Eight go, six Return

Ten people in a line, led by Zhao Yaqing, walked towards the center of the camp. Soon they arrived at Zhao Yaqing's tent.

Zhao Yaqing ordered the four patrol team members to tie up the four unlucky men and have them stand about ten meters away from her.

She took out a sword from her Universe Bag, drew it out, looked at the cold sword light and said to those four men: "It just so happens that I've had some insights into sword qi these past few days. You are fortunate enough to let me experiment with sword qi. If I can comprehend sword qi because of this, then your deaths will not be in vain. Who knows, I might even remember you for it..."

Weren't they being punished? How did it escalate to losing their lives? The four patrol team members silently moved away from the four men and stood farther away.

The four unlucky men instantly felt their legs go soft. The skinny man knelt down with soft legs and pleaded to Zhao Yaqing: "Princess, please spare my life. I will never run my mouth again in the future."

"You think you have a future?" Zhao Yaqing sneered coldly. Then she closed her eyes. She manipulated her internal energy, following the method of sword qi release she had comprehended. Her energy surged into the sword in a specific pattern, and she fiercely pointed at the skinny man...

"Pa!"

A soft sound of air explosion rang out from her sword tip.

"Ahhh!"

The skinny man let out a miserable scream, falling face down into the snow, thinking he was dead.

After a good while, he realized there was no pain in his body. Only then did he get up and look at Zhao Yaqing, seeing that her face was ugly. Zhao Yaqing had failed to utilize her technique.

He let out a breath of relief, his soul finally returning to his body.

"Sword qi!"

Zhao Yaqing looked at the tip of her sword, her eyes fierce.

She could clearly feel her energy condensing into sword qi shooting out from the sword tip! But! Every time the sword qi left the sword, it would instantly dissipate into the air, never able to form sword qi!

"How dare such insignificant sword qi defy me so?!"

She still remembered her humiliating defeat at the hands of a crazy girl who had only cultivated for a few months, four years ago. It was because of sword qi!

That crazy girl, a few months, sword qi!

While she, Zhao Yaqing, had cultivated for seven whole years, three years in the past and another four years recently, adding up to seven full years! She was still in the late Foundation Establishment stage. Even now she had not comprehended sword qi!

How shameful was this!

As she prided herself on being a genius, this sense of humiliation was even more intense.

Zhao Yaqing looked back towards Wuyi City, those few strands of sword qi that made her fearful just further strengthened the fear and humiliation in her heart.

A crude country bumpkin that she looked down upon, actually had superior talent and comprehension ability than her! This was enough to torture her endlessly.

She remembered when she went to see Elder Ziyi a couple days ago, she heard from Elder Ziyi that Li Shiyin had fought evenly against Elder Ziyi for several exchanges...

What kind of existence was Elder Ziyi? A Primordial Spirit Master! His single finger could crush Zhao Yaqing flat! He was someone Zhao Yaqing didn't even dare look up at or look straight at!

Yet Li Shiyin could fight evenly against such an existence?!

"Ah!!!!" The more Zhao Yaqing thought about it, the angrier she got. She suddenly stirred her whole body's energy, channeling it all into her sword, then released it out fiercely following the method to unleash sword qi.

Then...

"Boom!"

An even louder sound rang out in the air!

But still no sword qi appeared.

Things would play out as they were meant to be. Reality would not change according to her personal emotions or anger.

Her comprehension towards sword qi was shallow and her talent in the Dao of the sword was lacking - thus she simply could not unleash sword qi.

This final all out failure finally made Zhao Yaqing completely lose her mind. Her prided scheming and composure had long vanished amidst jealousy and humiliation. She leapt in front of the skinny man, then rained down strikes with her sword...

In an instant, the skinny man became a bloodied mess.

At this moment, in front of this soldier who could not resist at all, Zhao Yaqing displayed the bearing fitting of a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Qin Ran had been standing at the side watching this the entire time.

He had come to try and kill these two women - four years ago they had snatched away their lifebound weapons. But now, he suddenly felt there was no need. He would just focus on finding a way to kill Zhao Li.

Oh, don't doubt it. The patrol team member who stood out first earlier was Qin Ran... Having doppelgangers allowed him such freedom to do as he pleased.

After leaving enough sword wounds on the skinny man, Zhao Yaqing's anger finally faded away. She sheathed her sword, the skinny man's body falling down into the snow.

"You all may leave now!" Her tone was once again calm like the composed Zhao family's eldest daughter. She spoke flatly to the three remaining soldiers.

"Thank you for sparing us, Princess!" These three were already scared out of their wits, hurriedly kowtowing.

Qin Ran stepped forward, untying them and helping them up one by one, then led them out of the tent.

But after just a few steps, Zhao Yaqing's voice suddenly rang out: "Halt!"

Qin Ran clearly sensed that the six people by his side all shuddered at the same time from fear.

But they still obeyed, stopping and even turning back to bow respectfully towards Zhao Yaqing.

"You're not bad. Follow me for a period of time!" Zhao Yaqing said. She saw that this man understood subtle cues (he executed her order the moment she gave it) and had courage (he showed no fear when she erupted in rage and killed someone) - he would be good for serving tea, pouring water and running errands.

At this side, after they raised their heads, Qin Ran understood upon seeing Zhao Yaqing looking straight at him. Out of everyone, Zhao Yaqing had chosen none other than him - this person who originally wanted to kill her.

Hmm...not bad.

Qin Ran hurriedly lowered his head again and paid his respects to Zhao Yaqing: "Thank you, Princess!"

So eight people came, six people left.

Zhao Yaqing had killed someone and was covered in blood. She kept her sword and turned to enter the tent for a bath, without instructing anything to Qin Ran.

Seeing this, Qin Ran did not leave or enter the tent, only standing at the tent entrance.

He naturally would not enter the tent. But why didn't Zhao Yaqing's Dao protector enter either? This was rather strange.

Qin Ran faintly sensed that the relationship between this Dao protector and Zhao Yaqing was not quite that between a Dao protector and chosen prodigy. Rather, it was more like servant and master.

One could tell from that time four years ago when they snatched the lifebound weapons. It seemed Zhao Yaqing was the one leading that operation.

Most importantly, Zhao Yaqing's talent did not seem like that of a chosen prodigy. She also did not qualify to have a Dao protector.

One must know that incredible talents like Li Shiyin and Lu Junxing did not even have Dao protectors.

"How odd..." Qin Ran thought to himself, but he did not dare look at the Dao protector either, only pondering in his heart.

After a long while, Zhao Yaqing washed the blood off her body and changed into fresh new clothes, restoring her previous beauty. She gracefully walked out from the tent.

The snow kept falling. The skinny man's corpse had already been dealt with, the bloodstains covered by the snow. The world was a stretch of white amongst the heavy snowfall. It was as if nothing had happened.

"My uncle has summoned me to discuss affairs..." She stood in front of Qin Ran without directly looking at him, only saying faintly: "Don't speak out of turn once we're in the main tent."

"Yes." Qin Ran acknowledged.