Rong Zhi froze.
Was this also his strategy?
She mounted the horse with a complicated heart.
Xia Yunting slapped the horse's hindquarters, and the horse neighed and ran off.
The gate leading outside was already engulfed in flames, the fire crackling and spitting, and a wave of heat hit them as soon as they approached.
Rong Zhi's brows furrowed. She spurred the horse, and it galloped forward.
The moment the horse's hooves landed, the precarious door frame could no longer hold. It collapsed to the ground with the raging fire, forming a wall of flames.
Rong Zhi looked back and saw Xia Yunting leap into the sea of fire.
Was this truly not an act of suicide?
Rong Zhi suppressed the urge to save him and galloped towards the outskirts of the city.
The city gates were already closed, guarded by only two sentries. Rong Zhi presented her token.
"He's one of General Xia's men, open the city gates!"
The heavy city gates creaked open. As soon as Rong Zhi passed through, the surroundings fell silent.
Outside lay a vast, empty wilderness. The summer night was filled only with the chirping of insects, the calls of birds, and the rustling of leaves in the wind.
The horse sped onward, but the image of the soaring flames, the struggling servants fighting the fire, and Xia Yunting battling in the inferno flashed through Rong Zhi's mind.
Rong Zhi reined in the horse, slowing its pace.
She stroked the horse's mane and sighed softly.
"Xiao Hei, do you think we should have fled? What if your master perishes in the fire, and you become a riderless wild horse? I won't be able to return to Medicine King Valley either."
Xiao Hei snorted, pawed the ground a few times, and then suddenly turned, darting into the nearby woods.
Rong Zhi was thrown backward, barely regaining her balance.
Xiao Hei entered a clearing in the woods, shook its head, and began to graze unhurriedly.
It started eating!
So it was hungry. She had thought the horse was intelligent and wanted to go back to save its owner.
Rong Zhi dismounted, patted the horse's face, and gazed in the direction of the city.
"I pray Xia Yunting is alright."
She had been waiting for Xia Yunting for years.
During these years, she had considered other options.
She had tried to befriend other officials in the imperial city, hoping they could help her gain military command outside Medicine King Valley, but it was all in vain.
Moreover… Medicine King Valley seemed to be a sensitive topic now. People on the street would deliberately lower their voices when mentioning it.
Besides relying on Xia Yunting, the only other option was to force her way back.
Medicine King Valley had always been secluded from worldly affairs. She didn't want to instigate conflict between Medicine King Valley and Tianque Kingdom just to return home.
A sound of fighting erupted from outside.
Rong Zhi peered through the trees and saw a person being besieged.
Upon recognizing the figure, Rong Zhi was startled.
It was Xia Yunting.
He looked disheveled, his red robes tattered with cuts and burn marks. His hair was messy, and his face and body were smeared with grime.
He was unarmed, his eyes scanning his surroundings warily. He demanded coldly,
"Who exactly are you people?"
"Go to hell and ask the King of Hell!"
The attackers swarmed forward, raising their weapons.
Xia Yunting dodged and parried, his movements and those of his attackers incredibly swift, leaving Rong Zhi dazzled.
The more Rong Zhi watched, the more peculiar it seemed.
Although she hadn't fought Xia Yunting much, his strength was likely superior to hers.
The black-clad assailants were clearly no match for him, so how could the fight be so evenly matched?
Gradually, Rong Zhi noticed something amiss.
Although Xia Yunting appeared to be losing, the assassins' weapons were always skillfully evaded just before they could touch him.
Was he feigning?
The black-clad men also began to realize this. Angered, they shouted and launched a collective assault.
Xia Yunting clenched his fist, grabbed the wrist of the nearest attacker, and squeezed. With a crack, the man's broadsword clattered to the ground.
"Ah! It hurts so much!"
Xia Yunting didn't let go. He used the man as a weapon, swinging him around and knocking down several other assassins, rendering them unconscious.
Only then did Xia Yunting release his grip.
The thrown assassin foamed at the mouth and rolled his eyes before fainting.
The sound of hooves approached rapidly. Zhang Can rode into view.
"General, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
Xia Yunting replied, but his expression froze.
A silver needle had pierced the back of Xia Yunting's neck, its tail glinting in the moonlight.
Xia Yunting's body went limp, and he collapsed to his knees.
Several assassins who had been lying unconscious suddenly stood up and swung their sabers toward Xia Yunting's head.
"Xia Yunting!"
Rong Zhi could no longer hold back. She sprang forward, picked up a fallen saber, and swung it with a powerful broad sweep.
Rong Zhi was short and slender, and the saber seemed almost too large for her. Her steps appeared lacking in force, almost like a dance, yet each strike was fatal.
Assassins fell before her one after another.
Before long, only Rong Zhi and Xia Yunting remained on the scene, amidst a pile of sprawled corpses.
Zhang Can, seemingly stunned, finally dismounted and went to check on Xia Yunting.
"General, are you alright?"
Xia Yunting shook his head. He wiggled his fingers and stiffly pulled the needle from his neck.
It was poisoned.
Xiao Hei emerged from the woods and nudged Xia Yunting with its head.
Xia Yunting patted the horse's head, mounted it, and extended his hand to Rong Zhi: "Let's go back to the manor and discuss your request."
Rong Zhi's eyes lit up, but instead of taking his hand, she leaped onto the horse lightly, like a butterfly.
Xia Yunting looked at his empty hand, his gaze flickering.
On the way back, Xia Yunting asked, "What are the casualties?"
"Zhao Jiawei, Chen Yi, Li Chao, Huang Zhenbang – these brothers didn't make it out. The remaining people sustained varying degrees of burns. I didn't expect the assassins to use gunpowder to bomb the general's manor. It's utterly outrageous. This is my failure to inspect properly."
However, given the magnitude of the fire, it was a miracle that only a few people were lost.
Rong Zhi glanced curiously at Zhang Can and then at Xia Yunting, remaining silent.
Xia Yunting suddenly shifted the topic to Rong Zhi.
"Doesn't this young lady remind you of someone?"
"Who?"
Zhang Can scrutinized Rong Zhi carefully, then shook his head. "This subordinate doesn't recall."
"Indeed, it has been more than ten years."
As Xia Yunting spoke, he suddenly coughed up blood. Rong Zhi flinched in alarm.
"General! How are you?"
The three of them dismounted quickly to check on him.
Rong Zhi took Xia Yunting's pulse. "I'm a physician, I can treat him."
Xia Yunting's pulse was very weak; it was the symptom of poisoning.
Rong Zhi fumbled in her pouch but found nothing. Her antidote pills must have fallen somewhere.
She quickly pressed several acupoints on Xia Yunting's body to prevent the poison from spreading, her actions calm and precise.
As she did so, Zhang Can, standing behind her, tightened his grip on his sword hilt.
"Be careful!"
Xia Yunting shoved Rong Zhi aside. At the same time, Zhang Can lunged at Xia Yunting.
The long sword sliced through the air, carrying a palpable killing intent.
"Xia Yunting, go to hell!"
Xia Yunting rolled aside, narrowly dodging the blow. He picked up a fallen saber and assumed a defensive stance.
Zhang Can's sword plunged into the grass and was then yanked out with a "swish."
"You are indeed a problem!"
Xia Yunting's gaze turned icy.
Zhang Can's expression shifted. The subservient demeanor was gone, replaced by pure hatred.
"No wonder we've faced over twenty assassination attempts in the month since returning to the imperial city. Our men are skilled, and our defenses are well-planned, yet the assassins always manage to infiltrate easily. I suspected a traitor, but I never imagined it was you!"
"So what if it was me? Xia Yunting, your death is at hand!"
Zhang Can raised his sword to strike. He took two steps forward, then froze abruptly.
His eyes locked onto Rong Zhi, filled with shock.
"You..."
His sword dropped. Two crimson streaks flowed from the corners of his mouth, staining the few blades of grass beneath his feet.
A long silver needle was deeply embedded below the Adam's apple of Zhang Can's neck.
Rong Zhi retracted her hand and turned to look at Xia Yunting.
"Your subordinate's skills are far inferior to yours."
Xia Yunting looked surprised; he hadn't noticed when she had moved.
He walked forward. "Where is the real Zhang Can?"
"He's dead… Didn't expect that, Xia Yunting. Your brother of over twenty years… was a fake… Hahaha…"
Before he could finish, "Zhang Can" suddenly stiffened. He looked down at the long sword plunged into his abdomen and coughed up another mouthful of blood.
His gaze grew unfocused. He lowered his head and died.
Xia Yunting released his grip, watching the man before him slowly collapse. His expression remained impassive, as if he had merely crushed an ant.
Rong Zhi shivered, suddenly feeling the night air turn cold.
The source of the chilling air was Xia Yunting, standing a few paces away.
When she came to her senses, she realized Xia Yunting's gaze was fixed on her.
Seeing her dazed, Xia Yunting raised an eyebrow. "Scared?"
"No..."
Rong Zhi shook her head.
"Did you deliberately expose a weakness to test him?"
Xia Yunting began searching "Zhang Can" for any evidence, answering casually, "Yes, you noticed?"
"Your acting is quite good."
His poisoning wasn't severe enough to make him cough up blood.
"Where is that needle?"
Xia Yunting produced the silver needle and handed it over.
Rong Zhi took it and examined it under the moonlight.
Unfortunately, the moonlight was too dim to discern anything. She then smelled it, catching only a pungent, sour odor.
"I can't determine the exact poison for now. Judging by his pulse, the effects haven't fully manifested, but the toxicity is spreading. You have at most seven days. Without treatment, you will die of heart failure."
Xia Yunting's expression remained unchanged, as if he were hearing something unrelated to his impending death.
He asked, "Are you a physician?"
"Yes."
"What is your name?"
"Lin Mo."
"Under whom did you study?"
Xia Yunting slowed his movements.
"Imperial City, Divine Physician Jiang."
"Is that so..."
Xia Yunting said no more, quickening his pace. Soon, he retrieved a cylindrical object from Zhang Can's person.
He examined the object back and forth before finally tucking it into his robe.
"Who are they?"
"A killer organization from the martial world. We don't have specific details yet."
As Xia Yunting was about to continue his search, a long, cylindrical object rolled off "Zhang Can's" body.
Before either of them could get a clear look, it shot into the sky with a "whoosh," exploding into a colorful circular pattern.
"It's a signal flare!"
They both realized simultaneously.
Xia Yunting's eyes darkened. He quickly mounted Xiao Hei and pulled Rong Zhi up behind him.
"We can't return to the imperial city. If you're not afraid, come with me."
"I'm not afraid!"
Rong Zhi replied.
She had experienced evading pursuers before in her previous life.
However, half an hour later.
"Xia Yunting! Did you dig up someone's ancestral grave? Why are there so many assassins!"
Rong Zhi cursed loudly, staring at the black-clad figures behind them, who were dressed uniformly and moved with the precision of a single entity.
They weren't just chasing them; they were using arrows!
A dense volley of arrows flew toward them. The pair couldn't afford to focus on anything but evasion. Several arrows whizzed past Rong Zhi's ear.
Rong Zhi regretted her decision fiercely. She had really gotten entangled with a huge problem. Would she be shot to death before she could even return to Medicine King Valley?
Xia Yunting remained silent, urging Xiao Hei to speed up.
Xiao Hei was a warhorse with exceptional speed, but the pursuers on horseback were not falling behind.
Rong Zhi sensed a killing intent. She reached out and caught an arrow, snapping it in two.
"Are they never going to stop! Xia Yunting, faster!"
"Giddy up!"
Xiao Hei neighed and galloped away at full speed, the scenery blurring past. Only the roar of the wind filled their ears as they temporarily outran the arrow shower.
Rong Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally got rid of them."
Ahead, Xia Yunting swayed precariously, nearly falling off the horse. Fortunately, Rong Zhi managed to catch him.
She felt something warm in her hand. Rong Zhi withdrew it and saw bloodstains on the back of her hand.
Oh no, the poison was spreading.
Rong Zhi took the reins, trying to slow down. However, Xiao Hei was no longer obeying, its speed not only unabated but actually increasing.
"Xiao Hei! Stop! If you don't stop, your master will die!"
Her plea was answered only by the thunder of hooves.
Xiao Hei finally stopped in the afternoon.
Rong Zhi looked at the dense mountain forest before them, her lips twitching.
Where… was this?