Meeting

The veiled-hat girl ignored the brocade-clad youth walking toward her. Her gaze passed over his shoulder to the tall old man following close behind. Looking gloomy, she said, "Just now, you wanted to kill someone the moment words failed you. Though you had your reasons, I still think that was wrong."

The brocade-clad youth stopped seven or eight paces away from the cold-faced girl and said sincerely, "My name is Gao Zhen. I am from Yiyang Commandery of Great Sui. If Grandpa Wu has offended you in any way, I am willing to apologize to the young lady and make amends."

The tall old man stood behind the brocade-clad youth, his feelings complicated. The so-called Gao clan disciple of Yiyang Commandery, Great Sui, was merely a tactful way of putting it. The Great Sui Dynasty had endured for twelve hundred years, and every man seated upon the dragon throne bore the surname Gao. The Grand Ancestor Emperor had risen to power in Yiyang Commandery.

The girl remained unmoved. She raised both hands and tightened her bandages, then said to the old man, "Outside, against a Grandmaster of Martial Arts who has very likely already achieved Soaring Wind Travel, I would be no match for you. But here and now, so long as I borrow the flying sword's power, you will certainly die."

The tall old man sneered. "So long as that Assassin knew your Trump Card beforehand, with the physique of a Lesser Grandmaster at the peak, he only needed to protect his vital points. What could you do even if you pierced him through with ten swords? Even he could withstand it, let alone me, two realms above him. One of those thresholds is even considered a martial arts chasm beyond the heavens. Little girl, I do not know where you found the confidence to utter the four words 'certainly die.'"

The girl frowned. One hand quietly rested on her Saber Hilt. "I am someone who fears trouble, and I hate arguing with people even more. How about we try it and see? Whoever wins has the right on their side. What do you say?"

The old man, who rarely had the chance to be threatened, was somewhat angered. If not for being in this bizarre place despised by gods and hated by ghosts, with the girl's level of cultivation, no matter how exceptionally gifted she was, he could crush and slaughter ten of her with one hand. Taking a step back, if not for the heavy responsibility he bore and his need to protect the young Your Highness upon whom all Great Sui had pinned its hopes, he would have taught this girl who knew neither heaven's height nor earth's depth a proper lesson even at the cost of suffering grave injuries beneath the suppressing Great Dao that circulated on its own here. A newborn calf feared no tiger; its courage was commendable, no more. That did not mean the fierce tiger would not devour the calf cleanly.

The brocade-clad youth who called himself Gao Zhen hurriedly tried to make peace. "If the young lady insists on pursuing this matter, I am willing to offer this as compensation."

Gao Zhen lowered his head, opened the pouch at his waist, and took out the Jade Seal. Supporting it in one hand, he offered it to the veiled-hat girl in the distance. "As a sign of sincerity, I only ask that you do not pursue Grandpa Wu's earlier unintended offense. He acted out of loyalty, after all, and had no wish to harm anyone."

The tall old eunuch, his brows and hair entirely white, was instantly horrified. He dropped to one knee and said in panic, "Your Highness, you must not! How can this old slave, so filthy and lowly, compare to this Jade Seal, which is Your Highness's destined opportunity? It is a rare, pure treasure of this world, even capable of bearing the people's incense offerings. How can the two be mentioned in the same breath? Your Highness is forcing this old slave to death!"

The Gao-surnamed youth, born of imperial blood, had a stiff expression.

The girl seemed somewhat impatient. With a mocking smile, she said, "Frogs at the Bottom of a Well, tucked away in one corner, yet every last one of you cherishes a worn broom as a treasure. Put that Jade Seal away. I have always liked a saying: a gentleman does not take what another loves."

The girl acted cleanly and decisively. She turned and left.

The brocade-clad youth heaved a sigh of relief. "Get up, Grandpa Wu. Kneeling like that is unsightly. The twelve Grand Eunuchs of Great Sui have always knelt only to emperors. If the Six Ministries Censors or people from the Ministry of Rites saw this and made an issue of it, both of us would be in trouble. Enough. This trip to the small town was protected by our ancestors, and I have completed it perfectly. Let us not create further complications. Leave this place quickly. Even after meeting up with our people outside, we cannot lower our guard. Of the six great pillar clans within the Great Li Dynasty, the Yuan and Cao families may stand in opposing camps, but unfortunately, these two Great Li pillars share an irreconcilable hatred with our Great Sui Gao Clan. If anything happens to you here, Grandpa Wu, and your fighting strength is diminished, it will be difficult for me to return safely to Great Sui."

The old man nodded and slowly rose. "This old slave understands what is important and what is urgent."

When the old man spoke the word "urgent," the veiled-hat girl had already walked more than twenty paces away.

A gust of clear wind swept past the brocade-clad youth. The hair at his temples and the sleeves of his brocade robe fluttered in the breeze.

It turned out that the old man, who wielded immense power in Great Sui, had never intended to let the girl go. He had already launched himself forward. His first three steps stomped heavily upon the alley floor, each dull boom driving more than a zhang into the ground. By the fourth step, the old man had leaped high into the air, his fist smashing toward the girl's back.

The veiled-hat girl twisted sharply at the waist. Using the toes of her left foot as a pivot, she drew her saber with her right hand. A streak of snow-white brilliance, more dazzling than sunlight, appeared within the alley.

The tall old man swooped down with the force of a collapsing mountain, his fist striking the Blade Edge head-on. The razor-sharp blade merely carved a line of blood across the back of his hand. After the old eunuch landed with a thunderous crash, he continued charging forward, driving the saber-wielding girl backward step by step. Then the old man casually extended a palm. It seemed slow and unhurried, yet struck like lightning against the girl's forehead. Just as he was about to increase his strength and shatter the head hidden beneath the veiled hat, he hurriedly shifted his feet and slid sideways by a foot. With a wet pfft, he lowered his head and saw a sharp weapon had pierced through the right side of his chest from behind. It was a Sword Tip.

The old man's expression did not change. He pinched the Sword Tip between two fingers and shoved backward.

He forcibly pushed the fierce flying sword, which had come at the girl's will, back out through his own chest.

Hindered by the flying sword, the old eunuch had failed to smash the girl's head with one palm. The girl, who had been sent flying and crashed into the alley, seized the chance to catch her breath. Once she got up, she moved with the agility of a civet cat and swiftly vanished down a side alley.

The youth's face darkened terrifyingly. His fists clenched, his aura burst forth, and rage filled his face as he said, "Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Stable Bureau, Wu Yue, Grand Eunuch Wu! Why would you not heed my hint? Why must you act so stubbornly? Do you truly think this small town has no one more invincible than you, Grand Eunuch Wu? We were clearly in the wrong first. Afterward, she did not press us mercilessly and was already willing to make peace. Why did you still have to be so vicious? This is simply bullying people beyond all measure!"

The old eunuch withdrew his gaze from the direction in which the girl had fled and turned back. His spine was straight, making his imposing presence seem even more towering. He walked back slowly, one step at a time, as though each step landed heavily upon the youth's heart.

Sensing that suffocating pressure and being oppressed by a servant, the youth's fury surged even higher. He glared wide-eyed and gnashed his teeth. "Grand Eunuch Wu of the Imperial Stable Bureau, this is a capital crime!"

The old eunuch said calmly, "Your Highness, whether it is a capital crime or not must be decided personally by His Majesty. In this servant's eyes, Your Highness's safety weighs as heavily as mountains and must be placed above all else. As for that small-town girl, her very existence has become a fire at the brow in this servant's eyes. Thus, if we truly wish for all matters to go smoothly, we can only strike ruthlessly and kill her. Only when she is dead can this servant rest easy."

Seeing the blazing rage in the youth's eyes, barely suppressed, the old eunuch sighed and said softly, "This servant has served in the inner palace for more than sixty years and has seen far too much scheming and strife, bloody and bloodless alike, beyond counting. This servant truly has no confidence at all in the human heart. In the matter of assassinations along imperial escort routes alone, large and small, this servant has personally handled more than thirty incidents. Your Highness, the sinister cunning of those Assassins and killers is absolutely beyond imagination, especially some Death Warriors who have gone utterly mad and cannot be reasoned with. Take that masked killer and the veiled-hat girl just now..."

The brocade-clad youth raised a finger and pointed at the cold-faced old eunuch, angrily accusing him, "Shut up! You old castrated fool! I do not want to hear your nonsense! I only know that you ruined my carefully planned attempt to win her over. Even a blind man could see how extraordinarily gifted and stunningly brilliant that girl capable of wielding a flying sword was! Even among mountain cultivators, she would be one of the very finest geniuses! Such a person is a phoenix feather and qilin horn not merely in Great Sui or Great Li, but across the entire East Treasure Bottle Continent! Give me ten years to nurture her, twenty at most, and she could become the most formidable Assassin lurking in my shadow! So what if you are a Land Immortal or a Grandmaster of Martial Arts?! And what happened in the end? I am Gao Zhen, the future Crown Prince of the Great Sui Dynasty! I am the master of you old eunuch Wu!"

Strangely enough, the aged eunuch, weathered by countless years, was not angered by the repeated "old eunuch." Instead, his eyes grew increasingly gratified. Once the youth had vented his fury and finally ceased his street-cursing, the old man looked at the panting youth and smiled. "Your Highness, perhaps because there are things you have not experienced personally, you do not yet understand the world's treachery or the danger of human hearts. But there is one thing Your Highness has done very well, very much in the manner of His Majesty in his younger days."

The atmosphere turned awkward.

After Gao Zhen calmed down, he seemed to realize that he had made a grave mistake. Before being formally appointed Crown Prince, he had shown such disrespect to an old man who was both Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Stable Bureau and one of the three gatekeepers of the Great Sui imperial palace. More importantly, this man had the deep trust of both his Imperial Father and mother. Prince Gao Zhen opened his mouth, only to see the powerful eunuch he had called an old castrated fool smile and say, "Your Highness, remember this: do not casually say 'I'm sorry' to servants. There is no need. You only demean your own status for nothing, and the servants may not even appreciate it. Even if you feel guilty, you should bury it deep within your heart. One must know that the emperors and monarchs hailed as True Dragons among men are Supreme Rulers whose Mouth Holds Heavenly Decree..."

Gao Zhen said, "Grandpa Wu, given my current status, it is too early to speak of this."

The old eunuch's body suddenly tensed as though facing a great enemy. He grabbed the brocade-clad youth and pulled him behind himself, then looked toward the masked killer's corpse.

A middle-aged scholar of slender build abruptly appeared at the end of the alley. He slowly walked in, approached the killer's body, crouched down, and removed the face covering. What he saw was a strange face: no eyebrows, a cut-off nose, and words carved into the skin.

This man had been a Prisoner in life. There was no doubt of that.

The scholar fell silent. So it had indeed been premeditated. This scheme likely had to be traced back to that Temple of Literature.

Gao Zhen's eyes burned. He stepped out from behind the old eunuch, bent at the waist in a formal salute—paying respects first no matter what—then raised his head and asked respectfully, "May I ask if you are Mr. Qi of Cliff Academy?"

The scholar rose and said to Gao Zhen, "Had you not first claimed a great destined opportunity, the two of you would not be leaving so easily today."

When outsiders killed one another in the small town, the punishment according to the rules laid down by the first four Sages was not severe, but neither was it light. Compared to slaughtering small-town common folk, which would inevitably result in expulsion, disputes between outsiders contained an obvious loophole that allowed one to mend the fold after the sheep had escaped. This was why the three groups including Gao Zhen had each brought a Retainer: they had prepared for the worst, so that at a crucial moment they could push one out as a scapegoat. Otherwise, a single entry quota would consume half the savings in the Great Sui Gao Clan emperor's private treasury. For the ruler of such a vast and mighty nation, half his private fortune was an astronomical sum. Who would willingly become such a sucker for no reason?

Put simply, it was spending money to avert disaster.

Yet the expense here would not be overstated even if described as emptying out a Gold Mountain Silver Mountain. The worldly saying of throwing away a thousand gold in one stroke was Child's Play by comparison.

Having effectively been shown the door, Gao Zhen continued speaking on his own. "Mr. Qi, if there is an opportunity in the future, would you be willing to lecture at our Great Sui Academy? Great Sui is willing to keep the position of National Teacher vacant for you!"

After thinking it over, the old eunuch still did not stop the youth's presumptuous words.

If they could truly persuade this scholar to devise strategies for the Great Sui Gao Clan in the future, the Great Sui Emperor would surely be delighted.

The scholar smiled but did not answer.

The old eunuch had been decisive and ruthless toward the veiled-hat girl, a Passing Acquaintance. Yet now, before Mr. Qi of Cliff Academy, the Sea-Stabilizing Divine Needle who presided over this place, he displayed the opposite extreme. He lowered his head and clasped his fists. "Mr. Qi, we have disturbed you greatly. Please forgive us. What happened just now, when I attacked a junior, was truly an act of necessity. I hope you understand this servant's painstaking devotion as a servant of the Gao family."

Qi Jingchun swept a sleeve. "Leave at once."

Gao Zhen and the old eunuch could only take their leave, following the very route by which the veiled-hat girl had retreated.

The youth asked quietly, "Is she dead?"

The old eunuch shook his head. "Her life is certainly nearing its end. The flying sword will only let her live a little longer. It will not change anything."

After hesitating a moment, the youth asked curiously, "When did Grandpa Wu realize that wielding the flying sword was actually far from as effortless and carefree for her as it appeared?"

The old man said, "Too much is as bad as too little. Her precociousness gave her away."

The youth was surprised and did not understand.

The old eunuch led the youth out of the original alley, turning a corner as he spoke softly. "This servant has a question for Your Highness. Having seen so many rare treasures of wealth and luxury in this world, would Your Highness still take an interest in ordinary small-town porcelain?"

The youth patted the pouch at his waist and smiled. "Of course not. Only this Jade Seal, or something of roughly the same caliber, could delight me."

The old eunuch nodded. "Precisely. When that girl wielded her sword to kill, her heart was as still as water. She was utterly calm and composed, as though it were... an ordinary person eating, drinking, pissing, and shitting. And once she sensed my true martial cultivation, she decisively gave up the thought of fighting. In particular, she feared I would see through her outward fierceness and inner weakness, so she deliberately provoked us. Her true intent was to give each side a step down, because she feared that this servant harbored killing intent, preferring to kill by mistake rather than let her go by mistake, and would eradicate her root and branch. Thus, she had to break the deadlock. Of course, the facts proved she did not do so well. Still, at such a young age, to possess such thoughts is already extraordinary. But precisely because of this, if we release the tiger back to the mountain and allow her to grow strong, she will pose an ever greater threat to Your Highness in the future."

The old man said with feeling, "Young boys and girls are in the full flush of youthful spirit. If they kill in hot blood or go generously to their deaths, this servant finds neither strange. But to calmly go to one's death after careful consideration, or to kill without stirring even the slightest ripple in one's Heart Lake—that is highly abnormal. One might even say that such a disposition, which can only be tempered through experience, has little to do with a person's gifts or aptitude. Whether Cultivator or Martial Cultivator, many geniuses die young because the flaws in their temperament are too apparent. At the first setback, they are easily ruined."

Gao Zhen sighed. "No matter what, it is a pity."

The old eunuch joked, half in earnest, half in jest, "Your Highness, if the life or death of every person like this calls for a sigh, then once Your Highness truly stands atop the mountain, you will be very busy indeed."

The youth smiled. "I do not believe it."

The old eunuch suddenly said, "I do not know whether it is merely an illusion, but this servant feels that Mr. Qi's heaven-reaching cultivation seems to have developed no small problem."

The Great Sui Prince looked entirely unconcerned. "Originally, so long as we obtained this 'Dragon Gate' Seal, our task would have been a great success. Who would have thought that this priceless treasure seal would become a little extra thrown into an enormous deal? So it is time for us to Quit While You're Ahead. Whenever I think of that golden carp, I cannot help thinking of that straw-sandaled youth..."

The old eunuch smiled. "Does Your Highness intend to find an opportunity later to thank that young man?"

The youth shook his head. "Not at all. I am mourning that pouch of copper coins."

The old man could not help laughing.

Perhaps Sui Dynasty would one day have a frugal emperor?

In a secluded north-south alley, there was only the sound of cart wheels.

A young Daoist priest wearing a Lotus Crown had closed up early today. He was pushing his cart along, thinking that once he returned to his lodging, he would pack up and Return Home at once. Whoever got involved in this mess would only bring disaster upon himself.

A slender figure in black suddenly staggered out from the mouth of an east-west side alley. At last, she leaned against the wall and slowly slid along it. One hand reached past the thin veil of her hat to clamp hard over her mouth, while the other pointed at the young Daoist priest.

The young Daoist priest hurriedly lowered his head and muttered, "Can't see me... can't see me... Lord Laozi, swiftly as the law commands... Forget it. Buddha bless, may the bodhisattvas show their power..."

When trouble came knocking, this Daoist priest did not seek the Three Pure Ones or his Daoist Old Ancestors, but instead sought Buddha and worshipped bodhisattvas. It was truly rather improper.

Sure enough, Buddha and the bodhisattvas seemed unwilling to concern themselves with Descendants of another faith. The veiled-hat girl somehow summoned the last scrap of her strength, stumbled toward the Daoist priest, and crashed heavily to the ground. Yet her final hand still clutched his ankle tightly.

The young Daoist priest held his head in both hands, his face a picture of despair and misery, as if he were looking up to Ask the Heavens. "Such an enormous karma has fallen right onto me. Isn't that the same as carving the words 'eager to die' onto this Daoist's forehead? This Daoist has wandered the four seas these years, eating in wind and sleeping in dew, Trekking Mountains and Rivers, often getting bitten by dogs while walking down the street... It has been hard, all right! Damn you Great Sui Gao Clan, and you old dog surnamed Wu. Just wait for this Daoist. Without Five Hundred Years, this debt cannot possibly be settled... This Daoist's cultivation is so shallow. I truly cannot shoulder such a heavy burden..."

The young Daoist priest was already rambling incoherently. He lowered his head, only barely stopping short of tears. "Little girl, have mercy and let this Daoist go, all right? Later, this Daoist will find you a place with beautiful mountains and clear waters, wonderful feng shui, certain to bless your descendants... Oh, no, the young lady is still a maiden, then..."

The girl had already completely fainted.

Seeing no one around, the young Daoist priest crouched down and prepared to quietly pry open the girl's five fingers.

Whoosh.

The flying sword hovered in midair, its Sword Tip only three inches from the young Daoist priest's brow.

Without changing expression, the young Daoist priest released her hand. With a face full of pity and righteously indignant bearing, he said, "Man is not grass or wood. How can one lack compassion? This Daoist has been honorable and aboveboard all his life. How could I be the sort to leave someone to die?!"

The young Daoist priest sat cross-legged, his handsome face nearly wrinkled into a knot. "Where to send her next is another headache."

The flying sword, which had remained three inches from the Daoist priest's brow, shot forward another inch.

The Daoist priest patiently explained, "If you want your master to live, this Daoist needs a helper. Right, go to the Old Scholar Tree and poke off a Sophora Leaf. This Daoist will first preserve her last breath of vital energy. Your master is somewhat special. This Daoist does not wish to save someone recklessly just for the sake of saving them. If I accidentally delay her path of cultivation, then this new karmic debt... Damn it, it will make this Daoist want to die and be done with everything..."

The flying sword seemed hesitant, its Sword Tip trembling faintly.

The Daoist priest said irritably, "The sooner you go, the sooner your master can take another step back from Ghost Gate Pass. Go too late, and we all die together!"

In the blink of an eye, the flying sword vanished.

The Daoist priest muttered angrily, "Only when the man has feelings and the woman has intent do they make a fine matched pair. Yet you, Qi Jingchun, Great Teacher Qi, go around blindly pairing mandarin ducks. You shit and do not even wipe your ass!"

Resting one hand against his cheek and using the other to divine with his fingers, the young Daoist priest said, "Let this Daoist calculate where in the small town to send you, so that you can live without the other side's family being destroyed. Start with the Lu Family... No, the Lu Family will not do. Like the Zhao Family, they already have destiny upon them. Then the Song Family?"

Before the Daoist priest in the alley could finish speaking.

At the Song Family residence on Fulu Street, every Guardian God pasted upon doors large and small instantly lost its divine luster and turned dim. Strands of Green Smoke, invisible to mortal eyes, also rose into the air.

Deep within the courtyard, a weathered old man with bare feet pushed open a door, stepped into the yard, and jumped about in fury as he cursed, "Which bastard is plotting against the foundations of my Song clan?! Come out and fight!"

The young Daoist priest coughed and muttered to himself, "The Liu Family on Fulu Street looks to have Flourishing incense. They seem like people who can bear trouble. Try it?"

The Liu Family's ancestral hall plaque, passed down for a thousand years, exploded with a bang, cracks spreading across it in shocking lines.

An old woman's voice boomed as her Dragon Head Cane struck heavily against the ground. "What divine being is this? Would you be willing to come out and meet us?!"

The young Daoist priest pretended that nothing had happened. "Then the Wei Family in Taoye Lane? At a glance, your family accumulates goodness and virtue. You can certainly bear this karma."

Very soon, an elder transmitted his voice through a secret art, roaring toward the school. "Qi Jingchun! Are you not going to handle this?! If you cannot or dare not handle it, then get lost and yield your place to Ruan Qiong! Let him deal with this sneaking, skulking fellow! Or is all this simply you, Qi Jingchun, venting a private grudge?"

South of the Small Town Covered Bridge, a man was leading others in digging a well beside the creek. Straightening up, he moved his lips toward the north.

Like peals of spring thunder, a voice rumbled over Fulu Street and Taoye Lane. "Enough! You are not permitted to disrespect Mr. Qi. And before the spring equinox, I, Ruan, will absolutely not meddle in the small town's affairs!"

For a time, heaven and earth were desolate, and all sounds fell silent.

Meanwhile, the culprit sitting beside the cart in that alley seized one hand of the black-clothed girl and dropped the emerald-green Sophora Leaf brought back by the flying sword into her blood-smeared palm.

Upon touching the wound in the girl's palm, the Sophora Leaf melted away like ice and snow, vanishing in an instant.

The young Daoist priest sighed. "Whenever this Daoist sees such a sight, I must marvel at the work of heaven and earth's creation, and feel..."

After pondering for a long while, the Daoist priest still could not find words that satisfied him.

At last, the young Daoist priest lowered his head. Seeing a faint flush of life returning to the girl's face, he found himself in a difficult position. "Since the fortune entwined with you is even greater than this Daoist imagined, we can only go against the current. Above this small town, its six hundred households are intertwined like tangled roots, their generations steeped in the aura of this secret realm. If you ask this Daoist to find someone surrounded by fortune, that would be easy. But finding a poor wretch would be harder than climbing to heaven. It is like searching a court assembly hall for a high official—easy—but asking this Daoist to find a beggar. How am I supposed to do that?"

The young Daoist priest gave a soft sound of surprise.

He had actually found such a Wretch.

He felt no joy at all. Instead, he was horrified. Closing his eyes, he questioned his own heart.

The young Daoist priest sighed. "No matter what, let us first see how you choose. This Daoist will never force you. If you are unwilling, this Daoist will bear this karma himself."

Finally, imitating a monk, he pressed his palms together. "Buddha bless, may the bodhisattvas show their power. This Daoist must make it through this trial."

In Mud Bottle Alley.

The young Daoist priest bent over and pushed a two-wheeled cart to the entrance of a courtyard, where he stopped. After knocking, he asked, "Is Chen Ping'an home?"

In a gap at one corner of the cart lay a long sword with a snow-white scabbard. The flying sword within looked sickly and weak, as though it despised the young Daoist priest for finding such a ruined household.