Chapter 52: Save Her! Frightening Retreat!
Zhong Ling had just caught up, and upon seeing such a perilous situation unfold, her heart surged with panic.
Yet she was utterly helpless—firstly, she was still twenty-odd zhang¹ away from Mu Wanqing. In such a brief moment, even if her qinggong² were ten times better, it would be impossible to reach her.
Secondly, even if she had other means, the distance made it impossible to use them in time.
Seeing Mu Wanqing on the verge of death while being powerless to help, Zhong Ling’s little face turned pale.
Swish!
Over there, Cheng Lingsu remained calm. With a flip of her palm, a hairpin-shaped concealed weapon flew from her hand!
This was a hidden weapon technique from Yaowang Manor³. In the martial world, any sect that specialized in medicine or poison typically had some mastery of projectile weapons.
Why? Because concealed weapons paired best with poison arts.
Although Cheng Lingsu hadn’t practiced Beiming Divine Art⁴ and her inner strength couldn’t match Fang Han’s, she had been training in Lingbo Weibu⁵ daily. Over time, her internal energy had deepened—no longer comparable to her past self.
And in hidden weapons, she was highly skilled. This single strike moved as fast as lightning.
Clang!
The broadsword that was about to strike Mu Wanqing was suddenly deflected at an angle—despite the twenty-plus zhang distance.
Still, due to the long distance—
Concealed weapons are meant to target vital points like the throat or eyes. Even when coated in poison, they’re designed to strike the body. But in such a critical moment, had she gone for the assassin’s body—even if she landed a fatal hit—the broadsword’s momentum would likely still continue, unable to resolve the crisis.
Attacking the blade itself, however, lacked sufficient power.
The burly woman wielding the broadsword was at her strongest when she struck. The fact that Cheng Lingsu’s weapon was able to divert her blade at all was a testament to her full effort.
But—it was enough.
Before Zhong Ling and Cheng Lingsu even reacted, Fang Han had already launched himself forward using Lingbo Weibu—faster than the eye could follow.
It stood to reason that even with superb qinggong, he couldn’t have arrived instantaneously.
After all, he couldn’t teleport.
Mu Wanqing should’ve, at the very least, taken a blow.
Yet, thanks to the momentary deflection of the broadsword, Fang Han had just enough time!
Exerting another burst of power, he soared forward and appeared beside Mu Wanqing, drawing his sword to meet the attack.
Clang!
He fully blocked the strike. With his long sword held horizontally, he shifted from blade to flat, using skillful strength along the broadsword’s path to flick it away entirely.
Before he could follow up, Fang Han’s brows twitched. He glanced aside at the weakened and fallen Mu Wanqing. With a sweep of his left arm, he gently caught her.
But Mu Wanqing had no strength left. She looked at Fang Han with bleary eyes—then fainted.
As soon as she passed out, her body lost all resistance and began to slump down. Fang Han had no choice but to support her by the waist, pulling her closer.
The moment he made contact, he was struck by how slender her waist was—like a willow branch.
As she leaned against him, her body was warm and incredibly soft.
A faint, sweet fragrance, orchid-like with a touch of musk, drifted to him—entrancing.
Fang Han’s expression remained composed. He averted his eyes and looked coldly toward the group of assailants, raising his long sword.
On the other side, the burly woman was shocked and furious.
She had nearly succeeded, only to have it all collapse in a single moment. Her rage was indescribable.
But after that one block, her hand and entire arm now tingled and throbbed in pain.
She understood—the man’s martial skills were far superior. She couldn’t win.
And that hidden weapon earlier…
Had it aimed for her throat instead of her blade, would she still be alive?
She glanced behind her. Her subordinates now wore faint expressions of fear.
They weren’t blind. They could tell this well-composed man before them was a true martial expert.
Possibly even stronger than their original target.
They had already suffered heavy losses against a single female assassin in black.
Now there was this man—and the two women whose martial skills also seemed impressive…
They weren’t opponents they could handle.
If they made the wrong move, at least half of them would die. Thoughts of retreat filled their minds.
The burly woman clearly realized this too. Her face twisted several times before she finally grit her teeth and barked:
“Withdraw!”
With the leader gone, the others naturally wouldn’t stay. They all scattered in panic.
Fang Han furrowed his brow slightly but didn’t pursue them. He sheathed his sword.
Zhong Ling ran over angrily. Seeing the enemies frightened off by Fang Han, she stomped her foot and exclaimed:
“Ugh! They run fast, huh?! I really want to sic Lightning Mink on them!”
She then rushed to Fang Han, looking at the injured Mu Wanqing in his arms with deep concern.
“Big Sister Mu is hurt really badly…”
Unfortunately, she didn’t know much about medicine.
She knew a little—but only a little.
In this situation, she had no way to help. She stood there flustered and anxious.
“That’s enough, stop pacing around. Your Sister Cheng is a medical genius. These injuries are nothing to her.”
Fang Han gently laid Mu Wanqing down on the grass and tried to soothe Zhong Ling.
He could treat her himself—but as a man, it wouldn’t be appropriate.
Mu Wanqing had both internal and external injuries. She would need her clothes changed, wounds cleaned, and medicine applied.
For such matters, a fellow woman like Lingsu was clearly more suitable.
Zhong Ling was overjoyed at those words and looked eagerly at Cheng Lingsu, pleading:
“Sister Cheng, can you please save her?”
Cheng Lingsu smiled at her, then stepped forward and took Mu Wanqing’s pulse.
After a while, she nodded and said:
“She’s fine. Just a mix of internal and external trauma, plus extreme fatigue of mind and body. That’s why she fainted.”
“Once I clean her wounds, do a bit of acupuncture to adjust her qi, and give her some medicine, she’ll recover in time.”
“Still, we’ll need a quiet place…”
Zhong Ling immediately raised her hand: “I know a place!”
Fang Han said softly, “Then there’s no time to lose.”
Conveniently, he also needed a quiet and peaceful spot to refine the abundant internal energy he had just absorbed—
—to fully convert it into Beiming True Qi⁶!
🍃🍃🍃
📌 Footnotes:
- 丈 (zhàng)– A traditional Chinese unit of measurement, roughly 3.3 meters or 11 feet. So twenty zhang is over 60 meters—quite a distance.
- 轻功 (qīnggōng)– “Lightness skill”, a martial arts technique allowing practitioners to move swiftly and lightly, even leaping across rooftops or over rivers—often seen in wuxia tales.
- 药王庄 (Yàowáng Zhuāng)– King of Medicine Manor. A fictional or legendary sect specializing in medical arts and poison, often featured in wuxia novels.
- 北冥神功 (Běimíng Shéngōng)– Beiming Divine Art. A powerful inner cultivation technique from classic wuxia literature, known for absorbing others’ internal energy.
- 凌波微步 (Língbō Wēibù)– Lingbo Microsteps. A graceful and elusive qinggong footwork technique based on the I Ching’s hexagrams. Allows for incredible agility and dodging.
- 北冥真气 (Běimíng Zhēnqì)– Beiming True Qi. The refined internal energy derived from the Beiming Divine Art. Known for its purity and strength.