backward.
“General!” The others cried out in alarm. Eight guards instantly soared into the air, surrounding him.
Li Muzhan suddenly vanished from his spot, his long saber slicing through empty air.
A flicker of movement, and he reappeared thirty feet away, slipping out from the crowd. With a flick of his hand, hiss! a sharp whistle echoed across the night sky.
The eight guards clustered in front of Ximen Zhan. An arrow pierced one, losing none of its speed, trailing a spray of blood as it sped toward Ximen Zhan. Another guard swiftly pulled Ximen Zhan away, and they plummeted straight down, scrambling to flee.
The remaining six rushed after them, forming a shield around Ximen Zhan’s retreat.
Thump! A muffled report like a thunderclap echoed as the bowstring vibrated violently.
One guard was hurled away. Seeing this, another guard roared in anger, turning to meet the incoming arrow with his blade, which transformed into a luminous shield of light.
Clang... The shield of light dissolved, and the guard was flung sideways.
Li Muzhan’s eyes were like lightning; he clearly saw this guard turn his head mid-air, a look of relief gracing his features as he saw Ximen Zhan vanish deep within the command tent.
Li Muzhan shook his head. A loyal man, this guard, but sadly, he was of the Eastern Chu.
He partially closed his eyes, drew his bow, and loosed an arrow that disappeared silently into the darkness.
Though the exchange seemed prolonged, it happened in the blink of an eye. Li Muzhan was fast, and so were his assailants. At this moment, the armored soldiers finally managed to surround him.
Li Muzhan flashed away again, slipping out of their encirclement and vanishing.
………………………………………………
Five guards supported Ximen Zhan as they fled with lightning speed.
Ximen Zhan’s face was ashen, his eyes glittering with cold light. Carried between his guards as if on a stretcher, the wound on his right chest had finally stopped bleeding.
After darting through several tents, the five guards halted, letting out a collective sigh of relief. “...Phew, that’s done!”
“General, are you alright?” They gently lowered him, examining him with concern.
Ximen Zhan waved a hand, coughed once, and sneered coldly. “A formidable Hua Yiping, indeed. He managed to hire such a master...”
One guard inquired gravely, “General, why did we not see Mr. Wu take action?”
“Mr. Wu is out today...” Ximen Zhan waved his hand again, his voice low. “Hurry, the farther we get from him, the better!”
“Yes, General!” they replied, lifting him once more.
A guard suggested, “General, perhaps we should change our clothes!”
“No need!” Ximen Zhan waved his hand. “This man’s archery is sinister and impossible to guard against. You must be cautious...”
“So many of us are keeping him occupied; General, do not worry!” one guard assured him.
Hiss! Ximen Zhan suddenly leaned back as a faint ray of light zipped past his cheek.
“General!!” The five guards gasped, a chill running down their spines. This arrow had arrived with unnerving strangeness, as if leaping from thin air without warning.
Ximen Zhan immediately straightened up. His coronet had been shot away, leaving his hair disheveled. Unperturbed, he gestured. “Go quickly!”
The five men bore him away, moving like a gust of wind.
“Kill!” A deluge of arrows descended like a torrential downpour.
Li Muzhan shifted, slipping free of the arrow storm, disappearing from their sight as he pursued Ximen Zhan.
Thump... A dull thud, accompanied by the violent vibration of the bowstring, as an arrow shot out silently, catching up to Ximen Zhan a mile distant.
He had spent countless hours and much mental energy researching the Yujian Jue (Arrow Mastery Art), finally developing this phantom arrow—silent, invisible, and utterly unpredictable.
Had it been anyone else, they would be dead now. But Ximen Zhan’s intuition was sharp, and his martial skill formidable; he had barely managed to dodge it. Li Muzhan inwardly chided himself for being too soft—he should have poisoned the tip!
He closed his eyes and loosed another arrow.
Ximen Zhan abruptly twisted to the side, but he lacked the strength; his movement wasn't fast enough, and he was lifted into the air by the dark streak.
“General!” The five cried out in alarm.
They flew to catch him, and a bloody hole appeared on Ximen Zhan’s abdomen, oozing blood. Their faces changed drastically; they knew he had been struck again.
One immediately applied pressure to a vital point, another used trauma powder. The bleeding stopped quickly; their movements were practiced and swift, accomplished in the blink of an eye. Throughout this, they continued to move at a speed surpassing that of galloping horses.
“Trouble!” one guard suddenly exclaimed, throwing himself sideways to block. A faint ray of light pierced his body silently, losing no momentum as it sped toward Ximen Zhan.
Another guard positioned himself in front of Ximen Zhan, blocking the path. The dark light passed silently through his body as well.
………………………………”………………”,……………… “Clink...” A silver streak shimmered, intercepting the dark ray. When the dark ray fell to the ground, it was revealed to be a short arrow.
Ximen Zhan’s face was as pale as paper. Gritting his teeth, he waved a hand. “Stop! Bring me my horn...”
“General!” The remaining three guards halted immediately, panic rising at his words.
Ximen Zhan frowned. “Blow my horn! No matter what, you must kill this man...”
“...Yes, General...” One guard stamped his foot in frustration and shot off, returning in a flash carrying an ox horn.
“You blow it for me...” Ximen Zhan gasped, his cheeks flushed crimson.
The guard nodded, raised the horn to his lips, about to blow, when—crack!—a sharp sound and the horn flew out of his hands, tumbling through the air.
Flick! Following a pale ray of light, the ox horn exploded in mid-air.
Pfft! Ximen Zhan’s eyes flew wide open, and he spat a torrent of blood skyward before collapsing rigidly.
The three guards panicked. “General!”
“How dare you!” A furious roar exploded across the sky like rolling spring thunder, nearly deafening them. Their vision blurred, and their bodies swayed precariously.
Li Muzhan remained unmoved and loosed an arrow.
“Take this!” Under the hazy moonlight, a dark silhouette appeared like a phantom, transforming into a lightning-fast sword flash that cleaved the night, striking directly at Li Muzhan.
Li Muzhan drifted aside, evading the blow, but the sword light, like a silver dragon, pursued him relentlessly.
Li Muzhan was attempting to multitask, watching another location while parrying, shaking his head in silent lament. Two more guards had shielded Ximen Zhan, intercepting the arrow.
So close to killing Ximen Zhan, but alas, fate was unkind; Ximen Zhan’s fortune had not yet run its course, so the killing failed.
Thinking this, he turned to leave.
“Trying to run—!” The sword light suddenly flared, and a deep, cold laugh echoed from behind the radiance.
Li Muzhan drew his Duanyue Saber and brought it down in a level stroke.
Clang... The sound of metal meeting metal rang out continuously. The snow-cold sword light abruptly retracted, revealing its wielder: a burly middle-aged man.
He was powerfully built, his face round as the moon, his slender eyes piercing with glints of cold lightning. His nose was high-bridged, and three strands of dignified beard adorned his jaw. His entire bearing exuded natural authority.
Li Muzhan mused inwardly that this man must have been devastatingly handsome in his youth, capable of captivating many women, and still possessed considerable charm in middle age.
Feeling a sense of ease, he smiled faintly and drifted away.
“Hmph, you think you can leave—” the middle-aged man roared in anger, his sword light transforming into a radiant sheet that coiled around Li Muzhan.
……………………………………………………”,……………………
Li Muzhan exclaimed, “Oh?” He hadn't expected his swordsmanship to be so exquisite, utterly flawless. With no other option, he had to meet force with force.
He swung his saber.
Clang... Another sharp sound, and the sword light receded.
He seized the opportunity, flickered, and appeared twenty feet farther away.
“Hmph!” the middle-aged man snorted, then shimmered and appeared instantly before Li Muzhan, his sword light enveloping Li Muzhan’s entire person like a cage.
Li Muzhan shook his head. “You cannot stop me!”
He brought his saber down again, striking the longsword precisely, then flashed away again to a spot twenty feet distant.
“Shoot him!” the middle-aged man barked angrily.
Instantly, arrows rained down, engulfing Li Muzhan, each one carrying tremendous force.
Li Muzhan flashed to evade, but the middle-aged man appeared, his sword light shifting, turning into a dense, fine drizzle, omnipresent, binding him close.
Li Muzhan frowned, flicked his left sleeve, and an invisible surge of power wrapped around him, surging out like a flood dragon to shatter the arrows. The Duanyue Saber struck again.
This man possessed profound inner energy; otherwise, he would have been driven back by the Duanyue Saber long ago. His swordsmanship was also superior; Li Muzhan was outmatched, forced to rely on crude power to overcome refined technique.
They flashed in and out of sight like phantoms, the clash of saber and sword a constant symphony. In moments, they had burst out of the great tent; the heavy barrage of arrows could not hold Li Muzhan back at all.
Outside the camp perimeter, Li Muzhan called out loudly, “Who are you, sir?”
“Who are you?” the middle-aged man roared, his sword light growing more fierce, surging like a vast river.
Li Muzhan struck left, then right, with seemingly ordinary blows, yet each one precisely struck the longsword, momentarily shattering the sword light and granting him a precious moment to breathe.
“Just a mere soldier of the Great Yan. Farewell!” Li Muzhan laughed heartily, suddenly unleashing several rapid slashes. Each blow struck the longsword, forcing the middle-aged man back two steps.
The man roared, and his sword light surged anew, assaulting Li Muzhan like a sudden gale.
Li Muzhan laughed again, flashed once, then flashed again, traversing a hundred meters in the blink of an eye by employing the Randeng Shu (Lamp Lighting Art).
Behind him came the middle-aged man’s enraged roar, shaking the night sky like a thunderclap.
In the time it took to draw a breath, Li Muzhan reached the ramparts of Shenguang City, standing before General Hua. His grey monastic robes fluttered as he clasped his hands in salute. “General.”
General Hua examined him from head to toe and nodded. “Master, are you unharmed?”
“I am unharmed. Unfortunately, I failed to kill Ximen Zhan,” Li Muzhan replied with regret.
General Hua was unconcerned. “Ximen Zhan is not so easily slain, protected as he is by supreme experts. It is sufficient that Master returned safely!”
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