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This scene left Linglong completely bewildered. She couldn't even clearly see the afterimages of Ren Ruyi's attacks, yet Wei Tingyu moved wi
This scene left Linglong completely bewildered. She couldn't even clearly see the afterimages of Ren Ruyi's attacks, yet Wei Tingyu moved with such unhurried grace, as if he were at the center of a storm but remained completely at ease. This further astonished Linglong. At this moment, Linglong truly experienced for the first time what a duel between masters looked like!
However, compared to the relaxed and comfortable Wei Tingyu, Ren Ruyi's heart grew increasingly frantic. She had used all her tricks, only to find that she simply couldn't force Wei Tingyu to move a single step. Every powerful attack she launched was effortlessly neutralized by his single hand! The more they fought, the more despair Ren Ruyi felt! For the first time in her life, an indescribable feeling surged within her!
Wei Tingyu could clearly see the increasing anxiety on Ren Ruyi's face in the afterimages, and he also distinctly felt that the woman's movements were gradually slowing down. Her strength was slowly depleting, and her attack frequency was visibly decreasing. Wei Tingyu then lost his interest in playing around and directly channeled his twenty years of surging internal energy!
Ren Ruyi was still making her final struggles, but she didn't expect Wei Tingyu to suddenly erupt like a typhoon, a massive force sending her flying backward! In this gale and surging waves, Ren Ruyi couldn't even maintain her posture and directly fell onto the grass a few steps away! When she looked up at Wei Tingyu, stunned, the almost visible gale quickly subsided. And the flowers and plants in the courtyard were all knocked down, centered around Wei Tingyu!
"What are you..." Ren Ruyi barely managed to prop herself up, but still sat on the ground, looking at Wei Tingyu with a bewildered and shocked expression.
"Just externalized internal energy!" Wei Tingyu looked at Ren Ruyi and said directly. In his previous exchange with her, he could clearly feel that Ren Ruyi also had internal energy in her body! It seemed that with the integration and expansion of this comprehensive world, the realm of martial arts had gradually elevated! Previously, these martial artists, who had no idea what internal energy was, now surprisingly had a rudimentary understanding of this powerful force that could be controlled by humans!
However, Ren Ruyi, as the Left Emissary of the Crimson Robe Guard, was also one of the current martial arts powerhouses in this world! Yet, the internal energy in her body was like that of an ordinary sect disciple who had diligently cultivated for half a month. She had internal energy, but it was barely better than nothing! It could barely play a significant role in combat! Of course, the existence of this little bit of internal energy greatly increased the durability of her external martial arts, allowing Ren Ruyi's moves to be continuous, which was a dimensionality reduction strike compared to those without internal energy! However, it was still a hundred and eight thousand miles away from advanced techniques like externalized internal energy!
And upon hearing that externalized internal energy had such an effect, Ren Ruyi was also shocked. Because Wei Tingyu was probably a few years younger than herself, yet his internal energy was tens of thousands of times stronger than hers. Ren Ruyi was, after all, a martial arts prodigy; in an instant, she understood the reason. If it wasn't that this Marquis could make a day seem like a hundred days, there was only one explanation: her method of cultivating internal energy was far too inferior compared to his! In other words, the other party must have a unique secret manual for cultivating internal energy! Ren Ruyi also greatly valued the pursuit of martial arts. Thinking of this, when she looked at Wei Tingyu again, her eyes even lit up!
Wei Tingyu saw Ren Ruyi's expression and knew what the girl was thinking. He immediately waved his hand at the Golden Shadow Guards. The few female Golden Shadow Guards obeyed the order and immediately left, leaving only the three of them in the courtyard. At this moment, Wei Tingyu was naturally not afraid of the two women escaping. Not to mention that they now knew they couldn't escape, even if Wei Tingyu were to open the main gate directly, these two women probably wouldn't want to leave! Thinking this, Wei Tingyu walked to the stone table nearby and slowly sat down.
At this moment, Ren Ruyi and Linglong, who had already stood up, exchanged glances. They also saw in each other's eyes the desire to stay. After confirming this, Linglong immediately scurried over without a word, looking at Wei Tingyu with a sweet smile, then picked up a wine cup from the table and poured some wine.
"Marquis's might! This humble one bows!" After pouring the wine, Linglong respectfully knelt before Wei Tingyu without another word, holding the wine cup high above her head, and offered him a toast with an expectant look, "May this wine serve as my apology to the Marquis!" Wei Tingyu looked at Linglong before him and knew that this woman was very pragmatic. She now understood that he had no intention of killing them, so she immediately came forward to curry favor and apologize!
Assassins like Linglong were very accustomed to poisoning food. Just in the few seconds it took her to pour the wine, there were at least several opportunities for her to subtly add poison to the wine. However, Wei Tingyu at this moment was not something a little bit of so-called poison could kill, and Linglong's methods certainly couldn't escape his eyes. So, he didn't worry but directly drank the wine in one gulp. Linglong saw that Wei Tingyu didn't suspect her, and her heart immediately rejoiced. At the same time, she remembered the wager Ren Ruyi had made with Wei Tingyu earlier.
"The Marquis won!" At this moment, Linglong seemed to fear that Wei Tingyu would go back on his word and quickly admitted defeat, saying, "From now on, this humble one is the Marquis's person! I am willing to obey the Marquis's every command!" But after she said this, she found that the Marquis, whom she expected to tell her to rise, did not. Linglong looked up in confusion, only to see Wei Tingyu looking at Ren Ruyi, who was still standing far away. Although the Marquis didn't speak, she immediately understood his meaning. Thinking this, Linglong immediately desperately winked at Ren Ruyi, signaling her to come over and submit to Wei Tingyu like herself.
Previously in the Crimson Robe Guard, Ren Ruyi was absolutely her superior! But according to the earlier wager, both women were now people of the Marquis of Jining's residence, so there was no longer any distinction of rank.
"..." Ren Ruyi's mood was complex at this moment. Her heart was clear: she didn't want to leave the Marquis of Jining's residence with such doubts, especially after learning that Wei Tingyu also had a unique secret manual for cultivating internal energy! If she didn't learn this skill, Ren Ruyi wouldn't even be able to sleep soundly! However, thinking of the previous wager, and now having to stay by Wei Tingyu's side as his woman, she naturally couldn't go back on her word. But was she truly willing to be his woman? If it were just as a subordinate, that might be considered! Because Ren Ruyi had wanted to leave the Crimson Robe Guard for a long time, but even if she left before, she couldn't live freely because she would certainly be hunted down! Moreover, she still had some major matters in her heart that she hadn't had time to deal with! Now, the Marquis of Jining's residence could indeed provide her shelter. So, working for Wei Tingyu wasn't impossible! Anyway, as an assassin, it made little difference to Ren Ruyi whose orders she followed to kill. But the thought that the wager also included becoming his woman made her somewhat unable to accept it.
Seeing Linglong so quickly kneel before Wei Tingyu, she felt a bit speechless and began to complain inwardly. However, before she could even grumble a couple of sentences, she saw Linglong desperately winking at her again! Linglong was also doing it for her own good! Ren Ruyi knew this, of course; she wasn't a cold-blooded animal; her steel heart was only because she wasn't so sensitive to emotions! Now that she had lost the wager, she could only accept her fate! Thinking this, Ren Ruyi directly lifted her skirt, walked straight to Wei Tingyu, and then, staring directly into Wei Tingyu's eyes, slowly knelt down. However, looking at the girl's eyes, there was still an underlying sense of reluctance. But that was to be expected; with her personality, taking her as a subordinate wouldn't meet much resistance, but making her his woman... this girl would certainly have a hard time accepting it for a while. She was only doing it now out of obligation to the earlier wager!
"Good girl!" However, the more like this she was, the more Wei Tingyu wanted to tease Ren Ruyi. He reached out and gently patted the heads of Linglong and Ren Ruyi, who were kneeling before him, showing a very pleased expression. But the more triumphant Wei Tingyu's face was, the more Ren Ruyi's teeth ached with resentment.
"Marquis!" Linglong, having been gently patted on the head by Wei Tingyu, obediently knelt forward two steps, then rested her face directly on Wei Tingyu's leg, softly saying, "This humble one has a matter she wishes to ask the Marquis to grant!" Just looking at this alluring demeanor, Ren Ruyi couldn't help but shiver!
"What is it?" Wei Tingyu saw Linglong's obedience, and that she seemed genuinely submissive to him, so he asked directly.
"We white sparrows all have family members held hostage!" Linglong looked up at Wei Tingyu, speaking with a pleading expression, "According to the rules, only when a white sparrow dies can our families regain their freedom!"
"So you wish for me to announce your deaths to the outside world?" Wei Tingyu was startled, then smiled and asked.
"Please, Marquis, grant our wish!" Linglong nodded directly, then said earnestly. She still cared about her family, and now she definitely couldn't return to An State. So, as long as her family was no longer threatened, she could rest assured.
"This matter is simple!" Wei Tingyu nodded without thinking, agreeing, "Tomorrow, I will spread the news that you two, while serving me at night, attempted to commit a wrongful act and were killed by my residence's guards!"
"From then on, you can live here with new identities!" Wei Tingyu said this, then gently lifted Linglong's chin with his hand, looking at her and smiling. Linglong's face immediately showed a joyful expression upon hearing Wei Tingyu agree to her request so easily. The Crimson Robe Guard of An State, no matter how capable, couldn't possibly come to the Marquis of Jining's residence to investigate her life or death! And to set an example for the other white sparrows, to make them fearlessly carry out their duties, the higher-ups would certainly not dare to go back on their word!
Ren Ruyi, seeing Wei Tingyu and Linglong smiling at each other, their gazes seemingly drawing them closer, immediately pouted helplessly and looked away, no longer watching the scene before her. Although she knew nothing about love between men and women, this display of affection was a bit too sudden and overwhelming! Of course, Ren Ruyi still inwardly complained about Linglong! The two had worked together for a while, but she hadn't expected this woman to become like this after meeting a man she admired?! Just less than a quarter of an hour ago, she was trying to fight and hold Wei Tingyu hostage, but now she was obediently crawling beside him like a canary!
However, escaping the identity of a white sparrow of the An State Crimson Robe Guard, only to become a canary kept in the Marquis of Jining's residence, also left Ren Ruyi speechless. Of course, Wei Tingyu was clearly much easier to deal with than those in the Crimson Robe Guard, and he didn't hesitate at all or make any counter-demands when agreeing to Linglong's request. This point also made Ren Ruyi look at this man with new respect.
"Don't be happy too soon!" Of course, Ren Ruyi still couldn't stand Wei Tingyu's smug look at the moment, so she immediately poured cold water on Linglong, saying, "All of us White Sparrows have poison in our bodies!"
"Even if the Marquis keeps us two in the residence to accompany him, I'm afraid we won't be able to serve him for long!" After saying this, Ren Ruyi carefully observed Wei Tingyu's expression, wanting to see what he would think after hearing this. Did he only care about her and Linglong's bodies, and wouldn't care about their lives after having slept with them? Or did he truly hope that the two of them could accompany him for a long time? However, to Ren Ruyi's slight disappointment, Wei Tingyu seemed to have known all along; his face didn't show even the slightest change in expression.
But Linglong was reminded by Ren Ruyi's words and immediately became flustered.
"Ruyi is right!" Linglong quickly looked up at Wei Tingyu and said, "We White Sparrows need to take an antidote every six months to live! If we can't get this antidote, the two of us will probably only be able to accompany the Marquis for three more months!" Speaking of this, Linglong's eyes even turned red. She had just seen hope in her life after so much difficulty. She no longer had to be an assassin, killing people who had nothing to do with her! She no longer had to practice these dances every day for other men's enjoyment, or even endure their suggestive teasing. Most importantly, a gentleman like Wei Tingyu gave her a sense of belonging for the first time! It was a pity that such days might only last for three months... Of course, for Linglong at this moment, even three months of happy days were better than living a lifetime as a muddled tool used by others. But the thought of parting with Wei Tingyu in three months made her feel melancholic again.
Linglong's pitiful appearance was truly heartbreaking; Wei Tingyu naturally couldn't help but soften his heart after seeing it. Ren Ruyi had been observing Wei Tingyu's expression, and upon seeing genuine reluctance and heartache in his eyes, her heart immediately swelled with pride. He's stumped, isn't he? Now it's my turn to help! Ren Ruyi knew that she had a way to remove this poison! However, at this moment, she wouldn't reveal it so easily! She wanted to use the condition of removing the poison from Linglong's body, allowing her to stay with Wei Tingyu for a long time, to exchange for her own freedom with Wei Tingyu. That's right! At the same time, she also wanted Wei Tingyu to teach her the unique secret manual for internal energy cultivation! Ren Ruyi also knew that she was asking for a bit much, but seeing Wei Tingyu's heartache for Linglong, she felt that this trade was highly likely to succeed.
"That bit of poison is not worth mentioning! It's not incurable!" Thinking this, Ren Ruyi also put on an act. She raised her fair neck, looked at Linglong, and said, "As long as you take a medicine I concocted on the day before the poison acts, when its potency is weakest, you can remove the residual poison!" As soon as her words fell, Linglong's eyes immediately lit up! Although she was already content to be with Wei Tingyu for three months, if she could now remove the residual poison in her body and live longer, she would naturally be even happier! And Ren Ruyi naturally wanted such a result. After seeing the expression on Linglong's face, she shifted her gaze to Wei Tingyu's face.
However, the next second, the girl froze there again, because Wei Tingyu was also looking at her! His gaze was full of confidence, without the slightest hint of anxiety. No reason! Judging by Wei Tingyu's gaze at Linglong just now, he should like Linglong very much! Now that he knows she can accompany him for a longer time, it's impossible for him not to be happy! But if you don't ask me what this medicine is, how can I manipulate you? And how can I negotiate with you? Ren Ruyi's beautiful brows furrowed, feeling that this Wei Tingyu must be deliberately acting profound! He must have guessed her intentions, so to be able to haggle later, he pretended not to care about the poison in Linglong's body. But I've already seen through you, you big softie! You want to pretend you don't care about me? Not so easy!
"Five qian of rhubarb! Three purges! The residual poison will then be basically cleared, right?!" However, just as Ren Ruyi was still thinking she had seen through Wei Tingyu's plan, she heard him suddenly speak, revealing her entire secret.