Long Yang merely glanced downward, then tucked his arm behind his back indifferently. “Don’t worry. I was just careless.”
Lu Liangwei’s small face was filled with tension, and she said quickly, “It’s not your fault. Nobody could have guessed that the killer was still alive.”
It was just like last time at Sacred Hillock Peak—she also did not notice that a wolf was hiding in the bushes behind her.
Knowing that Long Yang had once again gotten injured because of her, Lu Liangwei felt very distressed.
Just now, he was holding her in his arms. If he was not focusing on protecting her, he would not have gotten injured.
Lu Liangwei’s heart felt heavy as she realized that he had suffered several injuries, all for her sake.
Before this, she had even fancied the idea of obtaining the title of County Princess by taking advantage of her success in curing him.
She had indeed cured him, but he also repaid the deed by rescuing her several times.
Pursing her lips, she grabbed his hand and said determinedly, “Let’s go back quickly. Your wound needs to be treated immediately.” With that, she pulled him and marched out of the orchard without caring about the appropriateness of her actions.
She walked very swiftly as she was genuinely worried about him.
Long Yang amiably allowed her to pull him along, a pleasant expression on his face.
The moment they left, two figures landed on the ground, one after the other.
A trace of bewilderment flashed through Zhao Qian’s eyes as he watched the two walk away.
If he had not seen it with his own eyes, he would have thought that his master had been replaced by someone else.
He could barely recognize that this gentle and easygoing man was his master.
While Zhao Qian was criticizing his own master inwardly, Chu Qi stepped toward the dead assassins.
All of their throats had been slashed in one strike without exception, but only the last assassin had an extra wound on his body.
The first wound was on his abdomen, and although it looked severe, it was not fatal. The other was on his neck; a sword had pierced his throat and killed him instantly.
Chu Qi’s gaze lingered on the last assassin for a while.
Seeing this, Zhao Qian inched closer to take a look.
When he saw that this assassin clearly had more wounds than the others, he could not help muttering in confusion.
“When did Master’s swordsmanship regress? Why would he need a second strike to kill someone of this level?”
Chu Qi understood his master’s skill in martial arts the clearest.
In the past, his body was plagued by a poison. To prevent the toxins from spreading faster, he would always restrain himself from using all his power when fighting.
However, now that Master’s body was clear of all toxins, there was no need for him to hold back. Given his cultivation base, it would be a breeze for him to dispatch a small potato like this, but it could be clearly seen that there was an unnecessary extra wound on this assassin in front of them. It did not seem like Master’s style.
Master would always kill with a single slash to the throat without the need for extra movements.
Chu Qi thought for a while, then said firmly, “Master did it on purpose.”
“What?”
His words came so suddenly that Zhao Qian could not react.
‘What does he mean; on purpose?’
‘Is Master a masochist?’
He was bursting to ask more questions, but the little brat Chu Qi had already left.
Zhao Qian stood there, staring at the assassin and thinking for a while. All of a sudden, he understood what Chu Qi must have meant.
He chuckled to himself. He did not expect his master to be so sly as to use the ruse of self-injury. (TN: The Thirty-Six Strategems is a Chinese essay illustrating a series of stratagems used in politics, war, and civil interaction. The ruse of self-injury is the 34th stratagem, and it describes how one can inflict injury on oneself to win the target’s trust.)
With Master’s skill in martial arts, finishing off these assassins would have been a piece of cake. Moreover, considering Master’s style, he would never leave any survivors.
