Chapter Five: The Deadly Clash

When Ye Pei drew her weapon, the outcome of the battle was already sealed. With arms outstretched like a swooping eagle, she descended into the crowd, easily deflecting several swinging sabers, her long staff lashing out to the sound of wails and shrieks.

After about five minutes had passed—

“I really held back, you know, so stop howling and head home already…” Ye Pei stood in the middle of the road, leaning on her staff with a pained expression. “None of you lost an arm or a leg. I was controlling my strength.”

All along the street and on both sides, ruffians lay sprawled, each clutching a wounded spot and groaning, some even yelping as they held their backsides. But clearly, none had suffered any real injury—if their spirited cries were anything to judge by.

“Damn it, I suddenly have the urge to meddle in these city matters. If it’s dull, I’ll put an end to it; if it’s interesting, all the better.” Muttering to herself, Ye Pei untied her horse and rode slowly toward the Ye residence.

A month later, in a remote corner of Shunxing City far from the Ye estate, a two-story building that had long failed to sell due to its awkward location was bought by Alan, who hung a sign reading “Peihua Tavern.” The next day, Ye Pei brought a group of people to the place and opened for business. Of course, the tavern was never intended as a real venture; Ye Pei didn’t expect to profit much in such a secluded spot, but thought anything earned was a bonus. The real purpose was to serve as Ye Pei’s base of operations for entering the city’s underworld. The main staff were all young men around eighteen or nineteen, recruits washed out from General Ye Linhui’s army. While unfit for military service, working for Ye Pei was, in truth, a better outcome for their families.

Thus, the saying began to spread: “The master of Peihua Tavern, free and unrestrained as the rivers and lakes, blade and staff show no mercy—those who defy shall be cut down.” In reality, though, deaths in Shunxing City’s gang conflicts were rare.

In just over a year, Peihua Tavern had become the city’s preeminent underworld force. Ye Pei, however, would always remark with disbelief, “I can’t believe a place like my Peihua Tavern is actually the strongest in Shunxing City.”

So, whenever disputes in the city grew too heated to control, Ye Pei would intervene even before the authorities, not for attention, but simply because most involved weren’t truly evil—no need for them to suffer at the hands of the yamen over a few brawls.

Returning to the present, the trouble with the Meng Gang and Red Sabre Society was nothing complicated. Ye Pei was simply displeased with their backtracking and had no intention of giving them a second chance, suppressing them with swift, forceful means.

What Ye Pei hadn’t anticipated, however, was that these two gangs would dare stir up trouble again in her absence—and, even more unexpectedly, that this was not just their doing, but a plan devised by nearly half the city’s underworld to target her.

By afternoon, Yue Zhe sat alone in his room awaiting nightfall’s events. Though he and Ye Pei had exchanged harsh words, she too was resting, prepared to respond at any moment to signals from her subordinates and assist Yue Zhe. Peihua Tavern’s men were already primed, ready to follow Yue Zhe into battle in secret.

On the surface, it seemed that with Yue Zhe’s martial prowess, he could have fought his way in and out seven times over with ease, making Ye Pei’s preparations appear excessive. But as events proved, without her foresight, Yue Zhe would not have survived the night.

As the hour of the boar (9 p.m.) arrived, tattered wisps of cloud sliced the waning moon, casting pallid light over the northern land. Unmelted snow reflected what little moonlight there was, illuminating the terrain. Somewhere, a faint hiss of a blade being drawn broke the silence, its murderous intent startling sparrows from the trees and sending snow tumbling onto the frozen lake, sketching the outline of weapons in white.

“Boss Feng, are all preparations complete?” By the lake, Meng Feng, leader of the Meng Gang, conversed with Feng Dongcheng of the Red Sabre Society.

Feng Dongcheng replied with confidence, “Everything’s ready. Though the leaders of the other twelve gangs aren’t here themselves, their men are—twenty archers and forty swordsmen. Each gang’s best fighters are in position, and with both our forces here, not even the master of Peihua Tavern could escape this net tonight.”

Indeed, a deadly ambush surrounded the lake. Though only thirty or forty fighters seemed to be present, at least seventy or eighty more hid among the trees, all awaiting Ye Pei.

“You’re to remain hidden,” came the order to the ambushers. “When the melee is breached, the combatants will scatter; that’s when the archers fire. The rest of you must rush in within two seconds of the first volley to surround the master of Peihua Tavern!”

At noon, Yue Zhe had already left the city, halting his horse as he spotted two distant clusters of torches. He waited rather than advancing.

Soon, the two groups of torches converged, and the clamor of battle broke out.

“Heh, time for Hero Yue to make his entrance!” With a shout, Yue Zhe spurred his horse forward, eager to display his prowess, oblivious to the fact that the battle was curiously absent of clashing steel—only bloodcurdling cries filled the air.

“Hold it! No one move!” He halted his horse ten meters from the fray, then leaped into the midst, kicking aside several men and bellowing, “Everyone stop! If you’ve got a problem, come to me!”

Instantly, both sides fell back, leaving Yue Zhe alone in the center.

“Huh… Did my words really carry that much weight?” He was at a loss.

But then—“Swoosh! Swoosh!”—countless arrows whistled from the forest, cold glints flying straight at him.

“Hell, I’ve been set up!” Yue Zhe cursed, whipping out his twin sabers, forming a whirlwind defense against the storm of arrows. “So this is a plot against Ye Pei…”

Within seconds, the truth became clear to him.

Meanwhile, the woods erupted with shouts and the glint of weapons—the net had closed, its fangs bared in the darkness.

“Thunk!” An arrow found its mark, piercing his thigh.

“Aaargh—!” Roaring with pain, Yue Zhe ripped the shaft free. The agony only fueled his fury. Ignoring his wound, he charged into the oncoming men—fifty or sixty burly fighters—sabers flashing, blood and screams in his wake, unstoppable.

Outside the battle, more than twenty from Peihua Tavern, seeing things go awry from the city gates, dispatched a rider to alert Ye Pei while the rest rushed out to assist Yue Zhe.

“What?!” On hearing the news, Ye Pei was shocked. “Yue Zhe’s skills… he’s actually in danger in this situation?”

“Go back to headquarters and summon more reinforcements!” she ordered. As soon as the words were out, she vaulted onto the rooftop, glanced toward Ye Feilan’s darkened room, then, displaying extraordinary lightness skill, sped toward the battlefield like a swallow in flight.

Within the battle, Yue Zhe, though wounded, showed no sign of faltering. His twin blades danced like dragons through the sea, leaving carnage in their wake—no one could stand before him.

“Hahaha—” His wild laughter rang out, “An ambush! Hahaha—”

Fierce blades glinted with murderous resolve;
Swaying figures moved with effortless grace.

“Boss Feng, doesn’t this seem unlike the master of Peihua Tavern? Doesn’t he always conceal his identity?” Meng Feng and Feng Dongcheng watched from the periphery.

Feng Dongcheng frowned. “I agree. The voice is off, and the master doesn’t use twin sabers.”

“Then this person’s martial arts…”

“His skills are at least equal to the master’s. Judging by his words, he came to stop the fight. Could he be one of Peihua Tavern’s top figures?” Feng Dongcheng pondered. “No matter—once the arrow’s nocked, it must be loosed. Killing him will wound Peihua Tavern deeply. Let’s go!” With that, he drew his sword and charged. Meng Feng, seeing this, followed suit.

The two of them were mediocre fighters at best; one-on-one, neither could last two rounds against Yue Zhe, and together, their odds were little better. However, Yue Zhe had already been wounded by an arrow and had been fighting at full intensity for some time—his stamina was failing. Their arrival immediately increased the pressure.

“Hero Yue, don’t panic! We—” The reinforcements from Peihua Tavern had just arrived but were surrounded by Meng Gang and Red Sabre Society, unable to help. Their half-spoken shout distracted Yue Zhe.

“Shhk—” With a hiss, Meng Feng’s blade left a foot-long gash across Yue Zhe’s back.

“Argh!” Furious, Yue Zhe whirled and slashed, severing Meng Feng’s right hand, but the blow to his back had taken its toll. Fatigue set in; his movements lost their former elegance and precision, his footwork turned erratic, his attacks less controlled.

But then—

A long, piercing whistle split the night, drowning out all other sounds. All who heard it felt a wave of dizziness. For Yue Zhe, it was as if something inside him had been stirred; instinctively, he lashed out with his saber, which now seemed to shimmer with a faint blue light, driving back over a dozen foes.

“Fool! Get up!” From above, Ye Pei—face veiled beneath a black hat, staff in hand—swooped toward the battlefield, the tip of her staff aimed at Yue Zhe.

Hearing her, Yue Zhe leapt up, switched his saber to his left hand, and grabbed hold of Ye Pei’s extended staff. With a twist, Ye Pei flung him toward the city gate, where Peihua Tavern’s men would soon arrive.

Having extracted Yue Zhe from the fray, Ye Pei landed in the midst of the crowd. With a flourish, she spun her staff around her waist; in the astonished eyes of the thugs, it transformed into a great blade, eight feet long, gleaming black in the moonlight.

Ignoring the stares around her, Ye Pei let a cold laugh slip from beneath her mask. “Come, let me see the resolve with which so many gangs have gathered to besiege me!”