In a dilapidated mountain god temple, several people were gathered around a bonfire.
Someone was sharpening a knife, someone was meditating, and someone was eating.
A moment later, one person spoke.
"Squad Leader, how far have we escaped?"
The one sharpening the knife stopped his movements, looked up, and, gazing through a hole in the roof at the stars, pondered for a moment.
"About three or four hundred li."
"What, can't you bear it anymore?"
The man said with a bitter smile, "You know the Shaolin monks' martial arts; their cultivation might not be higher than their peers, but their foundation is too solid."
"That day I took a punch, injuring my right shoulder, and hiding like this every day, I'm afraid it will leave a hidden injury."
The one sharpening the knife also sighed upon hearing this.
"Why wouldn't I want to settle down? It's just that this matter was too big, and the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) will definitely come."
"The Cult Master told us to scatter and flee, which was precisely a plan for the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) to be overwhelmed. Whoever is caught by the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) is a pawn, and we certainly don't want to be that pawn. What else can we do but hide?"
The ruined temple fell silent for a moment, with only the wind, the sound of sharpening, and the crackling of burning wood occasionally echoing.
After a while, the one sharpening the knife sighed again.
"I truly don't know where that Li Miao came from."
"Lan Left Envoy, Right Envoy, Protector Mao, Banner Lord Zhou, our Banner Lord, and hundreds of Gu Soldiers accumulated by the cult, all died by his hand overnight."
"If we hadn't received news that he had gone to the Miao people, we wouldn't have dared to attack Shaolin."
"I only hope the Miao people can delay him for a longer period."
He shook his head, opened his mouth, as if he wanted to continue speaking.
"I was—"
He stopped, his pupils suddenly constricted, and his fingers trembled uncontrollably.
His fingertip touched the blade, cutting open a wound, and a stream of fresh blood flowed down the blade onto the ground, soaking into the soil.
But he seemed oblivious.
The person next to him was listening to him speak, but when there was no continuation, he looked at him strangely and reached out to pat his shoulder.
"Squad Leader, what's wrong?"
In this ruined temple, there was only the sound of their breathing. Even the wind stopped for a moment. In the dead of winter, there wasn't even the sound of insects.
They were all on the run, so how could they not pay attention to their surroundings? But there was clearly not a single sound around them.
He looked at the other person and found him also frozen in place, his lips trembling, his teeth chattering, making a "de de de de" sound.
He was clearly looking behind him!
He suddenly turned around, simultaneously drawing the weapon from his waist.
"Who!"
He stared intently behind him.
Moonlight streamed through the hole into the ruined temple, faintly illuminating a corner.
In that corner, a person stood with arms crossed, leaning against the wall.
The moonlight illuminated the lower half of his face, where a faint smile lingered.
"Done talking? Do you know anything else?"
The man said with a smile.
"Li—!"
Bang.
Before he could finish speaking, a headless body crashed to the ground.
Blood spurted from the cavity, splashing into the bonfire.
Hiss—
The bonfire was extinguished.
Darkness fell.
A violent noise suddenly erupted within the temple—the sound of drawing swords, curses, and cries arose simultaneously.
After three breaths, it quieted down.
No more sounds.
— — — — — — — —
"Hahahaha, let's drink this cup to the fullest!"
"Cheers!"
In a mountain stronghold, two men sat in the main hall. One was a brawny man with his chest bare, and the other looked like a scholar. They were clinking cups and drinking.
A plaque hung above the hall, with four large characters: "Gathering Righteousness for Hong."
"Brother, your martial arts are truly superb! Today's group of escorts, if not for you, we almost couldn't take them down! That young lady was truly luscious!"
"With you in my stronghold, it's like adding wings to a tiger!"
The brawny man laughed boisterously.
"Big Brother exaggerates. It was just a stroke of luck that I obtained a good martial art."
"If Big Brother is interested, I'll copy a copy for you tomorrow."
The scholar also said with a smile.
"Oh? Hahahaha, then I won't be modest!" The brawny man was overjoyed for a moment, and the last shred of hesitation in his heart completely dissipated.
For a time, host and guest were both delighted.
After three rounds of drinks, both were a bit tipsy and were about to leave their seats to rest.
But then they heard urgent sounds from outside the door.
"First Master! Second Master! This is bad!!!"
A person stumbled and crawled into the room from outside, his face pale.
"Some, someone is attacking—"
Bang.
Before he could finish speaking, the man's head exploded with a loud bang.
The headless body fell to the ground, twitched a few times, and then stopped moving.
A person stepped into the room, walked past the corpse, and stood in the center of the main hall.
He scanned the two men, his gaze finally landing on the scholar.
"You're good at hiding. You joined a mountain bandit stronghold and even became the Second Master."
"How much do you know about Ji Tianrui? Tell me everything."
The brawny man suddenly stood up, reaching for his saber, and cursed, "Where did this uncouth fellow come from, daring to—"
Bang.
The headless corpse fell, knocking over the wine table.
Wine and dishes splattered onto the scholar, but he dared not move a muscle.
His fingers trembled, his face turned pale, and his teeth chattered.
"Lord, Lord Li..."
He stammered.
Li Miao looked at him and smiled.
"You Ming Cult brats all seem to recognize me."
"I'll give you an incense stick's time to tell me everything you know. If you can't finish, or don't want to, I'll seal your acupoints and tie you behind my saddle."
"The next place I'm going is fifty li from here."
"Fifty li is enough to drag you into a puddle of minced meat."
— — — — — — — —
Quanzhou Prefecture, the prefectural city.
In a room filled with the scent of cosmetics, the courtesan was holding a pipa, playing and singing.
"It's not that I love the world of pleasure, but rather that I was led astray by a past edge ."
"Flowers bloom and fall in their own time, always relying on the Spring Lord."
Her voice was melodious, like weeping and lamenting.
After finishing the song, she put down the pipa, moved her dainty feet, and walked to the table.
She extended her slender jade hand to pick up the wine pot, filled a cup, but did not offer it to the guest. Instead, she brought it to her own lips and lightly bit the rim of the cup.
A trace of crimson was left on the rim of the cup.
This was called "tasting cinnabar," a way for courtesans to serve wine to their beloved benefactors.
The courtesans' rouge was mixed with honey, giving it a hint of sweetness, which gave the wine a unique flavor.
She lightly bit her lip and brought the cup of wine to a man's lips.
"Young Master, please drink this cup, and then we can rest."
"Good."
The man, dressed as a rich young master, smiled, took the wine cup, but did not drink the wine. Instead, he held the crimson mark to his lips, savored it for a while, and then drank it all in one gulp.
"Young Master... you're naughty..."
The courtesan blushed, her eyes filled with affection as she looked at the man.
"In that case, let's go and rest."
The man said with a smile, and was about to get up.
Bang!!!
In an instant, the roof broke open, and bricks and tiles fell down in unison!
Amidst the flying dust, the man shouted, "Rui'er! Rui'er! Are you alright!?"
The rich young master coughed as he stood up, waving his long sleeves to clear the smoke and dust.
But he froze for a moment.
Because at this moment, in the room, stood a heroic man. And his Rui'er was being choked by him, her face flushed, struggling ceaselessly.
"You! Let her go!!!"
The rich young master drew the sword from his waist and shouted angrily at the man.
Li Miao tilted his head and glanced at him, but then sneered.
"Idiot, you've slept with a man for over half a month and actually fell in love."
After saying that, he turned to look at the courtesan.
"You're even better at hiding. You killed the courtesan and disguised yourself to receive guests. You have so many ideas, I'm almost reluctant to kill you."
"Tell me, where is Ji Tianrui?"