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Of course, saying and doing were two completely different things. Though she had confidence she'd somehow find a way to survive, her situation was extremely precarious.
One of her legs limped from the cut she'd received, her left arm hung limply, and her face was pale from blood loss. Beyond that, weakness enveloped Qing Xuanling's entire body.
She was fighting the urge to close her eyes.
She exhaled forcefully and tried to buy time. She desperately needed to recover some Qi.
"It's quite rare for assassins from the Ink Sword Sect and Mo Clan to hunt the same target—it's far too much of a coincidence… Or perhaps they've been working together from the start, no?"
She tried to draw the assassins' attention with the conclusion she'd reached. Her analysis had many gaps—such as why the Mo Clan assassins hadn't aided the Ink Sword Sect assassins earlier.
But she truly wasn't in a state to think things through deeply. She could only attribute the reason to internal conflicts.
Fortunately, one of the Mo Clan assassins seemed quite talkative.
"Haha—the rumors weren't true—you're smarter than you look. You almost got it right. In fact, the Ink Sword Sect and Mo Clan formed an alliance several months ago." The assassin's voice was calm, as if he weren't revealing great secrets. "But this assassination attempt wasn't jointly planned—in fact, those arrogant bastards got ahead of us!"
Qing Xuanling's brows furrowed with concern. It was far from good for the Qing Clan that the other two powers of Ziyun City had allied. Now she had another reason to stay alive—to report this to the clan. Though such a thing seemed increasingly unlikely.
"…You seem completely certain of my death, don't you?" Qing Xuanling smiled bitterly. "Ah—I truly never thought I'd die by the hands of the Mo Clan's poisonous bastards after fighting the Ink Sword Sect's people. I had a better opinion of them…"
The two green-clad assassins couldn't hold back their laughter upon hearing this.
"Girl—I think you've got the order confused." The assassin's voice was laden with mockery. "First you faced the Mo Clan's bastards—then you'll die beneath the honorable warriors of the Ink Sword Sect!"
Qing Xuanling's eyes widened in shock. For a moment, she didn't understand what the assassin—clearly clad in green and radiating a poisonous aura—had said.
At that moment, alarms blared in Qing Xuanling's mind without warning!
Qing Xuanling unconsciously moved her sword to the side.
Clang!
Her sword—which she held only with her right hand—was pushed back as a small, thin hidden dagger clattered to the ground!
Simultaneously, the two assassins of the Mo Clan—no, of the Ink Sword Sect—lunged toward her, several hidden weapons concealed between their fingers!
Qing Xuanling gritted her teeth and hastily retreated—leaving Assassins #1 and #2 behind. She truly wasn't going to risk her life just to kill them.
"Hehe—you certainly know how to run away to be someone from the Qing clan! Normally you lot are more reckless and foolish!" One of the assassins laughed as he launched several hidden weapons at Qing Xuanling.
His companion—who hadn't spoken until now—also launched several hidden weapons.
A chill ran down Qing Xuanling's spine. She could sense grave danger from those small, thin weapons. She was certain they were coated with deadly poison!
She couldn't let those weapons touch her!
Qing Xuanling's pupils contracted to pinpricks—and she immediately used the second move of the Wandering Sword: Nine changes!
Three sword slashes erupted nearly simultaneously in different directions—intercepting the trajectory of most hidden weapons!
However, several still slipped through her defenses. She twisted her body as best she could while dodging—but one still struck her. Her face immediately lost more color.
She'd been infected by Mo Clan poison!
Or the Ink Sword Sect's… She still wasn't entirely certain of the assassins' identities.
She gritted her teeth and increased her retreat speed. She was no longer heading toward her clan's territory—but toward the Immortal's Junkyard! She was certain madam Yechan would easily defeat these bastards!
The only reason she hadn't done so earlier was that she didn't want to trouble her. But now she had no choice.
The Ink Sword Sect assassins didn't know her intentions—but they also didn't want to let her escape. The talkative assassin shouted, his voice laden with demonic charm:
"Hey, girl—don't you want to know why assassins clearly from the Mo Clan claim to be from the Ink Sword Sect and insist those using Ink Sword Sect techniques are from the Mo Clan?!"
Qing Xuanling's step faltered for half a second. She truly wanted to know. The talkative assassin smiled upon seeing this and revealed the truth:
"The reason is that the Mo Clan wanted to use trained assassins to imitate our techniques to kill you and frame the Ink Sword Sect by leaving evidence! Fortunately, our great sect discovered the Mo Clan's plans and sent us to do the same!"
Qing Xuanling's mind froze for a moment. She finally understood why she'd ended up in this situation. She was being used as a pawn to start a war—a mere excuse!
Apathy filled her body as she inevitably slowed her pace from the sudden revelation.
The assassins didn't miss this opportunity.
A dagger coated in dark green poison flew toward the ankle of Qing Xuanling's limping leg!
Sweat beaded Qing Xuanling's brow as she realized—but it was too late! She had no time to dodge!
She gritted her teeth, ready to endure the pain.
But at that moment, another projectile flew—intercepting the poison-coated dagger!
"Damn it—don't think we'll let the Ink Sword Sect's plans succeed!" Assassin #1 roared furiously from a distance. "If our clan falls—yours will too!"
Qing Xuanling's eyes widened slightly—not understanding for a moment what was happening. But Assassin #1's voice snapped her out of her daze.
"And you, damn brat—you'd best stop running and stay to fight! Those Ink Sword Sect bastards already poisoned you with paralyzing venom! Though it was a small amount—in ten minutes you'll be on the ground!"
Assassin #1 struggled to rise while gripping his sword. He removed his black hood—revealing light green hair and the handsome face of a man in his thirties.
"Though I hate this—I'll help you… I can't let the Mo Clan alone bear the Qing Clan's wrath. At this point, it's better for us if you stay alive and report things as they truly are to the Qing Clan."
The talkative assassin grew furious upon hearing this. "Mo Clan scum! Are you truly willing to work alongside the one who killed your brother?! I saw clearly how furious you were before! Do you owe the Mo Clan such loyalty?! You're nothing but their dog! So die quietly and don't interfere!"
Assassin #1 snorted. "The Mo Clan matters least to me. I owe no loyalty to such a rotten clan! If it were up to me—it would be best if it were destroyed to its foundations!"
"Then why?!" The talkative assassin roared. "You owe them nothing—so stay out of this! You know—we'll even let you go as long as you don't interfere further!"
The talkative assassin was losing patience. He lacked confidence in definitively killing Qing Xuanling with Assassin #1's intervention—and the possible intervention of Assassin #3, who had been silently bandaging his wound.
The Ink Sword Sect hadn't given them the sect's sword techniques—only incomplete versions of the Mo Clan's poison techniques that even they didn't know the origin of. Thus, their actual strength was quite low among cultivators of their realm.
Even a wounded Assassin #1 would be a difficult opponent—especially when it was obvious he knew the Mo Clan's poisons and techniques quite well.
Unfortunately, Assassin #1 had a reason that wouldn't allow him to flee.
"I'd be happy to do that! But…" He smiled bitterly. "I still have a little sister in the clan. I can't simply die while letting your sect reap the rewards of a war between the Qing Clan and Mo Clan."
The talkative assassin was left speechless. Even someone like him could see the love between siblings. It was obvious he had no intention of backing down.
Qing Xuanling—who had been listening silently while swallowing a Qi Recovery Pill—also sighed in relief. She was beginning to believe Assassin #1's words. She still remembered the hatred in that man's voice when she killed Assassin #2.
Now she even felt slightly bad for killing one of the brothers. But she quickly buried those feelings.
'They came to kill me first—though I can see they were compelled, they still came to kill me. It was kill or be killed—that's the world…'
She sighed and pushed those turbulent emotions to the depths of her mind. She decided to believe Assassin #1's words. She trusted the pain he'd shown at Assassin #2's death had been real.
"Hehe—I see you don't have much confidence in defeating us, seeing how desperately you're trying to make him retreat…" Qing Xuanling smiled faintly and walked toward them. "I suppose you two are also such disposable pieces that they didn't even bother teaching you useful techniques~"
The talkative assassin fell silent—but the air around him grew heavier. Clearly, he was in a foul mood from her words. Qing Xuanling had struck a nerve.
At that moment, Assassin #1 drew a hidden dagger from his chest and hurled it at the talkative assassin!
Clang!
The talkative assassin easily blocked the dagger with his own—but Qing Xuanling had seized the distraction and closed the distance!
She wrapped her sword in sharp Qi and slashed!
The talkative assassin's eyes widened—he drew two daggers from his sleeves, using them to block Qing Xuanling's sword. However, the power behind the sword was too great—it shattered the daggers outright!
Unfortunately, the talkative assassin used the brief moment the daggers had delayed the sword to retreat. He evaded the attack with only a shallow cut across his chest.
"Tsk—I knew it—a sharp Qi so close to becoming sword Qi is too powerful…" The talkative assassin smiled bitterly. But he didn't seem worried.
Especially since his companion had already lunged at Assassin #1—planning to kill him outright! He trusted he could defeat Qing Xuanling in a two-against-one battle!
Qing Xuanling saw this and panicked. "Hey—be careful with that!"
But she didn't rush to rescue Assassin #1—instead, she attacked the talkative assassin with even greater ferocity! She wanted to kill him while Assassin #1 distracted the other.
'It might be a bit cruel—but I have to get out of here alive!'
Qing Xuanling hardened her heart as her eyes turned icy. She attacked the talkative assassin again—using the second move of the Wandering Sword.
She unleashed several relentless slashes—the talkative assassin could only narrowly dodge or block them. Sweat now streamed down his face under the constant assault.
"Hey, girl—don't tell me you truly believe you can defeat me?! I might be weak—but not that weak!" The talkative assassin suddenly struck with his palm.
Qing Xuanling hastily dodged—but before she realized it, poisonous Qi erupted from his palm and transformed into a dart that shot toward her!
Qing Xuanling's breath hitched as she felt her side being pierced!
"Damn it! Be careful, brat—that Qi poison will confuse your senses in just five minutes!" Assassin #1 shouted as he faced the other assassin—barely surviving.
Qing Xuanling gritted her teeth, ignored the pain—and attacked the talkative assassin fiercely once more.
He stopped talking and simply remained defensive—narrowly dodging Qing Xuanling's attacks, which had already lost speed.
Three minutes passed swiftly—Qing Xuanling's movements losing speed with each passing second.
The talkative assassin smirked mockingly as he narrowly dodged Qing Xuanling's sword—which passed mere centimeters from his neck.
"Girl—just surrender and let me kill you! Your death will be the foundation for the Ink Sword Sect to become Ziyu City's ruler! You should feel proud! Your death will be a great achievement that will make your ancestors proud!"
Qing Xuanling's eyes filled with fury upon hearing this—but she remained calm and continued attacking him while circulating Qi within her body in a certain pattern.
Her sword slashed toward his shoulder—but he simply dodged. Undeterred, she attacked his arm—but he dodged that too. The talkative assassin smirked mockingly upon seeing this. So when Qing Xuanling's sword aimed for his neck—he merely leaned slightly backward, narrowly evading it.
"See?! It's usele—gurgh?!"
The talkative assassin suddenly brought a hand to his neck—feeling hot liquid seep between his fingers. His eyes filled with disbelief.
Qing Xuanling smiled. "First move of the Wandering Sword—Invisible Cut… Heh—who would've thought killing you would be so simple and dull. All because of your pride."
The talkative assassin glared at her with hatred while trying to say something—but his eyes lost focus as he collapsed backward.
Qing Xuanling shook her head and turned toward where Assassin #1 and his brother were fighting the talkative assassin's companion. The sight surprised her.
Assassin #3 was biting the leg of the talkative assassin's companion while several poison-filled needles were embedded in his back. Meanwhile, Assassin #1 had plunged his sword into the talkative assassin's companion's chest.
However, this wasn't without consequences. A dagger was embedded near his neck—apparently coated in poison, judging by his frozen expression.
Yet he managed to articulate a few words.
"I-if... f-feel gratitude… my s-sister… help…"
He collapsed to the ground immediately after—alongside his brother's corpse and the talkative assassin's companion.
Qing Xuanling sighed with mixed emotions and turned away—heading toward the Qing Clan with the last of her remaining strength…