Messenger of Calamity

Chapter 105: Blood-Boiling Combination Technique

Rotten Persimmon Tangerine Alley — this was not an official name, but all the nearby residents referred to the small alley this way. The origin of the name was already lost to time, likely because many sour persimmons and tangerines once fell and rotted along this path. Since it wasn’t an official road, naturally there were no Eternal Lamps transplanted from a Secret Realm by a Messenger, nor did any night watchman pass through. Even when strange noises emerged from Rotten Persimmon Tangerine Alley, the residents nearby merely assumed it was stray dogs fighting, never imagining this place would become the eye of the storm in Jiangnan.

Even the three people inside failed to realize — that this secluded alley was currently hosting the Prime Minister of Great Liang, the County Lord of Great Qi, and the Director of Great Zhou. In this unknown corner, on this unremarkable night, they tore off their masks of etiquette, and the only form of communication was pure violence!

At the moment of clashing, Shang Xuanwen immediately sensed something was wrong. Clearly, their flesh and blood weren’t ignited, their weapons weren’t heated, and they bore none of the characteristics of those who burned themselves—yet their attacks could still pierce through the defense of his Heartguard Mirror. Adding the Black Wolf Mask and White Fox Mask that perfectly matched the ones on the Wanted Poster...

He had initially assumed the two were part of the second wave of ambushers from the Taohu Rebels, but now it seemed they were another cruel joke played by fate.

Two distinct forces, attacking him simultaneously tonight.

Shang Xuanwen believed they were not in collusion. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to escape the alley earlier. Most likely, one of the parties acted on impulse, using the chaos in Jiangnan to execute their own plot. But this conclusion was even harder to accept than if they had colluded — an utterly helpless coincidence had driven him into a dead end.

"Thieves' House." Amid the flash of blades and clash of swords, Shang Xuanwen asked coldly, "What do you want to steal from me?"

Yet the only response he received was Medicine Master Wen’s sneer and Ying Ru Shi’s silence. Shang Xuanwen’s heart sank — the opponents knew him very well, even aware that he could glean thoughts through conversation. Hence, the moment the battle began, they ceased all verbal communication to avoid revealing their tactics to him.

From the ambush at this alley, to the caution displayed during combat, every detail proved they came prepared. Just as he spied on others from the shadows, there were also those who had been watching him all along. He wasn’t the only chessmaster in this game.

Their refusal to negotiate meant only one thing — they wanted to kill and plunder. Either they believed Shang Xuanwen would never willingly surrender what they sought, or… his life itself was among their objectives.

He guessed right.

After splitting into teams, Medicine Master Wen and Ying Ru Shi had reached a consensus: Shang Xuanwen must die. Completing the mission was one reason, but more importantly, the Prime Minister of Great Liang posed too great a threat to Great Zhou and Great Qi.

Thirteen years into his administration, Shang Xuanwen had enforced clear governance, opened the channels for public discourse, suppressed powerful clans, and promoted policies benefiting the people. Though the Three Nations of the Central Plains had all moved past their early prosperous eras — Great Zhou had grown increasingly unstable due to Mo Ke's purging of dissidents, and Great Qi was plunging downward under Empress Ying Le’s misrule — only Great Liang, under Shang Xuanwen’s leadership, remained barely afloat. Of course, this was merely the view of Medicine Master Wen and Ying Ru Shi. Within the Court of Liang, the official stance was "flourishing" and "a rightful resurgence."

As the others descended, Liang’s slow decline stood out glaringly.

One viewed Great Zhou as her personal domain. The other was fiercely loyal to Great Qi. Thus, upon learning that tonight’s theft target was Shang Xuanwen’s Heaven-Reliant Sword, Medicine Master Wen and Ying Ru Shi secretly plotted to assassinate the Prime Minister of Great Liang. However, with Shang Xinlei formulating the plan and Yan Qing offering an internal operative, they had to conceal their intentions and prioritize the mission.

Tonight had been riddled with surprises. While the chance of an easy success had slipped away, the chaos gave them a legitimate excuse to satisfy their private desires. When Ying Ru Shi tossed out the bait, “Kill Shang Xuanwen first to stop him from escaping,” Medicine Master Wen immediately bit, “Exactly.”

These two women, who couldn’t stand each other, became perfectly in sync tonight.

As the fight dragged on, their coordination grew increasingly refined, showing no sign of a first-time partnership. This was, of course, due to their innate martial prowess, but more so because they were intimately familiar with each other’s techniques — Medicine Master Wen wielded Great Zhou's “Basic Spearmanship,” while Ying Ru Shi used Great Qi’s “Single-Handed Swordsmanship.” Both were evolved from foundational martial techniques, widely practiced among their respective nation's soldiers. Naturally, they could instantly recognize one another’s combat patterns.

Popular didn’t mean low quality. On the contrary, in order to raise soldiers’ combat power and enable them to conquer Secret Realms, all nations had honed these practical techniques into masterpieces. To aid even the illiterate, these techniques bore simple names—either describing their battlefield context or the number of hands involved.

Yet such plain techniques, in the hands of Medicine Master Wen and Ying Ru Shi, became deadly killing moves. The spear struck like thunder, the sword swift as the wind.

They were, after all, among the most outstanding talents of their time. Now two against one, they held every advantage. As time passed, their Vital Energy and Blood did not diminish; instead, they grew more valiant, unleashing their full martial capabilities.

Still, there was no trace of smugness in their hearts—only grave focus.

Though Shang Xuanwen was being suppressed, the defense of his Heartguard Mirror remained unbroken. He even absorbed Spirit Jade mid-fight. His defense was airtight. Despite being outnumbered, he still found moments to counterattack, frequently disrupting the trajectory of their weapons. Even in unavoidable situations, he used his swordplay to minimize damage.

It was clear that when Shang Xuanwen entered the alley, his condition was already poor. He had no guards, not even the Bald Monk whom Yan Qing mentioned as the internal contact. Evidently, Shang Xuanwen had suffered an earlier mishap before arriving here. He displayed no use of powerful Tokens during the fight — though that wasn’t surprising. Messengers who weren’t stationed on the frontlines of Secret Realms typically reserved powerful Tokens for their successors. What’s more, Shang Xuanwen resided in the secure main city of Jiangnan; his Token loadout was likely the bare minimum.

Yet even in such a weakened state, the Prime Minister of Great Liang remained hard to defeat. Had he been in peak condition with a full set of Tokens, they would’ve been forced to flee in panic.

Previously, Ying Ru Shi had even felt fortunate that the Bald Monk wasn’t present. Without him, she wouldn’t need to worry about him seizing the Heaven-Reliant Sword and calling for retreat. She’d have no excuse to forcefully kill Shang Xuanwen otherwise.

But by now, she was beginning to worry whether they could even complete the theft. If her long-held killing move still couldn’t break Shang Xuanwen’s defense, then everything would be for naught.

The longer the delay, the higher the chance that reinforcements from Great Liang would arrive.

However, they weren’t the only ones growing uneasy. Shang Xuanwen himself was far less calm than he appeared.

Fighting ordinary people and fighting those who burn themselves were two entirely different concepts. Burners abandoned all defense, willing to die with their enemies. Even with Shang Xuanwen’s prowess, his only strategy was avoidance. But against normal opponents who dodged, defended, and used weapons — this was his domain. His art of manipulating others shone not only in court but was also his secret weapon in battle.

His third job as a Trickery Messenger was a rare Marvel-Class Profession. Its core trait, “Disrupt Weapons,” allowed him to effortlessly divert opponents’ weapon flows during combat. Paired with the adhesive sword technique from Nanyue, he could counter virtually all unawakened weapon-users, easily fighting multiple enemies. Whether against demons or Messengers, he could turn foes against one another.

The Taohu Rebels knew this well. Their assassinations relied on area damage or exotic weapons, never giving Shang Xuanwen any chance to display his swordsmanship.

Yet against these two unfamiliar thieves, his vaunted weapon disruption strategy was barely effective.

He had repeatedly used adhesive swordplay, but they managed to withdraw or evade just in time, even leveraging the momentum to launch unexpected follow-ups. Shang Xuanwen had seen such opponents before — people who had never used Martial Technique Manuals yet grasped foundational, advanced, and even secret techniques on their own. Their skill far exceeded their peers, able to improvise and innovate mid-battle, wielding weapons as natural extensions of their bodies.

Even among Third-Stage Messengers, few reached such a realm. It required real talent and intellect. Such people could quickly reach the peak of the third stage, even forcibly build their foundation without Foundation Pills. Unlike most Third-Stage Messengers who wasted half their lives—once lacking a Foundation Pill, they could never reach the Fourth-Stage or higher.

Even when the Divine Marquis Estate Proclamation echoed across the land, Shang Xuanwen hadn’t paid much attention to the Thieves' House. After all, no one had truly controlled it in years. But seeing the two geniuses before him, Shang Xuanwen realized he needed to reassess the power of the Thieves' House.

If he survived tonight.

The sword thief, White Fox, had used only her right hand and the Brave General Sword to fight him from start to finish. Her left hand still gripped the hilt of her off-hand sword. The murderous aura it emitted made Shang Xuanwen’s eyes sting—it was clearly hiding a world-shattering killing move.

The spear thief, Black Wolf, had shown no defense throughout the battle, taking all of Shang Xuanwen’s attacks. Yet her momentum only grew more intense, like a volcano on the verge of eruption. When she burst forth, it would be even more fearsome than heaven’s thunder or earth’s fire.

Just as the battle reached a fever pitch, tension thickening by the second, a whistle suddenly sounded in the distance. It could’ve been from a military officer, a constable, or even a mischievous child unable to sleep. But regardless of its origin, this whistle became the war horn for their assault.

"White Fox!"

"Mm."

There was no need to worry about Shang Xuanwen hearing their tactics — their intentions were now as clear as the moon!

Medicine Master Wen raised her spear high overhead and spun it, feet planted firmly on the ground, abandoning all defense. Shang Xuanwen felt the air currents pulling him toward her—Medicine Master Wen had become the vortex center, capturing any who tried to escape!

Secret Technique: Spinning Lamp!

A long-weapon charging technique. With each rotation, the next attack from the Messenger (including those from Tokens) would be significantly enhanced. The spinning also created vortex currents, pulling all nearby targets inward!

Logically, this was the perfect time to strike a Messenger casting Spinning Lamp. But Medicine Master Wen clearly had a Token that grew stronger with damage taken. Shang Xuanwen would never grant her that advantage. He swiftly retreated to escape the vortex, forcing her to abandon her charge!

As he wished, Medicine Master Wen gave up the charge. Just as Shang Xuanwen was about to exit her range—yet still within optimal spear distance—she let out a fierce roar like a wolf’s howl or a tiger’s bellow, frightening children across the block into tears. The spear left only an afterimage in the air, her entire essence poured into this one strike, a desperate all-in gamble!

She could disrupt it.

Shang Xuanwen remained unafraid. He judged accurately — though this move carried Third-Stage-level power, his Disrupt Weapons and adhesive sword techniques could redirect the spear. Even if he couldn’t aim it at White Fox, he could still bring it down to the ground. His only worry now was the unseen secret blade hidden by White Fox...

Wrong!

At the very moment the spear neared him, just as Shang Xuanwen began to swing his sword, Medicine Master Wen froze entirely—as if someone had halted time around her. Beneath the Black Wolf Mask, her face curled into a victorious grin. Then she moved again, stepped forward, twisted her spear, and swept the butt at Shang Xuanwen—it was a Dragon Tail Sweep.

And it was faster. Stronger.