Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 31 Yin Blood (Part 1)

Chapter 31: Chapter 31 Yin Blood (Part 1)

The person standing behind him replied.

"They are all ordinary outer disciples, the Shi brothers, Jiang Yue’er, Cheng Ruofei, and that Lin Xin, they all just joined temporarily, there shouldn’t be any variables."

"What about Ouyang Qing?" Kong Yuhui asked indifferently.

"Ouyang Qing joining your team this time was probably because she has suspicions, or perhaps she wants a share of the spoils," the man said in a low voice.

"The others are simple, it’s mainly Ouyang Qing," Kong Yuhui’s mouth curled up with a hint of gloom, "I’m having a bit of trouble seeing through her."

"Young Master need not worry, even if she is powerful, she won’t be able to escape from the palm of our hands," the person behind him sneered coldly.

Kong Yuhui nodded.

"No matter what cards she has, on the day the task deadline arrives, life and death will be up to their luck... Alright, it’s getting late, you let Ah De and the others leave, don’t stay at the crossroad. We wouldn’t want to be detected by others."

"Understood." The man quickly left from behind Kong Yuhui.

Kong Yuhui also stood up and began to straighten his clothes, apparently preparing to leave.

Lin Xin hid in the bushes below the slope, shrinking behind a stone stele, motionless.

From the other party’s tone, it was clear that Kong Yuhui was not alone this time.

After Kong Yuhui had completely left, Lin Xin waited for over ten minutes, until the red mist had completely dissipated and the sky showed the slightest hint of dawn, before he got up and cautiously and quickly returned to the residence.

He tiptoed back to his room, closed the door, and quickly scraped the mud from the soles of his shoes. Then he took a moment to meditate and regulate his breathing.

Day gradually broke.

To the right, a door creaked open, as if someone had left their room, and then the sound of Ouyang Qing’s footsteps followed.

"Sister Ouyang." It seemed to be Cheng Ruofei’s voice.

"What is it, Junior Sister Cheng?" Ouyang Qing’s voice still carried a hint of lethargy.

"Is there a place nearby to take a bath? After more than half a month of only wiping down with water, my entire body is sweaty, both Jiang Yue’er and I can’t stand it anymore," Cheng Ruofei asked helplessly.

"A bath... I’ve been here twice, and indeed, there is a place to bathe," Ouyang Qing also appeared somewhat interested, "I’ll take you there in a bit."

"Thank you, Sister."

"No need to be polite."

Knowing that several people were up, Lin Xin, who had some things he wanted to ask Ouyang Qing, also got out of bed. He casually tidied up his long hair and pulled open the door to step out.

Ouyang Qing was on the right corridor, wearing a light green long gown with long sleeves and pants, still wearing a white veil over her face, and in her hand, she carried a longsword, sheathed. The entire sheath was a pale green color.

"Junior Brother Lin." Ouyang Qing gave Lin Xin a look and frowned slightly.

"Sister Ouyang, last night..." Lin Xin glanced left and right, lowered his voice, "Last night you told me about the Yin Blood Bird..." He emphasized the words "Yin Blood" in his family’s accent.

Ouyang Qing looked puzzled.

"Last night? Did I meet with you last night? I went to bed early after meditating."

Lin Xin was slightly taken aback.

"It was clearly Ouyang Qing who told him last night about the effects of Yin Blood Qi accelerating cultivation, why now..."

He stared intently into Ouyang Qing’s eyes and indeed saw no trace of dishonesty, only confusion.

Perhaps she didn’t want to mention it at this time. He guessed.

"Is that so? Maybe I remembered incorrectly..." Lin Xin exhaled and said calmly.

Ouyang Qing still seemed a bit puzzled but nodded. She greeted Lin Xin and then went straight to the carriage to fetch water in a wooden basin, ready to go back to her room to wash up.

Lin Xin took his own wooden basin from the carriage, filled it with some water, and returned to his room. After washing up, he carried the water out, ready to empty it into the pond.

Ah!!!

Suddenly a scream came out. It seemed to be Jiang Yue’er’s.

Lin Xin quickly put down the basin and ran towards the source of the sound, while Ouyang Qing’s room opened behind him and she took several steps, quickly outpacing Lin Xin and charging ahead.

The two of them, one behind the other, turned around the corridor and arrived at Jiang Yu’er and Cheng Ruofei’s room.

Jiang Yu’er was dressed in a white gown, her long hair only half-braided with a jade hairpin in hand, not yet inserted. But she was just standing on the side, covering her mouth with her hands and screaming loudly.

Cheng Ruofei also looked pale, staring into the open room with a sword clenched in her hand, so tense that she seemed ready to stab at any moment.

"What happened!?" Kong Yuhui ran over from another place, arriving almost at the same time as Lin Xin.

Lin Xin walked to the entrance of the room and looked inside.

Inside, a person lay on the bed. The elder Shi brother, Shi Lei, stood on the side pale-faced, his longsword broken in half, his gaze dead set on the person on the bed.

The person on the bed was Shi Kun. The young man, only twenty years old, now lay flat on his back on the bed, his own longsword driven straight into his forehead and passing through the bed from underneath.

Shi Kun’s eyes were wide open in death, unblinking.

"Shi Kun... dead?!" Lin Xin’s heart sank.

Kong Yuhui quickly walked to the front of Shi Kun, his face indescribably somber as he lifted the clothes from Shi Kun’s chest, revealing the skin underneath.

There, a clear horizontal wound was visible. The bright red wound resembled a child’s mouth, slightly swollen and turned outwards.

"He’s been dead for a day!" Kong Yuhui said coldly.

Tears brimmed in Shi Lei’s eyes, his lips trembling.

"Yesterday... after we separated in the morning, I didn’t see my younger brother. I thought he went out to practice, and never expected that come morning, I’d find him lying beside me, and on his head..."

As he finished speaking, tears streamed down his face, and his body shook uncontrollably; he was visibly distraught.

"Yesterday morning, huh...." Kong Yuhui’s eyes were even colder, "The fatal wound is from a sword, but it’s not a mark of our Red Pine Sword Technique...."

"Do you perhaps suspect it is the doing of our Golden Jade Sect disciples?"

Suddenly, footsteps were heard at the doorway, and four Taoists clad in Taoist robes appeared outside the door.

These four were dressed in white Taoist robes with a golden crescent emblem on the chest. They looked extremely luxurious, all in white, even their longswords, which had thin gold patterns around the hilts.

"Golden Jade Sect’s Daoist friends, I never said it was your doing. Are you perhaps feeling guilty?" Kong Yuhui looked over coldly, seemingly expecting their arrival.

The lead Taoist had a calm face, with white beard fluttering in the wind, appearing to be a highly accomplished individual.

"It’s Kong Yuhui, my junior brother. It’s been a while since our last meeting; I never expected to see you again here"

"Zhou Jing, my senior brother, my disciple from the Pine Forest has died mysteriously here, and from the sword wound of your Golden Jade Sect; you must give us an explanation," Kong Yuhui straightened up, his voice icy cold.

Shi Lei also clenched his sword handle tightly. Hearing this, he immediately turned and stared down the people from the Golden Jade Sect.

"What do you mean? Are you implying that it was our Golden Jade Sect who killed your people?!" Another middle-aged Taoist Priest beside Zhou Jing couldn’t help but raise his voice.

"Whether it was you or not, you know in your hearts," Ouyang Qing also stood up, shoulder to shoulder with Kong Yuhui, staring at the opponent.

Cheng Ruofei, Jiang Yue’er, and Lin Xin all stood behind the two, eyeing the other side coldly.

But even though Lin Xin assumed this stance, he remained wary of Kong Yuhui the whole time. From the previous conversation in the forest, it seemed like Kong Yuhui harbored some plot here.

"Everyone came here for the Yin Blood Bird, the death of a disciple from your sect was not our doing..." Zhou Jing said calmly, "Junior brother Kong, junior sister Ouyang, what do you think?"

His question seemed somewhat pointless.

Sure enough, a slight change flickered in the eyes of both Kong Yuhui and Ouyang Qing.

"I don’t care, you killed my brother, and I want you to pay with your lives!!" Shi Lei could no longer contain himself and with a roar, his longsword pierced towards Zhou Jing.

With a flick of his sword hand, it was as if a point of white light fluttered towards Zhou Jing like petals without any discernible pattern.

"The Cinnamon Sword Technique? Pity it’s only at the First Layer of Internal Strength Cultivation," Zhou Jing said expressionlessly, countering with a sword stroke.

With a thud, he used the side of his blade to smack the side of the white light petals, producing a muffled sound.

Shi Lei grunted, and his entire body was struck sideways to the right. Clutching at his chest, he tried to stand up, but couldn’t catch his breath and was unable to rise.

Zhou Jing’s eyes were slightly closed, as he glanced at Kong Yuhui and Ouyang Qing, clearly wary of these two individuals.

"In addition to coming here this time, we also took on a protective mission, bringing some ordinary people to pay their respects. Please, Sword Sect friends, pay a little attention. We will help in the investigation of the murder of your disciple," he said.

Kong Yuhui and Ouyang Qing exchanged glances.

"Then we thank you, senior brother Zhou," said Kong Yuhui, both seeming certain it was unlikely to be Zhou Jing.

Zhou Jing nodded and led the people from the Golden Jade Sect away. They didn’t go too far, but to another bedroom area of the mansion, clearly planning to stay there.

Lin Xin watched as they moved away, feeling an uneasy premonition.

The face encountered on the first night, the strange Ouyang Qing from last night, and an apparently scheming Kong Yuhui.

It seemed a troublesome conspiracy was hidden within.

He felt as though he was getting involved in something troublesome.

"We too mourn the cruel murder of disciple Shi Kun, and it’s certainly not the work of someone from the Golden Jade Sect. Disciple Shi Lei, please restrain your grief," Kong Yuhui shook his head, glanced at Shi Lei on the ground still recovering, and walked out of the room.

Cheng Ruofei went over and quietly comforted Shi Lei, while Ouyang Qing stood deep in thought.

Jiang Yue’er remained pale with fear.

Lin Xin gripped his sword handle tightly, surveying his surroundings. Apart from Jiang Yue’er and Cheng Ruofei, whose purposes seemed the purest, the others all had their own agendas, making it difficult to distinguish friends from foes.

Shi Kun was at the Second Layer of the "Return to Origin" and practiced the Cold Star Sword Technique, which was even stronger than the Red Pine Sword Technique within the Sword Sect, and yet he was silently killed here.

"Jiang Yue’er joined this mission out of her simple admiration for Kong Yuhui, bringing along her intimate friend; their purpose here is the purest, perhaps I could form an alliance with them."

Just as this thought crossed Lin Xin’s mind, he saw Cheng Ruofei rise and look towards him. There was a similar expression in her eyes.

Shall we talk?

Lin Xin understood her glance and nodded slightly.