Chapter 132: Escape, Senior Sister Qinglan

“Are you from the Mo Sect?” Shen Qianmo asked with a hint of surprise.

“Exactly, exactly,” Baili Xiao nodded repeatedly, his tone somewhat excited. “Brother Xie, you have a keen eye. Let me introduce you.” He pointed to the graceful woman in black. “This is, um... a rather impolite woman named Ye Qinglan. Nominally, she is my senior sister...”

“Shut up!” While Baili Xiao was busy introducing, Ye Qinglan had already approached the bedside. Helian Cheng lay quietly on the bed, his eyes tightly shut, lips pressed thin, clearly unconscious. The deep crimson stain on his chest seemed to testify to the excruciating pain he had just endured.

“Is he dead?” Ye Qinglan turned back and silenced Baili Xiao’s chatter, then asked Shen Qianmo.

“No.” Shen Qianmo picked up the golden hairpin that had fallen beside Helian Cheng and said calmly, “He’s just been drugged with a soul-confusing powder and is temporarily unconscious.”

Her intention with the hairpin was only to cause him to faint, not to kill him, so the wound wasn’t deep.

Ye Qinglan examined the injury roughly. Indeed, the bleeding had stopped, and it seemed not serious. Her tone was cold as she said to Shen Qianmo, “Should we finish him off?”

“No need.” Shen Qianmo pondered for a moment and said, “No need to create more trouble. Let’s leave here quickly.”

Helian Cheng held an important position in the Northern Di people. If he died at their hands, it would affect not only the Northern Di but the entire political landscape.

The current situation was already turbulent; she did not want to make things worse.

Besides, although she strongly resented Helian Cheng’s earlier attempt to assault her, she did remember that he had twice helped her out of danger before.

However, she still found Helian Cheng’s intentions hard to fathom.

Hearing this, Ye Qinglan gave Shen Qianmo a rare direct look.

Having grown up in the martial world and met countless people, Ye Qinglan immediately guessed what had happened in this room when she saw Shen Qianmo’s torn collar beneath her clothes and Helian Cheng’s disheveled, unconscious form on the bed.

To remain so calm and rational in the face of a man who had intended to violate and humiliate her, it seemed the rumors about this Princess of Xuan were indeed true.

Though she felt a measure of admiration for Shen Qianmo, years of living on the edge had forged Ye Qinglan’s calm and unflappable nature. She nodded slightly to Shen Qianmo and said evenly to Baili Xiao, “Take her away first.”

“Understood. Senior Sister Qinglan, be careful.” Baili Xiao responded briskly and urged Shen Qianmo, “Brother Xie, the guards at the Helian residence are tight. It won’t be easy to escape. Let’s go.”

“Miss Ye, aren’t you coming with us?” Shen Qianmo asked, looking toward Ye Qinglan.

Since they had confirmed they were Mo Sect members, Shen Qianmo naturally trusted them.

When the entire Mo family was exiled to the desolate city, Mo Qingshan passed the Mo Sect leader’s token—the Mozi Order—to her. Essentially, it entrusted the entire Mo Sect to her care. She had always felt the heavy responsibility, fearing she might fail Mo Qingshan’s trust.

But before she could finish reading the thick books about the Mo Sect’s operations and members, and plan the sect’s future, the battle at Jinyang Pass broke out.

Later, she led troops in place of Meng Yuanheng, was betrayed and pushed off a cliff in the snowy mountain, while Meng Yuanheng rebelled in grief and anger. In only two months, the world had changed drastically, making her realize how unpredictable fate was.

Until now, she knew little about the Mo Sect affairs.

Now, the Mo Sect members had come to her, probably because she held the Mozi Order.

Meng Yuanheng had told her that the Mozi Order was always the symbol of the Mo Sect leader; to see the order was to see the leader.

Since Baili Xiao was a member of the Mo Sect, he naturally knew that Mo Qingshan had passed the Mozi Order to her. After learning her identity at the Helian residence, he spread the news and contacted other Mo Sect members to rescue her, which made sense.

However, in her impression, Mo Sect members should be mysterious and highly skilled, but Baili Xiao was a peculiar character far from that image. Instead, Ye Qinglan, with her confident, decisive, and ruthless demeanor, intrigued her deeply. She even felt Ye Qinglan’s temperament somewhat resembled her own.

Perhaps because of this similarity, Ye Qinglan sensed a faint yet genuine concern in Shen Qianmo’s calm eyes. This subtle but sincere care warmed her heart.

However, having long maintained a stoic expression, she only nodded lightly and crisply said three words: “I’ll cover the rear.”

Seeing their confidence, Shen Qianmo said no more. She was not one for affectation, and the Helian residence was not a place to linger. Helian Cheng was drugged but might awaken at any moment, so a swift operation was best.

Since they had managed to break into the Helian residence, they surely had a solid plan for escape.

Thinking this, Shen Qianmo said to Ye Qinglan, “Miss Ye, be careful,” then turned without hesitation and leapt out the window with Baili Xiao.

Just as she expected, Baili Xiao and Ye Qinglan were not alone in the Helian residence. Outside, a dozen or so black-clad, masked figures stood guard, each in their post, vigilant. Dressed in night gear and perfectly positioned in shadows, they were almost invisible without close scrutiny. On the ground lay dozens of Helian residence guards sprawled unconscious.

Seeing Baili Xiao emerge with Shen Qianmo, the scattered black-clad men quickly gathered and quietly formed an elliptical formation around them. The leader, who seemed very familiar with the estate’s layout, gestured and led them to a hidden small gate inside the Listening Pine Garden.

Helian Cheng loved quiet, and at midnight, the garden was silent. Moreover, it was a separate courtyard, isolated from the others, so they slipped out through the small gate without anyone noticing.

As Shen Qianmo and the Mo Sect members withdrew from the garden, Ye Qinglan finished her task in the east wing.

She stood by the bed, satisfied to see the bedding even more disheveled than before—only then did it look like signs of a kidnapping.

Then her gaze inevitably fell on Helian Cheng, still lying quietly on his side.

Is this the famed, valiant General of the Northern Di, renowned for his bravery? Looking at his serene, sleeping face, it was hard to imagine him leading thousands on the battlefield with heroic vigor.

But no matter how brave or wise, even heroes falter before beautiful women.

Unfortunately, he had chosen to like the Princess of Xuan, and from her observations, the princess clearly had no interest in him.

Seeing the vivid crimson stain on his chest, Ye Qinglan barely shook her head and casually tossed a delicately shaped flying fish-shaped dart onto the bed.

The Flying Fish Dart was an exclusive weapon of the Shadowless Sect. Ye Qinglan’s purpose in the east wing was to stage the scene, framing the disappearance of Shen Qianmo from the Helian residence on the Shadowless Sect.

Everything was ready. Ye Qinglan clapped her hands and turned to leave.

Just as she had turned halfway, before fully facing away, she suddenly felt a burning-hot hand grasp hers, then was pulled hard. Caught off guard, her body lost control and toppled backward.

With a thud, she felt her forehead hit a hard surface.

“Ugh.”

She groaned in pain and looked closely—it was Helian Cheng’s chest she had collided with.

Ignoring the throbbing pain on her forehead, Ye Qinglan struggled to get up, but two strong arms, like serpents, quickly coiled around her waist. With a fierce tug, her body was pulled into an embrace filled with masculine scent, mingled with the odors of blood and wine.

“Don’t go… don’t go…” A low, hoarse whisper filled with desperate yearning and sorrow sounded in her ear.

Her heart jolted. Could it be that Helian Cheng had awakened?