Chương 20: 96-100
Chapter 96: It's Just A Joke, Bro!
"Have you memorized everything, Tao Xian?"
In the rebuilt Flowing Cloud Hall, Ye Qing was sipping wine and instructing Tao Xian on his new task. After he was done, his aide bowed his head and said, "I have!"
Ye Qing wasn't a nagging person, but he could not help but remind Tao Xian again, "Remember, the investigation must be carried out with the utmost caution. It would end terribly for everyone if we were discovered!"
Tao Xian smiled and nodded again. "No worries, boss. I promise to proceed with the utmost caution."
"Good. You may take your leave now."
"Have a good night, boss!" Tao Xian saluted Ye Qing respectfully before leaving the room.
After Tao Xian was gone, Ye Qing left the Flowing Cloud Hall with his wine jar in tow. He then went to the garden to enjoy a relaxing night stroll, all the while taking sips from his wine.
There were two reasons he visited the Iron Shirt Gang tonight. One, he had something to entrust Tao Xian with. Two, he thought he deserved a break after that major battle last night, not to mention that he had jumped right back into cultivation and cultivated for almost twenty hours after that. His legs were literally numb when he finally stopped and tried to stand up.
Hard work was important, but relaxation was just as important be it in literary arts or martial arts. Even if it wasn't, he had no intentions of cooping himself up in his room all day every day. It was bad for his mental health and his charisma so to speak!
"Up in the sky, there is a moon, a bed of stars, and an entire universe, and in my hand, there is a jar of wine, a garden of flowers, and an endless future. Now this is what I call poetic!" Ye Qing hummed happily to himself while strolling along a winding path through the garden. It was an elegant and beautiful place with melodious streams, quaint bridges, well-trimmed bushes, and gorgeous flowers that seemed to glow in the night. Every step he took introduced a sight to behold for the rest of time, and every ten steps felt as if he had crossed into a new world. This really was a fantastic place to enjoy the moon and drink delicious wine.
Alas, the moment couldn't last. He was just rounding a corner when he suddenly came face to face with an unfamiliar man. A few seconds later, he became certain that the man wasn't a member of the Iron Shirt Gang. One, a night guard would have asked him who he was and what the hell he was doing in the garden already. Second, they wouldn't be wearing a bronze mask that covered up their face.
"Who are— Ye Qing began, but the man did not wait for him to finish. He took a step forward, released his aura, and threatened in a cold, harsh voice, "Quiet! You're dead if you say another word! Where is your boss right now?"
The man's eyes glowed a terrifying red in the darkness. If Ye Qing didn't know better, he would think that the man was a Stranger ready to consume him at a moment's notice.
Ye Qing blinked. This guy was a masked man who infiltrated the Iron Shirt Gang's headquarters in the dead of the night, and the first question he asked upon encountering someone was the location of their boss… yeah, this guy was totally here to kill him.
"Say something! If not, I'll kill you!"
The man's eyes grew even redder. In fact, his aura was turning red and distorting the air around him.
In response, Ye Qing shrugged and said, "You were the one who said I'm dead if I say another word, and now you're threatening to kill me if I stay silent? Make up your mind, man!"
"You…" The masked man lost his train of thought for a moment. If he wasn't as desperate as he was, he would've murdered the damn brat for mouthing off to him already.
The masked man was none other than Qing Kui. After arriving at the Iron Shirt Gang's headquarters, they had put on their masks, infiltrated the headquarters, and captured a couple of people. Their plan was pretty simple. They would interrogate their captives and find out where their gang boss was. Then, they would go to the gang boss and capture them. Once the gang boss had given them what they wanted, they would kill them to tie up loose ends and leave the place. Mission complete!
Unfortunately, reality was a harsh mistress. After infiltrating the gang and interrogating a good number of people, they quickly realized that the gang members were just as ignorant as they were. Forget their boss' location, they didn't even know if their boss was a male or female, old or young! If it wasn't for the fact that Zheng Feng and Yan Tieyi were dead, they would've believed that this boss didn't exist at all!
Not wanting to stay here all night, he and Xiao Yang split up so they could interrogate the men faster. Someone had to know who their boss was and where they were hiding, right? For a long time, Qing Kui was met with failure after failure until finally, he discovered Ye Qing in the garden.
Ye Qing wasn't just taking a night stroll in the garden, he was drinking wine, enjoying the moon, and composing poems that positively made Qing Kui's skin crawl. He had to be a prominent figure in the Iron Shirt Gang, meaning that he just might be able to tell him where the mysterious boss of the Iron Shirt Gang was.
"Don't test my patience. Tell me where your boss is, or I will shatter every tooth in your mouth!" Qing Kui uttered harshly and murderously.
Ye Qing flinched back and protested innocently, "Calm, man, calm! You should've just said that sooner! I'll take you to him right now!"
But I did tell you to tell me where your boss is, you sonuvabitch! Grr!
Most warriors were immune to mortal diseases, but Qing Kui felt he was dangerously close to catching a stroke. He swore he would suck the young man's blood dry as soon as he had led him to his boss.
"Move! Don't try anything stupid, or I swear I will make you wish you were dead!" Qing Kui ordered and pointed a finger at Ye Qing. A snake that seemed to be made out of blood immediately appeared out of nowhere and wrapped around his neck like a collar. It was so cold that frost was literally forming on his skin.
He's strong!
Although the blood snake looked incredibly real—it was even flicking its tongue at him like a real snake—Ye Qing's senses told him that it was really a manifestation of true qi. Not only that, his senses were telling him that this masked man was extremely dangerous.
Is he a peak late-stage Vessel Augmentor? Maybe even an Astral Refiner?
Ye Qing's pupils contracted a little. This guy clearly wasn't here to enjoy a drink with him, but what did he want exactly? Was it revenge for what had happened to Zheng Feng or Yan Tieyi? Was it an attack by those who felt like they didn't get what they deserved during the Zheng Clan's downfall? Or was it something else?
"What are you doing? I said move!" Qing Kui urged when he saw Ye Qing blanking out of it for some reason.
"Okay, okay! Don't hurt me! I'll take you to the boss right now!" Ye Qing pretended to flinch again and put on an obsequious smile.
For now, I should play along and see where this goes!
Ye Qing led Qing Kui out of the garden and straight toward Tao Xian's residence. When they had arrived, he pointed toward the main entrance and said, "Our boss is inside!"
"You think you're very funny, don't you?" Qing Kui's eyes boiled with killing intent as he stared at the brightly lit room. The bastard might as well have pointed him to the entrance!
"This isn't a trick! I wouldn't dare lie to you with my life on the line!" Ye Qing explained in a hurry, "Our boss is a good man and a workaholic. That is why he's still working even though it's past midnight!"
It's a logical explanation. I'm sure that Yan Yufei, for example, is still working at this time!
Unfortunately, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Before Qing Kui could decide if Ye Qing was trying to lead him into a trap or not, the door abruptly creaked open to reveal Tao Xian. The Hallmaster glanced back and forth between the two of them before saluting, "Good night, boss. Did you have something else to add?"
Qing Kui: "..."
Ye Qing: "..."
If reality was a harsh mistress, then coincidence was a real bitch. Ye Qing had led Qing Kui to Tao Xian's room precisely because he knew that the Hallmaster wasn't asleep yet. While Tao Xian was distracting the assassin, he would catch him by surprise and hopefully kill him in one strike. Even if he failed, he was confident he would be able to land a solid blow and earn himself the upper hand.
However, Tao Xian had stepped out of his room at the worst possible timing and said the worst possible things. After that, well, there was no after that because the game was up.
"So. You're the boss," Qing Kui said in a mocking tone while squinting his eyes at Ye Qing.
"Ahem…" Ye Qing coughed drily before shooting Qing Kui an apologetic smile. "The weather is pretty good today, so I thought I should welcome you in with a joke. I hope you don't mind."
"I do mind." Qing Kui's eyes flashed red, and the blood snake entangled around his neck immediately squeezed with all its might. Ye Qing's face instantly flushed red as his breath became caught in his throat.
"Boss!?" By now, Tao Xian noticed that something was amiss. He did not hesitate to rush to Ye Qing's rescue, but Qing Kui merely sneered and thrust his palm toward the Hallmaster. A crimson, hand-shaped silhouette immediately flew straight toward Tao Xian with deadly, all-consuming power. Everything in its way including the air was being consumed by the bloody hand.
Tao Xian skidded to a stop and turned as pale as a sheet. He wanted to dodge out of the way, but it felt as if the surrounding air was pinning him in place. He could only watch as the bloody hand sailed toward his chest.
Right when Tao Xian was resigned to his fate, a young man appeared in front of him and spun his sleeves in a circle, trapping the bloody hand at the center and dissolving it into nothing. He was Ye Qing, of course.
"Boss!" Tao Xian cried out while breathing an audible sigh of relief.
"Huh. It seems I've underestimated you!" Qing Kui looked surprised as well. He didn't think that there was anyone in this county who could block his attack so easily.
If Ye Qing's Boundless Lightning Palm was composed of forceful, yang force, then the bloody hand was the complete opposite. Vicious and unforgiving, the bloody hand shattered the bones and melted the flesh and blood of anyone who was struck by it. It should not need to be said that it was extremely dangerous, and yet Ye Qing had neutralized it without any effort at all. Clearly, he was an outstanding warrior.
But of course, surprise was all he felt from Ye Qing's performance. He still did not consider him to be a threat at all.
"Nah! I'm just a little talented is all!" Ye Qing waved away the praise casually. "Everyone here are civilized people, so let's act like it, okay? What do you want? If it's within my ability to give, then I will give it to you!"
"But before you start, don't ask me for my money or my life, okay? I don't have money, and I'm not handing over my life!"
"..." Qing Kui ignored his joke and asked, "Are you the one who killed Zheng Feng?"
"Yep! That's me!" Ye Qing did not deny this because there was no point. The guy wouldn't be here if he hadn't investigated the truth behind the incident thoroughly. "Are you here to take revenge for Zheng Feng?"
Instead of answering, Qing Kui asked another question, "If you're the one who killed Zheng Feng, then you must have obtained his possessions. Did you find a painting among them?"
"A painting?" Ye Qing furrowed his brow for a second before relaxing. Are they here for the "Emperor Fuxi Visualization Method"?
The slight change in Ye Qing's expression did not elude Qing Kui. A smile spread across his face as he said, "You have seen the painting! Give it to me, and I promise I won't desecrate your corpse!"
"The painting is with me, yes, but if you're going to kill me either way then why the bloody hell would I give it to you?" Ye Qing asked with a raised eyebrow. Is the guy stupid? Did no one teach him how to negotiate terms like a human being?
"The hard way it is!" Qing Kui let out an ominous chuckle. "I was hoping you would turn me down anyway!"
As soon as he finished, his bloody aura grew much stronger than before. It looked as red as fire, and yet it felt so cold it was like they were standing next to the source of winter. At the same time, frozen blood rippled out of the man like shockwaves.
"He's… an Astral Refiner!" Ye Qing's pupils contracted a little. He had his suspicions, but now he was certain that the assassin was in the Astral Refinement stage. It was because the bloody aura surrounding Qing Kui wasn't made of true qi, but astral qi.
True qi was the intangible, insubstantial essence of the world. It could be molded into anything and everything, but it did not have a defining attribute. On the other hand, astral qi was known as the Qi of Perpetual Motion. Generally speaking, it referred to natural true qi that had taken on a distinct shape and attribute due to their environment or other factors. Some of the most astral qi in the world were Bing Fire, Yi Wood, Gui Water and so on.
An Astral Refiner was a warrior who had absorbed astral qi into their body and refined it into their true qi to give it characteristics of fire, water, lightning, earth, sound and other forces of nature. This was why astral qi was infinitely more varied and powerful than pure true qi.
Take Ye Qing's "Boundless Lightning Palm" for example. The martial art molded his true qi to simulate the force of lightning, but it was ultimately just a simulation. It was nowhere as realistic or potent as the real thing.
Besides that, there was a reason astral qi was known as the Qi of Perpetual Motion. A body that was tempered by astral qi would not leak vigor, strength, or vitality into the environment, meaning that it could theoretically function indefinitely without an external energy source. It was why the ancients called this body the "Innate Flawless Body".
To give a metaphor, if the Vessel Augmentation stage was the stage where the warrior dug "ponds" and "channels" in their body to fill them with "water", then the Astral Refinement stage was the stage where they planted the seeds of life in their body and transformed it into a true ecosystem, mimicking nature in every sense of the word.
Ye Qing was now a bonafide late-stage Vessel Augmentor, so he had begun looking into the Astral Refinement stage as a matter of course. However, he absolutely wasn't expecting to meet an Astral Refiner in the flesh, much less one who meant to do him harm.
"A-An Astral Refiner?!" Tao Xian stammered out in fright, and not just because the creeping frost was cold enough to constrict his blood vessels and turn his blood was ice. He could barely move an inch with how stiff he felt.
Chapter 97: Yin Blood Qi
Translator: Truth
"You're also smarter than you look. It's too bad the answer isn't going to help you one bit!" Qing Kui sneered, and the frosty blood on the ground abruptly lifted into the air and transformed into a swarm of hissing snakes. Ye Qing had no doubt they would rip him and Tao Xian into pieces if given the chance to do so.
"You should go!" Ye Qing slapped Tao Xian on the chest. The gentle force didn't just push him out of the frosty blood's range, it also dissolved the yin energy stifling his limbs and restoring control to his body.
After Tao Xian was out of danger, he immediately turned tail and ran like the wind. "Hang on, boss! I'll call for help immediately!"
"..."
You know, I thought the underlings should be the ones throwing themselves against formidable enemies while I, the boss, shoot orders from the backline. So why is the opposite happening here?
"Your underling has abandoned you, brat. If you surrender now, I might yet change my mind about torturing you and making you wish you were dead!" Qing Kui couldn't care less about Tao Xian escaping because there was no one he could call that could pose a real threat against him, and by the time he mustered enough men he would've killed Ye Qing and left the place a long time ago.
"Thanks, but no thanks!" Ye Qing jolted back to reality and replied. He could daydream after he had beaten the assassin. Staring at the snake swarm in front of him, he curled his fingers and somehow caused the blood to drain away from their bodies, leaving behind only icy frost. When the snakes were about three inches away from him, they abruptly shattered into pieces as if they had completely expended their energy and could not maintain their form any longer.
"How did you…?" Qing Kui's smile morphed into shock and confusion when he saw this. He had no idea how Ye Qing had done it, but he had suddenly lost control of his bloody snakes when they were less than a second away from skewering the young man.
The battle was just starting though. Qing Kui's palm and the surrounding air abruptly turned blood red like an inferno. Then, he unleashed a palm strike that was far, far more powerful than the one he attempted to kill Tao Xian with earlier.
The bloody palm flying toward Ye Qing looked as picturesque as a painting, but it came at the cost of everything around it. The ground, the plants, and even the fake mountains some thirty meters away from the attack were covered in sheen of red frost. It slowly ate away at their form until nothing was left behind.
"Yin Blood Hand"
The "Yin Blood Hand" was Qing Kui's signature move. He cultivated a cultivation art called the "Yin Blood Qi Scripture", and it transformed his true qi into an insidious, brutal astral qi called the Yin Blood Qi.
It bore repeating that Yin Blood Qi was an exceptionally insidious and brutal astral qi. Not only was it cold enough to freeze a person's blood and inflict frostbite damage, it could invade a person's body to corrupt their vigor and melt their innards without a trace. At a certain level, the astral qi could even influence a person's mind without them noticing.
The "Yin Blood Qi Scripture" came together with a palm art known as the "Yin Blood Hand". It was a martial art made to maximize the Yin Blood Qi's potential. Ideally, the "Yin Blood Hand" could freeze everything and melt all flesh and blood into goo in one palm strike. It was incredibly deadly to put it mildly.
Of course, Qing Kui hadn't gone all out. He didn't want to kill Ye Qing until he had obtained the painting after all. Even so, he was confident that the palm strike would hurt Ye Qing enough to incapacitate him.
On the other side, Ye Qing stood frozen in place like someone who had lost all will to resist. However, right before the bloody palm would land, Qing Kui's hair abruptly stood on end not unlike a mouse who was cornered by a cat. It was at this moment Ye Qing opened his mouth and sucked the bloody palm and the bloody air around it into his stomach!
"Not bad, not bad! It's kinda like eating a super hot pepper, but cold!" Ye Qing smirked while licking his lips.
Qing Kui wasn't expecting this at all, but he did not hesitate to rush forward and point his finger at Ye Qing. Bloody energy streamed out of his fingertip like light beams and threatened to turn the body part he was aiming at into goo. He was aiming at Ye Qing's major points too, meaning that the young man would be crippled if even one of the attacks hit.
"Melting Finger"
However, Ye Qing was able to duck and weave through the assault like a cloud dancing in the wind. No matter how close the Melting Finger came to hitting him, it was never actually close enough to deal any sort of damage. When he had dodged the final attack, Ye Qing abruptly disappeared and reappeared behind Qing Kui.
"Flowing Cloud, Flying Sleeve"
Qing Kui was both shocked and furious when he sensed the attack. His senses told him that Ye Qing was just a late-stage Vessel Augmentor, and yet the tidal wave of force rushing toward his back was on par—no, greater than what he could muster, an Astral Refiner! This wasn't possible unless…
Did he achieve perfect augmentation!? The possibility entered Qing Kui's mind. Only a Vessel Augmentor who had augmented all twelve Standard Meridians, eight Extraordinary Meridians, and three hundred and sixty points could possess such a tremendous amount of true qi!
But this is Anyang! What is a perfect Vessel Augmentor doing in a backwater county like this?
It was no wonder that Qing Kui was confused. He was a member of a powerful faction, but even he had only augmented twelve Standard Meridians, six Extraordinary Meridians, and three hundred points in his body.
There's no way this can be true. I have to be mistaken… right?
By now, Ye Qing's attack was less than a second away from hitting his back. Not daring to treat it lightly or conserve his strength, he channeled his Yin Blood Qi to the max and manifested what looked like a blood red moon from his body.
Boom!
The red globe of astral qi was so thick it was almost tangible, but Ye Qing's attack had smashed through it like a tsunami crashing through a building. If Qing Kui wasn't sure before, he now knew with absolute certainty that Ye Qing's reservoir of true qi was much bigger than him.
Qing Kui staggered forward uncontrollably and had to catch himself. Although his makeshift shield managed to block off most of the attack, he still felt like cracks were forming across his innards. However, his pain was quickly overwhelmed by a greater shock when he saw Ye Qing clenching his hand and pulling all the blood in the air toward him. They converged just above his palm and formed a small globe of blood.
"Impossible… How are you controlling my Yin Blood Qi?" Qing Kui couldn't help but blurt out in shock.
He could accept Ye Qing having a greater reservoir of true qi than him, an Astral Refiner. The guy was a perfect Vessel Augmentor after all. He could even accept that Ye Qing was resistant or immune to his Yin Blood Qi. He had fought against warriors whose martial art was the antithesis of his Yin Blood Qi and witnessed martial arts that were far stranger than his.
But how in the flying fuck was the young man controlling his Yin Blood Qi like he was the true Astral Refiner here, not him? He had never seen anything like this despite his myriad life experiences, and he did not like it one bit because it meant that there was at least one factor in this battle that was completely out of his control.
Ye Qing squeezed the globe of blood in his hand a little. It was only as big as a walnut, but he could feel an unbelievable amount of energy in it. If he tossed it on the ground, he had no doubt that the resulting explosion would destroy at least half of the headquarters. It was a terrifying amount of power to say the least.
Astral qi was just so much more powerful than natural true qi, and this was especially true in Qing Kui's case. Qing Kui had not ascended to the Astral Refinement stage by refining common astral qi such as Bing Fire or Gui Water. It was the strange and deadly Yin Blood Qi. If Ye Qing had been an ordinary late-stage Vessel Augmentor, he could've defeated him and killed him in just a matter of seconds.
Unfortunately for Qing Kui, the Yin Blood Qi was mainly a blood astral qi with a bit of yin element in it, and it just so happened that Ye Qing's blood was the bane of all blood thanks to its devouring ability! In fact, his blood had been growing restless since Qing Kui had launched his first attack. He could tell that it wanted to devour the blood in the air to enrich itself.
This was why Ye Qing had chosen to stay behind and fight despite knowing that his enemy was an Astral Refiner. It was because he had a real shot at overcoming the gap between their cultivation level and killing Qing Kui. Otherwise, he would've run away a long time ago!
"I don't know. Maybe your astral qi likes me more than it likes you?" Ye Qing joked while continuing to toy with the globe of blood.
"Is there no end to your shitty jokes, you bastard?" Qing Kui narrowed his eyes. Of course he didn't believe Ye Qing's nonsense, but until he figured out exactly why his opponent could steal away his Yin Blood Qi, he would be fighting at a disadvantage, and the thought that a Vessel Augmentor had any advantage over him at all irked him to no end.
Still, he needed to end this as soon as possible. If Ye Qing managed to drag out the fight long enough for reinforcements to show up, he would be in a lot of trouble not because they could threaten him, but because it would lead to the kind of consequences Xiao Yang had warned him about.
Also, he refused to believe that he, an Astral Refiner, could not squash a mere Vessel Augmentor.
"Don't think you've won yet, brat. I'll show you the true power of an Astral Refiner starting now!" Qing Kui declared when blood suddenly poured out of his eyes and trickled down his bronze mask. Then, strange patterns lit up across the surface of the mask and formed the lifelike image of a tiger as it absorbed the blood.
Rumble!
A terrific amount of fiendish energy gushed out of the bronze mask then. It was so thick that it shrouded the assassin like a fog.
"Kill! Kill! KILL!"
Ye Qing could vaguely hear the sound of hoofbeats, the clanging of metals, and battle cries from the fog-like energy. There were the sound of war drums and blowing horns as well. It was as if the two of them had been transported into a battlefield.
At the same time, a silhouette wearing a draconic armor and a bronze mask appeared behind Qing Kui. The mask looked exactly the same as the one Qing Kui was wearing. The silhouette also wielded a Green Dragon Crescent Blade.
"GRAH!"
The silhouette abruptly looked up and roared on top of his lungs, and the fiendish energy surrounding Qing Kui immediately flooded into the silhouette. His body kept growing more and more tangible until he almost looked like a real person; a real war general.
The general abruptly slammed the butt of his crescent blade against the ground, shattering it. He glared daggers at Ye Qing and roared again, "KILL!"
An unspeakable aura full of bloodthirst and violence washed out of the war general then. At that moment, Ye Qing had no doubt that whoever the war general in life was a mighty warrior who had fought a thousand battles, wade through mountains of corpses, and swam across seas of blood to become who he was. It was such a show of intimidation that even Ye Qing could barely keep his cool and stabilize his mind. A weaker man would've lost all will to fight after hearing that battle cry alone.
"KILL!"
Finally, the general grabbed his crescent blade with both hands and began his attack.
Rumble!
The general was a good distance away from Ye Qing, but when he swung his crescent blade diagonally across the air, a terrific crescent of death flew toward the young man with seemingly enough force to cut the heaven and the earth itself in half. At that moment, the world trembled, and all colors seemed to fade into nothing!
"Oh shit shit SHIT! I knew I shouldn't have fooled around!" Ye Qing cried out in alarm while dashing sideways as quickly as he could. Every cell in his body was screaming that there was no chance in hell he could block the attack. The crescent blade was a true blade of war whose sole purpose in existence was to slay its enemies. The technique might seem insultingly basic—anyone who had reached the Vessel Augmentation stage could swing a weapon and shoot their true qi—but why would you need complexity when your attack was backed by overwhelming power?
It was as if the general's violence, bloodthirst, aura and more had been molded together to create a pure instrument of murder. This one attack was worth thousands and thousands of attacks. Forget one Ye Qing, not even two Ye Qings might be enough to block the attack!
Ye Qing had launched into evasive maneuvers as soon as he saw the crescent of death flying toward him, but it chased after him like a homing missile and could not be shaken off no matter what he tried. Not only that, there was so much power behind the attack that it was crushing everything ahead of it before it even reached them. It cut through walls, structures and the earth beneath it like they didn't even exist.
I can't dodge this, the thought entered Ye Qing's mind. But he had to, because every other option led to certain death. So, he pushed Blood Sea Fragrance to the utmost limit and danced all over the place as light as a feather and as quick as a lightning bolt. Not only that, he unleashed his spirit so he could locate the weakest spot in the air and minimize the air resistance he was enduring. Any speed he could squeeze out might just make the difference between life and death!
In Qing Kui's eyes, Ye Qing was like a candle flame struggling to survive a raging storm. The wind was strong, and the downpour was so potent that it could have extinguished even a raging inferno, much less a pathetic candle flame. But no matter how fierce the storm raged, the candle refused to submit to fate and kept on burning. It never stopped emitting a warm light that valiantly pushed back against the darkness and despair closing in around it; a light that looked like hope itself!
Chapter 98: On Second Thought
"Hope, huh? If hope is all it takes to change fate, then the world would've been a much better place!" Qing Kui said mockingly.
The mask he was wearing was called the "Bronze Tiger Head", a bonafide Malice-class Strange Artifact. Legends said that it belonged to a fearsome war general whose name was lost to time. Imbued with a terrible amount of power, it could summon the general's soul fragment and have him fight on behalf of its wielder.
The crescent of death was the general's ultimate attack, and it was about as potent as a late-stage Astral Refiner's attack. It was why Qing Kui's ridiculing comment wasn't unreasonable. The fact was that Ye Qing was slowing down and growing pale over time. The crescent of death was slowly but surely shrinking his room for maneuver as well.
"Die!"
Qing Kui sneered coldly. From the moment he used the Bronze Tiger Head, he had given up on the idea of capturing Ye Qing alive. After all, the painting had to be on Ye Qing's person or somewhere in the headquarters. It would take a while, but he would find the painting eventually.
Qing Kui failed to notice something critical, however. It was true that Ye Qing was losing room for maneuver, but he was also getting closer and closer to Qing Kui. When he was mere meters away from the Astral Refiner, he abruptly jabbed a finger at him.
It looked like the act of a petulant child who was moments away from losing their game, but Qing Kui felt a chill running down his spine for some reason. The next moment, he felt his blood suddenly going out of control like someone had added a drop of water into a pot of boiling oil. It slammed against the walls of his blood vessels repeatedly as if it was trying to escape.
Qi and blood were key components of one's vigor. If either one of them was disrupted, it would be impossible for the person to function normally. Naturally, Qing Kui was immediately assaulted by a wave of dizziness, and his vital signs were going haywire as well.
"What's happening?" Qing Kui pressed a hand to his chest and looked inward. To his shock, he noticed invisible, dust-sized tendrils that almost looked like shadows of blood swimming inside his body. He would never have noticed them if not for the sudden deterioration of his health. They were Ye Qing's Blood Shadows and the reason for sudden disruption of his vigor, of course.
"When did this…?" Qing Kui muttered in confusion and disbelief even as he mustered his true qi and attempted to expel the Blood Shadows. However, they were unusually difficult to remove even for an Astral Refiner like him.
Suddenly, Qing Kui felt a tiny burst of pain behind his neck. A thin wound then appeared out of seemingly nowhere. When he focused his eyes and stared at his surroundings, he finally noticed the nigh invisible Blood Shadows swimming all around him like ghosts.
"This is… the Blood Shadow Magic?" Qing Kui's eyes bulged when he realized what he was seeing. "How did you know the Blood Shadow Castle's magic art? Are you a disciple of Blood Shadow Castle?"
However, he quickly refuted his own assumption, "No, no, I must be mistaken. The real Blood Shadow Magic could never affect my vigor! Who are you?"
More wounds appeared on Qing Kui's body as he was speaking. They were so tiny that they couldn't even threaten an ordinary person's life, but for some reason Qing Kui had a bad, bad feeling about this.
"Haha! You came to kill me, and you don't even know who I am?" Ye Qing replied while still darting about in the sky. Thanks to the Blood Shadows affecting the flow of Qing Kui's vigor, the crescent of death chasing after him had become a lot weaker than before. It still wasn't enough though. He had snuck the Blood Shadows into Qing Kui's body almost as soon as they started fighting, but the assassin was an Astral Refiner. He quickly found out that he was unable to control the Blood Shadows enough to affect Qing Kui's vigor unless he was within a few meters of him. As for killing him outright with the Blood Shadows like he had done with the Soundless Bugs, that was downright impossible without sufficient preparation.
So he prepared. While Qing Kui was still struggling to control his vigor or his astral qi, he landed hit after hit with his Blood Shadows until the guy was bleeding all over the place. Eventually, Qing Kui grew frustrated enough to shout, "I don't care who the fuck you are, but you'll never kill me with such petty tricks!"
As soon as he finished, the Astral Refiner forcefully mustered a ball of astral qi in his dantian and discharged it across his whole body. This time, he was able to destroy the Blood Shadows lurking within his vigor.
"Well done, friend. Unfortunately, you're just a little too late!" Ye Qing said suddenly. Before Qing Kui could make sense of his words, blood abruptly squirted out of his wounds like water out of an open valve!
It happened so fast. One second ago, Qing Kui was still rejoicing over the annihilation of the Blood Shadows and getting ready to end Ye Qing once and for all. The next, fountains of blood shot out of his wounds like fireworks, and then all that was left was a pile of skins and bones. Qing Kui never even reacted to it until it was too late.
This was what Ye Qing had been planning from the beginning. Although his Blood Shadow Magic could absorb and affect another person's blood, there was only so much he could do against people whose cultivation level was higher than him. To give an example, a weaker cultivator was like a small, inferior quality water bag. One tiny hole was all he needed to drain them of their blood. However, a stronger cultivator was a bigger, tougher water bag. Not only did it take much more effort to put a hole in their body, he needed multiple holes to drain their blood completely.
So that was what he did. He put as many holes in Qing Kui's body as possible before draining him. Not even an Astral Refiner could withstand losing most of their blood in one go!
How does it feel to be sucked dry, bitch?
However, Qing Kui still wasn't dead despite losing the heavy injury. He shouted, "Save me, junior brother!" before jumping to his feet and running toward the exit. Of course, he could no longer use the Bronze Tiger Head in this state, so the war general behind his back and the crescent of death chasing after Ye Qing abruptly shattered into a million pieces and vanished.
He's still alive? Ye Qing squinted at the escaping Astral Refiner. Then, he reappeared behind Qing Kui and beheaded him in one smooth motion.
Qing Kui's head drew a long arc across the air. While it was passing by a rooftop, a silhouette just so happened to appear on the rooftop and caught sight of the head. Its cheeks were sunken, and its eyes were bulging like the eyeballs might fall off their sockets at any moment. It looked like a skull wearing human skin, and it was beyond ugly to put it mildly.
"Heavens, that's the ugliest head I've ever seen in my life," the silhouette commented. Then, he realized something and exclaimed in shock, "Wait… is that Qing Kui's head?"
After the head fell out of sight, he shrugged. "He's still ugly though."
The silhouette was Xiao Yang, of course. While looking down on Ye Qing from the rooftop, he whispered seemingly to himself, "My senior brother may be a little arrogant, violent, loathsome and ugly, and although I totally would've killed him myself because I didn't want to share the painting with anyone, he was my senior brother and a member of my Sunset Hill. As the saying goes, blood is thicker than water—wait that's not right, he's my senior brother, not my actual brother. Er…"
Xiao Yang thought for a long time but could not come up with a proper idiom, so he resumed his monologue, "Anyway, because something something and yada yada, it is only right that I take revenge for him."
Xiao Yang got ready to meet Ye Qing in battle after he finally finished his inane mumbling, but right before he could do so Ye Qing abruptly raised his hand and made a fist. All the blood in the area immediately floated into the air and converged into a globe in front of him. Then, he swallowed the globe and returned to full strength in an instant!
"... On second thought, never mind…"
Xiao Yang was going to attack the young man just now because he looked tired, but now? The young man looked like he was up for another showdown, and heavens know that Xiao Yang never fought fairly if he could help it. Qing Kui wasn't just any disciple, he was a genius disciple who had a good chance of becoming a pillar of Sunset Hill in the future. Sure, his senior brother was no match for him, but even he couldn't have killed the Astral Refiner and walked away unscathed. In fact, the best outcome he could hope for was a close victory.
On the other hand, the young man had killed Qing Kui with seemingly no effort whatsoever. He couldn't spot a scratch on his body even after his senior brother had used his trump card, the Bronze Tiger Head, meaning that he was definitely more formidable than Qing Kui. As if that wasn't enough, the guy had seemingly recovered his strength in just the blink of an eye! What the hell was even that technique? Was that why Qing Kui had died looking like the victim of a forbidden voodoo ritual? Who in their right mind would engage such a powerful and unpredictable opponent if they could help it?
He wasn't just any man, he was an extraordinarily handsome man [1]. He had no intentions of fighting a battle he could have avoided, losing, and being sucked in a dry, ugly husk. The thought that he might deprive every woman in the world of a national treasure like himself was enough to douse his fighting spirit like an ice bucket.
So no, he wasn't going to fight the young man, at least not now. Revenge was a dish best served cold, and the painting could afford to wait a bit before returning to its rightful owner.
His mind made up, Xiao Yang turned around and suddenly started fading as if his body was made of mist. It wasn't long before he was completely gone.
It was at this moment Tao Xian, Jie Chen and the others finally showed up in typical late cavalry fashion. "Boss! We're here, boss! Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine. It's just a small fry. It's nothing to worry about," Ye Qing replied casually while waving his hand.
Tao Xian and Jie Chen stared at the collapsed walls, ruined buildings, and tattered courtyard around them. Then, they felt the terrifying aura still permeating the air. Finally, they exchanged a quick glance with each other before looking away.
If this is what the boss considers a small fry, then what are we? The dirt on the ground?
Tao Xian stared at the beheaded "small fry" on the ground and praised from the bottom of his heart, "Long live the boss!"
"Long live the boss!" Everyone else dropped to one knee and echoed in heartfelt agreement.
"Mm. Everything's fine now, so you may take your leave!" Ye Qing waved for the others to leave before adding, "Tao Xian, stay with me."
After the others were gone, Tao Xian saluted him respectfully and asked, "What are your orders, boss?"
Ye Qing answered, "I want you to find out everything about this assassin. Who is he? Where did he come from? What did he—"
He abruptly cut himself off. It was only now he noticed that the assassin had been sucked into a dry husk, so whatever defining features it had before was either unrecognizable or distorted. His shrunken head also resembled a Stranger more than a human being. How was Tao Xian supposed to find anything like this?
"Never mind. Just clean up the place when tomorrow comes."
"As you command!" Tao Xian saluted before leaving his boss to his devices.
After Tao Xian was gone, Ye Qing searched Qing Kui's corpse for loot but could not find anything.
"Penniless bastard. How is he so poor that he doesn't have a Nature's Shell?" Ye Qing muttered irritably but relaxed when he glanced at the bronze mask lying not far away from Qing Kui's head. "At least there's still the mask. This Strange Artifact alone is worth ruining a night or two!"
Ye Qing could still remember the fear he felt when the terrifying war general unleashed that devastating attack that almost killed him. He also felt a little excited.
The bronze mask was obviously an incredibly powerful Strange Artifact. It wasn't just a match for his Blue Demon Hand. It had exceeded it.
After he put the bronze mask safely into his Nature's Shell, Ye Qing unleashed the Netherflame and burned Qing Kui into a pile of ashes. While doing so, he said,
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. You may have tried to kill me, brother, but I won't hold a grudge against you and feed your body to the Strangers since I'm a broad-minded man. That said, I'm too busy a man to dig a grave for you, so cremation is the way to go. It's environmentally friendly, saves space, and beneficial to the realm. What's not to like, am I right?"
After that, he turned around and walked toward the Flowing Cloud Hall.
Just a few seconds after Ye Qing took off, a silhouette abruptly appeared on another rooftop and stared at Ye Qing's departing back. A short while later, he rubbed his chin and mumbled regretfully, "My word, he really took no damage from that fight? Oh well. There is always another chance!"
The silhouette was none other than Xiao Yang!
"This brat has a lot of good stuff on him. What's yours is mine, and what's mine is still mine. Keep them safe for me, kiddo. One day, I will return and take back what's mine!"
Xiao Yang disappeared once more, and this time, he did not come back.
"Fuck… they finally left!"
At the door, Ye Qing let out a huge sigh of relief after the deadly aura his spirit had been sensing was finally gone. As if on cue, he abruptly covered his mouth and started coughing like he was coughing up a lung, blood trickling from between his fingers even as he tried to control his reaction.
1. this is Xiao Yang's subjective opinion
Chapter 99: Acrostic
That was too close!
Ye Qing wasn't just hurt, he was hurt pretty badly. Although he managed to avoid getting hit by the crescent of death—he would've died otherwise—it had come close enough to wound him with its force and destructive will. The reason he hadn't allowed himself to show any sign of weakness until now was because of the assassin's last words:
"Save me, junior brother!"
His last words were proof that the assassin hadn't come alone. Considering how powerful he had been, his junior brother could not be too far behind. The only reason he managed to kill the assassin was because the Blood Shadow Divine Art just happened to counter his cultivation art perfectly. Another Vessel Augmentor, even a weaker one might have proven to be more than a match for him, not to mention that he was in no condition to fight a consecutive battle.
Had Ye Qing showed any weakness at all, he was certain that he would not live to see tomorrow's sun. That was why he had pretended to be fine, no, more than fine. There was no telling if the assassin's junior brother had watched the battle, but at the very least Ye Qing wanted him to think that he was almost or fully healthy after the battle. He wanted to sow so much doubt and uncertainty in the junior brother that he was disinclined to fight him.
Of course, his tactic only worked against smart people. If the junior brother turned out to be an idiot or a one-track minded person who couldn't read a clue to save his life, then he was dead as a dodo. It was as simple as that.
Luckily, his acting skill was up to par, and his spirit was just strong enough that he noticed the junior brother spying on him from the darkness. That was why he did not slip up until the end and somehow lived to see another day.
"That was way too close! Thank god I'm a lucky man, and thanks for watching over me, dad [1]!" Ye Qing breathed an audible sigh of relief after he finally managed to stop his cough. "But who are these people? Why did they show up now to take the 'Emperor Fuxi Visualization Method'?"
He could see why the assassin—or anyone for the matter—would want to steal the "Emperor Fuxi Visualization Method" for themselves. After all, it was an incredible visualization method that could increase one's mental strength and fortitude. However, Zheng Feng had owned it for years without ever finding a murderous Vessel Augmentor standing in his backyard, while he had barely owned it for a week or two before trouble found its way to its doorsteps. Was he mistaken about his luck, or was Zheng Feng just that lucky?
In the end, Ye Qing could only comfort himself by thinking, it must be because I'm too handsome and talented. Even the heavens deem that I must face a tribulation or two to balance out the scales.
Ye Qing went into the room, assumed a meditative pose and closed his eyes. He then channeled the "Blood Shadow Divine Art" with all he got. His heart beat loudly like drums, and he could hear his blood rushing like a river in his ears. Soon, he emanated a red light and turned boiling hot like the sun. The entire room was dyed in red for a long time.
Over four hours later, when the horizon started to turn white like the belly of a fish, ye Qing suddenly opened his eyes and exhaled a mouthful of murky qi. Lightning suddenly crept across the furniture, and the room was filled with a terrifying, murderous aura in an instant.
Buzz—
The entire room shook as the unusual aura swam restlessly throughout the space. Invisible blade energies instantly diced the table, the chairs, the cups and every item in the room into fine powder. It was terrifying to say the least.
Ye Qing reached out and pulled seemingly all the air in the room into his palm. Then, he clenched his hand until there was a devastating pop and a terrific gale. A long time later, the wind finally subsided together with the murderous aura and the blade energies.
"Phew! It's done!" what he spat out of his mouth just now was of course, the blade force that had invaded his body. Technically speaking, his internal injuries weren't that severe. The problem was that the blade energies would not stop attacking his insides until he had expelled it from his body. Without it, it only took him seconds to return back to full health.
On a related note, he had fully refined the blood he absorbed from Qing Kui as well. As expected of a Vessel Augmentor, his vigor was extremely powerful. It wasn't just enough to heal up his injuries, it had pushed his physique to a whole new level as well. Right now, not even three Qing Kuis combined had more vigor than him. With high HP and high defense, he was what the netizens would call a tank [2].
"Now that I'm back to peak form, I should check out that bronze mask." Ye Qing recalled the bronze mask he picked up last night and retrieved it from his Nature's Shell. He then examined its appearance for a bit. The bronze mask was rusty and covered in blackened bloodstains. It also oozed an air of antiquity and hardship. Besides that, it didn't look any different from an ordinary mask.
"It doesn't look like much. I should ask the Annon Sutra about it." When in doubt, ask the Annon Sutra!
So, he took out his vellum and fed it his blood as usual. "What kind of Strange Artifact is this bronze mask?"
A short while later, the Annon Sutra glowed darkly and manifested its answer:
"The Bronze Tiger Head is a Malice-class Strange Artifact and a mask belonging to Wei Rou, a great general from the previous dynasty. Wei Rou was already quite famous at a young age because he was a master of all things military, but he had the unfortunate luck of being born with a woman's face. Too pretty to intimidate an enemy or ally, he eventually decided to wear a tiger mask every time he entered the battlefield. It quickly proved a simply but brilliant solution to his problem."
"However, because the tiger mask was exposed to the battlefield for too long, it eventually became tainted with bloodthirst, violence and vengeful spirits who had died on the battlefield. On the one hand, it gained special abilities and transformed into a Strange Artifact. On the other hand, Wei Rou's personality was slowly warped by the tiger mask until he finally transformed into a vicious, bloodthirsty and murderous beast who only knew murder. After he lost a battle and was caught by the enemy, he was executed by chariot-splitting. [3]"
"Wei Rou was unresigned to his fate, however. Such was his grudge that a fragment of his soul became attached to the mask. As a result, the tiger mask became even stranger than before."
"The wearer of the Bronze Tiger Head can soak the mask in blood to summon Wei Rou's soul fragment into existence. The violence and bloodthirst of the myriad battlefields he had fought and the power of hundreds of heroic souls would come together to grant the wearer immense power."
"In exchange, the wearer must withstand the Bronze Tiger Head's unrelenting corruption. If their mind and spirit proved insufficient to fend off the mask's thirst for violence and blood, they would eventually succumb to the same fate as Wei Rou and transform into a mindless beast."
"Besides that, the bearer of the Bronze Tiger Head may be harassed by Wei Rou's soul fragment from time to time."
When the Annon Sutra was finally done explaining the Bronze Tiger Head, Ye Qing exclaimed in amazement, "A Malice-class Strange Artifact! No wonder it's so powerful!"
As someone who had barely survived its attack, he could personally attest to its strength. Unfortunately, its side effects were just as dangerous. Judging from the aura he felt last night, he wouldn't be surprised if a weak-willed person activated it and immediately lost their minds the second after.
"It's a crying shame that the side effects are so terrible. I can only use it as a trump card!" Ye Qing sighed. Frankly, it was lousier than the Blue Demon Hand and Lightning Bolt in terms of practicality.
"What did it mean that 'the bearer of the Bronze Tiger Head may be harassed by Wei Rou's soul fragment from time to time though'? Like, is the guy going to appear randomly and stalk me like a ghost, or is he going to haunt my dreams or something?"
Unfortunately the Annon Sutra did not give him a straight answer, so he could only wait and see what happens next. He consoled himself, "It should be fine. We're both men, and the Annon Sutra said he's only going to 'harass' me, not 'attack' or 'kill' me, so who cares?"
With that done, Ye Qing decided to look into Astral Refinement stage cultivation art next. Now that he was a bonafide late-stage Vessel Augmentor, one could say that he had reached the absolute ceiling of the Vessel Augmentation stage. The only way he could progress further was to enter the Astral Refinement stage, and to do that he would have to refine astral qi. He didn't actually know if that was the case, but a Reforged needed to invoke qi to enter the Qi Invocation stage, and a Qi Invoker needed to augment their blood vessels to enter the Vessel Augmentation stage. Going by that logic, it made perfect sense that a Vessel Augmentor would need to refine astral qi to enter the Astral Refinement stage.
Just like last time, he planned to consult the Annon Sutra to determine the best Astral Refinement stage cultivation art for him and where he could get it. If the cultivation art turned out to be out of reach, then he would seek out Ling Jianqiu and request a suitable Astral Refinement stage cultivation art as a reward. Considering his contributions to the county, he was sure the Chief of Bureau wouldn't reject him.
However, he would prefer not to do this because the exchange would most likely bind him to the ship that was the Pacification Bureau. Sure, it was one of the biggest, stablest, and safest ships in the realm, but he would have to surrender his independence and freedom as the price. Independence was the only reason his secrets were still under wraps. He seriously didn't want to join the Pacification Bureau unless he had no other choice.
Without further ado, he cut open his finger again and asked, "Where can I find an Astral Refinement stage cultivation art that suits me best?"
This time, it took half a teatime before the Annon Sutra was finally satisfied. Then, it manifested these words:
"Redstone grasps for the heavens like swords
Forest awash, a world forever transformed
Books are tasty, yums an early worm until a
Sprite kicks it over for knowledge lost."
"I-Is this a poem? Why did you suddenly change your style, brother?" Ye Qing blurted. It wasn't a bad poem, but it was a massive departure from its usual first-person perspective, suspenseful and thriller-style response. In fact, it was so unexpected that Ye Qing didn't even know what to make of it.
"I guess I'm supposed to decipher its meaning or something?" Ye Qing muttered before pouring through the poem a second time. It was, on the surface, a very simple poem. The first two lines described scenery, whereas the last two lines seemed to imply a moral lesson. It was very easy to understand since it was written vernacularly. There was just one problem.
What the fuck does this have to do with my question? This… this isn't a scam, is it?
That seemed unlikely since the Annon Sutra had never failed him before, so Ye Qing crossed his arms and racked his brain once more. Unfortunately, the answer still eluded him like a mirage.
Bro! I seriously don't get what you're saying! Can you go back to your previous style, please?
Ye Qing felt like crying. He hadn't transmigrated to another world to learn how to decipher a poem, dammit!
"Redstone reaches toward the sky like a sword, forest leaves wobble atop meandering… wait a second. Redstone… Forest? Is that how it is?"
Ye Qing was reciting the poem for the umpteenth time when suddenly, it hit him. Was this an acrostic? The first word of the first line of the poem was "Redstone", whereas the first word of the second line was "Forest". Together, they made the word "Redstone Forest"!
Besides that, the description seemed to match what he had seen the first time he traveled to Redstone Forest. The stone forest did look like swords pointing toward the sky, and it was forever changed after the Heptachromatic Fog of Aging had washed over a good portion of it.
"Yes! It has to be referring to the Redstone Forest!" Ye Qing slapped his thigh in excitement.
"What about the last two lines? 'Books' and 'Sprite'… Book Sprite? Is it referring to Wawa?"
Although he didn't know how Wawa could help him find the Astral Refinement stage cultivation art he was looking for, the Annon Sutra never gave him a useless answer. Even if he was wrong, there was no harm in bringing Wawa on one of his adventures.
"There is no better time to start than now, so let's go!"
...
It was morning by the time he returned to Endless Horizons. Wawa was playing with Kung Fu Frog as usual. He called out to her with a beaming smile on his face, "Can I ask your help with something, Wawa?"
Wawa patted her tiny chest and declared, "Wawa loves helping people. How can I help you, friend?"
Ye Qing replied, "I'd like to head out to Redstone Forest and search for something. Would you like to help me with it?"
"Redstone Forest? Are we going out to play, friend?"
Wawa looked so excited she bounced up and down on his shoulders. She had automatically translated what was most likely going to be a boring search in the middle of nowhere into an fun adventure. "Of course I'll come with you! Wawa loves to go out and play! You're a good friend, friend!"
As long as she's happy, I suppose!
Ye Qing went up and stored Wawa's true body in his Nature's Shell. He then left Endless Horizons with Wawa, Kung Fu Frog, and Faceless in tow. Although Wawa was the only one the Annon Sutra had asked him to bring, it didn't say that it couldn't bring additional help with him. If his previous experience was anything to go by, it was practically guaranteed that they would definitely encounter some sort of unpredictable danger. They were safer as a team of four than a team of two.
Ye Qing had just left the gates when he ran into a couple of familiar faces. "Sister Yun! Hu Nu! What brings you to the gates?"
"Warrior Ye!"
Yun Yan was accompanied by Hu Nu and dozens of Sentinels, and they all greeted him warmly and with deep respect. Everyone here had witnessed his prowess last night and knew just how strong he was. Not only had he killed plenty of powerful Strangers, he was the one who interrupted the summoning ritual and ultimately prevented the Nether Lord from descending upon Anyang. He was, by all means, the savior of Anyang, so how could not treat him with respect?
"Are you heading out as well, Joyless?" Yun Yan looked surprised to see Ye Qing at the gates as well.
Ye Qing gave her the excuse he had prepared earlier, "Yeah! There's something I need to do. What about you guys? Where are you going?"
Ye Qing was puzzled because the Sentinel squad accompanying Yun Yan was armed to the teeth. It looked like they were out on an expedition, but that didn't seem right because nearly all of the Strangers around Anyang had perished in that battle.
A Sentinel answered his question, "Something strange has happened at Redstone Forest, and we're heading over to investigate it."
"Redstone Forest?" Ye Qing blinked. Was it a coincidence? He didn't think so!
1. chapter 69, when he calls himself the heavens' favored son and the heavens his dad ☜
2. gaming slang ☜
3. execution method used in ancient China that involved tying horses or chariots to the condemned's four limbs and neck and then violently pulling them apart by having the horses set off in different directions.
Chapter 100: Mountain of Riddles
"What happened? Did the Heptachromatic Fog of Aging come back?"
Last he heard, the Heptachromatic Fog of Aging had vanished a few days ago. Otherwise, he would have abandoned the idea of entering the Redstone Forest in a heartbeat!
"No, it's not that." Yun Yan shook her head. "It's a floating mountain!"
"A floating mountain? What kind of mountain is it?" Ye Qing asked curiously.
"We're not sure yet, but our scouts reported a mountain suddenly appearing above Redstone forest this morning. Everyone who got too close to the mountain would disappear without a trace!"
"That's… not good." Ye Qing frowned. The morning had just begun, and things were already escalating to unpalatable levels. "Can I come with you?"
Still, he must go. His Astral Refinement stage cultivation art almost certainly had something to do with this mountain.
Yun Yan smiled. "It would be an honor!"
Suddenly, a handsome man in white clothes walked over and asked, "Care to make the introductions, Sister Yun?" He carried himself casually, but not so casual that he would inflict disgust upon others.
Yun Yan said obediently, "Of course, Lord Xiao. This is my friend, Ye Qing. Ye Qing, this is Lord Xiao Yang, a Patrolman of Luo Shui!"
"Didn't I tell you to address me by name, Sister Yun? Lord Xiao sounds so distant!" Xiao Yang pretended to be sad for a second before breaking into a cheerful grin. "Of course, you may address me as 'Brother Xiao' or 'Brother Yang' as well if 'Xiao Yang' is too direct for you!"
Yun Yan smiled again but did not give him an answer.
Xiao Yang looked at Ye Qing and clasped his hands together in a respectful salute. "Hail, Brother Ye! I am Xiao Yang, and it's nice to meet you!"
Ye Qing returned the gesture, "Well met, Brother Xiao Yang. It's nice to meet you as well."
Xiao Yang moved closer to Ye Qing and patted him on the shoulder happily. "Hahaha! That's what I'm talking about! I've heard of your achievements, brother. Not only did you uncover a terrible conspiracy that would've destroyed Anyang, you're the one who came up with the plan to rout the invading Strangers and even slayed the Nether Lord himself! I only wish that I'm half the shit-bomb you are!"
What was left unsaid was that Ye Qing was the last person he wanted to face in all of Anyang. When he saw Ye Qing last night and realized who he was, he knew that it was going to be even harder to carry out his planned assassination than expected. Who would have thought that the gang boss of the Iron Shirt Gang was also the famous savior of Anyang and a rising star in the eyes of the Pacification Bureau? Killing him was hard enough, but he also had to find the right time and place to do it unless he wanted to deal with the aftermath. Troublesome! So troublesome!
Meanwhile, Ye Qing was trying to figure out if Xiao Yang was praising or insulting him. It didn't look like he was insulting him, but what kind of person would call someone a "shit-bomb" and mean it as a praise? Why couldn't he use something conventional like "star" or "warrior"?
In the end, he decided to go with a humble reply, "You flatter me!" I'm just a bit better than most people! That bit being the distance in which I can throw you!
"Hahaha! You're too humble, brother!" Xiao Yang continued to hug Ye Qing. "It is my honor to be able to make the acquaintance of a young hero like you!"
Ye Qing's eyes twinkled. "And I you, Brother Xiao Yang! You are one of the most interesting people I've ever met!"
He wasn't kidding. Very few people would treat a complete stranger in such a warm, friendly fashion on their first meeting, and such people could usually be broken down into two types. One, they possessed a heart of gold that could befriend even the surliest of people. Or two…
They were plotting something.
"I'm glad to hear that! You must let me treat you to a drink when we return from this trip, brother. When the time comes, we will not stop until we drop!" Xiao Yang guffawed. "Now, let us be on our way!"
...
"There's the mountain!"
Some mountains in the world were special, but not because they were particularly tall or big. It was because they possessed something unique that few other mountains possessed. The group passed through the Soundless Gorge—which wasn't silent anymore because the Soundless Bugs had been exterminated by an unknown do-gooder some days ago—and saw the mountain they were looking for immediately.
The mountain was neither tall nor big, but it floated quietly above Redstone Forest as if gravity wasn't a thing. Shrouded in thick, white clouds, it looked just like a celestial mountain of the legends.
They were still thirty meters away from Redstone Forest when Yun Yan raised her hand and halted their march. She said with a serious expression, "We must stop here. We will vanish like all the others if we continue further!"
The group observed the mountain for a bit before Xiao Yang asked Ye Qing quietly, "Did you notice anything, brother?"
"Yeah." Ye Qing nodded and rubbed his chin sagely. "It's definitely a mountain alright!"
"..." Anyone who isn't blind can see that!
Ye Qing ignored Xiao Yang and turned to Yun Yan. "Has any one of the missing people been spotted yet, Sister Yun?"
She shook her head. "No. We've searched every crook and nanny within ten kilometers of Redstone Forest, but nothing. We don't even know if they're still alive or not!"
"Say, do you think those missing people could be found on the mountain?" Xiao Yang ventured while rubbing his chin.
Ye Qing nodded in agreement. "Most likely!" If they couldn't be found anywhere in the area, then they must be on the mountain. His Astral Refinement stage cultivation art was most likely there as well.
Suddenly, the mysterious mountain shook, and the clouds stirred. Then, what looked like an invisible shockwave erupted from the mountain and traveled straight toward them!
"Watch out! Everybody spread out!" Ye Qing yelled after realizing that they were in trouble. He immediately grabbed Yun Yan and dashed away from the shockwave. Xiao Yang also let out a yelp and dissolved into a cloud of fog. He was moving even faster than Ye Qing was.
However, the shockwave was way faster than it had any right to be. It was almost like it was crossing through space and time itself. Before they knew it, the shockwave had washed over them, and everyone abruptly vanished like they never were.
"Where am I?"
When Ye Qing came to, he realized that he was at an unfamiliar place. He looked up and saw a mountain path made of white jade and glazed tiles leading all the way up to the peak. The path was surrounded by thick, rainbow fog that looked both mysterious and dangerous. From time to time, ancient seal scripts with wings would fly out of the fog and over the mountain path. He himself was standing at the base of the mountain.
He had a strong feeling he knew where he was.
He wasn't alone. Xiao Yang and the Sentinels were right beside him. However, Yun Yan, Kung Fu Frog and Faceless were nowhere to be seen.
"What is this place?" Xiao Yang asked.
Ye Qing replied slowly, "We're most likely on the floating mountain above Redstone Forest."
"What?" Everyone exchanged glances with each other. He could see a hint of panic in some of their eyes.
Suddenly, an urgent voice broke out, "Miss? Miss! Where did you go, miss?"
Ye Qing looked and saw Hu Nu walking around in the crowd and searching for Yun Yan frantically.
"Calm down, Hu Nu. Sister Yun isn't here, and that's probably a good thing!" Ye Qing went over to give him a comforting pat on his shoulder.
"Are you sure? Warrior Ye… The miss is going to be fine, right?" Hu Nu's eyes were bloodshot with worry and panic.
"It will be fine!" Ye Qing comforted him a while longer before looking around. "Right now, our first priority is to get out of this place!"
"Argh!"
Suddenly, a bloodcurdling scream interrupted his momentum. Ye Qing turned around and saw a Sentinel clutching his arm and rolling on the ground in abject pain. Everything beneath his elbow was completely gone, but not a drop of blood could be found on the ground.
Xiao Yang immediately went over and tapped a few points on the Sentinel's body to stop the pain. He then asked, "What happened?"
The Sentinel replied while looking as white as a sheet, "I… I was just trying to touch the fog beside the path, and then… and then my arm is just gone!"
Everyone subconsciously stepped away from the rainbow fog the second they heard this.
"You heard him, people! Do not touch the fog!" Xiao Yang ordered but realized that it was useless advice, so he added, "From now on, no one is to touch anything on this mountain without my express permission!"
"As you command!" The Sentinels responded.
It was at this moment an ancient seal script flew down from the mountain peak. Unlike the ones flying back and forth across the mountain path, this one was incredibly good-looking and agile. It also had a pair of ink-wash wings. Every time it flapped its wings, watery ripples and the scent of ink would permeate across the air.
"Watch out!" Ye Qing raised an arm and watched the unusual seal script warily. When it was about one meter away from them, it finally stopped in its tracks and said in a surprisingly childish voice, "Welcome to the Mountain of Riddles, challengers. All who enter the Mountain of Riddles must challenge the Path of Riddles, and only those who reached the top may leave this place."
"All challengers are required to know these rules. One, you can only ever go forward once you've stepped on the Path of Riddles. Two, the Path of Riddles is made of a hundred steps, and you can move forward a step only if you answer a riddle correctly. You will be punished if you answer incorrectly or refuse to answer, but you may also take a step after the punishment is complete."
"Three, the first line of a couplet will be announced once every incense stick. Everyone will have the opportunity to complete this couplet. Depending on the intent, rhyme, and structure of the complete couplet, additional steps may be awarded to the challenger."
"Four, challengers may not assist one another, or they will be punished. Five, all challengers who successfully reached the peak may request something reasonable from the Riddler. And six, Strangers and idiots are not welcomed in the Mountain of Riddles!"
Strangers and idiots aren't welcomed in the Mountain of Riddles?! Isn't that kinda racist? A strange expression flitted across Ye Qing's face when he heard this. Now I get why Faceless and Kung Fu Frog are missing!
"But wait, what about Wawa?" Ye Qing suddenly recalled the third Stranger he had brought with him on this expedition.
As if on cue, a cute, childish voice entered his ears. "I'm over here, friend. Oh wow! There's so many flying friends in this place! They're just like Wawa!" A small figure then crawled out of his hair and looked around curiously and happily. She was none other than Wawa, of course.
Something's not right. Wawa's a Stranger as well, but why isn't she kicked out of the Mountain of Riddles? Ye Qing frowned. Could it be…?
Wawa was a Book Sprite; a Stranger that was born from a book. Her true body was a book, and the book was inside his Nature's Shell right now. Perhaps that was why she was able to enter the Mountain of Riddles despite its rules.
This was great news because Wawa was a Book Sprite. As the essence of a land's literary fate and the master of countless books, she was exactly who you wanted to consult with when solving riddles. In fact, it was probably an insult to use Wawa on something as childish as this, but beggars couldn't be choosers.
Now he understood why the Annon Sutra had asked him to bring Wawa with him. With a living answer sheet like her, it was practically impossible for him to fail this test!
"Mountain of Riddles? We're in the Mountain of Riddles? No wonder!" Xiao Yang suddenly exclaimed. He looked like he could barely control his excitement.
"You've heard of the Mountain of Riddles, brother?" Ye Qing asked.
"Hahaha! It looks like today's our lucky day, brother!" Xiao Yang chirped, "The Mountain of Riddles is a famous Strange Realm that is usually mentioned in the same sentence as the Sea of Poems, Bridge of Art, Plains of Chess, Tower of Music, Sea of Couplets, City of Books and so on. Since the seven Strange Realms encompass the seven fields of art and literature, they're also unanimously known as the Seven Strange Realms of Literary Arts."
"Generally less dangerous than most other Strange Realms, the Seven Strange Realms of Literary Arts were considered the dream destinations of every scholar in the entire world. It's because the Strange Realms allow them to show off their skills and be rewarded for their accomplishments. It is also why they're regarded as the sanctuaries of all scholars."
A Strange Realm referred to any place or domain that possessed mysterious, supernatural qualities. They were similar to pocket worlds or blessed lands in that they were ripe with boons and opportunities, but also filled with untold anomalies and dangers.
"If this is a sanctuary for scholars, then why do you look so happy? Are you a scholar as well?" Ye Qing asked curiously.
Xiao Yang shook his head in disbelief. "That's not the point! The point is that this Strange Realm is safe! Do you understand what I'm saying? It's safe! Short of committing suicide, we're most likely going to leave this place alive!"
He was so agitated he went so far as to define the obvious.
"Say, this is the first time you enter a Strange Realm, right? Aren't you nervous at all?" Xiao Yang asked puzzledly after noticing that Ye Qing was completely relaxed. Most people would be shivering in fright when they entered a Strange Realm for the first time in their life, not to mention that they had been dragged into this against their will. Ye Qing, on the other hand, looked like an old hand who had been through all this.
"That's a strange question. You're the one who said this Strange Realm isn't dangerous!" Ye Qing raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "I'm also a scholar, so solving riddles and completing couplets are easy peasy for me. Just watch if you don't believe me!"
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