Patreon: CliffTrevor
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Chapter 3
The day of the assassination soon arrived.
Mo Xingyun's feelings had been extremely complex these past few days. He was, of course, very excited about the rare opportunity to venture outside, but the thought of meeting people from the Immortal Palace and having to fight them filled him with an inexplicable sadness and unease.
He packed his gear, put on a gray tight-fitting outfit, tied his jet-black hair back tightly, strapped on the sword that had accompanied him for many years, and walked out of his room. He was in no hurry, still undecided on whether he would actually kill anyone from the Immortal Palace.
Walking out of the hidden gate of his cave dwelling, he was greeted by the early morning. The air was filled with birdsong and the fragrance of flowers, and the sun was shining brightly. Mo Xingyun took a moment to let his eyes adjust to the outside light, then glanced back at the location on the map before moving with agile swiftness.
The rare time spent above ground put Mo Xingyun in an exceptionally good mood, but before he had even traveled half a mile, by a lake, several black shadows suddenly rushed out from a nearby thicket, drawing their long swords and slashing at him!
Mo Xingyun's face paled in shock. In that instant, he realized he had just stepped out of the Evil Moon Cave, and yet someone was already attacking him. Who could possibly know his whereabouts so well?
He quickly dodged and drew his sword to defend. He saw that the several attackers in black were all masked, using various weapons, their eyes gleaming with murderous intent. Every strike was aimed at his vital points, their appearance vicious and determined to kill him.
Mo Xingyun calmed his mind and executed the Evil Moon martial art he practiced, the Crescent Moon Sword Style, flawlessly, protecting all his vital points. Amidst a chaotic clash of blades, with two piercing screams of "Ah!", two of the black-clad figures were stabbed through the heart and collapsed to the ground, unmoving.
The remaining black-clad figures were completely unaffected by their fallen companions. Instead, they pressed their attack even harder, encircling him and stabbing and slashing. Soon, defending against enemies from all directions, Mo Xingyun's internal energy began to fail. His swordplay slowed, and more and more openings appeared.
After battling with them for a moment, Mo Xingyun had sustained several serious sword wounds and could no longer hold on. In a desperate move, he frantically swung his sword at one of the black-clad figures, carving a bloody path to break through. The others shouted and gave chase, vowing to take his life.
Beside him was the lake. Mo Xingyun fought and retreated until his strength was finally exhausted. One of the black-clad figures shouted, and his long sword shot forward, thrusting straight into Mo Xingyun's body. A searing pain shot through him as the sword pierced clean through from his back to his chest. He cried out in agony and, with his last ounce of strength, leaped into the lake.
Mo Xingyun fell into the lake in despair. His numerous sword wounds stung even more as they met the cold water. Due to massive blood loss, his mind quickly began to grow fuzzy, and his surroundings started to distort.
"Am I... about to die? How... how could this happen!" Mo Xingyun was filled with hatred, but his consciousness gradually faded as his body sank deeper and deeper.
"Father... Mother..."
"Mother..."
The beautiful, white-clad figure in his memory grew farther and farther away...
...
Mo Xingyun soon sank to the bottom of the lake. Feeling the currents above, he lay there, severely wounded and unable to move, closing his eyes to await death.
Just then, his body happened to press down on a brick at the bottom of the lake that looked like a button. His body was instantly sucked in by a vortex-like current, and the brick immediately sealed shut from where he had rolled away. An outsider would never have been able to tell there was a mechanism at the bottom of the lake.
His lingering consciousness felt himself rolling deeper and deeper, as if into a large water vat. He was surrounded by cold water, which filled his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose, but this water felt incredibly comfortable to him.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but Mo Xingyun's consciousness actually gradually cleared. Then he heard a loud "clang" and rolled messily onto a dirt floor.
"Shouldn't I be dead for sure by now?" Mo Xingyun thought to himself.
He scrambled to his feet and saw he was in a very narrow cavern. In front of him was a shattered water vat, with a pedestal-like tray inside.
He looked up and saw that the lake water was actually floating at the top of the cavern, held back by some unknown force, preventing it from flooding down. Only the area of the vat was connected to a portion of the lake water. However, now that the vat was broken, the water from that spot had also stopped flowing.
Mo Xingyun casually touched his body and was astonished to find that the sword wounds, which should have been full of holes, were all gone. Overjoyed and incredulous, he tore off his clothes to check. His outer garment was stained with blood, damp, and tattered beyond repair, but his strong body was completely unharmed, as if nothing had happened.
He pinched his thigh hard. It hurt. It seemed this wasn't a dream. What on earth was going on?
Mo Xingyun suppressed his myriad questions and looked around. The cavern was narrow, damp, and dark, with mossy, mottled stone walls that gave off a faint, eerie glow. He took a tentative step forward and felt something strange under his feet. Looking down, he saw a strange stone slab embedded in the ground, carved with bizarre runes that faintly glowed red. His heart leaped. He crouched down for a closer look and saw a palm-shaped indentation in the center of the slab, like some kind of mechanism. After a moment's hesitation, he gritted his teeth, pressed his palm into the indentation, and channeled his inner strength. With a "boom," the stone slab cracked open, revealing a pitch-black secret passage. A sinister wind howled from within, and the air was bone-chillingly cold.
Gripping his long sword, Mo Xingyun steeled himself and stepped inside. The passage was so narrow only one person could pass through at a time. The stone walls were slick and covered in runes that glowed with a bloody light in the darkness, exuding an indescribably sinister aura.
He proceeded cautiously. After walking for what felt like the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the path ahead su,ddenly opened up into a dark prison. A foul, rotten stench assailed his nostrils. Iron chains hung chaotically, and in the center stood a thick iron pillar, wrapped in black chains from which runes flowed with bloody light. Something seemed to be tightly bound and locked in the middle of the chains.
Mo Xingyun was both bewildered and terrified, unsure what kind of bizarre place he had stumbled into. He walked in slowly and carefully, and when he finally got a clear look, his heart jolted violently, and his breathing became ragged.
Chained at the base of the iron pillar was a woman.
The woman was half-kneeling, half-sitting on the ground. Her beauty was breathtaking. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, slender and elegant. Her posture was noble and graceful. Her stunning, peach-blossom-like face was free of makeup, yet it possessed a soul-stealing, seductive charm. However, her beautiful eyes were as cold and empty as a frozen pool, starry but without a trace of life. Her bright red lips were pressed tightly together, as vibrant as blood, and her aura was as cold as ice.
Her entire body was wrapped in a layer of black silk as thin as a cicada's wing that clung tightly to her skin. The silk extended from her snow-white neck to her slender ankles, perfectly outlining every inch of her curvaceous figure. In the dim light, it shimmered with a mysterious, demonic glow, as if it were a part of her body, her second skin. Through the nearly transparent black silk, one could vaguely see the fairness and delicacy of the skin beneath, as well as the contours and faint shadows of her most private places, adding a sense of forbidden sensuality.
Even bound by chains, the strange black silk was not the least bit wrinkled, clinging tightly to her full, luscious body. Her jet-black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, draping over her snow-white neck, creating a stark contrast with the mysterious black silk. Her full, towering breasts, accentuated by the tight silk, appeared even larger and rounder, like snow-white jade spheres, so firm and full of elasticity. The deep cleavage and the contours of her full breasts were clearly visible. Her waist was slender enough to be encircled by a single hand, its soft curves pronounced.
She sat with her legs crossed. Her long, straight legs, wrapped in the black silk, looked even firmer and more lustrous. The texture of her skin could be faintly felt through the thin silk, exuding a unique, fleshy charm of a mature woman. The firm, full flesh of her thighs stretched the silk tight, making them look like they were carved from jade, possessing both the tenderness of a young girl and the allure of a mature woman, a sight that was dazzling and intoxicating. In her seated position, her full, round buttocks, like ripe peaches, rose high. The black silk clung tightly, outlining their exaggerated curves. The contour of her snow-white buttocks was faintly visible under the thin silk, plump, firm, and elastic, shimmering with an alluring sheen, as if coated in a layer of honey. The silk, as thin as a cicada's wing, pressed against her private parts, outlining their full shape. One could vaguely see the mysterious valley within and the faint shadows, emitting a kind of forbidden temptation that made one's mouth go dry.
Mo Xingyun couldn't help but swallow. The woman's cold and fiery temperament, combined with this mysterious and sexy black silk outfit, made his blood boil. Her eyes were empty and gray, the chains digging into her fair skin. Under the glow of the bloody light, she exuded an air of extreme, suppressed sorrow.
Naturally kind-hearted, he felt a pang of pity for the mysterious woman. Despite not knowing her origins, he asked in a deep voice, "You... who are you... why are you locked up here?"
Hearing a human voice, the woman slowly raised her head. Her cold, beautiful eyes glanced over him indifferently, without any reaction. A faint black spiritual energy seemed to emanate from her surroundings.
Seeing her icy demeanor and the tight chains digging into her skin, Mo Xingyun hesitated for a moment before finally mustering the courage to step forward. He raised his sword and struck at the black chains. The sword light flashed like a rainbow. With several "clangs" of metal striking metal, the bloody light suddenly flared. He gritted his teeth, pushing his inner strength to its limit. Sparks flew, and he managed to sever the chains.
The woman's delicate body swayed slightly as she slowly rose to her feet. The mysterious black silk moved with her, perfectly showcasing her tall, graceful figure, revealing her curves like a sculpture. Her full, towering breasts trembled slightly under the tight silk, like large, round, snow-white jade balls, firm and elastic. Her deep cleavage was faintly visible, outlined by the black silk, and her tender breast flesh swayed with her movements. Her slender willow waist was as soft as a water snake, outlining an exaggerated, alluring curve from waist to hip. Her long, straight legs slowly extended. The taut, full flesh of her thighs looked plump and round under the black silk's embrace. A smooth texture could be faintly discerned between her legs. Her long leg lines were exceptionally fluid, like a sorceress just awakened, cold and glamorous, yet with a soul-stealing seductiveness.
Her cold, beautiful eyes met Mo Xingyun's for a moment. Her delicate body trembled slightly, and a faint black mist spread around her, as if sensing something. She spoke in a cold voice, "You... are you a descendant of the Immortal Palace?"
The Immortal Palace was his mother Ning Xuefei's family. Although Mo Xingyun was surprised that she knew immediately, he was a deep thinker by nature and replied with caution, "You... who exactly are you..."
Hearing that he was a descendant of the Immortal Palace, the corner of the woman's beautiful red lips curled into a fleeting, cold sneer. A strange light flashed in her eyes as she said in an icy voice, "There's no need to hide it. As sun and moon alternate, as stars shift and turn, the Immortal Palace and I share a karmic bond of a thousand years. My name is Long Yue. When you fell into the lake earlier, I used my spiritual energy to save your life."
Mo Xingyun realized that his miraculous survival and the healing of his fatal wounds were thanks to this woman, and he felt a surge of gratitude. He had never heard the name "Long Yue" before, but he was new to the jianghu and his experience was limited, so it was not surprising. He bowed respectfully, "Thank you, Immortal Long Yue, for saving my life. May I ask why you are imprisoned here?"