Hidden Shadow – CH 145

Chapter One-Hundred-Forty-Five: Another Mission

A rare clash between masters immediately became the hottest topic of conversation among the people of Bianjing.

The layman saw the spectacle; the expert saw the details.

This battle caused an uproar in the martial arts world! The slain ninth-level martial artist was known in the martial arts world as “Ghost Claw Ancestor,” known for his insidious martial arts style and cruel nature. Although he was still at the eighth level, he single-handedly killed two martial artists of the same level, thus becoming famous throughout the martial arts world.

Now, Ghost Claw Ancestor, who was about to reach the pinnacle of his skill, had actually been murdered! Moreover, no traces of internal force were found at the scene, meaning that the person who killed Ghost Claw Ancestor was most likely an external cultivator.

However, some people believed that many swords were discarded at the scene, suggesting that several people might have attacked him simultaneously.

For a time, martial arts practitioners flocked to the secluded alleys to examine the traces of the battle to determine the situation.

Among them, one person skilled in battle reconstruction, after examining the traces, recreated the scene in drawings, insisting that there was only one assassin. This person’s reconstructed battle situation had never been wrong, and this time it was almost perfect, earning unanimous approval from numerous experts. Such a battle situation was baffling, as the assassin’s control over his body had reached an abnormal level.

At the Konghe Academy.

Everyone knew the news, and almost everyone believed it was Lou Mingyue’s doing.

Even though there were many inexplicable aspects, very few people would consider An Jiu; after all, she even needed others to wait for her during marches!

Before dawn, the officials from the Criminal Investigation Department quietly arrived at the Konghe Academy.

After they left, the Heavenly Group members were summoned to the martial arts hall by the four instructors.

The Heaven Instructor’s tone was stern: “Your mission started poorly, and you even left the broken swords on the spot! Do you want the whole world to know that the Konghe Army is going to attack the Fan family?! I do not care who among you was responsible; I only want to convey the results of the Academy Council—the Heavenly Group will be deducted two points! The mission continues!”

Could someone really identify the culprit just from a few broken swords? An Jiu harbored resentment towards the top brass of the Konghe Academy. If that was the case, why create such a unique sword? Who had time to clean up broken blades in a hurry? She’d never heard of a sniper retrieving bullets from a corpse after hitting a target.

“Instructor, this is not fair!” Li Qingzhi only had two points. Although he could earn them back through other missions, these two points represented his bloody battles of the past few days. How could they be deducted so easily?

“You are all currently on a mission together. With such a major change in the mission, everyone bears responsibility!” The Heaven Instructor did not give him a chance to speak, looking at Lou Mingyue and An Jiu. “You two stay. The rest of you, disperse.”

Li Qingzhi, unwilling, could only leave with the others. Obedience was mandatory in the Konghe Academy. His earlier rebuttal was already a foul; further questioning would only result in a deduction of points.

The spacious martial arts hall fell silent.

After a moment, Heaven Instructor broke the silence. “Who was it?”

This could not be hidden any longer; a simple check of the armory records would reveal who owned those swords.

An Jiu stepped forward. “It was me.”

The four instructors were momentarily surprised; this was unexpected, yet also reasonable. They simply found it hard to believe An Jiu possessed such strength.

Their thoughts differed, but ultimately, they all attributed the credit to An Jiu’s body reconstruction.

“You’ve been exposed. You must withdraw from this mission,” Xuan Instructor, wanting to protect An Jiu, said directly. “We will not make things difficult for you until the trial period ends. Go to Headmaster Sheng’s armory and choose a new mission.”

“Fourteenth Young Lady captured Wei Yuzhi!” Lou Mingyue said. “Not enough to offset the crime? Is the Second Master of the Piaomiao Mountain mansion not enough to atone for this?”

“The top officials have not decided how to handle this. We have no authority. If you are dissatisfied, you can go find out. That’s all; leave!” Xuan Instructor said.

An Jiu decisively turned and left. A failed mission was a failure; even the most spectacular missions would not change that fact. Having been in the assassin world for so long, she was well accustomed to this rule.

Lou Mingyue caught up with her. “I am going to find the academician.”

“Wait,” An Jiu called after her. “It’s my own choice; you do not need to be responsible for me.”

Lou Mingyue turned back to look at her, seeing no reluctance on her face, and felt a surge of admiration. “Alright.”

An Jiu nodded and went to the archives room in the study.

Green canopies provided shade, and a cluster of peonies bloomed before the window, rich and vibrant, a unique gentleness in this cold place.

A man in a turquoise official robe stood sideways to her, dipping a water jug ​​into the petals.

It was rare to see Headmaster Sheng so leisurely. He was not particularly handsome, but this demeanor somehow gave him an air of otherworldly elegance and independence.

“Headmaster Sheng,” An Jiu said.

He turned his head, his deep dark circles under his eyes instantly ruining the beautiful scene. He forced his eyes open and gave An Jiu a weary smile. “I am well aware of Xuan Ren’s valiant achievements. You are here to choose a new mission, are you not?”

“Yes,” An Jiu replied.

Headmaster Sheng retrieved two bamboo tubes as thick as an arm from the flower bushes, opened the lids, and revealed about a dozen smaller bamboo tubes, each about the thickness of a little finger, their ends sealed with sealing wax. “These are the missions that are most suitable for you recently; just pick one.”

An Jiu reached out and picked one up.

Headmaster Sheng took it, opened it, glanced at it, and tossed it to her. “See for yourself.”

An Jiu unfolded the note, read its contents, and said with slight surprise, “Assassinate an official? This kind of thing…”

If an official committed a crime, should it not be handled impartially? Why resort to assassination? Was this not an era where “when the Emperor commands the subject to die, the subject has no choice but to die”?

“He’s one of Prince Jing’s men.” After sprinkling water, Headmaster Sheng put down the watering can and turned to go inside. “You cannot turn back from this mission. Hurry and return; you only have five days.”

“Yes.” An Jiu followed him into the archives room, retrieved information about the target, and then disguised herself and left the Konghe Institute.

While Bianjing City was still abuzz with discussions about the alleyway fight, the perpetrator had unwittingly infiltrated Tianshui Alley.

The target was Li Ting, the Vice Minister of Revenue, forty-four years old. He passed the provincial examination at twenty-five and became the Bangyan¹ at twenty-eight. Starting from the Hanlin Academy, he had navigated the ups and downs of officialdom for over a decade, eventually rising to the position of Vice Minister of Revenue. His career had been remarkably smooth, largely due to his allegiance to Prince Jing.

As for his private life, Li Ting had a wife and a concubine. He and his wife had a son and a daughter; the eldest son was already married, and the daughter was only ten years old, indicating a good relationship between the couple. The beautiful concubine was a gift from Prince Jing.

An Jiu spent half a day lurking around the Li residence, gathering a fairly comprehensive understanding of everything within. The residence had ten guards, mostly below the fourth rank, with only two barely reaching that level.

It was not that An Jiu underestimated them; she was confident she could handle such a defense.

Despite this mindset, given her recent setbacks, she diligently spent another day carefully investigating.