One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Wang Zhenqiu wanted to ask for more details, but Hei Guan had already turned around and his gaze swept over him. The meaning in his eyes was clear: enough is enough.

Wang Zhenqiu shrank his neck and shut his mouth reluctantly, but he was still muttering something silently, and his fingers were still subconsciously gesturing the actions he had just seen.

Old Meng coughed and tapped the map with his pencil, drawing everyone's attention back: "Alright, that's the end of the little interlude. Let's get back to business. What are your thoughts on the action plan for entering the village tomorrow? Feel free to share."

Zhang Chulan was the first to raise his hand, clearly having considered this issue beforehand: "Uncle Meng, I think we can split into two groups. One group will enter the village from the front, making a big show of it to attract the attention of Ma Xianhong and his main fighting force. The other group will sneak in secretly, bypassing the frontal defenses, and directly attack the workshop area in the back mountain, targeting Chen Duo and the cultivation furnace."

"What about the grouping plan?" the clarinet asked.

"The frontline team needs strong combat power, someone who can withstand attacks and create enough momentum." Zhang Chulan's gaze swept over everyone. "Ball, Xiao, and Black Pipe, you three are the strongest and are most suitable to draw fire from the front. Moreover, Ball is good at creating chaos, Xiao... well, he has enough momentum, and Black Pipe can attack head-on."

Wang Zhenqiu immediately perked up: "I'm an expert at this! Nobody knows how to stir up trouble head-on and attract attention better than me!"

Xiao Zizai smiled slightly and did not object.

After a moment's thought, the clarinet player nodded: "Okay."

"The infiltration team consists of me, Sister Bao'er, Brother Feng, and Uncle Meng," Zhang Chulan continued. "Sister Bao'er and I work well together, Brother Feng is strong, and Uncle Meng is experienced and responsible for communication and response. We are few in number and small targets, so we will take advantage of the chaos to sneak into the back mountain to carry out the capture and sabotage mission."

"It's a very safe plan," Xiao Zizai agreed.

"I have no objection," the clarinet agreed.

Old Meng adjusted his glasses and looked at Nie Lingfeng: "Little Nie, what do you think? Do you have any additions or different opinions?"

All eyes turned to Nie Lingfeng once again.

Nie Lingfeng remained silent for a moment. The air in the room seemed to freeze slightly with his silence. He raised his eyes, his gaze calmly sweeping over each face at the table, then slowly spoke, his voice clear and firm:

"I will act alone."

A brief silence.

"Alone?" Black-tube frowned, his eyes sharp as knives. "Why? Give me your reasons."

"I have things I need to do alone." Nie Lingfeng met Hei Guan's gaze without backing down. "And... there are some things between Chen Duo and me that need to be clarified face to face."

This sentence is like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, creating ripples.

Zhang Chulan's expression changed, and he hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but stopped. Feng Baobao stopped eating her cookie, her clear eyes looking at Nie Lingfeng. Wang Zhenqiu's usual playful demeanor vanished, his gaze becoming complex. Xiao Zizai's eyes flickered slightly behind his glasses. Old Meng sighed softly.

Hei Guan stared at Nie Lingfeng for a long time before slowly speaking, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth: "You want to protect her?"

It's not a question, it's a statement.

Nie Lingfeng nodded: "Yes."

"Do you know what this means?" The clarinet's tone remained icy. "It means you might have to disobey company orders, it means you might have to stand against... us."

"I know," Nie Lingfeng replied without hesitation, "but I have to do it."

"reason?"

"She shouldn't have died," Nie Lingfeng said, his voice low but carrying a resolute force. "At least, she shouldn't have died like this. She shouldn't have been eliminated as a 'mission target.' Her life was a mistake from the very beginning, a tragedy imposed upon her. Now, I want to give her a chance, a chance... a chance to choose how to live, or how to die."

Silence fell in the room again, this time even heavier, so heavy that you could almost hear everyone breathing.

After a long silence, the clarinet slowly exhaled, leaned back against the windowsill, and crossed his arms: "You want to protect it? Fine. That's your choice, and I have no right to interfere. But there's one condition—"

His gaze was like lightning, piercing Nie Lingfeng: "Don't affect the mission. If your solo actions lead to mission failure or casualties on our side... I'll hold you accountable first. If Chen Duo resists, if her poison threatens other villagers or us... I'll take action without hesitation."

Nie Lingfeng looked at him and nodded: "Understood. I will handle it."

"Then it's settled." Old Meng spoke up at the right moment, his tone tinged with helplessness but also revealing his determination. "Tomorrow at dawn, we'll split into groups. The frontal group, led by Black Pipe, will enter from the main road at the village entrance to create a stir and attract attention. The infiltration group, led by me, will secretly infiltrate from the back mountain path. Xiao Nie... you'll arrange the route and timing yourself, but make sure to keep communication open and keep us updated on the situation."

He looked around at everyone: "Go back and rest tonight, get plenty of rest. Tomorrow... will probably be a tough battle."

The task was assigned, but the atmosphere didn't lighten. Everyone got up one after another, packed their things, and prepared to leave the room.

Wang Zhenqiu walked over to Nie Lingfeng, patted him on the shoulder, and whispered in his ear in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Xiaofeng, that girl Chen Duo... I've seen her information. She's quite pitiful. But... you should be careful too. The thing inside her is very strange. You know how Lao Liao died."

Nie Lingfeng glanced at him and nodded: "I know. Thank you, Ball Bro."

"Don't mention it." Wang Zhenqiu grinned, but his smile lacked its usual nonchalance and was more serious. "You're back alive. I'm still waiting for you to teach me the rest of the Cloud-Dispelling Palm techniques."

"must."

Wang Zhenqiu left, humming an unknown tune, and sauntered out of the room.

As Xiao Zizai passed by Nie Lingfeng, he paused. He turned his head slightly, his eyes behind his glasses looking at Nie Lingfeng, a gentle smile playing on his lips, his voice soft: "Benefactor Nie, compassion is a good thing. But sometimes, excessive compassion... can blind you, preventing you from seeing the true 'karma' and 'results.' Take care of yourself."

After saying that, he slowly walked away.

Clarinet was the last to leave. He stopped at the door, glanced back at Nie Lingfeng, said nothing, but the warning in his eyes was unmistakable. Then he opened the door, his tall figure disappearing into the dim light of the corridor.

Only Nie Lingfeng, Zhang Chulan, and Feng Baobao remained in the room.

Zhang Chulan closed the door, walked over and sat down next to Nie Lingfeng, her worry no longer concealed: "Brother Feng, are you... really sure? Is it worth it for Chen Duo? After all... she killed Lao Liao. The company won't let her get away with this."

Nie Lingfeng looked at Zhang Chulan, the young man who had experienced countless hardships along the way. At this moment, his eyes held confusion, worry, but more than anything, a complex emotion of empathy.

"Chu Lan," Nie Lingfeng began slowly, "it's not a question of whether it was worth it or not. It's a question of right and wrong. Chen Duo killing Lao Liao is a fact. But Lao Liao imprisoning her, controlling her, and using her as a tool and weapon is also a fact. The grudges between them are a tangled mess that can never be settled. But one thing is clear—"

He paused, his tone becoming more serious: "From birth until now, Chen Duo has never truly lived a single day for herself. She was cultivated as a vessel for Gu poison by the Medicine Immortal Society, contained as a dangerous weapon by the company, and treated as both a daughter and a tool by Lao Liao… She doesn't even understand what a 'normal' life is, nor what 'choice' is. Lao Liao finally gave her a choice, but that choice was 'kill me, or be killed by me.' What kind of choice is that?"

Zhang Chulan fell silent. He thought of his past. He thought of his grandfather telling him to hide his abilities, his father's whereabouts being unknown, and his life of constant fear and trepidation for the past ten years. He understood that kind of despair of having "no choice."

"But Brother Feng," Zhang Chulan's voice was strained, "the company won't listen to any of this. In their eyes, Chen Duo is a dangerous, out-of-control weapon that must be recalled or destroyed. If you protect her, you're going against the company. What will you do in the future…"

"We'll talk about the future later," Nie Lingfeng interrupted him calmly. "But this is something I must do. Chu Lan, if you were me, what would you do?"

Zhang Chulan was stunned. He looked into Nie Lingfeng's eyes and saw something both familiar and unfamiliar in them—the perseverance he had seen in his grandfather's eyes, the purity he had seen in Feng Baobao, and the passion that had sometimes flashed through his own heart but was suppressed by reality.

After a long silence, Zhang Chulan lowered his head, then raised it again, a bitter smile on his face, but his eyes hardened: "Brother Feng, I understand. Go do what you want to do. Bao'er and I... support you."

Feng Baobao, who had been sitting quietly to the side, nodded vigorously, chewing on a biscuit, and said in a muffled but clear voice, "Yes, I support it. Let Xiaofeng do whatever he wants."

Looking at them, Nie Lingfeng felt a surge of warmth in his heart. He smiled and patted Zhang Chulan on the shoulder: "Thanks, brother."

"Don't mention it." Zhang Chulan smiled, a hint of relief in his smile. "Anyway, it's not the first time I've gone against the company. A ton of lice won't itch."

The three of them whispered some details, agreed on how to contact each other and what backup plans to make for tomorrow, before leaving the room separately.

Nie Lingfeng was assigned to another single room on the same floor. The room was even smaller, with only a bed, a bedside table, and a chair. The walls were poorly soundproofed, and he could faintly hear the television from next door and footsteps in the hallway.

He put down his travel bag, walked to the window, and drew back the old, faded curtains.

Outside the window, the sky was already beginning to lighten. The eastern horizon was tinged with the pale white of dawn, with a few remaining stars stubbornly hanging on the edge of the sky. The outlines of distant mountains appeared and disappeared in the morning mist, like a faint ink painting.

The streets were still empty, but some early-rising elderly people were already strolling by, carrying soy milk and fried dough sticks.

A new day has begun.

Meanwhile, dozens of kilometers away, in Biyou Village, nestled among mountains, a girl dressed in blue-purple Miao ethnic clothing, with strange blue patterns on her neck and arms, slowly opened her eyes in a room on the second floor of a stilted house.

She lay on the bed, staring blankly at the low wooden ceiling for a long, long time.

Then, she slowly sat up, walked barefoot to the window, and pushed open the wooden window.

The morning mountain breeze, carrying the scent of dew and vegetation, wafted into the room, ruffling the fine black hairs on her forehead.

She looked out the window at the gradually brightening sky and at the clouds swirling around the distant mountain peaks, her eyes still empty, like a mirror that reflected no image.

Unbeknownst to her, on this early morning, a group of people were converging on the village from all directions.

She had no idea that among these people was one who had traveled thousands of miles just to give her something...something she had never truly possessed.

select.