Da Xuan Martial Saint

"Ning He? I have some impression of her."

Xue Lin looked Ning He up and down once, and then smiled faintly, "She's that little follower by Xu Hongyu's side, right?"

"For your lordship to remember this humble girl is my good fortune."

Ning He once again bowed in courtesy.

As Xu Hongyu's maidservant, when Xu Hongyu was not around to issue orders, Ning He didn't have to be afraid of or defer to He Mingxuan, but it was not the same with Xue Lin.

Let's not talk about her, even Xu Hongyu herself, when in front of Xue Lin, still had to defer with the courtesy owed by a subordinate.

In terms of both capability and official rank, Xue Lin was above Xu Hongyu, and even within the Xue family, his status was higher than that of Xu Hongyu.

Among the orthodox descendants of the Inner City's four major families, there is actually a hierarchy as well.

Take He Mingxuan, although he is also an orthodox descendent of the He Family, firstly, his martial arts talent and aptitude were quite ordinary, only barely stepping into the Tendon Changing Level at the age of twenty-seven, and secondly, he was not the eldest son among He Family's four generations, but born later, and thus in almost all aspects from status to strength, he was beneath Xu Hongyu.

On the contrary, Xue Lin belonged to the very top descendants of the orthodox families within the Inner City; he even had a high status and say within the Xue family lineage, not on the same level as He Mingxuan at all.

Because of this.

After learning about what had generally happened here, Ning He pondered for a long time and still came, but she didn't bring anyone with her, nor did she tell anyone, coming here all by herself.

With Xue Lin involved, she could only try to solve it herself; let's not even say Xu Hongyu was not in the city, even if Xu Hongyu was around, she couldn't drag Xu Hongyu into it.

After all, Ning Yu was her own younger brother, the only male in her family, so even knowing how difficult a person Xue Lin was, she still had to come.

"Hongyu's demon slaying this time was quite impressive, she didn't let down the name of the Yu Family."

Xue Lin withdrew his gaze and casually picked up a fruit from the table, chewing on it.

Ning He slightly lowered her head and kept silent; Xue Lin was commenting on Xu Hongyu, and she, as Xu Hongyu's maidservant, clearly had no place to interject.

Xue Lin seemed to be pondering about Xu Hongyu's matters and after a while, turned back, his gaze drifting lazily over to Ning Yu, who was tied up and kneeling in the distance, and said, "Is that your brother?"

"Yes."

Ning He replied, and added in a low voice, "My brother didn't mean to offend, I hope Lord Xue can spare him this once."

Xue Lin gave Ning He a cold look and said, "Whether to forgive or not, do you have the right to intercede?"

His words, along with the chill, seemed to make the air in the entire room much colder, and the Inner City's young nobles who were accompanying them didn't dare to speak at this moment, including He Mingxuan, who was sitting stiffly on the side, but giggling inwardly.

That lowly woman, relying on Xu Hongyu's power, dares to act high and mighty in front of him every day. If she angers Xue Lin now, not even Xu Hongyu would have the ability to plead for mercy.

Xue Lin's words also caused Ning He to tremble slightly; the gap in status was too great, and the pressure in his words made one feel nearly suffocated, even though she herself was at the Tendon Changing Level.

However.

Just when everyone fell into a silent tension, uncertain of Ning He's fate, Xue Lin suddenly shook his head.

"There's no point in troubling a maidservant like you, so here's what we'll do..."

Raising his hand, he threw the liquor jar that was beside him over to Little Lotus, saying, "This jar is Fire Cloud New Wine, its nature is extremely fierce."

Little Lotus stretched out her hand and caught the liquor jar. After all, she was a person of the Tendon Changing Realm, and as soon as she took the jar in her hand, without Xue Lin saying anything, she knew that this wine belonged to the type with extremely fierce medicinal power, but she kept her composure at that moment.

With a gentle lift of her hands, the deep red wine inside the jar turned into a thread-like stream and flowed down. The songstress had passed out from just a drop earlier, but now it was flowing steadily like a babbling brook, and in no time at all, the jar was completely emptied.

With her cheeks slightly flushed, Little Lotus put down the liquor jar and looked at Xue Lin.

"Good."

A trace of appreciation showed on Xue Lin's face as he said, "You are truly Hongyu's maid, having a nature that's quite like hers. You may go."

Even though a martial artist of the Tendon Changing Level could withstand his Fire Cloud New Wine, drinking an entire jar of such fiery wine in one go was akin to drinking liquid fire, yet Little Lotus remained unchanged in expression from beginning to end.

"This servant shall take her leave."

Little Lotus bowed respectfully, and then walked over to Ning Yu, lifting him up and walking outside.

She never once glanced at He Mingxuan from beginning to end.

Watching this scene, He Mingxuan hadn't expected Xue Lin to let her off so easily, and even more, he was irritated by Little Lotus's disregard, watching her disappearing figure helplessly, he couldn't help saying, "Brother Xue, even a maid of Xu Hongyu dares to be so disrespectful."

"You're drunk."

Xue Lin took his gaze back from Little Lotus and gave He Mingxuan a light glance.

That one look instantly sent a chill through He Mingxuan, sobering him up, leaving him frozen in place, not daring to speak again for the moment.

The air fell into silence once more.

Xue Lin slowly poured himself another cup of wine, and a light smile suddenly appeared again on his indifferent face, saying, "Alright, let the music play on, let the dance continue."

He didn't just let Little Lotus off because he was in a good mood or to give Xu Hongyu face, but because there was a hint of He Mingxuan's involvement in today's incident.

He had no interest in meddling in the affairs of the He Family and the Yu Family.

In fact, just now, he had only made Little Lotus drink an entire jar of wine as an apology because Ning Yu had spoiled his mood, and as for anything more, he wasn't interested.

If He Mingxuan still wanted to use his influence for something and remained so oblivious to the situation, Xue Lin wouldn't mind having one more person thrown into the moat.

Accompanying Xue Lin's instructions,

The songstresses in the room quickly came to their senses, lifted their smiling faces, and started playing the music and singing again.

Some young masters from the Inner City started chatting and laughing again, flattering Xue Lin, while only He Mingxuan was left coldly out of the loop.

His gaze turned somewhat cold as he glanced towards the door and made a hand gesture.

A figure quickly disappeared outside.

...

Outside the pleasure boat.

Little Lotus, with one hand, half-dragged and half-carried Ning Yu, pulling him from the boat to shore, then she suddenly exerted strength in her fingers and snapped the ropes tied around him.

"Sis... I today..."

Still trembling, Ning Yu finally could not hold back and whispered as they reached the shore.

However, Ning He cut him off.

"Let's go!"

Her voice was grave.

It was only then that Ning Yu noticed Ning He's fingers trembling slightly, and beads of sweat glistened on her forehead, while her neck appeared reddish as if it were burnt.

"Sis, you..."

"No more words, let's go."

Ning He said in a low voice, rapidly walking ahead while Ning Yu hurriedly followed.

She glanced at the pleasure boats by the riverbank and quickly led Ning Yu into the alleys, striding swiftly in the darkness.

After passing through several streets and alleys in succession, Ning He suddenly swayed and staggered, reaching out to support herself against a nearby exterior wall.

Ning Yu was shocked and quickly wanted to support her, but Ning He shook her head.

"I'm alright, just a bit of disordered qi-blood. This place isn't safe; we need to return to the south quickly."

When in a normal state, she could have easily crossed over the river surface to Wutong Grove District on the other side. Even with the ice growing thin and carrying Ning Yu, it wouldn't have been an issue.

But after drinking that jar of Fiery Cloud Liquor, her qi-blood was in complete chaos, and she could only travel by land. They had to pass through 'Ancient Camphor Alley' in City West, cross the Zhengxin Bridge, and return to the South.

"This liquor is actually quite good, it's just that..."

Ning He inwardly gave a bitter smile.

If sipped slowly, the liquor's effect was no less than that of precious medicinal wines that could greatly nourish one's qi-blood. But guzzling a whole jar in one go meant she had to suppress its medicinal power.

What was more critical was that this area belonged to City West, and now that night had fallen, it was not at all safe.

In fact, she could have easily dealt with any common thug, but she was more worried about He Mingxuan. The He Family's influence in City West far exceeded that of the south, and it was doubtful whether He Mingxuan would kick them while they were down, especially since today's events were likely orchestrated by him.

"Mhm."

Ning Yu bowed his head and responded, following Ning He who had resumed her swift pace through the alleys.

After crossing several more streets and alleys,

Two figures emerged from the darkness ahead.

"Oh, it's a lady."

"What is the young miss doing out so late at night, and where might she be going?"
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Two shabbily dressed thugs squatting at the street corner, upon seeing Ning He and Ning Yu rushing through the streets, maliciously blocked their path.

In the middle of the night, a woman venturing outside was certainly unusual. But the two appeared to be in a hurry, and the man seemed panicked, which was a different story.

"Scram."

Ning He spoke coldly.

The two ruffians exchanged glances, and one of them immediately grinned and said, "Whoa, feisty indeed. Upon closer look, the lady's quite the beauty..."

As they eyed Ning He, the other one leered and reached out his hand.

But before his hand could even get close,

Crack! Crack!

Two crisp sounds of bones breaking echoed.

Ning He quickly withdrew her hand and led Ning Yu through the middle of the two fallen thugs.

Both thugs' eyes bulged out as their necks twisted into contorted shapes. After a few spasms, they collapsed by the roadside with a thump.

My sister is really amazing...

Ning Yu looked back at the two motionless bodies of the thugs and felt a deep respect for Ning He.

For generations, his family had served as house servants for the Yu Family. Fortunately, in his generation, Ning He was selected to be a maid for Xu Hongyu, and while she took care of Xu Hongyu's daily needs, she also had the opportunity to practice martial arts with her. Their family's fortunes improved gradually, and they even managed to buy some properties in the Outer City.

He had come to the pleasure boat today to deliver alcohol. On a whim, he boarded the boat to see the excitement and accidentally collided with someone. When he found out the other party was an important figure from the Inner City, he was filled with regret.

The Deputy Governor of the Demon-Slaying Office, Xue Lin, was such an important figure.

Having offended him, Ning Yu had little hope of luck. He thought he might not die this time but would surely lose half his life.

But then Ning He arrived, safely leading him away from the pleasure boat, navigating the dark alleys with him at night. Any thug or ruffian who dared to cause trouble was instantly dispatched with a flick of her hand... His admiration for his sister grew even stronger.

However,

What Ning Yu didn't notice was Ning He, who had just nonchalantly killed two thugs, now had her fingers trembling more noticeably, and even the skin on her arms seemed to be tinged with a slight redness.

Continuing their journey, they crossed dozens more alleys without encountering anyone else, enjoying an uneventful travel, with only a short distance left to the nearest 'Zhengxin Bridge'.

From a distance,

They could already see the bridge spanning over the moat.

In her heart, Ning He felt a slight relief. Once over the bridge, they would be in the South City District, and more importantly, Wutong Grove, which was Chen Mu's territory.

But,

Just as the two were rapidly approaching Zhengxin Bridge, finally getting close,

Stomp, stomp, stomp.

A sequence of footsteps resounded from the darkness, heavy and stable, the kind that revealed a person trained in martial arts with just the sound of their steps.

Ning He stopped in her tracks and looked toward the emerging group of figures from the darkness, her expression growing more somber.