Chapter 07: The Imperial Gift of the Sword

"Qing'er, as a young lady, how can you brandish a sword to frighten others for no reason? Is this not unbecoming? When out in the world, harmony is of utmost importance. Don't you want to know the reason why this young lady took one of his fingers? Come, come, let me tell you." He spoke these words directly to the woman dressed in male attire.

Tsk tsk, when we are out and about, what strange things have we not seen? Quickly disperse, it is best not to get involved in anything sinister, just hope to avoid bringing trouble upon oneself...

The woman, held at sword point, was quite taken aback by his appearance. For a moment, her gaze was fixed on him, as the man before her appeared somewhat weary, cradling a young child, yet emanating a chilling aura of murderous intent. As she was still in shock, she saw the jade-like sword tip shift slightly and strike against her treasured sword.

Unexpectedly, before she could step onto the stairs, her path was blocked by the figure of a person. She was half a head taller than Eleven, her physique was tall and supple, which secretly aroused Eleven's envy.

Oh my, did you see that? What on earth just happened?

Eleven frowned, wondering whether this person was simply meddlesome or overly curious

My goodness, how could a perfectly fine finger just disappear into thin air... what kind of ability is this

Although he felt no pain at all, he stared blankly at his mutilated right hand and could not help but cry out in pain. Those who witnessed this scene all took two steps back, their faces displaying an expression of disbelief

After finishing his words, he noticed that she was in a daze. With a playful spirit, he suddenly reached out and took off the hat from her head, laughing, "Sister Hero, you are dressed neatly, with ornaments hanging from your waist, your clothes fragrant, your nails unblemished, and your whole being free from dust. How could you resemble a rough person from the rivers and lakes? This hat indeed has a rustic charm, but it looks somewhat out of place on you; better to take it off!"

Although it was just a light flick, the arm of 11 was numbed for quite a while

Indeed, without a thumb, he can no longer engage in bamboo weaving. How will he support himself in the future

No matter how high your skills are, you cannot hide the aura about you. This young master can identify people by their scent, especially women

"My dustless sword does not stain the blood of the innocent" said the sword's master, deliberately lowering her voice, revealing her dissatisfaction in her tone

"How did you know..." She was surprised again, realizing that she had let something slip, and hurriedly swallowed the rest of her words.

I see her as extremely sinister, able to make a paralyzed person stand up in an instant, take away someone else's finger, and not a single drop of blood is shed

Beneath the hat, there was unexpectedly a beautiful and exquisite face, with skin as smooth as cream, cheeks tinged with a rosy hue, and a dot of vermilion between her brows, adding an extra touch of beauty. Only in her star-like eyes was there a hint of determination and sharpness. As the hat was suddenly removed, her long, dark hair cascaded down like a waterfall, instantly diminishing her heroic aura and revealing her delicate beauty, leaving Eleven in a daze

"Oh, esteemed guest, please do not rush to leave—" A slightly teasing and clear voice suddenly came from near the door

"Who exactly are you?" the person asked in a lowered voice

In fact, with careful observation, it is not difficult to guess your identity. You see the dragon ornament on this sword in your hand, it is a five-clawed golden dragon. Although many people can use dragon patterns as decoration, only the five-clawed ones are true dragons, representing the emperor. Just based on this point, it can be determined that this is a sword bestowed by the emperor. Naturally, the person who wields a sword granted by the emperor must come from the royal palace

What are you doing! She unexpectedly no longer lowered her voice, and with a swift motion, her sword was suddenly drawn from its sheath

Could it be that today is particularly good due to a favorable mood

The young man, whose legs had regained the ability to walk, changed his expression slightly upon hearing this and fell silent.

Most of the people dining and resting in the inn are travelers who fear trouble the most, and when faced with such matters, they usually avoid them at all costs. After a while, the surrounding individuals gradually dispersed, their expressions varied, and discussions ensued.

"You promised to lend it to me, yet you are obstructing me instead," she said with a wrinkled nose, displeased. "In fact, it doesn't matter if there is no sword."

His tone was not frivolous, yet the charming dimple that appeared at the corner of his lips caused the woman gazing at him to blush slightly.

Without intending to argue with her, I simply smiled faintly and said softly: "Actually, who you are has nothing to do with me, and who I am has nothing to do with you. Hehe, could you please let me pass?"

Eleven clapped his hands lightly, smiled with pursed lips, and did not intend to explain

The hall fell silent in an instant, and then people began to throw down their meal money, silently surging towards the door. In just a moment, the once crowded inn became desolate. The innkeeper, equally fearful, quickly discerned that the two young men facing each other were not of good character. With a look of distress, he merely shrank back behind the counter, not daring to intervene.

With a clear sound, the imperial sword was severed at a section. Meanwhile, on the sword held by Xi Juechen, only a layer of blue mist resembling water vapor emerged.

Yet she still raised her hand to block: "No, your previous actions are incomprehensible. They defy reason and must be deemed unnatural. You must tell me, why is it absolutely necessary to take that person's thumb?"

Looking over at Eleven, one sees a young man dressed in a dark Taoist robe, with a handsome face, wearing a black jade crown, and cradling a fluffy, snow-white object in his arms. The person he is reaching out to stop is precisely the young man from whom Eleven had just taken a finger.

"It seems that you owe that young lady something, don't you?" he asked with great seriousness

Eleven only felt a flash of cold light before the bright blade was suddenly at her throat. Sensing the sudden surge of fierce killing intent from the woman, she trembled inwardly—this is bad, this woman is quite fierce, it seems I have inadvertently provoked someone I shouldn't have... She thought to herself, indeed something feels off today, isn't this just asking for trouble...

In an instant, it was as if an invisible blade had sliced through, leaving the young man with only four fingers on his hand. Moreover, not a drop of blood was shed, and no wound was visible, as if his thumb had never existed on his palm.

... ...

A cold, low voice was heard, followed by a flash of azure light that precisely deflected the silver blade away from her.

"Do you want to die?" said the woman, gripping a half-length imperial sword, word by word.

This person's appearance is remarkably familiar

"What is the meaning of your entanglement with me? Don't you have someone else to keep an eye on? Why meddle in other people's affairs?" she said with a cold expression

She tilted her head and removed a strand of green silk from her hair, took the young man's hand, wrapped it around the base of his thumb, and then closed her eyes and softly uttered a word "Break!"

Ahーー ! ''

This girl truly has the resolve to act so ruthlessly; if it is to save someone, how can it be like this

Do you feel that you have no regrets? Not at all! I believe that you still owe her a word of 'thank you', don't you?" he said solemnly

The woman was taken aback for a moment, then said in a low voice: "You are clearly mistaken; I am merely a wanderer of the rivers and lakes."

What are you doing

Eleven secretly laughed in his heart, thinking how easily this female hero admitted her identity, it seems she is new to the martial world and acts without restraint... In that case, what can a hat on her head conceal

"What are you stopping me for?" said the person whose hand was tightly held by him, displeased.

At this moment, Eleven has recalled his brief encounter with the solitary sword and the woman, and their meeting here now is indeed surprising. The woman, clearly taken aback as well, immediately retracted the killing intent emanating from her.

Only the young man who had lost his thumb stood there in a daze, looking at Eleven with eyes that held no gratitude, but were filled with panic and fear

Her slender eyebrows arched as she raised her head and glared at Xi Juechen, filled with fury. In the next moment, the broken sword in her hand, imbued with murderous intent, lunged fiercely towards Xi Juechen. Xi Juechen, provoked by the sharp killing aura, suddenly seemed to awaken, flipping his wrist to block the sword with his own. As the two swords clashed, the sound of metal striking against stone echoed sharply in the inn.

I have already paid the price I owe her This tone seems to carry a hint of anger

Just now, everyone in the hall stood up to watch the commotion, yet you remained unmoved at the side. Everyone has a sense of curiosity; your indifference naturally stems from being preoccupied with something of greater importance. Before you are food and drink, yet your mind is elsewhere, but you have been sitting here for quite some time, so it is evident that you are concerned about someone here.

What was severed was not the young man's finger, but a leg of the table

No one could clearly see how she managed to stop the ferocious sword strike from Eleven; only Eleven vaguely noticed that she had瞬间移到了自己身前, her movements resembling a ghostly apparition, and then she flicked the sword blade away with a single finger

She suddenly looked up and saw that the one who had come to "rescue" her was actually Xi Juechen. He seemed still drowsy, his cold eyes veiled with a thin mist of fatigue, appearing somewhat dazed. In one hand, he cradled the still soundly sleeping Liudao, while in the other, he held a slender sword that was entirely emerald green and as transparent as crystal. Shiyi had never seen him carry a sword before, but his posture while wielding it was exceptionally graceful and familiar, clearly indicating that he was someone accustomed to using a sword

She smiled knowingly and turned to go upstairs—surely the big one and the small one upstairs should be awake by now

Gazing at the half-broken sword that clanged to the ground, her almond-shaped eyes widened in disbelief, thinking to herself: "This... how is this possible?!"

You! Do you really insist on taking his finger? The person who had just stopped her from acting spoke with a tone full of anger

She glanced at his expression but did not pay much attention, merely pretending not to see. This was simply because she had long been accustomed to it; whether to help others or not was entirely up to her discretion, and she never sought any reward in return. However, the trivial matter just now seemed somewhat out of place; under normal circumstances, unless absolutely necessary, she would not use the power of the Nine Luminaries Immortal Herb in front of so many onlookers.

"Young Master, it turns out you have known I was here all along..." The once resolute female knight suddenly deflated.

With a muffled sound, a wave of exclamations erupted from the crowd of onlookers

The person trembled slightly upon hearing her words: "How do you know my identity?"

Eleven raised his head and looked directly into the eyes hidden beneath the straw hat: "Who are you? What brings someone from the palace to this remote place?"