Chapter 3: Chapter 4 The grudges, new and old
One year ago, in Muliang Province, a big storm had brewed in San Cai Sword Sect's headquarters; Mu city (Mucheng).
It was during the hottest summer night of the Great Heat solar term, a fire was lit and it burned San Cai Sword Sect's main training grounds and information gathering ring, bringing great loses to San Cai Sword Sect.
That night, sixty men were cut down and years-worth of information were burnt to ash. He was one of the few men to live to witness the young masculine figure that had terrorized their sect.
He even fought him and barely lived, for he had been poisoned with a lethal but curable poison.
He was Chief Training Master, Lyu Xian. He was renowned as Lethal Sword Master for his attacks were always deadly and highly resulted to death.
The young man who had been tagged as San Cai Sword Sect's greatest enemy was none other than the masked teenager in front of him.
"I remember. It was you who destroyed our sect and led us to decline one year ago!" Lyu Xian exclaimed; anger evident in his voice.
The masked lad smirked before using his internal force to free his sword and return to his original standing point not far from the carriage.
"Lyu Xian, indeed it is you." The masked lad said with conviction. Lyu Xian jumped from the carriage and in a blink of an eye destroyed his disguise revealing his dark blue and black outfit that was used to identify students of San Cai Sword Sect.
Standing on the top of the carriage, Lyu Xian shouted, "Today if I don't kill you to avenge our San Cai Sword Sect, then I do not deserve to live."
The masked man laughed, "That's right, at least you are right about something. You do not deserve to live."
Angered by these words, Lyu Xian stomped the carriage to bits revealing a scared Liu Cheng Feng as well as a large sword that was hidden at the bottom of the carriage floor.
It was double the blade width of any normal sword, making it heavy and intimidating. It had sharp single edge, unlike the usual double-edged swords that San Cai Sword Sect students usually use. The masked man noticed this and realized that there was a possibility he didn't use the San Cai Sword Sect's renowned moves like "Six Moves Attack" and "Three Talents Moves".
However, this did not scare him as he was a talented martial artist and he did not fear death.
This time, Lyu Xian made the first move, running towards his enemy. With exceptional qigong (martial arts) he rose to the air and raised his sword even higher.
His sword struck the ground first, but the mysterious man dodged it. A series of crisp and fast moves ensured, and although the mysterious man was confident in his abilities he couldn't avoid the small seed of doubt growing in his subconscious. After all, he only had ten years of martial experience while Lyu Xian had double or even triple his experiences.
When Lyu Xian attacked, the masked man dodged, but the masked man didn't try to attack again making Lyu Xian suspicious.
The masked man then made a move, aiming for Lyu Xian's neck; and although Lyu Xian was a bit distracted he was still able to avoid the lethal blow. However, because of his momentary lack of focus the masked man was able to slightly cut Lyu Xian's fist.
"Huh, such a small cut can do nothing to me!" Lyu Xian scorned as he positioned himself to attack again. The masked man was indeed formidable, even without attacking much. His moves were calculated but his motive was unknown.
As Lyu Xian thought of these things his eyes began to blur and his head felt cloudy and heavy. "You actually tainted your blade with poison!" Lyu Xian said in disbelief, his voice already hoarse and his throat scratchy. "Such a quick poison, who exactly are you?"
Lyu Xian was strong, but the poison weakened him and he gave in, falling on one knee and clinging to his sword for support.
As Liu Cheng Feng witnessed all these he thought, I nearly offended this hero. If I am still alive after this, I'll definitely treat Manager Sun to a meal and thank him for saving my life!
"I thought you remembered, but it seems you don't remember. It doesn't matter, either way my business with you ends here. Naturally when you die, you'll know the cause of your death. Isn't that what San Cai Sword Sect believe?"
Lyu Xian groaned as pain filled all his senses and his blood flow was constricted at the throat. His free hand rose to cup his throat as the tightening sensation increased.
He was indeed about to die. "Rest easy, Lyu Xian. Your martial brothers won't miss you for long."
Liu Cheng Feng wondered what that meant, but Lyu Xian understood that karma had come for its due. San Cai Sword Sect was doomed.
With his last breath Lyu Xian croaked, his eyes red and lips purple, "Alright. I am aware that San Cai Sword sect isn't innocent, but neither are you. Soon you will realize our sect's deeds were for the good of the world. The good of Great Jin!"
With this Lyu Xian released his last breath, his grip on his sword giving way and his pale, lifeless body meeting the ground in a loud thud.When Liu Cheng Feng realized that Lyu Xian died, a smile came to his face.
Although San Cai Sword Sect Master had barely made use of him, he knew he wasn't eligible to be of use to them now that their middleman was dead.
Besides, even if San Cai Sword Sect did look for him in regard to their own's death, he could easily give information of what has happened in front of him and make himself useful. Only the useful live, he once heard his father say.
An additional advantage came to this haughty young master's mind. If he could get this mysterious masked man that seemed to be of his age group to protect him, then he had nothing to fear.
The masked man sighed, finally acknowledging his injuries. Lyu Xian was strong and talented with many surprises moves that he had never truly mastered. He really was a martial master, to have survived was already a miracle on his part. Had he not taken the last resort and used Purple Orchid poison, he wouldn't have necessarily had it alive.
His injuries from one year ago still ached his body, and now with new internal injuries he knew his time was limited. He needed to find the Medicine King and soon.
"Hey, hero!" The masked man stilled his movements to acknowledge Liu Cheng Feng but didn't look at him.
"Why are you still here?" Liu Cheng Feng realized then that he had more than enough time to run away and forget all this, yet he stayed. Not out of courage, but of mesmerism.
"Hero, I am but a young master of the city who has enjoyed martial arts all his life, yet was unable to see it in front of me. To witness such a battle is a lifelong memory. I dare not to leave."
The masked man's eyes rose to stare at the stupid young master, "You're not afraid I'll kill you and burn you to ash for offending me in the restaurant?"
Liu Cheng Feng chuckled nervously, "Hero, you're one to hold grudge?"
The masked man took a step forward and Liu Cheng Feng immediately felt chills up and down his body. "Why else would I kill him? Why else would I not kill you?"
Liu Cheng Feng swallowed the bile forming in his mouth loudly, clearly affected by the masked man's words.
He immediately fell to his knees in Jin salute (left fist and right palm put together and outstretched a bit forward with thumbs bent) and stuttered, "Hero, spare me!" as he kowtowed several times.
The masked man was not aware of the relationship between San Cai Sword sect and Young Master Liu, so he probed further with a question, "Why should I spare one in cahoots with San Cai Sword sect?"
Liu Cheng Feng shook his head violently, "Hero, you misunderstand me. It isn't as you think. San Cai Sword sect wanted to use my identity as Young Master Liu, son of Provincial Governor Liu of Suzhou, to find out about the arrival of a mysterious guest later this afternoon. When I couldn't he was going to take me to their recently appointed substitute Sect Master for questioning. Hero, you saved my life! I dare not lie to you!"
Although the masked man felt convinced that Liu Cheng Feng was telling the truth, he didn't allow himself to be satisfied just yet. Liu Cheng Feng tried to read the masked man's eyes but he could only find a cold, unwavering stare.
His heart stilled like a rock, fear once again gripping his lungs. If the young hero was dissatisfied with his words, half of which were lies, even a little bit he would not leave this place alive.
After much thought in little time the masked man stepped forward and crouched to meet Liu Cheng Feng at eye level, "You said I saved your live, then from this point on your life is mine. Be it day or night, a week or a month, a year or a decade, your life is mine to take. If I kill you, it is a blessing. If you die under someone else's knife it is a curse. Prove your use to me and I'll grant you a painless death. Understood?"
Liu Cheng Feng could not believe his ears. Here he thought that he would be the master, who knew that the tables would turn like this and he would be the servant!
"Understood, sir! You are my savior and my life is yours. I will never forget this." Liu Cheng Feng answered loudly while trying to hide the tremors in his voice. In a split second the young hero disappeared, taking the high route south through the trees, leaving a pale and desolate Liu Cheng Feng on the ground.
At a distance, hidden by the trees and bushes was a carriage guarded by two, a man and a woman. The carriage seemed humble and neat, however inside was grand and spacious.
The man inside was no ordinary man. His face handsome, his actions effortlessly graceful, like an immortal he held noble bearing and kind smile. He was not old yet his eyes and patience reveal that he had seen much of the world.
"My Lord, you let him overhear everything yet he didn't react. Does that mean we are not going to approach him today?"
The female guard, A'Yan, asked curiously and cautiously.
The young Lord laughed, "Not yet time. A'Yan, aren't you being too impatient?"
A'Yan became worried that she offended her master once again and fell to salute (her right arm across her chest with her fist on her heart and her head bowed),
"My Lord, I apologize."
The young Lord smiled, "A'Yan, you're too rigid. Can't this lord joke a bit with you?" A'Yan began blushing from embarrassment she didn't raise her head.
The male guard, A'You, saw this and a small smile quicky touched his lips before he regained his senses and returned his stone-cold expression to address his master.
"My Lord, San Cai Sword sect is making more moves than usual. Word on the mysterious noble guest coming to Suzhou had spread as you intended, and as you suspected the forces in the capital are getting anxious. Many have arranged spies all over Suzhou over the past three hours, particularly in areas surrounding Provincial Commandant Sang's residence. How do you plan to proceed?"
The young Lord remained quiet as his finger silently tapped the edge of the jade tea cup in his hand.
"Do we know who sent the spies?"
This time A'Yan replied, "Yes. San Cai Sword sect, Taishan Hall, Ji Yuan Sect, Bai Lu Shan (White Deer Mountain) Sect and Xue Yue Garden."
The young Lord nodded, "Any news from those we planted in Taishan Hall of who is backing it?"
A'You answered gravely, "No news."
A'Yan sighed, disheartened with this repetitive news, "Taishan Hall is barely five years old, yet every time we send our martial brothers and sisters we never hear from them. Who exactly is backing Taishan Hall and is this formidable that even our sect can't infiltrate it?"
A'You muttered in a low voice, "Could it be His Majesty?"
A'Yan nearly gasped, "Impossible. His Majesty is already backing Xue Yue Garden in a bid to overthrow our Tianji sect. Xue Yue Garden has origins in Eastern Hua, making it suspicious and not with good intentions. However, His Majesty is hellbent on helping them overthrow our influence just because we back up Crown Prince. His Majesty is too petty and vulgar!"
A'You immediately called out in a stern, unforgiving tone, "A'Yan! Shut up!"
A'You and A'Yan went ahead to stare at the carriage apologetically, "A'Yan spoke out of line, may My Lord forgive her."
The young Lord said nothing for a while and before A'Yan could speak he asked, "What do you think of him?"A'You and A'Yan shared a glance of confusion before A'You asked, "Who exactly, my Lord?"
The young Lord answered, "The masked lad from earlier."
Finally understanding, A'You answered, "Replying to my Lord, he is very talented and smart for his age, however, he is neither righteous nor forgiving. He is cutthroat and ruthless, and although that is expected of people in the martial arts world, he is still too young. To have such a personality at his age is indeed a reason for caution."
The young Lord nodded, "Send word to Bai Lu Shan Sect and San Cai Sword sect that Lyu Xian is dead and give them a detailed portrait of him. I want to test him a bit more."
A'Yan, realizing something asked, "My Lord, do you plan on taking him as a disciple?"
The young Lord smiled but said nothing on the matter. Instead, he added, "Also spread word to the martial arts world that Tianji Pavilion and Taishan Hall are forming an alliance, let them do all the work for us on who is backing Taishan Hall."
The two guards fell to salute, obeying the young Lord's commands.
In the back garden of the Sang residence in Suzhou, the air was warm and the snow was slowly melting away, giving way to growing bright grass and colorful flowers.
The pond was already free of ice and fish could be seen on the surface, tussling one another just to eat the bait Madam Shang threw at them.
Concubine Shang stood by her sister, watching her with little interest as she asked, "Who do you think the mysterious noble is, Older Sister?"
Madam Shang shrug her head, "How am I supposed to know? Even Sang Xiao Yi doesn't know!"
Concubine Shang released a heavy sigh, retreating to her seat by the pond. "Aren't you curious, who it could be?"
Madam Shang smiled with ease, "Did you forget that even merchants like our Shang family, who were once looked down, are considered nobles? It could just be any of them, from the Wang family of Quling in the North East to the You family of Jing in the South West? Why investigate?"
"If it were them, why need to hide their identity? Also, brother-in-law said they were coming from Bing to here. So, it can't be a merchant family. Could it be, a noble from outside Great Jin?"
Madam Shang froze mid serving bait to the fish to look at her sister, surprise if not astonishment evident on her face. "I hadn't thought of that. Who knew you would be the one to think of that?"
Concubine Shang, sensing the back handed compliment in her sister's words, rolled her eyes, "Sister, you underestimate me."
Madam Shang chuckled lightly, "If I underestimated you, then it is because you gave me reason to. Even that dead woman's daughter you can't raise right. What can I entrust you with going forward?"
Concubine Shang, looking aggrieved, cajoled, "Older Sister, you have to help me. Now that my son is well grown and is learning well, I don't need her to sustain my position in the Ling family anymore. If not now when Guzhou and that Li Mei Niang are away then when can I get such a perfect opportunity to get rid of her."
Madam Shang sighed. No longer interested in feeding the fish, Madam Shang joined her sister at the table. "What do you want me to do? She is your adopted daughter after all, you must have your own plans for you to mention this now."
"Older sister knows me best." Concubine Shang said with a smile that made her eyes glisten with dark intent.
Seeing this, Madam Shang began to feel worry and nervousness. It reminded her of Concubine Su's incident, the only time she had truly seen her sister's evil capabilities. They excided hers ten times over, and that's what made her worry.
"Tell me." Concubine Shang reached out from her sleeve and placed a small, wooden container on the table. "What's this?"
Concubine Shang wore a smug look as she replied, "Poison. Not just any poison, a slow but vicious poison. I've been feeding it to her for months now. However, this specific one here is different. Wei Xin has yet to begin her moon cycle. However, once she takes this the poisons will clash in her body and she will be bleeding for seven days. She'll think it's her cycle that's come, what she doesn't know is that she has been poisoned and will die of excessive bleeding."
Madam Shang's eyes widened slightly upon hearing of this sinister scheme. "Younger sister, maybe I have been underestimating you."
Although it sounded like a compliment, in reality Madam Shang was warning herself. Even though they were sisters who have been close since childhood, never had Madam Shang seen her sister truly do something with her capabilities.
"For a second there I thought you, my dear sister, have been hiding your capabilities from me."
Concubine Shang laughed as she took back her stuff and hid it in her sleeve, but said nothing of Madam Shang's words making Madam Shang believe her suspicions to be true.
"Where did you get such vicious poison from?" Concubine Shang brushed it off, "It doesn't matter, what matters is that you have to help me. You have to arrange for Wei Xin to be out of the mansion within the first two days of the poison taking effect. If she stays till the third day it'll be evident she's been poisoned. By this time, I can't escape conviction."
"Why do you say that?" Madam Shang asked.
Concubine Shang went on to explain, "The one who sold me the two poisons said that they expell strong Yang essence which is detrimental to a woman's body. It may seem like a normal moon cycle in the first two days, however as time goes her blood will turn darker, her nails and complexion will become unhealthily pale and her eyes will slowly become blind. It'll be evident by the third day that she's poisoned."
After hearing this, Madam Shang concluded that it would be troublesome if Wei Xin was found poisoned during her time in her house. Ling Gu Zhou, despite being her husband's best friend and her sister's husband, may likely not spare her.
This matter, Madam Shang thought about it for a while and said, "The Double Third Festival is in two days' time. We can arrange for her to go for the city's night celebration and have her go missing. Even if she is able to return, the poisoning won't be blamed on us, but her ruthless kidnappers."
Concubine Shang seemed impressed and relieved, "As expected, older sister never lets me down."
Unknown to the older women, Wei Xin and her maid servant A'Bao had been standing behind them with trays of tea and snacks and hearing every bit of their plot to end her. To think that she had come to serve them out of filial piety only to hear such cruel exchange of words. Only to hear them regard her as an obstacle than a family member.
Despite all she had heard, Wei Xin didn't even shed a single tear, and it made A'Bao worry as she herself was in tears. Without saying or doing anything, Wei Xin turned back and left; A'Bao followed confused.
Weekly Power Status
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