As he walked into the city, Mu Bai's right eyelid twitched violently for no reason. Unable to control it, Mu Bai had a bad feeling. He secretly surveyed his surroundings. Footsteps clattered and voices seethed, and from some unknown shadow, a cold, hawklike gaze bore into him.
Keeping his pace neither hurried nor slow, Mu Bai slipped into a restaurant and went upstairs, where he came face-to-face with familiar people. He recognized them both: Zhou Dechen, the Spirit Taming Sect's Fifth Sect Heir, as elegant and poised as ever, and the junior sister in yellow he had encountered at the practice grounds, Jiang Xiao Qian, daughter of an elder of the sect's Weapons Hall.
"Mu Bai of the Pill Hall greets the Fifth Sect Heir."
"Your surname?"
Zhou Dechen had seen Mu Bai at the Pill Hall before, and naturally knew who had ruined his scheme against Zhou Dekai.
"Bathed in virtue, one takes Heaven as one's guide; bathed in earth, one finds life; bathed in harmony, one finds the Dao; bathed in the Dao, one becomes human. Does the Sect Heir know which Mu-'bathe'-I mean?"
"So it's Elder Mu. Elder Mu possesses superb medical skills and calculations worthy of a divine strategist. Today, I see your tongue is sharp as well..."
"You flatter me. I merely seek to keep my life and earn a mouthful of food."
"What you can eat depends on your teeth. Mind you don't chip them!" Zhou Dechen turned to the restaurant's proprietor. "Serve Elder Mu your finest food and your finest wine. Put it on my tab."
"There's no need to trouble yourself, Sect Heir."
"It's only right. Eat plenty!"
With a cold smile, Zhou Dechen rose and walked slowly downstairs. Even after all this time, Jiang Xiao Qian's anger apparently had yet to