The Great Song Dynasty's Soul-Forging in Progress

Each of them had a thin silver needle inserted between their eyebrows, barely visible in the snowy light, and the needles did not sway at all, showing that their technique of exerting force had reached the pinnacle.

Liu Xinyi, medicine pouch in hand, slowly emerged from behind an old plum tree. Her white dress fluttered in the wind and snow, her expression remaining serene, as if she had merely brushed away the dust from her clothes. Only the cold glint at her fingertips foreshadowed the ever-present threat of death.

"Thanks, Magnolia Sister!" Du Ziteng was greatly encouraged.

Qin Tiehua immediately noticed the bloodstains on Wang Zhonghua's knife. He was stunned at first, then his eyes lit up with surprise: "Brother Zhonghua, you—"

"We'll talk about it later," Wang Zhonghua said in a deep voice as he rode up to her side. "Let's deal with these scum first!"

Qin Tiehua nodded emphatically, but couldn't help but smile.

Seeing that the surprise attack had failed, and that the target was protected by two highly skilled fighters, and that the target himself was also a formidable opponent, a resolute glint flashed in the eyes of the assassin leader. He let out a sharp whistle, and the remaining seven or eight assassins abruptly changed their attack!

Completely disregarding their own safety, they fought like mad tigers, resorting to a suicidal attack!

They concentrated all their forces to launch a fierce attack on Wang Zhonghua, clearly intending to complete their mission before they died!

Qin Tiehua let out a sharp cry, her sword flashing so fast it was impenetrable. But she had to protect Du Ziteng and intercept the killing blow aimed at Wang Zhonghua. In the end, her arm was slashed open with a deep gash that exposed bone, and blood instantly stained her sleeve.

Liu Xinyi flicked her fingertips repeatedly, sending silver needles piercing the air and accurately taking down two more people. However, the number of assassins was still large, and they were fearless in the face of death, so the situation remained precarious.

Wang Zhonghua stood on his horse, observing calmly.

He noticed that although these assassins coordinated well, their attack would change whenever the leader gave a faint whistle. The whistle was so soft that he wouldn't have been able to hear it unless he was deliberately listening for it.

"To catch the thief, first catch the king..."

His mind raced, and his gaze locked onto the leader hidden behind the formation.

"Tiehua, cover me!" he shouted, squeezing the horse's flanks with his legs.

As if reading his thoughts, the snow-covered horse exerted force on all four hooves and charged towards the enemy formation like an arrow released from a bow! This precious horse ran like the wind on the snow, its four hooves treading on the snow without the slightest hesitation, as if it were truly "walking on snow"!

Three assassins raised their knives to intercept him, but Ta Xue suddenly leaped up, straddling two of them in mid-air, and kicked the third man over with his hind legs!

Wang Zhonghua bent down and swung his knife—

This time, he didn't hold back.

Yin Xue's blade flashed like a bolt of lightning, carrying all the anger and killing intent from his past and present lives, as he slashed at the leader of the assassins!

The leader's pupils constricted sharply, and he raised his knife to parry—

"clang!"

A deafening explosion!

The assassin leader's steel knife snapped in two! Yin Xue's blade, undiminished in momentum, slashed straight down!

The leader desperately dodged to the side, the blade slicing across his shoulder and slicing off a large chunk of flesh! He screamed in agony, staggering backward, his eyes filled with horror—what kind of blade was that?! What kind of force was that?!

Wang Zhonghua stood on his horse, the tip of his sword pointed at him, and coldly asked, "Who sent you?"

The leader of the assassins clutched his wound, his eyes darting around. His lips moved—

"Watch out!" Qin Tiehua exclaimed.

The leader of the assassins suddenly opened his mouth and bit into the poison sac hidden between his teeth! Black blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, and he swayed before falling straight into the snow.

The remaining assassins, seeing their leader dead, immediately lost their offensive.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Qin Tiehua charged in, his blade flashing, and felled three more men. The last two assassins exchanged a glance and turned to flee, but two sharp "whoosh" sounds were heard as Liu Xinyi's silver needles precisely pierced the back of their necks.

The two collapsed to the ground, twitched a few times, and then fell silent.

The howling wind and snow quickly covered up the traces of the battle.

The ice on the lake surface crackled and popped in the wind, as if the earth itself was trembling.

Wang Zhonghua dismounted and walked to Qin Tiehua's side. Her face was pale from blood loss, but her eyes were still bright as stars as she stared at the Snow-Singing Blade in Wang Zhonghua's hand, a smile on her lips.

Liu Xinyi silently examined the two wounds and applied wound medicine. Her medicine was clearly very effective; the bleeding from Qin Tiehua's deep, bone-revealing wound had stopped, and it had even begun to itch slightly—a sign that the muscles were healing rapidly.

Du Ziteng walked over, grimacing. The wound on his shoulder had already been hastily bandaged by Liu Xinyi. He looked at the corpses scattered on the ground, then at Wang Zhonghua, his eyes filled with disbelief: "Young Master Wang, your swordsmanship... when did you become so good?"

"I once studied under Master Huiming. After the first bandit attack, I abandoned my staff and started practicing with a knife." Wang Zhonghua sheathed his knife. "I practiced for several months, and today is the first time I'm using it."

Du Ziteng clicked his tongue in amazement: "You've reached this level in just a few months? With your talent, how are those who have trained for ten or eight years supposed to compete?"

Qin Tiehua proudly raised his chin: "That's right! Look who taught me! Master Huiming's personal instruction is of course excellent, and my Jinghong Blade is no less impressive! And Sister Liu, her flying needle technique is superb. Brother Zhonghua even praised her as being more powerful than 'Invincible East'! By the way, Brother Zhonghua, where is Invincible East? Let's invite him to be our instructor too."

Wang Zhonghua smiled—he couldn't possibly summon Dongfang Bubai. He walked over to the corpses, squatted down, and examined them closely.

He turned over the hand of a soldier, and saw that the calluses on the tiger's mouth were extremely thick, and the knuckles were large, indicating that he had been holding a knife for many years. However, the underfingernails were quite clean, and there was a faint mark on the skin of the waist, a mark left by long-term friction from clothing—the mark of armor worn in the army.

He then opened the collar of another corpse and saw a tattoo on the collarbone—blurred and indistinct, as if deliberately erased. But it was still vaguely recognizable as some kind of military insignia.

Wang Zhonghua stood up, his gaze cold and stern.

"Well-trained, fearless, and swift in action..." he said in a deep voice, "This is not an ordinary gangland feud; these are elite soldiers."

Qin Tiehua gripped the hilt of his knife tightly: "Is it aimed at the String Pavilion, or at you?"

Liu Xinyi said softly, "Or perhaps it's both. Today's opening has been too grand, and it has already shaken the foundations of some people."

Wang Zhonghua gazed at the snow-covered Xiange Lake, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

He recalled Ouyang Xiu's saying, "The tallest tree in the forest will surely be felled by the wind," and also Li Jingniang's meaningful words, "Take care on your journey."

—She must know something.

"Ziteng, could you clean up those corpses properly?"

Du Ziteng gritted his teeth and said, "Yes. My men will be there immediately, and I guarantee there won't be a trace before dawn."

"Alright." Wang Zhonghua nodded. "But keep two bodies and send them to General Di's residence. Let him see which army these people belong to."

Du Ziteng was taken aback for a moment, then understood: "I understand!"

Qin Tiehua suddenly asked, "Brother Zhonghua, who do you think it is?"

Wang Zhonghua was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "At the banquet today, there was someone who looked at me like I was a dead man."

"Who?"

"Of course it's Zhao Zongyuan."

Qin Tiehua frowned: "That young prince? Does he have the guts?"

"He didn't do it himself," Wang Zhonghua shook his head, "but the person behind him has the ability."

Liu Xinyi said softly, "You mean...his father?"

Wang Zhonghua did not answer, but only looked at the lights that were faintly visible in the wind and snow in the distance.

"Brother Zhonghua," Qin Tiehua suddenly spoke, interrupting his thoughts.

Wang Zhonghua turned around and saw that she was looking at him intently.

"Next time something like this happens," Qin Tiehua raised his knife, "let me go first. Your swordsmanship... isn't up to par yet."

Wang Zhonghua was taken aback, then smiled.

He knew Qin Tiehua was worried about him and afraid he would get hurt. But the way this girl spoke was always so awkward, so adorable.

"Okay." He nodded. "Next time, you can go first. I'll learn from you."

Qin Tiehua blushed again, turned his head away, and muttered softly, "That's more like it."

Liu Xinyi watched this scene with a slight smile on her lips.

Du Ziteng grinned from the side, which aggravated his wound, causing him to gasp in pain.

The wind and snow gradually subsided, and a faint glimmer of dawn appeared on the horizon.

Wang Zhonghua mounted his horse, snorted as he trotted through the snow, and lightly trotted his hooves, ready to pounce.

He glanced at the three men and said finally, "When we get back, double the number of guards inside the building. Starting tomorrow, all purchased ingredients will need to undergo three checks. If they want to play games, we'll play along. Tiehua, be careful of your wound."

Having said that, he flicked the reins, and "Treading on Snow" set off, its four hooves trotting through the snow.

Behind him, Du Ziteng struggled to climb onto the carriage. Qin Tiehua and Liu Xinyi stood side by side, gazing at that increasingly fierce figure, momentarily mesmerized.