Hidden Shadow – CH 108

Chapter One-Hundred-Eight: A Fierce Cousin

Because she had heard that there were very few masters at the Transcendent Realm in the world and that the martial arts of those leading armies were all at the Transcendent Realm, it meant that most of the high-ranking officials in the Konghe Army were less skilled than Chu Dingjiang.

“What a brilliant idea!” Chu Dingjiang exclaimed. “Then I will assassinate the Prime Minister, and I will be second only to the Emperor!”

An Jiu sensed the sarcasm and snorted. “You are clearly not cut out to be a high-ranking official! What high-ranking official does it personally? Just hire someone else to do it.”

Chu Dingjiang laughed, pulled out a small piece of silver from his pocket, and said with boundless generosity, “Help me assassinate the Emperor’s favorite minister. After I take the throne, I will pay double!”

“Alright!” An Jiu took it and stuffed it into her pocket. “I will assassinate the Emperor’s most favored eunuch for you, making sure it goes smoothly, so you can prepare to take the throne!”

Sometimes the Emperor would send his favored eunuchs to serve as military supervisors or inspectors; they were no longer merely slaves but could also be considered ministers.

“Haha!” Chu Dingjiang reached out to ruffle her hair, but An Jiu raised her hand to block him.

Chu Dingjiang was slightly surprised. After all, he was at the Transcendent Realm while An Jiu had no internal energy. If he exerted his strength, An Jiu would not be able to block it. But her quick reaction was extremely rare; what a pity…

“Go to sleep early!” He stood up and patted himself, dust scattering and landing all over An Jiu.

An Jiu did not expect him to do something so childish and, for a moment, forgot to dodge. Watching him turn and go into the house, An Jiu slowly said, “The demotion must have been a huge blow to you, right?”

“How so?” Chu Dingjiang turned back.

An Jiu pointed to her head. “Your IQ has deteriorated.”

“IQ?” Chu Dingjiang instinctively felt this was not a compliment, so he did not wait for her explanation. “Sleep as much as you can while you can; you will not have such carefree days later.”

“Chu Dingjiang,” An Jiu called out, “how many people are left in the Mei family?”

Seeing her calm expression, Chu Dingjiang answered truthfully, “Less than fifty in total. Only Mei Zhengjing, Mei Tingzhu, Mei Tingyuan, Mei Tingchun, and Mei Ruyan remain of the Mei bloodline. The two Old Madams are also unharmed.”

Of the nearly one thousand people in Mei Mansion, only fifty remain. It seemed like a significant loss, but the Mei family’s direct descendants were already few in number. Mei Mansion only had a few hundred people, most of whom were servants. No one expected the enemy to have so many ninth-rank members. It was quite remarkable that the Mei family managed to preserve its main force of the younger generation amidst this unexpected attack.

An Jiu lowered her eyes, hesitated for a moment, and said… “Then…among the survivors, is there anyone named Mo Sigui?”

Chu Dingjiang could vaguely sense her tension. “Elder Qi and Mo Sigui are very famous in the Konghe Army, and they are also key figures protected by the army. Unfortunately, the shadow guards sent to them were killed, and we have temporarily lost contact with these two. However, we have not found any suspected bodies either. I have not received any news about Mei Clan for three days; he might still be alive.” As a low-ranking officer in the Divine Martial Capital, Chu Dingjiang only needed to receive missions and could no longer concern himself with every detail.

“He will not die,” An Jiu murmured.

Chu Dingjiang thought to himself that she and Mo Sigui must have a very deep relationship. Just as he was about to offer some words of comfort, he heard someone say, “Evil lives a thousand years. A scoundrel lives even longer.”

“Having a cousin like you is truly Mo Sigui’s blessing!” Chu Dingjiang clicked his tongue.

“You saved me, so you are my benefactor.” An Jiu, seemingly oblivious to his sarcasm, simply said, “If your fate were uncertain, I would certainly pray for you in the same way.”

Chu Dingjiang’s lips twitched slightly. “You’ve gone to so much trouble!”

“It’s nothing,” An Jiu replied.

Chu Dingjiang felt that talking to this girl was a complete waste of time and emotions; sleeping would have been far more meaningful.

Night fell.

An Jiu and Chu Dingjiang always shared a room, but An Jiu slept in the bed. Chu Dingjiang would just find two stools to use. The weather was still chilly, but recently there had not been any heavy tasks, and he did not need to be on guard all the time, which was already a luxury.

“You can sleep in the bed,” An Jiu said, putting on her cloak and pulling back the curtain.

Chu Dingjiang turned his head and opened one eye. “Unable to sleep?”

“Mmm.” An Jiu walked outside, feeling a sudden gust of wind beside her ear. She abruptly bent over, and as she stood up again, a punch was already thrown at the attacker.

Chu Dingjiang grabbed her waist with one hand, and with the other, he swiftly pressed her pressure points, the fist stopping just half an inch in front of his nose.

“Confiscating your dagger was a wise decision.” Chu Dingjiang carried her to the bed, dipped his hand in a sleeping potion, and covered An Jiu’s mouth and nose. Only after she closed her eyes did he release the pressure points.

He turned around, and a sudden gust of wind unexpectedly swept in.

“Unreasonable!” Chu Dingjiang’s good intentions were met with ingratitude. He spun around and grabbed her wrist, only to discover the dagger in her hand. He was instantly enraged; it seemed he had been raising a venomous snake these past few days! So he became even more ruthless.

An Jiu launched a flying kick, and as Chu Dingjiang dodged, he leaned forward, pinning her firmly to the bed.

Almost face-to-face, he clearly saw no murderous intent in her clear eyes. He instantly understood that An Jiu’s attack was not intended to harm him but was merely an outlet for her anger.

He was right.

Killing was the only way An Jiu could vent her anger, whether it was anger, hatred, or sorrow… Chu Dingjiang snatched the dagger from her hand and tossed it aside. He stood up, ripped off his cloak, revealing his agile figure, and dispelled all his protective internal energy. Looking down at her, he said, “Get up!”

An Jiu’s mental energy erupted instantly, and she threw a punch.

Chu Dingjiang felt an immense pressure, like a mountain, pressing down on him, rendering him immobile. In the instant his consciousness struggled, An Jiu’s fist had already landed solidly on his chest.

He had underestimated her!

Chu Dingjiang quickly broke free of the mental pressure and, like An Jiu, fought her using only mental energy, without any internal force.

He had initially thought that he had only been suppressed by An Jiu’s mental energy due to momentary underestimation, but after ten moves, he was shocked to realize that her mental energy was far superior to his own!

Without using internal force, he was actually at a disadvantage.

After a while, Chu Dingjiang discovered that although An Jiu did not exude murderous intent, every move she made was a sure kill.

During the trials at the ancient temple, he had already sensed that An Jiu was a troublesome opponent. But after dissipating his pride and joy in his inner strength, he truly discovered that she was more than just troublesome; she was utterly inhuman! When she attacked, her ferocity was like that of a predator determined to kill its prey, and a highly strategic one at that.

Instantly, Chu Dingjiang’s fighting spirit was ignited.

The two exchanged blows until, after a quarter of an hour, Chu Dingjiang’s physical advantage became apparent. However, An Jiu’s ability to maintain such a level of skill despite her severe injuries had already earned his respect.

Seeing her face turn pale, Chu Dingjiang released his inner strength and stepped forward to restrain her. “Enough, that’s enough. Your wounds might reopen.”

Feeling her release her strength, Chu Dingjiang helped her sit on the edge of the bed, and in the blink of an eye, he saw the mess in the room.

The two looked like they had just been pulled out of the water. Chu Dingjiang said, “You are weak right now; rest for a while. I will go boil some water for you to wash up.” As soon as he said that, he almost bit his tongue off. Judging from her behavior just now, he really could not tell that she was weak.