Chapter 224: The Horse-Head Blade

“Good! As expected of Brother Ye!” Old Monster Xiong immediately began clapping with a thunderous roar of applause.

Standing atop the Thousand-Mile Cable, Ye Yuzhu was just about to leisurely pull out his fan when the sound of breaking wind reached his ears. His reactions were lightning-fast; he retreated several steps and instantly snatched a sharp arrow that had already reached his face.

“Not good!” Nanshan Qiao, standing to the side, was the first to realize the danger. He rushed forward in three steps, grabbing the vibrating Thousand-Mile Cable to pull it taut once more. He shouted at Ye Yuzhu, “Chief! It’s a hidden trap! Get back here!”

Ye Yuzhu was currently in the middle of the cable. Amidst Nanshan Qiao’s shouting, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of countless hidden crossbows suddenly appearing from the tomb walls on all sides. Dozens of sharp arrows were closing in on him. Ye Yuzhu didn’t have time to drop the arrow in his hand; he leaped into the air, spinning half a turn as two arrows whistled past beneath him.

His toes tapped lightly against the Thousand-Mile Cable as he flipped horizontally. The Horse-Head Blade slid from his right sleeve once more, severing three arrows. With a “Golden Crown Kick,” he knocked away two lethal bolts aimed directly at his face. Just as he prepared to use the cable for leverage again, the brothers holding the line began to flag. The chain slackened considerably, and Ye Yuzhu failed to complete his flip, forced instead to retreat two steps.

Seeing this, Nanshan Qiao immediately pushed the other men aside and decisively wrapped the Thousand-Mile Cable around his own arm. The chain snapped straight and taut instantly. He roared, “Chief! Hurry!”

Ye Yuzhu looked up and saw Nanshan Qiao. He leaped from the cable, the Horse-Head Blade flying from his sleeve. The curved blade instantly struck down a large cluster of incoming arrows before returning to his hand. The moment he landed back on the cable, he threw the Horse-Head Blade again. A cold light flashed before the eyes of all the men as the remaining row of hidden crossbows on the wall was sliced clean off, tumbling into the bottomless abyss.

From behind, Ulunzhurige could see nothing but a blur of green shadow accompanied by the clear ring of the Horse-Head Blade leaving its sheath. She had never seen anyone capable of such divine skill; she was so stunned she couldn’t recover her wits for a long moment.

The Horse-Head Blade flew into the distance and was caught by Ye Yuzhu as he landed on the far side, disappearing back into his sleeve. The green shadow finally came to a halt. Even after such a brush with death, his face still bore that unchanging arrogance upon landing. This Chief Chief, who commanded the martial world with his peerless lightness kung fu, possessed truly extraordinary footwork. Aside from a small tear in the hem of his long robe caused by an arrow, he hadn’t suffered a single scratch from the volley of ten thousand arrows. The hidden mechanisms and crossbows concealed within the gaps of the tomb bricks had all been cast down into the depths.

Ye Yuzhu pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead before immediately checking the Thousand-Mile Cable’s grappling hook.

“Brother Ye, we don’t have your skills, so we’ll find a way across! You take care of our brothers on that side!” Old Monster Xiong laughed heartily.

Ye Yuzhu folded his handkerchief and tucked it away, scolding him, “Stop joking around. I can see the design of this tomb is very rigorous; we must be at the main entrance. Nanshan Qiao, look after the brothers. That little girl seems useless to us now, let her go back! Old Monster Xiong, go out and tell Qian Chuanzi to come in, then take a few brothers back with you to bring the rest of the team over.”

Upon hearing this, Ulunzhurige felt as if she had received a grand pardon. Old Monster Xiong clearly didn’t want to let her go, but constrained by Ye Yuzhu’s orders, he couldn’t make things difficult for her. He could only obey and lead her out of the Crying Forest. She practically fled on horseback back to her home. The moment she stepped through her door, she packed her bags with the utmost speed, taking her younger brother to leave this dangerous place as quickly as possible.

She thought her fate with Ye Yuzhu and his party had ended for good, yet a month later, when she stepped back onto those same grasslands, she encountered them once again.

However, the present was nothing like the past.

For a moment, Ulunzhurige thought she had recognized the wrong person, but Manager Gan’s profuse gratitude softened her heart. She gave them a place to shelter from the wind and rain, then went out to gather local herbs, brewing them into medicine to bring to their door.

She peered through the tent flap, unable to reconcile the bloody, mangled figure Manager Gan had carried out of the woods with the once-insufferable Ye Yuzhu. The hundreds of men he had led inside had been swallowed whole by that terrifying Crying Forest, leaving not even a fragment of bone behind.

Ye Yuzhu had lost both his legs, and his peerless martial arts were completely ruined. He only remained alive because of a pill Gan Zhao had scavenged from the tomb, which kept him clinging to his last breath. Qian Chuanzi had also lost an arm, but his spirits remained relatively high; while Ye Yuzhu was recovering, he would occasionally help Ulunzhurige herd her sheep.

Half a month later, Ye Yuzhu regained consciousness. When Ulunzhurige entered the tent again to deliver medicine, his face looked the same as before, yet she could no longer find even a trace of his former expression. That youthful spirit, the obsession with success and failure, and that overflowing pride had collapsed like a grand building. The arrogant bones of his entire body had been shattered by this failure, never to be mended again.

Some time later, Manager Gan’s main caravan arrived, and the group planned to return the way they came.

Before leaving, Ye Yuzhu left the Horse-Head Blade he never let leave his side behind, hidden amidst the bedding. It was only two days after everyone had departed that Ulunzhurige discovered it. She wrapped the blade in cloth, certain that Ye Yuzhu would send someone back for it once he realized it was missing.

But a month passed, and no one returned. Ulunzhurige had witnessed the power of this blade. She didn’t know if Ye Yuzhu had lost it by accident or left it on purpose. The Horse-Head Blade remained as sharp as ever, yet she never dared use it for chores or cutting grass. She felt that only in the hands of that green shadow could it truly fulfill its purpose.

This Horse-Head Blade seemed to have stayed on the grasslands forever, along with the lifelong pride of Chief Ye. Upon returning to the Central Plains, Chief Ye resolutely disbanded his followers and went into hiding under a pseudonym, carrying only his broken body.

“I didn’t expect such a story took place here back then. Just hearing it sounds like a legend. Based on what you’ve said, with Ye Yuzhu’s style, if he hadn’t suffered that fall, he might have become a legendary hegemon and left his name in the history books,” He Yu said, rubbing his chin.

“You’re not wrong. My grandfather said Chief Ye’s reputation back then was never an empty boast,” Qian Deli sighed. “But it’s a pity. To end up in such a miserable state in the end.”

My thoughts were pulled back to reality as my gaze finally landed on a piece of red cloth Ulunzhurige pulled from her bosom. With hands weathered by time and hardship, she peeled back the four corners of the cloth. The legendary silver-inlaid ivory Horse-Head Blade appeared vividly before our eyes.

Lu Qianshan seemed intensely interested in the Horse-Head Blade. He scrambled forward, crowding He Yu until the two of them had traded several creative insults involving each other’s mothers and uncles. I felt that if Lu Qianshan had a magnifying glass on him right now, he would have climbed onto the table to study it.

Judging by its exterior alone, the Horse-Head Blade was certainly ancient. I wondered if it would still live up to the legends once it was drawn from its scabbard.

Kuba exchanged a few words in Mongolian with Ulunzhurige. Then, using both hands, he pushed the Horse-Head Blade toward me. “For all these years, my Amma has felt that it should be returned to its rightful owner,” he said.

He Yu immediately nudged me with his elbow, signaling for me to pull the blade and take a look. His nudge made me suddenly nervous, and I hesitated to reach for it.

“If you’re too chicken, don’t blame me for stepping in.” Seeing my hesitation, Lu Qianshan reached out to grab the blade, but Lu Ayao intercepted him. She pinned his arm to the table in an instant, making Lu Qianshan grit his teeth in pain.

This had originally belonged to my great-grandfather. Taking it back now on his behalf was only right. I gave myself a quick mental pep talk, then reached out and picked up the Horse-Head Blade. The others crowded in closer.

I glanced at them, then applied a bit of pressure with my fingers. As I drew the blade from its sheath, a clear metallic ring echoed through the room. The edge remained pristine, the reflection of my own eyes staring back at me from the steel. It was truly a rare treasure among cold weapons.

I tested the weight in my hand, making a few small movements. He Yu scrambled back, warning me, “Whoa, watch it! That’s a lethal weapon. This blade has definitely seen its share of blood. Take it easy, or you’ll end up splitting our heads open before you even know how to use it.”

I sheathed the blade and looked at Zhurige. “Thank you. But there is one more thing. I wonder if you would be willing to help?”

“What else do our guests require?” Kuba asked.

“Tomorrow,” I said, “could you take us to see that Crying Forest?”