"Naturally, it’s the identity of being an enemy to the Blood-Drinking Pavilion,"
Rong Zhi brushed the question aside lightly, offering no further explanation.
"The immediate priority is to quickly produce the antidote. I'll help you."
With sufficient leverage, they could then negotiate with the Blood-Drinking Pavilion.
"Alright."
Chu Qing Ze didn't press for more information. He knew these two people’s origins were unknown, and if Rong Zhi didn’t want to talk, he wasn’t one to pry.
Thus, Rong Zhi and Xia Yun Ting remained at the mass grave, dedicating themselves to developing the antidote.
Chu Qing Ze’s storeroom was well-stocked with medicinal herbs, enough for them to experiment. Under Rong Zhi’s guidance, the production process became seamless.
They set up a large cauldron in the courtyard, adding the medicinal ingredients from the prescription to boil. Rong Zhi controlled the heat, while Chu Qing Ze, holding a large ladle, stirred occasionally at Rong Zhi’s command. Their coordination was quite默契 (mòqì - tacit understanding).
"It's a shame we don't have a dan furnace. The progress would certainly be much faster,"
Rong Zhi fanned herself, remarking casually.
"A dan furnace? Isn't that something only alchemists use?" Furthermore, the concoctions made couldn't extend life, and anyone who consumed them would die. Therefore, he had no fondness for such things.
"It's merely a tool. As long as it's effective, who cares who uses it?"
Rong Zhi suddenly found herself reminiscing about the days in the Medicine King Valley, where medicinal ingredients and tools were complete, and everything was done with ease.
Chu Qing Ze stirred the decoction in the pot.
"Nowadays, the entire country can't even find a single Daoist, let alone a dan furnace. Having a cauldron is already quite good."
The Celestial Dawn Kingdom had consistently suppressed Daoism for years. Within the entire kingdom, there were no Daoists, not even fortune tellers who could divine fortunes by reading bones.
"Yes, I wonder why the Emperor suddenly decided to suppress Daoists. Twenty years ago, the Celestial Dawn Kingdom's Grand Preceptor was incredibly influential. Do you think there's some hidden story behind this?"
Rong Zhi looked at Chu Qing Ze.
"How would you know about things from twenty years ago? You're only eighteen this year?"
Rong Zhi gave him a look as if he were an idiot.
"I wouldn't ask."
Chu Qing Ze’s expression stiffened. He cleared his throat to ease the awkwardness.
"I meant, why are you interested in events from so long ago?"
"It’s nothing. A few years ago, a fortune teller told me I'd be incredibly wealthy in my thirties. Before I could ask exactly which year, that fortune teller was arrested by the authorities, which is why I was curious and inquired."
She told the lie with a straight face, and Chu Qing Ze didn't suspect a thing.
"It's best to inquire less about royal matters. It can cost you your head."
Rong Zhi said no more.
They worked until nightfall. Only a thick residue remained in the pot. It needed to dry in the courtyard overnight. Chu Qing Ze looked around, suddenly realizing a problem.
"Where's Xia Lei?"
He and Rong Zhi had been busy since early morning and hadn't noticed that the man who had been quietly following Rong Zhi seemed to have disappeared.
"Oh, he went out to take care of some business,"
Rong Zhi replied casually as she washed her hands in a basin in the courtyard.
Late at night, in a deep mountain five li outside the city, Xia Yun Ting weaved through the forest like an arrow loosed from a bow.
Several pursuers were hot on his heels. They moved with extreme speed, their footsteps masked by the rustling of leaves in the wind. Only someone with profound martial arts skills would be able to detect them.
Xia Yun Ting’s toes barely touched the ground, as if a dragonfly were skimming the water. The scenery on either side blurred past at incredible speed. Suddenly, the field of vision widened ahead of him, and he found himself in a clearing.
He stopped, and in an instant, several assassins exuding a murderous aura surrounded him, their long swords drawn.
Bathed in moonlight, a group of assassins, clad in black and masked with black cloth, emanated a heavy scent of blood carried on the breeze.
The assassins exchanged glances, a mixture of tension and vigilance in their eyes. They confirmed their target: the person before them was indeed Xia Yun Ting. This was an opportunity for great merit, but achieving it meant treading on the edge of life and death.
Legend had it that Xia Yun Ting could fight a hundred men on the battlefield and had once infiltrated enemy lines alone to slay a commanding officer. When the Silver Serpent Hall received news that Xia Yun Ting had been defeated and fled to Changping County, they found it hard to believe. Now, facing the man himself, though it confirmed the previous intelligence, they dared not slacken, instead raising their vigilance to the utmost.
In a flash, they charged forward. The glint of swords and the shimmer of steel reflected the moonlight, tracing dazzling patterns in the air, each imbued with a sharp killing intent, yet none managed to land a blow on Xia Yun Ting.
Xia Yun Ting appeared to be doing nothing, yet he dodged every attack with precision. His movements were like the wind, appearing and disappearing without a trace. His opponents couldn't discern how he struck, yet they had each taken solid blows. One flew out from the group, crashing into a tree with a thud, then rolled to the ground, lifeless.
The rest met the same fate. With a series of thuds, only Xia Yun Ting remained standing on the grass.
He hadn't even broken a sweat, as if he had merely been on a stroll. He approached one of the bodies and turned it over. From his robes, he produced a piece of material as thin as a cicada's wing – a mask meticulously crafted by Rong Zhi beforehand, its features meticulously mimicking Xia Yun Ting's original face.
This was what Rong Zhi called the art of making the fake indistinguishable from the real.
Just as Xia Yun Ting was about to affix the mask, he saw that the person's head was a bloody mess in the moonlight. It turned out that Xia Yun Ting's punch had shattered the skull, brain matter and blood splattering everywhere. The mask could clearly no longer be used.
Disgusted, he flung the body aside and then found another.
After fitting a few masks from his robes onto them, Xia Yun Ting, carrying one person in each hand, used his Qinggong to speed towards the foot of the mountain. He repeated this a few times, placing the assassins in different directions. Once he had finished, he meticulously cleared the traces on the grass before leaving without looking back.
He returned to the mass grave in the early hours of the morning, the sky on the verge of dawn. Rong Zhi lay on the bed, breathing evenly.
Xia Yun Ting removed his blood-stained outer garment, finally feeling a slight weariness. Just as he was about to lie down to rest, he was kicked.
"Who?"
Rong Zhi sat up abruptly, her eyes wide as saucers. Unlike her previous wariness, her expression seemed one of immense shock.
Xia Yun Ting clutched his chest. Though the kick was negligible, he feigned weakness as he spoke, "It's me, Xiao Mo."
Rong Zhi also saw that it was Xia Yun Ting, her face freezing. She managed an awkward smile.
"Oh, it's you. I thought it was a ghost."
Rong Zhi pulled Xia Yun Ting up and pointed outside the window, "That thing scared me during the night."
In the courtyard, directly facing Rong Zhi's window, and perhaps due to Chu Qing Ze's peculiar sense of humor, a skeleton had been placed there, deliberately posed in a waving gesture. Rong Zhi had woken up in the middle of the night, nearly losing her wits.
Xia Yun Ting was amused and exasperated.
"You're not afraid of the Blood-Drinking Pavilion's assassins, yet you're afraid of ghosts?"
"How can that be the same? Assassins are visible and tangible. Ghosts are ethereal. They could be floating behind you at any moment."
Rong Zhi said, rubbing her arms, feeling goosebumps rise.
"But I felt much better as soon as you returned." Seeing his travel-worn appearance, Rong Zhi asked, "How did things go?"
"I shook off a few assassins and did as you instructed."
"Good."
Rong Zhi's eyes lit up. "If they're intent on capturing you, they'll believe it rather than dismiss it. Now, I wonder how busy they'll be!"
The light in her eyes sparkled like those of a cunning little fox. Xia Yun Ting's heart skipped a beat. He said nothing, merely nodding.
During the day, Chu Qing Ze continued to make the antidote. Rong Zhi first checked on Master Zhang in the storeroom. After confirming everything was in order, she returned to oversee the heat. Xia Yun Ting rested in his room.
It appeared to be a calm and uneventful day. Li Hao and Yun Heng hadn't inquired about the antidote. However, unbeknownst to them, undercurrents were already surging.
During this time, Liu Hong visited once. He said that a group of people had arrived in Yunshui Village, inquiring about the identities of Xia Yun Ting and Rong Zhi. They first questioned Yu Cheng, but he said nothing. Then, they obtained the registration information Rong Zhi had submitted from the village chief, but naturally, nothing could be found.
However, Liu Hong suspected that they might have left informants in Yunshui Village.
This was expected. However, Rong Zhi and Xia Yun Ting had nothing to fear, as the people from the Blood-Drinking Pavilion would soon have no leisure to investigate them.
At the yamen, Tang Yuan Jiang listened to his subordinate's report, his expression shifting through a myriad of colors like an overturned spice jar.
"This is already the fourth Xia Yun Ting. How many Xia Yun Tings are there?"
The unassuming subordinate wore a pained expression. "Hall Master, please forgive us. When the brothers found the person, they indeed saw Xia Yun Ting's face. But upon closer inspection, we realized they were all our own brothers, wearing masks. We don't know who did it. The brothers, afraid of letting a target escape, dared not let any of them go."
Tang Yuan Jiang narrowed his eyes, which were already small, reducing them to two slits.
"Xia Yun Ting is a general of the Celestial Dawn Kingdom. In battle, he should be honorable and upright. Why would he resort to such despicable methods?"
He mused, "Could it be that there is someone else beside him?"
"Yes, Hall Master. The previous intelligence indicated that one other person accompanied Xia Yun Ting to Changping County, but... no one could clearly see her face."
"No wonder."
The subordinate then recalled something else and said with some difficulty, "Moreover... we encountered Duke Zhu's subordinates. They seemed to know what we were doing and deliberately obstructed us."
"How would he know? Did you tell anyone about Xia Yun Ting's appearance?"
"How would your subordinate dare? If you gave me ten times the courage, I wouldn't dare to say. I also find it strange. I didn't tell anyone that day. Who exactly leaked the news in the end?"
Tang Yuan Jiang suddenly remembered the person who had been eavesdropping outside that day. The moment he discovered the person, they had disappeared, indicating considerable skill. Could they be from another hall?
"You may withdraw for now. Continue the search until Xia Yun Ting is found."
"Yes." The subordinate obediently withdrew, a look of relief on his face, as if he were glad the Hall Master hadn't punished him. However, this look of joy vanished as soon as he stepped outside. He left the room expressionlessly and headed towards the place where the message had been sent last time.