The moment Liu Fang heard Puliuru Jian's words, a look of terror fell over his face. He
said anxiously: "I was never ordered to fire arrows in Shen Qiao's
direction…Sui-guogong, you saw it yourself. Our orders were given to us by the
emperor, so we had no other choice! If Shen Qiao—er, Shen-daozhang has some sort
of misunderstanding, then you will certainly help us make things clear to him, won't
you!"
"Certainly," Puliuru Jian replied.
"Commander-in-chief, I know that you have your
duties, and cannot work independent of them. Naturally I understand."
Liu Fang sighed inwardly to himself, before the battle beneath him drew back his
attention once more: "Do you think that Chen Gong and his party will win this battle?"
Puliuru Jian and Liu Fang were not the only men paying attention to the fight. The
soldiers on top of the city gates were watching with rapt attention at this brilliant
battle, filled with the shimmering of blades and aura of death. Shen Qiao was carrying
the two small children as well, which could have prevented him from using his utmost
potential—yet he remained perfectly calm and at ease, which would have left anyone
in awe of his ability.
Everyone valued heroes, regardless of how time passed. Though the audience stood
by the Emperor's orders and had no choice but to act upon Yuwen Song, all of them
had held Yuwen Xian in great esteem. And Shen Qiao put himself in danger for these
two children, even though he had no connection to them.
With such admiration in their
minds, how could any ordinary person not gaze upon him with respect?
The day he killed Kunye , only the people of Bixia Sect were there to witness it—and it
was a scene that truly shook the world, which was why it was such a pity that so few
were there. Now here he was, beneath the stares of thousands—one against many,
staking great wins with but a single man's strength.
This single battle will determine whose reputation will be heard across the world!
Shen Qiao pulled Yuwen Song behind him, while he pulled Dou Yan closer. The curtain
of blades he had produced earlier was able to defend him from Chen Gong and
Baoyun. He gently swung the tip of his sword, and then—like that of the bright moon
breaking through clouds, overflowing with splendor, a sharp light surged in the
direction of Yan Shou's head.
Yan Shou had struck three times—yet each strike was swallowed up by the jian qi,
leaving him no choice but to retreat backwards several steps. He had assumed that,
with Chen Gong and Baoyun, Shen Qiao would be stretched thin across the three of
them. However, he didn't think that Shen Qiao would completely ignore the two men
and instead send a wash of jian qi rushing towards him with the strength to overturn
whole rivers and oceans.
He quickly brought up his one hand to block it, but the very moment he did, he
experienced a sharp stab of pain—the light from the sword had already arrived right
before his eyes!
And his entire arm was swallowed up by the boundless white light. The pain that he felt
was exactly like that of the day he had lost his other arm, and sent such fear throughout
his body that he experienced, for the first time in his entire life, the desire to turn his
head and run away.
His desire to battle had completely vanished, just as his killing intent was forced out of
him. At that very moment, Yan Shou wanted to find a way to escape unscathed. But he
had forgotten that the very moment that he intended to run away, it meant that he had
already lost.
The sword's light filled the sky, and became all that he could see. But there was only
one sword, just as there was only one sword that pierced him from behind, jabbing
right into the back of his heart.
Yan Shou looked down. He saw the point of the Shanhe Tongbei's sword, stained with
red.
The red of his own blood.
The Shanhe Tongbei sword, dyed in red, almost made a sort of humming sound. The
sound itself was incredibly quiet; however, Yan Shou found it strange that he was able
to hear it so clearly.
Perhaps it was because it was plunged right into him.
Before he could acknowledge this, Shen Qiao had pulled the sword out of him. Yan
Shou staggered backwards several steps, before falling heavily to his knees.
From behind, the battle continued on, unchanged. However, it would no longer need
him to participate.
"What a true hero!" Puliuru Jian could not help but exclaim from on top of the city
gates.
Though the other onlookers didn't say a word, their expressions clearly revealed how
they shared the same thought.
This sort of outstanding man would always win the admiration of the people, regardless
of the time and the place.
Beneath them, Baoyun and Chen Gong were shocked at the sight of Yan Shou's death.
However, their offensive maneuvers remained undeterred. Rather, they became even
more swift and fierce, like that of harsh wind and rain. The two of them both implicitly
agreed to avoid taking Shen Qiao head on, instead targeting Dou Yan and Yuwen
Song.
Because Shen Qiao decided to compromise with having the two children leaving him
vulnerable, then by taking care of the children, they were making the following
message: when fighting on the boundary of life and death, what mattered was wins
and losses—not the method in which a win would be gained.
Today, if they did not kill Shen Qiao, then this man would almost certainly become a
source of great misfortune for them!
Both Chen Gong and Baoyun thought this very sentence at almost exactly the same
time.
Chen Gong's sword moved with great speed. Baoyun, however, charged at him in a
strange and unpredictable way. The two of them surrounded him—one on the left, the
other on the right, cooperating with one another harmoniously. They knew that Shen
Qiao's jian qi was impressive, but it couldn't possibly continue forever without
becoming exhausted.
Shen Qiao turned towards Yuwen Song—however, it was not to protect him from the
front. Rather, it was to toss Dou Yan into his arms.
Yuwen Song did not need to be instructed. He understood what Shen Qiao meant to
do in a single moment. With both arms outstretched, he caught Dou Yan, who was only
a head shorter than he was.
With a single sweep of his arm, Shen Qiao carried the children several zhang away,
before turning himself around and rushing back.
His strength surged forward like the rush of a great wave, with an imposing manner
that made his presence clear, like that of a stone bridge following a bow of light41. His
impressive strength carried with it the faint sense of a man who could govern the
country, in contrast with the gentle and mild sword technique he had utilized before.
Chen Gong quickly understood the nature of the oncoming force, and used his sword
to pierce through the jian mu. He rushed towards him without hesitation--however,
just as he found himself in the clear, he realized that the target standing in front of him
had somehow been Bao Yun.
Behind me—!
Just as he thought this, Chen Gong turned around, and was met with a wash of jian qi
surging towards him.
However, just as Baoyun saw through the same illusion that Chen Gong had been a
victim of, it was too late—he had already struck Chen Gong.
Chen Gong had no choice but to retract his sword technique so as to sidestep
Baoyun's palm maneuver.
However, Shen Qiao was precise. Together with his sword, he surged directly towards
Baoyun.
When two tigers are at war, one will certainly be wounded.
Baoyun had used all of his strength into his palm maneuver from earlier. However, in
the middle of executing it, he realized that his target had been Chen Gong, so he had
to withdraw half of his internal strength. But once this was done, it was difficult to
reverse. The light of Shen Qiao's sword surrounded him, pouring out from furious
waves with the power of a thousand jun, rushing in Baoyun's direction!
Fresh blood shot out of Baoyun's body. Shortly after, a bloody puncture wound also
appeared on his throat.
Two elders of Hehuan Sect died by Shen Qiao's hand, one after the other.