Wen Chaoshen was like a cold, emotionless machine, constantly pondering the thoughts of those people.
"These people are involved with the assassin organizations of the Martial World. Liu Jinshi is just a small magistrate in a remote county, with no one at his disposal. He should have little connection with the Martial World, and his life or death is of no consequence to those people."
"Therefore, the pressure Chun Qiong and his people face doesn't co from the Martial World, but from the imperial court."
"Preserving Liu Jinshi's body is a testant to that."
"This body is ant to be handed over eventually."
As he spoke, a hint of doubt crept into his tone as he glanced beyond the snowstorm.
In the vast, chaotic distance lay an invisible silence.
"The truly interesting thing is that soone like Liu Jinshi is just as insignificant to the Qi Kingdom's royal family as a speck of dust, no more noble than I am. Logically, even if soone from the Qi Kingdom wanted to intervene, they wouldn't put so much pressure on Chun Qiong and his people. It would just follow the usual process: investigate, close the case, report the files."
"All these anomalies indicate that there's sothing about Liu Jinshi that we don't know, and it's sothing significant."
Listening to Wen Chaoshen's description, A Shui weakly opened one eye.
"The more you talk, the more mysterious it sounds."
"Kuhai County is such a small place. Where would all these secrets co from?"
Wen Chaoshen retorted:
"Care to bet?"
In the firelight, A Shui's chest rose and fell gently, stabilizing. She looked at Wen Chaoshen for a mont and said:
"What's there to bet on?"
"What I want, you can't give ."
"And what you want, I can't give you."
Wen Chaoshen brought his hands closer to the flas, feeling their heat.
"You know what I want?"
A Shui laughed:
"People desire what they lack."
"Soone like you, with such deep thoughts and sharp vision, yet a poor fate, will inevitably want to rise above millions, to reach the clouds and look down upon your world."
"But money and power, I can't give you either."
The flas danced on Wen Chaoshen's face, his pupils flickering between light and shadow, his silhouette sotis real, sotis illusory.
He didn't refute A Shui, remaining silent like a stone. As the firewood burned low, Wen Chaoshen stood up to fetch more from the pile in the abandoned temple. However, just as he returned with the wood, he encountered a Man in White wearing a bamboo hat. His attire blended with the snow outside, resembling nightwear from the spring and autumn seasons.
This clothing wasn't warm, yet the man stood at the temple entrance, back to the bone-chilling wind, without a hint of shiver.
In his hand was a long sword with a red tassel, his earlobes slightly large and reddened by the cold.
The mont Wen Chaoshen saw him, he didn't hesitate, tossing his knife beside A Shui.
Though A Shui was severely injured, she was still more formidable than he was. This man appearing at this ti in the abandoned temple outside the county was likely not here with good intentions. If a conflict arose, he would have to rely on A Shui to get through it.
"I'm not here to cause trouble."
The man's tone was indifferent, though powerful, yet like an emotionless machine.
A pendant hung from his waist, a black string tied to a miniature black iron ghost mask, swaying in the cold wind.
He glanced at Wen Chaoshen, his gaze seemingly scrutinizing, then frowned slightly, shook his head, and walked past Wen Chaoshen to the fire.
"Smart move."
The Man in White spoke with his back to Wen Chaoshen, his tone faint.
Though his words were praise, his tone was thick with disdain, inadvertently expressing extre sarcasm.
"But if I were really here to cause trouble, you wouldn't even have the chance to throw your knife."
Without sparing Wen Chaoshen another glance, he approached the fire, staring at A Shui, who was sitting against a stone statue, and asked:
"Are you from Wind City?"
A Shui kept her head down, not bothering to pick up the knife, not even lifting her eyelids.
"Say what you have to say."
"If not, get lost."
Unlike her gentle tone with Wen Chaoshen, A Shui had no patience for the Man in White, even though he seed equally formidable. She showed him no courtesy whatsoever.
The Man in White tightened his grip on his sword, a hint of displeasure in his eyes, his voice scornful:
"I thought, given your current state, like a drowning dog, I've already said I'm not here to cause trouble, which ans I might be able to help you. If you want to survive, you should at least show so respect."
A Shui replied coldly:
"For the word 'respect' to co from your mouth, it's quite sharp and bitter."
"Besides, whether I'm a drowning dog or not, what's it to you?"
"Which eye of yours saw that I need your help?"
Under A Shui's sharp and stubborn retort, the Man in White's face showed a nearly imperceptible anger. His grip on the sword was firm, yet he ultimately held back, switching to an extrely provocative tone:
"Do you know?"
"You and those people from Wind City, it's because of your stubbornness that you've ended up like this."
"A fire, how many people did it burn to death, have you counted?"
As his words fell, a gust of cold wind blowing through the stone crevice was suddenly cut off. The hatchet lying on the ground was already in A Shui's hand, though no one knew when.
The moonlight was obscured by flying snow, and in a flash, the sword and knife clashed.
Too fast.
Wen Chaoshen couldn't see it, nor could anyone else.
As the sound of tal shattering rang out, crimson spread from the Man in White's shoulder.
A Shui's hatchet had slashed diagonally from his neck down to his spine, nearly cleaving the Man in White in two!
The sword in his hand was completely broken, his eyes widened as he looked at A Shui, blood frothing from his mouth.
He hadn't expected soone so severely injured to wield such a fast and powerful strike!
A Shui watched as the light in the Man in White's eyes gradually faded, her voice icy:
"If you weren't here to cause trouble, then you shouldn't have provoked ."
"If you were here to cause trouble, you shouldn't have co so close."
"The Corpse Keeper I t at the Kuhai County Office today was much smarter than you."
...
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