RPDPHW Chapter 45

After Gu Qingyin finished speaking, she took Zhong Shujin’s left hand with her uninjured right hand and led the three of them forward together.

Meanwhile, her left hand remained clenched into a tight fist, stretched out in front of her.

With each step she took, droplets of blood dripped from her left hand, soaking it in the ground.

The snake swarm recoiled from Gu Qingyin’s blood as if it were the plague.

With her blood clearing the way, even though the snake swarm was growing increasingly agitated, it had no choice but to part, creating a path for them.

It was clear that the creatures were utterly terrified of Gu Qingyin’s blood.

Step by step, the four of them advanced along the path that Gu Qingyin’s blood had carved open.

The Fourth Elder, who had been playing the flute, was utterly stunned by this scene.

He halted his tune and turned to Tang Shifeng in astonishment. “Master, who exactly is this woman? Why is her blood able to scare away the creatures I summoned?”

Tang Shifeng pondered for a moment before speaking in a deep voice. “To rise in just over a year and become the most feared poison doctor in the martial world… she truly has some skill. It seems the snake swarm is useless against them now.”

Then, raising his voice, he commanded, “Men! Form the formation!”

He refused to believe that, with over a hundred people at his command, they couldn’t take down these four women.

By the time Zhong Shujin and the others had successfully emerged from the snake swarm, the Tang Sect’s forces had already arranged themselves into a sword formation, awaiting their arrival.

Meanwhile, Gu Qingyin, weakened from excessive blood loss, stumbled forward. If not for Zhong Shujin’s quick reflexes in catching her, she would have collapsed on the spot.

Zhong Shujin didn’t dare to look back at the snake swarm behind her. She swept her gaze over the Tang Sect disciples standing in formation ahead, then calmly withdrew her gaze. Lowering herself slightly in front of Gu Qingyin, she said, “Get on my back.”

“I’m fine, there’s no need—”

“Get on!”

When Zhong Shujin was stubborn, she was truly immovable. If Gu Qingyin didn’t climb onto her back, she wouldn’t get up.

Left with no choice, Gu Qingyin obediently climbed onto Zhong Shujin’s back.

Her shoulders weren’t particularly broad, but to Gu Qingyin, they felt incredibly reassuring.

“Hold on tight, understand?” Zhong Shujin instructed before standing up steadily with Gu Qingyin on her back. Turning to Lin Ziyan, she said, “Ziyan, take Sister Shu and stay far away. Leave these people to me.”

Lin Ziyan was startled. “There were over a hundred of them! You’re going to handle them alone? Are you joking?”

Blood from Gu Qingyin’s wounded wrist had yet to stop flowing and was now seeping down Zhong Shujin’s collar, staining her clothes. Zhong Shujin glanced at the spreading bloodstain, her eyes turning icy cold.

“Trust me!”

The certainty in her voice made Lin Ziyan hesitate.

After a moment, she only said, “Be careful,” before pulling Dan Wenshu up into a nearby tree. From above, she anxiously watched the scene unfold.

After all, taking on a hundred skilled fighters alone was no easy feat.

The Tang Sect disciples had already been wary of Lin Ziyan due to her identity. Now that they saw her retreating, they assumed she was afraid and no longer saw her as a threat.

“Kill!”

Tang Shifeng gave the order, and the Tang Sect disciples charged towards the two women in the field in a well-organized formation.

Zhong Shujin, however, remained unmoved.

When they were ten steps away from Zhong Shujin, she finally began to move, her face grim.

“Heaven!”

As her swordsmanship unfolded, a fierce wind arose.

“Demon!”

The surrounding trees cracked and split.

“Blade!”

With a single swing of her blade, screams echoed.

“Law!”

The movement ended, the ground cracked, and the trees fell.

Within a twenty-step radius of Zhong Shujin, there was no living creature except for Gu Qingyin, who was tightly clinging to her back.

Even the snakes on the ground that hadn’t had time to escape were shattered into pieces.

Lin Ziyan, who had been frantically leaping and running from tree to tree, using all her skills, finally stopped in fear, catching her breath at a safe distance.

When the dust settled, revealing the figure standing tall in the field and the corpses scattered around, Shan Wenshu, who was tightly held in Lin Ziyan’s arms, gasped and asked, “How old is Zhong Shujin? She’s so young, yet she can do this!”

Lin Ziyan was also shocked. She thought carefully and replied, “I think Qingqing said that the young Grandmaster is one year younger than her. Now, she should be only eighteen.”

Thinking back to that moment, Lin Ziyan still felt a chill run down her spine. If Shan Wenshu hadn’t noticed the danger and urged her to quickly dodge, they would likely have met the same fate as those on the ground.

It would be a terrible loss to die from friendly fire.

Shan Wenshu pondered, her eyes narrowed. At only eighteen years old, she could already cultivate the Heavenly Demon Blade Technique to such a level. It wouldn’t be long, perhaps ten years at most, before she reached the same level as Ji Zhe, capable of causing mountains to crumble and the earth to split.

Tang Shifeng, who had survived because he hadn’t rushed forward and instead stayed behind to command, asked the same question.

“How old is this Zhong Shujin? She can already cultivate the Heavenly Demon Blade Technique to such a level!”

The Heavenly Demon Blade Technique was the signature technique of Zhong Shujin’s master, the former leader of the Blood Flame Sect, Ji Zhe.

Back then, when he was surrounded by over three hundred righteous martial artists, he used this technique, slaughtering over two hundred of them before breaking through the siege.

That single battle made Ji Zhe the number one swordsman in the world, a title that remains unmatched to this day.

Unexpectedly, they, the Tang Sect disciples, encountered this rare Heavenly Demon Blade Technique!

Tang Shifeng looked at the dozens of corpses on the ground, his heart aching. But amidst the pain, he felt a sense of relief. Thankfully, this Zhong Shujin wasn’t Ji Zhe.

If Ji Zhe had used this technique, they wouldn’t have seen the sun tomorrow.

“Come on! Keep coming!”

Zhong Shujin in the field sneered. She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and continued to hold Gu Qingyin behind her.

One hand holding Gu Qingyin, the other holding Yanling Dao, she stepped forward, one step at a time.

She stepped over the corpses scattered across the ground, walking towards the remaining thirty or so Tang Sect disciples.

Her expression was sinister and terrifying, like a demon from hell coming to claim lives.

The Tang Sect disciples were so intimidated by Zhong Shujin’s aura that they retreated in fear.

But Zhong Shujin, ignoring the internal injuries caused by the backlash of her blade technique, forced herself to press forward.

“Why aren’t you attacking? I haven’t killed enough yet! You were going to send me to the West, weren’t you? What are you hiding from? Come on! Let me see what other tricks your Tang Sect has!”

The Fourth Elder, who had been forced to retreat, quickly grabbed Tang Shifeng beside him and suggested, “Sect Master, I think she’s at the end of her rope now. Why don’t we…”

The Fourth Elder meant to charge forward and fight again.

Zhong Shujin’s current state clearly showed that she had suffered severe internal injuries. If they charged forward now, she would be powerless to resist.

Tang Shifeng understood, but he hesitated. What if this was just a feint? If they charged forward, and she unleashed another Heavenly Demon Blade Technique, they would be completely wiped out!

Before he could make a decision, the sound of galloping horses grew louder and louder.

The rhythmic sound of hooves seemed to indicate that there were more than twenty or thirty people coming.

Shouts could be heard, though they were indistinct, some words could be made out.

“Grandmaster! Grandmaster!”

It must be Zhong Shujin’s reinforcements.

Now, Tang Shifeng decisively gave the order.

“Retreat!”

After the Tang Sect disciples retreated, Zhong Shujin finally relaxed. She couldn’t hold back the surging internal energy in her body, her steps faltered, and she stumbled forward.

She was afraid of dropping Gu Qingyin on her back, so she quickly plunged her sword into the ground to support herself, preventing them both from falling.

Gu Qingyin was too surprised to react. She quickly jumped off Zhong Shujin’s back and grabbed her wrist to take her pulse.

“Were you injured by the backlash?”

Zhong Shujin reached out and touched Gu Qingyin’s furrowed brow, giving her a reassuring smile. “Yes, but don’t worry, I’m fine…”

As soon as she said she was fine, Zhong Shujin coughed up a mouthful of blood.

By this time, Lin Ziyan had already arrived with Shan Wenshu. Seeing Zhong Shujin like this, she couldn’t help but worry, “It seems like you’re seriously injured.”

Gu Qingyin quickly patted Zhong Shujin’s back, helping her catch her breath.

Even though Zhong Shujin kept saying she was fine, Gu Qingyin’s brow remained furrowed.

Based on the pulse she had just taken, Zhong Shujin’s internal injuries were not optimistic.

“Don’t worry about me, I’m really fine!” Zhong Shujin smiled and wiped the blood from her lips. She then pulled away the hand that Gu Qingyin had placed on her back, used the sword that was stuck on the ground to support herself, pulled Gu Qingyin up as well, and then took out a handkerchief to press on the wound on Gu Qingyin’s wrist that was still bleeding. She said with a touch of heartache, “Don’t do anything like that to hurt yourself again!”

The wound on Gu Qingyin’s hand was truly gruesome. After pressing the handkerchief on it, the blood soaked through it in a short time.

Zhong Shujin’s brow furrowed tighter.

Before she could tie the handkerchief around the wound, a loud voice rang out behind her.

“Grandmaster! Grandmaster, are you alright!” Ju Yuze hastily jumped off his horse and ran to Zhong Shujin’s side, pulling her and asking with concern, “Are you hurt, Grandmaster? Thank heavens, thank heavens, we didn’t arrive too late!”

Ju Yuze pulled her so hard that Zhong Shujin hadn’t finished tying the knot before he pulled it apart.

She pursed her lips in displeasure and elbowed Ju Yuze away.

“If I had to wait for you to save me, even ten lives wouldn’t be enough!”

Ju Yuze rubbed his chest, glanced at the corpses on the ground, and said with a cheerful smile, “Grandmaster’s divine skills are unmatched! How could those scoundrels possibly harm you!”

As Ju Yuze spoke, the rest of the people arrived one after another.

The commotion Zhong Shujin had caused was too loud, it was impossible for anyone to miss it.

Leng Shaoying looked at the corpses scattered across the ground and Zhong Shujin was standing there unharmed, and asked in surprise, “Grandmaster! Have you broken through the fifth level of the Heavenly Demon Blade Technique?”

Zhong Shujin looked away, a little guilty, “No…”

“No?” Leng Shaoying’s eyes widened instantly, “You dared to use that move without breaking through? Don’t you know…”

“Alright, alright, stop it!” Afraid that Leng Shaoying would say more and make Gu Qingyin even more worried, Zhong Shujin quickly stopped her, “I’m fine, see…”

As soon as she finished speaking, the rest of the people arrived.

The translation now sounds more natural and conversational, using contractions like “didn’t” and “you’re,” and incorporating more casual phrases like “Thank heavens” and “Alright, alright.” It also emphasizes the urgency and concern in the dialogue, making it feel more realistic.

Besides the five original members of the Blood Flame Sect, there were also twenty-odd strangers who had arrived.

The leading young woman was walking side by side with Jing Rong. When she saw the pile of snake corpses, she couldn’t help but exclaim, “Goodness! How many snakes are there!”

It would have been fine if she hadn’t said anything. Zhong Shujin could have stood there like nothing had happened.

But as soon as she spoke, Zhong Shujin immediately remembered the terrifying scene, and she couldn’t hold it back. She squatted down and started to vomit.

“Ajing!”

Seeing this, Gu Qingyin rushed to Zhong Shujin’s side.

“Ugh…” Zhong Shujin was about to vomit up her bile, but she still managed to reach out and stop Gu Qingyin. “Don’t come closer, it’s gross… Ugh…”

Ju Yuze, who was closest to her, actually had the nerve to cover his nose and step back a few steps.

Jing Rong was more considerate. He quickly jumped off his horse and ran to support Zhong Shujin, patting her back to help her catch her breath, quietly waiting for her to finish vomiting.

Zhong Shujin didn’t push Jing Rong away.

Seeing this, Gu Qingyin couldn’t help but narrow her eyes.

“Please don’t mind, Grandmaster is always afraid of snakes. There are so many snakes here, she’s bound to be scared and nauseous. She should be fine after vomiting for a while.”

Li Ziming, who had come with Jing Rong, saw Gu Qingyin standing there with a frown. Thinking she was disgusted by Zhong Shujin’s unladylike behavior, he explained.

Gu Qingyin sighed slightly. Just as she was about to respond, the young woman who had been walking beside Jing Rong stood behind her and exclaimed excitedly, “Sister Yin! Is that you?!”