"They didn't follow us. They've already left. The innkeeper was afraid of bad luck, so he had people take the sisters outside the city to burn and bury them. He even warned me to keep my damn mouth shut. Fuck him."
Before long, You An went back to take a look and brought Old Hou and Li Chen fresh news.
Li Chen slammed his fist onto the table, making the teacups rattle. "A fiend who kills without blinking!"
Old Hou said, "We'd best steer clear of people like that. Otherwise, we won't even know how we died."
"But, young brother, we really never imagined you were an heir to the legendary Creation-Promotion Secret Art!"
You An clicked his tongue in wonder at that as well.
Throughout the Eastern Victory Continent, everyone knew of Yan Shi's feats of creation, but not everyone could name all the arts within the Creation-Promotion Secret Art. After all, such things lay a hundred and eight thousand miles beyond the lives of ordinary people.
Like Old Hou, however, he had seen that Li Chen was already a true Puppet Master at such a young age, despite not being a disciple of the Creation Sect, and had more or less guessed that he possessed a secret art.
Now that the thin paper over that window had been pierced, he was not particularly surprised.
Li Chen said, "I've heard people say that Yan Shi once called this art ill-omened. It seems he, too, suffered the pain of war and displacement in his early years. Tell me, is it truly the fate of people in this world for youth to fade so easily, and for beauty to meet an early grave?"
Lately, he had been hunting demonic beasts with Old Hou and the others to earn money. His days had been busy and fulfilling, but on the whole, they had also been fairly peaceful.
Only when the sisters Xiao Die and Xiao Ying met their tragic deaths had he been jolted awake.
This world had always been a world of turmoil and displacement.
His parents in this life, the escaped Sword Cultivator slave he had encountered on the road to the Commandery Seat, and Old Hou's companion who had perished in a tiger's jaws had all long since proven that.
Li Chen sighed. "I'm suddenly beginning to understand why an art like this came into being."
"Living in this world, people face birth, aging, sickness, and death, love, hatred, parting, and loss. All fear suffering, yet are powerless against it. Only by cultivating and seeking the Dao can they defy heaven, change their fate, and attain longevity and freedom."
You An patted Li Chen's shoulder and consoled him. "Let it go, young brother. This world has always been this rotten. Those two girls were innocent, sure, but there's nothing we can do, is there?"
At that, he gave a self-mocking smile. "Back then, my unlucky father was beaten to death right before my eyes. What could I do? I still had to look after my own survival first, didn't I?"
His words left both Old Hou and Li Chen momentarily stunned.
Recovering, Old Hou said to them, "Let's discuss what we should do now. That brat claimed to be a Grand Artisan's son. Do you think it's true?"
You An said, "Most likely. Without a Grand Artisan father backing him, he probably couldn't act so outrageously. And I took a look at the guard who attacked earlier. He should indeed be a Mechanical Martial Artist."
Old Hou quickly asked, "How does his strength compare with yours?"
You An was probably the strongest of the three in a head-on fight now. Moreover, he had once been the son of an Aristocratic Clan and did possess a discerning eye.
You An said, "That's hard to say. A Mechanical Martial Artist relies half on himself and half on his War Armor. How well the two complement each other is also crucial."
Old Hou sighed. "Isn't the same true of Puppeteers? A Puppeteer isn't necessarily a Puppet Master, but a Puppet Master is certainly a Puppeteer. Since that brat comes from such an extraordinary background, it wouldn't be surprising if he actually pulled out a Three-Star Puppet or even a Four-Star Puppet. Even if his own cultivation is only at Qi Refining, he still isn't someone we can handle."
"When we faced him earlier, I didn't feel anything was amiss. Only now do I feel a lingering fear. Around someone whose temperament and outlook differ so wildly from ordinary people's, our lives could be in danger at any moment, unless we have greater wealth, influence, or strength than he does."
You An agreed. "That's right. If Rogue Cultivators like us were killed, no one would step forward to do anything either. We might just be rolled up in straw mats, taken to the burial grounds outside the city, and dumped into shallow graves."
Li Chen said, "If we can't afford to provoke that brat, surely we can afford to avoid him? We've rested as much as we need to anyway. Let's leave tonight."
Old Hou said, "Actually, I was thinking the same thing. The untamed world is so vast-I refuse to believe we'll run into him again once we're out of Maple Grove Market!"
The three decided to leave without delay. They knew neither the people nor the place here, and had nothing to linger over. Avoiding inexplicable trouble was what mattered.
Before long, all three had finished packing. They abandoned even their deposit at the inn and left at once.
But they failed to notice an intricate dragonfly-like puppet perched on a wall across the street, its glittering Eye Crystals watching silently.
"Young master, just as you expected, they've gone out of the city. It looks like they're planning to leave."
In a teahouse on Maple Grove Market's shopping street, Zuo Hao had left the Flying Chair he habitually used to get around and sat at a table drinking plain tea.
Zuo Shan came in from outside and reported to him.
"Understood. It seems these people really would rather refuse the toast and drink the wine of punishment." The corners of Zuo Hao's mouth rose slightly in a cold smile.
"Young master, what do you intend to do?" a woman in fitted black martial attire asked in a clear voice from behind Zuo Hao.
She was beautiful, with a cold, aloof air, but the character for "slave" had been tattooed in ink on her right cheek. About an inch across, it stood out clearly like a brand.
Together with the three-foot sword she held, it made her identity unmistakable.
She was a Sword Slave!
Sword Cultivators from the Other Continent often fought Puppet Masters, building deep hatred over the years. Puppet Masters never missed a chance to humiliate their enemies. They also sought to study and seize their cultivation methods, and often spread deciphered sword arts far and wide.
Lowly slaves and menial servants, in particular, found it easier to learn them.
Sword Slaves were divided into Born Slaves and House-Born Slaves. True Sword Cultivators captured from the Other Continent who remained fierce and untamed were Born Slaves, while those tamed through generations of breeding, as well as children born to one's own servants who achieved success in the sword arts, were House-Born Slaves.
Born Slaves were difficult to control. Most were brainwashed and had their souls refined through secret arts, or were transformed into human puppets and the like, to seize their supposedly "self-contained" supernatural might.
Most House-Born Slaves were native to this continent, and their aptitude varied greatly. Yet whenever one stood out, wealthy nobles and powerful experts would lavish resources on their training and keep them for other purposes.
Clearly, this woman in martial attire was a House-Born Slave serving as Zuo Hao's guard. She had not appeared with him earlier because she had been ordered to purchase local spirit materials.
Sword Slaves bore conspicuous tattooed marks and were very easy to recognize. Those who could keep slaves usually had a powerful faction behind them, or possessed considerable status and strength themselves. Thus, she had encountered no trouble at all on her errand; on the contrary, her master's backing had made things even easier.
Zuo Hao drained his cup of tea and said, "Refusing me isn't something he can get away with so easily. Doesn't he want to avoid competing with me? Then I'll force him to compete!"
He abruptly rose and climbed onto the Flying Chair hovering beside him.
"Come. Let's go find them."