With a vulnerable child held hostage, the group dared not act recklessly.
This was Wenren Buxiao’s only child. If anything happened to the boy, wouldn’t they incur the wrath of the entire Canghai Continent?
"Young man, you’d better be careful with that blade of yours," someone warned. "If you harm the Continent Lord’s child, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life!"
At those words, the inn waiter’s hand trembled, the knife nicking the child’s cheek.
The boy whimpered in pain before bursting into loud, frightened sobs.
Luo Qiaoqiao’s eyes welled with tears. "Don’t hurt my child!"
Zhou Xian glared downstairs. "Jia Yi, must you stir trouble at a time like this?"
Jia Yi scoffed, his attitude far from cooperative.
"I told you," the waiter stammered, his neck stiff as he avoided looking at the Miaojiang youth, "if you let me leave… I’ll release the child!"
He had only joined the Eternal City of Yunhuang two months ago!
It was Yu Sanniang who had lured him in with promises—telling him the world would one day bow to the Eternal City, that he’d rise through the ranks and gain power. That was why he’d endured her exploitation, playing the role of an ordinary waiter to conceal her true identity.
But then he’d discovered something horrifying.
Yu Sanniang had been mixing strange powders into the staff’s meals. He’d refused to eat them but kept silent out of fear.
Later, he realized those who consumed the tainted food became her "reserve rations"—transformed into monstrous extensions of her, fused into her body to grant her endless vitality.
Only he, having avoided the drugged meals, escaped that fate. But he knew joining the Eternal City marked him as a heretic, hunted by righteous factions.
He didn’t want to die. He wanted to live!
Still a novice in dark arts, surrounded by Canghai Continent’s forces, escape was impossible. His only hope was to gamble with Wenren Buxiao’s child.
Zhou Xian spoke firmly. "We’ll let you go, but you must return the child first."
The waiter tightened his grip on the dagger. "Lord Zhou Xian, I’m no fool. If I hand over the child, what’s to stop you from breaking your word?"
Zhou Xian stood tall. "My word is my bond. I do not go back on my promises."
"True, your reputation is beyond reproach. But what about the others?"
The waiter’s gaze swept the room.
Murong Meifei tended to her unconscious sister, Murong Meixin. Known for her integrity, she could be trusted.
The Dao brothers, hailing from the frontier, bore a blood feud with the Eternal City but wouldn’t harm an innocent.
Su Lingxi and her bodyguard Wuya rarely meddled in others’ affairs.
The bounty hunters Black Goose and White Dove only acted for profit.
As for the frail scholar? Irrelevant.
Then there was the Miaojiang woman…
Sang Duo pressed a hand to her forehead. "Ah, the poison must still linger. I feel faint."
Cang Yan stepped forward, steadying her delicate frame.
Her theatrics made it clear she wanted no part in this conflict.
The waiter’s eyes darted again.
Jia Yi crossed his arms with a derisive snort. "Don’t look at me. Whoever made you promises, take it up with them."
Though he held a grudge against Wenren Buxiao and Luo Qiaoqiao, he was no villain. A child’s life meant nothing in their feud.
That left only one unpredictable variable.
Swallowing hard, the waiter mustered every ounce of courage to face the ethereally beautiful foreign youth.
Earlier, Chu’he had been so engrossed in playing "commander" that the green ribbons in her braids had loosened.
Ninth, head bowed, had since unraveled her hair. His nimble fingers now divided a lock into three strands, weaving them into an intricate plait.
The green ribbon coiled around his pale fingers, lending an unexpected vibrancy to his ghostly hands.
Chu’he, eager for entertainment, leaned over his shoulder, peering out like a curious spectator.
Yet Ninth remained indifferent to the chaos around him. To him, those lives mattered less than the strands of black hair between his fingers.
The waiter’s knife shook harder.
Zhou Xian, too, found his courage. "If you spare the child, Ninth surely won’t harm you."
Then, hesitantly, he added, "Right, Ninth?"
Chu’he tugged Ninth’s sleeve. "Ninth, they’re talking to you."
As if waking from a trance, Ninth lifted his gaze, smiling sweetly. "I’m a shy, soft-spoken soul with the purest heart. Bloodshed? I’d never dream of it."
Zhou Xian’s expression twisted.
Even Sang Duo, feigning unconsciousness, looked unsettled.
Despite Ninth’s "no killing" assurance, the waiter remained wary. Something about Ninth screamed danger.
Not long ago, hidden in the shadows, he’d witnessed Ninth reduce the monstrous Yu Sanniang’s arm to dust—with one hand.
Step by cautious step, the waiter descended the far staircase, putting as much distance between himself and Ninth as possible. His knife never wavered, his eyes darting for potential ambushes.
Thankfully, the child in his arms kept everyone at bay.
At last, the door drew near. Freedom—just beyond that threshold!
His pace quickened. He flung the door open, sunlight flooding in—
A whistling arrow grazed the child’s cheek and pierced the waiter’s heart.
"You…"
Blood gushed from his lips, splattering the wailing infant’s face as he collapsed.
From the blinding light emerged a figure, her silhouette sharp against the glow.
Wind tousled her ink-black hair, strands clinging to her chiseled jaw. She lowered her bow, posture unyielding as a pine. The crimson hem of her robes snapped in the mountain breeze, yet she stood immovable.
Luo Qiaoqiao scrambled to snatch her screaming child from the dead man’s grasp. At her touch, Yan’er’s cries softened—but the gash on his cheek remained, a hair’s breadth from tragedy.
Tears blurred Luo Qiaoqiao’s vision as she looked up. "My lady, Yan’er almost died!"
"What’s all the fuss?" The woman’s voice was frost-laced, her eyes narrowing. "He’s alive, isn’t he?"
Luo Qiaoqiao clutched her son tighter, biting her lip into silence.
Jia Yi stepped forward, bowing. "This subordinate greets the Madam."
With that, her identity became clear.
The former ruler of Canghai Continent. Wenren Buxiao’s first wife.
Shangguan Huanxi.
