When Poetry Sings And The Saber Roars - Chapter 1

It was the first month of spring, and the lingering chill in the wind shook a pear tree until its blossoms seemed ready to fall.

Flowers and leaves alike were stained red, the blood glaringly vivid.

Clearly, a fierce battle had taken place here not long ago. Ling Suihan reined in her horse and surveyed the surrounding area before urging her mount eastward. The stench of blood grew increasingly strong, and just as she had expected, seven bodies lay scattered through the pine forest ahead.

There were both men and women among them, their bodies drenched in crimson and their eyes still open in death.

But the person she was pursuing was not among them.

It seemed that after a vicious struggle spanning several different locations, he had ultimately killed these people and fled for his life.

There was no time to lose. Ling Suihan was about to continue following the trail of blood when an extremely faint moan drifted to her ears on the wind.

Someone was still alive?

Pressing her left hand against the horse’s back, she sprang away with the speed of a startled hare and a diving falcon, landing beside the source of the sound.

It was a girl of about sixteen or seventeen. She was still breathing, but her injuries were so severe that she could not move. Ling Suihan’s martial arts were formidable, yet her inner force happened to be unsuitable for healing others. She would have to reach a nearby village or town and find a physician to treat the girl.

For now, she could only take wound medicine and strips of cloth from her bundle, staunch the bleeding, and bandage the girl’s wounds. Afterward, she looked around, searching through her memories from when she had left Chang’an ten years ago as she tried to recall the direction of the nearest village.

By then, the girl had regained a little strength. Forcing her eyes open, she began to study Ling Suihan.

She appeared to be around twenty years old. Her hair was arranged in a single-saber bun, secured with an ebony hairpin, and she wore a snow-white robe with a turned-down collar and narrow sleeves. Her attire was exceptionally neat and practical, and a ring-pommel saber in a black scabbard hung at her waist.

She was someone from the jianghu…

Those who wandered the jianghu could be righteous or wicked, good or evil. The girl had no idea who the woman before her was, but she was still young and had not been traveling the martial world for long. In her mind, villains ought to be ugly and misshapen, while good people should naturally be handsome and upright.

Although this older sister’s expression was cold, her skin was fair and her features exceptionally beautiful. She was unquestionably a chivalrous heroine who would come to the aid of someone in need.

The girl immediately appealed to her for help. “I…I am Tang Yi, a disciple of Dingshan—ugh!”

The girl’s name was not Tang Yi.

It was Tang Yiluo.

Unfortunately, before she could utter the final syllable, Luo, Ling Suihan abruptly released the left hand supporting her. Tang Yiluo crashed heavily back onto the ground, feeling as though every bone in her body might split apart at once.

She raised her head in bewilderment, only to see the other woman turning away.

The Dingshan Sect was universally recognized throughout the jianghu as a prestigious and righteous sect. Its disciples had always regarded upholding justice and protecting the innocent as their duty. They had never committed anything that violated the principles of heaven or harmed the innocent, and their reputation in the martial world was excellent.

Could this woman have some grudge against the Dingshan Sect and therefore be taking it out on her?

But this older sister did not look the slightest bit like a villain. How could she possibly be an enemy of the Dingshan Sect?

Tang Yiluo thought until her head began to ache. Only then did a possibility suddenly occur to her, and she called out hoarsely, “Are you also here to capture Peng Lie?”

Ling Suihan had already reached her horse. At those words, she stopped short.

Tang Yiluo saw her reaction and knew that she had guessed correctly.

Peng Lie had only recently fled this place, so there was still time to catch up with him. But if this woman allowed him to escape in order to save her, he might disappear into the vast world without a trace, and they would never find him again.

If Tang Yiluo had only suffered minor wounds, that would have been one thing. But could this woman not see that several of her injuries might cost her life?

Tang Yiluo was both furious and afraid, and she greatly resented the woman for being willing to stand by and let her die. On second thought, however, her martial uncles and eldest senior sister had often admonished her that those who walked the path of chivalry should be willing to sacrifice themselves to eradicate evil and uphold good, unafraid to surrender their lives for righteousness.

The notorious outlaw Peng Lie had committed countless atrocities. For every additional day he remained free, there was no telling how many more innocent people he might kill.

At that thought, Tang Yiluo held back the tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. A sudden sense of heroic resolve filled her, as though she were preparing to sacrifice herself for a noble cause.

“I…I know where he probably went…to Yongchun Hall in Changzhi County…”

Ling Suihan looked back. “How do you know?”

The doubt in her eyes was far too obvious. How could Tang Yiluo endure such an insult? She opened her mouth to explain, but her anger surged and aggravated her injuries. Her vision went black, and she fainted again.

Ling Suihan stroked her horse’s mane with her left hand and pondered briefly. Instead of using qinggong again, she walked back to Tang Yiluo one step at a time, lifted the half-conscious girl onto the horse, and shared the mount with her as they rode south.

Changzhi County was a neighboring county of the capital, Chang’an, and was also fairly prosperous. To avoid attracting trouble on the way there, Ling Suihan had dampened a white cloth and cleaned the blood from Tang Yiluo’s face. She had also taken an outer robe from the bundle strapped to her horse and draped it over the girl.

After entering the county seat, she stopped a passing resident and asked two questions.

First, what kind of place was Yongchun Hall, and on which street or lane in Changzhi County could it be found?

Second, where was the best medical clinic in the vicinity?

“Isn’t Yongchun Hall itself a medical clinic? It’s the best clinic in Changzhi County.” The resident found her questions rather strange. Glancing at the unconscious girl she was supporting, he continued, “Your friend is ill, isn’t she? Don’t worry. Doctor Yu of Yongchun Hall is highly skilled. He will certainly be able to treat her.”

Only then did Ling Suihan understand.

Peng Lie must also have been seriously injured, leaving him no choice but to seek treatment and medicine at a clinic.

Yongchun Hall was located in Yangzhi Ward. It was a compound consisting of a single courtyard, and a young medicine apprentice came to guide them at the entrance.

He first led Ling Suihan into a side room, where they laid Tang Yiluo flat on a couch. As he checked the girl’s pulse, he said, “My master and Doctor Xie are treating another patient at the moment. Please wait for just a—good heavens! How did your friend sustain such serious injuries? I had better inform my master immediately.”

As he spoke, he fed Tang Yiluo a medicinal pill before turning to leave.

Ling Suihan had already been about to ask whether the clinic had any other patients. Seeing him go, she followed in his footsteps.

The doors of the main hall stood wide open. There were three people inside.

A burly man sat beside a table with an iron saber hanging from his waist. His brow was tightly furrowed, and his clothes were mottled with blood. There could be little doubt that he was Peng Lie.

A man and a woman were gathering medicine beside the cabinets. Their backs were turned, hiding their faces from view, but they were almost certainly Doctor Yu, whom the passerby had mentioned, and Doctor Xie, whom the young apprentice had spoken of.

Ling Suihan was exceptionally confident in her martial arts. It was precisely because of that confidence that she could not help worrying.

If Peng Lie proved unable to defeat her and went mad with desperation, what would she do if he threatened her with the lives of these three people?

It was not that she lacked the ability to protect them. It was simply that human lives allowed no margin for error.

Unless…

Ling Suihan concealed her saber behind her waist. She deliberately made her footsteps heavier and pretended not to know martial arts.

For the safety of these three ordinary people, it seemed she would have to act less than honorably today and hope to capture the criminal in a single move.

Peng Lie sensed someone approaching outside the door. Turning his head, he saw only a child and a young woman entering the room, so he paid them little attention.

He was about to urge the two physicians to hurry when, before he could utter a word, a cold flash swept across his vision.

An endless chill instantly engulfed his entire body, freezing his reactions for a brief moment.

At almost exactly the same instant, countless points of silver starlight flared inside the room and shot toward Ling Suihan!

Every shooting star was a silver needle.

Long, slender threads were fastened to the ends of the needles. They crossed and intertwined through the air before converging in the hand of the fur-clad young woman standing beside the medicine cabinets.

Ling Suihan’s heart tightened. She knew neither the woman’s identity nor the depth of her martial arts, so she did not dare treat the attack lightly. Her saber changed direction, releasing a fierce burst of saber qi as she attempted to strike the incoming needles from the air.

To her surprise, the threads were made of some extraordinary material and could not be easily severed. The owner of the silver needles turned around, her fingers moving slightly—slender and pale as fresh scallion stalks.

The stars flickered once more before attacking other vital acupoints on Ling Suihan’s body.

The woman’s eyesight was excellent, and her ability to identify acupoints was extraordinarily precise. However, the strength behind her attacks was merely ordinary. The needles carried very little inner force, making it obvious that she was no supreme martial arts expert.

As soon as Ling Suihan realized this, she ceased taking the woman’s attacks seriously.

Unfortunately, although their exchange had lasted no longer than a few blinks, Peng Lie had already shuddered as if finally breaking free from a layer of ice and regained his senses.

Peng Lie flew into a rage. He leaped toward Ling Suihan and drew the long saber at his waist, only for his face to suddenly turn deathly pale as a sharp pain tore through his chest.

His internal injuries were severe. The moment he circulated his inner force, his condition inevitably worsened.

He spat to the side and silently cursed, left with no choice but to hope that the physician surnamed Xie would prevail.

In truth, Ling Suihan’s martial arts far surpassed Doctor Xie’s. Yet she neither fought with her full strength nor attempted to kill her. She did not even wish to injure the woman.

That was because a suspicion had formed in her mind.

Peng Lie was a lone outlaw, and Ling Suihan had never heard of him having any accomplices. This physician had probably misunderstood the situation and believed that she herself was acting righteously.

Still, they could not remain entangled like this forever.

Ling Suihan tapped a toe against the floor and flashed toward the woman’s right side with the speed of lightning. Her long saber came sweeping in on the wind at the same moment, seemingly intent on severing the woman’s entire right arm.

The physician’s vision blurred. A sheet of pure-white saber light filled her sight, resembling drifting snow.

With a flick of her wrist, her needles flew out and instantly wove themselves into an impenetrable net to block the attack.

What she did not know was that Ling Suihan’s saber technique was far faster than an ordinary person could imagine. The streak of white light was merely a deception. The instant it flared, the saber’s edge had already changed direction.

It moved at a speed beyond the ability of most human eyes to follow.

Toward the other side of her opponent’s body.

But when the saber came within half an inch of the physician’s neck, Ling Suihan suddenly felt a wave of dizziness cloud her mind. Her movements faltered involuntarily.

Alarm flashed through her heart.

At the same moment, she saw the woman’s lips part slightly.

“If you intend for us to perish together, then go ahead and bring down your saber.”

Her voice was cool and clear, exceptionally pleasant to the ear, yet so calm that it contained no trace of emotion.

Ling Suihan immediately realized that she had most likely been poisoned.

Rather than panicking, she swiftly regained her composure. Making an immediate decision, she ignored every trace of discomfort within her body and allowed the blade to kiss the woman’s neck.

Then she froze.

Moments earlier, the saber had been like snow and the needles like rain. Amid the flashing blade and dancing shadows of the needles, both women had focused entirely on the other’s attacks and had not been able to see each other’s appearance clearly.

Only now, when they had both stopped moving, did Ling Suihan discover that the woman before her appeared to be around the same age as herself.

She wore a pale lotus-pink, lotus-patterned jacket and skirt with a straight front opening. Draped over it was a brilliant red brocade cloak embroidered with cranes, its edges trimmed with a circle of soft white mink fur. A golden buyao hairpin set with pearls and precious stones adorned her hair. Every part of her appearance spoke of wealth and privilege.

Yet unlike the vivid colors of her clothing, her complexion was exceedingly pale—almost like translucent glazed glass. The faint flush on her cheeks only made her appear somewhat sickly.

Even someone with no understanding of medicine could see that she was in poor health.

Their gazes met, and neither spoke for a long while.

The physician had finally seen Ling Suihan’s face clearly as well. A trace of bewilderment entered her expression, and she stared for quite some time before her gaze slowly moved downward.

It fell upon Ling Suihan’s other hand.

More precisely, upon her other sleeve.

It hung empty.

Throughout the entire exchange, the saber fighter had indeed wielded her weapon solely with her left hand.

The physician’s elegant, willow-leaf brows drew together slightly.

The room was so silent that even the fall of a single needle would have been audible.

Doctor Yu had shrunk into a corner, and the sight before him left him thoroughly confused. After hesitating for a moment, he finally summoned his courage and spoke in a trembling voice.

“D-Doctor Xie…do you know this young lady?”

Having witnessed their exceptional martial arts, he already understood that both women must be figures of the jianghu. He assumed this was an enemy Doctor Xie had made in the past and that he had now been dragged into their feud.

Xie Yuanjue withdrew her gaze. She no longer studied Ling Suihan’s face or examined her missing right arm. Her expression returned to normal, and she slowly shook her head.

“You and I have never met, nor is there any grudge between us. Therefore, I have no wish to kill you.”

Ling Suihan, however, continued staring at her.

Her mind remained somewhat dizzy.

Even her breathing had quickened, making her chest rise and fall faintly.

But the left hand gripping her saber remained as steady as a boulder.

“If this saber moves even slightly farther, your head will fall from your shoulders. Once you are dead, I can still search for another way to cure the poison.”

“If you are willing to wager your own life, then by all means, try it—and see whether anyone else in this world can cure this poison besides me.”

Medicine and poison were inseparable arts. Since this woman was a physician, Ling Suihan was not surprised that she had used poison against her.

However, Ling Suihan could say with absolute certainty that not a single silver needle the woman had fired had struck her body.

Then precisely how—and when—had she managed to poison her?

Whatever the answer, it was enough to prove that her skill with poison truly ranked among the finest.

Ling Suihan only half believed her claim. After pondering for a moment, she did not hurry to demand the antidote. Instead, she abruptly changed the subject.

“Doctor Xie? Your surname is Xie? Then what is your name?”