Yang Zuye's sword sealed the throat. He had seen so much blood, far too much. At times, he grew curious about what it felt like to have one's throat sealed by a single sword stroke.

Sometimes, he'd try to imagine it. What kind of sensation would it be? When a sword pierces the throat, would it feel cold?

In the seventh year of Dezong of Great Jin, on February 26,

Until this very moment, he still didn't know.

Because in the next second, he died.

The sword penetrated his chest in an instant. He jolted violently, like the last desperate struggle of a drowning man. Then, his limbs went limp, and his entire body collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

After pursuing the art of a single sword to the throat for years, Yang Zuye still didn't know what it felt like.

Although, one might think it would be faster than having one's heart shredded...

The long sword was slowly withdrawn from Yang Zuye's chest. At that moment, the pupils of the escorts on the official road trembled faintly, all marveling at the killer's skill. But she merely wiped the blood off the sword with a silk cloth. As she sheathed the sword and turned away, it seemed as if the faint sound of the blade sliding back into the scabbard lingered in the air.

Bai Shangxi's head poked out from behind the carriage curtain, staring at the swordswoman intently, unwilling to miss even the briefest moment of her decisive and graceful turn.

That person's surname was Min,

She carried both a sword and a blade.

She had said she would become more famous than another person.

Bai Shangxi didn't know who that "another person" was. She had occasionally heard this young swordswoman mention the name once or twice—seemingly with the surname Chen, seemingly also a young lady.

What kind of girl could she be?

Surely not as beautiful as Bai Shangxi.

Min Ning approached the carriage. The escorts gathered around the overturned carriage not far away, where the passengers inside had suffered heavy casualties. A seasoned martial artist was flipping over the faces of five members of a family inside. He sighed and shook his head.

"All dead… Who would've thought that Shopkeeper Qiao would meet his end here? Such a pity..."

The elderly escort sighed, then stood up.

Bai Shangxi's hands trembled slightly, and her delicate brows furrowed: "...All dead? Seems like Shopkeeper Qiao wasn't the one who betrayed us after all..."

The Bai family was a prominent clan stationed at the borderlands of Western Jin, deeply rooted in the region. Their enterprises were countless, with merchants coming and going in endless streams. There were many shopkeepers under their employ, but only a select few outside the Bai family were truly trusted. Bai Shangxi had suspected all along that the repeated ambushes and pursuits they faced on this journey were due to Shopkeeper Qiao betraying them.

But it now appeared otherwise.

"Hey, Captain! Over here, there's a big black dog still alive."

One of the escorts had found a cage, opened it, and out hopped a sickly black dog.

The elderly escort glanced at it and said, "So it's this one. They say Shopkeeper Qiao loved this dog dearly, took it everywhere, and treated it like a son."

Bai Shangxi had heard similar rumors before. Stories said the dog was clever and obedient, not only wagging its tail for affection but even serving people tea.

Now spotting it for herself, a playful interest sparked in her heart. She beckoned to the black dog, "Shoo, shoo..."

The black dog dragged its frail body, staggering toward her.

It suddenly opened its mouth: "I'm not a dog."

The sharp, shrill voice, akin to that of a dwarf, left Bai Shangxi momentarily stunned.

In that fleeting instant of confusion, the black dog shed its feeble facade, bared its fangs, and lunged ferociously at her!

The next moment, a flash of sword light.

Human blood splattered across the curtain, splotches of it hitting Bai Shangxi's face, mingled with a spray of animal fur.

"Ah!"

Bai Shangxi let out a scream and immediately turned to look at Min Ning.

Blood dripped from Min Ning's sword. Before Bai Shangxi could even worry about herself, she first asked Min Ning:

"...Young Master Min, are you hurt?"

"It's nothing serious," Min Ning said with a faint smile, pulling out her silk cloth once more to carefully wipe her sword. "Although I will admit, it gave me a bit of a scare."

Bai Shangxi finally managed to steady her breathing. The escorts quickly gathered around the "dog," only to discover that beneath the animal hide lay the head of a dwarf.

Such is the peril of Jianghu—none greater than this.

You think you've spared a life, even if it's something as insignificant as a dog.

But how could you know? How could you know that from the dog's mouth a blade would not emerge?

Though she had only wandered this Jianghu world for two or three months, Min Ning had already encountered much.

And the reason she hadn't fallen into such traps wasn't just due to her constant vigilance. It was also thanks to the Alerting Heart Skill of Yin Sword Mountain.

This skill, which Min Ning had learned from Zhu Yu, allowed one to sense the approach of danger, the shadow behind the curtain, or the dagger's thrust from the unknown.

As a sect of Taoist and Martial Dual Cultivation, Yin Sword Mountain's disciples frequently roamed the Jianghu. Yet rare were the instances when they found themselves taken unawares—credit due largely to the Alerting Heart Skill.

After finishing cleaning her sword, Min Ning sheathed it, looked around, and asked,

"Shall we move on?"

..................

March 6.

Upon crossing Xiao Feng Pass, the party passed countless heavily-laden horses along the way. With winds carrying sand and falling leaves in their wake, Min Ning finally escorted the group to their destination. Bai Shangxi had often recounted the grandeur of the Bai family estate during the journey, and Min Ning had dismissed it as exaggerated boasting. Yet, upon seeing the imposing plaque at the gates, the majestic stone lions, and the cultivated gardens beyond, she realized that Bai Shangxi had rather understated it. The Bai family head, Bai Hua, greeted them personally. Once a military man, Bai Hua had left his official post to focus on commerce, growing the Bai enterprise to a flourishing state. Along the way, he had even secured an idle Fourth-Rank military title. What intrigues or feuds might be hidden within these maneuvers, Min Ning did not know—she was but a passing stranger in a foreign land.

Having received word in advance via carrier pigeon that Min Ning had saved Bai Shangxi, the Bai family spared no expense in their welcome. An elaborate banquet was prepared, serving the finest wines and delicacies. On top of this, the family head personally presented treasures such as wolf-hair brushes, Jiangnan paper, a pi xiu paperweight, and bolts of silk. And that wasn't all—during the feast, they even invited the three famed Oiran from the Xiao Feng Pass region to perform captivating dances. The colorful twirl of their skirts left everyone dazzled and breathless.

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