Chapter 118

Chapter 118: The Long River Rolls On, Reaching the North (Part 1)

“Your Majesty, the army has finished its rest and is ready to break camp at any moment. We can advance on 

the capital!”

Si Cang Qing stared intently at the tactical map before him, offering no reply to the man's words. He simply 

lowered his eyes, seemingly deep in thought.

The atmosphere within the chamber was solemn and heavy.

Just then, a furious shout erupted from outside: “Si Cang Qing!” Before anyone could intervene, a white figure 

dashed in, a cold gleam flashing toward him.

Mo Qingjue gasped in shock and rushed forward to intervene, only to be grabbed by the arm and flung aside. 

He braced himself against a pillar to steady his balance, only then noticing that Si Cang Qing had already engaged 

the intruder in combat.

One white, one black—two figures crossed paths with blinding speed.

Watching the white-clad youth lash out at Si Cang Qing with his icy whip, each strike carrying lethal intent, 

Mo Qingjue clenched the sword in his hand, ready to charge forward once more and lend his strength.

“General Mo…” Cheng Tian Yang stopped him, pulling him back slightly. “Don’t interfere.”

Slightly taken aback, Mo Qingjue looked at the man’s smiling eyes in confusion, then turned to look at the two 

locked in fierce combat, where the winds of their palms and the chilling whips left devastation in their wake. He 

said with slight anxiety, "Your Highness, His Majesty has been attacked by assassins..."

"General, you misunderstand," Cheng Tian Yang smiled, glancing at the two figures who had flown away one 

after the other. "They were just His Majesty's friends; they've always been like this."

Mo Qingjue seemed about to say something, but was interrupted by this man, "Alright, General Mo, you should 

prepare for the journey south! His Majesty will be fine," Cheng Tian Yang glanced at the messy belongings and 

muttered to himself, "Everything's destroyed; it'll take a lot of cleaning up."

After leading Qi Shuangran outside the courtyard, Si Cang Qing finally unleashed his full power, striking the 

oncoming cold whip with his palm. His sword energy instantly neutralized the fierce attack. He moved with 

ghostly grace, his hand subtly twisting to grab the whip. He leaped lightly in front of his opponent, coldly 

demanding, "What are you doing!"

Such reckless behavior so early in the morning. Normally it wouldn't be so bad, but now, at this crucial moment 

when the army is preparing to set off, this person is acting like this...

"I'm going to kill you!" Qi Shuangran glared angrily at Si Cang Qing, and with a flick of her wrist, she pulled the 

whip from his hand and lashed it out without mercy.

Before Si Cang Qing could ponder what on earth had possessed this man, he found himself forced to react 

instinctively. Channeling his lightness skill into his feet, he retreated or dodged with lightning speed. Yet his 

concessions went entirely unappreciated. Qi Shuangran pressed forward relentlessly, his whip whipping through 

the air with increasing fury and ferocity.

This back-and-forth assault and defense had already spanned over a thousand moves, leaving the trees and flowers 

in the courtyard ravaged in the process.

It seemed that unless he stopped the other party, this would never end. Si Cang Qing feinted with his body, causing 

the whip to miss once more. Yet it swiftly coiled toward him again. Sliding swiftly along the whip's trajectory, 

Si Cang Qing seized the moment when Qi Shuangran couldn't retract his momentum. With a sudden palm strike, 

he hit the opponent's wrist, while his other hand clamped tightly around his waist, propelling him backward 

several zhang.

The moment struck, Qi Shuangran's grip loosened, and the whip fell to the ground. Before he could react, his entire 

body was pinned, crashing to the earth.

“Si Cang Qing!” he roared, enraged. Perhaps his fury momentarily paralyzed his struggle against the restraint. 

He could only turn his head, glaring fiercely at his opponent. The ferocity in his eyes was enough to make any 

witness tremble and retreat.

But Si Cang Qing remained utterly unmoved. He tightened his grip on Qiang Shuangran and asked calmly once 

more, “What are you doing?”

A flash of humiliation flickered in Qiang Shuangran's eyes before being replaced by even greater malice. Gritting 

his teeth, he snarled, “I have never suffered such humiliation! Now, I shall take your life to atone for it!”

Seeing the look in his eyes, Si Cang Qing paused, momentarily puzzled by the meaning behind it. Humiliation... 

His thoughts immediately turned to yesterday's fury. Was he referring to that incident? Beyond that, he couldn't 

think of anything else that could have driven this man to such madness.

Taking advantage of his opponent's momentary lapse in concentration, Qi Shuangran swiftly broke free from 

Si Cang Qing's grip, leaping backward and simultaneously flicking the icy whip from the ground with his toes. 

The instant he grabbed the whip, he lashed it out again, the force swift and fierce, the chilling energy aimed 

directly at the person still standing there.

As if doused with a bucket of cold water, seeing the icy whip striking straight at that person, Qi Shuangran had 

no time to retract his whip, and the anger in his heart was instantly extinguished…

"Your Majesty!"

Cheng Tian Yang cried out in alarm. Si Cang Qing jerked aside the instant the icy energy struck, but it was clearly 

too late. A tearing sound rang out, and bright red blood flew out, tracing a strange arc in mid-air.

In the instant the incident occurred, a large group of soldiers surrounded Qi Shuangran, each wielding a long spear.

Pale-faced, Si Cang Qing slowly raised his hand and pressed it against his injured left arm, from which blood 

continued to flow. Cheng Tian Yang had already arrived at his side, urgently asking, "Your Majesty, how are you?" 

Turning back, he called out, "Quickly, summon the army doctor!"

"It's nothing," Si Cang Qing replied coldly, his gaze fixed on the rapidly flowing blood from his arm, seemingly 

oblivious to the pain… if it weren't for his pale face, which betrayed his true feelings.

Ignoring the soldiers surrounding him, Qi Shuangran pursed his lips, standing motionless, his hand still tightly 

gripping the cold whip, his eyes fixed intently on the wounded youth.

◇Cang◇Huan◇Seven◇Palaces◇

Blood dripped drop by drop from the black cloth.

After a moment, Qi Shuangran finally averted his gaze, forcing himself to look away from the other. He casually 

scanned the crowd surrounding him, his voice still firm. “I am not one to be toyed with. Should this happen again, 

no living soul shall survive the Void Whip!”

With that, he cast no further glance at Si Cang Qing. A flick of his whip sent the attacking crowd reeling 

backward. His figure flickered like a ghost, vanishing from the spot.

“The assassin escaped! Pursue him!”

“All stand down!” Si Cang Qing coldly rebuked the soldiers about to pursue, his gaze sweeping indifferently over 

them. “Each return to your original positions!”

With that, he pressed his hand to his wound and strode directly into the house.

“Your Highness...” Mo Qingjue frowned slightly, looking at Cheng Tian Yang, whose expression was inscrutable. 

“Are we truly not pursuing that man?”

His gaze fixed on the pool of blood on the ground. After a long moment, Cheng Tian Yang gave a slight nod. 

“General, this matter is not for you to concern yourself with.” Then, he too followed back into the house.

The military doctor arrived quickly. Seeing the wound on Si Cang Qing's arm, which was nearly down to the 

bone, they were all terrified.

Glancing at the bandaged wound, Si Cang Qing leaned back slightly, resting against the soft chair... That whip 

strike had indeed been vicious. Fortunately, he had managed to dodge slightly, sparing his torso and only injuring 

his arm. It was also fortunate that before the southern campaign, Cheng Tian Bi had prepared ample high-quality 

medicinal ointments. Otherwise, this injury might have become a significant problem.

Cheng Tian Yang remained silent beside him. After tidying up the scattered items, he sat quietly beside 

Si Cang Qing, his gaze fixed on the man's injured arm. After a long while, he suddenly spoke, “You fool! Didn't 

you know to step aside?”

Startled, Si Cang Qing lowered his gaze to look at the man. He freed his right hand and wrapped it around 

the other's shoulder. “It's nothing.”

Cheng Tian Yang opened and closed his lips several times before speaking, his voice slightly cold and deliberate. 

“Did you want to throw your life away so pathetically? This isn't how you spoil someone. When the Seventh 

Young Master gets serious, how many in this world can withstand his lash? And you just stood there like a fool, 

letting him strike you... You...”

He abruptly fell silent, for the other had gently pressed his lips to his own.

They parted moments later. A faint tenderness melted into the icy gaze as Si Cang Qing murmured the two 

words he most often repeated, “It's fine.” He hadn't deliberately allowed Qi Shuangran to attack him; he'd simply 

been momentarily distracted... He'd always observed that man's arrogance, reckless abandon, and merciless 

mockery, yet he'd never seen him like this... so utterly lost. Beneath that madness, beyond the humiliation, there 

seemed to be something more—a sense of panic.

Though he wasn't entirely sure why yesterday's incident had thrown Qi Shuangran so off balance... he could 

understand it somewhat, for within himself, too, there had been subtle, indescribable shifts.

Unable to maintain his stern expression any longer, Cheng Tian Yang sighed helplessly, “When you lose your 

life someday, you'll have only yourself to blame!” Though he said this, he gently leaned into Si Cang Qing's 

embrace, then murmured softly, ”Qi Shuangran really has no sense of restraint! That whip just now—if it had 

been even a fraction closer..."

Had Si Cang Qing been just a fraction slower, that whip would have struck his chest. Then... the consequences 

were unimaginable.

Without further words, Si Cang Qing simply held the man's supple waist, kissing his hair gently. His eyelids 

lowered, concealing a trace of doubt and a faint worry.

“Your Majesty...” After embracing for a long while, Cheng Tian Yang murmured softly, “Are you worried about 

Qi Shuangran?”

Si Cang Qing paused briefly before replying, “Mm.” That man's earlier demeanor had been utterly frenzied—

he mustn't have lost control.

“Heh,” Cheng Tian Yang turned, smiling at him as he spoke softly, “Your Majesty needn't worry! He's just too 

proud to admit it! Leave him be—in time, he'll find it unbearable.”

Such an arrogant man likely couldn't accept the reality of submitting to another so quickly! Though, truth be told, 

it was simply a matter of following his heart...

Si Cang Qing looked slightly confused, his puzzled gaze meeting Cheng Tian Yang's clear eyes.

Seeing this, Cheng Tian Yang couldn't help but chuckle softly, his eyes twinkling mischievously. “How about... 

I teach Your Majesty a few tricks?”

Teach him a few tricks? Si Cang Qing asked doubtfully, “What do you mean?”

Cheng Tian Yang smiled charmingly and said softly, “It's about how Your Majesty should deal with someone like 

Qi Shuangran!” He paused slightly, "As the military strategy says, to capture the prey, you must first let it escape. 

With someone like Qi Shuangran, you can't follow him step by step. That will only make him more arrogant and 

smug. You, on the other hand, should ignore him. Given enough time, he won't be able to resist coming to you..."

After hearing these words, Si Cang Qing still seemed lost in a haze.

"Best of all, during the ‘letting go’ phase, occasionally provoke him a little. For example... spending time with 

others while ignoring him. That’s when he’ll start throwing himself at you!"

Lowering his gaze slightly, Cheng Tian Yang smiled. “Do we understand each other now, Your Majesty?”

Si Cang Qing looked down at him, offering no reply—did he understand? It felt like he did, yet also like he didn’t. 

He merely kissed Cheng Tian Yang’s eyelashes lightly.

Rising to his feet, Si Cang Qing said calmly, “Yang, prepare. We depart immediately.”

Those perplexing matters could be set aside for now. As long as Qi Shuangran remained safe, that was all that 

mattered. The most urgent task now...

Break camp. Head south.

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