Chapter 393: Chapter 359: Two Birds with One Stone
Swish, swish...
Although Baili Yuyao’s skiing experience was far superior to Shen An’s, her cultivation was not as profound as his.
Moreover, they were competing not on skills, but purely on speed.
Shen An could easily win against her.
However, Shen An still employed the tactic of "to catch, first let go", allowing Baili Yuyao to lead all the way until the final point where he exerted himself, overtaking her by a slight advantage.
Baili Yuyao’s expression changed.
Only then did she realize the linguistic trap Shen An had set at the start of the race, and upon looking around, found herself alone.
If Shen An truly intended to do something to her, she might indeed not be able to resist. She blamed herself for being preoccupied with the image of that damn man, especially the sight of him holding the hand of a woman prettier than herself, the deep affection in his eyes seemed to not dissipate. For some reason, it made her feel inexplicably sour.
She admitted that Lin Miao was indeed the most outstanding man she had ever met, she was jealous of Sun Youwei, even felt envious.
If they hadn’t been engaged earlier, perhaps she wouldn’t have hesitated.
"Miss Yuyao, apologies, I won." Shen An smiled smugly, the unrestrained thoughts in his eyes couldn’t be concealed.
Baili Yuyao, feeling sensitive to the situation, prepared to retreat.
"Shen An, what are you planning?"
"Miss Yuyao, a wager is a wager; honestly, I just wanted..."
"No way, Shen An, don’t even think about it."
"Miss Yuyao, you’re overthinking. I’m not the kind of person who exploits others in their vulnerable moments. I only wanted to ask if you’re cold; perhaps later we can go for some hotpot together?" Shen An was no fool; even an idiot could see the vigilance in Baili Yuyao’s eyes.
The most important thing now was to dissolve her inner suspicions to smoothly implement his plan.
"Oh, is that so? Fine, fine..." Baili Yuyao instantly relaxed and agreed without further thought.
"Then let’s head back." Seizing the opportunity, Shen An stepped closer to Baili Yuyao, snapping his fingers lightly, releasing a wisp of yellow powder that dispersed near her nose.
"Shen An, you..." Baili Yuyao caught a whiff of a unique fragrance, immediately widening her eyes in shock, fearfully glaring at Shen An with protest.
"Yuyao sister, your Shen An brother has missed you so much." Shen An chuckled, stepping forward to lift the now limp Baili Yuyao horizontally.
"Bastard..." Baili Yuyao finally realized she had fallen into his trap; all his refined demeanor was fake.
Wiping away any traces from the hillside, Shen An employed the lightweight skill "traversing snow without a trace," carrying Baili Yuyao and darting away as swiftly as an arrow leaving a bowstring.
...
"Senior sister, look, there’s a snow rabbit over there; you love rabbits, don’t you? Let me catch it for you. Stay here, don’t wander too far, I’ll be right back..." Lin Miao suddenly spotted a white figure flashing through the woods beside the snow path in the valley.
It was a snow rabbit.
Finally, he found an opportunity to temporarily separate from his senior sister. Otherwise, how could the person following them take action?
They were already at the innermost part of the ski area, beyond which lay the primordial forest where hardly anyone ventured; West City itself connected to the outside world, allowing anyone who didn’t want their movements tracked to bypass over the mountain, but ordinary people couldn’t pass through this place, only martial cultivators could.
"Junior Brother, hurry up then."
"Got it." Lin Miao twisted his body, swiftly sliding over tens of meters, rapidly vanishing into the woods.
Far away, observing the scene unfold, Shen Hao, following with his life-taking saber, was stunned; the golden opportunity presented itself right before him.
Isn’t this too easy?
Isn’t that boy too careless to leave such a delicate beauty on this secluded mountain snow path all alone, without fear?
Or does he have the confidence to return within a short time?
The opportunity was rare; if he returned quickly, this perfect chance would be missed. Without much thought, Shen Hao expanded his silhouette, taking flight on flat ground at an incredible speed. With an unbelievable angle, he lunged toward Sun Youwei.
The distance of several hundred meters took only a few breaths of time.
Ha, ha...
A silver bell-like laughter suddenly echoed.
Mid-air, Shen Hao’s heart tightened abruptly, a foreboding thought filled his mind: how could a woman’s laughter suddenly appear in this empty mountain?
Whoosh!
A purple figure emerged from the thick snow, confronting Shen Hao with a palm strike: "Fall back!"
Shen Hao was utterly shocked.
This was a trap; they had known he was following all along, deliberately leading him here.
Even though he specialized in taking lives with his life-taking saber, he knew that once a life couldn’t be claimed, escape was the only option.
Shen Hao’s figure was momentarily suspended in air then dropped down, yet as an upper-grade Meridian Passage Realm expert, his reactions were swift. As soon as he landed, he rapidly channeled his inner energy, infused it into his legs, and spun around in mid-air, preparing to flee immediately...
He already identified that the person who blocked him with that palm had cultivation no lesser than his own. With today’s circumstances becoming unattainable, without running, what was he waiting for?
Thinking of escaping, it’s too late!
A fair fist swung towards his face.
Although Shen Hao was a master of the Upper Grade Meridian Passage Realm, his opponent’s cultivation was much higher, already at the Great Perfection of the Meridian Realm.
Following him stealthily all this time, yet he hadn’t noticed at all.
The punch was almost in front of his eyes before he saw it.
Bang!
A solid punch landed on his head. Luckily, Helian Wanwan didn’t use her full strength, or this punch could have directly exploded his head.
However, despite that, Shen Hao couldn’t bear the hit. His head buzzed as if a pond of water was being violently stirred with a bamboo pole.
Take advantage of his weakness to kill him.
Si Miaoxue was not one for martial world ethics; with a move of Bone Shattering Hand, she directly dislocated one of Shen Hao’s arms.
This arm was the one he used to wield his saber, and with it crippled, his fighting capacity was reduced by eighty percent. The Life-taking Saber had now truly been life-taken.
Witnessing such a brutal scene, even Helian Wanwan let out a slight sigh. After all, today’s mission was to kill, no matter how it was done.
She too pointed a finger towards Shen Hao’s Dantian.
Before Shen Hao could even scream in pain, Si Miaoxue kicked him unconscious, thereby crippling his Dantian. He withered like a deflated balloon, aging rapidly, his once-jet-black hair turning gray in the blink of an eye, and his skin shriveling...
Sun Youwei stood to the side, watching the scene, not daring to even breathe heavily.
She recognized the woman in purple as Si Miaoxue, and the other as Lianxin and Liansuo’s master, Helian Wanwan, all familiar faces.
And the man lying on the snow must have been the one intending to harm her, taken down by Si Miaoxue and Helian Wanwan’s combined efforts.
It seemed the two had been secretly following her all this time. And that junior suddenly leaving her, it all made sense...
Everything was clear now.
But why hadn’t her junior told her in advance? Was he afraid she’d be too scared to cooperate, or did he simply not want her involved in these matters?
"Don’t be afraid, my lady. This guy’s name is Shen Hao, a member of the Green Blade Sect. He wanted to capture you to threaten and deal with Mr. Lin," explained Si Miaoxue.
Members of the Green Blade Sect.
Sun Youwei understood now. Her junior had a vendetta against the Green Blade Sect, that much she knew. It made sense that they’d come looking for him.
"Mr. Helian, I’ll take the lady away first. This guy is still breathing, you take care of him," said Si Miaoxue, glancing at Helian Wanwan.
Helian Wanwan nodded. Wanting benefits without bloodshed? Where in the world could you find such a bargain?
With a raise of her hand, Helian Wanwan struck Shen Hao’s chest, collapsing it by three inches, shattering his heart and lungs. Not even a deity could save him now.
She then bent down, retrieved a stack of gold notes from his chest, and found a saber manual; it turned out to be the Green Blade Sect’s secret text, "Azure Heaven Saber."
This guy carried it with him for safety, apparently.
There were also some odds and ends, and his treasured saber, which he hadn’t even had the time to draw. The Life-taking Saber he wielded was naturally no ordinary item.
But this saber dared not be used now. A swordsman always keeps his blade close; when the blade departs, so does the man.
If the Green Blade Sect found out, they would undoubtedly seek revenge.
However, it was indeed a fine saber. It would be a pity to discard it, but for now, it should remain unseen, not necessary to abandon it.
Helian Wanwan did not use sabers, so she packed up the saber, manual, and all of Shen Hao’s odds and ends, tossing them to Si Miaoxue.
These items were evidently meant for Lin Miao.
Helian Wanwan then threw a punch, creating a pit several meters deep in the snow, kicking Shen Hao’s body into it, covering it up with snow.
If it snowed again at night, all traces would vanish. By the time the snow melted the following year, no one would know that the brother of the Green Blade Sect’s dignified Sect Leader, an expert of the Upper Grade Meridian Passage Realm known as Life-taking Saber Shen Hao, was buried here.
Lin Miao was supposed to appear when Shen Hao did, but an unexpected visitor, Baili Yuyao, had shown up, and Shen An was with her.
He couldn’t just stand by and watch Baili Yuyao be harmed by Shen An, so once he confirmed Si Miaoxue was in place, he went in search of Baili Yuyao and Shen An.
In this vast snowy field, finding two people was no easy task. However, he had placed a trace of tracking fragrance on the blade servant.
The blade servant would surely return to Shen An; for someone committing misdeeds, having a trusted lookout was a must.
The blade servant was a death warrior, naturally the most suitable choice, likely serving as Shen An’s spy in past escapades.
Following that faint, elusive scent in the air, Lin Miao quickly detected the presence of the blade servant.
The blade servant possessed martial skills and decent talent, but was no match for Lin Miao. By the time he sensed danger, Lin Miao was already behind him, gripping his neck.
"Where is Shen An?"
The blade servant looked at Lin Miao in terror, remaining silent.
"I knew it, you wouldn’t speak. Then let me send you on your way first..." Lin Miao said, readying to channel his inner energy through his palm.
"The cave, he’s in that cave over there..." The blade servant’s eyes shifted; faced with life and death, he finally betrayed his master.
"Very good." Lin Miao didn’t kill him but still knocked him unconscious.
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