Chapter 50: Pursuit! The Hidden Hand!
Though there had been some turbulence, the three of them didn’t pay much mind to the recent matter with the Shennong Gang. They continued on their way and had already left the region around Wuliang Mountain.
While passing alongside the road, the sound of galloping hooves suddenly reached them from afar, along with the crisp clash of weapons.
At first, it wasn’t clear—barely audible, in fact.
But with Fang Han’s internal energy deepening, his senses had naturally sharpened—his ears especially keen.
“Someone’s coming ahead…”
Fang Han exchanged a glance with Cheng Lingsu, and with tacit understanding, they both stepped aside into the woods, dragging Zhong Ling in with them.
From her expression, it was clear she was excited and curious—entirely treating this like entertainment.
Fang Han and Cheng Lingsu found her reaction rather amusing.
But soon, their focus returned to the disturbance ahead.
Within a few breaths, the sound of hooves grew louder. Suddenly, a dark figure rushed into view, galloping past in the blink of an eye.
It was a tall, strong black horse.
Faintly, one could see a slender figure sitting atop it.
In a flash, it vanished from their sight, leaving behind only a cloud of dust.
Not long after, more than a dozen riders pursued from behind. All were armed, each one fierce and menacing. Clearly, they were hunting the person on the black horse.
But clearly, their horses were slower—they couldn’t catch up and could only trail from afar.
Fang Han’s eyes flashed with thought. He had a rough idea of who that rider was.
Black horse, black clothes, in the Wuliang region, being hunted—plus the timing all lined up.
Most likely, that was Mu Wanqing.
One more piece of evidence…
“Big Sister Mu!?”
Zhong Ling gasped in a low voice, her eyes widening.
All the cheer and playfulness vanished from her face.
Fang Han and Cheng Lingsu turned to her.
Cheng Lingsu asked curiously, “You know that person?”
Zhong Ling nodded anxiously. “Mm-hmm! She’s a friend I met a while ago. We got along quite well. I don’t know why she’s being hunted like that…”
As she spoke, she couldn’t help but stand up. She said urgently to the other two, “Big Brother, Sister Cheng—she’s my friend too. I have to go help her. I can’t go with you anymore.”
That Big Sister Mu clearly couldn’t hold off a dozen attackers. If she didn’t help, Mu Wanqing’s life might truly be in danger.
Zhong Ling had grown up in Ten-Thousand-Calamities Valley, where she rarely made friends.
Even though she hadn’t known Mu Wanqing for long, and their friendship wasn’t that deep, she couldn’t just watch her fall into danger.
She had to lend a hand.
So she abandoned the idea of staying with Fang Han and Cheng Lingsu.
After speaking, she activated her qinggong¹ and sped off.
Zhong Ling’s qinggong was inherited from her family—while it couldn’t compare to Fang Han and Cheng Lingsu’s Lingbo Weibu², it was still quite impressive.
In no time, she vanished into the forest.
That left only Fang Han and his wife.
Cheng Lingsu turned to him. “Brother Fang, what now?”
“What do you think?” Fang Han replied with a question instead of answering.
Cheng Lingsu thought for a moment. “Miss Zhong helped us before. Since she’s in trouble, we ought to return the favor.”
Zhong Ling’s actions back at the Wuliang Sword Sect had indeed shown true loyalty.
It would’ve been one thing if they were evenly matched.
But when faced with the entire sect, she had stood clearly on their side—even going so far as to throw over a dozen venomous snakes to stir chaos.
Not exactly wise—but definitely sincere.
Cheng Lingsu genuinely liked her for that.
Seeing her rush off alone now, she worried the girl would get herself hurt in her recklessness.
Fang Han smiled and nodded. “Alright, let’s go take a look.”
He didn’t find her thoughts strange at all.
This girl was kind by nature. Even if it were a stranger and she could help with just a wave of the hand, she likely would.
Her coldness earlier at the Wuliang Sect was only because the matter concerned himself.
Since she suggested it, he had no reason to refuse.
After all, he quite liked this lively, adorable girl too.
The two of them activated their Lingbo Weibu and followed in the same direction.
While on the move, Fang Han suddenly asked, “Lingsu, earlier at the Wuliang Sword Sect—did you leave a hidden move in place?”
Cheng Lingsu looked surprised. “Brother Fang, you noticed?”
She had hidden her actions carefully—even Zhong Ling, who was right next to her at the time, hadn’t noticed.
Yet Brother Fang had been farther away—how could he have sensed it?
Fang Han shook his head slightly. “No, I just guessed.”
He hadn’t seen through her technique.
But knowing his clever and cautious wife, it was unlikely she’d leave without some contingency in place.
Cheng Lingsu understood and smiled behind her hand. “You guessed right.”
Fang Han chuckled. “Our hearts are connected!”
Hearing this, Cheng Lingsu felt a sweet warmth in her chest.
She had actually been a bit worried he might disapprove of her methods. But now she was relieved.
Still, she explained, “They had you surrounded. I feared something might go wrong, so I released some smoke.”
Fang Han blinked. “I didn’t feel a thing.”
Cheng Lingsu grinned, “Brother Fang, your body’s already immune to all poisons³. Even if it was poisonous, it wouldn’t have affected you. But actually, the smoke I released wasn’t toxic—colorless and scentless, harmless. Naturally, you wouldn’t notice.”
She added, “If things turned bad, I had another medicinal smoke ready. The two combined—though individually harmless—would become a deadly poison. Even their numbers wouldn’t matter anymore.”
But Fang Han alone had already subdued the Wuliang Sect. That hidden trick hadn’t been needed in the end.
Hearing this, Fang Han was moved.
This… this is what they call a virtuous wife!
While chatting, they had already spotted Zhong Ling ahead.
Pa! A light tap landed on Zhong Ling’s shoulder. She jumped in fright—almost leaping into the air.
“Miss Zhong, it’s us…”
Zhong Ling turned to see Fang Han and Cheng Lingsu and immediately cried out, “Oh! Big Brother, Sister Cheng! You scared me!”
She patted her chest and exhaled.
Then looked surprised, “How come you two…”
Fang Han just smiled.
Cheng Lingsu explained, “We were worried about you getting into trouble. We came to help.”
Hearing this, Zhong Ling lit up. “Really!? That’s wonderful~”
Fang Han looked into the distance. “Let’s go. Don’t lose them.”
Without further chatter, the three of them resumed pursuit using qinggong.
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📌 Footnotes:
- 轻功 (qīnggōng)– Lightness Skill: A martial arts technique allowing practitioners to move swiftly, often seeming to float or fly across terrain. Common in wuxia fiction.
- 凌波微步 (Língbō Wēibù)– Lingering Wave Microsteps: A legendary qinggong technique from the Xiaoyao Sect in Jin Yong’s novels, based on the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching. Grants unmatched agility and evasiveness.
- 百毒不侵 (bǎi dú bù qīn)– Immune to a hundred poisons: A phrase indicating someone has developed complete immunity to all poisons, usually due to internal training or long exposure.