Ch27 - The past

Xie Zhiwei was somewhat dissatisfied as he sighed. “Didn’t I tell you to hide?” Tired. Can’t I finish my big scene first?

Ming Kong tore the paper in his hand to pieces while staring at Mu He. “You favor Nie Ting too much. What does his death have to do with Lanxiu? Lanxiu was the one who shoved him off the cliff back then. He didn’t even blink.”

Malice shone in his eyes beneath the moonlight.

“Shizun…” Mu He shrunk in fear to hide behind Xie Zhiwei.

Keep pretending, hero. Who knows what you’re plotting. Xie Zhiwei played along and patted his head while peering at the gazebo. “Was he like this when he killed Sect Leader Nie?”

Ming Kong laughed and tossed the fragments of paper at his feet, looking quite smug. It was more or less a tacit confession.

“What methods did you use,” Xie Zhiwei asked, “to turn a living being into a walking corpse?”

“Nonsense,” Ming Kong denied despite the momentary flicker in his eyes. “How is he a walking corpse? He can eat, sleep, and even knows how to please me! What difference is there between his movements now and the past? Who on Ashen Cloud Mountain ever noticed anything wrong in the past few years?”

Xie Zhiwei only pitied him and shook his head. “You used Sect Leader Shen to eliminate all the skeptical disciples, didn’t you? Sect Leader Shen spends long periods of time in seclusion and rarely shows himself in public. He can’t even touch his most proficient skills in qin-playing and calligraphy anymore. A pity for one so talented…”

“A pity?” Ming Kong murmured, then raised his voice. “Who are you to pity him?!” He calmed his breathing and lightened his tone. “Lanxiu, come here.”

Like a puppet, Shen You walked out of the gazebo at those words. Seizing his chance, Xie Zhiwei asked, “The black wolf who ran rampant the night before last—was that also the work of Elder Ming Kong?”

Ming Kong was staring fixedly at Shen You’s figure and didn’t look back. “Xie zhenren is indeed smart to guess so quickly. I was merely testing your disciple to see if he was truly wimpy. Indeed, he’s the same inside and out.”

Bro, you’ll regret that. Xie Zhiwei put on a show of pain. “You can manipulate people’s hearts as easily as turning your palm, to say nothing of a wolf. I don’t know what Elder Ming Kong was planning by inviting all these guests here?”

Shen You had already stopped by Ming Kong’s side. The latter raised his hand and carefully touched the corner of Shen You’s mouth, gently wiping it clean in contrast to his rough actions in the gazebo. “I wasn’t lying when I said those words earlier,” he murmured.

“What words?” Xie Zhiwei asked while subconsciously staring at his toes again. That was because after Ming Kong wiped Shen You’s lips, he had given them a light peck, then started caressing the corners of the man’s eyes and eyebrows. His expression had already gone beyond the bounds of lovestruck into lunacy.

And Shen You never responded from beginning to end. He didn’t even blink.

Xie Zhiwei had no heart to watch. Dammit, Shen You’s fate is too bitter. Ming Kong turned him half dead but he still has to suffer this kind of humiliation. If that was me, I’d fight to the death! A pure man would rather die than live through the insult of XXX!

Ming Kong said slowly, “I am indeed almost dead, but I truly want to do one thing for Lanxiu before I’m gone. Does Xie zhenren understand my obsession?”

Xie Zhiwei continued to stare at his feet. “If such obsession is only possible through hurting others, then this surnamed Xie would rather not understand.”

“Well spoken,” Ming Kong’s lips curved into a mocking lilt. “You people who claim to be high-minded and pure indeed disdain to be with the likes of me. But that’s fine. You’re not Lanxiu, so I don’t need you to understand me.” For him, people’s deaths were inconsequential unless it related to him or Shen You.

Looks like he’s blackened to the point of no return. He even stole the hero’s schtick? And style?

Speaking of which, is the guy cowering behind me even on the right movie set?

Xie Zhiwei was contemplating all this when Mu He stepped forward from behind him. “But what if there was someone who understood you?” he asked.

Oh, the hero just stole the scene. Is he gonna make a big move? Xie Zhiwei got a bit excited. Although he was completely uninterested in the current plot, the hero’s parts were always stallion novel scenes!

Black qi emanated from Mu He’s body before condensing into a floating lotus above his forehead. Although his eyes were hooded, Xie Zhiwei still felt like he was trapped in the teen’s gaze. He stepped aside to shake off the feeling, only to catch Ming Kong’s puzzled features as he paced back and forth. “Xie zhenren, what is this technique of your disciple’s?”

“This surnamed Xie is curious to know too,” Xie Zhiwei played ignorant.

The original novel only mentioned that after the protagonist combined with Black Lotus, he cultivated the world’s foremost mental strength. Not only could he block out all external influences in his own mind, but also influence the subconscious of others, such as manipulating their dreams. This was how he originally tortured Bai Jianzhu.

Simply terrifying. Xie Zhiwei had only glanced at Mu He briefly before feeling he was being watched from all sides and bombarded with all sorts of emotions. It was impossible to hide from the scrutiny; in fact, one would even be compelled to magnify a specific emotion they felt deeply. Now he had to focus to avoid direct eye contact even though Mu He was just targeting Ming Kong.

Ming Kong looked back and forth for awhile before hastily lowering his head to bury his face in Shen You’s neck. “No, don’t look at me…don’t look! Lanxiu is mine, forever mine!”

He shrank back, hands pressed so hard against Shen You’s shoulders that they left nail marks on the exposed flesh. Xie Zhiwei didn’t know what was making him feel so self-conscious, but he rather pitied the man. Of course, the spiritless Shen You was even more pitiful.

Mu He didn’t stop walking until he was in front of Ming Kong. “It’s only a bit, but you already can’t stand it? How else will people understand your inner heart?”

He spoke sincerely and politely, as if this was all out of concern for the other party. But the deeper meaning in his words were completely different. Looking moralistic while acting venomous: a preview of his future persona had shown itself today.

Xie Zhiwei finally felt like he was in the original novel again.

And then his vision went black.

He thought he was blinded, but the scene before him brightened in the next instant, leaving him confused. The full moon overhead had turned into the noonday sun, while the orchid-lined Peihua Manor had transformed into a busy marketplace. A vendor carrying a bundle of candied hawthorn sticks squeezed through the crowd while peddling his wares and asking others to make way. He stepped in front of Xie Zhiwei before the latter could react, then walked right through him.

“Huh?”

Xie Zhiwei stilled. Next, more pedestrians walked through him until he saw in a flash the young beggar curled up at the corner of a wall. He was absolutely filthy from head to toe, body huddled into a ball from hunger or other reasons. A broken bowl was in his hands, looking humble and inconspicuous. When someone bumped into him and still cursed him for not watching the road, he carefully bowed his head without arguing.

If not for the iconic hawk nose and flash of resentment in those eyes, Xie Zhiwei wouldn’t have recognized this as the Ming Kong of the past. Now he understood the hero’s goal. And well, Nie Ting’s goal as well.

No wonder Ming Kong had looked so pained. The hero had not only burdened him with the weight of a thousand gazes, but invaded his mind and soul to read his memories. The specific method used was to condense one’s mental sense into the size of a needle, multiply it by hundreds of thousands, and force it into the target’s consciousness. Xie Zhiwei had never experienced it himself, but he felt it couldn’t be much different than being skinned alive and then rolled on a cutting board once—no, one hundred and eighty times.

And probably be more painful than that.

After Mu He invaded Ming Kong’s consciousness, he used the other’s spiritual power to form a memory world unique to him. Although it was only an illusion, it was also realistic enough to bring everyone within three feet into the same world. That was why Xie Zhiwei could see the scenes too.

Ming Kong was in a really sorry state in the past. Even ordinary townsfolk could bully him like a mutt. As Xie Zhiwei guessed from his observations, Ming Kong was not a broadminded man. It couldn’t be easy for him to tolerate such abuse. The man kicked Ming Kong’s begging bowl into the air until it smashed into the wall and shattered to pieces. Still, Ming Kong only remained with his head bowed, though the hands in his sleeves were already shaking.

“Stop.” A voice called from the side. Though the tone was cool and light, it had a very clear tone that swept through the noisy marketplace like a chilly breeze.

This brother has a good voice. He just needs above-average looks and he can make it in the live-action industry.

Xie Zhiwei turned to look and then couldn’t move his eyes away. The figure was wearing a nondescript green robe and holding a folding fan in one hand. Although he was expressionless, his eyes were clear enough to speak.

“Motherf**ker, who are you?!” the man cursed.

“Shen You,” the figure replied.

Tsk tsk, no wonder Ming Kong can’t forget about him. He makes an ordinary green robe look like some jade tree swaying in the breeze. You could pick him out in a crowd. Even that auntie with a vegetable basket’s staring at him every few steps.

This self-contained idol aura combined with soft lighting effects to highlight his cold, aloof image made him a natural-born poser. While Xie Zhiwei was still immersed in his praise, Ming Kong had long started gaping. His fists relaxed while he stared.

This town was far away from Ashen Cloud Mountain, so the man had never heard of Shen You. He glared back and snapped, “Who cares what kind of Shen you are, get lost. Careful I don’t knock your teeth out and make you scrabble for ’em.”

Then he gave a wretched howl and covered his mouth before crouching on the ground. Xie Zhiwei clearly saw Shen You’s fan fly out of his hands to slap the man on the cheek. As the man grunted in pain, he spat out a mouthful of spit and blood along with a few white teeth.

“My teeth…” he trembled and reached to pick them up, but Shen You’s finger moved again. This time, the fan fanned the pile of sandy soil next to the man, forcing him to dig through the dirt before he found his chompers.

The bystanders all watched and laughed. “Hahaha, now that’s what we call scrabbling for your teeth!”

Shen You’s expression turned sly, if only for a second. But it was still a hundred times more lively than the man that Xie Zhiwei saw today.

Afterwards, Shen You stepped in front of Ming Kong and peered down at him. Ming Kong was staring back as well, seemingly lost in a daydream and looking very foolish.

Until a fair white hand placed an equally white ingot of silver before him.

“Take this and buy something to eat,” Shen You said.