The voice was still in the air.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Water spiked into the sky in columns.
More than a dozen killers appeared like ghosts amongst the water columns, all wearing black tights. Though the killers were still in the air, with a wave of hands, a burst of hidden weapons exploded towards the Inviting-moon Pavilion, like pear flowers swirling in the rainstorm.
Swish!
A sharp, piercing sound resembling that of a crossbow broke the silence of the night.
“Hahaha. How dare you, evil monsters, contemptible scoundrels! Are you courting death?”
Ding Hao clutched from the air Wen Qing Saber with his left hand, and waved it across to his chest, adopting the fighting stance of Wen Qing Saber Technique, Enamorment. Hardly had the rainstorm of hidden weapons reached within a five-meter radius of the Inviting-moon Pavilion, they were crashed into powder upon a flash of a thin blade.
“Kill!”
Dozens of black killers bellowed. Holding weapons in their hands, they dashed towards the Inviting-moon Pavilion like flowing light.
Under the dark night, the sharp blades flickered. Killing intent filled the air.
Huang Rong, who was slightly intoxicated, widened her eyes and saw the sudden change. For a moment, she couldn’t understand what happened.
“Sending these cannon fodders to death. What a disappointment.” Ding Hao sneered. He waved Wen Qing Saber across his waist, adopting the second movement of the Wen Qing Saber Technique, Weed Wiping Slash. The blade slashed in the air like splashing waterfalls, emitting dazzling lights. The black-clothed killers, yet to approach, were cut into halves within a flash of blade light.
Shrieking and screaming, those men in black fell into the lake, dead.
“D-Ding Hao, what’s going on?” Huang Rong was shocked and screamed, and the sudden murderousness left the rebel girl completely dumbfounded.
Ding Hao dragged his long saber, turned around and smiled, “You really have no idea?”
Huang Rong, looking bewildered, said in shock and anger: “Knowing what? What the hell is going on?” She struggled to stand up, but suddenly felt dizzy for no reason. Her body was so weak that she couldn’t stand up. She shouted, “What’s going on? Why? W-What the hell have you done to me?”
Ding Hao laughed, “Don’t you have any idea what food and wine you personally delivered to me, buddy?”
Huang Rong was stunned, but she immediately understood what Ding Hao meant. Like a kitten being stepped on its tail, she exclaimed, “Ding Hao, what do you mean? I kindly served you food and wine. How dare you even doubt me? You…” At this point, a thought flashed through her mind like a lightning strike. She said, “Was it… him?”
“Who was it?” Ding Hao strode forward and asked.
Just at that moment, an upheaval arose.
“Heh, heh, heh. It doesn’t matter who it was. It is said that ‘you may be able to walk ten steps under Rambling Powder, but it only needs one take to break your soul.’ Ding Hao, you have been poisoned. What is the point of knowing who put Rambling Powder into the food and wine? Tonight, this pavilion is your burial ground.” A vicious laugh suddenly appeared in the pavilion. Before his voice trailed off, a sharp blade flashed under the moonlight, sending off a strong killing intent. It was piercing towards Ding Hao relentlessly.
“I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.” Ding Hao swiftly wielded his saber and counterattacked, waving against the blades in the sky.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Sparks were flying in the narrow pavilion.
Metal smashed against metal, making a sound of an endless torrential rain beating on the banana leaves.
The man who suddenly appeared was fearfully strong. He withstood 36 successive attacks from Ding Hao without compromising himself. He even had the strength to fight back. The two blue daggers in his hands had astonishing attack power. Each of them tried 41 movements. The man cackled and flashed outside of the Inviting-moon Pavilion.
Ding Hao remained in the pavilion with his long saber.
Under a gentle breeze, the huge pavilion creaked and collapsed without warning, making a loud bang sound. Its wood frame and dome were chopped into neat pieces of chips by Ding Hao’s Wen Qing Saber Technique, and fell into the mighty lake. Only the pavilion facet remained, which was now almost level with the water surface.
Ding Hao and Huang Rong stood on this small pavilion platform.
The night air was as cold as ice water.
Under the moonlight, whitish vapor permeated the air, with hints of moistness.
“With your strength, how can you fail to control your knife energy?” The mysterious man stood in the Void six meters above the water, masked in black scarves, half smirking. “It seems that Rambling Powder has begun to work in your body.”
Ding Hao placed the long knife across his chest and sneered, “Is it working? You will know if you come over.”
“Heh, heh. What’s the point of bluffing? Do you think I will fall for that? Rest assured, I will wait until your Qi is completely consumed by the poison of Rambling Powder… Heh, alert as you are, it is a pity that you came to realize a bit late. Now, you have noticed that the Qi in your body is gradually fading, right? And you have lost the control of your body?” The masked man in black scarf bantered.
“You really think you can fool me with this cheap trick?” Ding Hao sneered. “Everything is as I expected. The reason why I took the food and wine was just to lure you out, evil monsters.”
“Why bother bluffing upon death?” The black-masked man snorted.
Ding Hao gave a silent sneer and initiated no attack.
“Who are you? You…” Huang Rong seemed to realize that she had been a pawn. She yelled in surprise and anger at the black-masked man, “How dare you use me? Do you know who I am? My father won’t let you off.”
“What a fool.” The black-masked man looked at Huang Rong with disdain and contempt, and said, “I even dare to kill Ding Hao. What do I care about your damn father? Try to think about how you can survive first. You are going to die tonight, too!”
“You…” Huang Rong was furious and was about to swear. Suddenly cold light flashed over, like Death’s Sickle.
She wanted to avoid it, but her body was too weak to move. The sharp cold light was about to slit her throat. At this moment, a ray of blade light flickered. Clink! The cold light was chopped away.
“Thank you, Ding…” Huang Rong was about to thank him when a series of sharp sounds burst from the sky. Lights of blades flashed towards her as if the stars were falling on her. She could not help but feel a sense of suffocation like she was drowning in this metal storm.
At this critical moment, Ding Hao shifted sides and appeared in front of her.
Clash!
The Wen Qing Saber was flashing in Ding Hao’s hands, fending off the cold blades. The move seemingly slow was swift.
Sparks splattered, and the sound of metal crashes continued.
Somehow, at this moment, Huang Rong suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of security. Ding Hao’s back was broad and straight, standing before her like a mountain that would never fall, blocking all mishaps and crises.
