"To daringly intrude my Red Lantern Manor, who do you think you are?"
There were many names that ran through Xia Hei's mind when he asked that question, but not one of it was that particular name.
Yun Shang Xing Yu
It was these four words that came out of her mouth. It did take him by surprise for a moment.
Meng Yu return his provocative look fearlessly. The curve on her lips carried a hint of mirth. Seeing her frivolous expression, it brought out an unspeakable wrath from Xia Hei's heart.
"Do you really expect me to believe such an absurd lie?" Xia Hei growled as he narrowed his eye dangerously at her.
Meng Yu chuckled softly with contempt. Folding her arms leisurely, she replied lazily, "Believe it or not, that is your matter. My intention here today is to retrieve my painting."
Xia Hei sneered in ridicule. When he was not smiling, he was absolutely domineering. However, when he showed such a menacing expression, he looked even more frightening. The ugly scar on his face further brought out the feeling of danger within him.
Nevertheless, the other person continued to act nonchalant, and provoke him by speaking such lies without even blinking his eyes.
Did he take me, Xia Hei as a fool?
At the thought of it, the vein on Xia Hei's forehead bulged dangerously.
"Even if I believe you are Yun Shang Xing Yu, the painting is no longer with me. I think you should be more worried about your own life than that painting of yours right now. The Red Lantern Manor is not a place anyone can simply walk in!"
His words were full of threats.
"There is no need for such animosity. I heard Xia Hei is an astute businessman. Perhaps, I can offer you something valuable in exchange for a good deal?"
Xia Hei lifted his brows. Leaning forward, he spoke with a malicious tone, "Then I hope what you intend to offer is valuable enough to keep your life. If not, I might not even leave you with an intact corpse."
Meng Yu revealed a charming smile as she lazily stretched her neck.
"Don't be impatient, Xia Hei. What I have here would definitely interest you. However, since the painting is no longer with you, then I will have to ask for something else in exchange for this valuable thing."
Xia Hei laughed out in disbelief, as if he had heard a very funny joke.
"Do you really think you still have the power to bargain with me?" He glared at her.
She tilted her head and scrutinized the man in front of him. He seemed to be overly confident. Despite not knowing her level of skill, he still dared to meet her personally. He did not even bring any guards into the room with him. Instead, he let them stand guard outside.
The distance between them were not close, yet not very far either. With her martial art, Meng Yu could easily reach him within three steps. Of course, Xia Hei was not a foolish man. For her to intrude the heavily guarded manor by herself, he must at least had guessed her capabilities. A careful man like him, how could he be so ignorant to meet her privately without any precaution?
Perhaps, he felt that she was not his opponent?
This possibility was very unlikely since he was someone from the far eastern land. She had heard a lot of stories about the eastern land. It was a vast land without monarchy and was resided by nine ethnic tribes. Taking the name from the nine tribes, the land itself was named as Nine Gods Land.
Rumours had it that the Nine God Tribes produced countless of great warriors. They call themselves the Nine God Warriors and were well known for their unorthodox skills and unique talents. Thus, after so many years, the land was left unconquered, because the Nine God Tribes were guarding that piece of wealthy land ferociously.
Perhaps, it was her who had fallen into his trap?
"It is my mistake indeed. I must have not been sincere enough."
Meng Yu stood up, and casually took a step forward. Still wearing a frivolous smile, her hands folded neatly behind her as she leaned forward, and muttered, "Are you interested to know about the whereabout of the Devil's Hand?"
Her voice was not too loud, nor too soft, yet it carried a subtle hint of enticement.
Xia Hei was taken by surprise. He immediately blurted out, "Is that true?" Despite his restrained manner, the excitement in his voice was palpable.
The Devil's Hand mentioned was precisely the legendary sword owned by the Scarlet Emperor. It was known as the evil sword that brought destruction to mankind yet gave tremendous power to the wielder. However, it had been missing since the death of the Scarlet Emperor.
When Meng Yu saw his expression, her chest tightened and she lowered her eyes in disappointment. She muttered in a low voice that only she herself can hear, "So it is not here."
Her hands behind her back secretly reached toward the dagger hidden in her loose sleeve.
Xia Hei realized something was amiss by the change in her expression. His excitement immediately cooled down. Before he could stand up, Meng Yu had already taken two steps forward and swung her dagger toward him.
Clank!
A sharp clashing sound could be heard, and Meng Yu staggered backward in surprise. A sharp arrow thrusted deep into the pillar next to her. She glared at Xia Hei who stood up leisurely. A tiny crossbow was held firmly in his hand. It was a unique crossbow that was foldable, so that he can hide it in his sleeve. With just a click of a button, the crossbow would immediately flip open in a second. What a deadly weapon.
"Do you think I will come in defenceless?" Xia Hei asked, displease written all over his face.
Meng Yu smirked at him as she adjusted her grip on the dagger.
"What a useful thing. Let's see if you can shoot faster or if I can move faster."
Meng Yu leaped forward. Her speed was fast, but Xia Hei was also very agile. His aim was very good, and less than a second, multiples of arrows were sent flying toward Meng Yu.
With a kick, she lifted herself off the ground, and somersaulted in the air like a nightingale. The arrows whizzed past her like lightning, ripping off some part of her clothes, yet none of the arrows managed to land a hit. As soon as she landed, she threw the dagger toward Xia Hei with a flung of her sleeve.
Pa!
The crossbow was knocked off his hand and it fell onto the ground with a loud thud. Xia Hei winced in pain as he held onto his injured hand.
By that time, the door behind him had burst open, and his guards ran in. They were alerted by the commotion in the room.
"Boss!" Lao Qi called out in anxiety. He ran to Xia Hei's side to inspect his wound.
The guards that came in saw that Meng Yu had injured their boss, so without further ado, they immediately attacked her. Swiftly dodging the swords slashing at her, she bent down and grabbed at another dagger hidden inside her boots. With a kick, she threw herself forward, and slashed the neck of one of the guards. Blood spurted out like falling petals, and the body fell limply on the ground with a thud.
The death of their comrade made the other guards became more agitated as they struck at her more aggressively. Meng Yu was like an emotionless puppet dancing to the tune of death, as she swayed gracefully left and right to evade the incoming attacks. Her movement was very quick, as she jumped toward another guard and stabbed him at the back of the neck. The man tried to scream, but the only thing that managed to escape from his mouth was blood.
In the next second, another guard howled in excruciating pain, as the dagger landed in his right eye. It was a gruesome scene, as blood gushed out like a broken dam. Very soon, the entire room was drenched in scarlet red, as bodies after bodies of men fell lifelessly onto the ground.
Lao Qi who saw the bloody scene paled visibly, and his knees went weak. He backed up until his back hit the wall. However, Xia Hei was brimming in anger as he watched the scene unfolding right in front of him. How could his highly trained guards be taken out so easily?
"Arrows!" He growled furiously.
Another wave of guards appeared at the doorway with bows and arrows as Xia Hei and Lao Qi retreated behind them. Meng Yu saw the group of archers aiming at her, and quickly grabbed one of the guards near her. Twisting his arm behind him, she dragged him to her and used his body as a meat shield just as the archers released the arrows. A few of the guards who were fighting her were shot down by the arrows, and the body held forcefully in front of her was also pierced by multiple arrows as well. In an enclosed space, it was impossible to evade so many arrows in the first place, so it was obvious that Xia Hei did not plan to let her leave this place alive.
Before another wave of arrows could be released, Meng Yu forcefully threw the limp corpse away, and dashed toward the nearest window. This was her only chance of escaping!
Shua, shua, shua!
Another wave of arrows was released before she could reach the window. She tried to dodge with a somersault, but one of the arrows hit her left shoulder while another hit her thigh. Another arrow narrowly missed her eye, but it knocked the white mask off her face. It fell onto the ground with a loud clanking sound.
"Stop!"
Xia Hei suddenly shouted, his face pale as if he had just seen a ghost. Taking opportunity of the distraction, Meng Yu could only forcefully throw herself out of the window and jumped straight into the lake below. It was three stories high.
Splash!
Xia Hei's heart thumped in frenzy as he ran towards the slightly broken window and looked down. The outside was enveloped in inky darkness, and he could barely see anything.
"Quick, quick! Search the lake for survivor!"
Xia Hei roared to his guards, as he ran frantically out of the room. Lao Qi was baffled by the change in his boss reaction, and quickly followed up.
"Boss, it is three stories high from here. It is impossible to survive in the cold lake!"
Xia Hei turned to look at Lao Qi. His expression was very ugly.
"No. Dead or alive, you must find her." Xia Hei's voice cracked slightly as he continued, "She... she is the one Jing Yun Sheng is searching for. She is the woman in the portrait!"