As soon as the words fell, the blood on the ground stirred again, and several characters changed:

  "Qi Xia rescued Ding Changsheng from the bitter sea of being controlled by the Heart-snatching Pill, completing one of the branch tasks and rewarding ten merits."

  Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiwei were stunned again, never expecting that the results of others completing side quests would appear in front of them.

  "Huh, Qi Jie is indeed more alert than me." Jiang Zhi said with a sigh of relief, her tone filled with delight and a hint of self-mockery.

  After she finished speaking, her smile blossomed and she said with extraordinary joy: "Zhang Shixiong, Qing Jing and the others on their side should also be able to see the prompt that weve completed our task, so dont worry about them being ambushed by Ma Daxia and Tan Daxia."

  "Its not necessarily the case, maybe only those who have completed one of these side quests can see the hint, otherwise others doing this side quest would have no difficulty." Meng Qi frowned and said, not believing that "The Master of the Six Paths" would be so kind. Cheng Yong and other heroes were highly skilled in martial arts, but based on his current shallow perspective, they should still be inferior to Jiang Zhiwei and Zhang Yuanshan, and even Qi Xia could kill Ding Changsheng.

  So, if they knew in advance that they were being controlled by the "Heart-Seizing Pill", Zhang Yishan and Qingjing would not have encountered any unexpected events even if they acted separately.

  Jiang Zhiwei thought for a moment and also felt that the "Master of the Six Paths" couldnt be considered a good person, so he nodded and said: "Lets meet up with Qi sister first, then rush to the central location, pay attention to the task completion prompts on the way."

  "Huh." As she spoke, she suddenly exclaimed, "Since the four great heroes led by Cheng Yong have already been controlled by the Heart-Seizing Pill, why did the master of Yinhuang Fortress still lock them in a secret room? Its not possible that he foresaw our arrival to complete the task and set up a trap?"

  "Unless the traps target isnt us!"

  Jiang Zhiwei pursed her pale lips due to injury: "It should be so."

  She paused and said, "When I first accepted the task, I had some doubts. Why would the four of us, including Ma Da Xia, charge into the Hidden Emperors Fortress in a situation where we were outnumbered and outmatched, rather than finding other helpers to act together? The principle of strength in numbers should not be unique to us."

  "It must be that time is pressing, they have to rush to stop the castle owners plan, perhaps its the strange thing in the central hall right now. So they came first and left a message to inform their friends to wait for reinforcements. Therefore, there may also be a large number of masters arriving soon, and the object of the trap is them." Meng Qi and Jiang Zhiyou were guessing the truth of the matter one after another.

  "No matter what, we have to complete our mission." Jiang Zhi slightly shook her head and supported herself against the stone door as she struggled to stand up.

  "Jiang, how are your injuries?" Meng Qi asked with concern, although he had just killed the expert Cheng Yong, but he was very self-aware and not arrogant at all. He knew that if it werent for Jiang Zhiweis care, two black-clad men could have easily taken him down. Of course, there was also a deep bond between them from fighting side by side through life and death.

  Jiang Zhiwei seemed to have given up on refuting "Jiang Niang", took a deep breath, and with a mixture of frustration and bitter smile on her face said: "The upper body is fine, but the internal energy for wielding the sword has weakened slightly. However, my lower body feels sore and weak, not to mention sprinting or wall-climbing, even normal walking is difficult. I need to take medicine and rest for a period of time to recover."

  In the flash of lightning, she showed a resolute and decisive side, not passively defending herself but instead counterattacking with her sword, disregarding life or death. This forced Cheng Yong to withdraw more than half his palm strength to avoid being pierced through the chest by her sword. As a result, her injuries were much lighter than Meng Qi had anticipated, and she still had the strength to wield her sword in battle. She was only wounded in the lower abdomen, making it difficult for her to walk.

  "Jiang sister, why dont I carry you on my back and temporarily replace your legs?" Meng Qis life was at stake, so he thought for a moment before making this suggestion.

  Jiang Zhiwei let out a soft "ah" and then bit her lip with her neat, small teeth: "Little monk, I owe you one."

  Her words were as vast and clear as a heroic swordsman, but on her cheeks appeared two suspicious red blushes.

  Meng Qi came from modern society, so his ideas wouldnt be too conservative. He chuckled and joked: "Miss Jiang, a girl from the rivers and lakes, isnt particular about trifles."

  As he spoke, he walked up to Jiang Zhiweis side and handed her his long sword.

  "This principle, how could I not understand?" Jiang Zhi slightly raised her head, looking up at the stone wall above, her slender white neck seemed to have a thin layer of red on it.

  Meng Qi turned around, squatted on the ground, heard a few rustling sounds from his clothes, and then felt a body that was much lighter than he had imagined leaning against him.

  He supported Jiang Zhiweis legs, slowly standing up in the silence, and suddenly chuckled: "Much lighter than carrying a bucket of water for me."

  "Hmph." Jiang Zhiwei couldnt help but laugh out loud, "Are you trying to pick an iron bucket?"

  She was amused by Meng Qis joke, and the awkward atmosphere suddenly dissipated.

  "A wooden barrel can be carried, but its hard to compare with carrying a burden on ones back." Meng Qi replied honestly.

  Jiang Zhiwei drew out a long sigh: "Its also... to be honest, suppressing you, this young child, Im rather uneasy about it."

  She danced with her long sword, adapting to the current situation.

  The long sword drew flowers, light and shadow flowing, Meng Qi stared intently, wanting to see the subtlety within, Jiang Zhi did not stop him, openly letting Meng Qi watch, after all there was no technique, only form.

  If it werent for this, the swordsmanship of Xiāngōu Pavilion would have been stolen and mastered by others in their interactions with people.

  "Hmm, I can probably exert about 50-60% of my strength, which should be enough for a single strike." Jiang Zhiwei adapted and assessed the situation.

  She suddenly patted Meng Qis shoulder and lowered her voice: "Be careful, someone is coming."

  Meng Qi was taken aback and didnt react until he heard footsteps and someones voice saying, "Left three right four, dont get it wrong."

  It seems that even without opening the "ear aperture", with heart method cultivation, after entering the Qi storage period, ones hearing will also make great progress... Meng Qi secretly speculated.

  "Its blocked at the entrance." Jiang Zhi said in a low voice.

  Meng Qi didnt hesitate and stepped forward, standing beside the stone gate. In an instant, he trapped that group of people in the poisonous gas tunnel, unable to advance or retreat.

  There were seven or eight of them, all dressed in a simple and easy manner. The leader was a middle-aged Confucian scholar who held a hidden weapon in his left hand: "Why are you two young friends blocking the way? Have you seen Brother Cheng Yong?"

  At this time, a sharp-mouthed monkey-faced man saw through the gap and saw Cheng Yongs body, shouting: "Ge Zhuangzhu, they killed Cheng Daxia! I recognize those boots!"

  "Everyone, Im Jiang Zhiwei. Ive come with my master and others to assist Ma Daxia."

  Her appearance and age match, sixteen years old, facing a group of the youngest and also over thirty years old martial artists, calling them seniors is effortless.

  The leading Ge Zhuang master seemed to be no reckless person, raised his hand and stopped the people behind him from throwing hidden weapons, gesturing for Jiang Zhiwei to continue explaining.

  "After entering the Hidden Emperor Fortress, we captured some prisoners and learned that Ma Da Xia and others were trapped in different parts of the fortress. So, our master had us split up to rescue them, while he himself rushed to where the master of the Hidden Emperor Fortress was."

  "I arrived at this place, opened the stone gate, and found Cheng Da Xia. Who knew that Cheng Da Xia was controlled by the Heart-Seizing Pill, and secretly ambushed me, leaving me severely injured? In my counterattack, Cheng Da Xia also suffered severe injuries, and in a final struggle before death, he was killed by Zhen Ding Shi Di."

  Jiang Zhiwei told half-truths and half-falsehoods about what had happened and the origins of herself and others.

  "How is that possible?" the sharp-mouthed man said in disbelief, "Little girl, youre so young, even if you started practicing from birth, its impossible to defeat Master Cheng!"

  He secretly regretted that this lovely little girl was actually so good at telling lies.

  Jiang Zhiwei didnt say a word, stood up straight, her long sword flashed out like lightning and then mysteriously retracted.

  "What are you doing?" the sharp-mouthed man shouted in surprise and doubt.

  Ge Zhuangs right hand pressed down, signaling him to be quiet. Then, he clasped his hands together and said: "Heroes emerge in their youth, Jiang Xiaojie, your swordsmanship is already worthy of being called a master. Ah, the later generation surpasses the earlier one. Seeing you and other talented young friends, I feel especially old. What is your teachers name?"

  "Our familys master is Su Wuming, who has been in hiding for many years. Im afraid you may not have heard of him, hmm? My master used to have a nickname, The Divine Sword from Heaven, have you heard of it?" Meng Qi clearly detected the hint of amusement in Jiang Zhiyans tone and suddenly understood that she was referring to her real master, but this group of people probably hadnt heard of him.

  Although his back was turned to Jiang Zhiwei, Meng Qi seemed to be able to imagine the sly smile on her face.

  Su Wuming... Hmm, seems like Ive heard Master Xuanshen mention him before? Meng Qis heart skipped a beat.

  "Ge is indeed inexperienced and has never seen the likes of you before, so please introduce us." Ge Zhuangzhu saw Jiang Zhiweis words as somewhat suspicious, but temporarily put aside his doubts, deciding to wait and observe further. He then introduced himself, "I am Ge Chongshan, the master of Luoye Mountain Manor. I received letters from my good friends Ma Lianghan and Cheng Yong, inviting skilled individuals to come and assist us. Unfortunately, we arrived a day late and were unable to meet with them. Please, young friends, let us pass so that we may see our friends one last time."

  Jiang Zhiwei said on Meng Qiers side: "Let them come in, but only one at a time."

  Meng Qi stepped aside, clearing the way while warily watching his opponent. It wasnt until Ge Chongshan and the others entered the secret room to examine Cheng Yongs corpse that he lowered his voice to say to Jiang Zhiwei, "I understand now. The branch mission was just a delay tactic. Only by doing so would we be able to wait for reinforcements. If we had gone straight to the Central Great Hall, Im afraid we would already be engaging with the Fortress Master, outnumbered and outmatched."

  "The trap was meant for them." Jiang Zhiwei replied in a similarly soft voice.

  Ge Chongshan examined the body and confirmed that the wound was consistent with Jiang Zhiweis description. He sighed and said, "If it werent for you two friends opening this stone door first, perhaps I would have been seriously injured or even killed."

  As soon as the words fell, he and Jiang Zhiwei turned their heads to look outside the stone house at the same time. They saw another secret door where Qi Xia and a group of people dressed as knights walked out.

  "Qi Jie, are you okay?" Jiang Zhiwei called out with a delighted smile.

  "Liu brothers, wheres your older brother?" Ge Chongshan asked the person walking shoulder-to-shoulder with Qi Xia.

  That man had dark skin and was dressed as a fisherman. He said sorrowfully: "My elder brother was killed by Ding Changsheng!"

  "What?" Ge Chongshan and others suddenly lost their voices.

  Qiu Xia said with a hint of fear: "Zi Wei sister, I didnt expect that Ding Da Xia had already been controlled by the Heart Snatching Pill. If Liu Da Xia hadnt gone in first, Im afraid I wouldnt have made it out alive... earlier I was worried about you all..."

  She saw Jiang Zhiweis face turn pale, but her breathing was normal, and she quietly let out a sigh of relief.

  After gathering, everyone rushed towards the Central Grand Hall. Along the way, only a few black-clad men tried to block their path, but they were easily dispersed.

  In this process, Jiang Zhiwei and Meng Qi have been skillfully coordinating with each other. By the end, as long as she says "Left three, right four, back two" and so on, Meng Qi can quickly complete the corresponding steps - these words are as simple and vague as possible, only understandable to each other, to prevent the enemy from changing like Cheng Yong.

  "Its a pity you dont understand Ba Gua positions, our coordination can only be so simple..." Jiang Zhiwei sighed to Meng Qi.

  She had previously suggested using the Bagua to indicate direction, so as not to be limited to only going straight up and down or slanting in and out, unfortunately Meng Qi didnt understand the Bagua well and couldnt learn it in a short time.

  "Its better than nothing." Meng Qi comforted.

  Jiang Zhiwei looked up at the stone house, then looked at Ge Chongshan and others who were scouting ahead, and said with some concern: "This is our agreed meeting place, why havent Zhang Shixiong and others arrived yet? There was no prompt that the task was completed along the way either."

  From Qi Xias mouth, she and Meng Qi confirmed that only those who have completed a side quest can see the corresponding prompt.

  "Dont worry, Zhang Shixiongs martial arts skills are strong, nothing will happen to him." Qi Xia comforted her with a worried heart.

  Bang!

  Something flew in from outside the house, Jiang Zhi stretched out her long sword and pinned it to the ground.

  "Ah!" Jiang Zhiwei and Qi Xia looked clearly at the object, immediately losing control and shouting out loud, Meng Qi was also extremely shocked and uneasy.

  On the dusty stone ground, Qing Jings eyebrows were furrowed and her eyes were wide open as she stared at everyone, but only her head was left!

  PS: Back home now, starting today, update time will be restored to usual, 9am-7pm, please click and recommend~