Even though it was only the early hours of dusk, a thick, suffocating shroud of dark clouds had already begun to converge in the heavens above Tian Xiang City.
It was the kind of dusk where the sun, having barely begun its descent, seemed to be swallowed alive by a sky that refused to let the day pass in peace.
The howling wind clawed through the alleyways and streets like invisible specters, carrying with it an ominous chill, an ill omen that made every leaf shiver and every flag whip violently on its pole.
The wide avenues, once bustling with laughter and chatter, had grown unnaturally silent. Pedestrians had long since sensed the unnatural pressure in the air, the brooding weight that settled over the city like a judge about to pass sentence.
They hurried off the roads, shuttered their windows, and locked their doors, as if their instincts whispered the truth: tonight, blood would be spilled.
Amidst this eerie quiet, the red palanquin of Jun Mo Xie made its way through the haunted streets like a lonely flicker of defiance.
Inside the palanquin, Jun Mo Xie lounged comfortably, his hands clasped loosely before him, eyes half-lidded but glittering like stars behind the veil of calm. The corners of his mouth tugged upward ever so slightly as if he were privy to a joke no one else knew. His aura was tranquil, but beneath that serene surface brewed a deadly intent.
As the palanquin rolled toward a crossroad veiled in shadows, Jun Mo Xie's eyes flickered open. He tilted his head, sensing the subtle shift in the air.
"They're here," He murmured with a knowing smile.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sound was like a chorus of hissing serpents, sudden and sharp—so abrupt that the wind itself seemed to pause in reverence.
A volley of arrows, throwing knives, sleeve darts, and even iron needles exploded from the rooftops and alleyways. Like a swarm of locusts in a feeding frenzy, they descended upon the palanquin from all directions—more densely packed than even a torrential downpour!
Bang!
A massive chain, heavy and cruel, crashed into the top of the palanquin like the hammer of a war god, tearing through the roof and sending splinters flying.
The Jun family guards sprang into motion like unleashed tigers. They were eight men strong, veterans of war and elite retainers of the Jun household—each one a force of discipline and steel.
"Protect the young master!"
The order rang out like thunder. Without hesitation, the guards formed a tight perimeter around the palanquin, four in front, four behind.
Two of them, already wounded—arrows jutting from their thighs and sides—did not so much as flinch, let alone cry out. They stood like statues, flesh and bone masking iron wills.
The sky crackled with thunder in the distance, as though the heavens themselves acknowledged the encroaching storm of steel and blood.
After the initial volley, silence reigned. Not even footsteps echoed. It was the kind of silence that screamed—heavy with dread, pregnant with killing intent. Only the wind persisted, moaning like a grieving widow through the hollow alleys.
Jun Mo Xie chuckled inside his palanquin.
"Interesting... So eager to die today, aren't we?"
Jun Hu, the captain of the guards, scanned the rooftops with narrowed eyes. "The enemy's moving like ghosts. Coordinated strikes. Concealed weapons from at least five angles. This isn't the work of common killers."
"Enemy's in the shadows," He hissed. "We'll divide into two groups. Four in front, four in the rear. If either group is attacked, the others will regroup. Protect the young master at all costs!"
The men nodded in unison, their expressions carved from stone.
But then, a calm and clear voice from within the palanquin interrupted them.
"No. Don't move," Jun Mo Xie said. "If you split up now, you're just feeding yourselves to the wolves."
Jun Hu frowned. "Young master, but—"
"Silence," Mo Xie snapped, though his voice remained deceptively gentle. "Listen closely. Their attack came all at once—coordinated, precise, with different kinds of concealed weapons. This isn't some roadside ambush. They're professionals. Their target is me. Splitting up will only accelerate your deaths... and mine."
The guards hesitated, caught between their training and the cold logic of their young master.
Jun Mo Xie's voice lowered to a steely whisper. "We have only one chance. See that corner, ten feet ahead?"
Jun Hu glanced in the indicated direction.
"We'll make for that corner and divert down the road toward the Jun residence," Mo Xie explained. "It's narrow and partially collapsed—only one person can pass through at a time. Perfect bottleneck. But first—"
His voice dropped to a whisper thick with command. "You'll abandon the palanquin. Now."
The guards stiffened in disbelief.
"Abandon the palanquin?" Jun Hu echoed, as if he'd misheard.
Jun Mo Xie's tone turned glacial. "You heard me. Leave me. Now. Run ahead. Draw their attention. I'll escape on my own."
Jun Hu stared, his heart clenching. "Young master, we cannot—"
"You will!" Mo Xie barked, for the first time raising his voice. "You are soldiers of the Jun Family. That means you follow orders! You will not die here like fools. Not for me. Not when you can live to protect me another day."
A long silence stretched.
Jun Hu bit down hard on his lip, then turned to his men. "We obey."
"We will draw them away, young master!" He said, bowing low with tears threatening the corners of his eyes. "But if you fall... we will not wait for the family to pass judgment. Our lives are yours, and we will end them the moment yours ends."
Jun Mo Xie smiled faintly. "Dramatic to the end, aren't you?"
Jun Hu gave a final salute, then barked. "MOVE!"
The eight guards vanished down the path in bursts of speed, their bodies like streaks of shadow melting into the fog and rain.
Within seconds, silence returned. The shattered palanquin sat alone, battered and bleeding from the earlier assault, its roof ripped open like a split coconut.
Inside, it was completely empty.
Jun Mo Xie had vanished.
He did not jump out... or sprint away.
He had sunk like a whisper of smoke slipping into the cracks of the earth.
There were no traces of his movement, his presence long since vanished.
It was as though the very air had consumed him.
A few rooftops away, hidden beneath a veil of shadows, the black-robed woman watched with glittering eyes.
Chu Yue'er's figure, draped in flowing obsidian silk, clung to the edge of a rooftop like a phantom. The veil over her face fluttered in the wind, briefly revealing a pair of luminous eyes—cold, calculating, yet undeniably beautiful.
She giggled and slipped into the darkness, making her way to the Jun Residence.
And at the crossroads, hidden assassins began to emerge from the shadows, swords drawn, eyes wild.
They had come for Jun Mo Xie.
But they did not know that Jun Mo Xie was no longer their prey.
--- ✦ ✦ ✦ ---
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