Chaos Unleashed Chapter 87: Phantom, Rose

After Yang Ruiyun left, Li Qiutong was left alone, sitting quietly on the lawn. Because she hadn’t drunk any alcohol, her mind remained quite clear. She rose slowly and was about to return to her room to sleep when suddenly a strange wind swept past—an eeriness very similar to the night she was nearly assassinated. Li Qiutong turned quickly, but instead of an assassin, she found a masked woman standing silently behind her.

The woman was clad in a form-fitting black outfit, her alluring figure accentuated perfectly. Her long black hair, falling straight to her waist, fluttered gently in the breeze.

“Who are you?” Li Qiutong asked.

The woman didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she raised her hand and removed the mask from her face, revealing exquisite features: clear, cold eyes, long lashes, a straight nose, and lips tinged with a faint blush—all of which made Li Qiutong’s heart suddenly race uncontrollably.

Then, the woman slowly knelt on one knee.

“Rose, leader of the Phantom Shadow, pledges loyalty to Lord Li Qiutong of the Sacred Martial Order.”

Li Qiutong was momentarily stunned, unable to make sense of what was happening. Her mind swirled with questions. “Miss, what’s going on? What is this Phantom Shadow?”

Rose stood and explained calmly, “Phantom Shadow is an assassin organization founded by Lin Hai, young master of the Lin family. We now serve Miss Lin Ai, the current head of the family. Since the establishment of the Autumn Grass Alliance, Phantom Shadow will give its full support to General Li’s endeavors.”

As she spoke, understanding dawned on Li Qiutong. “So you’re sent by Lin Ai. Thank goodness you’re an ally—you frightened me.” The murderous aura she felt moments before was so intense that not even her former self at full strength could have withstood it, let alone her present self.

“By the way, why did you only arrive now?”

“Earlier, Miss Lin tasked us with investigating the truth behind the assassination attempt on the Medicine Sage years ago. That’s why we’re late.”

“The Medicine Sage’s assassination? Did you learn anything?” Li Qiutong’s expression grew instantly grave.

“Through numerous investigations, we found that two assassin organizations were involved: Dark Moon and Dagger. Dark Moon was commissioned because the Medicine Sage refused the Qin Empire’s invitation, prompting the Emperor of Qin to personally issue a kill order. However, many martial artists who had benefited from the Medicine Sage intervened, so Dark Moon never even reached him. Dagger, on the other hand, was enticed by a hefty reward from someone in the Tang Empire—this person also leaked the Medicine Sage’s route home. Ultimately, the Medicine Sage was trapped at Ming Ridge by Dagger.”

“I know most of that already. Did you find out who that person was?”

“At first, there wasn’t a single clue. But not long ago, after General Li was targeted by the Dagger’s Black Needle Three Brothers, the same individual placed another bounty through Dagger. We tracked his informants for over half a year and finally confirmed his identity.”

“Who is it?” Li Qiutong’s voice was heavy and stern.

“Prince Ming, Li Shiyuan.”

A question that had haunted Li Qiutong for so long had finally surfaced. She searched her memory for this man, recalling that she’d had little direct interaction with him—yet on closer thought, he had never overlooked her. Back when she first attended court, Tang Zong had originally wished to grant her the rank of prince, but it was on Li Shiyuan’s suggestion that she was made a General, assigned to guard Northern Tong Pass. At the time, she’d thought herself fortunate, able to settle in a place where the court held little sway and develop freely. Now, it seemed he had planned all along to send her to a neglected frontier, intending to deal with her out of sight. Moreover, the eunuch who came recruiting during Yang Ruiyun’s western campaign was also likely his man.

“So, the Mongol attack on Northern Tong Pass must have involved him as well,” Li Qiutong surmised. Through interrogating the Mongol captives, she and her companions had learned that a high-ranking official from the Tang court had acted as their insider, bringing them in.

Rose nodded. “Although we lack concrete evidence, our investigation revealed that a minor official recently promoted by him secretly visited the Kaiyan Pass area.”

In that moment, Li Qiutong’s mind cleared—she’d never sought trouble with him, yet he had gone to such lengths to harm her.

“What grudge could he possibly bear against my grandfather, the Medicine Sage Li Baicao, to be so ruthless?”

This time, Rose could only shake her head helplessly. “We haven’t uncovered the reason. The Medicine Sage was only a distant relative of the Li family and had almost no contact with him, who spent most of his life in Chang’an.”

“I understand. Thank you for the information.”

“It’s my duty.”

“All right then. Be careful in your future actions—keep a close watch on Dagger. Once I’ve recovered, I’ll seek them out personally.” Li Qiutong’s tone was resolute.

Rose seemed to have more to say but, after a moment’s thought, remained silent.

“If there’s nothing else, Rose will take her leave.”

“All right. Your line of work must be dangerous. If you run into trouble, come to Northern Tong Pass anytime—it’s safe here.”

Li Qiutong’s words of concern suddenly awakened some dormant memories within Rose.

“Little Rose, after this job, I’ll take you to the seaside for a good rest,” Lin Hai had once said with an easy smile, utterly unconcerned by the imminent mission.

“For assassins, there’s no such thing as rest,” Rose had replied coolly.

“Yes, our line of work is exhausting. But trust me, it’s safe there, and beautiful—shells scattered on the shore, and…”

“All right, enough talk—let’s go.”

“Very well.”

Li Qiutong noticed Rose lost in thought and asked, puzzled, “Rose, what’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing, just remembering something. General Li, you should rest. I’ll be going.” Without giving Li Qiutong a chance to respond, she vanished into the night.

The next day, Li Qiutong woke to find it was nearly noon. Outside, the shouts and drills of training filled the air with vigor. Northern Tong Pass had already returned to its usual state of rigorous discipline; no one had neglected their duties because of last night’s festivities.

Stepping out of her room, Li Qiutong saw Qin Shuyu preparing breakfast.

“Qiu, you’re up. Come have some breakfast,” Qin Shuyu called.

Li Qiutong sat at the table as usual. “By the way, Mom. Weren’t you at the Western Barracks yesterday? What did Xingtian do later?”

“Take a guess.”

Li Qiutong sipped her porridge, thought for a moment, and said, “Did he confess to Yuling?”

“Of course. You think everyone’s like you, bottling everything up and never saying it?” Qin Shuyu looked at her son with some exasperation. If only he were a bit bolder in these matters, she wouldn’t have to worry so much.

Li Qiutong shrugged and continued, “So, what happened? Did Yuling agree?”

“Well, let’s put it this way—Xingtian drank too much last night and mistook the person. He ended up proposing to Yuying.”

Li Qiutong nearly spat out her porridge, barely suppressing her laughter before asking, “And? Did he get beaten up?”

“You’re just waiting for something to happen, aren’t you? But after Xingtian spoke, he fell asleep, so the sisters didn’t know what to say.” Qin Shuyu relayed the events truthfully.

“I have a feeling Xingtian’s in for a tough time. Oh, and late last night, my second brother and Zhu Long brought Xingtian’s disciple over to find him. How did that go?”

Qin Shuyu set down her spoon, thinking back carefully. “Oh, you mean that young girl. Last night, she was fast asleep, so we didn’t wake her.”

“I imagine the Western Barracks must be lively now. I’ll go over and take a look later.”

In the Western Barracks, when Ren Xingtian woke, his mind was blank. He vaguely recalled doing something important last night, but couldn’t remember what had happened.

Stepping outside, Ren Xingtian nearly collided with Yuying, who was collecting things.

“You’re awake?” Yuying asked, expressionless.

“Pretty much, though I’m still a bit dizzy. Where’s your sister?”

“So you can tell us apart now?”

Ren Xingtian looked baffled. “Tell who apart?”

“Never mind. Last night, a young girl came looking for you. She’s in the dining hall, with my sister.”

“All right, got it.” Ren Xingtian turned and made his way to the dining hall, muttering as he walked, “A girl? What girl?”

Yuying watched his retreating figure in silence, the scene from last night still vivid in her mind. Every word Ren Xingtian had spoken was etched into her memory—but, regrettably, it hadn’t been to her.

When Ren Xingtian arrived at the dining hall, Yuling was sitting with a young girl, chatting.

“Lijing? What are you doing here?”

Lijing turned her head, clearly annoyed. “You’re finally awake. I came all this way just to help you, but your soldiers dared to attack me. Look.” She pointed to a greenish bruise on the back of her neck.

Ren Xingtian knew this girl’s temper well and hastened to placate her. “Take your time and explain. Whatever happened, your uncle will sort it out for you, all right?”

She rolled her eyes at him. “You said it yourself.” Then, Lijing began recounting her experience in detail. After being provoked by Li Qiutong, she’d thrown herself into training, and with her natural talent—previously held back only by a playful disposition—she’d quickly broken through to the Martial Master realm, much faster than Yang Jian had anticipated. According to the tradition of Mount Jietian, once a disciple reached this level, they had to descend and travel the world to temper themselves. Although Lijing was no exception, Yang Jian knew his disciple’s character too well to let her wander unsupervised, so he sent her to find Ren Xingtian.

“So that’s it. I thought you’d snuck off on your own.”

“Do you think I’m like you, Uncle Fool?”

Having understood her purpose, Ren Xingtian asked, “Then what happened last night?”

At the mention, Lijing’s mood soured. “I went to great lengths to get here, hoping to surprise you. I climbed over the wall, but was spotted by one of your patrol soldiers. I only meant to teach him a lesson, but he caught me off guard and knocked me out. Uncle, you have to stand up for me, or I’ll tell Master.”

“All right, just tell me—who was it?” Ren Xingtian had heard plenty about this little terror from Mount Jietian. If he upset her, he’d be in for it. But the soldier was only doing his duty—most likely it was Lijing’s fault for sneaking in at night.

But as Ren Xingtian said this, Lijing realized she had no idea who the culprit was or what he looked like.

“I don’t know.”

“There you have it—if you don’t know, how can I help you?”

Just then, a voice called out, “Strategist, you’re awake. The girl I brought here last night—do you know her?” Zhu Long had hurried over early, worried about the consequences if she was someone important to the strategist.

At the sound, Lijing immediately recognized him. “That’s him, Uncle! I recognize that voice.”

Ren Xingtian looked helplessly at Zhu Long. He’d almost managed to smooth things over, but Zhu Long, ever the honest man, had walked right in. What now?

Realizing the situation, Zhu Long drew a sharp breath—he’d managed to offend the strategist after all. Still, he felt compelled to explain. “Strategist, here’s what happened last night—”

But before he could finish, Ren Xingtian raised his hand to stop him. “No need. You do bear some responsibility for striking my disciple. Here’s what we’ll do, Lijing: he’s the commander of this camp. I’ll assign you as his overseer, to supervise his daily duties. How does that sound?”

“So now I’m his superior?”

“That’s right,” Ren Xingtian nodded.

“Wonderful!” The young girl was delighted. She’d expected hardship, but now she was in charge—who wouldn’t be pleased?

Zhu Long wanted to protest, but Ren Xingtian leaned over and whispered, “Commander Zhu, just bear with her. My disciple’s still immature—don’t take offense. Placing her in your camp is my way of having you look after her. As for her position, don’t let it trouble you—let her play as she likes and stick to your duties.”

With that, Zhu Long understood the situation. “All right, leave it to me.”