Chapter 29: One Word Startles Wind and Rain
Starlight fell from the night sky, passing through that invisible barrier, producing a strange refraction. It landed on the face of this middle-aged demon man, making his complexion appear even paler, looking like the never-melting ice and snow of the north.
Luoluo raised her arm, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, looked at him, and asked, "Do you want to capture me or kill me?"
The demon man said calmly, "If I capture you, I won't be able to leave the capital. So I'm sorry, but I can only kill you on the spot."
Luoluo stared at the two demon horns faintly visible between his hair, and asked, "It seems you've been waiting for me for a long time."
The demon man bowed slightly and said, "From the day Your Highness left your homeland, or more precisely, from the day Your Highness crossed that river reeking of blood, I have been waiting, waiting for today to arrive."
Luoluo said, "That really has been a long time."
"I left my hometown several years ago. I've been following you on this journey for over a year now. I've been hiding in the capital like a rat for more than half a year. For me, life has been silently watching you in the darkness—very dull and very dangerous."
The demon man calmly recounted his life over these years. His tone was indifferent, but in reality, it was cruel, even tragic—to have hidden for so long in the most central city of the human world, he must have paid a tremendous price, especially mentally.
After a moment of silence, he turned and looked toward the distant north beyond the lake, sighing with emotion, "I miss the wind and snow of my homeland, and I miss my wife and children. Thank you, Your Highness, for your mercy, for finally giving me the opportunity tonight to complete this great mission."
After hearing these two sentences, a hint of regret arose in Luoluo's heart.
She had not expected that the demons had been watching her, following her all the way from her homeland to the capital. Their schemes were far-reaching, their intentions so deep. Once the demons seized an opportunity, there would certainly be no accidents.
What she regretted was that she herself had provided this opportunity to the demons. If it weren't for her search for that person, if she hadn't used every trick to shake off her clansmen's protection, the demon man opposite her would probably still be in hiding, wasting away his life in the human world until he grew old.
She looked up at the night sky, at the obviously refracted starlight, and knew that the magical artifact had successfully isolated the inside from the outside world. Although her clansmen were just on the other side of the Academy wall, they certainly couldn't hear her shouts.
At this time and place, no one could come to save her except herself.
Having confirmed her situation, Luoluo calmed down instead. She looked at the demon man, and the childishness between her brows was completely replaced by the will to fight: "Tongyou Upper Realm is strong, but not strong enough. I don't think you're qualified to kill me."
"Living in the capital is not easy. There are too many human experts here. If I were too strong, I would easily alert big shots like Mo Yu. If a few of the Great Zhou Imperial Palace's honored elders came, I would die. So I cannot be strong."
The demon man looked at her and said, "My technique excels at concealment. Though not particularly strong, it's not particularly weak either—just enough to kill Your Highness. So I am the most suitable one. That's why I appear before you today, and not someone else."
Luoluo said, "I want to know your name."
She said this very calmly, with a natural sense of condescension.
"My name is Mohe." The demon man obediently replied.
Luoluo said, "Mohe is a surname, not a name."
The demon man smiled slightly, his pale face wrinkling like white paper, looking somewhat terrifying: "Your Highness, stalling for time is meaningless."
Luoluo laughed out loud. Her laughter was crisp and could travel far with the night wind. If not for that barrier, at least the people on the other side of the wall would have heard it clearly. The demon man had no intention of stopping her.
"I thought you didn't care if I stalled for time." She stopped trying and said seriously.
The demon man said, "After killing Your Highness, I will certainly find it difficult to escape the capital. So this time will probably be the last of my hundred-plus years of life. Being able to speak with a noble bloodline like Your Highness—I imagine my soul can rest more easily."
Luoluo opened her big eyes wide, her eyelashes fluttering slightly, and asked curiously, "Aren't you afraid of being discovered by humans?"
The demon man pointed at the iron rod-like object on the grass in front of him.
"This is very close to the Imperial Palace." She kindly reminded him.
The demon man said expressionlessly, "I believe that even if the Holy Empress is watching here right now, she won't be able to discover what we're doing."
"Alright, I really am sure now that no one will come to save me."
Luoluo sighed. Though her face was full of worry, it still looked somewhat cute.
"Then, are you sure you can really kill me?"
After saying this, her eyes suddenly became extremely bright, like two pearls. Her right hand untied a leather whip from her waist. The whip was very long, so long that it piled up at her feet. It was hard to imagine how it had been stored at her waist before.
"Is this the legendary Rainfall Whip?"
The demon man seemed emotional, whether from seeing the legendary divine weapon or for some other reason.
Then he looked at Luoluo and said very seriously, "No matter how many rare magical artifacts Your Highness carries with you, you must die tonight. Because this is the arrangement of the Military Advisor, so there will be no accidents."
Hearing this, Luoluo's small hand gripping the whip handle tightened slightly, turning pale.
The Demon Military Advisor—this was one of the most terrifying names on the continent.
Even her parents took this person extremely seriously.
When the great war ended, the demons were utterly defeated by the allied forces of humans and demons, but they did not collapse as a nation. They could still barely hold on in the cold northern regions, and in recent years, there were even signs of recovery. Apart from the cold and powerful Demon Lord sitting in Snow Old City to stabilize the situation, the most important reason was that a military advisor was devising strategies for the demons. Whether it was those unimaginable conspiracies or the straightforward policies for people's livelihood, that person's shadow was behind them all.
Yes, it was that person's shadow.
The Demon Military Advisor was a human.
No one knew why a human would be willing to betray his own race and work for the demons, but the entire continent knew that this human was highly respected among the demons. From this alone, one could see just how remarkable this person was.
The conspiracies arranged by the Demon Military Advisor had never failed. His thinking seemed to have no flaws. His grasp and utilization of the human heart had long surpassed the so-called pinnacle of perfection and had become an indescribable ability.
Over countless years, how many human northern expeditions had failed because of this person's schemes? Some even died before the army could set out. The losses this person inflicted on humanity were even greater than those caused by the terrifying Eight Mountain Lords of the demons combined.
Countless human experts and demon warriors had tried to find this Demon Military Advisor and assassinate him, but no one had ever succeeded. Except for one sword expert from the Eternal Life Sect, no one had even managed to find him.
To this day, no one knew this Demon Military Advisor's surname, what he looked like, where he was from, or what kind of past he had that made him choose to betray humanity and join the demons. There were even legends that after the demons' crushing defeat, the Military Advisor did not follow the Demon Lord back to Snow Old City but chose to hide his identity on the spot and now lives in the human world. He could be your neighbor, your teacher, or even a priest.
This was the most terrifying thing about the Demon Military Advisor.
People only knew that he often wore a black robe.
Many powerful demons, when mentioning him, would reverently call him: Lord Black Robe.
...
...
Luoluo looked at the demon man in the black robe beside the tree, and her heart gradually sank.
If this was the Demon Military Advisor's plan, then she might really have little chance of survival. Everyone knew that the Demon Military Advisor's plans seemed simple, even casual, but they never had any loopholes, and no accidents ever occurred.
The demon man beside the tree wore a black robe and should be a direct subordinate of the Military Advisor.
The iron artifact on the grass in front of him directly rejected all changes from the outside world.
She had come to the Academy alone.
No one could see her anymore.
She would naturally die.
This setup was simple, but logically flawless.
She knew she could only rely on her own strength to fight for survival.
But she also knew that the legendary Demon Military Advisor must have made the most precise calculations of both sides' strength. Just as the demon man had said earlier, he wasn't too strong, but not too weak either—just enough to kill her.
He would definitely kill her.
She could see his level of strength because of her talent, but that didn't mean she could defeat him.
According to human strength classification, she should be at the Zhaozhao Initial Realm. At her age, this level was already astonishing, but in a life-and-death struggle with an adult expert, this level was not enough to keep her alive.
"Being able to speak so much with Your Highness in the final moments of life—I am very satisfied."
The demon man walked slowly toward her, slowly raising his right hand. A faint white light could be seen between his fingers.
That was a ball of light condensed from true essence.
Luoluo felt the terrifying aura emanating from that ball of light and squinted slightly.
The demon man wore a pair of worn-out boots.
The soles of the boots stepped on the grass, leaving no trace.
During the day, the grass had been cut short, and the cut ends emitted a pleasant smell.
The grass seemed stronger because it had been cut short, actually supporting the soles of the demon man's boots.
No, that was just a momentary image.
In fact, the moment the demon man took his first step, his figure began to blur, and then disappeared!
Luoluo's eyes became even brighter, as if trying to illuminate the night.
She knew that this demon man had been able to hide in the human world for so long, and as he himself said, his technique emphasized concealment. But she hadn't expected that he could disappear so effortlessly in battle.
The next moment, the demon man appeared behind her!
That terrifying fist directly smashed toward her back!
The demon man was much stronger than her, but even so, he struck with the most powerful means.
He gathered all his true essence into his fist and struck with all his might. Even if he hit, his right hand would inevitably be crippled, but he didn't care. As long as he could kill this little girl, he would sacrifice even his life and soul. Why would he care about a hand?
Luoluo couldn't block this fist. In fact, she couldn't even track his movements.
But her whip could.
The long whip in her right hand sprang up like a spirit snake, the tip like a snake's tongue, tearing through the night air with a hissing sound, stabbing straight at the demon man's throat behind her.
At the same time, she released her grip, and the third button fell to the ground.
The demon man's pale face was expressionless. He ignored it completely and continued his punch.
With a soft hiss.
A bloody hole appeared in his throat.
But at the same time, his fist also landed on Luoluo's back.
Demons were born in the wind and snow of the mountains. Their strength was named after mountains.
His fist was a mountain.
This mountain directly smashed into the little girl's body.
The scene looked very cruel.
...
...
The button fell to the ground.
A faint smoke rose. Before it dissipated, Luoluo had already turned around, facing that terrifying fist.
Given the demon man's bizarre movement technique, logically, she shouldn't have been able to turn around in time, but she did.
Because she had used another Thousand-Mile Button in advance.
The Thousand-Mile Button couldn't help her cross that invisible barrier, but at least it helped her turn around.
But what could turning around do?
That terrifying fist was getting closer and closer, the true essence light overflowing between his fingers growing brighter and brighter.
Was it just for dignity, to face death head-on in the final moment of life?
No.
A resolute expression appeared on Luoluo's childish face.
She let out a clear shout, clenched her small fist, and without fear, met the oncoming fist.
With a deafening boom!
The floorboards flew up, dust billowed, and countless deep cracks like spiderwebs appeared on the grass. The grove that had just been trimmed fell over in the wind!
The night wind gently brushed by.
The dust gradually settled, revealing two figures.
The demon man stood in place, his pale face showing an extremely complex mix of emotions, with several streams of blood slowly trickling down.
His black robe had been torn into countless pieces, revealing his pale and strong body.
His right fist was already a bloody mess, with white bones visible.
The most terrifying injury was on his head.
His left demon horn had broken off at the base, and blood was gushing out.
A slightly yellowed sharp fang was deeply embedded in his forehead, trembling slightly.
If this sharp fang had penetrated just a little deeper, it might have killed him!
The demon man reached out to pull out the fang, but for some reason, he didn't dare to touch it.
He knew that if it weren't for the artifact the Military Advisor had given him to suppress the battlefield, he would have been killed by this little girl's sneak attack.
Thinking of this, his face turned even paler, and he felt some fear.
"This... is the Great Emperor's Fang?"
He stared at Luoluo's eyes, his voice trembling slightly, pained and angry: "As expected of the legendary Your Highness who possesses countless treasures, to have this level of protective artifact. I ultimately underestimated you."
Three Thousand-Mile Buttons, one Wind and Rain Whip, and one Great Emperor's Fang.
Any one of these, placed in the world, would be enough to make people lose their fortunes... no, they were treasures that experts would rather see their families ruined than give up.
And all of them were on her, used without any hesitation.
If the experts of the world had seen tonight's scene, they would definitely beat their chests and stamp their feet in regret.
But she wouldn't, because she was Luoluo. She was very generous, and first of all, she was generous to herself. Besides, these things were originally hers.
"I must admit, Your Highness's response was very impressive. The power of innate bloodline is indeed strong. But unfortunately... this is the plan laid out by the Military Advisor. He must have calculated the things you carry and confirmed that they are not enough to kill me."
The demon man smeared blood all over his pale face. Under the slightly curved starlight, he looked extremely terrifying.
He finally said, "I am still alive, so you must die."
Luoluo's condition was not good. The corner of her mouth, which she had wiped clean with her sleeve, was bleeding again.
She looked at the demon man, gently flicked her whip. The long whip reflected the starlight, seeming to come alive in the night, no longer a snake, but a dragon.
A dragon in the wind and rain.
The Wind and Rain Whip, ranked seventeenth on the Hundred Weapons List.
...
...
The demon man disappeared. The area around the library was filled with howling sounds. The light leaking from inside was like a small boat in a huge wave, sometimes bright, sometimes dark, sometimes visible, sometimes hidden.
Luoluo stood still, the Wind and Rain Whip in her hand wildly dancing in the night wind.
Faint raindrops began to fall.
Occasionally, a cold aura would break through the night, only to be blocked by the raindrops.
Occasionally, a sharp light would cut through the wind, and the wind would suddenly intensify, forming a barrier.
The Wind and Rain Whip could summon wind and rain from all directions, making it the best weapon for defense.
That was also why she chose the Wind and Rain Whip as her weapon when she left her homeland.
But after all, she was just a little girl, at the Zhaozhao Initial Realm, too far behind the demon man.
If she hadn't successfully ambushed him with the Great Emperor's Fang, the demon man could have used his abundant true essence to directly withstand the power of the Wind and Rain Whip and forcefully kill her. But even now, the situation was not much better.
That demon man's movement technique was too bizarre, following some incomprehensible trajectory, moving freely through the night.
Her whip could drive the wind and rain from all directions, protecting herself airtight, but she couldn't track his movements, so naturally, she couldn't attack.
If she couldn't attack for long, how could she defend forever?
Even if the Wind and Rain Whip had spirit, it still required her soul to control it. Every time wind and rain rose, it consumed a bit of her true essence.
Her breathing became more and more rapid. She didn't know if she could hold out until that strange artifact of his failed, until her clansmen arrived.
She still persisted with a calmness and perseverance beyond her peers, waiting.
She waited for the moment he truly revealed himself.
She had used up her carried artifacts and still hadn't escaped, but she still had her whip. More importantly, she still had a hidden trick.
Only she knew that although she held the Wind and Rain Whip, she was using a sword technique.
That sword technique also had the words "wind and rain" in it.
The Bell Mountain Wind and Rain Sword.
The most terrifying thing about this sword technique was that it could condense the wind and rain of the entire sky into a single point, attacking the opponent's weakest spot.
That demon man was already severely injured and no longer as strong as before. She believed that if she were given a chance, she could definitely kill him.
The problem was that although the demon man was angry after being injured, he hadn't lost his reason. He was extremely patient. Without absolute certainty, he used that bizarre movement technique to circle outside the wind and rain, never giving her a chance to strike.
Luoluo suddenly felt a bit wronged.
Demon experts' techniques were always mysterious, and it was understandable that she couldn't master them. But if she could have fully learned the Bell Mountain Wind and Rain Sword technique, if she could understand the true meaning of that move "Wind and Rain from All Directions," why would she be so passive now?
Why didn't the teachers from the Heavenly Dao Academy and the Star-Picking Academy know how to teach her? If she could find that person from that night, could he teach her? Oh, right, if it weren't for looking for that guy, how could she have encountered an assassination? How could she be so miserable?
Yes, it was all that guy's fault.
Luoluo felt wronged, so she didn't want to be generous anymore. She decided that if she ever found that person, she wouldn't give him so many gifts...
Or maybe, cut the gifts in half?
While thinking about these things, the battle continued.
Danger was approaching.
A bloody gash appeared on her neck. That was when the demon man had seized a loophole in the Wind and Rain Whip and delivered a nearly fatal blow.
Luoluo wasn't just wronged; she was starting to get sad.
She didn't want to die.
She had always believed that living was the happiest thing, the most beautiful thing—look, the clouds in the sky were beautiful, the clouds in the capital were beautiful, sometimes like the hair of girls on the street. The clouds in her hometown were also beautiful, sometimes like the face of a young horse bandit.
And even if she had to die, she couldn't be killed in the capital.
Because that would make many innocent people die, like the girls on the street, like the young horse bandit.
More and more blood flowed from Luoluo's body.
The Wind and Rain Whip gradually became weak.
That demon man was still hidden in the night, somewhere unknown.
She was very tired, and then she felt a bit sleepy.
The Wind and Rain Whip was silent in the night. The falling wind and rain made no sound. The demon man also made no sound.
The Academy was completely quiet, really suitable for sleeping.
Besides training and playing, her favorite thing was sleeping.
She knew she couldn't fall asleep now, but she was really sleepy.
Just then, a voice broke the silence.
The Academy under the night woke up.
Luoluo also woke up.
"Stars reflect in the viscera, true essence follows the will. Level the wrist, suspend the shoulder, gather the wind and rain."
Luoluo didn't know who was speaking.
But she knew this was content from the Bell Mountain Wind and Rain Sword technique.
Subconsciously, she twisted her wrist holding the whip, bent her left knee slightly, let her true essence follow her will, ignoring the meridians mentioned in the sword technique, directly following the channels in her body, crossing her viscera, arriving between her chest and abdomen. Then she felt her hand holding the whip handle grow hot.
What next?
She thought blankly.
The night was still deep.
That voice sounded again.
"Douzhen, Kuiliu."
These were two words that sounded somewhat strange.
But if broken down, people living in this world could clearly understand what they were.
Douzhen were two stars located in the east and west directions.
Kuiliu were two stars located in the north and south directions.
The stars were eternal and unchanging, especially those famous ones. People on the ground, from old to young, could clearly remember their positions.
Luoluo was stunned for a moment, not understanding what this meant. Was it a direction?
Was she supposed to stab toward the position of the Dou star in the night sky? Then the Zhen star?
Suddenly, she came to her senses.
Between Dou and Zhen, a line could be drawn.
Between Kui and Liu, a line could also be drawn.
The intersection of the two lines was the only point in the night sky.
Luoluo opened her eyes wide and looked toward that place.
The Wind and Rain Whip in her hand had already stabbed toward that point in the night sky in advance.
The Wind and Rain Whip gathered a hundred strands of wind and rain into a single line, becoming a sword.
The Bell Mountain Wind and Rain Sword.
In the Academy, the wind and rain suddenly gathered, but the sword intent flourished.
With a soft hiss.
A stream of blood spurted out from the pitch-black night.
At the same time, the demon expert's shocked and angry cry of pain rang out.