CHAPTER 276: CHAPTER 271: DO YOU HAVE A CRUSH ON ME?

All around was deserted, with emptiness between heaven and earth, and only the whistling wind and the muffled clash of long swords could be heard.

The sword’s edge looked even colder and more threatening in the vast wind and snow.

In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged dozens of moves.

Both were utterly astonished in their hearts.

The man in black hadn’t expected that the young lady he was to assassinate today, raised in the deep recesses of a government official’s household, would possess such profound martial arts skills.

Yun Ran was also silently alarmed. Her strength had now recovered to nearly fifty percent, yet she was barely able to fight evenly with the man in black before her.

Moreover, he clearly wasn’t giving it his all.

Obviously, he’s a formidable opponent. I bet it cost quite a bit of Silver to hire him, didn’t it? The person behind this must really value my life!

Sarcastically in her thoughts, Yun Ran did not dare let her guard down. In the blink of an eye, another dozen rounds passed.

The victor had yet to emerge.

Taking advantage of a gap in their exchange, Yun Ran couldn’t help but scrutinize him carefully. The wide black cloak obscured his specific stature, only confirming that he was tall and a man.

A terrifying ghost mask covered his face, even concealing part of his eyes. Only a pair of pupils, pale like glass, could be seen, cold and still as an ice lake, devoid of any warmth or emotion.

His moves were decisive, ruthless, as fast as thunder, without a single extra motion—all were killing moves, aiming to be fatal!

A professional assassin, perhaps ranked among the top on the assassin list? Who could it be?

"You’re quite dedicated, aren’t you? Out to kill even in this heavy snow. I suppose you’ve earned quite the Silver? Why not share so I can envy you?"

"To be honest, I’m quite curious, how much is my life worth?"

The man in black seemed surprised that Yun Ran suddenly spoke, his move pausing slightly in an instant. Yun Ran seized the opportunity, deftly thrusting her sword towards his throat.

As he swung his sword to block, her left hand moved like lightning, grabbing for the mask on his face.

"Let me see what you look like!"

It was too late for the man in black to prevent her when he realized her intention. Yun Ran tore off his mask forcefully.

The moment the mask was removed, Yun Ran was suddenly stunned, staring blankly at the familiar face before her.

"It’s you!"

Snowflakes fell swirling around them, landing on his hair, lingering around him, and falling on his face.

That face, with exquisite and almost painted features, brows like distant mountains, lips like cherry blossoms, a slightly pointed chin, resembling an Elf Prince in the dark night.

Perhaps because he wore the mask all year or hid in the dark, his complexion was unnaturally pale, becoming even more so in the wind and snow, nearly transparent.

His eyes were like the world’s most beautiful glass, yet desolate, eerily cold like a millennium-old ice lake, lacking any human emotion or life.

Without the slightest hesitation, he snatched the mask back from Yun Ran’s hand, simultaneously striking a palm to her chest.

Yun Ran snapped awake, hurriedly meeting his palm. The domineering force sent a numbness through her arm, and her body uncontrollably retreated backward.

The man in black directly raised the longsword in his hand, wrapped in wind and snow, stabbing straight at her, aiming for her heart.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped around Yun Ran’s waist, spinning lightly to evade the howling longsword.

"Are you okay?"

A concerned male voice sounded next to her ear. Yun Ran turned to look, slightly dazed, "Yun Mo?"

At this moment, he looked just as he did on the day he rescued her on West Mountain, in elegant white robes, his hair bound with a jade crown, wearing a silver mask on his face.

Yun Ran shook her head to him, "I’m fine."

By now, the man in black had once again raised his sword to kill, the Sword Intent colder and more intense than the swirling snow.

Nangong Mo released Yun Ran, drawing the sword from his waist to face the man in black.

The previous palm not only made Yun Ran’s arm numb, but her chest felt a surge of blood and energy turmoil.

Yun Ran knew how high his martial skills were and understood well how deep his Inner Strength was.

Watching the two figures in the clash of blades, Yun Ran couldn’t help but shout, "Yun Mo, be careful."

The clash of two swords emitted a series of muffled sounds, sparks leaping and flickering at the sword tips, dazzling in the wind and snow.

Yun Mo turned his head to glance at Yun Ran, his voice carrying a hint of playful laughter, "So you do care about me! Honestly, are you secretly in love with me?"

Yun Ran: "..."

[I’ve never seen someone so shameless!]

Yun Ran quietly turned around, sitting cross-legged with her back to the fierce battle, channeling her inner breath.

Behind her, the sounds of swords and knives never ceased, the Sword Array’s force merging with the overwhelming snow, mixing chill with killing intent, sweeping through heaven and earth.

Focusing her mind, Yun Ran drove her inner breath to circulate through her body, completing a small cycle, gradually calming the turbulent blood, the heavy stifling pain in her chest slowly dissipating.

By this point, the duel between the two had reached a conclusion.

An opened eye showed the man in black kneeling on the ground, his right hand gripping the sword hilt, the long sword plunged into the ground, the blade deeply embedded in the snow.

He was holding his chest with the other hand, fresh blood seeping through his fingers, staining his pale fingers red, then slowly merging into his black sleeves along his wrist.

His complexion was even paler than before, with a touch of vivid red blood slowly trickling from his mouth corner.

Yet there was not a single trace of pain on his face, not even a movement between his brows, as if he could not feel pain at all, or perhaps, his body had long become accustomed to all kinds of pain.

Nangong Mo’s gaze was icy, the longsword in his hand mercilessly aimed at the man in black’s throat, killing intent fierce.

Seeing the man in black about to spill blood, Yun Ran urgently shouted, "Don’t kill him!"

Nangong Mo hesitated, abruptly restraining the momentum of his sword, frowning slightly in confusion as he looked at Yun Ran, "Leave him alive? To take back and... interrogate?"

Nangong Mo thought, that must be it.

So, he sheathed his sword, walking towards the man in black, seemingly intending to capture him alive.

A flicker barely noticeable stirred in the desolate gaze of the man in black.

Living on the edge of the blade for years, like a solitary ghost in the night, life and death hanging by a thread, ready to vanish at any moment.

They knew too many secrets of their organization, allowing neither betrayal nor capture. Thus, every one of them hid a poison in a tooth.

A bite would see the blood seal the throat.

Just as he prepared to do so, Yun Ran suddenly blocked in front of Nangong Mo, "Yun Mo, let him go."

At her words, both Nangong Mo and the man in black were stunned, looking at Yun Ran in disbelief.

Nangong Mo slowly narrowed his black eyes, within which shadows drifted, his expression deep and inscrutable.

He fixedly stared into Yun Ran’s eyes, his voice particularly deep, as if suppressing some emotion, "Why? He wanted to kill you, yet you would let him go?"

The man in black was also watching Yun Ran; he seemed to want to know the answer too.