My game even includes ancient times

When the two arrived near the courtyard, they found a large crowd gathered at the gate.

The leader was an unfamiliar middle-aged woman, whose attire suggested she was from the Heyang sect.

Xia Yuan and Bai Yushen stood side by side in front of the courtyard gate, completely blocking the view inside, and looked at the group of people with expressionless faces.

Xia Yuan's face still had drops of blood that hadn't been wiped away. The long spear stood behind her, and the blue phoenix at the end of the spear was stained with dark red blood.

Chu He and He Shi walked over, and the crowd, hearing their footsteps, turned around and quickly made way for them to reach the door.

Seeing them, Xia Yuan's gaze softened slightly: "How are you? Are you alright?"

Chu He shook his head: "It's nothing."

He Shi: "I'm fine too."

He glanced at Xia Yuan's slightly disheveled clothes: "Senior Sister, how about you? Are you alright? And Fourth Senior Sister, how is she?"

Xia Yuan raised a slightly cleaner hand and gently patted his shoulder: "Everything's fine, don't worry."

“Miss Xia, look, your junior brothers are all alright, which is a blessing in disguise.”

The middle-aged woman who had been standing at the bottom of the steps spoke up, a perfectly measured apologetic smile on her face, as she spoke in a humble voice to the group:

"Why don't we go in and collect those corpses? The yard is full of blood and severed limbs; it's not a good omen for you..."

Xia Yuan spoke calmly, but her attitude was firm: "Elder Zhou, when I heard that your sect had a happy occasion, my master specially sent all of us fellow disciples to congratulate Sect Leader Zhong. However, I never expected that on the night before the banquet, in the territory of the Heyang Sect, the five of us were attacked by three waves of assassination attempts. During this time, not a single person came to our aid. It is truly disheartening."

"I think your sect really needs to give us an explanation, and an explanation to all the martial arts practitioners gathered here tonight. We came with blessings, but we did not receive the protection we deserved. Instead, we were almost killed. What is the reason for this?"

"When the fight broke out, no one from your faction came to support us. After the fight was over, your faction sent people to dispose of the bodies, trying to destroy the evidence..."

"Given this, who would dare to visit the Heyang Sect in the future?"

Elder Zhou was taken aback, then quickly waved his hand and said, "Miss Xia, you're too kind! We absolutely had no intention of destroying the evidence!"

Xia Yuan looked at her and slightly curved the corners of her mouth: "Then let's wait for Sect Leader Zhong to come. I believe he will give us justice."

Elder Zhou opened his mouth, unsure of what to say; he couldn't very well force his way in.

After thinking it over and over, he couldn't come up with a solution, so he reluctantly shut his mouth.

Just then, footsteps sounded from behind the crowd.

Everyone turned around to look.

Elder Zhou's initially delighted gaze turned to astonishment upon seeing the newcomer.

"Miss Xia, Young Master He, what happened? Why are you both covered in injuries?"

Lu Zhuo walked towards the crowd with his sword in hand. When he saw Elder Zhou's face, he paused and stopped in his tracks.

He glanced suspiciously at the faces of the people gathered at the entrance, then calmly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword: "The Heyang Sect... has started a war with the Chu Clan Manor?"

"Of course not."

Xia Yuan snapped out of her daze and looked at Lu Zhuo in surprise, "Young Master Lu, why did you suddenly come here? How did you find me?"

Lu Zhuo: "Naturally, I found out by asking people."

He walked through the crowd to He Shi's side, glanced down at him, and said, "I saw that Young Master He and the other two left their seats in a hurry, so I thought they must have something urgent to do. So I said goodbye to my senior brother and prepared to come and see. But as soon as I went out, I couldn't find them. After asking the maid, I searched for a long time before I found them."

He looked at Xia Yuan covered in blood, then at the several gruesome cuts on Chu He's body, and at the wound on He Shi's shoulder that had stained his clothes red.

"If it wasn't the Heyang Sect that did it, then which force dared to attack the Chu family on Heyang Sect territory?"

Lu Zhu tilted his head and thought for a moment, then suddenly realized, "Could it be Mo Yunlou?"

Xia Yuan's lips curved slightly: "We still need Sect Leader Zhong to identify which faction it is. Elder Zhou, haven't the people you sent to inform Sect Leader Zhong returned yet?"

Elder Zhou was having a terrible headache.

Today's operation has been a complete failure. Not only did none of the Chu family members die, but now even the people of Hualing have been dragged into this, so it's unlikely to end well.

Hearing Xia Yuan's question, she could only manage a weak reply: "Soon, soon, please wait a little longer."

Xia Yuan didn't look at her, but turned to Lu Zhuo and said, "Young Master Lu, none of us are seriously injured. It's a cold snowy night, so Young Master Lu should go back and warm up first, so as not to worry your fellow disciples."

Lu Zhuo stood still, saying, "Thank you, Miss Xia. Now that I'm here, I'm not in a hurry to leave. Besides..."

He lowered his eyes to meet He Shi's gaze, a smile playing on his lips. "Young Master He is injured, so I should spend more time with him until he recovers."

The boy had a bright smile, and his luxurious clothes reflected a dazzling light under the lanterns.

He Shi noticed Xia Yuan's questioning gaze and his lips twitched involuntarily.

When He Shi talked to Xia Yuan about Lu Zhuo before, he only said that he met him by chance on the road, and did not mention that his sister saved him.

Logically speaking, a casual encounter shouldn't warrant such protection from the young sword master of Hualing; Xia Yuan must have become suspicious...

He Shi's heart raced as he pondered how to explain this to his senior sister, when he heard Zhong Heshan's voice coming from the road ahead.

"My dear nephews, I had some urgent business to attend to and couldn't get away, so I'm late. Please forgive me!"

He looked up.

Zhong Heshan, accompanied by three or four people, walked over quickly.

As they got closer, they could see that he had sustained some rather disheveled marks on his body, clearly indicating that he had been in a fight.

Elder Zhou was the first to step forward: "Sect Leader."

Zhong Heshan glared at her: "I sent you to provide support, and what do you do? You just surround the door! What? Trying to break in?"

Elder Zhou stammered, "I want to go in and deal with the bodies first..."

"Okay, stop talking!"

Zhong Heshan interrupted her, quickly walked up to Xia Yuan and the others, and clasped his hands apologetically, saying, "I am truly sorry, my dear nephews. I never expected such a thing to happen on the mountain of the Heyang Sect. I have completely lost face. Alas, fortunately, none of you are in any danger, otherwise, I would not know how to explain to Master Chu..."

He turned to the people following him and instructed, "Go and fetch a doctor to treat your injuries, my nephews!"

Xia Yuan returned the greeting and looked at Zhong Heshan's cloak, which had several cuts: "Sect Leader Zhong, what happened... has something happened in the sect?"