"Uncle Baili, watch closely, the pig-slaughtering knife can also be played !"
Fang Bai let out a roar, and under Baili Zhan’s gaze, his figure suddenly lunged forward. The pig-slaughtering knife transformed into a series of shadows in mid-air, unexpectedly meeting the two long swords stabbing toward him.
In the hands of Baili Zhan, the pig-slaughtering knife was robust and fierce, with a momentum like a rainbow. But when wielded by Fang Bai, that robustness and momentum were elevated to an extreme state.
With every swing of the knife that Fang Bai executed, it brought forth not just a rainbow-like blade light, but also a gust of wind.
The force of the knife mixed with the wind created a whirlwind in front of Fang Bai. The tempest stirred up by the whirlwind swept up the sand and rocks from the ground, enveloping Mo Ling and Mo Ming in its midst.
The two sisters were caught in the midst of the whirlwind’s fury as if trapped in some sort of maze, barely able to open their eyes, their long swords unsteady in their grasp, their bodies difficult to keep standing.
And the sand and stones that flew all around them felt like hidden weapons, causing a faint pain upon impact.
The sisters were greatly alarmed and were just about to pull back when they suddenly felt their swords lighten in their hands, which had been chopped in half at the midsection by Fang Bai’s pig-slaughtering knife.
Immediately after, they saw a figure rush toward them, moving around them with the rotating wind.
Although they could not see the face clearly, the sisters knew it had to be Fang Bai.
Within the whirlwind stirred up by the pig-slaughtering knife, the sisters completely lost the initiative. They were both frightened and apprehensive, frantically waving their broken swords, forming a curtain of blades around them to guard against any sneak attack from Fang Bai.
Such directionless passive defense consumed a lot of True Yuan, and before long, breaks began to appear in their curtain of swords.
Suddenly, with a light shout from Fang Bai, Mo Ling and Mo Ming almost at the same moment felt a slight chill in their legs, as if something had swiftly grazed past.
Both sisters were martial artists and immediately knew that the tendons in their legs had been severed, their eyes revealing a look of despair.
Fang Bai sheathed his knife and stepped back next to Baili Zhan, and the whirlwind covering Mo Ling and Mo Ming immediately vanished.
Baili Zhan watched intently, only to see Mo Ling and Mo Ming each holding a broken sword, their clothes in disarray, their long hair mussed, in complete disarray—where was there any semblance of a master’s poise?
With two crisp sounds, the broken swords in the hands of Mo Ling and Mo Ming dropped to the ground, and immediately after, their legs gave way, their bodies lost control and they slumped to the ground, unable to stand up no matter how much they struggled.
"Uncle Baili, how about my swordsmanship?"
Fang Bai turned his head and smiled at Baili Zhan.
"This... what kind of swordsmanship is this?"
Baili Zhan’s mind was still replaying the domineering swordsmanship Fang Bai had exhibited, which was capable of creating a windstorm. He felt his throat dry up, his voice trembling as he spoke.
Fang Bai’s swordsmanship, from the start to finish, with each stroke cast, was bringing a whirlwind and fury along with it, unstoppable like a bamboo splitter, incomparably domineering, setting one’s mind pounding and blood boiling.
Upon seeing Fang Bai display such swordsmanship, and then thinking about his own, Baili Zhan felt as if he was performing swordplay with the grandeur of Guan Gong at the gate but ultimately inconsequential.
"This is called the ’Dousing Blade Technique.’"
Fang Bai’s finger flicked the butcher knife in his hand, saying, "Doesn’t this butcher knife, matched with my technique, complement each other perfectly?"
"Dousing Blade Technique... Dousing Blade Technique... This is the real swordplay..."
Baili Zhan murmured, his gaze toward Fang Bai burning with fervor. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something but in the end, he didn’t speak.
Although Fang Bai could guess what Baili Zhan was thinking, he just pursed his lips and smiled without continuing the conversation. Instead, he lifted the butcher knife in his hand and began gesturing over the bodies of Mo Ling and Mo Ming, who had already lost most of their combat strength, muttering to himself, "Killing two women... I find it a little hard to go through with, what should I do?"
Seeing Fang Bai’s reluctance, Baili Zhan grew anxious, strode forward, took the butcher knife from Fang Bai’s hand, and stood in front of Mo Ling and Mo Ming with an expressionless face, saying, "Between us, it’s either you die or I perish. There’s no room for compromise, so I won’t let you go... In the afterlife, don’t blame me. Blame your sect instead!"
Baili Zhan’s family of three had narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Ghost Doctor Sect and the Yunnv Sect. And tonight, they nearly lost their lives to the disciples of these two Hidden Sects again. So, Baili Zhan only felt hatred for these two sects’ disciples and would show no mercy.
As a Martial Artist, Baili Zhan knew better than anyone that to be kind to an enemy was to be cruel to oneself.
Like Fang Bai, Baili Zhan valued his family and friends greatly. To protect them, they would become merciless killers without regret or complaint.
Fang Bai turned away and walked toward Jiang Yuzhi and Baili Mingyue. He knew the fate of Mo Ling and Mo Ming was sealed and didn’t bother to look back.
"I’ll send you on your way!"
Fang Bai had walked about a dozen steps away when he heard Baili Zhan’s loud shout from behind, followed by the sound of the knife slicing through the air.
Baili Zhan’s blade moved exceedingly fast. Mo Ling and Mo Ming, knowing that resistance would only lead to a more miserable death, remained seated and motionless as the butcher knife cut through their throats. Their consciousness was then engulfed by endless darkness, and they perished.
As Baili Zhan swung the butcher knife at the two disciples of the Yunnv Sect, Jiang Yuzhi reached out to cover her daughter Baili Mingyue’s eyes, shielding her from the gruesome scene.
At the same time, Jiang Yuzhi sighed inwardly, knowing that after tonight’s events, she could no longer keep certain things from her daughter.
If that was the case, then upon returning home, she might as well let her husband teach their daughter the ways of Ancient Martial arts, so that she could defend herself in the future.
"Should I call you Aunt Qiu now, or should I stick to calling you Aunt Jiang?"
Fang Bai approached Jiang Yuzhi and Baili Mingyue, asking with a smile.
Baili Mingyue found Fang Bai’s question strange. There was still much she didn’t understand and hadn’t had the chance to inquire about.
Jiang Yuzhi gave a bitter smile and said, "You must already know our true identities and names... Mingyue’s father’s surname is Baili, with a single name Zhan; my surname is Jiang, and my name is Jiang Yuzhi... "
"Then I’ll call you Aunt Jiang."
Fang Bai focused intently on Jiang Yuzhi’s complexion as he inquired, "A while ago, I only managed to temporarily suppress the poison in your body to delay its effects, but it’s quite troublesome to expel it completely. How are you feeling now?"
Jiang Yuzhi assessed her own condition, nodding, "I feel somewhat better than before. The symptoms of dizziness in my head have decreased substantially. Fang Bai, do you really have a way to rid me of the ’Man-Eating Flower’ poison?"
Just earlier, Fang Bai had used the water and wood needles from the Five Elements Acupuncture Set, together with his own True Yuan, to wake Jiang Yuzhi from her unconscious state and had a brief conversation with her. This experience made her aware of Fang Bai’s identity as a doctor.
Having lived with the ’Man-Eating Flower’ poison for over a decade, Jiang Yuzhi had long since lost hope and let go of her fear of death. However, she heard a glimmer of hope in Fang Bai’s words and felt the flame of hope ignite once again in her despairing heart.
If one could avoid death, who would choose to die?