Chapter 8 (1/2)

Feng Jin is so jealous by the supposed intimacy between Bo Lan Zhou and Shang Guan Jing that he didn't raise a finger to help her, even as she tries so hard to protect him.  Even though he lost some brownie points (not that he has much to start with), all is not lost. Sometimes, it is quite cool to be the Devil of the South…..

Chapter 8 ('continued)

Shang Guan Jing is unprepared for the hit and almost simultaneously; Li Yun Yi turns and skewers her through the shoulder. Through a haze of pain, she hears someone shouting ”Feng Zhu!”

That should be Yan Ying and through her blurry eyes, she sees that he has subdued the other attackers. With Da s.h.i.+ Jie's sword in her shoulder and Er s.h.i.+ Ge behind her, Yan Ying should have sufficient time to come to Feng Jin's side given his skill. At least Feng Jin is safe, thank goodness…

She falls forward would have kissed the ground if not for a hand that catches her before her face contacts with the ground. The same hand pushes her to sit down on the floor and as she looks up, she thinks she sees Feng Jin. But it cannot be him. The man in front of her is as remote as an ice sculpture with no emotions whatsoever, except for his eyes that are so cold, that they are like the frozen rocks at the mountain peak.

She smells the stench of iron rising up her throat and coughs out a mouthful of blood. She tries to turn her face away but some of her blood spurts onto his face, just above his nice-looking lips.

”Why are you crying?”

”Leave… quickly.”

”What is going to happen to you once I leave?”

This is nearly an exact repeat of their very first conversation and she fights the urge to smile. But the situation now is much more dire and she uses all her strength to keep herself from losing conscious. In a blur, she sees Bo Lan Zhou aiming his sword at Feng Jin's back but Yan Ying has indeed reached his side and deflects his blow without much effort.

She thinks she hears Yan Ying shouting ”Feng Zhu!” once more and the term sounds vaguely familiar. Where has she heard it before? Why does Yan Ying not call Feng Jin by his name, or Master Feng? Her breathing starts coming in gasps and her head spins like a top in a spinning compet.i.tion. As much as she likes to, darkness overcomes over her and she falls forward into a dead faint.

*****

Since the appearance of the stranger, Feng Jin has been rooted to the ground.

”Jing! I have searched such a long time for you.”

Tears fell from the woman's eyes and the man brushed them away from her cheeks.

”You are very good to me and likewise, I care for you deeply in my heart.”

The woman cried harder and the man brushed away more tears.

She could have avoided the man's touch, just like how he could have put an end to the men who surrounded them. But he wanted to see. He wanted to know.

While she is busy fighting her s.h.i.+ ge and s.h.i.+ jie, he has not intervene as his inner voice tells him to wait and see what develops. So he has look d on as Shang Guan Jing duels with the two while his soul feels as if it has left his body and is watching the scene from beside his body.   He shows no emotion when a sword pierces through Shang Guan Jing's shoulder at the same time she is. .h.i.t on the back.   It is only when he feels the warmth of her blood on his face that he feels that his soul is back in his cold body.

Even if she has let him down, who did these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds think they are?

Even if they want to beat a dog, shouldn't they check out first if the dog's master is someone they can afford to antagonize?

And they have knifed her, hurt her… then none of them deserve to live!

A few steps away, Yan Ying can feel the change I the air. He has been wondering why Feng Jin has not tried to help but at this moment, he has his answer. Or rather, he the rapid chill in the air has given him the answer. Feng Zhu is not uncaring; he is just coldly, ominously, furious.

As wind whips through the forest and temperature drops further, Yan Ying knows that there is no time for him to escape the spell now that it is cast. Quickly, he sits down cross-legged on the ground, closes his eyes, and directs all his qi towards his heart to protect the body's most vital organ.

Ay, let's hope he can hang on better this time and not vomit blood….