Cutting His Face!

"Have the villagers' funerals all been arranged?"

"They've been arranged. Everyone who needed burying has been buried, up on the back mountain, so they can all be mourned together in the future. The elders in the village said they wanted to put on a grand opera. We just haven't found anyone who can sing it yet," Huang You'an replied. He was in charge of handling the matter.

Tang Fei glanced at Old Man and said, "If you really can't find anyone, I'll find one for you."

"Thank you, Big Brother," Huang You'an said.

He had been worrying over this very matter, never expecting Big Brother to solve it for him so easily.

Old Man's eyelids twitched wildly. You little bastard, I sing folk tunes, not grand opera. How could that be used on an occasion like this?

Tang Fei turned to Little Fatty again and asked, "Have the Flame Army's corpses all been buried?"

"Buried." Little Fatty grinned excitedly. "The fire burned really fiercely. It sizzled the whole time. I used pine branches for the fire and poured on plenty of pine oil. They roasted up smelling great, like pine nuts."

"..."

Tang Fei had no desire to discuss such a heavy-flavored topic with Little Fatty. Looking at Old Man, he asked, "Have the food and valuables we brought back all been distributed?"

"You little brat, don't you trust me to get things done?" Old Man said irritably.

He pointed at Phoenix. "She was watching right beside me. No one got a bit more, and no one got a bit less. Everything was divided according to the number of people in each household."

"Didn't you say anyone who reported the Predators' nests would be heavily rewarded? Two kids did point them out, and they really did bring back food and valuables. But they refused the reward no matter what. They said they'd already received enough and were willing to split everything equally with everyone else."

Tang Fei understood their thinking. First, they truly had received enough. They would not be short on food or clothing for quite some time. This was more than they could have earned through years of labor before. Another important reason was that they feared becoming prime targets for revenge from the Predators and the Flame Shrine after receiving rewards.

Although Tang Fei had killed plenty, bandits could never be completely wiped out.

If everyone shared the wealth, then everyone would share the responsibility.

Tang Fei was quite satisfied with this outcome.

This was the classic redistribution of wealth and land.

Neither the Flame Shrine nor the Predators produced anything. They neither hunted nor farmed.

Yet their bases held the greatest stockpiles of food, and their gold, silver, and treasures were countless.

Ordinary people who farmed and hunted had to ration their food or went hungry, while those people could eat whatever they wanted.

After all, they had to keep their bodies strong and replenish their energy so they would have the strength to rob others.

A vicious cycle.

Although this incident had begun because of Tang Fei, by wiping out the Flame Shrine members and Predators throughout the Hate Mountain District, he had won enormous benefits for all humanity in the Hate Mountain region.

His own village had received food and wealth, while the other villages would at least be free, for a while, from robbery and extortion by the Flame Shrine and the Predators.

Tang Fei's gaze fell on Wang Tianlong, whose head was wrapped thickly in bandages. "What are you planning to do?"

Thud!

Wang Tianlong dropped to his knees, his face filled with terror. "Big Brother, I'll do whatever you tell me to do. Please don't kill me. I have elderly parents above me and young children below me—"

"Enough, get up and talk," Tang Fei said. "You're using lines I've already used."

Wang Tianlong cautiously climbed to his feet and said, "Big Brother used them already? Then I was disrespectful. I'll change to a different set of lines."

"Do you know why you're still alive?" Tang Fei asked.

Wang Tianlong first shook his head, then hurriedly nodded. "Because Big Brother is kindhearted and magnanimous, unwilling to hold past grievances against me, you spared this worthless life of mine."

"Kindhearted and magnanimous?" Tang Fei narrowed his eyes and smiled. "Your brothers didn't seem to think so."

"..."

Wang Tianlong no longer dared to say a word.

He knew what had happened after he passed out. All his brothers had died. The Flame Army had been annihilated. The Flame Shrine in the Hate Mountain District had been uprooted entirely.

He was no longer the refugee who had handed him grilled skewers with a fawning smile, nor the boy who had walked him a long way out, his voice choked as he told him to come visit when he had time.

He was death itself. He was a demon.

Could someone like that be described as kindhearted and magnanimous?

"Because of that Flame Talisman of yours, and because of those words you spoke for us in front of Chen Hu." Tang Fei looked at Wang Tianlong and explained, "You aren't fundamentally a bad person. And I'm simple in how I do things: repay grudges with grudges, repay kindness with kindness. So I didn't kill you."

"Thank you," Wang Tianlong replied hoarsely.

"What are you planning to do next?"

"Planning?" Wang Tianlong thought about it, unable to think of anything he could do.

So he looked at Tang Fei with utter sincerity. "Whatever Big Brother tells me to do, I'll do it."

He was not clever, so he habitually handed his problems over to clever people.

"You've spent many years in the Flame Shrine. You understand that organization fairly well, right?" Tang Fei asked.

Wang Tianlong dropped to his knees again with a thud, saying in panic, "Big Brother, I haven't been there that long. And I never did anything truly bad. I admit I took some of other people's food and drinks, and I pocketed some valuable things when the chance arose."

"But I never slaughtered innocents indiscriminately, and I never burned, killed, looted, or plundered like they did. Well, I did rob people, but I didn't burn or kill anyone."

"Enough. I'm not a governor. I'm not interested in your criminal record," Tang Fei said irritably. This guy was somewhat timid and cowardly. He wondered whether Wang Tianlong could carry out the task he had in mind. "I want to ask about the Flame Shrine's internal situation. Something like this happened to the Hate Mountain branch. Do you think they'll retaliate?"

"Retaliate?" Wang Tianlong thought for a moment. "Probably?"

"Then is there any way to resolve it?" Tang Fei asked.

Wang Tianlong stared wide-eyed at Tang Fei, suspecting he had misheard something.

Big Brother, are you serious?

I'm just a squad captain in the Flame Shrine. You want me to solve a problem that huge?

How is that any different from asking a kindergarten child to solve trigonometry?

"Big Brother, I haven't figured that out."

"When will you figure it out?"

"I really can't figure it out. I don't actually understand the Flame Shrine's internal structure that well. I truly can't say what kind of response they'll make."

"What if I had you stay behind?" Tang Fei looked at Wang Tianlong. "Stay in the Flame Shrine."

"What?" Wang Tianlong looked at Tang Fei in shock. He still had to remain there?

"The Flame Shrine suffered devastating losses this time. Nearly all the core members across the Hate Mountain region are dead. At a time like this, your existence is especially valuable." Tang Fei looked at Wang Tianlong and said, "They need an old hand, someone familiar with the Hate Mountain region. You are the only choice."

"But... but..."

"You're worried they'll suspect you, right?" Tang Fei said with a smile. "That is indeed a problem. All your companions are dead, so why are you still alive? If that problem isn't resolved, your appearance will be extremely dangerous. Not only will it be difficult for you to rise through the ranks, you may not even be able to keep your life."

"How do we solve that problem?" Wang Tianlong asked.

Tang Fei looked at Wang Tianlong with interest. "You want to gamble on it?"

"Yes." Wang Tianlong nodded. "Things have already come to this. Unless I never show myself again, the Flame Shrine will discover me as long as I appear in a human settlement. I can't hide from the world for the rest of my life. Since that's the case, I might as well take fate into my own hands."

Tang Fei nodded and looked at Wang Tianlong. "That injury on your head probably isn't enough. Little Fatty was still a little too gentle."

Little Fatty came over carrying his hammer and asked, "Brother, do you need me to give him another hit?"

Big Brother had criticized him for not doing his job well enough. He had to find a way to make up for it.

"No, no." Tang Fei waved his hand. "I'm afraid one blow from you would send him on his way."

Wang Tianlong secretly let out a breath. He, too, feared that one blow from Little Fatty would send him on his way.

Tang Fei pulled a dagger from his pocket and tossed it over. "Cut yourself somewhere. Make it conspicuous enough that people can see it at a glance."

Wang Tianlong caught the dagger, hesitated for a moment, then slashed his own face from bottom to top.

Blood streamed down his face, and his flesh split open.

Tang Fei jumped in fright and cursed, "I told you to make it conspicuous, not that conspicuous!"

"If we're doing this, then we should do it properly."

Wang Tianlong wanted to smile, but the movement tugged at his wound. He immediately grimaced in pain, and tears nearly spilled from his eyes.

"That's more than proper enough. I'll devise a clever way for you to appear before them," Tang Fei said.

Then he waved his hand in disgust. "All right, hurry up and get that bandaged. It's disgusting."

"..."

Wang Tianlong went off to have his wound dressed. Tang Fei looked at Old Man and said, "The village wants a grand opera to mourn their relatives, but they can't find a singer. Could you go on stage and sing a few songs for them? Don't you like humming a few tunes in the yard after dinner every day?"

"What I sing are folk tunes, poetry. Can that be used in a place like that?"

"What's wrong with it?" Tang Fei said. "I heard that before the Great Cataclysm, people even danced at gravesides. I'm not asking you to dance, just sing a few songs. Who cares what you sing? It's only to liven things up a bit."

"I won't sing." Old Man refused without hesitation.

--

"The essence of flame descends, and all living beings look up in reverence."

"Offerings are laid in shame, wine presented with sacrificial beasts."

--

"Lift the scattered chrysanthemums; light frost rejoices at their bloom anew. Drunk, I startle at growing old; amid laughter, sorrow comes into view."

--

"Green, green is my robe, with yellow lining within. Such sorrow fills my heart—when will it ever end?

Green, green is my robe, with yellow skirt below. Such sorrow fills my heart—when will it fade and go?"

--

Old Man sat atop the high platform, howling at the top of his lungs.

One mouthful of wine, one line of poetry.

The wine was the jar of fruit wine brewed by the teacher, while the poems were elegies he had searched for until he had wracked his brains.

Some mourned the gods, some mourned brothers, and some mourned deceased wives.

He sang whatever came to mind, as though he were hosting Old Man's personal open-air poetry gathering.

Yet no one cared what Old Man was singing, nor would anyone mock him for it.

Amid Old Man's mournful, hoarse chanting, the audience below thought of their dead family members and friends. One by one, their eyes brimmed with tears, their grief overwhelming.

Death meant never seeing each other again.