“Drop your ons!” the hostage-taker barked, pressing his bde tighter against Sun Li’s throat. His two rades fnked him, their cold, unyielding gazes sing the room.

  “Okay, okay.” Jin Shu’s voice was calm as he crouched and pced his ons on the ground. His steady movements seemed unnaturally posed for the teuation. How he be so calm? Fan Biyu wondered. As far as I know, this is his first time dealing with something like this.

  “You! Girl in the veil! Bring me his ons,” the hostage-taker ordered, jerking his head toward her.

  She froze, her gaze darting to Jin Shu fuidance.

  “Do it now!” the man snapped, his voice sharp and impatient.

  “Hold on.” Jin Shu’s tone was calm, almost soothing. “She’s scared. Let’s all just take a breath.” He straightened, slowly pig up his ons again.

  Fan Biyu frowned under her veil. I’m not scared. Then realization struck—he retending.

  “Hey! I didn’t tell you to move!” the man snarled, his grip on the bde tightening.

  “I’ll just hand them to her,” Jin Shu replied smoothly, taking a step toward Fan Biyu.

  The hostage-taker’s swisted into a darker threat. “No funny business, or the little pris their throat slit.”

  Fan Biyu stiffehe little prince? Her eyes narrowed. How do they know she’s a prince?

  Jin Shu leaned closer as he reached her, pressing his ons into her hands. His breath was warm against her ear as he whispered, “Remember how to use this?”

  She suppressed a shiver and gave a faint nod. But as her fingers gripped the unfamiliar on, panic sparked. This isn’t the pellet gun I used before… It was too te to back out now.

  “Enough! Quit whispering and bring them here!” the hostage-taker barked, his patience clearly fraying.

  “Alright, just a sed,” Jin Shu replied, his voice smooth and disarming.

  Fan Biyu stepped forward hesitantly, masking her uainty with feigned fear. Her mind raced. He didn’t tell me what to do!

  The three men’s gazes locked onto her, their eyes crawling over her body. Disgusting, she thought bitterly. All men are like this. But her gaze flicked to Jin Shu for a moment, and she softened. Except him. His gaze never feels dirty.

  A faint glint fshed behind the hostage-takers, and before she could process what it was—

  Bang!

  The explosion behind the men made them whirl around in surprise. Fan Biyu didn’t waste the opportunity. Out of the er of her eye, she saw Jin Shu rushing forward. With the on in her hand, she took aim at the man to the hostage-taker’s right and pulled the trigger—

  Bang!

  The bst left her ears ringing as the on jerked violently in her grip. If she hadn’t been a cultivator, it might have snapped her wrist. For a moment, she thought she’d missed entirely—until she saw the man colpse, blood pooling around the hole in his chest.

  Her heart raced as she goward Jin Shu. He was grappling with the hostage-taker, while Sun Li y sprawled to the side, wide-eyed and trembling but unharmed.

  Movement to her left drew her attention. The third man raised his sword, ready to strike Jin Shu’s unprotected back.

  No!

  She steadied the on, aiming at his chest. Her finger squeezed the trigger—

  Bang!

  The recoil jolted her wrist again, the deafening noise making her wince. When she looked, the man was falling backward, a bloodied hole where his face had been.

  She winced, l the on. I aimed for his chest

  A siing ch filled the air. Fan Biyu g where Jin Shu was struggling with the st hostage-taker. The man's wrist was bent at an awkward angle. A strange dagger appeared in Jin Shu's hand, and he drove it into the man's palm with both hands. Crimson fmes erupted from the bde as Jin Shu leaped away.

  The man screamed, thrashing against the burning pain, but Jin Shu wasted no time. He crouched beside him and drove the still-fming dagger into his heart. The man’s struggles ceased instantly. He was dead.

  Fan Biyu observed Jin Shu’s movements with growing fasation, intrigued by how easily he fought and killed. She couldn’t help paring him to his mother. Her master, though far strohan him, wasn’t nearly as cold and calg when fighting. Her master’s movements were like a graceful dance, each strike deliberate and artful. Jin Shu, oher hand? He fought like someone who had taken hundreds of lives and grown numb to the sughter. Calm. Effit. Not a single mistake.

  How? she wohis should be his first—no, sed or third time taking a life. She wasn’t certain, but it couldn’t have been many.

  She was still lost in thought when Sun Li’s caretaker began speaking to Jin Shu. She couldn’t make out their words, distracted and absentminded, but she noticed the tension in Jin Shu’s stahe way his hand tightened on the dagger.

  Something isn’t right…

  And she was right. In the moment, Jin Shu lu the older man.

  She gasped. What’s he doing?

  Huai Jiahou deflected Jin Shu’s strike, retreating as Sun Li cried out in arm. The caretaker stumbled back, shouting, “Get the prince!”

  Two sailors armed with daggers stepped toward Sun Li.

  “Biyu!” Jin Shu shouted.

  She uood instantly and moved to block the sailors, positioning herself between them and Sun Li. She raised Jin Shu’s on, her hands steady.

  But then she g the crowd still huddled in the cramped hallway. Uainty g her as she recalled her earlier attack—aiming for an intruder’s chest and hitting his fastead. She hesitated. She didn’t want to take any ces this time.

  As Fan Biyu hesitated, unsure of what to do, a silver blur shot out of a nearby doorway. It smmed into one of the dagger-wielding sailors, sending him crashing into the other. Both men tumbled to the ground, nding in a heap.

  “What happen…? Where Daddy…?” Yin’er mumbled groggily, rubbing her paw against her sleepy eyes. She blinked down at the men she had knocked over. “Why do you sleep there? Beds are more fy!”

  “Yin’er, e here!” Fan Biyu called hurriedly, her voice ced with worry. She couldn’t let the little spirit beast get hurt.

  Yin’er gnced over and spotted her father behind Fan Biyu. “Daddy!” she squealed, attempting to dart toward him. But before she could get far, Fan Biyu stepped in her path, blog her.

  “Yin’er, your dad’s fighting a bad guy right now. You ’t get in the way, okay?”

  Yiilted her head, blinking. “Bad guy?”

  “Yes,” Fan Biyu replied, pointing to the two men struggling to rise from the floor. The one Yin’er had struck sported a rge lump on his head and looked dazed. “Those two are bad guys too. So please wait somewhere safe.”

  Fan Biyu gnced back at Jin Shu. She noticed a brief lull in his fight and realized he might need his ons. Without thinking, she tossed them toward him.

  “Jin Shu!” she called.

  The moment the words left her mouth, regret hit her like a tidal wave. She had distracted him, giving his oppohe perfect opening.

  Her heart leaped as the caretaker luoward Jin Shu, but before she could cry out a warning, Jin Shu rolled out of the way with practiced ease. Relief flooded her. She silently vowed not to make such a mistake again.

  The sound of otion behind her snapped her attention away. Spinning around, she spotted Yin’er rushing toward the two now-standing sailors, a silver streak of determination.

  “Yin’er, no!” she shouted, panic rising in her chest.

  But Yin’er ignored her, tinuing her charge like an unstoppable silver arrow.

  Two loud bangs echoed behind her, but Fan Biyu couldn’t spare them a gnce. She could only hope Jin Shu was alright. Right now, all that mattered was stopping Yin’er before she got hurt.