Shen Zhou's pupils constricted, and his heart felt as if it were suddenly clenched by an invisible hand.
The long sword in his hand had pierced through the gauze curtain. Shen Zhou couldn't stop his body from the full - force strike. He could only forcefully change his energy and form, turning the stabbing motion into a flick. With a "swish", he sent Ye Xi's blood - stained veiled hat flying high into the air.
There were willow - leaf eyebrows and autumn - water eyes. That peerlessly beautiful face could belong to no one but Ye Xi.
However, she was injured now. Her palm - sized face was as pale as paper, and there were still traces of dried blood at the corner of her lips. Her pair of eyes were even clearer, as if they could pierce straight into Shen Zhou's heart.
"How... how..."
Shen Zhou looked at the person in front of him in disbelief. The long sword in his hand was so heavy that he couldn't hold it anymore. It fell to the ground with a "clang".
What had he done! He had actually... hurt his Yingying with his own hands!
Shen Zhou trembled with remorse and pain. He knelt on the ground and was about to reach out to help Ye Xi.
However, this was not the time for him to regret. In just this moment of distraction, a long sword exuding endless cold killing intent stabbed at him ferociously from the side at lightning speed.
"Master!"
Sheng Yu let out a soft cry of surprise. He threw aside Yun Qi and was about to rush over to support Shen Zhou. But how could Yun Qi let him succeed? The long spear in his hand was unpredictable and even more merciless.
Although Shen Zhou was still in the midst of pain and regret, his body's instinctive reaction made him subconsciously wave his sleeve to block and retreat when the long sword stabbed at him.
However, although his reaction was fast, the person stabbing at him was even faster.
With a tearing sound, a large hole was cut in his sleeve. The sword energy sliced through his skin, and blood immediately flowed out.
The two faced each other in a stand - off.
Yi Yuan's crow - blue long robe fluttered. The bone - deep coldness in his eyes was terrifying.
This made Sai Xing overjoyed. They were saved! Her young lady was saved! Overwhelmed with joy, Sai Xing shouted "My Lord" and rushed straight towards Ye Xi.
Several assassins and Sheng Yu, who had forced Yun Qi back with a powerful strike, quickly gathered around Shen Zhou. They protected Shen Zhou, their eyes full of vigilance.
Yi Yuan's face was full of anger. He quickly knelt down halfway to check Ye Xi's injuries. His thin lips parted slightly, uttering only one word:
"Kill."
Mian Xiao and Lin An were also extremely indignant. Without even having time to respond to the order, they flew towards the enemy with their swords.
"Master, shall we retreat?"
Sheng Yu asked anxiously in a low voice.
He had been entangled with Yun Qi just now and didn't know what had happened to his master. He hadn't even seen that Man Ping was actually Ye Xi.
He only knew that with his master's skills, killing such a nun would be as easy as pie. But his master not only didn't take action but also seemed to have lost his soul. Sheng Yu had a bad feeling that something was going to happen.
"Retreat."
Knowing that he couldn't delay any longer, Shen Zhou stared blankly at Ye Xi, who was carefully held in Yi Yuan's arms. His heart ached so much that it seemed to be twisted into a ball. Finally, he gritted his teeth and gave the order. Even though he regretted it to the core, the fact that he had hurt his Yingying with his own hands could never be changed. How could he face her in the future?
As the words fell, the two of them flew into the air and left.
The other three assassins were entangled by the furious Mian Xiao and Lin An and couldn't get away. They all died under the swords.
"Don't chase,"
Yi Yuan called out to the two who were about to fly after the assassins after killing the three of them:
"Go and check on Ling Yan and the others."
"Yes."
The two of them took the order and left.
Yi Yuan carefully bandaged Ye Xi's wounds simply. Seeing the deep wound on her palm that exposed the bone and the shallow blood hole stabbed by the sword tip in her chest, he was so angry that his eyes almost dripped blood.
It was all his fault for coming so late because of the matter in Tanzhou! It was all his fault for knowing that someone was after Xiao Xi but still letting her come to this remote and desolate place alone!
"A Yuan,"
Seeing Yi Yuan blaming himself so much that his eyes were blood - red, Ye Xi twitched the corner of her mouth and gave him a smile:
"Don't blame yourself. I'm fine. It just looks scary."
Seeing his little Xi with a pale and weak face still comforting him, Yi Yuan felt even more heart - broken. Regardless of the others present, he gently kissed her on the forehead and tried to suppress the tremor in his voice:
"Okay. Let's go home."
Saying that, he carefully put Ye Xi's arm on his shoulder, wrapped his arm around her slender waist, and gently picked her up.
Just as he stood up, Qiao Yan supported Yun Qi and came over. At a glance, she was stunned to find that the respected and trusted Nun Man Ping was actually Miss Xi. Thinking of the fact that she had repeatedly asked her to confirm her feelings with "Miss Xi" before, Qiao Yan felt extremely ashamed.
Her lips opened and closed several times, but she couldn't utter a single word.
It was Yun Qi who spoke first, in surprise:
"I really didn't expect that the legendary and famous Nun Man Ping would actually be you, Miss Xi."
Ye Xi leaned tiredly against Yi Yuan's solid chest. Hearing Yun Qi say this, she blushed shyly. A faint blush appeared on her paper - pale face, giving it a bit of color.
"This actually happened by coincidence."
Ye Xi said with a weak smile:
"It's a long story, and this is not a place to stay for long. Thank you, General Yun and Miss Qiao, for your chivalrous courage and risking your lives to save me today. It seems that both General Yun and Miss Qiao are injured. Why don't you come back to our mansion with us for treatment first? Otherwise, your families will worry."
Yun Qi already felt very close to Ye Xi. Now, he definitely wouldn't go against Ye Xi's wishes and immediately agreed.
In fact, Qiao Yan was not seriously injured. Yun Qi had come in time, and the assassins' target was not her. The most serious injury she suffered was the kick from the assassins at the beginning. It was Yun Qi who had suffered a lot. In order to save her, he had used his long spear. During the period when he had no weapon, he had fought bare - handed and suffered many scratches on his arms and back.
But Ye Xi's words made sense. Qiao Yan was also extremely curious about Ye Xi's identity. Even if Ye Xi didn't invite her, she would follow. Now that Ye Xi had given her an opportunity, and there was Yun Qi, who was half - injured because of her, Qiao Yan was even more determined to go. So she also immediately agreed.
To avoid causing a commotion, the group simply tidied up. Sai Xing and Ye Xi were still wearing Taoist robes. They casually put on outer robes to cover up. After meeting up with Ling Yan and the others who came later, they quickly returned to the Prince Yu'an's Mansion.
The assassins who came this time were extremely skilled. Even Ling Yan, Jia Yan, Xuan Yan, and Gui Yan, three top - notch experts, didn't gain any advantage and suffered many minor injuries.
The group neatly treated their wounds while discussing the assassination just now.
"They arranged their manpower very well. Although on the surface, the young lady only had Ling Yan, a maid who knew martial arts,"
Lin An reported carefully what he had discovered just now:
"But the number and level of the killers they arranged were calculated to include Yan Xuan and Yan Gui. It shows that the person behind this has investigated the people around the young lady very clearly and obviously came with the intention of killing her with one blow."
"What's strange is that the young lady went out in the identity of Nun Man Ping today. Logically speaking, the person behind this could at most find out that Ling Yan was highly skilled in martial arts, but there was no way they could find out about Yan Xuan and Yan Gui. Since they did, it means..."
Lin An quickly scanned the crowd and said in a deep voice:
"Most likely, the other party knows that Miss Xi is Nun Man Ping."