The Eldest Prince's Residence.
Jiu Ge had been kneeling from morning till night. A faint footprint was still visible on his clothes—it was from a kick by the Eldest Prince, and he did not dare to brush it off.
After returning from the Drunken Immortal Tavern, the Eldest Prince had flown into a furious rage inside the residence, kicking Jiu Ge several times. Although it did not hurt, it weighed heavily on his heart.
The Eldest Prince's exact words at the time were, “You couldn't even last a single exchange against a rogue wanderer, yet Imperial Mother claimed that with you around, my safety would be absolutely guaranteed?”
“I think Imperial Mother is getting senile!”
After saying that, he slammed the door shut, leaving Jiu Ge to kneel alone in the courtyard outside.
It was rather ironic. Ever since his former lord's passing, he had always remained by the Eldest Prince's side. He was there during trips out of the city for horse riding and archery, during excursions outside the imperial palace, and during night banquets in the wilderness.
During a snowy season that year, the Eldest Prince and a few close friends went to the mountain forests to admire the snow. The snow fell so heavily that no one noticed a white tiger hiding in the woods.
It wasn't until an earth-shattering tiger roar echoed through the forest that they suddenly realized the danger.
How could anyone not fear the majesty of the mountain lord?
Everyone present, including the accompanying guards, stood frozen like wooden chickens. They even forgot how to run, watching helplessly as the white tiger lunged at the Eldest Prince, who was crowded in the center.
Terrified by the majesty of the mountain lord, the Eldest Prince trembled violently as he watched the sharp tiger claws draw closer and closer...
However, the tragedy everyone anticipated did not happen.
Blood dripped onto the snow, its brilliant red as striking as blooming plum blossoms. Three hideous claw marks appeared across the center of Jiu Ge's chest, each deep enough to show bone.
Enduring the excruciating pain, he confronted the white tiger, his long blade pointing straight at its head. Not a single sound was made in the entire area; everyone even slowed their breathing.
After a long while, two plumes of white mist exhaled from the white tiger's nostrils, and it finally turned and lumbered away.
At that sight, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. As his final support collapsed, his vision suddenly went black, and he fainted.
Sigh.
This sigh overlapped with the one in his memories, lingering for a long, long time...
“Former Lord, my debt of gratitude to you has been fully repaid,” Jiu Ge murmured to himself. He wanted to go out and see the world...!
His thoughts were suddenly cut short, and his eyes snapped sharp.
The long saber by his side clanged out of its sheath. In an instant, the doors of the room were sliced in half and sent flying.
Looking at the scene inside the room, Jiu Ge's heart instantly sank. The Eldest Prince's chest had been pierced through by a long sword, pinning his entire body to his chair. Blood stained the seat beneath him a bright crimson.
Standing right beside the Eldest Prince were two assassins. Both were masked and clad in black. Even though they stood right there, they were incredibly easy to overlook.
“The Turtle Breathing Technique!” Jiu Ge glared at them. He had not expected that in just a moment of distraction, such an irreversible tragedy would occur.
This was absolutely no coincidence, but a meticulously planned assassination!
“Damn it!” Jiu Ge cursed, his long saber flying out like an arrow from a bowstring, aimed directly at the throat of one of them.
The person dodged it nimbly and lightly patted his companion's shoulder.
“Don't drag out the fight.”
His companion understood immediately. Choosing not to tangle with Jiu Ge, he tapped his foot and leaped into the air, swiftly escaping the scene across the rooftops.
Jiu Ge did not pursue them immediately. Instead, he stepped forward to check the Eldest Prince's condition. Pressing his fingertips to the prince's neck, he felt only a cold, dead silence...
The two figures zipped across the rooftops, moving so fast that they did not alert anyone, like a gentle breeze passing by without a single sound.
“Chen, is it confirmed that the Eldest Prince is dead?”
Chen nodded. “That sword pierced straight through his heart. There is absolutely no chance of survival.”
The two were brothers. The character 'Chen' was his name, while he himself was his older brother, 'Chenn'.
“Good. Now, we...”
Before he could finish his sentence, a strand of hair by his temple was sliced off. A long saber whistled past, nearly grazing his right eye, before stabbing several inches deep into the ground ahead!
His pupils shrank. Almost simultaneously, the two halted their steps, drew their weapons from their waists, and spun around.
Only to see Jiu Ge standing a short distance away, staring at them expressionlessly. His gaze was incredibly cold and flat—so flat it was as if he were looking at two dead men.
Even though it was the same person, he felt entirely foreign to them. Their instincts from years of executing assassinations told them that this man was extremely dangerous!
He narrowed his eyes. He hadn't even noticed when the saber flew past his face just now. In fact, at the moment his hair was sliced off, he had only felt a gust of strong wind brush by. This throw was completely different from his attack back in the residence...
Their opponent had truly unleashed his killing intent.
“Chen,” he said in a low voice, glaring coldly at the figure standing in the wind not far away. “Don't hold back!”
“Right!”
With a crack of roof tiles under their feet, the two lunged at Jiu Ge almost in unison. Chen's weapon was a black short blade, resembling an invisible god of death in the dark night.
The short blade thrust straight at Jiu Ge's face, while Chenn flanked him, aiming a sharp spike directly at his neck.
It all happened in the blink of an eye. With a short blade pressing from the front and a deadly spike from the side, a black iron chain attached to the end of the spike also began to tighten slowly around Jiu Ge's neck.
The two coordinated with flawless chemistry, instantly trapping Jiu Ge in a dead end!
Just as they believed success was within grasp, he moved. Eschewing flashy moves, he grabbed the chain with a backhand grip, pulled it in front of him, and jammed the short blade into the gaps of the chain.
With this single tug, the spike veered away from his vitals and plunged into his shoulder instead.
In this manner, he broke the deadlock at a minimal cost.
Chen's expression changed, and he quickly tried to pull his short blade out. Unfortunately, Jiu Ge was faster, delivering a kick to Chen's abdomen that sent him flying, and instantly leaping to follow him.
The kick carried immense power; even after being sent flying, Chen could not even stand up straight.
“Chen!” Chenn's face paled. Seeing Jiu Ge charging toward Chen, he threw caution to the wind and swiftly whipped the spike in his hand forward.
Jiu Ge reached Chen, but just as he was about to crush his neck underfoot, he had to dodge sideways to avoid the incoming spike from behind.
Yet, the moment the spike flew past him, it abruptly stopped. Chenn had seized the chain at extreme speed, violently swinging the spike back toward Jiu Ge!
Forced to relent, Jiu Ge had to give up on killing Chen to deal with Chenn's offensive.
Chenn's weapon was difficult to counter. In close quarters, whenever Jiu Ge dodged backward, Chenn would let go of the spike, grab the chain, and sweep it forward, making his attacks incredibly hard to anticipate.
Evading Chenn's attack once more, Jiu Ge rolled untidily across the ground a couple of times.
Seeing the opening, Chenn lunged forward to press his advantage!
But suddenly, his arm felt completely weightless, and the spike fell to the roof with a clatter.
“Brother!!”
Hearing Chen's desperate roar, Chenn was stunned. Turning his head, he saw his right arm lying cleanly severed on the roof. At this moment, only an empty sleeve fluttered in the wind.
What...
A wave of excruciating pain washed over him. Gritting his teeth, Chenn collapsed to his knees. The pain of the severed limb nearly made him lose consciousness, but sheer willpower forced him to glare at the figure before him.
Jiu Ge stood before him, looking down from on high. His long saber had somehow found its way back into his hand.
Blood dropped down the blade, eventually slipping into the gaps between the roof tiles.
Chenn could only feel that Jiu Ge looked like an executioner at this moment, while he himself was paying with his life for everything he had done.
Jiu Ge slowly raised his hand.
Chenn stared blankly at the long saber. The full moon behind the blade looked as if it were being sliced in half.
Just as the blade swung down ruthlessly, Chen rammed into Chenn from behind, grabbed him tightly by the collar, and slammed a silk pouch toward Jiu Ge.
The silk pouch was sliced open by the saber, instantly releasing a thick cloud of smoke. Although his vision was obscured, Jiu Ge still swiftly slashed a strike toward Chenn's direction.
He frowned. He was about to give chase, but before making a move, he quickly backed away.
Once clear of the smoke, he slowly raised his hand. The skin on the back of his hand had already begun to blister and fester; he realized the smoke was poisonous.
With a swift stroke of his blade, a large chunk of flesh was carved from the back of his hand, yet he did not even bat an eye.
Watching the direction in which they fled, he sheathed his saber. He did not return to the Eldest Prince's Residence, turning instead to walk toward the outskirts of the city.
Shortly after the two left, another person appeared on the rooftop.
His emaciated figure stood as steady as Mount Tai in the night breeze. He looked toward the Eldest Prince's Residence, his deep gaze completely unreadable.
Ultimately, he let out a soft sigh.
It was so quiet that even the wind could have dispersed it; perhaps not even he himself heard it.
“Your Majesty, today it has finally gone as you wished,” Elder Li murmured to himself as he looked into the distance.
The Third Prince was impatient and impetuous; his inability to remain calm made him unfit for great responsibilities. The Eldest Prince had the talent to rule a nation, but he had been utterly terrified out of his wits when facing the mountain lord.
As the saying went, when dragons and tigers clash, how could the future true dragon, the Son of Heaven, be so cowardly?
Elder Li shook his head. The choice for the new emperor was basically settled. Just as the old emperor wished, the person who would sit on that throne was the one with the most courage, the most strategic calculation...
...
...
At the Second Prince's Residence, two figures crashed untidily into the courtyard. Their bodies were drenched in herbal liquids, but much of their skin had still been corroded.
Furthermore, a hideous blade scar had been added to Chen's chest.
—Creak.
Almost at the exact moment the two appeared in the courtyard, a door swung open. The Second Prince slowly stepped out of the room, and quite a few guards also emerged to surround the courtyard.
The Second Prince walked up to them, his gaze sweeping carelessly over the two. He didn't spare a glance at the severed right arm or the wounds covering their bodies; instead, he was searching for his elder brother's head.
“Where is his head?”
Hearing the Second Prince's words, Chenn ignored his heavily injured body and hastily knelt on the ground. “Please forgive us, Your Highness! Your subordinates were discovered when we struck.”
Before the Second Prince could speak, Chenn urgently continued, “However, the Eldest Prince is definitely dead. This subordinate pierced his heart with a long sword!”
After saying this, he dragged Chen down to kneel beside him, keeping his head low, almost touching the ground.
The courtyard in the night was dead quiet, save for the sound of the wind and chirping insects. Among the dozen or so people in the yard, not a single one made a sound.
The oppressive atmosphere weighed heavily on his nerves, making him feel as though he couldn't breathe—though perhaps it was because his injuries were too severe.
After a long silence, the Second Prince finally spoke slowly.
“Since my elder brother is dead, you have completed your mission.” Having said that, the Second Prince cast a glance at a nearby guard.
The guard understood, drawing his blade from its sheath. The sound of the weapon unsheathing made the two kneeling figures shudder violently, terror instantly gripping their hearts.
Pfft!
Blood splattered onto the two of them, and their bodies instantly froze. However, the anticipated pain did not come. Confusion arose in their hearts, but they didn't dare to look up.
“Get up,” the Second Prince said.
Hearing this, the two breathed a sigh of relief. But the moment they raised their heads, their pupils shrank. An arm was lying on the floor in front of them.
The owner of the arm was none other than that very guard. Right now, his face was pale as he trembled, clutching his shoulder where his right arm was now completely gone.
“Take this arm and find the imperial physicians to attach it back to you,” the Second Prince said flatly, as if speaking of a trivial matter.
Trembling, Chenn picked up the arm with his single hand. “Th-thank you for your benevolence, Your Highness.”
The Second Prince paid him no further attention. He turned and walked away toward the lakeside pavilion.
The final move of the game remained unfinished there. He walked over, removed the white stone, and placed a black stone down. With this, the black stones instantly seized control.
The game was now a deadlock.
At the same time, the full moon was obscured by dark clouds. Elder Li's figure was no longer on the roof, leaving only his final words to scatter with the wind.
“...And also, the most ruthless one.”
Rate on N.U.
