"Among the Heaven-ranked assassins of Luo Wang, only one sword could inflict such injuries—Jingni, the Yue King's Eight Swords," Wei Zhuang declared. Every sword left distinct marks, allowing an experienced observer to identify its origin from the wounds alone.
Wei Zhuang and Xiaoyao Zi's deductions caused a ripple of panic among the gathered factions of the Hundred Schools. The name Jingni was infamous; everyone present had heard of its fearsome reputation.
The Yue King's Eight Swords, including the Six Sword Slaves, were legendary, though the latter often remained close to Zhao Gao and had fewer recorded achievements. The other two wielders, Yanri and Quexie, were equally mysterious but lacked Jingni's record of accomplishments.
The last protector of the Zhou Dynasty and Wei's revered Prince Xinling, Wei Wuji, were both slain by Jingni. Tian Yan, who secretly lived as Jingni while cultivating her own skills, was a master with extensive combat experience.
The anti-Qin factions were unaware that Jingni had passed to a new wielder, as the identities of Yanri, Jingni, and Quexie had always been shrouded in secrecy.
"Everyone, remain calm. This is the enemy's ploy to sow discord among us," Yan Dan said, stepping forward to restore order. Panic could not be allowed to spread within the Mechanical City.
"I've just received a report. A few disciples were killed on the perimeter. The attacker must have infiltrated from outside. The Mohists will tighten defenses everywhere. Please rest assured," Yan Dan announced.
Though it was clear to him that Jingni had infiltrated the city, admitting it would only exacerbate tensions. If word spread, everyone would begin suspecting each other, plunging the factions into chaos. Cooperation would crumble, and any hope of resisting the empire would be lost.
After pacifying the gathered factions, Yan Dan convened a private meeting with Wei Zhuang, Xiaoyao Zi, Tian Yan, and other key figures to discuss countermeasures. While the public was kept in the dark, the leadership focused on finding and neutralizing Jingni.
Unbeknownst to them, as they deliberated, a faint purple mist began to spread through the city, carried by water flowing from the Mohist Mechanical City's central hydraulic system.
"This looks grim for the Mohist City," Bai Feng said softly, standing by a window in the Liusha quarters, gazing at the tranquil garden below.
When Chi Lian offered no response, Bai Feng continued, "Perhaps this might even be a good thing."
Chi Lian turned to glance at Bai Feng but remained silent. Unlike her counterpart in the original timeline, this version of Chi Lian had softened due to Han Fei's survival and other changes. Though she had taken the name Chi Lian after the fall of Han, her only real concern now was Wei Zhuang. She followed him wherever he went, indifferent to Han's fate.
Bai Feng, similarly disinterested in Han's revival, simply followed the directives of Liusha.
"Something's off," Bai Feng said suddenly, his sharp senses catching sight of faint purple mist drifting through the garden.
"What is it?" Chi Lian asked, her attention now drawn to Bai Feng's unease. When she spotted the mist, her face paled.
"This is... Zhenyu Qianye!" Chi Lian exclaimed in alarm.
Though she had little exposure to poisons as Princess Honglian, Chi Lian had studied them extensively after becoming Wei Zhuang's follower. Under Zinu's tutelage, she honed her knowledge, and the moment she saw the mist, she recognized the lethal toxin.
Zhenyu Qianye was a poison requiring a thousand nights of refinement in complete darkness. Exposure to sunlight during its preparation would ruin the process. Once deployed in water, it spread rapidly when exposed to sunlight, releasing toxic fumes said to be capable of "slaughtering a city at high noon."
Even Daniel Davis, who rarely used poisons, acquired samples and instructions for Zhenyu Qianye from Zinu for study. Recognizing its unique properties, he suspected it was specifically designed to target the Mohist Mechanical City.
The poison's limitations—its dependence on water to maximize its effect—made it unsuitable for use in most cities of the era, which relied on wells for water. However, the Mechanical City's extensive hydraulic systems made it the perfect target.
Having studied the city's structure and water flow rates, Daniel timed the release perfectly. If introduced too early, the poison would be diluted and washed away. Too late, and it might not fully saturate the city before being discovered.
"Go inform Wei Zhuang immediately!" Chi Lian shouted, leaping out of the window onto a nearby rock formation to survey the spreading mist.
Bai Feng vanished in a blur of motion, a streak of white disappearing from her sight as he sped toward Wei Zhuang. Chi Lian followed more slowly, knowing Bai Feng's superior speed would ensure the message was delivered swiftly.
"What's going on?" Wei Zhuang, Yan Dan, Zhang Liang, and others were discussing how to flush out Jingni when Bai Feng burst into the room. Seeing it was him, they rose immediately, sensing urgency.
"Something's wrong—Zhenyu Qianye," Bai Feng said quickly, detailing what he and Chi Lian had seen.
"Zhenyu Qianye? So that's the true aim of Jingni," Yan Dan muttered, his mind racing as the pieces fell into place.
Their earlier assumption—that Jingni sought to sow chaos by instigating paranoia—had been a miscalculation. The poison's deployment revealed the assassin's actual mission: to incapacitate the city.
Moments later, they stepped outside and saw the effects firsthand. Mohist disciples who had been guarding the perimeter were coughing violently, their strength waning as the poison took hold.
The Mohist City's location atop a solitary mountain peak made morning mist a common occurrence. This natural phenomenon allowed the purple toxin to blend seamlessly, hiding its deadly nature.
Though Bai Feng and Chi Lian's discovery had slightly accelerated its detection, by then, most of the city's inhabitants were already affected.
"Cough… cough…" Tian Yan feigned a dramatic reaction, her performance convincing enough to rival any award-winning actress.
"Here, take this Hundred-Grass Pill," Yan Dan said, offering her the renowned antidote. Though the famed physicians Nian Duan and Duanmu Rong had left the Mohists, the organization still possessed some of their medicinal stockpiles.
The Hundred-Grass Pill, renowned as the most effective antidote, was a rare treasure on the martial plains.
"Ying Zheng... Daniel Davis..." Yan Dan muttered, his fists clenched as he gazed at the encroaching purple mist. If he had previously harbored hopes of leveraging the city's defenses against the Qin army, those hopes were now dashed.
Yan Dan hurried toward the city's central mechanisms, knowing that the poison stemmed from the water supply. The Mohists had included a system to flush and replace the water source, a contingency for sabotage, though they had never anticipated an attack of this scale.
In the study, Zhang Liang, Wei Zhuang, and others gathered, their faces grim. Most of their forces were incapacitated, leaving them with limited options.
"We must retreat," Zhang Liang suggested after some thought. "There's no point in staying. Preserving our strength is paramount."
Yan Dan's forces included the core members of the anti-Qin factions—leaders and elites from the Six States and the Hundred Schools. Losing them all here would spell the end of their resistance.
"We may be too late," Wei Zhuang countered. "Do you think Daniel Davis would miss such an opportunity to annihilate us?"
His words struck a chord. Among the factions, spies loyal to Qin were undoubtedly present, and Wei Zhuang's assessment was accurate. The empire's influence was pervasive, and defections were not uncommon.
"Let them try to run," Daniel murmured, observing the Mechanical City from afar.
For him, eradicating the anti-Qin factions here would not end all resistance but would cripple it beyond repair. Time was on the empire's side. With each passing year, the people grew more aligned with Qin's rule, leaving future uprisings increasingly unlikely.
Despite their outward deliberations, Yan Dan and his group had already resolved to retreat. Their charade was merely a ploy to mislead potential spies within their ranks, buying time to devise an escape.
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