Finale (Part 21)
Watching the holy façade fade and trail of blood form in the air, Yi Ya felt oddly disappointed. Deep down, a part of him yearned for the fantasy he saw prior, which starkly contradicted the reality that the arrow restored. He inhaled as if the scent of blood in the air could fill his sense of emptiness. On inhale, he saw snow and warriors, heard horse hooves and smelt the blood of his fellow brethren. Upon spinning around, though, they were encased in ice. The sensations returned his true character to him, returning him to reality.
It eventually occurred to Yi Ya that the surge of emotions was due to the effects of Lotus Every Step. The surprising part was that he only got caught for a second, and Liaoliao performed it in an unhealthy state. He theorised that Liaoliao did not kill the erstwhile leader of Confucianism through shrewdness alone but also thanks to Lotus Every Step. After all, it had the ability to veil whatever took place in battle from view to everyone but himself and the target. Considering that ability, Liaoliao could have performed an assassination in the imperial palace without alerting Emperor’s Entourage. Had he not conceitedly insisted on assassinating His Majesty himself and cooperated with the best assassins instead, then His Majesty could have very well perished inside the imperial palace walls.
The defeated monk struggled to his feet. The bloodarrow had crushed everything he had, including his last hope. He witnessed its danger when Blood Demon’s group used it at Lawless Cliff. Although they used it against a group instead of a single target, the results were devasting. When he saw it in action, he knew that nobody could stop the weapon of mass destruction on their own. Expecting to recover from taking a shot from it was believing one could defy nature. He was no longer qualified to compete for supremacy in the martial world. He was too hurt to run; he could only face reality head on. Despite being a master at conjuring illusions, he could not conjure a speckle of hope for himself anymore.
Even though it was summer, stepping out from the water in the middle of the night was still freezing. Had he fallen unconscious before he could make it to the bank, then the current would have swept him away to his grave, so he had to waddle his way to the bank.
In contrast, Yi Ya felt genuine admiration for the monk who was still able to move with an upright torso when he resembled a waterfall of blood. His warriors behind him could sense that the monk was still a threat to them. Liaoliao’s gaze was that of someone set on gnawing open Yi Ya’s throat. Yi Ya recognised the gaze: it was the gaze of cornered prey ready to put it all on the line in a last-ditch effort.
“You’re not the first to be so shocked. I remember everyone who has surrendered their lives to Fomalhaut. Their regret and unwillingness to accept defeat virtually shoots out from their eyes. We typically have new recruits watch it in action a few times so that they’re better prepared for the battlefield. At the very least, they’ll know what ‘enemies’ are.”
Liaoliao was not sure if he would see another sun rise, yet Yi Ya was still in perfect form, which was vexing for Liaoliao since he knew he was the better fighter and could have dominated Yi Ya if he had a little more time. However, his gaze was not fixed on Yi Ya but the weapon that could not be concealed even in the darkness.
“Huh, looks like you still have your fighting spirit. How about catching another arrow?” mocked Qian Diaojin, stepping out from behind the contraption.
Ye Yun’s trusted aide was not just proficient in qinggong, but he had a knack for operating machines, as well. Hence, he was entrusted with firing the bloodarrow. After Yi Ya wore Qian Diaojin’s patience dry over two months, being able to fire the shot was akin to finally getting the dose of a drug after being deprived for two months. Watching the shot land and seeing results was a dopamine hit unlike any other. If he could enjoy that sort of ecstasy every day, he would probably have been able to live for two centuries.
As Liaoliao knew they were on orders to bring him in alive, he did not believe they would fire a finish shot. Having said that, there was one thing he could not figure out.
“You…” uttered Liaoliao, in a breathy voice that was hard to even raise.
It was precisely because he caught wind of Fomalhaut entering Suzhou that Liaoliao was unperturbed Upon hearing news that the Qilin Guards might have been plotting something since they transported something from the north, Liaoliao had suspicions that it was possibly Fomalhaut among numerous other possibilities. While nobody knew the Qilin Guards had gotten their hands on the weapon, they absorbed the majority of Liu Shan Men and Divine Moon Cult’s resources following the battle at Lawless Cliff. Therefore, it was not inconceivable for them to have gotten their hands on the Fomalhaut that went missing at the foot of the mountain that year. The thing was, Fomalhaut should have been mobilised into Cold Mountain Temple. Had he not heard that somebody was mobilising a large contraption up the mountain, he would not have decided against fighting so decisively and shown his hare feet. Plus, he would not have gone all out and used Lotus Every Step to kill Yi Ya as the technique rendered him immobile whilst it was active.
In the face of a Divine Realm adept’s “Eclipse”, all weapons were as much of a threat as a fly was.
“It is an imitation that cannot hold a candle to the real deal. Perhaps not even the authentic version could hurt you so bad. We do beg your pardon, but we had no choice but to bring two along due to the time constraints.” Yi Ya’s tone made it clear that he was calling Liaoliao a fool. “This plan was only written in one letter. The letter specified the need to deploy two Fomalhauts from Jinyong, the direction of your escape and how you would respond. I came up with three more plans in case you came up with some new innovation, but you amazingly acting exactly as the letter detailed, wasting my preparations.”
Liaoliao’s mentor, who used to address him by his name Jiyi, advised him to lay down his calculative tendency take up Buddhism, but he was proud of it and considered it a virtue. In fact, he pushed it further and further until he became Venerable Monk Liaoliao. He was a man who had raided Fiends’ Genesis, sealed Shang Bieshi, assassinated Yu Sihe and fought the unexplainable monster called Tianhu. Despite the risks involved in all of those endeavours, his gambler-like decisiveness and self-confidence saved him. Of course, his desire to survive played a role, too. While he did fail in his attempt to defeat Tianhu, he did manage to escape with his life. He was successful in the other two endeavours, but he had preparations to escape in the scenario that he came up short. The only exception was when he led Cold Mountain Temple’s team in a battle against Blood Demon’s group at Lawless Cliff. That was his first time learning the taste of despair after he achieved mastery in martial arts.
In the tussle against Blood Demon’s forces, Liaoliao was fully prepared, had planted explosives along both neighbouring paths and formed a raid team. Blood Demon marched with haste to reinforce the main force, so there was no time to stop and engage in combat. To his bafflement, the unprepared force somehow set off the explosives along the two paths before the raid team could launch their ambush. Not only did the team equipped with never-before-seen armour walk through the explosions without taking damage, but they also weathered the surprise attack without losses. Had Liaoliao not cast Lotus Every Step to limit Blood Demon’s numbers, Cold Mountain Temple’s forces would have been wiped out in that skirmish. Blood Demon’s forces only numbered in the dozens, yet they seemed to have a natural resistance against Lotus Every Step, making it impossible to control or hinder them. The team attacked without regard for fear, pain or death, ruining all of Liaoliao’s arrangements. That was the first time he thought he was not going to make it.
The biggest challenge in combating Blood Demon’s forces were the endless array of weapons that Liaoliao had never seen before. They not only forced him to change his definition of what was classified as a weapon but also his understanding of the concept of “damage”. Every time a weapon was wielded, he lost a team member. If he had to personally confront one of them while he was casting Lotus Every Step, he would have been a goner. Before he knew it, Blood Demon had already safely reached the peak. Liaoliao was able to stop Blood Demon’s troops but was unable to stop Blood Demon. By the time Liaoliao made it to the apex, the battle had descended into one that he was not qualified to get involved with.
Subsequent to the end of the battle, he was unable to find any traces of Blood Demon or even confirm Blood Demon’s status. One of his lifetime wishes was to meet Blood Demon, to put a face to the creation of that indomitable force. If he had Blood Demon on his side, world conquest was not just a pipe dream.
“Why… would you use Blood Demon’s contraption? What… connections do you have… to Blood Demon?” questioned Liaoliao, unable to calm himself in spite of his frigid tone. His excessive blood loss left him on wobbly legs, but he needed an answer to his query, or he would have taken regret to his grave.
Divine Realm adepts should not have been in Liaoliao’s condition once they unlocked their Stillvoid ability, which could only mean that Fomalhaut was not operated using insentient machine parts alone. Fomalhaut was surrounded by countless hidden components – thirty-six blood-drawing contraptions, chemicals and unique converters that could perform what advanced internal exponents were unable to do over centuries, which was to convert life essence into a weapon. The colossal size of the arrows was just the weapon’s design. What enabled them to overwhelm Divine Realm and their recovery was power that turned the arrow into a weapon that was virtually unstoppable and unavoidable.
Liaoliao could not fathom what sort of research was conducted, how many experiments were conducted and what sort of mindset was necessary to design a weapon that was so deadly for both the user and target.
“In order to kill someone, one must make a sacrifice first.” – Blood Demon.
Before firing a bloodarrow, the “sacrifices” had to consume a certain drug and wear on a thorned-armour that stabbed into their acupoints. Then, they had to place their hands on either side of the contraption. Each shot required thirty-three people to act as sacrifices. Three of the thirty-six mechanisms on it were designed to be backup. As solid as the machine was, it was quite prone to taking damage while set on the battlefield. It took thirty-three lives to terminate hundreds of enemies and take down a city wall, which would mean the surrender of a city. The cost of lives was the reason that Fomalhaut could not be mass produced. Without the aid of skilled blacksmiths and professionals in voodoo arts – most importantly, lots of hardware from the authentic version – the replica could not have produced such a positive result.
Blood Demon’s industry fellows were not burdens. Blood Demon invented things purely in pursuit of efficiency. Since morals and ethics were never a concern, the majority of Blood Demon’s creations were very Blood-Demon-like. It was a stark contrast to Blade Demon’s tendency to go solo.
Zhuxing Wuchang – Wen Wudao – might have been an incredible swordsman, but he seldom killed outside of fighting for the cult’s sake. One might even have argued that it was Blade Demon and Blood Demon’s violence that created the wrong impression of him being some bloodthirsty murderer.
What stumped Liaoliao was the Qilin Guards’ willingness to sacrifice lives, which was basically what he did. Were they not a pot calling a kettle black?
“We dealt with a lot of work these last two months. We have enough death-row prisoners to fire three shots, but you won’t have the opportunity to see the two successive shots. If you obediently surrender, I can promise to leave your corpse intact. We have two officials from the Ministry of Justice here.”
The two officials sporting armour visibly a poor fit for them took ages to step out. The Ministry of Justice dispatched the two of them to Suzhou, and Yi Ya dragged them along for the mission tonight.
“I would assume you two heard them?”
The two officials exchanged eye contact and, on shaky legs behind the armoured Qilin Guards, responded, “We did and have recorded everything. Venerable Monk Liaoliao attempted to annihilate all the Qilin Guards present to abscond, which proves he was trying to silence those aware of his crimes. By the way, Commander Yi… w-was that a martial art discipline? That was freaky. This one has never seen such a scary appearance. He looks possessed.”
“Not only is his heart wicked, but even his crimes are scarier than being possessed. There is no need for you two to fear. For as long as Qilin Guards exist, no fiends will dare to challenge justice. Have you two committed everything to remember?”
The two officials nodded profusely.
“Great. Thank you for making the trip.”
Qilin Guards escorted the two officials away, while Yi Ya asked of Liaoliao, “Are you ready to make a trip?”
“Imp-…ossible…” Liaoliao was convinced the Qilin Guards were in communication with Blood Demon and still wanted to know about the latter’s whereabouts.
“Impossible is just a word. We spent an incredible amount of time to transport it. You are the first to take an arrow from it and still be so composed. Come with us now.”
Liaoliao finally gave in to his fatigue and sat on the ground. He was unable to control his bleeding with his qi, let alone speak or move. However, the lack of physical movement granted him the resources to be more mentally sound. Considering his achievement in martial arts, it was a given that his mental fortitude had far surpassed the average man’s. Having given up resistance, he was able to be closer to how he was in his carefree younger days. Once the tension of scheming against the imperial court was gone, his mind was clearer, allowing him to comprehend how he marched to his own downfall in the last two months.
Yi Ya’s overall strategy could be summed up as so: using reconciliation as a means of forcing combat. Like Wang Muren, the more he tried to maintain peace, the more bloodlust he oozed. The more peaceful it was, the scarier it was when he came for you. Liaoliao should have expected as much knowing that Wang Muren was a perfectionist.
Even if Liaoliao acted according to their predictions and was at a disadvantage, he still had a chance of triumph. First of all, he was not inferior to them as a fighter. Second of all, they had no grounds to attack him when he had yet to be stripped of his privileges. Neither the imperial court nor Yi Ya mentioned his deeds in the imperial palace that night. If they wanted to, they could have deployed an army and used his crimes as justification to apprehend him by force instead of waiting around for more than two months. In other words, Tianhu did not divulge what happened for one reason or another. For whatever reason, Liaoliao failed to realise that they had no evidence to do anything about him, yet he feared going to the capital.
Had Liaoliao not attacked Yi Ya, he would not have been incriminated. Even if Huang Yuzao confronted him in the capital, Huang Yuzao lacked convincing evidence to incriminate him for the murder of Yu Sihe. He would not have lost if he was confident and patient enough to bide his time until the circumstances were in his favour; the person in the imperial palace supporting him would have aided him, especially when he had so much dirt that he could blackmail her with that she had no idea. He had plenty of dirt on plenty of people in the capital. He, unfortunately, went and blew it all away with the first attack he mounted against Yi Ya.
Ever since Tianhu took away his martial arts, his Fiend Genesis and his pride, Liaoliao was just a rash fool who wanted to prove himself against Yi Ya through his usage of Enlightenment to dominate; he even suspected he could not beat Yi Ya without Lotus Every Step.
Yi Ya brought along the two officials to put the nail in Liaoliao’s figurative coffin. Even if Liaoliao tried to leverage his connections in the political arena, it was going to be virtually impossible for him to rise again. Even though Yi Ya portrayed himself as a strait-laced individual, it was evident that he was no less shrewd than his supposed childhood friend.
Suffice to say, Liaoliao was far from ready to accept his defeat. If he could have had another opportunity of any sort, he swore he would have used it well. He wanted to become the calculative Jiyi again. He wanted to become the eminence in the shadow whom could move the world as if it was his chess board again.
“You’re going to get a big prize this time,” praised Qian Diaojin.
Yi Ya did not know how to respond to the compliment. After all, it contradicted all the whinging and complaining Qian Diaojin initially indulged in. Plus, Qian Diaojin was notorious for trying to hoard all the glory when it was time to report in.
“Why the long face? Give me a smile. We’ve done the imperial court proud this time. You’ll be rewarded for sure.” Qian Diaojin draped his arm over Yi Ya’s shoulder.
Yi Ya finally relaxed – and even earnestly thought about it – as he gazed to the north and replied, “If possible, just let me return to Jinyong as soon as possible. My brothers await my return.”
“Okay, okay, national hero. You don’t need to attack my conscience every sentence, do you?”
The two were unaware that Liaoliao had covertly started moulding energy after he recovered somewhat during the interim. He tried to mobilise true qi using Unfettered Mental Cultivation, only to gasp blood. Not only were his organs damaged from him forcing himself beyond his physical limit, but he also took a direct hit from a bloodarrow. It was impossible for him to mobilise energy in the short time he had to recover.
“What’s going on here?” Qian Diaojin boldly sauntered over to Liaoliao and crouched down in front of him. “Don’t push yourself. You have to accept your age is catching up with you, but I admire you for having the guts to revolt at your old age. You’d be a punchline if you sacrificed your life at this point.”
Liaoliao shut his eyes and lowered his heads to ignore Qian Diaojin’s annoying voice. He believed he had a chance at escaping from if he could just recover 50% of his strength while Yi Ya and Qian Diaojin were not around, but a sudden jolt of pain in his shoulder prompted him to open his eyes. The burning sensation spread throughout his body as if thousands of arrows were being shot into his tendons. The feeling that death was inevitable crept up his spine.
“Empress Dowager Her Majesty sends you her greetings.”
Deathnails!
“Official Pigeon” was not just a nickname used to tease Qian Diaojin, but it was also praise for his qinggong prowess. Whether deliberately or not, Qian Diaojin did not oppose the nickname that was more popular than his “Soulsnatcher” nickname, which was given to him due to his notorious use of poison. Deathnails were Qian Diaojin’s signature hidden weapon that comprised of nails dipped in an imperceptible poison. The only ways to counteract the effects were through extremely advanced internal energy or consuming the antidote.
Under better conditions, it would have been less threatening to Liaoliao than an ant bite, but he was far from being in good form. Moreover, Qian Diaojin was a supervisor at the moment, so it would have been a simple matter for him to erase all traces of the poison.
The sudden loss of hope infuriated Liaoliao. Alas, he was powerless to resist.
“What are you doing?” questioned Yi Ya.
Qian Diaojin stood up and wore on a natural smile. “I was asking if he’s hungry and wanted something to eat, you know, chicken or something.”
By the time Qian Diaojin removed his hand from Liaoliao’s shoulder, the deathnail and the trace of blood on Liaoliao’s shoulder were gone, but the poison remained inside Liaoliao.
The laughter all around indicated that the tension had been reduced to virtually zero. Despite how perceptive he was, Yi Ya did not notice Qian Diaojin’s assassination, either. Although he knew Qian Diaojin did not ask something so trivial, he did not suspect foul play. Having said that, he did order, “Pass on my order: nobody is to feed him anything, especially meat.”
“Wow.” Qian Diaojin nested his head in the clasp of his hands overhead and curled his lips. “Why are you so nice to him? I bet he doesn’t even follow the teachings half the time. He probably indulges in all forms of meat and is not interested in my offers. He’s not going to be grateful, you know?”
“Do you think I’m playing right now? Do not feed him any nourishment. He’s a Divine Realm adept. As long as he’s still breathing, anything can happen. Are you going to be able to apprehend him if he recovers and absconds?” Given his extensive experience, Yi Ya learnt that Divine Realm adepts could reactivate their Enlightenment if they were nourished appropriately notwithstanding being on the brink of death. “I will take care of all his meals personally. Nobody else is to touch his food and drinks, understood?”
Qian Diaojin shrugged. “Well, have it your way.”
Though unaware of Qian Diaojin’s intentions, Yi Ya had a hunch that something was up. “Qian Diaojin…”
“Hahahaha, how the imperial court has fallen, resorting to that sort of shady tactic.”
“Who goes there?” Yi Ya snapped in response to the person with the sonorous voice mocking them.
The person in the forest was easily several kilometres away, yet the individual resembled a walking nightmare under the moonlight, contrasting the idyllic illusion that Lotus Every Step manifested. Yi Ya could not understand how a voice from kilometres away was audible to them. They went from a small black dot to suddenly an enlarged silhouette, while he felt stuck in a marsh. Once the individual actually emerged, it finally dawned on them that it was bloodlust that fossilised them. The iron mask he wore emanated every negative vibe possible. Perhaps they should have been glad they did not have to see the face behind the mask if the mask was already so menacing.
Yi Ya was first to respond, launching himself at the individual racing towards Liaoliao. He knew that none of them would have been able to see the next sunrise if the individual chose not to spare them.
As they passed by each other, Yi Ya caught a palm strike with his own, but he still went reeling up and away before plunging into the water. A number of Qilin Guards cried out as they rushed to their commander’s aid, with only a few remembering to remain in formation and their duties.
“The Qilin Guards’ God of Battle doesn’t impress,” derided the masked individual, with a snicker under his breath.
It did not occur to them how tall he was until he hooked his arm under Liaoliao’s armpit to pull up as he made Liaoliao resemble a child. His gait and the size of his arms left no room for doubt they he could obliterate them. Unlike them, he had no interest in them.
“Freeze!” Yi Ya leapt out of the water and back onto the bank before his allies could go to his aid. “Who are you?”
Yi Ya’s pale complexion was a sign of suffering an internal injury from the last exchange. He had never fought anyone who could catch him before he could even attempt evasion. As soon as he spoke, he covered his mouth, but blood still burst between the gaps in his fingers.
“Heh, killing Yi Ya doesn’t sound too entertaining. Don’t let me down.”
A moment subsequent to the individual sauntering towards Yi Ya, a clicking sound in the distance was audible.
The moment he saw Yi Ya get dumped into the water, Qian Diaojin decided it was necessary to resort to Fomalhaut and shoot a bloodarrow once Yi Ya distracted the masked individual.
When he heard the clicking of the machine, the masked individual looked over in its direction and smiled as he drew back his left arm and punched the incoming bloodarrow! The collision of the two forces blew Yi Ya off his feet – literally – and tore the sleeve off masked man’s arm that had smoke whisking from it. In spite of the impact, Liaoliao did not look as if he felt a thing whilst being held in the man’s right arm.
“… God damn, that thing was tough,” commented the masked individual. After a menacing look flitted across his eyes, he lowered his head and mumbled, “God damn it, do you have to hassle me now? Fine, fine, you’re the boss.” He swept his gaze over the people around and said, “Consider yourselves lucky.”
By the time they heard the last word, he was already zooming through the forest. As he listened to the sonorous laughter echoing, Yi Ya felt he was back at the northern frontier.
There was nothing but fear in the air for a long while.
“Report back to the capital… Hurry!” commanded Yi Ya, before gasping up another mouthful of blood and collapsing.
“Help your commander out! Did you all die or something? That freak might have spared you, but I still have my weapon, you idiots!” yelled Qian Diaojin.
As the Qilin Guards snapped out of it and busied themselves with helping their unconscious superior and so forth, everybody failed to notice Qian Diaojin sneak off.
Hiding behind a rock, Qian Diaojin also coughed up blood. Since he was the one who fired the second bloodarrow, he, too, absorbed some of the residue impact.
“Damn monster… If I don’t tell Commander Ye about him, I’m going to get cut…” Once he recovered, Qian Diaojin immediately made haste for the capital.
***
Liaoliao did not have the faintest clue who was carrying him and why. It could not have been Empress Dowager as the individual in question was unknown in the pugilistic world. He spoke haughtily just a moment ago to all the Qilin Guards, yet he was mute during the fast-paced journey.
When Liaoliao opened his eyes against the strong headwind to check, he concluded the mask was irremovable because he could smell blood and qi: the individual got injured punching the bloodarrow. The mumbling back there was just an excuse to retreat without giving away the fact that he was hurt.
If Liaoliao were to copy the man, he would have been bedridden for days, which meant that the individual was superior to him. Had they met prior to Liaoliao’s downfall, he would have done everything in his power to assassinate the individual, but he was grateful to have a strong ally now. After all, the worst place for him to have been at the moment was in the grips of someone from the imperial court. There was no need to be concerned about anyone telling them since the individual could have gone through an army barrack undetected during daytime with his speed.
The masked man threw Liaoliao to the ground on a deserted mountain as if he was dumping rubbish and then shook his hand out. He could not have had sore or tired arms considering his strength, so it was obvious that he just viewed Liaoliao as filth to his hands. He subsequently found himself a rock to sit on. As far as he was concerned, the thrill of fighting outweighed the drawbacks of being injured. As he checked out his damaged arm, he smirked at the moon and said to himself, “Interesting. Blood Demon, interesting, very flipping interesting.”
The fact that his internal injury was imperceivable already could only mean that his internal energy had been cultivated to an unimaginable level.
“Hey, what was that arrow? It looks like you know something.”
Liaoliao was too busy dealing with a thumping sensation in his chest cavity to answer until he felt an external energy source disperse the corruptive energy within, regranting him speech capabilities.
“I constantly healed you on the way. If you still can’t speak, I’m going to look bad. You want to have a go at me or something?”
Liaoliao did detect a foreign energy source exploring his acupoints to offer healing during the journey. Suffice to say, he did not stand on ceremony. While he was far from recovered, at least he was no longer bleeding profusely. The only reason he was not certain he was being healed was because it was extremely uncommon for someone to offer internal energy so readily unless they had an immense volume of it. Thus, Liaoliao suddenly realised that he was still underestimating the masked man. As he was the inferior man, he had no choice but to answer.
“It is a creation of Divine Moon Cult’s Blood Demon called Fomalhaut. This one is truly impressed you were able to stop it bare-handed.”
He spaced out for a bit before cracking a grin. “Where’s this Blood Demon?”
“This one does not know. Even if you did know, though, there is no guarantee you could do anything.”
“Heh, there are more skilled people by the day, and that’s what makes life interesting. Otherwise, you’d be dead already.”
Liaoliao kept thinking, but he could not think of anyone who had the physique of a young man and an old man’s voice.
“May this one ask…” Liaoliao cut himself off when he figured it was too risky to ask for the man’s purpose when he knew too little about the man.
The man wagged his hand. “It was our boss who wanted to rescue you. You’re replacing the member we lost. You’re qualified, so you’re in.”
The only thing Liaoliao got out of that response was that there was a group of people, and the leader was referred to as a “boss”, and they were looking for a substitute for their missing member.
“Let me make it clear right now that I don’t like you; you fight dirty. I once knew this guy who started throwing hands as soon as he said he was down to fight. I’ll have you kn-”
“Bitter Spring.”
The masked man tapped himself on the mouth. “Why did you have to come so soon?”
“You talking about me?”
“No, no, not you, Boss. I am talking about the clouds. It was night time before, and now… it is still night time.”
It just occurred to Liaoliao that there was a dark cave right by them. It was odd to him until he realised that the speaker from within did not have eyes.
The young speaker was wheeled out on his wheelchair. The young individual riddled with wounds and fatal ones ignored Liaoliao’s inability to control his emotions. “Hello.”
The only way Liaoliao could describe the oppressive feeling was as if the sky was falling down. Suddenly, a titanic evil eye spawned in the clouds.
“I’m Grand Demon. Welcome… new Cold Spring.”
***
When news of Suzhou’s situation reached the capital days later, it became the hottest topic in the imperial court. Officials offered up suggestions daily, while His Majesty viewed the matter with urgency, breaking his record of court meetings. Numerous officials decided to camp outside the court palace in case they had to return again after just climbing into bed.
Outside of the imperial court, Suzhou’s events also trended as the top topic. Suzhou had been considered the headquarters of Buddhism for a long time by this point. The orthodox sects had to seek the approval of the imperial court if they wanted a slice of the cake. Now that Cold Mountain Temple was fully under Buddhism’s jurisdiction, all sorts of power-hungry folks were out on the pry, though it was impossible to tell who had been camping and who made their move based on the news.
Due to how hotly it was discussed everywhere, the truth quickly came to light. Liaoliao’s crimes were publicised. Mianhua supposedly possessed the wisdom to see through his teacher’s nefarious nature to rectify the incorrect training he was taught and course corrected the tragedy Cold Mountain Temple was headed towards. Owing to His Majesty’s magnanimity as well as Mianhua owning up to following the wrong teacher, His Majesty passed down an edict that forbade everyone from giving Suzhou’s citizens any grief. It was the first time in Li Dynasty that Suzhou received so much prestige from the imperial court.
Both Yi Ya and his adjuncts, Zhan Qiu and Qian Diaojin, were rewarded for the achievements in Suzhou. Yi Ya was reassigned to Jinyong as per his wishes. Zhan Qiu was delegated a post in the capital – most likely for several months. Qian Diaojin was permitted to travel even as far as the Western Regions as a “pigeon” and was immediately tasked with delivering a letter to Nanjiang virtually right after returning to the capital. Despite not contributing in any shape or form, Long Zaitian was promoted to fifth rank official, but nobody paid him a visit to congratulate him or held a banquet since heaven knew how long it was before he was demoted again. After all, the cost of living was nothing to scoff at.
Plenty of other things, ranging from major to minor, happened, but not everybody could link everything together or grasp their significance. While it was difficult to predict how the status quo in the capital would change, there was a wind vane that could be used to make inferences.
His Majesty issued three edicts, all of which left everyone puzzling over the intentions behind them.
In the first edict, His Majesty granted Shen Kuang’s wish to let him choose which bureau to join. The first reason was put down to his magnanimity; the second motivation was due to every bureau needing more manpower, particularly talent of Shen Kuang’s calibre. Howbeit, Shen Kuang’s final decision had everyone stunned.
In his second edict, Cold Mountain Temple became the next most prestigious sect to support a Prince after Wudang and Shaolin. That meant that the imperial court strengthened their power considerably in one swoop. Mianhua was summoned to the capital to discuss the changes with His Majesty, including Mianhua’s promise to mentor a Prince. Without their status as a White Prince, that was the closest Cold Mountain Temple could be with the imperial court.
Regarding the special rights Cold Mountain Temple had to surrender, they needed to discuss further in person. Notwithstanding how decisive and prompt Luo Clan was, they were still negotiating the privileges they got to keep and had to forfeit.
Some argued that His Majesty was basically holding Mianhua hostage. Mayhap that was an unfounded accusation. Either way, Mianhua was unlikely going to be allowed to leave the capital until the details of the handover were finalised – if he was not going to be kept for five years.
The last edict was the most bizarre of all three.
***
Shen Yiren made haste for the imperial palace as a catastrophe would strike down her family if she was one step late. Never in her wildest imagination did she think that, after being granted the opportunity to choose any bureau of his choice and thoroughly thinking it over, her brother chose the Qilin Guards.
Stupid kid! Stupid kid! How much will he sacrifice before he gives up?!
Before the messenger His Majesty assigned to welcome her into the court room could greet her, Shen Yiren stormed straight in.
“Uncle, I have something urgent to consult you on!”
Why is Monk Mianhua already here?
Sitting there with Mianhua, His Majesty laughed and said, “Eminent Monk, this is my niece. I am sure you two have met before, but we were too pressed for time in Huzhou for you two to get to know each other.”
Mianhua smiled. “Indeed, Miss Shen’s impressive aura is still as memorable as ever.”
Mianhua’s unexpected early arrival compelled Shen Yiren to supress all the words she had waiting to convey.
“What’s the matter, Yiren? Why are you not greeting Eminent Monk Mianhua?”
“Ah, right, Eminent Monk, it is a pleasure to meet you.”
Shen Yiren was unsure how to greet the monk who was her senior and now on par with a preceptor of state.
Mianhua did not mind the fact that someone younger and lower in rank than him was eyeing him. He cordially responded, “During the two months this one stayed at the temple, he searched for incriminating evidence and unearthed Liaoliao’s numerous atrocities. Although he was an outstanding martial artist, he was not qualified to succeed the temple’s leadership. Therefore, he resorted to dishonest means of seizing authority. There is evidence that he had supporters. Due to the threat posed and gravity of the matters, this one made haste for the capital.”
The imperial court did its best to hush the fact that Liaoliao escaped from the Qilin Guards. The imperial court and the pugilistic both withheld information pertaining to him. Thus, what happened to him was kept from the public.
Had it been Shen Yiren who was assigned to the task instead of Yi Ya, they would not have been able to convict Liaoliao.
Shen Yiren heard about the masked man who rescued Liaoliao, which reminded her of a certain similar person in the capital who shared numerous common traits. That said, there was something more important than that to her at the moment.
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