Thousand-Faced Mortal

Hanyu stood awkwardly in place, looking completely at a loss—he had clearly stumbled into someone else's family affairs.

It was only then that the woman noticed Hanyu. Her face flushed briefly before she quickly composed herself, clearing her throat a few times as she scolded her cousin on the wall.

"Hurry up and get down. There's a guest here—what kind of display is this?"

The cousin didn't budge, still embedded motionless in the wall.

The woman frowned and snorted coldly. "I'll count to three."

That did the trick. Before she even started counting, the cousin yanked himself out and scurried over.

"I was just afraid you hadn't cooled off yet, Cousin!"

The cousin's image in Hanyu's mind was pretty much shattered by now, because the grin on his face was downright sycophantic.

"If it weren't for Uncle's letter saying you stole a bunch of mechanism blueprints, I'd have actually believed you were just out for fun."

The woman glared at her cousin, fuming.

The cousin was mortified, quickly cutting her off. "I know I was wrong. I'll head back later."

After a few more exchanges, the cousin hurriedly pulled Hanyu over to introduce him.

It turned out the woman was a disciple from a major sect sent out into the world as a local Prefect. Not only was she beautiful, but her name was beautiful too—Su Wanjun.

It sounded gentle and refined, like a delicate maiden, but Hanyu never expected such a fiery temper.

He only dared to think this in his head.

On the other side, Su Wanjun looked at her cousin and frowned. "I promised Uncle I'd drag you back the moment I saw you."

The cousin quickly backed up a few steps, forcing a bitter smile. "Cousin, you can't! If I go back this time, my legs will be broken."

"At least let me wait until they've cooled down."

Su Wanjun gave a noncommittal nod, apparently aware of the elders' temper, and rolled her eyes at him. "Fine, stay here with me for a while. I'll go back with you later, so you don't actually get your legs broken."

The cousin's heart sank. Staying here was no different from going home. He quickly changed the subject. "Cousin, where's the stuff I left with you?"

"In the room you stayed in before. No one's touched it."

Su Wanjun pointed to a side room.

Hearing that, the cousin grabbed Hanyu and ran, not forgetting to call back, "I'm just grabbing my things and heading out with a friend. Be right back."

Before Su Wanjun could react, he ducked into the side room, hauled out a big bundle, and bolted.

Hanyu finally understood why the cousin got beaten on sight. With that kind of slick, deceptive act, next time he ran off, he'd end up stuck in the wall again.

After escaping the Prefectural Yamen, the cousin dragged Hanyu a bit further, then patted his chest in lingering fear. Noticing Hanyu staring at him, he gave an awkward smile.

"Sorry you had to see that. My cousin's usually very gentle."

Back to business—since they had the tools, it was time to find the Commoner. Hidden Moon Peak was twenty li outside Shuzhou City, a fair distance away.

Both of them rejected the idea of taking the Iron Kite. For now, that thing was probably going to be a source of trauma.

That made things tricky. The cousin could fly on his sword, but Hanyu said he couldn't fly, and carrying someone on a sword wasn't easy.

After some discussion, they settled on horses.

Soon, two fast horses galloped out of the city, heading south.

This area was no longer part of the southern region, so there weren't many mountains—mostly plains. Even when they spotted a hill, it was just a small mound.

Word had it that the central region was vast and rich, with every prefecture especially large. Unlike the remote, mountainous backwaters, several prefectures here weren't far apart.

About half an hour later, the cousin reined in his horse, slowing down. Hanyu stopped too and asked curiously.

"What's wrong?"

The cousin pulled out his Command Token and pressed the small point in the middle. Hanyu's token vibrated in his pocket.

Was he using the distress function to contact the other party?

Soon, the cousin's token started vibrating too—not urgently, but it lasted a little while before stopping.

Hanyu could more or less guess what the other side meant. They'd replied, then kept the distress signal going, but not continuously—probably meaning there was no immediate danger, but the situation was tricky.

The cousin's next words confirmed his guess. "The Commoner really is in trouble. Might be trapped or unable to escape."

What was surprising was that the token's direction pointed straight to Hidden Moon Peak.

Since there was no immediate danger to life, they'd better head over steadily, so they wouldn't be too worn out to handle whatever came.

The two exchanged a nod and mounted their horses again...

Hidden Moon Peak.

Named after Crescent Lake.

The peak wasn't tall, surrounded by dense woods. At the summit was a deep ravine, as if the entire top had been split in two.

Below the ravine lay a secluded valley, with winding paths, chirping insects, and rustling wind like drumbeats. Inside, a faint fragrance of flowers and grass lingered. In the valley was a small crescent-shaped lake. When the bright moon hung high, Crescent Lake reflected the moonlight as if it held the moon itself—hence the name Hidden Moon Peak.

If someone said they were going to Hidden Moon Peak, they didn't necessarily mean climbing the mountain—more often, they meant entering the valley.

But the valley floor seemed unsettled lately. A few days ago, a group of people had blocked the entrance and exit, and no one knew what was going on.

At the mouth of the valley, over a dozen cultivators in yellow brocade gathered, their gazes fixed on the valley with murderous intent.

Just then, a woman with a comely face hurriedly trotted toward the exit, the burden on her chest swaying with each step, drawing the cultivators' eyes in fascination—though they dared not let their guard down.

"Halt!"

A cultivator immediately blocked the exit, raising a hand to stop the woman.

"There are bad people inside." The woman flailed her arms, pointing frantically into the valley, her expression panicked.

"Search her. Only after a search may you pass."

The cultivator ignored her, replying coldly.

A few cultivators, lewd glints in their eyes, crowded forward, volunteering to do the job.

"You... you shameless pigs..." The woman's face flushed with shame and anger, on the verge of tears.

"The person we're looking for is inside. If you won't submit to a search, you can't leave," the cold-voiced cultivator continued.

"I'd rather die than let you touch me..." The woman's face reddened, and she gritted her teeth, charging the checkpoint. The cultivators, already eager, rushed forward to meet her.

"Heh heh!"

One of them cackled, reaching out a claw-like hand—but before it could reach its peak, the woman grabbed it and snapped it clean.

"Ah..." A scream rang out, and all the cultivators swarmed in. The woman shook off the lecherous cultivator and tried to force her way through, but after a few steps, she slammed into a wall of flesh.

The cultivator was tall, his face a sallow green. His eyes locked onto the woman as he let out a low growl. After a few exchanges of blows, he sent her flying.

"Hmph!"

With a cold snort, the woman used the momentum of her flight to retreat swiftly back into the valley.

Another quarter-hour passed, and an old man with white hair and unsteady limbs hobbled out, shuffling along.

Naturally, the cultivators stopped him again.

"You cultivators are lawless, bullying even an old man!" The old man beat his chest and wailed loudly.

"We mean you no harm. Let us search you, and you may leave," a cultivator said.

The old man refused, leaning on his cane and tottering forward as if to leave.

But this time, the tall cultivator moved without warning. With a roar, he curled his fingers into a claw and lunged at the old man.

The old man's expression shifted abruptly, and he scrambled backward, all trace of unsteadiness gone.

"Damn you. Just wait."

The old man spat out these words hatefully before fleeing deep into the valley.

Halfway up the mountain, two figures had long been hidden, crouching furtively. On closer look, weren't they Hanyu and his cousin, who had come specially?

Hanyu had just watched these two scenes in a daze, unable to make sense of them.

His cousin chuckled softly beside him. "Both of those were the Commoner in disguise. Surprising, isn't it?"

It truly was. The two were completely different people—not just in expression, but in build and movement, without a single point in common.

His cousin let out an admiring sigh. "I've known the Commoner for a long time, and I've never even seen his real face. Because you never know which face is genuine. You don't even know how many of the hundred people you meet in a day might be him."

Hanyu shuddered at the thought. To think there existed someone with such terrifying skill in disguise.

He looked back at the valley mouth. No more figures had emerged for some time. The Commoner had likely given up on breaking through from this side.

"How about we charge in and grab the person directly?" His cousin eyed the guards at the valley mouth.

Hanyu quickly stopped him, shaking his head. "If they dare leave so few people there, they must have a backup plan. We might run into a high-level cultivator and get trapped ourselves."

After glancing at the mountain stream, Hanyu had an idea. He pointed at a cliff face. "We'll go down from there."

"Fly down? That'll still draw attention. We'll be found out." His cousin frowned and shook his head.

"Not flying." Hanyu grinned.

On the cliff beside the mountain stream, his cousin looked down at the valley floor and couldn't help but feel his legs go weak.

"Maybe we should just fly. Going down your way is no different from asking for death."

His cousin shook his head repeatedly, his face turning pale.

Hanyu's plan was to slide down the cliff face, pressed close to it, making them extremely hard to spot.

"It'll be fine. It's safe. I've jumped before."

Hanyu cited his experience falling off a cliff with Big Yellow Ox.

His cousin clearly didn't believe him, shaking his head like a rattle-drum.

"If it gets too dangerous halfway, we'll fly then."

In the end, they settled on a compromise. Even so, his cousin's face remained ashen.

"Get ready."

Hanyu glanced back at him. His cousin nodded, his face pale, and Hanyu grabbed him, leaping off. One hand holding the man, the other clawing at the cliff face, he slid down rapidly.

The breakneck speed turned his cousin's face a ghastly blue-gray. Several times he nearly cried out, but he clamped his hand over his mouth, afraid of alerting anyone.

As Hanyu slid downward, he kept dodging the larger rocks, trying to minimize the falling debris.

His descent grew faster and faster. Cousin was already about to release his Flying Sword, but Hanyu gave a low, firm shout, "Not yet. Almost there."

The moment the words left his mouth, both figures plunged into the foliage. A deep, muffled thud echoed across the ground.

Hanyu landed steadily, his entire skeleton trembling and letting out a series of sounds like clashing metal drums.

After a brief pause, he slowly exhaled a mouthful of stale air, then set the man down.

Cousin sat on the ground, his face ashen and expression dazed. Suddenly, with a "wah," he crawled under a tree, clutching his waist, and vomited violently.

Hanyu watched him helplessly. Truly, sometimes having a strong body had its perks.

Today's third chapter will be posted in the evening. Little money gods who enjoy this book, please show your support with recommendation tickets, monthly tickets, and collections. I bow in thanks here!