Chapter 82: Climbing Roses and Vines

At present, one favorable circumstance lay before Gu Yi: Qingfeng had been slain by Shuyu. Although this likely severed the trails of both mountain peaks, Gu Yi no longer needed to conceal the techniques and methods he had derived from them.

He glanced, almost absently, at Qingfeng’s prone form upon the ground. Motionless—truly dead, then…

Suddenly, a heartrending cry of pain rang out. The two before him were locked in a standoff, but the scream came from behind. Gu Yi and the Seventh Princess turned in unison, just in time to witness Shaoyang being hurled through the air. Xin Chi was at his side, doing her utmost to help him, but clearly outmatched.

“Protect yourself,” Gu Yi said, leaving her with those words.

He sprang forward with explosive speed, arriving at Xin Chi’s side. The blade-wielding youth from the Grand Rain Palace was ferocious, his wild spiritual energy nearly engulfing Xin Chi. Gu Yi slid in low, wrapped an arm around Xin Chi’s waist, and wrenched her backward just in time to evade a vicious horizontal slash.

His opponent, a youth with a ruthless air, leapt up, channeling his energy into his wrist, and swung down at their skulls with deadly force.

It was a perilous moment, impossible to describe in words. Terrified, Xin Chi squeezed her eyes shut—then a deafening clang resounded.

A faint, hissing sound reached her ears. She opened her eyes, stunned by the sight before her.

“A... a needle?”

A thick needle formed of gathered spiritual energy had intercepted the thunderous blade.

Gu Yi’s right palm, supple and precise, gave Xin Chi a gentle push, sending her sliding backward. With a turn, he now faced the Grand Rain Palace youth head-on.

With a stomp, Gu Yi drove his foot into the ground. In an instant, spiritual energy surged from the earth in a wild flood, and the youth’s arrogant expression changed in a flash.

“What is this?! Where did all this energy come from?”

Gu Yi gave a wicked smile, raised two fingers, and with a slight curl, gathered all the ambient energy into the shape of needles, which shot forth in a relentless barrage.

A thousand glimmering needles—such was the true nature of this sweeping attack. The phrase “dancing through the air” fit it perfectly.

The youth hastily summoned a shield of spiritual light before himself, but Gu Yi pressed on, seizing the thick needle and lunging forward with ruthless intent.

This time, there was murder in his heart—a wild, surging bloodlust. The air thickened; time itself seemed to slow…

Suddenly, the ground split open beneath his feet, and a green vine burst through the soil, fresh and unstoppable.

The vines appeared with startling speed, as though fueled by endless vitality—snapping, growing, thickening, hardening.

Gu Yi, mid-charge, found his feet ensnared. Between him and his foe, a thick wall of vines sprang up, leaving only narrow gaps through which he could see the frightened youth gasping for breath.

In the next breath—

Shuyu appeared before Gu Yi. Beneath the veil of silk, her expression was unreadable—perhaps nonexistent.

“Mao Tai is a rare talent of the Grand Rain Palace. Please, do not kill him.”

Gu Yi frowned and turned to look at Shu Le, seeing her trapped by four petals pinning her in place. Stranger still, in his line of sight, Shuyu stood facing Shu Le as well.

Then—who had just appeared before him? Or had Shuyu returned in a single instant when he turned his head?

“Vine Rose—you cannot possibly win,” the youth, Mao Tai, declared with haughty confidence.

The vines encircled Shuyu, looping and intertwining, appearing and vanishing, crowned here and there with delicate, pink blossoms. Spiritual energy flowed steadily from the petals. Shu Le, standing at the center, spun continually atop a whirl of spiritual power, striving to break free.

The “raindrops” upon the barrier before her were growing thicker, heavier...

“Shu Le, you must at least land a single sword strike upon her…” Gu Yi thought. He knew she would lose, but wished she wouldn’t lose so badly.

“Are you two all right?” Xin Chi supported Shaoyang, who clutched his chest.

“I took a hit, but it’s nothing serious. Thank you, Senior Ma, for saving me.”

“No need to thank me.”

“Hey!” The youth from the Grand Rain Palace called out as Gu Yi began to leave.

“What’s your name?”

Gu Yi glanced at Xin Chi. Thinking it wise to earn some renown for Ma Yuan, he said, “My name is Ma Yuan.”

“I’m Mao Tai!” the youth declared, pointing at him. “What was that energy you just used? No matter—I will find out. How could someone at your level defeat me, a Guardian Spirit? Ma Yuan, wait and see—one day I’ll come to Luyang and challenge you.”

“Will you dare?”

Mao Tai curled his lips. “There’s nowhere in this world I dare not go—except the Palace Master’s domain.”

Gu Yi turned to walk back to the Seventh Princess, but halfway there he abruptly stopped mid-step, his body freezing in place.

“What is it?” the Seventh Princess asked, concerned. “Are you hurt?”

It wasn’t pain.

The ground here was empty—something that should be here was missing.

“Where is Qingfeng?! Wasn’t he killed, right here? How can a corpse that big simply vanish?” Gu Yi spread his hands to indicate the spot. “Where’s the body?”

For a dead man to disappear without a trace—too horrifying by far.

The Seventh Princess was equally stunned. “I was watching Shu Le the whole time—I didn’t notice.”

It was hard to blame her. In such moments, everyone’s focus was razor-sharp; no one would have thought to keep an eye on Qingfeng.

But the troubles did not end there.

Within the Vine Rose, Shu Le slashed upward with a sword, her body rising swiftly. She took a blow to the back, but still drove a fierce arc of sword energy toward Shuyu.

With a spray of blood, Shu Le crashed to the ground, her body light as a leaf.

Yet Shuyu remained unfazed.

“The techniques of Luyang Academy are unworthy of you. Your cultivation is not so different from mine, but Luyang is far inferior to Grand Rain Palace. Shu Le, you have great talent. Today, it is Luyang that has lost to Grand Rain.”

Intended as a gesture of respect and consolation, these words could not have been more galling to Shu Le.

“Heh... cough...” Shu Le struggled to her feet, fighting to steady herself, wiping the blood from her lips. Though her face was pale, her eyes burned with resolve.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?”

“I was, once. I was terribly anxious.”

“And now?”

Shu Le stared at her own palm in shock and slowly shook her head. “Not anymore.”

“Why?”

“Because someone told me that failure is not to be feared—what’s truly frightening is a shaken heart. Just now… Gu Yi found a way past your people. I hope you can find a way past them, too.”

Both Gu Yi and the Seventh Princess winced inwardly—this was bad. In the heat of battle, Shu Le had forgotten not to call him Gu Yi!

Gu Yi? Shuyu’s brow creased ever so slightly.

There was no time to worry. Gu Yi seized the moment between clashes to reach her. “Shu Le, don’t give in to despair. Qingfeng is missing—something strange is happening here. Do you remember what we discussed about the River Rain Tomb?”

The last part he spoke in a low voice.

Suddenly, a flash of lucidity lit Shu Le’s gaze—of course she remembered: there might not be any corpse in the River Rain Tomb at all.

If that was true, dying here would be the greatest waste.

“What are you talking about?” Shuyu asked suspiciously.

Gu Yi and Shu Le turned to her in unison, eyes wide with shock—for behind Shuyu, waving a fan at her, was Qingfeng?!

“Hee hee hee, come with me.”

“Watch out!” Gu Yi cried, lunging forward.

“Gu Yi! It’s dangerous!” Shu Le hurried after him.

Not far away, those from East Lake Academy were left utterly bewildered: Gu Yi?