My game even includes ancient times

"Alas, this matter... it's truly shameful to mention..." Zhong Heshan sighed and waved his hand, looking exhausted. "Tonight, it wasn't just you few who were attacked; the Ouyang family, Yuge, and several heroes from Hualing were all assassinated..."

Lu Zhuo's anxious voice broke in: "What? My senior brother..."

Zhong Heshan glanced at him and said, "Nephew Lu, there's no need to worry. Both of the young sword masters are fine. Elder Hu happened to be nearby and rushed over to help after hearing the commotion. The assassins were quickly eliminated."

Lu Zhuo breathed a sigh of relief, looked around, and realized that in his haste he had run in front of Xia Yuan. He scratched his head and slowly retreated to He Shi's side.

"Sect Leader Zhong has personally fought against these petty scoundrels. Do you know what kind of people they are?"

Zhong Heshan frowned: "These people have a wide variety of martial arts styles. In my opinion, among the sects that meet the criteria, only Jingmen and Moyunlou have the strength to bypass the many obstacles of my Heyang Sect and assassinate you, my nephews."

Xia Yuan's eyes flashed, and she stepped aside to let Zhong Sect Leader Zhong through the door: "Sect Leader Zhong, please."

Zhong Heshan nodded to her, then strode in steadily.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, the faint smell of blood filled his nostrils. He frowned slightly, feeling a little uncomfortable, and looked around.

A quick glance around revealed about a dozen corpses lying haphazardly in the courtyard, their dark red blood splattered everywhere, yet conspicuously avoiding the room where Chu Yunsi was.

He Shi followed the others into the courtyard, when suddenly he stepped on something that made his foot feel uncomfortable. Looking down, he saw a severed hand.

The hand was severed from between the index and middle fingers, leaving only three curled fingers and half a palm, frozen pale and stiff in the snow and ice, feeling like stepping on a dry twig.

He Shi raised his head, walked around the severed hand, and continued walking forward.

Zhong Heshan examined each of the corpses, and the more he looked, the more suspicious and uncertain he became.

These people were all dressed in black, but the styles and materials were clearly different, suggesting they came from two different factions. One of them was naturally the Pure Sect, and as for the other...

Zhong Heshan was also a little unsure.

Because he only contacted the Jingmen to deal with the Chu family and a few others, he did not inform any other forces to come here.

Could it really be Mo Yunlou who inexplicably intervened to deal with Xia Yuan?

After checking, Zhong Heshan lowered his eyes and pondered: "It seems to be two groups of people. I guess it's Jingmen and Moyunlou."

Xia Yuan nodded, her face expressionless, and said, "What Sect Leader Zhong said is absolutely right. The group in front had five people, and the group behind had six. It's obvious that the latter group was more efficient and decisive."

She looked around: "The bodies of all eleven people are here."

Zhong Heshan rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache: "Did these two places plan this together? They came to my Heyang Sect one after the other to carry out an assassination."

He suddenly seemed to remember something and turned to ask Xia Yuan, "By the way, I wonder about Nephew Chu..."

Xia Yuan looked at him quietly: "She's fine, she's still unconscious."

Zhong Heshan sighed, "That's good then..."

He turned around and solemnly said to the group, "I, Zhong Heshan, will give you all an explanation for what happened tonight, including the other sects that were attacked. Please rest assured, my dear nephews. It is late now, and everyone is injured. I will arrange for a doctor to treat your wounds."

“Miss Xia, this courtyard is no longer suitable for you. Please make do with the courtyard in front for the time being.”

Xia Yuan nodded: "I believe in your sect, and I also believe in Sect Leader Zhong."

She looked at her three junior brothers and said, "You guys go to that courtyard to heal and rest first. I'll go in first to take my junior sister, and then I'll go over there."

Bai Yushen stepped forward: "Senior sister, I'm not injured. Let me help you with your things."

Seeing that he was indeed dressed neatly and uninjured, Xia Yuan did not refuse and nodded.

He Shi listened to their conversation, silently looked up, and glanced at the red-eyed crow standing on the jujube tree in the corner of the courtyard.

The crow's jet-black feathers were hidden in the darkness, and the dim yet eerie red light in its eyes was silently watching the blood-red inferno beneath the tree and the people standing among the stiff pile of corpses.

He turned his head and looked at Lu Zhuo, who seemed somewhat bewildered: "Young Master Lu, let's go. I'm fine, I'll go get treatment now. You go back to your courtyard and get some rest. We'll meet again tomorrow."

This time, Lu Zhuo did not insist. After bowing to Zhong Heshan and Xia Yuan to say goodbye, he left in the same hurry as when he came.

I'm still a little worried about my senior brothers.

After arranging for people to help Xia Yuan and Bai Yushen deliver Chu Yunsi and all her luggage to the new courtyard, Zhong Heshan looked at the blood and corpses all over the ground. His face no longer showed any of the fatigue and guilt he had shown before, but instead was filled with a deep and unyielding gloom.

Elder Zhou stood behind him with his head down, not daring to say a word.

It was already midnight. The howling wind had diluted the smell of blood, but the biting cold seemed to penetrate even deeper into one's bones.

Many people standing inside and outside the courtyard were shivering.

Zhong Heshan remained silent for a moment, and when he looked up again, his expression had returned to normal.

He stepped over the corpse in front of him and said calmly as he walked out, "Take care of everything."

Elder Zhou secretly breathed a sigh of relief and bowed, saying, "Yes, please rest assured, Sect Leader."

Zhong Heshan walked out of the courtyard, casually wiped the blood and mud off the soles of his shoes on the steps, and walked away with his hands behind his back.

After turning several corners in the darkness, he returned to his own yard.

As he pushed open the door, the candles lit up automatically, and precious spices from Zhangzhou burned quietly in the incense burner, their rich fragrance dispelling the icy, bloody smell that clung to his clothes.

Zhong Heshan took off his cloak and casually tossed it onto the coat rack by the door: "Have you found out who drugged me tonight?"

As if a gust of wind had blown by, a masked man dressed in plain clothes suddenly appeared in the corner of the empty main room.

The man stepped forward and knelt on one knee in front of Zhong Heshan: "Reporting to the sect leader, all the maids at the banquet today, the cooks in the kitchen, and everyone who came near your seat have been checked, and nothing unusual has been found."

Zhong Heshan ignored him and walked straight to the table to sit down: "Nothing unusual? Could it be that a ghost gave me the drug?"

The man lowered his head and remained silent.

"That pot of wine was sent to the horse, just a small cup, and the horse defecated so badly it couldn't stand up and almost died. Where on the market can you find such a potent laxative?"

Zhong Heshan rested his arm on the table, looked down at the jade thumb ring on his hand, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "The people from Huichun Valley haven't arrived yet?"

The man shifted slightly: "They didn't send anyone, Sect Leader, do you mean..."

Zhong Heshan's lips curled slightly, his eyes icy: "I've invited them several times, but those old fogies couldn't refuse. This time, they didn't even bother with pleasantries and bluntly returned my invitation. It's hard for me to believe that this has nothing to do with them..."

The man said, "I'll check right away."

"Also, I previously only hired assassins to kill people from the Ouyang family and Hualing. Why did they go and assassinate Xia Yuan on their own? Investigate that thoroughly as well."

"Yes."

"Okay, step back."

"Yes"

The man in plain clothes got up, and without making any move, he seemed to disappear from the room in the blink of an eye.