Chapter 51: The Unknowable Truth

  The five ice spikes shot toward Tang Mingli like arrows, about to pierce his body with five transparent holes...

  Suddenly, the ice spikes turned 180 degrees mid-air and flew back toward Xiao Lan behind Sanbao.

  "Miss, help me!" Xiao Lan screamed in terror as she ducked behind Sanbao. She shoved Sanbao with all her strength, pushing her toward the incoming ice spikes.

  But the ice spikes seemed to have a mind of their own. They deftly swerved around Sanbao's body, which was off-bance from being pushed, and continued on their path, piercing Xiao Lan's body with unerring accuracy.

  "Thud! Thud! Thud!"

  The five sharp ice shards pierced deep into Xiao Lan's chest and abdomen, causing blood to sptter across the floor, instantly staining it red. She colpsed in a heap, her body falling into the blood-soaked ground.

  "Miss... why?" Xiao Lan's voice trembled, tears streaming from her eyes as she reached out with her bloodstained hand, as if trying to grab onto Sanbao's clothes.

  Sanbao looked coldly at her. "Why? You’re not the one to ask that. You tried to use me as a human shield, and you’re getting exactly what you deserve."

  She stepped forward slowly, her gaze icy. "Speak, Xiao Lan, what is your real identity? What have you been hiding for ten years? What do you and these four bck-cd men want from me? Where are you trying to take me, and what do you want to get from me?"

  Xiao Lan y in the blood, her breath faint, her lips trembling. "Miss... I’m your Xiao Lan... I was assigned to take care of you when I was eight... I’ve been dutifully serving you... for ten years... I may not have made any great achievements, but I’ve worked hard...”

  Tears mingled with blood at the corners of her eyes as she choked on her words, trying to defend herself.

  Sanbao stood still, her mind fshing back to the days in the Xu family manor, pying and ughing with Xiao Lan and Wu Yuyu. Her heart softened for a moment.

  She spoke gently, "Xiao Lan, tell me honestly. The ambush outside Moling City, the bck-cd men at the Pingjiang Inn, and these bck-cd men tonight—are they all part of the same group? Our Xu family is just a minor noble family, without power or influence, and we have no valuable family heirlooms or powerful cultivation techniques. After ten years of infiltration, what were you really after?"

  Xiao Lan’s voice grew weaker. "Miss... I can’t hold on... come closer... I’ll tell you..."

  She weakly tugged at Sanbao’s skirt, trying to pull her closer.

  Sanbao hesitated for a moment, then leaned down, pressing her ear to Xiao Lan’s mouth.

  Xiao Lan’s voice came out in broken whispers. "The organization behind me... is called..."

  "Thud!"

  Suddenly, a fsh of cold light—a dagger shot out from Xiao Lan’s sleeve, stabbing deeply into Sanbao’s abdomen.

  Blood gushed out as a sharp pain surged through her. Sanbao colpsed to the floor, surrounded by blood.

  "Hahaha! Miss, come with Xiao Lan to the Yellow Springs! Xiao Lan will take care of you on the way!" Xiao Lan’s shrill ugh echoed through the room.

  "Sanbao!!!" Tang Mingli roared in fury. His body erupted like thunder, rushing forward. With a powerful strike, his right palm unleashed a torrent of spiritual energy, creating a fierce wind that smmed into Xiao Lan.

  Xiao Lan seemed to have been prepared. She sprang from the blood-soaked ground and met his attack with a palm strike.

  "Boom!"

  With a loud crash, Xiao Lan was sent flying several yards, her body crashing into the wall. The sound of her bones shattering echoed clearly. She slowly slid to the ground, her body lifeless, only a faint breath remaining.

  Tang Mingli didn’t pause for a second. He turned and rushed to Sanbao’s side, lifting her up and holding her tightly. "Sanbao! How are you? Hang on, don’t close your eyes!"

  Sanbao’s face was pale, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, her breathing weak. She wanted to speak but couldn’t make a sound.

  "Don’t speak," Tang Mingli trembled as he pulled a crystal-clear healing pill from his pouch and carefully pced it in her mouth. "Quickly swallow, this is a Nine-Turn Heart-Protecting Pill. It will protect your heart and keep you safe."

  He fed her the pill and pced his palm on her back, slowly channeling spiritual energy into her to stabilize her faltering breath.

  After a violent cough, Sanbao opened her eyes and looked at him. "I’m fine... I’ll recover quickly..." she said in broken sentences.

  "Don’t worry, I have other healing pills. Once your breath stabilizes, I’ll give you more. The Tang family has a rge fortune, though we can’t afford the kind of spiritual medicine like those from the Medicine King Valley, we can still manage some healing pills," Tang Mingli anxiously continued, clearly misunderstanding her meaning.

  "I’m not saying that..." Sanbao opened her mouth to expin, but Tang Mingli gently pressed his finger to her lips.

  "I told you, I will take care of you," Tang Mingli said, his warm eyes and caring words causing Sanbao’s heart to soften. This man... he really does care about me!

  Tang Mingli reached up and gently adjusted the pendant on the back of her neck, bringing the golden butterfly pendant back to her chest. As he touched it, he felt a strange unease. The pendant was supposed to offer protection, so why had it not activated when Xiao Lan attacked her?

  Tang Mingli frowned in confusion.

  Sanbao seemed to read his thoughts and spoke up, "I remember when you gave me the pendant, you said it was a defensive talisman that could block a fatal blow. Right?"

  Tang Mingli nodded.

  "It didn’t activate, and you’re curious about why." Sanbao’s voice seemed stronger now, no longer as weak as before.

  Tang Mingli nodded again, about to speak, but was interrupted by Sanbao.

  "Because I didn’t suffer a fatal injury," Sanbao said, her voice louder now, completely unlike someone who had just been gravely wounded.

  Tang Mingli looked down and saw that the dagger that had been lodged in her abdomen was no longer there. She had pulled it out at some point, and the blood had already stopped flowing. What was strange was that the narrow wound on her abdomen had already healed, the skin visibly closing up.

  How did she recover so quickly? My Nine-Turn Heart-Protecting Pill can only protect the heart and stabilize the breath, it doesn’t have any healing properties! Tang Mingli’s doubts grew deeper.

  Sanbao smiled and freed herself from his embrace, standing up. "Don’t overthink it. It’s just one of my little secrets! I’ll tell you when the time is right, but not now!"

  Sanbao walked over to the wall and knelt down, looking at Xiao Lan, who was lying in a pool of blood, her breath faint.

  Xiao Lan stared up at Sanbao, her eyes full of pain. "Miss, you really are full of secrets. The sect leader was right, you are possibly the one with the most secrets in all of Rudy Kingdom... no wonder he wanted us to do whatever it takes to bring you to our headquarters."

  "Your sect leader? What’s the name of your organization? Where is your headquarters?" Sanbao pressed. "There are too many secrets, and I won’t be at peace until I know the truth. For the sake of the bond we had, answer my questions."

  "Miss, let me call you that one st time. I can’t answer all your questions. All I can say is, the sect leader noticed you when you were very young. He sent me to your Xu family to infiltrate, just to investigate the secrets about you. Unfortunately, after all these years, the only thing I’ve discovered is that you learn everything a bit faster than ordinary people. I couldn’t uncover any other secrets. Your Xu family really doesn’t have any great cultivation techniques or heirloom treasures."

  Xiao Lan’s strength seemed to return suddenly, and her eyes shone with a strange light. She continued, "Your Xu family wasn’t the only one being infiltrated. People from Medicine King Valley also took notice of you and sent someone to infiltrate your family—she’s your dy’s maid, Biyu. Since the sect leader and Medicine King Valley have taken notice of you, other powerful factions might be keeping an eye on you too. Miss, you have to be careful in the future. Everyone around you may have ulterior motives. Take care, Miss. Xiao Lan and Yuyu will leave first."

  With those words, Xiao Lan’s head tilted, and her eyes closed for the st time.

  The wind outside the broken window blew in, bringing a chill with it. The fire still burned, and the smell of blood lingered, but all the answers remained hidden beneath yers of fog.

  Xiao Lan was dead. But when would the truth behind all this finally be revealed?