Luo Fire Mourning Feather

Luo Bin had great confidence in his sense of smell. With Crimson, his five senses were already sharper than those of an ordinary Martial Master, and this familiar, faint fragrance...

What on earth was giving off that scent?

Puzzled, Luo Bin entered the main hall of the Chen Residence. The old man and the young one weren't there. Judging by the voices, they seemed to be talking in Chen Tianren's meeting room.

Without disturbing anyone, Luo Bin sat down on the sofa and sipped tea. Chen Jing, Chen Mansheng, and the others were probably resting upstairs. Only two fashionably dressed maids were in the hall, coming and going as they wiped the dust from the floor and furnishings.

"Have you noticed a faint fragrance?"

The maids looked at Luo Bin in surprise, their faces blank. They sniffed hard, then asked, "A fragrance? Young Master Luo, what fragrance do you mean?"

After asking three maids in a row, he realized they seemed completely unaware of the faint, fresh scent. He didn't know why, but whenever Luo Bin smelled it, an inexplicable longing rose within him, as if he'd come across some rare delicacy.

Suppressing his restless unease, Luo Bin returned to Qinghui Courtyard to change clothes, then headed to the entrance of the Chen Residence. At a glance, he spotted Liang Shuisheng running toward him along the road, pulling a rickshaw. No one was riding in it; it carried only packages of various sizes, which looked like luggage.

"Young Master Luo, I've come to join you..." Liang Shuisheng said as soon as he reached Luo Bin. Then he felt a little embarrassed and scratched his head.

Luo Bin suddenly remembered Liang Shuisheng's terrifying leg strength and stamina. He seemed well suited to the long hours of pulling a rickshaw, and he'd even brought one with him. Having him take Luo Bin to Yingshui Ferry again was undoubtedly a good choice.

It would be hard work for Liang Shuisheng, but based on Luo Bin's assessment of him, Ping City was twenty li from Yingshui Ferry. If they went at an easy pace, it shouldn't be a problem.

Given Luo Bin's current standing with the Chen Family, he could take one or two cars without a word and no one would say anything. But that would draw too much attention.

Right now, he only wanted to secretly find out what that scent near Yingshui Ferry was—the one that seemed to share the same source as the fragrance he'd smelled today...

"You came at just the right time. I'll take you to drop your luggage at my place, then you can take me somewhere," Luo Bin said.

Liang Shuisheng scratched his head and grinned sheepishly. Sweat from the journey still glistened on his face, but his eyes shone brightly. Without another word, he grabbed the handles and followed.

Luo Bin led him around to a side entrance of the residence and into Qinghui Courtyard. The courtyard wasn't large, but it had its own entrance and was very quiet. Luo Bin pointed to an empty room in the west wing.

"Stay here for now. Put your things down and change into something comfortable. You can leave the rickshaw in the courtyard."

Liang Shuisheng unloaded his luggage with nimble hands, dug a fairly new gray cotton jacket and trousers out of his bundle, and changed. Then he parked the rickshaw securely in the shadow of the wall.

The whole process took less than the time it takes to burn a stick of incense. He said nothing, but moved with the brisk efficiency of someone who'd spent years laboring.

Luo Bin watched from beneath the main house's eaves. When Liang Shuisheng had finished, he asked, "Do you know the way to Yingshui Ferry?"

"I do!" Liang Shuisheng replied at once. "I've pulled a rickshaw there twice. It's twenty li; I can get us there in an hour!"

"No need to rush." Luo Bin climbed into the rickshaw. "Keep it steady. Once we arrive, I'll decide what to do."

"Got it. Sit tight!"

Liang Shuisheng pulled the rickshaw out through the side entrance and turned into the streets in the early morning light. He ran at an easy pace, his strides steady and even. The rickshaw barely rocked. Luo Bin leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest, but his nostrils kept twitching faintly.

That faint fragrance... It was strange.

It was so subtle, like threads winding through the damp morning breeze. Without his five senses having been strengthened by Crimson and his repeated breakthroughs, he could never have detected it. The farther they got from the main hall of the Chen Residence, the fainter the scent became.

It was exactly like the one he'd smelled during the River God Festival: clear and fresh, with the faintest hint of sweetness. When he breathed it in, his qi and blood stirred faintly in his dantian, rousing an instinctive "longing."

Like a starving man catching the scent of meat, or a drunkard smelling aged wine.

This was no ordinary fragrance.

Since acquiring Crimson, Luo Bin's senses for natural treasures and potent blood-rich food had far surpassed those of ordinary people. But this was the first time he'd encountered a "fragrance" that could stir a resonance in his qi and blood.

More bizarre still, not one of the servants at the Chen Residence had noticed it.

The fragrance seemed to target only someone like him... a Martial Master? Or perhaps only people who practiced a particular cultivation method or possessed some special trait?

As his thoughts churned, the rickshaw left the city.

Rice fields stretched along both sides of the road. The seedlings were green at this time of year, rustling as the wind passed over them. In the distance, a tributary of the Li River shimmered like a silver ribbon in the morning light. As they drew closer to Yingshui, the faint fragrance from the Chen Residence had vanished without a trace, while the seemingly related scent from Yingshui grew clearer.

Luo Bin suddenly opened his eyes. "Shuisheng, stop."

Liang Shuisheng immediately checked his stride and brought the rickshaw to a steady stop beneath a roadside tree. He looked back, waiting for instructions, but said nothing.

"Wait here for me." Luo Bin climbed out and looked toward a familiar stretch of riverbank a few hundred paces away—the site of the River God Festival several days earlier.

The altar had been dismantled, leaving only scorched marks. But the broken pieces of the Fu River God's Spirit Shrine, which he'd kicked over, still lay in a haphazard pile by the river. Dark chunks of clay, tangled with weeds, looked desolate and eerie in the morning light.

When he'd killed the Water Mountain Ghoul at the riverbed last time, he'd faintly sensed that something about that stretch of water was different. Deep in the Water Mountain Ghoul's underwater lair, there had seemed to be a searing heat hidden beneath a veil of foul, baleful qi, mixed with that faint fragrance.

But after the fight, there had been too many people around, so he hadn't investigated further.

Now it seemed that something connected to the fragrance might still be hidden in the depths of the Fu River.

The Fu River was a tributary of the Li River. It wasn't very deep, but there were underwater currents and shifting sands, along with remnants of the foul, baleful qi left behind by the Water Mountain Ghoul that had held sway there for years.

An ordinary person could dive down and still find nothing. But Luo Bin was different. He had the Phantom talent, and underwater was his home ground.

Still... it was broad daylight, and Liang Shuisheng was nearby. Diving in without warning would inevitably attract attention.

And the fragrance had appeared under suspicious circumstances. What if it was some kind of bait...

"Shuisheng." Luo Bin turned and walked back to the rickshaw.

"Young Master Luo?" Liang Shuisheng had been quietly keeping watch by the rickshaw, his gaze sweeping over their surroundings. As soon as Luo Bin returned, he answered.

"Is there anywhere nearby with a high vantage point? Somewhere secluded."

Liang Shuisheng thought for a moment, then pointed to a stretch of rolling hills to the east. "There's an abandoned brick kiln over there. It's high up and gives you a view of most of this riverbank. The kiln was abandoned after bandits caused trouble years ago. No one goes there these days."

"Good. Let's go."

The brick kiln had indeed been abandoned for a long time. Half of the kiln cave had collapsed, and wild grass grew everywhere.

But from the mound of earth atop the kiln, he could see the riverbank around Yingshui Ferry, the water, and even the distant road. Luo Bin had Liang Shuisheng keep watch below, then found a spot behind a shaded section of broken wall and sat cross-legged.

He needed to wait.

Wait for nightfall, for a safer opportunity. He also wanted to see whether the fragrance would attract anyone else besides him.

The sun climbed higher, then slowly sank toward the west.

Fishermen occasionally passed along the riverbank, and women came to wash clothes. Nothing seemed amiss, and the faint fragrance lingered without growing stronger or weaker.

Luo Bin had excellent patience. He circulated his cultivation method and silently tempered his qi and blood. His Golden Skin Pass grew ever more stable, and he even felt he'd touched the barrier to the Jade Bone Pass.

During that time, Liang Shuisheng quietly came up twice. Once, he brought flatbreads wrapped in lotus leaves and some water. The second time, he quietly told Luo Bin that men dressed like members of the Shuo Gang had ridden horses along the river to patrol, but hadn't stopped.

Luo Bin nodded, making another mental note of the Jiang Family's movements.

At last, evening came, and the riverbank was empty.

A waning crescent moon rose, casting its clear light over the river and scattering silvery ripples across the water.

Luo Bin stood and said to Liang Shuisheng, "Wait here. If I haven't returned by midnight, go back to the city on your own and tell the Chen Family that I'm at Yingshui Ferry. Remember, unless I send a signal, don't go near the riverbank, no matter what you see."

Liang Shuisheng nodded firmly, clenching his fist. "Young Master Luo, please be careful!"

Luo Bin said nothing more. Like a night owl, he swooped down the mound and, after a few bounds, silently melted into the reeds at the edge of the riverbank.