Chapter 63: Soul-Shattering Jade Banquet (Part 1): No Main CP Appears in This Chapter Oh Part 3

Ji Ce and Cong Rong came rushing to the door, having heard the mistress’s cries and thrown on clothes in panic. Seeing the woman walk out alone, they thought she had done something to Wen Yu and were instantly alarmed.

Ji Ce immediately drew his blade, silver light slashing through the night. Cong Rong flashed into the room and found Wen Yu simply collapsed on the floor, looking off but unharmed. She relaxed, helped her up.

At the doorway under the eaves, the blade came slashing at her face. The woman raised her sword spike to block. The clash sent her staggering back several steps. She stared at the hand wielding the sword in disbelief. Ji Ce had gauged her level with that strike, sheathed his blade, and dragged her back inside. “Is the mistress alright?”

Cong Rong said, “The mistress is fine, just frightened.”

Wen Yu hugged her knees in Cong Rong’s arms, trembling all over, tears rolling down her cheeks. “She’s leaving. She’ll definitely die. Cong Rong, bring her back. I don’t want her to die…”

Cong Rong patted her back gently and cooed, “She’s back. She won’t die. Don’t worry, Mistress.”

The woman couldn’t make sense of this. She just wanted to leave and handle her business—why would that mean certain death? She still thought in terms of repaying the favor. “I have nothing on me. Staying is useless…”

Ji Ce said lowly, “No need to say more. My mistress won’t understand you.”

With that reminder, the woman realized this girl’s way of thinking was different from others—almost a bit mad. Yet her exterior was calm, so it hadn’t been obvious at first. To avoid agitating her, the woman stopped struggling for now.

Wen Yu cried for most of the night until exhaustion eased her somewhat. With eyes swollen like red walnuts, she tugged the woman’s clothes and dragged her back to bed, burrowing into her arms to sleep. Ji Ce and Cong Rong were helpless. They warned the woman not to move and sat guard on the floor by the bed with their blades.

The woman had likely never been treated this way. Her body stiffened in the unfamiliar scent and embrace—she couldn’t sleep at all. After enduring half the night, her injuries and exhaustion overtook her, and she passed out.

The next day, Wen Yu acted normally and persuaded her kindly. “Don’t go. It’s dangerous outside. Stay here.”

The woman stroked her sword spike, recalling how the night before she had been repelled in one clash. Unsure of her current strength, she figured venturing out might really get her killed. So she agreed.

Wen Yu beamed with joy and asked, “What’s your name?”

The woman said, “I have no name. If you must call me something, Silver Snake will do.”

Having kept her and averted death, Wen Yu was thrilled. She pulled another chest from under the bed, taking out many toys she had collected—toys her mother had left her, like wooden carriages, tiny clothes, and more. Silver Snake was mostly silent and seemed uninterested. The four of them went to the courtyard for some air. Wen Yu asked, “What do you usually play with?”

Silver Snake sat for a bit, then stood and performed a set of sword forms. Her wounds weren’t fully healed, so her movements were a bit lazy, but she wielded the sword spike with divine skill, mesmerizing to watch.

Wen Yu clapped and cheered nonstop. Ji Ce, chewing on a blade of grass, watched indignantly and drew his blade to join.

The two sparred, no killing intent—just exchanging moves. Their weapons clashed, sparks flying now and then. It was spectacular and thrilling.

Wen Yu laughed heartily, leaning back and forth, nearly sliding off her chair. Cong Rong steadied her, pulled her into her lap, and sat with her there. Wen Yu bit into an apple and kept watching with great enthusiasm.

Warriors bonding through martial arts—after some exchanges, Silver Snake got into it and cupped her hands. “Purely in terms of technique, you’re insightful and quick to react. Among mortals, you’d be considered quite good.”

Ji Ce sheathed his blade. “What do you mean ‘among mortals’? Talking big like that—are you not mortal?”

Silver Snake smiled lightly without replying. Wen Yu asked, “Silver Snake, where are you from? Are you really a killer?”

This was probably a hard question to answer. Silver Snake lowered her eyes and wiped her sword spike with a white cloth until the blade gleamed like a mirror. Then she said, “Miss Wen, let me teach you some sword moves. For a petite girl like you, a sword spike is perfect for self-defense.”

Ji Ce glared. “What do you mean by that?”

Wen Yu pulled him back. “I already have you two. Do I need to learn this?”

Silver Snake said, “Relying on others’ protection is still relying on others. And others are never fully trustworthy.”

Wen Yu extended her hands, palms up. “But I’m a girl, about to get married. Do I still need to train?”

Silver Snake took her hands, rubbing her fingertips in the soft, boneless palm. “You live in the same dangerous world as men. The blades that kill men can easily kill women too. So why shouldn’t women train?”

She said that, but after she checked Wen Yu’s meridians and bones, she found that she truly wasn’t cut out for wielding blades and spears. If she insisted on training, she would only end up getting hurt easily, so she let it go. Instead, she taught those two guards techniques like Boot Hidden Knife, Hair Silk Poison, Ash Hidden in Sleeve, Little Paper Man Flying Soul, and so on, leaving the pair dazzled and broadening their horizons. It turned out there were so many ways to kill without a trace.

Although Silver Snake hadn’t directly answered the question about being an assassin, these actions so utterly different from ordinary people were enough to show that her identity was indeed special.

That evening, Wen Yu burrowed into the woman’s embrace to sleep again, though this time, she hesitated for a moment before going in. After hugging her tightly, she even softly asked, “Have you killed a lot of people?”

Silver Snake had grown accustomed to the soft girl in her arms and simply replied, “Yes.”

Wen Yu said, “Were all the people you killed bad ones?”

Silver Snake said, “More or less.”

Wen Yu said, “Then are you being hunted now because you turned into a bad person?”

Silver Snake hesitated. “Probably.”

“So that’s how it is.” Wen Yu hugged her even tighter. “No wonder you often sleep so restlessly.”

Silver Snake had thought she would say something like, how could you do this, I misjudged you, I’m scared of you, and so on. She hadn’t expected this instead. Silver Snake fell silent, wrapped the two of them in the blanket, and softly said, “Sleep.”

She had just escaped from that bloody nightmare realm, and her dreams were often filled with scenes from her past experiences: endless assassination training, Sword Spikes piercing through corpses until they were mangled beyond recognition, organs turning to pus and flowing out, and the terrifying mark branded on her back…

She jolted awake from those memories several times, only to see the girl’s faintly glowing eyes in the darkness. Then the girl would start singing, and after listening for a while, she realized it wasn’t a song but opera, with sweet and honeyed melodies. The lyrics seemed to be about love, mentioning some unfamiliar woman named Yu Yan.

Indeed, at an age when she still believed love existed in the world, it was only natural to be enchanted by this tune. She never listened to music herself, but the girl’s voice truly had the power to soothe the heart. In her not-so-long life, such moments of peace were few and far between. She couldn’t refuse them.

This easy life was intoxicating, the very thing she had desperately craved after fleeing. But she knew full well that she hadn’t truly escaped Hell yet.

After another stretch of days, Silver Snake noticed changes in her own body.

She began to fear the sunlight, growing more sleepless at night while dozing off in a daze during the day. Her body temperature inexplicably rose, and the ear-piercing cries of animals from the cave echoed constantly in her ears, swarming and shrill like the wails of the dying. Her killer instincts became harder to suppress, and a spot on her back burned abnormally hot, nearly scorching her flesh to rot.

She realized that the nightmare which had forced her to leave her homeland had caught up to her again.

She had to leave. She had to tell the other immortals about this ominous thing!

She had to properly say goodbye to that adorable girl…

What happened after that?

Wen Yu leaned into the girl’s feverish embrace, gazing at the woman trapped in the formation under the sunlight, her eyes blood-red. Through tear-blurred vision, the glow blurred into crowded walls that firmly confined her, making it impossible to tell when or where she was.

But as her body shifted slightly, the intense pain in her leg jolted her mind alert.

Ah, she remembered what had happened.

When she removed the pillow, Silver Snake’s face was covered in blood, her eyes wide open, and her breathing had stopped.

Beside the bed lay an overturned teacup, the dosage of poison inside enough to kill at least five people, but it still hadn’t taken her life right away. Wen Yu couldn’t bear to watch as she bled from all seven orifices and struggled bitterly, so she grabbed the pillow, pressed it over her face, and only removed it when she stopped moving. The woman had already lost her vital signs.

“Why do you always have to leave? It’s so dangerous outside, don’t you know? So many people are chasing you down, and you’re all alone—you’ll definitely die…”

Wen Yu was startled by the sight and tossed the pillow aside, chattering nonstop.

The woman had just died, her body still retaining some warmth. Wen Yu leaned down, hugged her tightly, and trembled as she said, “Just thinking about you leaving keeps me awake. I’m worried about you—what if something happens out there? What if it’s cold? What if you’re hungry? Don’t go, don’t go…”

Leaning against that gradually cooling body, she slowly fell asleep.

The next day when she woke, Silver Snake’s corpse was ice-cold and stiff. Wen Yu fetched water and washed the bloodstains from her face, then changed her clothes. She took the guards out to pray for blessings.

She had been going out more frequently these past few days, eager to secure a good match so she could follow her father’s wishes, marry off quickly, and truly leave the Wen Family with all her belongings. Then Ji Ce, Cong Rong, and Silver Snake could all live peacefully together in their new home!

She was full of anticipation.

On the way back from the temple, Ji Ce asked, “Why haven’t we seen Silver Snake lately? Why doesn’t she go out?”

Wen Yu said, “She’s pretty tired and resting.”

Ji Ce said, “She’s been recuperating for quite a while now, but she looks weaker than ever. What a disgrace to an assassin’s reputation, haha.”

Wen Yu just smiled. Before reaching the courtyard, she dismissed the two as usual, not allowing them inside. Cong Rong said worriedly, “Miss, have you not been sleeping well lately? Your complexion looks terrible.”

Wen Yu said, “I’m fine, sleeping great. You two go on ahead.”

After seeing them off, Wen Yu entered the room and picked up the water basin, intending to fetch some water to wipe Silver Snake down.

The room hadn’t been lit yet, pitch black. She couldn’t see a thing and accidentally kicked a chair, the sharp sound grating on her nerves. Unable to stand it, she carried the basin to find the candlestick first. As she coaxed the spark to life, the glow spread out.

At the edge of the light, she saw the figure on the bed. The water basin suddenly crashed to the floor.

The woman who had been dead for days had actually sat up.