At this moment, Lin Changfeng unleashed a palm strike. The overbearing force of the wind from his palm instantly ripped up the stone tiles from the ground, turning them into shards of flying debris of various sizes that went whistling toward Ye Xuyang opposite him.

Ye Xuyang swung his longsword in a sweeping motion, instantly unleashing a wave of internal energy. It swept up countless rocks from the ground along with a wave of air, flying straight toward Lin Changfeng. The rocks carried by the powerful internal energy of both men collided in midair, letting out a massive bang. Countless stones splattered in all directions, immediately knocking down a large crowd of people nearby.

In nearly an instant, Ye Xuyang’s sword arrived right beside Lin Changfeng. Lin Changfeng was not slow either, meeting the strike with his palms, and the two immediately traded blows in a frenzy.

Meanwhile, the subordinates brought by Ye Xuyang were also fighting relentlessly. Although their opponents were no martial arts masters, they fought with great ferocity under the personal supervision of Yang Shao. Combined with their advantage in numbers, one of Ye Xuyang’s men had already fallen, and the remaining three were covered in wounds. Countless gashes cut across their bodies, leaving them in tattered clothes and drenched in blood, yet they still fought back with everything they had, as if making a final stand. Ye Xuyang was entangled by Lin Changfeng and could not break away for the moment.

Just then, Ye Xuyang’s sword thrust toward Lin Changfeng once again. Lin Changfeng tilted his head, dodging the blade. At the same time, Lin Changfeng’s palm arrived at Ye Xuyang’s side. Ye Xuyang twisted his body, and Lin Changfeng’s palm brushed past his side, missing completely as well.

Ye Xuyang followed up by extending his left hand. His left hand actually wrapped around Lin Changfeng’s striking arm, twisted, and grabbed Lin Changfeng’s palm. He actually used Lin Changfeng’s own palm, reversing it to strike hard against Lin Changfeng’s chest. Taking this blow, a mouthful of blood sprayed from Lin Changfeng’s mouth. At the same time, Ye Xuyang took advantage of the momentum to leap into the air, kicking Lin Changfeng’s chest repeatedly in rapid succession. Lin Changfeng was heavily injured, flying backward through the air before crashing to the ground.

Seeing another of his brothers fall while the remaining two were still stubbornly fighting on, Ye Xuyang flew down and joined the fray. Ye Xuyang’s sudden entry gave a massive boost to the morale of his two struggling subordinates. Blood splattered everywhere, and a swath of enemies fell wherever he passed.

Suddenly, a net appeared in midair, sweeping down from above to trap them. Ye Xuyang roared, “Get out of the way!”

His two subordinates took the opportunity to dive to the side. Four hidden guards held the four corners of the net, bringing it down right over Ye Xuyang.

Ye Xuyang brandished his longsword upward and started spinning his feet. Because his body kept spinning, it formed a wave of air that surged toward the center of the net. The net was shredded into several pieces by Ye Xuyang’s strike. The four hidden guards were flung in different directions and crashed to the ground. One of them slammed hard into a pillar and then ate dirt on the floor. These moves were all executed smoothly in a single breath under Ye Xuyang’s sword style.

By this time, Yang Shao had spotted an opening in Ye Xuyang’s back. He snatched a spear from a guard and took the opportunity to launch a sneak attack right at Ye Xuyang’s spine. At this critical juncture, Zhong Yueping flew over and blocked this fatal blow with her back. The infant in her hands slipped out, flying into the air.

Ye Xuyang suddenly realized what had just happened. He leaped into the air and caught the baby, immediately cradling it in his arms. While in midair, the baby had bared its teeth in a sweet smile as if finding it fun. But upon entering Ye Xuyang’s embrace, it seemed to notice an unfamiliar scent, and an instinctual reliance on its mother made it burst into tears.

Zhong Yueping gripped the spearhead that had pierced through her chest, a large amount of blood spilling from the corners of her mouth. Using every ounce of strength in her body, she cried out, “Hurry and leave! Remember to save my Nan’er!”

Her voice grew weaker and weaker. The moment she finished speaking, her head slumped down. Her corpse was still skewered on the spear in Yang Shao’s hands. Yang Shao was completely stunned. His eyes were wide open, unable to believe that the beautiful woman he longed for day and night had actually died by his own spear. A moment later, he roared at the sky, “Why? Why is it like this? What did I do wrong? God, why do you treat me like this? You even have to take away the woman I love most!”

At this moment, one of the subordinates brought by Ye Xuyang shouted, “Sect Master, hurry and go! We will hold them off!”

Ye Xuyang snapped out of the shock of Zhong Yueping’s death. Looking at all of this, he knew that Zhong Yueping had done it all for her child. Clearly, Ye Xuyang had become Zhong Yueping’s only hope. Carrying the baby in his arms, he flew out of the hall, disappearing from the palace after a few leaps. The remaining two subordinates were also overwhelmed by numbers and died under countless spears.

At this time, Yang Shao held Zhong Yueping’s corpse in deep agony. He kept wiping the blood from the corners of her mouth, but no matter how he wiped, he could not get it clean. That world-ending beauty was already stained so badly by blood that her features could barely be seen.

“Aren’t you supposed to die with your eyes wide open in resentment? Why are you closing your eyes so tightly? Why? Do you really hate looking at me that much?” Looking at Zhong Yueping, who refused to give him even a single glance even in death, rage could not help but rise in Yang Shao’s heart. “You would rather die than give in to me. Fine, fine, very well. Don’t you love Su Lianyun? I just won’t let you be buried in peace, and I just won’t let you go see him. I will freeze you in ice to stay by my side forever. I will make it so you can never leave me even in death! Ha ha ha ha!”

Yang Shao was like a madman right now, laughing one moment, crying the next, roaring at the sky, and then vowing to rebel and become the emperor. Finally, he pulled the spear out of Zhong Yueping’s body and began frantically slaughtering the subordinates who fought for him, looking like a demon from hell, treating human life as nothing and slaughtering at will.

A world-ending beauty brings much trouble, do princes and generals care for love?

Her fragrance fades and jade perishes as she follows her husband, while the bright moon shines a thousand miles across the martial world.

Clouds wrap around duckweed as they tie the knot, supporting each other at the Bridge of Helplessness.

In the next life, may we be lovebirds, lingering together like flying butterflies.

Twenty years flew by in an instant. The martial world was still the same martial world, but the legends concerning Su Lianyun and Zhong Yueping within it were no longer around. A new generation replaces the old. No matter how glorious you once were, not stepping foot in the martial world for twenty years is enough for the world to forget you.

After Su Lianyun’s death, many people initially searched hard for his tracks just to showcase their own martial arts achievements. However, this past myth of the martial world seemed to have sunk like a stone into the ocean. In the end, they could only give up in frustration. As for Su Lianyun’s death, who else in the martial world knew about it besides those few people?

On the northern mountain of Nanyang City in the State of Song, there was a courtyard. The yard was not very large, but within this narrow courtyard sat two tall thatched houses, which looked a bit out of place.

This was the home of Ye Xuyang and Su Moheng. For an assassin, a home was nothing more than a place where one could crash and sleep soundly when exhausted.

Su Moheng was twenty years old this year. Young as he was, he was already one of the few top experts in the Tianji Sect. Although he was still only a sect master, his achievements in martial arts could already rival Ye Xuyang, who held the rank of Heavenly General.

If Ye Xuyang had not intentionally suppressed Su Moheng’s momentum over the years, he probably would have ranked as a Heavenly King long ago, learned top-tier martial arts, and closed in on the throne of the Heavenly Sovereign. In truth, Ye Xuyang suppressing Su Moheng was also for his own good. On the surface, the Tianji Sect was merely an assassin organization, but the waters behind it ran incredibly deep. Su Moheng was still young right now. If he was allowed to climb too high, he would be completely unable to match those shrewd and calculating players, and in the end, he would only fall faster and die a more miserable death.

The Dragon Boat Festival and Children’s Day are around the corner. Wishing all you big babies a happy holiday! There will be a massive update chapter dump over these three days. First, to thank everyone for your continuous support, and second, to have fun together during the holiday and give you an awesome read.

Translation Notes

香消玉殒 (The Fragrant Fragrance Fades, the Jade Perishes): A classic idiomatic expression used to describe the death of a beautiful young woman.

奈何桥 (Bridge of Helplessness / Naihe Bridge): In Chinese mythology, this is the bridge in the underworld that souls must cross before reincarnation.