Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
In the eyes of the Second Consort, the person who had really helped the Dragon King was not Shangguan Ru, but rather Luo Ningcha.
Without Luo Ningcha, there would be no reason for King Riyao Tuosai to ally himself with the Second Consort and the Dragon King. If that were the case, then it would be difficult for the two of them to gain a foothold in the Royal Court, let alone travel thousands of miles to the Western Regions and join that Prince Duodun.
Luo Ningcha, who had just sent Tuosai away, was in a state of triumph. “See, even you are not completely right sometimes. The best way to conquer a man is not to sleep with him, but rather to not sleep with him. But I don’t blame you. You are a man but you have no experience in such things, and perhaps you had ulterior motives at that time.”
Luo Ningcha had a slight change of mind and had subverted the temptation incident a few years ago, now believing that the seducer was Servant Huan rather than herself, and that he had other purposes behind teaching her the seducing techniques, and that once he had achieved them, he had turned cold and started ignoring her.
One of the purposes she called the Dragon King here was to illustrate it.
Luo Ningcha was sitting behind a screen. From now on, any man who tried to break through the barrier in front her had to pay a heavy price, even the Dragon King.
Gu Shenwei was very happy about this situation. He actually breathed a sigh of relief, so to speak, as he never regretted the first time he had indulged himself in his boyhood, but he would not be proud of it either. If he had the chance to do it all over again, he would have found a way to say ‘no’ to the Miss.
“Nothing can escape your eyes.”
“And my hands.” Luo Ningcha’s tone grew serious as she had not called the Dragon King here to reminisce about the old days. “Lotus must die. She tried to assassinate and kidnapped me, and even her underling beat me. She’s the one I hate the most in the world. She used to be your guard but is now your enemy, so I want you to kill her with your own hands, as well as that Han Qin. Bring their heads to me as a gift.”
“Can’t King Riyao help you?”
“Lotus is a rat on the run, and Tuosai is a tiger. He’s powerful enough to defeat other tigers, but not necessarily able to catch a rat. You are the cat, as you are the best person to do this.”
Luo Ningcha giggled at her vivid metaphor but then felt very dissatisfied with the silence of the Dragon King. “So, are you still in love with Lotus? I heard that you almost died at her hands. Do not try my patience and do not think that I’ll treat you differently just because of our former relationship.”
Power also brought women a lot of things. Luo Ningcha had already become domineering even before she really possessed a reliable power. Gu Shenwei suddenly felt that she and Tuosai were a perfect match.
“No, I’m thinking of a plan. Lotus hid very well; I have to find a way to draw her out.”
“Isn’t that simple, you…” Luo Ningcha swallowed her words, before smilingly saying, “You are a killer, and looking for people and killing them is your expertise. Satisfy my desires and bring those two heads to me, and you’ll receive a lot of rewards. A lot.”
Gu Shenwei wanted only one ‘reward,’ which was also the Second Consort’s goal. “After helping you get revenge, I hope to borrow some troops from King Riyao and return to the Western Regions.”
“Of course. Do you think that I want to live in a tent on the prairie forever?” Luo Ningcha chuckled. “I know. It’s a deal. You help me kill Lotus and Han Qin, and I’ll help you borrow troops from King Riyao. After all, you are the Dragon King, and everything is a deal to you, isn’t it?”
Gu Shenwei could only repeat what he had said earlier. “Nothing can escape your eyes.”
Luo Ningcha, of course, did not understand that eradicating the Waning Moon Hall was the most urgent task for Gu Shenwei at present. If she thought a bit more, she would know that she did not need to ask the Dragon King for help at all, nor make any deals. She just had to wait and watch.
Gu Shenwei stood in the doorway and took in a deep breath of the evening mellow air before he walked to the guards, took the reins from Long Fanyun and leaped on his horse.
He finally understood how hard it was to get rid of the killer’s identity. He had barely been awake for half a day and almost everyone was beckoning him to kill at once and kill more.
The current Royal Court was like the East Castle during the slaughtering period of the disciples; killing was allowed and encouraged. It was just that this time, no one had the right to call a stop to it.
Looking at it from a killer’s perspective, everything was not only simple but also exciting.
Gu Shenwei met Shangguan Ru on his way back to the camp.
Shangguan Ru was riding the Flame Foal at a normal speed so that the hundred or so guards behind her could follow along. The terrain was bumpy and she also rose and fell rhythmically. Gu Shenwei recognized her with a simple glance and suddenly thought of the time he had first seen her when he returned to Jade City.
Half of Shangguan Ru’s guards were female soldiers from the Land of Fragrance and the other half were horsemen of the Second Consort. They had heard the good news that the Dragon King had awakened on the way, so the female soldiers were all in great delight while the horsemen were solemn and dignified, greeting the Dragon King in unison.
Like the Second Consort, Shangguan Ru was dressed in a light military uniform except for the exaggerated headdress. Instead, she wore a simple scarf like the female soldiers.
Her cheeks reddened slightly as she galloped along, and her eyes shone strangely in the evening light of the sunset.
She was smiling. “I’m very happy to hear that you are awake.”
“Thank you. I heard that you went to see the Commandant. How did it go?”
“Not bad. The Commandant also hopes to put an end to the chaos on the prairie as soon as possible and hoped that the meeting of the kings the day after tomorrow would result in a solution.”
Shangguan Ru was carrying out a plan that was doomed to failure. She wanted to persuade the forces to give up the fight and elect the new Khan in a peaceful manner. Although the Second Consort didn’t comment on it, she had clearly indicated that fighting for the title of Khan by force was a tradition in the Norland that had existed for hundreds of years, and would not change because of a woman, especially when this woman was a foreigner.
Gu Shenwei couldn’t help but think that she was as stubborn as she was little and that she would follow her heart and never stop until she had achieved her goal. Unfortunately, the prairie was not the castle, and she was no longer the Tenth Gongzi. The influence she could wield here was negligible.
She was like a proud child who demanded to play her own game in front of all the children.
Gu Shenwei nodded at her and did not think that he was qualified or capable of changing her mind.
The two suddenly felt that there was nothing left to say. There were a few people nearby who, however, looked them expectantly and was amazed at the politeness and silence of the two.
Old Man Mu coughed and imitated Shangguan Ru’s voice, “Dragon King, is your chest still hurting? I’ve been worried a lot.” Then he replied in the Dragon King’s tone, “It’s all right. It doesn’t hurt anymore. I dreamt about you often too.”
His imitation was vivid but he didn’t get the results he had expected. He thought that Shangguan Ru would be shy and that the Dragon King would show his manhood at the right time to tell him to shut up.
But it turned out that the one who told him to shut up was Shangguan Ru, and she wasn’t shy at all. “Old Man Mu, are you trying to perform ventriloquism? Shut up and follow me.”
“Ah, I don’t have to protect the Dragon King?”
“He’s awake, and doesn’t need your protection anymore.”
Gu Shenwei politely said good-bye to Shangguan Ru and noticed that there was a familiar-looking monk in her party. It was the disciple of Fayan, Lianqing, who had once sought revenge on him.
Lianqing lowered his head and tried not to look at the Dragon King. He could not completely forget the hatred tied to his brother’s death.
Old Man Mu didn’t care who he should follow, so he turned to the Dragon King and loudly said, “Take good care of Hall Leader Han. Say hello to her for me, and tell her to watch her hair!”
Shangguan Fei hesitated about who to follow. He hadn’t mastered Old Man Mu’s Five Hole Punch and the Dragon King was nominally his lord. Soon, he decided to chase after the Dragon King.
A few paces later, Old Man Mu’s voice rang out behind, “Wait a moment, Dragon King, wait!”
“The good girl has something to tell you, alone.” Old Man Mu winked. When the Dragon King turned around to meet Shangguan Ru, he nodded meaningfully.
“What is my sister is going to say?” Shangguan Fei curiously looked around.
“You will never understand such things.” Old Man Mu scornfully said while looking Shangguan Fei up and down as if seeing him for the first time, “You and your sister were born mistakenly. How come you’re a sissy, and she’s… you know… valiant and heroic in her bearing.”
Shangguan Fei blushed and whispered, “I’m not a sissy…” As he said this his eyes uncontrollably turned to the nearby Long Fanyun.
Long Fanyun’s tall body was like a stone carving, showing no reaction to his attention.
The more Old Man Mu looked, the more he became confused, “Something isn’t right. Why does it seem like these two are blaming each other?”
Shangguan Ru actually became more polite. She wanted to return the Flame Foal. “I forgot. It’s your horse.”
“Just keep it. I hardly ever use it anyway.”
He was a killer and he indeed didn’t have many chances to gallop with it.
Shangguan Ru affectionately scratched the Flame Foal’s neck. “Thanks. I’ll borrow it, and you can take it back at any time.”
“Alright.”
The sun was setting, and night was covering the prairie at a perceptible speed. Shangguan Ru’s hands and eyes still remained on the horse’s neck, “I overheard some news. Wild Horse has joined the Essence Pavilion and become a dual-cultivator of one of the disciples. They pretended to join the Waning Moon Hall but actually, they are making use of them, and Lotus… is in danger.”
“Her danger is not Wild Horse, but me.”
Shangguan Ru felt a touch of enmity and vigilance in the Dragon King’s voice, and she knew that she was crossing a delicate line, and with only half a step further, she would be interfering in the Dragon King’s affairs.
“Killing is not the only way to solve problems.”
“Of course not, but it’s the most effective way.”
“That is Lotus’s view.”
Gu Shenwei was suddenly boiling over with rage for no reason. “Do you still remember that we stole the Daoless Scroll together?”
“Mmm.”
“Before you, Lotus also gave me a copy of chapter seven, but it was another version. It was because of her that I received Qi deviation and still can’t resolve it even now. I can make compromises when necessary, but now I can’t think of a reason to not kill her.”
Shangguan Ru was stunned. She knew that the Dragon King’s internal Qi had a problem but didn’t know it was because of Lotus.
In fact, she was becoming the only outsider that had learned of the feud between the Dragon King and Lotus.
Gu Shenwei felt that he had been too impulsive. There was no need for him to explain everything, so he softened his tone. “Now that you’ve decided to refrain from killing, you should never get near it again. There’s no stone wall here to protect you and you might get caught up in it at any time.”
Staying away from killing meant staying away from the Dragon King.
“Fayan said that the Grand Enlightenment Sword Sutra… could turn someone into a devil, but could also make one a Buddha…”
“There are many ways to practice the Death Sutra; the monk might be right but I can only practice the one that suits me the best. You will never understand because you constantly have a choice, but I do not. I am destined to move forward on the narrow road decreed by Heaven. Even only a little doubt and hesitation will doom me.”
After experiencing so many betrayals and tribulations, Shangguan Ru had thought that she was fully mature, but now she realized how childish she still was. She and Servant Huan had walked farther and farther apart on different paths, creating an impassable chasm between them, and the familiar figures they saw of each other were just an illusion.
Gu Shenwei turned his horse around, feeling a stinging and painful, yet light heart.
