Qin Feng groaned as he picked himself off the ground then, brushing the snow off his clothes and hair as he did so. The two women who had just killed the black-robed old man seemed to watch him carefully, as he dusted himself off, and tried to make himself a little more presentable. It was only good manners, he told himself, remembering what the Second Ducal Prince had told him."This one is Qin Feng, and I thank the two ladies for their kind a.s.sistance in this small matter. You have my sincere grat.i.tude," he told the pair with a deep bow, when they remained silent, after he had managed to return himself to some semblance of decency.
That seemed to mollify the two of them, and the one in white nodded her head in his direction with a slight smile on her lips in return. The other girl, in the green robes, continued to glare at him, although he did not sense anything malicious in that stare.
Still, the two young women seemed to have drawn their own conclusions from their study of his attire, as erroneous as it may be:
"A spy for the Third Army? Or are you working directly for Feng Laixue? I had not expected that he would be so cautious, to send his people out into the South before the Winter Season is over."
The one who spoke was the girl in the green robes, and Qin Feng was rather surprised how pleasant her voice sounded, now that she wasn"t using her scolding voice. And how young she looked. How young both of them looked!
Neither of the women looked any older than eighteen to twenty years of age, and both were very beautiful. Well, very beautiful compared to the handful of female disciples that he had met in the Heaven Sword School, and the people that he had seen in Changqing City. None of them could match the features of these two in the slightest!
The one in green looked the younger of the pair, and no more than seventeen or eighteen years of age. But her figure was already full, with an ample chest that balanced her wide hips and a lovely face the shape of a peach. Her cheeks were rosy, although that might be because she was a little angered at Qin Feng"s overt stare. Her eyes glittered and her full lips parted as though she was about to scold him for his audacity.
But a simple gesture from her companion in white made her clamp her mouth shut once more. The one in white looked only a year or two older, but it was clear from what Qin Feng could see of the embroidery on the collar of her robes that she was the one in charge. Her complexion was fairer than her companion"s, and she wore a slight touch of make-up around her eyes and her lips, making her look a lot more alluring.
Her bosom wasn"t that large, but it suited her slim body and the long legs that he barely caught a hint of, as her long white robe clung to them as she strode towards him. Not to mention her large, dark eyes and her bright red lips, which furthered her fairy-like appearance. And her slight smile seemed to take his stare in stride.
Then his eyes fell upon the weapons that they were carrying.
Both wielded swords of a similar design, including the twin swallow pattern that was so clearly displayed on the pommel and guard of the same. Something that nagged at his memory, or that of Old Man Snow Mountain, that had been planted in his head. He knew that design!
"Snow Swallow Palace? You two are from Snow Swallow Palace? But that is almost thirty thousand li to the North! Why are you here?"
The expressions on the two young women"s faces changed the moment that he blurted out his question. And for a moment, Qin Feng wondered if he was going to be attacked.
But the smile returned to the lips of the woman in white, and she shook her head at him.
"I had not expected that a spy from the Feng Family would be so familiar with our Snow Swallow Palace. Otherwise, I would have taken greater precautions. Still, you may rest a.s.sured that we mean you no harm. We are just here to monitor the Barbarian situation."
"Familiar? I wouldn"t dare to say that I am familiar with your ... Snow Swallow Palace. It is just that I had read a few more books back at the Heaven Sword School library. So I recognized the insignia on your swords. That"s all."
"Oh?"
"Heaven Sword School?"
The two girls had spoken at the same time, which was probably the reason why they looked at each other and giggled, as though they had forgotten all about him. Well, it was either that or they were laughing at him. Which Qin Feng decided to ignore, even if it was the case. After all, didn"t they just save him from that old fellow in black?
"Wait! If you are from the Heaven Sword School, why didn"t you use your sword earlier? It"s not like you don"t have a weapon, is it?" asked the girl in green then, as she frowned at him again. And pointed a finger at his waist.
Qin Feng turned his head, as his hand reached back to pat the back of his waist. Then he sighed. How could he have forgotten about that military-styled sword that Lei Kongwei had pushed at him, a day ago?
"Ah! I had forgotten about this."
"Hmmph! A likely story! You were just trying to ..."
"That"s enough, sister."
The woman in white"s voice was a little stern as she cut in, interrupting what might have escalated into an argument. And there was a stern look pa.s.sing between the pair, before she turned back to face the rather astounded young man.
Her next words, on the other hand, were enough to clear up Qin Feng"s worries:
"I"ll not waste your time then. Or ours. Where did you learn that set of attacks?"
"Huh?"
Qin Feng stared at the beautiful young woman in front of him. She seemed to be intent on his answer. And the girl in green at her back seemed to lean in too, as if she was also interested in hearing what he had to say.
"You mean ... the White Jade Hands that I had used just now?"
"White Jade Beauty Hands? That was really the White Jade Beauty Hands? But ... how could you have ... Where did you learn this martial art?"
White Jade Beauty Hands?
Why was she calling it by that name? It had always been White Jade Hands, from what he could remember. That was what was written in the manual - the supplementary martial arts that came with the Jade Tree Foundation Manual. Since when did it have a Beauty in its t.i.tle?
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