Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.
In which Ye You asks some questions.
<hr>
Previous | Table of Contents | Next
The night deepened yet again.
With the fourth period of the night[1], the air was gradually turning cold, feeling as if it could thread itself under the skin and penetrate straight into the heart.
The autumn insects were startled by the sound of footsteps, and the tireless chirping of the birds stopped; the mountain forest rapidly turned quiet, a blanket of deathly stillness.
The flute player ran forward, pale-faced, fearfully looking left and right, like a bird that had been startled by the twang of a bow, looking as if a blood-sucking beast would suddenly jump out from the dark of the night.
A few subordinates were following him, and all of their expressions were panicked.
After an unknown amount of time, the flute player stumbled and had to support himself with a nearby tree. Feeling as if his insides were churning, he opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.
The subordinates were startled, and they hastily encircled him.
With the worsening of internal injuries, the flute player no longer had any color to his face, looking exactly like a ghost when reflected underneath the frigid moonlight. He felt as if he could hear the push and pull of his chest as he breathed, and sluggishly, he asked in a hoarse voice, âIs there anyone chasing?â
The subordinates looked behind themselves in alarm before saying, âNo one.â
The flute playerâs tense nerves eased slightly, and he collapsed, supported back up by the hand of a subordinate.
He muttered in a low voice, âI donât understand. Why would he so easily let us go?â
The subordinate also thought that they had escaped from a lionâs den today, and the cold sweat on his forehead had yet to dry. He said, âSect Master Yeâs heart is difficult to fathom. Maybe⊠maybe heâs in a good mood?â
The flute player didnât bother to comment. Remembering the situation just now, he felt some lingering fear. âThey all said that Sect Master Yeâs martial arts were deep and immeasurable, and it turned out to be true.â
The subordinate said, âThen the matter todayâŠâ
The flute player said, âWeâll tell the truth when we return.â
Supporting himself with the tree, he stood up, wanting to continue walking, but it seemed that this one small move had exhausted all his strength. His vision wavered, and he fell straight over, sinking deeply and thoroughly unconscious.
At this time, the place where Ghost Gentlemanâs party had just stopped had long become void of people.
After Ye You had beaten Ghost Gentleman to ruin, he had sealed the acupoints of both this person and the Mr. Xiao who clearly wished to flee, before then sending away the rest.
He called for his subordinates to take these two people away, and then brought them unhurriedly into the forest. He walked for a long while before he saw a place that seemed pleasing enough to the eyes and indicated for his subordinates to throw the people down here and then go guard the surroundings, telling them to notify him immediately if they saw any movements whatsoever.
Those subordinates said a word of understood before noiselessly flitting into the forest.
The surroundings fell into stillness, and Ye You looked at the two people on the ground. âThis lord has a few things he wishes to ask you two.â
Mr. Xiao didnât utter a word.
While Ghost Gentleman was very afraid, he had always scorned all of Jianghu and so didnât want to admit to his terror so easily. Thus, he sneered, âWhat if I refuse to talk?â
Ye You said, âIf it was the one next to you, then this lord wouldâve simply killed the moment he was unhappy, but you⊠This lord heard that, during that year you were traversing Jianghu, you had caused an entire crowd of people to be so muddled that they became confused and disoriented, so much so that it was a matter of life and death?â
Ghost Gentleman stiffened slightly, âWhat are you saying?â
âIâm saying that itâd be a pity to kill you,â Ye You said, laughing, âThis lord has always cherished talent. Rather than killing you, itâd be better to destroy your martial skill, cut the tendons in your arms and legs, tidy you up a little, and then sell you for some good money.â
Ghost Gentleman felt as if all the blood was rushing to his head, and he almost spat blood again. âStop trying to scare me!â
âWhere do you get the confidence that this lord is simply trying to scare you?â The corners of Ye Youâs mouth lifted, and his mask was dyed a shadowy silver by the moonlight, the wicked air increasing. âWhy doesnât this lord just destroy your martial skill right now. If you want to live a bit easier in the following half of your life, then you should honestly answer my next questions. If you donât want to, then just forget it. This lordâs heart is benevolent and so wonât force you.â
Ghost Gentleman saw him take a step in this direction as he spoke, and the manâs expression changed. ââŠWait a moment!â
Ye You looked at him with narrowed eyes, his expression difficult to fathom.
Ghost Gentleman was scared stiff by the otherâs stare, feeling as if a wave of cold air was crawling up his spine, all the way up to his head. He had a mind to say âstop messing aroundâ or to ask the other âwhat exactly do you want to doâ, but he felt again that this person was much too frightening. If he ended up saying something thatâd provoke the other into anger, then he might truly be completely ruined.
He didnât dare to speak so carelessly any longer and vigilantly looked at the person in front of him, internally thinking that no wonder everyone in Jianghu all fear this person.
Only when Ye You saw this did he finally speak, his voice still carrying the sliver of a smile as he lectured, âYou shouldâve shut up a long time ago. Learn from this Mr. Xiao, look at how able he is at judging the situation. This kind of person usually manages to live a bit longer.â
Ghost Gentleman had placed his entire attention onto the other party and completely didnât have the time to think about these words in any depth. It was only when he saw that the other didnât seem to have any intentions to make a move that he somewhat composed himself and, immediately following, started feeling that something wasnât right. How did this person know that this was Mr. Xiao? And he had also especially captured Mr. Xiao, as if he had known from the beginning that Mr. Xiao was useful.
He quickly thought of Xie Junmingâs moments of rudely inserted jests tonight and then thought of the fact that their plan had already been seen through. His breathing tightened â this person hadnât just bumped into them incidentally and this wasnât a newly arisen interest; he had come specially to stop them!
Could the Demonic Sect, Wuwang Temple, and Shuangji Sect have joined hands?
His expression changed multiple times, and upon meeting this personâs gaze, he asked, with difficulty, âWhat do you want to know?â
Ye You said, âFirst question, where is your miracle doctor right now?â
Ghost Gentleman said, âI donât know.â
Ye You said, âThis lord isnât too happy.â
Although his tone hadnât changed much, Ghost Gentleman still felt his heart tighten, and he hastily said, âI really donât know.â
Ye You said, âYes, and this lord was simply telling you that I wasnât too happy, thatâs it.â
Ghost Gentleman didnât know if what he said was true or not, simply hearing him add on the words, beaming from ear to ear, âBut if you let this lord feel unhappy a few more times, Iâll end up feeling very dissatisfied with you.â
Ghost Gentleman said ââŠWhat else do you want to know?â
Ye You said, âI want to know where you usually stay.â
Ghost Gentleman said, âJust at that villa that the righteous faction discovered a while back. I just happened not to be there that day.â
Ye You said, âOther than you and Blood-sucking Ghost, who else lived there?â
Ghost Gentleman fell silent.
Ye You said, âThatâs right, does Blood-sucking Ghost have a child?â
Ghost Gentlemanâs heart trembled, and he was startled enough to blurt out, âHow did you know?â
âThis lord knows quite a lot, or else did you think that this lord is participating in this matter only for fun?â Ye You unhurriedly said, âDemonic Medicine King[2], the Three Demons of Evil Island[3], Madam Chen[4], the Fan familyâs two lunatics⊠Of these people, whom have you met?â
Ye You said, âItâs best if you stop making this lord unhappy.â
Ghost Gentleman looked at him, somewhat unable to parse how much he knew exactly, but after struggling for a while, gave in and said, âIâve met Madam Chen but not Demonic Medicine King. Of the Three Demons of Evil Island, Iâve met only the youngest of the three. Iâve heard of the Fan familyâs two lunatics, but Iâve never met them. Itâs said that theyâre already long dead.â
âYes, those two from the Fan family arenât easy to control. This lord also thought that it wasnât very possible that they were involved,â Ye You said, in conjecture, âBut I wouldnât go as far as to say that theyâre dead. Itâs possible that theyâll be made into drugged people.â
Ghost Gentleman asked, âHow exactly did you learn that Blood-sucking Ghost had a son?â
Ye You said, âOh, so it turned out to be a son.â
ââŠâ Ghost Gentleman said, âDidnât you know already?â
Ye You said, âI didnât, this lord was completely guessing. This lord only felt that the possibility of a son was high but didnât think that it was actually true.â
Ghost Gentlemanâs expression distorted, carrying the appearance as if he wanted to curse at the person yet stiffly holding himself back. He forced his tone to remain normal and asked, âHow did you guess?â
Ye You said, smiling, âRight now is it this lord asking you questions or are you asking this lord questions?â
ââŠâ Ghost Gentleman sullenly shut his mouth.
In Jianghu, he had been the outstanding and infamous Ghost Gentleman, and now he had actually fallen to this level. Even if others heard this tale, no one would be likely to believe it.
Ye You said, âWhere does your master usually hide his troops of drugged people?â
Ghost Gentleman said, âI donât know.â
Ye You stared at him.
Ghost Gentleman added, ââŠI just know that there should be water nearby, because Iâve seen fish scales on their bodies before on many occasions.â
Ye You pondered this for a moment before saying, âAh, itâs at Wanping Weir[5].â
The moment these words were spoken, while Ghost Gentleman didnât react, the Mr. Xiao next to him stiffened. Ye You had originally been speaking for Mr. Xiao to hear and now he gave the person a look, feeling satisfied in his heart. He said, âLast question, do you two know where that monster from twenty years ago is now?â
Ghost Gentleman and Mr. Xiaoâs expressions changed almost simultaneously. ââ-What?â
Ye You looked at them and said, âItâs nothing. Looks like you two donât know.â
Even though he had just been warned, Ghost Gentleman was still unable to endure it and asked, âWho exactly are you?â
Ye You said, baffled, âYou and this lord have exchanged so many words, yet could it be that you donât know that this lord is the Demonic Sectâs Sect Master?â
ââŠâ Ghost Gentleman said, âOf course I know this.â
Ye You said, âThen why are you still asking? Do you want to make this lord unhappy and then have me cut some things off from your body?â
Ghost Gentleman, ââŠâ
Was this a threat?
Ye You didnât care to look at the otherâs expression and simply gave his subordinates an order, telling them to take away Ghost Gentleman. He also told them that Ghost Gentleman was already reliant on the Demonic Sect, so in the future, this person would be a Demonic Sect Elder and so needs to be shown some hospitality, including having these wounds treated.
Ghost Gentleman had completely not imagined that this person wouldâve let him go and, even further, given him the position of Elder, so he was immediately shocked. Having a clear view of things, he didnât speak, simply following them away.
The forest once again turned quiet.
Ye You restrained his superior and imposing manner for a moment, returning to that tender and easygoing youth, with even his tone missing most of its sharpness. He politely asked, âMr. Xiao, you arenât injured, are you?â
Seeing this transformation, Mr. Xiao felt his hair standing on end.
Even while locked in Shaolin, he hadnât been very afraid, but right now, alone with this person, he felt as if all the blood in his body was about to freeze.
âWhy arenât you speaking, Mr. Xiao?â Ye You looked at him. âYou still think itâs me who kidnapped Fuping?â
Mr. Xiao said, in a hoarse voice, âI donât understand Sect Master Yeâs meaning.â
Ye You let out a laugh and stopped suppressing his natural instincts. He said, âIâve always liked clever people. Before, you already clearly saw through my identity, yet you sensibly didnât make a fuss about it so that I wouldnât come and eliminate you. That quality is a good one. But right now thereâs only the two of us here. If you continue acting confused while clearly knowing the truth, then youâre really being somewhat foolish.â
Mr. Xiao internally sucked in a breath and hoarsely asked, âWhat do you want to do?â
âNothing much,â Ye You said, âI just want to ask you if youâve seen the Alliance Leader tonight?â
Mr. Xiao trembled.
Ye You said, âBefore, when I said that Fuping might have been using you as a throwaway piece, there was something wrong with your expression. Let me try guessing. Youâre actually the Alliance Leaderâs man, responsible for sending him information, and you also know that he has allies. So with Sir Zhong kidnapped, and Fuping missing, you then thought that they had been taken care of by the Alliance Leaderâs allies. Is that right?â
Mr. Xiao said, âIs Fuping really missing?â
Ye You said, âRegardless, he isnât in my hands.â
Mr. Xiao said, âThen what did you do to the Alliance Leader?â
âWith that many people at Shaolin, what exactly could I do with him?â Ye You said, âHe slipped away by himself at night. Iâm guessing that heâs afraid that the white piece will make him bear the blame. You probably donât know, but the assassins whom the white piece sent tonight to kill Lady Tao were the Alliance Leaderâs men. The reason goes without saying.â
Mr. Xiaoâs face immediately turned ashen.
Â
At this time, Wenren Heng had already entered the forest.
He knew what his Junior Brother wanted to do, but he wasnât clear on the otherâs exact position, which was why he had pulled along the Demonic Sect Elders. After all, Elder Hei was in charge of the Demonic Sectâs shadow guards, so itâd be extremely easy to contact those subordinates.
He asked, âStill not there?â
âItâs still further in.â Elder Hei gave him a look and hesitantly said, âThen why⊠cough, then why did youâŠâ
Wenren Heng said, smiling, âWhy did I what?â
Elder Hei said, âNo, itâs nothing.â
He and Elder Miao looked at each other for a moment, both thinking that the matter of âWenren Heng being disciple-brothers with the Sect Masterâ was unbelievable, but they couldnât completely deny it. The questions that Wenren Heng had just asked also seemed to hit the nail on the head.
For instance, the Sect Master and Wenren Hengâs relationship hadnât been good, but when designing this plan, the Sect Master had felt at ease leaving his amnesiac self with Wenren Heng. Why was that?
And, in another instance, with the Sect Masterâs temperament, once he regained his memories, if he truly didnât want to sleep in the same room with someone he hated, heâd definitely be able to think of hundreds of thousands of ways out, so why would he continue to live together?
And, and, in yet another instance, the Sect Master wanted to do something big, and it was definitely because he had some grudge against someone. He had also clearly said that he used to be involved in the Central Plainsâ martial arts circle, and his age was also similar to Wenren Hengâs, so perhaps these two had truly grown up together.
Wenren Heng looked at them. âYou two still donât believe it?â
Those two Elders said, ââŠNo.â
Wenren Heng said, âIf you still donât believe it, then in a while, you can just ask your Sect Master.â
Elder Miao said a, âYes,â and after a while, couldnât help but say, âWenren⊠cough, Sect Master Wenren, tell us the truth, do you have some other intentions towards our Sect Master?â
Wenren Heng said, âAh, thisâŠâ
Those two Elders immediately stared at him, unblinking.
Wenren Heng smiled. âI wonât tell you two. If you want to know, ask your Sect Master.â
Those two Elders, ââŠâ
If we hadnât acknowledged the possibility that you were the Sect Masterâs Senior Brother, then weâd have long given you a beating!
The group walked for a while before Elder Hei finally saw his subordinates.
At this time, the Demonic Sect was currently digging a pit in order to bury Ghost Gentleman. Elder Hei looked at the corpse on the ground and said, âThe Sect Master let you kill him?â
The subordinates confirmed with, âSect Master said that he was an Elder from now on.â
Elder Hei and Elder Miao then understood.
Wenren Heng didnât understand and gave them a look.
Those two Elders said in retaliation, âNot telling you.â
Wenren Heng said, smiling, âDid I ask?â
ââŠâ The two didnât want to pay him any attention and, after asking for the Sect Masterâs position, ran over to find the Sect Master instead.
Wenren Heng slowly followed behind them before suddenly hearing a crisp snapping sound, and he couldnât help but lift his head.
In the forest, a short distance away, he saw a person in black robes loosen his hold on Mr. Xiaoâs neck before then lazily throwing away the corpse, straightening up, and looking towards them.
With the moonlight shining down on that mask, his entire person seemed to carry a mysterious and dangerous flavor, making people desire to get close, yet at the same time, too overwhelmed to approach, as if he was seated on high, untouchable.
The scarred man saw this clearly, and his heart trembled.
That Demonic Sectâs Sect Master truly had returned. Hopefully, his Sect Master and that person really were disciple-brothers.
Ye You saw his Senior Brother narrowing his eyes to stare at him, gaze even carrying a certain amount of heat, and he lifted up the corners of his mouth, lengthening out his words, âSect Master Wenren, itâs been a long time. I trust youâve been well?â
Those two Elders took a moment to react before collectively turning to glare at Wenren Heng.
You scoundrel! You see the Sect Master completely isnât familiar with you! And you actually dare to trick us!
Wenren Heng, ââŠâ
Previous | Table of Contents | Next
<hr>
The author has something to say:
Speaking of, a lot of people have been asking what Elder Hei looks like. Please refer to chapter 35 for that.
Another thing, the Elders arenât necessarily old, ah, so why do all of you keep imagining them as old people LOLOLOL
As someone who puts a lot of stock in appearances, Iâll very responsibly tell all of you that the Demonic Sect Elders are all very young, and theyâre all very beautiful!
<hr>
[1] 1-3am.
[2] éȘè„ç The éȘ here is the character in éȘ掟 (âdemonic factionâ), though it can also mean evil/sinister and all that jazz.
[3] æĄćł¶äžé Translated quite literally. I have no idea if Evil Island is a real place or not, but this is an even more chuuni name than Wuwang Temple, Iâll give you that. (I was just going to pinyin it, but æĄ is just âeâ in pinyin, soâŠ)
[4] 楔ćšć The 楔 here means âdust, dirt, ash,â etc. ćšć is an old-timey way to refer to oneâs wife.
[5] æèć ° Night + duckweed + weir. If I had to translate this, Iâd have no idea what to translate it to. Anyway, in case you didnât know (I sure didnât), a weir is a low dam to control water levels apparently.
<hr>
An authorâs note! Iâve been skipping them mostly because the author actually doesnât write much of them, and when she does, theyâre usually time specific. (e.g. âNext chapter will be early because Iâm going to the beach later,â or âIâm sick right now so I need to take a break,â etc.) But this one was a semi-relevant one, so I translated it.
Also, those titles Ye You threw out halfway in this⊠Why do you do this to me, authorâŠ
Double update today, since the first half of the next chapter is really funny. Expect the next chapter up⊠soonish.