A Tale of Encounters with Immortals: A Peach Blossom Temple in the Martial World

Blood dripped slowly down the tip of the knife.

Zhu Ying frowned as she looked at the gaunt middle-aged man: "In the future, when you talk about things, don't say it in front of outsiders. Look, because of you, such a delicate life is gone."

The gaunt middle-aged man had a gloomy face.

"give it to you!"

Zhu Ying threw the knife to the middle-aged man, wiped the two drops of blood splattered on her hands with a handkerchief, threw the handkerchief away, and let it fall on the unseeing eyes of the dead man on the ground, covering them.

He hurriedly went to the study next to the main hall, where he knelt down with a thud in front of a burly man with a thick beard.

"What does the father want with his son?"

The seated man was none other than Zhu Houhui, the Prince of Xiao.

"Snapped!"

The book in his hand flew up and hit Zhu Ying on the forehead, causing blood to gush out and break the skin.

But Zhu Ying lay on the ground, not daring to move.

"His Majesty is purging the remnants of the Ghost Clan in the palace, and you dare to hide members of the Ghost Clan in your mansion. Do you know that early this morning, a maid dressed up in human skin in front of your mother? Your mother was almost scared to death."

"Yes, I know, that's why I just killed that demon maid."

Zhu Ying said.

"Send all the ghosts away as soon as possible. Otherwise, no one can save our more than one hundred people in the manor." Zhu Houyu continued, "Also...sever all ties with the Crown Prince and dispose of all correspondence."

Zhu Ying: "But what did His Majesty discover?"

Zhu Houyu angrily said, "Do I need to find out? You're so obviously working for the Crown Prince, as if you want the whole world to know you're one of his men. Do I need anyone to tell you? There's another matter... back then, when you went to Linbin Town to silence everyone in the Guo family, wasn't that what you did?"

Zhu Ying quickly nodded: "It was made by my son."

Zhu Houyu: "Pack your bags and leave immediately, heading west."

Zhu Ying was shocked: "Is the Emperor about to make a move?"

"Is it even Your Majesty's turn to take action?" Zhu Houyu roared. "What are your men doing? Hu Yunying, the concubine of Master Zhang Zhengdao of Taohua Temple in Linbin Town, and her disciple Guo Lanying have appeared in Lingzhou City. Do you think they came to Lingzhou to go shopping or to visit relatives and friends?"

Sweat beaded on Zhu Ying's forehead.

Zhu Houyu waved his hand: "This time when you go out, take all the Ghost Clan members with you, leave none alive. If the Emperor doesn't punish me in a year or two, I'll come back to you."

Zhu Ying hurriedly kowtowed: "Your son obeys."

When Zhu Ying was about to leave the study, Zhu Houyu said, "Leave now, it's better this way."

Zhu Ying agreed without hesitation and hurriedly went to make the arrangements.

After Zhu Ying had walked away, Zhu Houyu let out a long sigh and rhythmically tapped the table. A figure then emerged from the shadows.

Even though Zhu Ying was in the room just now, she didn't see this person's presence.

A person who is almost non-existent, even in breathing.

He was draped in a black cloak and covered with a black mask, making him look like a black shadow, with no part of him visible.

"I'm entrusting Hu Yunying and her apprentice to you."

Prince Xiao, Zhu Houyu, was extremely respectful to the man in the black cloak, even bowing with his hands clasped in greeting.

The man in the black cloak remained silent and disappeared back into the shadows of the study.

Prince Xiao, Zhu Houyu, waited for a long time without hearing a sound. Upon closer inspection of the shadowy area, he found it completely empty. He had no idea when the man in the black cloak had left.

This is one of the trump cards of the Xiao Prince's Mansion.

The back gate of Prince Xiao's mansion was open.

More than twenty horses were already waiting outside the gate, with a person standing next to each horse, holding the reins.

As soon as the door opened, more than twenty people came out, led by Zhu Ying, the heir of the Prince's mansion. Those following behind were all dressed in black.

There were young women, middle-aged women, young servants, and burly servants and their wives. There were also several strong men. Each of them carried a weapon.

The horse handler dared not speak or ask.

Although these people were acquainted with each other at the mansion, their current attire revealed their different status from their usual one.

They silently handed the horse over to these people and then quietly withdrew.

Zhu Ying mounted his horse and looked back at the Prince's residence with some lingering affection.

He never imagined that Guo Lanying, whom he had once regarded as a pawn, would now force him to flee to the west. How could he possibly accept living among those dark and gloomy ghost tribes?

"Your Highness, it's time to go!" A young maidservant beside Zhu Ying gave him a cold look and urged him on.

Today, this prince, in order to apologize to his father, killed one of their companions as a show of force, which made her very unhappy with this so-called prince.

If it weren't for the fact that this prince might still be of some use in the future, and that the higher-ups wanted to protect him, she would have stabbed this so-called heir apparent through the heart.

"go!"

Zhu Ying also looked down on this woman. They were both from the Ghost Clan, so it was normal for her to be looked down upon.

It's all a relationship of mutual exploitation.

The group rode quickly towards the city gate.

When they arrived at the city gate, someone there had already greeted them and let them leave.

More than twenty riders rushed out of the city gate and sped off towards the official road to the west, kicking up a cloud of dust. Some people looked on in confusion, as if they were from the Prince's mansion.

After running for about two hundred miles, we were about to enter the woods by the mountainside.

This official road passes through this forest, and after another thirty miles or so, it will enter the territory of Junzhou.

"Take a break!"

Prince Zhu Ying rode his horse for a hundred miles in one go. He had never experienced such hardship before, and he shouted along the way.

"Dismount and rest!"

He disregarded other people's opinions and only cared about issuing orders.

I reined in the horse, jumped off, and found my inner thighs almost chafed raw and sore. The thought of the long distance ahead, a journey that would take nearly ten days, filled me with rage.

“Your Highness, there are hidden dangers in the woods. We should not linger here. We should mount our horses immediately and rest after we pass through this forest.” The maid said to Prince Zhu Ying, who was sitting by a large tree, from her horse.

Zhu Ying angrily said, "Are you teaching me how to do things?"

The maid said coldly, "I wouldn't dare, but I still suggest that the young master set off as soon as possible."

At this point, the rest of the people had already dispersed to a distance of 100 meters to keep watch.

"Should I listen to you or me?" Zhu Ying said angrily. "Get your place. If you dare to say another word, I, the young master, will teach you how to behave."

"Your Highness, please depart immediately!"

The maid simply repeated what she had just said in a cold voice.

"Shh!"

Zhu Ying drew his sword and slashed at the maid.

The sword flashed.

The maid had already leaped off her horse and floated away, her sword slashing into the air.

Zhu Ying, also a cultivator with innate cultivation, was very confident in her skills. She unleashed one slash after another. However, each slash, seemingly about to strike the maid, missed its mark entirely.

"I'll take your life!"

When the maid retreated to the side of a large tree, he slashed at her fiercely with his sword.

The knife was still three fingers' width away from the maid's neck, but it stopped.

The cold blade of the sword was about to cut through Zhu Ying's skin at his neck.

"Oh!"

The maid kicked Zhu Ying in the stomach, sending him flying. He crashed into a tree trunk, bounced back, and lay motionless on the ground.

"Don't pretend to be dead!"

The maid walked over and looked down at Zhu Ying, who was lying motionless on the ground.

Zhu Ying possessed innate cultivation, and her kick was very measured, ensuring he wouldn't suffer serious injury, at most only minor physical pain. Therefore, she felt somewhat disdain for Zhu Ying's actions.

If he weren't a prince, dying ten thousand times wouldn't be enough to vent his hatred.

"Don't pretend to be dead!"

The maid said something else and used her foot to lift Zhu Ying's body.

Zhu Ying rolled over and lay on her back, facing the sky.

The maid was startled and stumbled back several steps before regaining her balance, then cried out sharply, "Enemy attack—!"

The sound was like tearing silk, and more than twenty people immediately gathered together, forming a trapezoidal defensive formation.

Zhu Ying is dead.

There was a bloody hole in his throat, from which blood was still gushing out, but there wasn't much blood left. Only blood foam was spraying out with each of his last breaths.

While everyone was on guard, a gust of wind suddenly seemed to blow from a hundred meters away.

The gust of wind came very quickly.

When everyone realized what was happening and looked in the direction the wind was coming from, the person who was first hit by the wind was suddenly passed right through.

The maid's eyes widened.

Her skin wrinkled and chapped from fear. Every muscle in her body tensed instantly. She watched her companions in front of her, one by one, being blown past by the wind.

The wind pierced through their bodies.

Then the body breaks apart and falls apart.

It was as if flesh and blood were dancing in the air, a cruel yet elegant ritual.

As if she had seen a ghost, she pushed off with both feet, reaching her limit, and as she retreated, only the shadow of her body remained.

She seemed to be able to see the wind and feel it.

Chase after her, and then—

The wind also passed through her body.

There is a martial art that, when used, can transform all things into blades.

Wind is also one of all things.

However, this kind of martial art only exists in legends.