Twin Dimension Yin-Yang Mirror: Attaining immortality through the martial path
Chapter 393 - 353 City Gate Blood Battle, Shui Yue in the Sky

Chapter 393: Chapter 353 City Gate Blood Battle, Shui Yue in the Sky

"Run, I’ll hold them off. Escape the city and cross the river back to Guangyun County."

A young monk in white robes, his head shaven with the scars of his vows, wielded a long sword in his hand that shimmered and shifted between existence and illusion, forming a dense thicket of blade light, protecting a small group as they charged towards the city gate.

There was blood on his sword, staining his white clothes red; even his strikingly handsome face seemed to have been splashed with a layer of red paint.

One might think he’s crawled out of a blood pool like an Asura, yet he exuded an aura of unexpected clarity and wisdom.

Close behind him was a man nearly nine feet tall with broom-like eyebrows and a bare chest, wielding twin hammers that had flames dancing upon their surfaces.

With a single swing of his hammer, he unleashed a tidal wave of Qi, crushing the muscles and bones of the screaming civilians around him, sending them flying into the air.

Some on horseback tried to intercept but were struck down by the man with the hammer; both horse and rider were shattered to pieces.

"Great Brahma Prajna Sword! A monk from the Brahma Temple, I’ve never killed one of those before. Leave your life behind."

The hammer-wielding giant’s blood flames surged violently, boiling his Qi and creating the image of a raging bear roaring and beating around him. He stomped the ground and charged forward wildly...

With his twin hammers spinning, he created a whirlwind of chaos, enveloping the white-robed monk inside it.

The pressure from the opponent’s hammers caused the flow of the monk’s sword Qi to falter for just a moment.

Clang...

Taking consecutive hits from the twin hammers, the monk lightly tapped his foot, retreating over thirty feet and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Even though he was clearly overmatched, he did not consider stepping aside to clear the path; instead, he resolutely defended the main route to the gate as civilians surged past him like ants.

A female voice cried out, "Brother, I’ll stand by you against the enemy. Just hold on a little longer. Once the Red Lotus Holy Maiden arrives, the Bloodflame Bandits will have no place to bury themselves, and we won’t need to flee."

"Oh, my silly sister, can’t you see? When the Red Lotus Holy Maiden arrives, we’ll be the ones without a place to bury ourselves. Go, quickly, do as you’re told."

The white-robed monk’s sword-like eyebrows stood up in anger, commanding authority. He wanted to explain clearly to his little sister, but he also knew this wasn’t the right time for talking.

He just barked a command and, turning around, his sword danced, sending out rolling waves of blades as he charged towards the leader of the Bloodflame Bandits who was attacking with the twin hammers.

"Brother, I won’t leave. If we die, we die together."

In a fit of stubbornness, the sister stomped her foot, wielded her Autumn Water Sword in hand, and was ready to fight alongside her brother.

Tears would not stop falling down her cheeks.

If it weren’t for her own stubbornness, knowing full well the dangers of this mission but still insisting on coming to Dongshan City to save her close friend, she wouldn’t have ended up in such an awkward and perilous situation.

Her close friend’s family had long since joined the Red Lotus Army.

She and her brother, however, had their identities exposed, got trapped in the city, and became targets of the Bloodflame Bandits, left with no chance to escape.

The civilians and the merchant convoy beside them had banded together to fend off the attackers, aiming to flee from the chaos of the city, a vision held by some far-sighted individuals.

These people had been hiding within the city, avoided the first wave of searches, and chose this moment of turmoil to try and escape, but instead, they were cornered by the bandits.

The casualties were horrendous.

Han Shuang practiced a supreme sword technique known as the Autumn Water Long Sky Sword in Jianghu, taught to her by the Wen Xiu Daoist Priestess of the Longevity Sword Sect, who roamed the world. This Daoist Priestess was quite unique with a passion for drinking and could hold her liquor like no other.

One day, in a tavern, Han Shuang saw Wen Xiu Daoist Priestess drinking heartily, and out of admiration, she secretly took out the eighteen-year-aged Daughter’s Red Wine from her family’s cellar to drink with the Daoist Priestess.

From that day on, they forged a master-disciple relationship, and Han Shuang was taught a supreme mystical technique.

Therefore, Han Shuang could be considered a fortunate and opportunistic young heroine.

Her swordsmanship was indeed exquisite, and she even reached the Five Viscera Realm...

In the upcoming talents of Guangyun County City, she even mentioned in the same breath as Lin Huaiyu, one of the Three Beauties of the Southwest.

Sometimes, people would refer to the two as the Twin Beauties of Guangyun.

These were happenings from a few years ago.

Ever since Lin Huaiyu fell out of favor with her family and news of her impending union with a True Disciple of the Cloud Water Sect spread, fewer people spoke of the Wave Subduing Fairy.

Because everyone had heard what sort of person that Cloud-Tailoring Sword True Disciple, Fang Yu, really was...

To be married off to him was akin to being used as a mere cauldron, treated as a plaything.

In time, she would become nothing more than a withered flower or a fallen leaf... the prospect of fading away tragically was foreseeable.

Thus, the name of Lin Huaiyu as the fairy was no longer brought up.

The name of Han Shuang’s Autumn Water Fairy, however, came to the fore.

Especially in recent times, as she roamed around being chivalrous, making a name for herself by helping the weak and ridding evil, her actions were widely praised by the common folk.

As the saying goes, "A moment of heroism brings a lifetime of mourning for the whole family."

This time, Han Shuang’s sense of righteousness overreached her grasp, as she tried to snatch her friend’s family from the jaws of death and simultaneously save the people of Dongshan.

However, she soon realized that with her abilities, she couldn’t save anyone.

Not even herself.

She couldn’t escape.

Not to mention her brother Han Li, who came later to provide assistance, was also caught in the mess.

Doom seemed inevitable.

How could she not be distressed?

Now, all that was left was to fight with all her might.

Her brother Han Li, originally studying in the Brahma Heaven Sect, had the potential to become a True Disciple and was the pride of the Han family.

If he were to fall here, she couldn’t imagine the grief and sorrow that would befall the elders of her family.

Han Shuang charged quickly, but she retreated even faster.

Her usually proclaimed unrivaled Autumn Water Sword Technique was practically useless in this battle.

But when that blood-red Gang Qi struck, both the person and the sword were sent flying seven or eight zhang away.

She hit the ground, Muscles and Bones sore and weak.

Seeing her elder brother Han Li spitting blood while wielding his sword to block, she was already somewhat despairing.

"Are those the Bloodflame Bandits? Wasn’t it said that this city was controlled by the Red Lotus Army? How come the Bloodflame Bandits have popped up too?

That’s not right, there’s another band of thieves slaughtering the common folk ahead. Their leader wields a long spear with a wolf’s head embroidered on his chest. Which power does he belong to?"

A clear voice rang out beside her ear.

Han Shuang shook her head, struggled to her feet, and didn’t even care about the dust on her body as she replied instinctively, "They are the Grey Wolf Bandits, birds of a feather with the Bloodflame Bandits, extremely brutal.

They seized the opportunity amidst the chaos to loot and slaughter the common people... What a pity my Cultivation is not enough to slay these thieves."

As she turned her head, she realized that at some point, a refined and scholarly young man wearing a Jade Crown and dressed in Green Clothes had appeared by her side.

Even standing amidst the bloody battlefield, he had a kind of gentle and comforting demeanor like jade that calmed one’s heart at just a glance.

"Mister, you better hurry and escape. Dongshan City is beyond saving. I will go and hold them back."

After speaking in broken sentences, she felt the boiling Blood Qi slowly calming down within her. Clenching the long sword in her hand, she prepared to step forward once more.

She saw her own brother Han Li, at this moment, the circles made by the long saber in his hands getting smaller and smaller. The Blood Flame Twin Hammers had him firmly trapped, as though in the next moment they were going to crush him into mincemeat.

"I didn’t expect that you’re quite a good person, go back. When your practice succeeds, return to slay the thieves."

The young man in Green Clothes, looking like a Scholar, couldn’t help but smile at her words, and Han Shuang understood the meaning hidden in his words.

Was he disdaining her because her Cultivation was too weak?

Before she could respond, she saw a blur before her eyes. With a flickering of a green shadow, the young man was already under the Blood Flame Hammer.

"This..."

Han Shuang had a lump stuck in her throat.

A flash of blood light erupted before her eyes.

A huge head with disheveled hair and a long, unkempt beard was already flying midair.

She saw that the Bloodflame Bandit Leader, still bellowing and swinging his hammers, had his head sliced off even as the hammers continued to move, his once-imposing neck now flown off on its own.

Han Shuang didn’t even see how the man in green had drawn or sheathed his sword.

All she saw was his hands hanging by his side, the long sword resting behind him as he stepped forward with an air of walking through a grove of flowery trees—indescribably graceful and unrestrained, without a trace of bloody murderous intent.

It wasn’t just Han Shuang who gasped in astonishment.

Bald Han Li used too much strength, hacking wildly at the air seven or eight times with his Prajna Bodhi Sword Technique before stopping.

He couldn’t keep going even if he wanted to.

The bandit with a stature like a bear ahead had already lost his head, which fell to the dust, and the ten or so mounted thieves who had followed the Bloodflame Leader were simultaneously slain by a streak of sword light at the same moment.

Hustle and bustle...

Their bodies lay scattered on the ground.

The horses, now masterless, panicked, raising their hooves, neighing, and running amuck...

The pursuit came to a halt.

"May I ask for the esteemed name of this brother? Han Li from the Brahma Heaven Sect thanks you for the life-saving grace."

His vision was bedazzled, thinking that although they both wielded swords, his own use of the sword, so painfully ugly compared to that effortlessly elegant, picturesque scene of killing by the other, made his own Prajna Bodhi Sword Technique seem as crude as a butcher’s knife.

Of course, the issue wasn’t with the swordsmanship, but with him as a person.

For a moment, his feelings were indescribable as he watched the figure of the young man in green getting further away, his respect rising as one would admire a lofty mountain.

’He isn’t that much older than me, is he?’

He had only glanced over for a moment, but he prided himself on having extraordinary eyesight, and he was sure he had seen clearly.

The other party was definitely of the same age group as himself.

But how could he be so powerful?

Could it be that he is a True Disciple from the Four Great Immortal Sects? No, even True Disciples don’t have this level of strength.

Han Lin began his practice in the Brahma Heaven Sect at the age of eight. Now, with his Gang Qi fully cultivated and about to grasp the Bodhi Saber Intent, he considered himself not much weaker than those True Disciples.

It was just that he hadn’t undergone trials and his swordsmanship lacked a bit of polish; he hadn’t yet taken part in challenging trials and thus remained an Inner Sect Disciple temporarily.

But he never underestimated himself.

He may not compare with the famous experts of the older generation, yet among the younger generation, he had never really admired anyone.

Even when encountering a master stronger than himself, he’d think that with some more time, he could catch up, never selling himself short.

However, today he felt uncertain.

The man in green clothes before him, with his sword drawing and sheathing, had an air of high artistry, both as natural as clouds in water, as the moon in the sky.

There seemed to be no trace of killing intent to the eye, yet secretly the blade was incomparably sharp, able to cut down all living beings with its fierceness.

Reserved and sharp, these contradictory yet unified feelings, made him as a bystander feel so uncomfortable that he wanted to vomit blood simply by watching.

It made no sense to him.

"I am Zhou Ping’an of Qingyang, here in Dongshan to kill one person and to save another.

The path ahead is perilous, so brother, it’s best you leave as soon as possible. The Red Lotus Rebel Army is not to be trusted; the faster you escape, the better."

...