I had no intention of entering the martial world.

Chapter 29 Azure Dragon Envoy

Looked for a long time.

Then he said:

"I have no idea."

The sound was very soft and hollow, as if it came from a very distant place.

Chu Xueya's lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she only sighed.

She walked up to the old monk and the scholar—both of them were already pale with fright, huddled in a corner trembling.

"Master, sir, this is no place to stay any longer, you should leave quickly."

The old monk clasped his hands together, chanted a Buddhist prayer, and hurriedly led the scholar away from the dilapidated temple.

Only Lu Chenzhou and Chu Xueya remained in the temple.

There were also corpses everywhere.

Chu Xueya walked to the temple gate, looked at the torrential rain outside, and remained silent for a long time.

Then, she turned and looked at Lu Chenzhou:

"where are you going?"

Lu Chenzhou shook his head.

"I'm going back to Emei," Chu Xueya said. "Would you like to come with me?"

Lu Chenzhou raised his head and looked at her.

In the firelight, her face was beautiful, but also cold.

Like an ice sculpture, exquisite, but chilling to the touch.

"Why?" he asked.

Chu Xueya was silent for a moment, then said:

"Because you need a place to heal. And also because... I need to figure some things out."

"What is it?"

"About you, about me, about the power within us." Chu Xueya walked to the fire, sat down, and watched the flickering flames. "Back in Zhongnan Mountain, I sensed it—our sword energy originates from the same source. But at that time, I didn't know what it was. Until today, seeing you make your move..."

She paused, then her voice became even softer:

"That's the Azure Sword Qi, isn't it?"

Lu Chenzhou remained silent.

But silence itself is an answer.

Chu Xueya nodded: "Indeed. My master said that Qingming, Zidian, and Baihong are three swords with the same origin, all of which were the keys used by the previous dynasty to suppress the 'Heavenly Gate'. And those who possess 'Sword Bones' are born to be vessels for swords."

She looked at Lu Chenzhou: "You have innate sword bones, and I have ice marrow sword bones. We are both vessels."

Lu Chenzhou looked at her: "How much do you know?"

"Not much." Chu Xueya shook her head. "I only know that the three swords cannot be gathered together, otherwise the Heavenly Gate will open and the world will be in chaos. I also know... that someone is looking for these three swords."

"Who?"

"Many people," Chu Xueya said, "the Jin Kingdom's Shadow Hall, the Southern Song Dynasty's Immortal Seeking Society, and some... forces hidden in the shadows. They all want to open the Heavenly Gate, because legend has it that behind the Heavenly Gate lies the method of immortality and supreme power."

Immortality? Power?

Lu Chenzhou recalled Eunuch Qin's "Tianmen Plan".

So that's what it was for.

"And what about you?" he asked. "What do you want to do?"

Chu Xueya looked at him, her eyes clear:

"I want to stop them."

Why?

"Because Master said that some doors, once opened, can never be closed again." Chu Xueya's voice was soft but firm. "And some people are willing to let the whole world perish in order to open those doors."

Lu Chenzhou fell silent.

He looked at the fire, at the leaping flames, and a faint ripple stirred in the desolate landscape of his heart.

Like the wind blowing across the desert, stirring up a single grain of sand.

It's very light, but it's definitely there.

"Emei...does it have an answer?" he asked.

"Perhaps," Chu Xueya said. "There are records about the Three Swords in the Emei Sutra Repository. Although they are incomplete, they are more extensive than those circulating outside."

Lu Chenzhou thought for a moment and nodded:

"Okay. I'll go with you."

It wasn't because he trusted Chu Xueya, nor because he needed to heal.

It's because... he didn't know where else to go.

Moreover, he needs answers.

The answer to the questions about the Azure Sword, the Heavenly Gate, and... what he himself will become.

Chu Xueya breathed a sigh of relief.

She stood up, walked to the temple entrance, and looked at the rain outside, which was gradually subsiding.

"Leave as soon as the rain stops. Get out of here first; the corpse will cause trouble soon."

Lu Chenzhou also stood up and walked to her side.

The two stood side by side at the temple entrance, looking at the night sky after the rain.

The clouds dispersed, and the moon came out.

The cool moonlight shone on the earth, like a layer of silver frost.

Very beautiful.

But Lu Chenzhou couldn't feel the beauty.

He only felt...cold.

A chill that seeps into your bones.

He looked down at his hands.

In the moonlight, those hands were so pale they were almost transparent, and faint blue veins could be seen beneath the skin.

Like a living corpse.

He clenched his fist, then relaxed it.

Then, he turned to look at Chu Xueya:

"Miss Chu."

"Um?"

"If I... am no longer myself, will you kill me?"

Chu Xueya was startled.

She turned her head and looked at Lu Chenzhou, at the cold emptiness in his eyes, for a long time.

Finally, she said softly:

"I will stop you before you completely turn into a monster."

Lu Chenzhou nodded.

"That's good."

He turned and walked into the night.

Chu Xueya watched his back, which stretched long and lonely in the moonlight.

She gripped her sword tightly and followed.

The two disappeared into the night after the rain, one after the other.

Behind them, the fire in the dilapidated temple gradually died out.

There were only corpses scattered all over the ground, and an overwhelming stench of blood.

---

The night road after the rain was muddy and quiet.

Chu Xueya walked ahead, her white robes shimmering faintly in the moonlight, like a walking magnolia. Her steps were light, almost inaudible, yet each step was firm—a foundation forged through years of martial arts training.

Lu Chenzhou followed behind, three steps away from her. This distance was neither too close nor too far, allowing them to look out for each other while maintaining a subtle boundary.

Neither of them spoke.

The only sounds were footsteps, the "plop" of footsteps in the mud, and the occasional chirping of insects and croaking of frogs in the distance.

After walking for about half an hour, a small river appeared ahead. The river was not wide, but it was very rapid. After the rain, the water level had risen and overflowed the original stone bridge. Only a few bluestone slabs of the bridge surface were exposed above the water, glistening wetly in the moonlight.

Chu Xueya stopped, looked at the river, and then glanced back at Lu Chenzhou:

"Is it possible to get through?"

Lu Chenzhou walked to the riverbank and tested the water depth—it was above his thighs, and the current was rapid, but it was nothing for someone who practiced martial arts.

"able."

"Let's go." Chu Xueya stepped onto the first stone slab without hesitation.

Her movements were steady, like a feather landing on the water, barely making a splash. She reached the other side in just a few steps.

Lu Chenzhou was about to follow when suddenly he stopped.

It's not because of the water, it's because... there's something in the water.

Under the moonlight, a corpse floats on the river.

He was dressed in black, his face was covered, and an arrow was stuck in his chest—the shaft was black and the fletching was red.

People in the shadow hall.

Moreover, he had only recently died, and his blood was still spreading in the water, like blooming spider lilies.

Lu Chenzhou squatted down and examined it carefully.

The arrow entered from behind, exited through the chest, and pierced the heart. The technique was precise and the force was great; it was the work of a master.

Who killed him?

He looked up at Chu Xueya on the opposite bank.

Chu Xueya also saw the corpse, her expression changing slightly: "A member of the Shadow Hall? How could they die here?"

"I don't know." Lu Chenzhou stood up and stepped across the river on the stone slabs. "It's not safe here."

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly sensed a murderous intent!

It didn't come from the water, it came from... the sky!

He suddenly looked up—

Under the moonlight, a dark figure descended from the sky like a large bird, a flash of cold light in his hand, aimed straight at his head!

Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!

Lu Chenzhou didn't have time to draw his sword—it was still in his bundle. He could only turn sideways and roll on the spot.

"laugh!"

The cold light grazed his shoulder, tearing his clothes and leaving a shallow bloodstain on his skin.

It doesn't hurt.

But it's very risky.

Lu Chenzhou turned over and stood up, finally seeing who it was.

He was also a man in black, but his attire differed from that of the Shadow Hall—his black robes were embroidered with dark gold patterns that shimmered faintly in the moonlight. He wore a bronze mask, revealing only his eyes, which were as cold as knives.

"The Immortal Seeking Society, Azure Dragon Envoy." Chu Xueya's voice came from the opposite bank, tinged with solemnity, "Lu Chenzhou, be careful! He is the leader of the Four Symbols Envoys of the Immortal Seeking Society, his martial arts are unfathomable!"

Azure Dragon Envoy?

Lu Chenzhou remembered that Lu Jinghong had mentioned this name before leaving for Zhongnan Mountain. So it was him.

"Lu Chenzhou," the Azure Dragon Envoy spoke, his voice strange, like the friction of metal, his age impossible to discern, "Hand over the Azure Nether Sword, and I'll spare your life."

Lu Chenzhou remained silent.

He simply looked at the Azure Dragon Envoy and the weapon in his hand—neither a knife nor a sword, but a short spear with a jet-black body and an eerie blue light emanating from its tip.

Poison gun.