Building a Martial Dao Celestial Family by Laying Low

Han Xiaoru was alarmed and instinctively reached for her sword, but Imperial Physician Su was faster. He simply raised his right hand in a seemingly casual motion and gently tapped the side of her neck with his index finger.

"Ugh..."

Han Xiaoru’s body went rigid. The light in her eyes faded, and she went limp, slumping forward.

Imperial Physician Su caught her and tossed her unconscious form to a Female Honored Guest behind him. "Take good care of Miss Han," he instructed. "Don’t neglect her."

"Yes."

The Female Honored Guest hurriedly caught her and replied respectfully.

"Come with me. They... won’t get away."

Ignoring the others, Imperial Physician Su’s figure blurred. He shot off like a wisp of smoke toward a place where a faint mist hung in the air, his speed astonishing.

A shadow flickered in Jian You’s eyes, but he ultimately just waved his hand. "Keep up!"

...

Feng Suiyun and Hua Wuxin sped along until they reached a hidden mountain hollow.

The hollow’s floor was relatively flat, almost entirely taken up by a large pool of water.

The water was a deep, almost ink-green color. Its surface was placid, but turbulent undercurrents churned below.

Hua Wuxin stood at the water’s edge and glanced back warily, his brow furrowed. "They didn’t follow us?"

Feng Suiyun sheathed his blade and walked to the edge of the pool. He shook his head. "We can’t linger here. Let’s go before they discover this exit."

Hua Wuxin nodded in agreement.

Without further hesitation, Feng Suiyun prepared to leap into the deep, dark water.

But in that very instant...

Disaster struck!

"SWISH!"

The sharp sound of something tearing through the air came from behind without warning.

A flash of dark red thrust toward the vital point on Feng Suiyun’s completely unguarded back.

It was Hua Wuxin’s sword!

At that moment, the blade was aimed not at an enemy, but at the unguarded back of the man he considered a brother, someone with whom he would entrust his very life.

The moment the Longsword left its sheath, the killing intent finally triggered Feng Suiyun’s instincts as a top-tier assassin.

But it was too late!

His back was wide open—his Empty Gate exposed—and he had let his guard down completely around the person behind him.

The long-premeditated strike, timed to absolute perfection, gave him no room to dodge or parry.

Feng Suiyun only had time to use his core strength to twist his body slightly to the side as his Inner Qi surged madly to his back in an attempt to form his Protective Gang Qi.

PFFT!

The dark red sword tip missed the vital point over his heart, but it brutally pierced through the side of his lower back, instantly tearing through muscle, severing his meridians, and exiting through his abdomen.

Before the first drop of his blood could even hit the water, Feng Suiyun violently coughed up a large mouthful of it.

Agony washed over him like a tidal wave. With a muffled grunt, he endured the searing pain of being run through and used the force of the blow to lunge forward, trying to create some distance.

But how could Hua Wuxin’s killing blow consist of only a single strike?

As Feng Suiyun threw himself forward, Hua Wuxin stuck to him like a shadow, closing the distance instantly.

PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!

At some point, he had drawn two foot-long Short Swords with his left hand, and now he drove them into Feng Suiyun’s wrists.

Almost simultaneously, two more Short Swords pierced Feng Suiyun’s thighs, pinning him to the spot and rendering him completely immobile.

From the stab in the back to the crippling of his limbs, it all happened in the blink of an eye.

Feng Suiyun collapsed heavily onto the damp rocks by the water’s edge. Blood gushed from the wounds in his torso and limbs, soaking the moss and gravel beneath him.

He didn’t struggle or try to pull out the Short Swords buried deep in his flesh.

His body twitched from the intense pain. A mixture of cold sweat and blood streamed down his forehead.

He struggled to lift his head and look at the small, thin figure.

Hua Wuxin’s face was a blank mask—no triumph, no guilt, no madness. There was only a calm that bordered on emptiness.

"Why...?"

Feng Suiyun’s voice was hoarse and dry.

"I want to live."

Hua Wuxin was silent for a moment, avoiding Feng Suiyun’s gaze. "And I want to be stronger."

Feng Suiyun froze for a second, then coughed up a froth of blood. "Are you sure... they can help you?"

"I just have to kill that person."

Hua Wuxin’s gaze traveled past Feng Suiyun, toward the entrance of the hollow.

"Heh... heheh..."

Feng Suiyun let out a low laugh. The movement tore at his wounds, sending him into a violent coughing fit that brought up mouthfuls of dark blood laced with fragments of his internal organs.

He closed his eyes, no longer looking at Hua Wuxin. ’I should have known,’ he muttered. ’I just... couldn’t believe it...’

Silence returned to the hollow.

A moment later, the sound of three figures cutting through the air grew closer, and they landed on the rocks at the entrance to the hollow.

When the three of them saw the scene before them, their reactions were varied.

Elder Jian You’s perpetually worried face was now a mask of sheer astonishment.

The woman beside him looked on in utter disbelief.

Neither of them had expected that the two Seven Kills Association Hall Masters, who had been fleeing for their lives together, would turn on each other at the very end.

Only Imperial Physician Su showed no surprise, as if everything before him had unfolded exactly as he had predicted.

He beamed at Hua Wuxin and praised him, "Hall Master Hua, you certainly keep your word. And your methods are truly impressive. Worthy of the title of Assassination Hall Master."

Hua Wuxin gave Imperial Physician Su a cold look, devoid of any sense of pleasant cooperation. There was only an icy warning in his tone. "You had better keep yours as well."

Imperial Physician Su nodded, his smile affable. "You can rest assured, Hall Master Hua. As long as that person is not eliminated, none of us can rest easy. Our goal is the same."

He paused, his smile unwavering. "However, to lure that person out, we will still require your full cooperation, Hall Master Hua."

As if expecting this, Hua Wuxin asked directly, "What’s your plan?"

Imperial Physician Su beamed. "It’s simple. You just need to find a way to lure him here, to Kao Mountain. When the time comes, several Supreme Elders from the Celestial Sword Sect will take care of him. Once he sets foot here, there is no chance he will leave alive."

Hua Wuxin’s eyes flickered. After a moment of silence, he looked at Feng Suiyun, who was barely breathing on the ground but still clinging to life. "Spare him," he said. "I promised I’d let him go home."

Imperial Physician Su looked a little surprised and raised an eyebrow, but he quickly smiled and nodded. "Hall Master Hua, you are quite sentimental. Very well. I will have him taken care of."

Hua Wuxin said nothing more. Whether the promise was trustworthy was no longer his concern—or perhaps, he had already made his own judgment.

He raised a hand and pointed to the deep, chilling pool. "This pool is the exit to the outside world. In seven days, I’ll find a way to lead him here. We’ll meet again at this spot."

With that, he ignored the others and leaped into the ink-green water, vanishing from sight.