The masses surrounded the lake, so majestic and grand.

Cao Shuang looked out, seeing the robust clan soldiers and ready government soldiers. All wearing iron armor, wielding fine steel knives, holding strong bows. He felt a surge of pride:

"Even if you are mighty, what of it? Our Prefecture City clans all have soldiers. Carefully nurtured, they are the best among the troops! At my command, bows drawn and arrows fly, rain of arrows everywhere, what will you do then?"

"Even if they do not harm you, I'll have follow-up means for you to taste one by one. You are alone, how can you resist? That Lady Zhe Jian of yours may be formidable, but as soon as you come ashore, we'll coalesce our soldiers into formation. I, Cao Shuang, will personally enter the formation, and combine with our armor and extraordinary weapons, close-range killing gear, and you shall know your place!"

Madam Wen laughed: "Prefecture City has good heroes. Earlier you said to disperse in all directions, turns out it was a scheme against my young lady, intending to trap her in the lake."

An old woman from the Cao Family was heavily injured, her liver and spleen shattered. Yet her martial arts foundation was strong; after being fed healing treasure medicine, she could speak now, she scolded: "You wretch, brave but foolish, you deserve this predicament."

"If you die in the lake, it may be well. But if you fall into my hands, I'll have your bones crumble, your organs shattered, you'll meet a bad end!"

Ou Yezi, by the side, felt his scalp tingle: "Had I known, I'd forsake the Golden Scale. This... this old woman from the Cao Family is truly... truly bold. Even when the madam's in danger, she dared to speak thus. Though the odds are slim, what if they come true!"

Madam Wen said: "Little Immortal, what do you think?"

Li Xian saw arrowheads pointing all around, no matter how tight the defense, among thousands of arrows, some will inevitably slip through. He also saw the lake green and deep for several feet, said: "Madam, perhaps you could dive underwater to evade the arrows, then swim ashore to carve out a path."

"Ah, you." Madam Wen pointed to the shore, said: "Your experience is too shallow, avoiding one thing makes it hard to escape another."

"Diving into the lake can indeed dodge the rain of arrows. But you're already trapped passively. These aristocratic families sure plan prevention long ahead. Those towers occupy vantage points by the shore, concealing many intricate mechanisms."

"They can also place close-range killing gear, scatter sharp iron spikes all over the shore. Then elder clansmen equipped with tenacious snaring nets, the nets hidden with poison, can numb human bodies. Guarding the shore."

"Swimming ashore, elder clansmen will cast snaring nets. Clan soldiers will form killing formations, not to mention those two, just the close-range killing gear and ground spikes will catch others off guard."

"If you stay submerged, they can still release poison into the water. Once touching skin, it takes effect. Martial artists are ultimately less agile underwater than on land. Leaping from the water won't reach much height."

"When that time comes, it's no way up to heaven nor down to earth."

Li Xian asked: "What does Madam propose?"

Madam Wen chided: "You boy, dare question me."

Li Xian laughed: "I can't answer, please teach me, madam."

Madam Wen smiled slightly, gently tapped her finger, "There is much you need to learn. Alas, this situation... leaves no choice but to teach you."

Cao Shuang saw the two whispering intimately, showing no sign of panic. He shouted furiously: "You pair of bastard lovers, with doom impending, still so arrogant. Not taking us seriously, shoot the arrows!"

"Shoot the arrows!"

"Shoot the arrows!"

He shouted thrice, but no arrows were shot. Ou Yezi shook his head and sighed, lamenting: "As expected, as expected, Lady Zhe Jian's mind is deep, daring to surface surely means she has a foolproof plan."

Suddenly saw lakeside government soldiers and clan soldiers turn pale and blue, frothing at the mouth, one after another collapsing unconscious. A few managed to draw bowstrings before fainting, releasing arrows with rustling sounds.

Yet they were aimless.

Li Xian was secretly shocked: "It's poison? How, this scale? How was it done?"

Madam Wen looked towards Cao Shuang, smiling: "I initially planned to take the Golden Scale and leave. But you all sincerely insisted, so I stayed a bit longer."

Cao Shuang's face was horrified, strengthless, the situation overturned.

Turns out Madam Wen planned earlier, directing someone with strange fragrance hidden among the crowd. Poisonous aroma spread along the lake shores, infecting everyone coming.

Cao Shuang trembled: "Madam Wen...madam, your skills are superior. When all's said, it's for wealth our revolt began. The Golden Scale is yours now, please... please leave."

Yuwen Hou seeing the distance from the madam, immediately steered his boat to escape. Speeding, splashing water.

Madam Wen said: "Good hero, please halt." Her hand flipped to release a jade pearl. With a soft "poof," it embedded in Yuwen Hou's arm.

The jade pearl contained intense inner qi. Exploding in his flesh, with a "bang," Yuwen Hou's right arm was damaged.

He cried painfully. Madam Wen flicked a finger again, a jade pearl flew into his mouth, lodge under his tongue. Yuwen Hou was filled with dreadful realization that if the pearl exploded, his head would also explode, leaving no life.

Immediately he dared not flee, sat down cross-legged. Summoning all his inner qi to suppress the pearl's qi.

Such as that, he could not move, as if his mouth held an explosive. Suffering endlessly, learning the madam's skills firsthand. Heart filled with bitterness, not knowing how long he could live, or what a wretched end awaited.

Elder from the Chu Family also tried to flee, met a similar fate. The Prefecture City's elder clansmen were at their wits' end, reinforcements hard to arrive in time. And the madam's plans already secured victory over them.

All looked like they wore mourning garbs, faces ash gray, filled with tears but unable to cry.

Ou Yezi said: "Madam, this matter doesn't concern me, may I... may I leave first? Some other day... some other day, I'll forge a treasure weapon to visit you for apology?"

Madam Wen said, "Since you're already here, why not stay and watch? What harm could it bring?"

Ou Yezi exhaled deeply, his heart unsettled. Li Xian was responsible for rowing the boat, while Madam Wen stood at the bow, her long dress fluttering beautifully.

The elders of the Cao Family huddled together, deeply anxious, their legs weak. The one most affected was the old matriarch of the Cao Family.

As the light boat approached, Madam Wen looked at the old matriarch and said, "I'm sorry for unintentionally harming you just now."

"No... no problem?" the old matriarch of the Cao Family replied.

"I have a box of Cyan Lingzhi for you. Consume it with Inner Qi, and it will immediately nurture your liver and protect your spleen, healing both." Madam Wen spoke softly.

She handed a dark cyan box to Li Xian, who passed it to the old matriarch. The old matriarch was taken aback. After consuming the Cyan Lingzhi and using Inner Qi, her liver and spleen indeed began to heal.

The elders of the Cao Family all thought, "Could it be... could it be that Madam Wen truly does not wish to create conflict with the Cao Family? She intended to show her strength earlier, and now she seeks to resolve this grievance. In that case... we should seize this opportunity to end this enmity quickly. This Lady Zhe Jian is truly terrifying!"

Feeling relieved.

Madam Wen said, "But to return to the topic, you mentioned earlier, if you were to capture me alive, what would happen?"

The old matriarch of the Cao Family said, "That... that was all just in jest, please, Madam, don't... ah!"

Madam Wen struck with a palm across the distance, and the old matriarch cried out in pain, collapsing onto the boat. Her bones were shattered, leaving her immobile.

Madam Wen said, "Even though your bones are shattered, if one day you encounter a great medicine, there might still be a chance for recovery. I must... disrupt your clarity and muddied states, throw your Yin and Yang into chaos."

She drew a thread of lake water, which turned to vapor in her palm, swirling around and persisting. She imprinted her palm, driving the vapor into the old matriarch's body. The vapor lingered, subtly containing the "Yin-Yang Transformation", alternating between clear and muddy, embodying the "Distinguishing between Clear and Muddy".

Ou Yezi, skilled in artifact forging, was not adept at Martial Arts tactics and techniques. But he vaguely discerned the essence, his heart secretly alarmed, "Lady Zhe Jian's martial arts have grown even more profound!"

The old matriarch suffered in silence, alternating between hot and cold, pain and itchiness. Madam Wen said, "You all sought to kill me, yet today I do not wish to take lives. Seeing as... you three share the same surname and clan, you shall share the same fate."

"Madam Wen, no... no..." Cao Shuang exclaimed in terror. He struggled to retaliate, yet was like fish on a chopping board.

With bones shattered, Yin and Yang are in disarray within the body, and distinctions between clear and muddy are lost. Even with the influence of the Cao Family in the Prefecture City, healing is difficult. The Second Realm Martial Artists like Cao Shuang have long life, yet their remaining life would be filled with agony.

Li Xian rowed the boat toward the Lin Family. Madam Wen said to Lin Bei, "Although you joined forces against me, you did not cause me much displeasure. Today, I'll just take one of your hands and legs."

Lin Bei, with his chin already cut off, couldn't speak. He glanced at the members of the Cao Family, thinking that a disabled leg was better than shattered bones, becoming a complete cripple. This outcome was already quite favorable. He nodded slowly.

"Little Immortal, your turn," Madam Wen said.

Li Xian had no choice but to comply. Lin Bei dared not resist, allowing Li Xian to break his leg and foot.

"Him as well," Madam Wen pointed to another elder of the Lin Family.

The elder sighed and said, "Madam's methods, I am convinced. I'll do it myself," and with his right hand, he formed a knife hand and severed his left hand.

"Who asked you to do it? Losing one hand doesn't count. Little Immortal, you do it," Madam Wen said gently.

"This..." The elder was unsure of the Madam's temperament. He unnecessarily severed an extra hand.

The Chu family and Yuwen family both faced retaliation. The lighthearted had their limbs severed, while the heavyhearted faced a future of torment. The four major family names suffered heavy casualties.

The pond and lake were stained red with blood.

Ou Yezi said, "Madam... these aristocratic family plots have nothing to do with me. I... I just wanted a share of the spoils."

"No worries. Ou Yezi, the Artifact Refining Master, is admired by Cai Shang," Madam Wen said. "I've heard that Master Ou Yezi, with the Rebirth Appearance, has an index finger as sharp as gold, known as the Five Bone Finger Appearance. You can sense changes in temperature; Cai Shang would like to borrow it for a look."

Ou Yezi's expression changed. He felt a sharp pain in his finger, and his index finger fell into the water. Madam Wen handed a strand of white silk to Li Xian, saying, "Little Immortal, wrap this finger."

Ou Yezi dared not show his anger, remaining silent. Li Xian retrieved the index finger, finding it peculiar: the finger had five joints, thicker at the front and slender at the back, with a tenacious golden bone structure visible through the skin.

Madam Wen said, "Let's go." Li Xian rowed the boat to the shore, observing the tragic sights along the way, then suddenly said, "Madam, there's one thing I haven't finished."

"What is it?" Madam Wen asked.

Li Xian said, "That Sinking River Sword, it should rightfully be mine."

"A trivial matter," Madam Wen said with a playful smile. "If it's yours, just go and take it; why ask me?"

Li Xian rowed the boat over and said to Zhou Shijie, "Brother Zhou, please hand over the sword!"

"Yes... yes," Zhou Shijie replied, handing it over with both hands. Li Xian took the Sinking River Sword, immediately feeling its unmatched sharpness and his spirits lifted greatly.

He played with water using the sword, effortlessly and naturally. After playing for a while, he rowed the boat back to shore.

And drifted away before everyone's eyes.

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