Chapter 68: Obstruction (First Update)

Is she out of her mind?

Countless eyes stared at Jiang Shi, ranging from the aristocratic youths watching the spectacle on the outermost fringe, to the soldiers gripping their divine-machine crossbows, and all the way to Lu Wangji and the others at the center of the camp. Everyone was stunned by Jiang Shi's abrupt and reckless action. It was much like the eve of a storm's passing, when the sole lonely angler still drifting upon the sea suddenly begins to chant a mad prophecy, summoning a towering tsunami that blots out the sky.

Clearly, the matter had already concluded. The murder charge had been lifted high only to be set down gently; though she had failed to join the Jie or Shang clans, she could still advance further in the Huainan Underground Palace. The oppression from the other noble houses had also been neutralized, and she could claim sixty percent of the spoils from the Somnambulist Woods. To call it escaping unscathed would not be an exaggeration.

Prior to this, even before the murder took place, many had secretly felt that Jiang Shi would surely have to pay a heavy price just to leave the woods. The Qian clan was utterly incapable of protecting her. As a commoner, a black-belt martial artist, and most importantly, as the weak, she had nevertheless swallowed up the sweetest corner of the Somnambulist Woods. It was akin to a mere child driving a carriage overflowing with gold bars in a frenzied dash down a public thoroughfare.

The State of Liang placed the utmost emphasis on legal codes, yet it was never so merciful as to allow the weak to possess wealth beyond their strength. Strength could be manifested through a powerful lineage, through extensive connections, or through personal combat prowess. Thanks to the presence of the Jie clan’s eldest miss and the Shang clan’s fourth young miss within her party, Jiang Shi had earned the qualification to secure a year’s time to grow and the right to seize sixty percent of the treasure chest's yields.

No one would deem this arrangement unreasonable, not even Qian Gongyu. In this world, there was never any such thing as a matter-of-course "fairness"; all resources must flow between the strong and the weak through a process of dynamic negotiation. To be brutally honest, Jiang Shi fundamentally lacked the qualification to claim the treasure chest in the first place: as an unregistered citizen with no official record, everything she acquired on the soil of Liang was entirely illegal.

This was an outcome everyone could accept. Even Shang Xinlei and the others, who had been completely fighting in Jiang Shi's corner, felt that no better terms could possibly be negotiated. Yet, not once had they ever stopped to consider whether Jiang Shi herself could ever accept such an outcome.

Did they truly understand Jiang Shi at all?

Life, the future, material gain, freedom, and emotional ties—among all these things that mortal beings strove so desperately to attain, how much weight did they actually carry in Jiang Shi's heart?

"Jiang Shi, calm down!"

The first to block Jiang Shi's path was not Lu Wangji, nor was it Chen Linchuan and his companions; it was Shang Yue and Jie Zilong. If anyone could still put a stop to this impending tsunami, it was undoubtedly these two men alone. Thus, Lu Wangji and the others remained silent, refraining from interference and leaving it to them to negotiate with Jiang Shi.

"If you have any grievances, you can talk to us, instead of messing everything up on your own impulse!" Jie Zilong struggled to suppress his surging anger. As a spear-fighting instructor of the Northern Jiang Garrison, he was by no means a man of gentle temperament. "To simply confess just because you've been framed—do you think acting like this makes you look arrogant, clear-headed, and defying the world? Do you know what people like you are called in my hometown? They call it a blockhead! How can someone be as utterly foolish as you?!"

"Instructor Jie, calm down." Shang Yue pressed a hand onto Jie Zilong’s shoulder. "It’s not as if you were never young yourself. When youths are confronted with injustice, it is only natural that they lose control of their emotions. We certainly didn't handle this matter well. Concession, compromise, and endurance—things that we have grown accustomed to—are nothing short of supreme humiliation to a spirited, high-minded youth."

He heaved a sigh. "Jiang Shi, anyone would inevitably be furious upon being framed and slandered; I can understand that. But I hope you can understand us as well—they planned this far in advance. For now, we possess neither the evidence nor the means to prove your innocence. This is simply the absolute limit of what we can achieve."

"Though our time spent together has been brief, I can tell that Xinlei, the young miss of the Jie clan, and the young miss of the Qian clan all regard you as an essential friend. I know you aren't afraid of death, nor are you cowed by brute authority, unyielding as the edge of a blade. But consider this a plea from me, acting as an elder brother: can you swallow this bitter pill, just for the sake of your friends?"

"Stay alive, grow stronger, and then exact your vengeance." Shang Yue stepped aside to let Jiang Shi see the people behind him. "Remember their faces, and pay them back one by one. Your friends will help you, and we will help you too."

"Jiang Shi, you don't have to fight the entire world alone. You can trust your friends, you can trust us, but above all, you must trust your own future. Why bother lowering yourself to the level of these petty villains?"

There was Jie Zilong’s exasperation born from a desire to see her succeed, paired with Shang Yue’s sincere and earnest persuasion.

Whether Jiang Shi was persuaded remained unconfirmed, but Qian Gongyu and the others were entirely convinced. Jie Yuanshao stepped forward past the crowd, seized the arm with which Jiang Shi held her raised blade, and pleaded with an expression full of entreaty: "Jiang Shi, leave this to us to handle. I give you my word in the name of the Jie clan that we will surely restore your justice."

"Jiang Shi." Shang Xinlei reached out, pressing down the white-iron straight blade, and said, "Just as we unconditionally trusted you within the Somnambulist Woods, it is now your turn to trust us out here."

Qian Gongyu remained silent; she lacked the capacity to make any grand guarantees, and could only bite her lower lip tightly as she gazed at Jiang Shi, her eyes brimming with worry and unease.

Faced with everyone's concern, Jiang Shi fell silent for a moment before finally lowering her long saber slowly, causing everyone present to exhale in relief. Yet, for reasons unknown, a lingering sense of loss welled up within Shang Xinlei's heart.

She recalled their private conversation from earlier.

*‘Shang Xinlei, unlike you, I have no one I can rely on, nor do I need to rely on anyone.’*

Previously, the focal point of Shang Xinlei’s attention had been the first half of that statement—*‘I have no one I can rely on’*—which was precisely why she had so desperately hoped Jiang Shi would join the Shang clan. She believed that under the shelter of a powerful faction, Jiang Shi would not harbor such a reckless, death-courting attitude, nor would she be manipulated by the likes of Huang Quan, thereby securing a much brighter future.

Yet... what if the true crux of Jiang Shi’s words actually lay in the second half: *‘nor do I need to rely on anyone’*?

Only those without attachments could press forward unhindered.

Once a blade was sheathed, whom else could it possibly cut?

The Shang clan, the Jie clan, Jie Yuanshao, Qian Gongyu, and even herself—they had all woven an intricate web of connections that bound Jiang Shi tightly, forcing this genius living on the razor's edge to factor in consequences, the broader situation, and the future. Moreover, their intentions toward Jiang Shi were genuinely benevolent, utterly devoid of malice. Even her eldest brother Shang Yue and Jie Zilong had no hand in the conspiracy to frame Jiang Shi; instead, they had exerted themselves to the utmost, sacrificing the yields of a second-tier mystic realm just to buy her a year of time.

If blame was to be assigned, one should blame Lu Wangji and his faction for plotting against her, or Qun Yushu and the others for adding fuel to the fire. But they represented the imperial court and the other noble houses, while Jiang Shi currently stood alone and weak. Was she truly expected to smash an egg against a stone?

Such was the nature of worldly affairs; one could only do their utmost.

Or rather, who in this mortal world could genuinely claim to rely on no one? The human realm was nothing more than a vast net, with interests binding every single soul together. The only ones capable of tearing free from this net were either wild beasts or divine deities.

Jiang Shi's self-reliance was, in the end, nothing more than a childish, stubborn arrogance.