After My Thoughts Were Read, My Master Led Me to Change My Fate - Chapter 71.2

Ran Fanyin felt Ning Songwu’s trembling. She held her shoulder, looking at her with concern.

A layer of fine sweat broke out on Ning Songwu’s forehead. She narrowed her eyes and covered her head. The distant, shattered memories were impossible to grasp, instantly filling her with deep fear and a sense of powerlessness.

“I apologize, Senior, I am completely unaware of what you speak of,” Lin Yuxue’s voice was tight.

“Indeed… how could an outsider know of these old matters…” the middle-aged man sighed deeply.

Miaoshan suddenly spoke, “Master, so many years have passed since this matter, and the people sent out to search have all yielded no results. You should give up.”

Hearing Miaoshan’s words, Lin Yuxue’s expression hardened. She suddenly stood up and shouted, “You are Wen Jinglei!”

Wuji and the two others quickly encircled Lin Yuxue, blocking in front of her, and drew their swords.

“Why, did you not know I was Wen Jinglei all along?” the middle-aged man sneered. “Otherwise, would you have disguised yourself as a man and worn a mask to come here to see me, Young Valley Master?”

“You knew it was me long ago!” Lin Yuxue cursed under her breath. She slammed a hand on the table and drew her sword as well.

The two disciples at the door burst into the room, blocking Lin Yuxue’s escape route.

“How could I not know it was you? Not only do I know it is you, I also know that your friends are squatting on the roof beam outside. Since they have come, why not come down and join us for a cup of tea, hmm?” Wen Jinglei sneered.

Ran Fanyin’s lips pressed into a thin line. She said to Ning Songwu: “The wound on your chest has not fully healed. Stay here, do not go down. Wait for my return.”

Ning Songwu opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Ran Fanyin had already drawn out her Frostfall sword. Her white robes fluttered as she leaped down.

Ning Songwu took out the Phoenix Feather Sword tucked behind her. Just as she was about to follow Ran Fanyin down, a chaotic mind and a sudden, sharp pain in her chest instantly froze her on the roof beam. She supported herself with the Phoenix Feather Sword, the other hand tightly clutching her chest. For some unknown reason, her heart meridian, which had been recovering well, suddenly began to ache violently.

She tightly closed her eyes, trying to soothe her brain, which ached along with her chest, but it was completely useless. She struggled to open her eyes and looked into the room, only to see the white-robed Ran Fanyin and the blue-robed Lin Yuxue fighting fiercely with the group inside. The fluttering robes made her feel dizzy and faint.

Ran Fanyin was still inside; how could she seek a moment of peace here?

Ning Songwu bit her lip tightly, forcing herself to hold the Phoenix Feather Sword as she dropped down from the roof beam and entered the room.

Lin Yuxue, for some reason, suddenly seemed to lose all strength while fighting. She propped her sword on the ground and dropped straight to her knees. She bit her lip and said hatefully, “Impossible… How could I…”

Seeing Ning Songwu, Ran Fanyin frowned. She quickly flashed over to her side, shielding her securely, her voice cold: “Did I not tell you to stay put outside!”

“If I had instructed you in this way, would you have obediently watched me take the risk outside?” Ning Songwu countered.

Ran Fanyin stared blankly at her for a moment, saying nothing.

Ning Songwu joined the fight, while Lin Yuxue remained weak on the ground. The situation on both sides instantly descended into chaos again. Ning Songwu glanced at Lin Yuxue and seized a moment to say, “The tea you drank! There was a Gu in it. It entered your body the moment you touched the cup rim!”

Lin Yuxue’s consciousness was not completely lost; she was just staring intently behind the beaded curtain.

The only people fighting them were the two guards, the saber-wielding man, and Miaoshan. Wen Jinglei remained seated steadily behind the curtain.

Wuji, Wugong, and Wuming constrained the guards and Miaoshan, while Ran Fanyin and Ning Songwu faced the saber-wielding man.

“Oh, I really don’t know why you are struggling. You are already beasts trapped in a cage. You are going to die either way, so why not make it quick?” Miaoshan giggled seductively.

Lin Yuxue’s side gradually began to lose the advantage. Wuji and the two others had killed the two guards, but they were slowly being forced back by the chaotic Gu poison in Miaoshan’s hand. A small, unknown Gu worm flew onto Wuming’s body. Moments later, Wuming’s head inexplicably separated from his body and flew straight out.

Ning Songwu felt a surge of nausea from the intense visual shock. She barely managed to turn her head and see Ran Fanyin’s light and nimble figure above, trying to grasp a sense of security.

Wuji and Wugong were forced back to the side of Ning Songwu and Ran Fanyin, changing the temporary situation to four people against two. Even so, they gained no advantage. The robust saber-wielding man’s blade technique was extremely exquisite, deflecting all of Ran Fanyin’s attacks.

“Miaoshan—” Wen Jinglei suddenly spoke in a deep, heavy voice.

The six people stopped, blocked by this sound. Wuji and Wugong stood in front of Ran Fanyin and Ning Songwu, their faces tense and panting as they stared at Miaoshan and the saber-wielding man. Silence fell over the space for a time.

Ning Songwu felt her head might explode. Her vision seemed to be covered in a bloody, reddish mist. She gasped heavily, tightly gripping the Phoenix Feather Sword in her hand. She suddenly felt a burning sensation in her nasal cavity, followed by blood dripping down her skin from her nose, splashing onto her light blue clothes, intensely noticeable.

“Master… hurry and go… Wuji and Wugong and I will hold them off. Hurry and go…” Ning Songwu’s eyes were bloodshot, and even speaking was difficult.

“Ning Songwu!” Ran Fanyin cried out in a low, panicked voice, helplessly watching the increasing flow of her nosebleed.

Wen Jinglei gave an unnerving, soft laugh: “Miaoshan, entertain our guests well. Don’t let a single one escape.”

“Yes, Gate Master.” Miaoshan’s beautiful phoenix eyes flickered slightly, a look that was utterly terrifying at this moment.

Ran Fanyin tightly pursed her lips, staring behind the beaded curtain.

Ning Songwu continued, intermittently, “I… I heard before… that even the combined power of the Three Venerables could not kill Wen Jinglei… If he joins in a moment… not one of us… will live… Master, please go…”

“Enough!” Ran Fanyin seemed to be angered, her voice icy cold.

“My… my wound has relapsed… I won’t live. You go… you go, please…” Ning Songwu sobbed, one hand tightly clutching her chest, the other struggling to hold the Phoenix Feather Sword pointed forward, yet trembling violently. She moved her steps with difficulty, shielding Ran Fanyin.

“As a Master, do you think I would abandon my disciple to act as a shield for me!” Ran Fanyin stared intensely at Ning Songwu’s hair, which had somehow come undone, her long black hair cascading behind her.

“But you… are not just my Master…” Ning Songwu gave a bitter smile, wiping her nose indiscriminately. “You are more important than my own life. My life is yours; consider it repayment for your kindness…”

Ran Fanyin felt a sharp pain in her heart. Her hand gripped the hilt of her sword ever tighter, and she spoke, word by word: “Do you think that if you die, I will be able to live alone?”

“…” A tear spilled from Ning Songwu’s eye, mixing with the blood stains on her chin.

A thought suddenly flashed through Ran Fanyin’s mind. She lowered her voice and said to Wuji and Wugong: “Remember to pick up your Young Valley Master and run in a moment.”

Wuji and Wugong exchanged knowing glances and nodded subtly.

Ran Fanyin executed a complex and advanced set of movement techniques, quickly breaking through the encirclement. She shook out the bamboo tube she had slipped into her sleeve earlier, quickly disassembled it, and used the wind created by her sleeve to fling the Gu inside towards Miaoshan and the saber-wielding man, who were caught unprepared.

Miaoshan’s expression changed dramatically when she saw the small black seeds. She shouted, “Get back!”

Seizing this precious window of opportunity, Wuji quickly scooped up the unconscious Lin Yuxue. Wugong also ran to pick up Wuming’s separated head and body. Ran Fanyin embraced Ning Songwu. The group leaped directly out of the fifth-floor window, using all their spiritual energy to execute their movement techniques. In the blink of an eye, they vanished into the vast night.

Miaoshan looked at the ground full of black Gu worms with lingering fear. She gritted her teeth, just about to pursue, when she heard the steady voice behind the beaded curtain resonate:

“There is no need to chase. Let them go. They are only a few juniors; they cannot accomplish anything. We still have matters to attend to.”

“Yes, Gate Master.” Miaoshan respectfully lowered her head, her gaze complex as she looked at the patch of black Gu on the floor.