What was initially expected to be a battle of profound significance in the street, a story that teahouse storytellers could live on for the next decade, an epic saga that would inspire young swordsmen of future generations, and a conflict that could have stirred a tempest reaching even the royal court—all of it was brought to a screeching halt by a blind man’s shout.

Everything seemed to have been forcibly paused.

The abrupt halt caught everyone involved off guard. Many of the Silver Armored Guard’s elite warriors felt their chests heave, a sign of internal injuries from forcibly suppressing their surging vital energy.

“COUGH, COUGH…”

The Sword Saint’s body swayed. He wasn’t injured; rather, he was utterly bewildered by the blind man’s actions.

Direct Thief! You’re a Yan bastard!

What in the world was happening? Could such an absurd event truly occur? A man from Jin State and a group of Qian people were about to battle over a child, only for a man from Yan State to suddenly hold a dagger to that child’s throat!

But, despite the absurdity, the imminent great battle had indeed stopped.

Baili Xianglan’s pretty face turned frosty. Clearly, her irritation was many times greater than the Sword Saint’s.

She was the one staging the ambush! It had been going so well. How, in an instant, had she become the one being threatened?

For the first time, Baili Xianglan took a serious look at the blind man. Then, she recognized him.

“You’re Yan people!”

Originally, when Li Fusheng’s grand army was stationed outside the imperial capital, and Zheng Fan was on a diplomatic mission to Qian State, the blind man and A Ming had accompanied them.

However, when they entered the palace, the blind man and A Ming were separated. Later, on their way out of the city, they were attacked by secret agents from Chu State and almost trapped by the Qian army led by Zu Dongling. It was Baili Xianglan who appeared and defused the situation, allowing Zheng Fan and the others to exit the city.

However, at that time, the blind man had been standing behind Zheng Fan and wasn’t very conspicuous, so he hadn’t left a deep impression on Baili Xianglan. The second encounter was outside the imperial capital, but due to the timely arrival of the North Border Army, the Baili siblings had chosen to retreat directly into the city, so no fight occurred.

Yet, when the spotlight was cast on the blind man, Baili Xianglan immediately recognized his identity.

“Indeed, I am Yan people,” the blind man replied matter-of-factly.

Baili Xianglan’s face quickly regained its calm. Although she definitely couldn’t compare to her brother, she was by no means an ordinary master. Otherwise, the Qian Emperor wouldn’t have made her his guard. Therefore, her ability to adjust her state of mind was excellent.

Yet, the one she was facing was the notorious figure known among the Demon Kings as Old Silver Coin.

“Interesting. You, a Yan man, are threatening me with the child of a Yan man.”

“What’s wrong? Can’t I?” the blind man retorted.

“You can try.”

“Are you provoking me?” the blind man chuckled.

“What, you don’t dare?” Baili Xianglan countered.

“Indeed, I dare not. This child is precious. He’s the son of the Lord and will surely inherit his title. When he grows up, aside from the Crown Prince, who in this world will possess a more noble status than him?”

“But there’s no other choice. Since he’s the Lord’s child, he must bear his responsibility.”

With a righteous and imposing tone, the blind man boomed out as if delivering a formal declaration,

“As the son of Lord Jingnan, inheriting the glory of his lineage, how can he be captured by an enemy state, forced to live under another’s roof, manipulated and threatened?”

Upon hearing this, the Sword Saint furrowed his brow.

Baili Xianglan suddenly felt that things were spiraling out of control.

The blind man continued to yell, “Do you think I won’t kill him? I can tell you responsibly, today, if I kill this child, even if you let me go and don’t kill me, the Lord will not kill me for this. On the contrary, he will promote me and commend me for my actions!

“Since the Lord was able to exterminate his own entire clan for the sake of Great Yan, how could he be unwilling to give up this one son?

“How could he possibly sit by and watch his son be taken away by you, the Qian State’s Silver Armored Guard, to be raised by the Qian Emperor’s side?”

“If I kill him, then no matter how much the Lord hates me, how much he detests me, he will still reward me. I will live well!”

The blind man’s words left the Sword Saint unable to refute, because he felt the blind man was right.

Baili Xianglan also couldn’t refute, because Tian Wujing, indeed, was someone capable of doing such a thing.

This was the power of his reputation. In this world, apart from the Earl of the North Border and the Yan Emperor, the person who best understood and was most familiar with Tian Wujing was probably General Zheng Fan.

Apart from them, others saw Tian Wujing as nothing more than a cold, soulless weapon.

The blind man deliberately licked his lips, forcing a villainous smile onto his face, and threatened,

“Ask me again. See if I dare kill him?”

Baili Xianglan’s gaze hardened slightly.

None of the surrounding Silver Armored Guards dared to make a rash move.

The blind man continued to shout, “If I kill him, I’ll be promoted and ennobled! But what about you? What about your Qian State?

“HAHAHAHAHAHA!

“If he dies, the Lord’s son dies! Lord Jingnan’s son dies! The young master of the Jingnan Army will be gone! Your Qian State will face the wrath of the entire Jingnan Army!

“The war between Yan and Qian will swiftly reignite!

“You, you, you, and you, you, you… all of you! Can any of you make the decision to start this war on behalf of your Emperor?

“When you return and tell your Emperor that you successfully reignited the flames of war, how will he reward your ‘meritorious service’? Will he bring honor to your families?”

The Sword Saint clicked his tongue a few times.

That was a truly brilliant speech.

The Silver Armored Guards exchanged glances. As leaders of intelligence agencies, they were naturally aware of the court’s political situation. The northern part of Qian State was currently experiencing a food shortage, constantly diverting grain from Jiangnan to support the north. Meanwhile, the expansion of the new army had only just begun; His Majesty was still preparing for a future war.

The future, not now.

If his son died, would Tian Wujing, in a fit of rage, unilaterally start a national war?

The answer was… very likely.

Because it fit Tian Wujing’s established persona, the Yan Emperor’s persona, and indeed, the persona of Yan State as a whole.

The blind man placed the child on his lap, still holding the dagger against him with his right hand, and waved his left hand,

“Come on, come on! What are you waiting for? If this child lives, it’s a great merit for me. If this child dies by my hand, I’ll still enjoy wealth and honor for half my life!

“Even if you kill this esteemed Sword Saint, and then take my head after I’ve killed this child, my family will still be heavily rewarded!

“No matter how you look at it, I don’t lose!”

Baili Xianglan said grimly, “And what if you die without a trace?”

“HAHAHA…” The blind man burst into laughter again, tears nearly streaming down his face, and said,

“That’s why I say you women have long hair but short insight. Alright, even if your dozens of men managed to sneak in here silently, don’t get your hopes up about leaving without a trace.

“Let’s take it ten thousand steps back.

“Even if you manage to cover your tracks perfectly, leaving absolutely no evidence.

“When my Lord wants to unleash his anger, when my Great Yan wants to vent its fury…

“If we don’t attack your Qian State, who else would we target?

“Do we need a reason to attack your Qian State? If there isn’t one, we’ll just invent one! This child’s death, no matter how you spin it, is most advantageously and suitably blamed on you Qian people. The royal court, the street, even the common folk will find it convincing.

“Ultimately, do you really think you can get away clean?

“Heh.

“What a joke.”

The final word was drawn out into an elongated sound by the blind man.

The Sword Saint felt he was becoming corrupted. Ever since his defeat by Tian Wujing, he truly felt he had fallen, because he found himself actually understanding the blind man’s insinuations.

But, the Sword Saint didn’t hesitate much either.

He put his still-bleeding fingertip into his mouth and began to suck on it, then waved his hand, saying, “No more fighting, no more fighting. Yan people and Qian people are fighting over a Yan child. What does that have to do with a remnant of the Three Jin like me? It’s not worth throwing my life away here.

“No more fighting, no more fighting. If you want to fight, if you want to kill…

“You…

“Please, continue.”

In Baili Xianglan’s hand, the sword trembled.

If the Sword Saint was determined to protect this child, then even if she sacrificed half her experts, she could ensure he was buried here today. But if the Sword Saint was set on escaping, who could possibly stop him?

As long as the Sword Saint didn’t die, there would inevitably be a living witness to today’s events. And this witness was of such esteemed status; his testimony would be impossible to suppress!

Baili Xianglan chuckled. “Heh.”

The blind man promptly said, “Laugh a bit more. Try to cover up your disappointment and unease.”

“HEHEHE… Sir, back when you accompanied Zheng Fan into the imperial capital, I actually overlooked you. May I be so bold as to ask your name?”

The blind man said casually, “My surname is Fan, given name Li. Fanli.”

“I will remember.”

“Please do.”

Baili Xianglan looked at the Sword Saint, saying, “Sir, the Jin land is in turmoil. If you wouldn’t mind, you are welcome to be a guest at our Baili Family in the future. My elder brother often speaks of you.”

“I will visit in the future,” said the Sword Saint.

They were offering each other a way to back down gracefully.

Baili Xianglan added, “This matter wasn’t our doing.”

“What matter?” The Sword Saint asked, somewhat puzzled.

“The matter concerning the child. We received word that ‘that person’ might have been exposed, so we hurried here to provide support.”

“Why are you telling me this?” The Sword Saint asked, confused.

The blind man nodded and said, “I understand.”

Baili Xianglan waved her hand, and the dozens of Silver Armored Guard experts around her began to retreat.

Then, Baili Xianglan also departed, her figure transforming into a pale yellow silhouette that swiftly vanished.

The blind man lowered the dagger in his hand and let out a long sigh of relief.

The Sword Saint, on the other hand, sat down somewhat dejectedly, tilting his head back to gaze at the sky.

The blind man asked uncertainly, “What’s wrong, Your Excellency?”

“Watching you leverage the power of a nation to overwhelm others… I’m envious.”

The blind man smiled bitterly. “There you go again.”

“I incited my Ah Brother to rebel against the Jin Emperor, and as a result, we lost even our last foothold in the capital city.

“I helped Situ Lei kill his father, and now the wild people are rampaging through the Situ Family’s lands.

“It seems whatever I do, I fail. I appear to have done much, yet in the end, I’ve only made a bigger mess of things.

“Actually, just now, I truly yearned for a satisfying battle. Firstly, to use the blood of those Silver Armored Guards to leave some stories for posterity, something for a swordsman of a fallen nation to be remembered by. Secondly, it would have been a form of release.

“Sometimes, when I reflect deeply, Tian Wujing wasn’t wrong.

“The street…

“It truly is something that can’t hold its head high.”

“The wild people may defeat the Situ Family and come for us.”

“I know.”

“I know a place where one can kill wild people.”

“Heh, interesting. My Ah Brother died at your hands, and now you have the gall to try and trick me into fighting for you, to become a true Yan bastard?

“Never mind whether I’m willing or not; are you even worthy? Is that place called Shengle worthy?”

Even without a nation, he still retained his sword, and he remained the Sword Saint.

The blind man laughed. “If you were to work for Lord Jingnan, the world would certainly say you’ve become a dog for Yan.”

“Then what’s the difference in going to Shengle?”

“The City Commander of Shengle is a lowly cur, hardly worthy of commanding you, Sword Saint.

“The world will only believe that you, the Sword Saint, have taken the initiative to slay wild people for the descendants of the Great Xia. Those Yan people in Shengle City will undoubtedly look to you for leadership. The narrative will be entirely different.

“This way, your sword will have purpose, and you will have both face and substance.

“Kill some wild people, reflect on life. When the wild people are repelled, or when you’ve figured things out…

“Should you wish to leave, or simply grow tired of it all…

“You can depart at any time.

“The Sword Saint’s sword is eternally free. Any rope that attempts to bind it will inevitably snap.”

“What you say… seems to hold a sliver of truth.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep