Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Tu Pianpian felt that her patience was running out. “The Norland is so uninhabitable.” She was holding her crutch in her right hand tightly, slowly rotating it and sinking it into the ground deeper and deeper.
She was in a shabby tent, the ground of which was covered with uneven grass. The rainwater was drizzling in uninvited, and her ankles were already drenched.
“This tent, this ground, this broken bed, this rain, this mutton, and the rancid odor of bodies in the distance – all of these things are driving me crazy.” Looking at the three uninvited guests before her, the expression on her face was tenacious and arrogant. “But I’m not leaving without the Khan’s head.”
“I’m not here to talk about the Khan’s head,” Gu Shenwei replied calmly, with Dog Butcher on his left side and Fan Yongda on the other.
Fan Yongda hadn’t recovered from his injury yet, but he had insisted on coming with the Dragon King because he was the only one of them who could understand the meaning of the various signals left behind by the sects of the Central Plains and find the temporary camp of the Kongtong Sect.
“Are you sure that you will win the competition tomorrow?” Tu Pianpian asked sneeringly, who was obviously confident in the power of the two Qingcheng Sect Leaders.
Standing in front of his elder sister, Dog Butcher was a little afraid, but he still ventured to speak up. “Senior Sister, the Dragon King’s here to ask you for information about a person.”
“Who are you calling Senior Sister?” Tu Pianpian reprimanded. “You two are now serving the barbarians. If it weren’t for the kung fu competition, we would have been fought to the death by now.”
Dog Butcher didn’t dare to speak up again. He gave a signal to Fan Yongda by glancing at him, and tossed the hot potato to his sect nephew.
With his head drooping down halfway, Fan Yongda gave a small cough and said, “Elder Aunt Master, the Dragon King’s actually from the Central Plains.”
“No matter where he’s from, he’s not a man of the Central Plains if he’s not loyal to the emperor.”
“Even if it’s the case, shouldn’t the Kongtong Sect at least treat Dragon King with the courtesy of the Central Plains?”
“Humph, I knew you would play this card.” Tu Pianpian sank her crutch a few more inches into the ground. Yet the Dragon King had spared her once, which was an indisputable fact. “Say it. Who do you want to know about. But if it goes against the interests of the Central Plains, I will not tell you a single word.”
“Marshal Yang,” Gu Shenwei said.
“Marshal Yang?” Tu Pianpian pulled her crutch out of the ground, and the hollow space beneath was a foot deep and filled with muddy water. “I see. You use the Gu family sabersmanship. What’s your relationship with Marshal Yang?”
“My surname is also Yang.” Gu Shenwei gave her his fake surname he had used in the Western Regions. Although more and more people knew his true background in detail, he was still trying to keep it secret from as many people as he could.
“So, you’re Marshal Yang’s nephew? Okay, then it’s fine if I tell you. Everybody says that Marshal Yang’s a hero in the martial arts world, but I can see it crystal clear; he’s merely a petty fame-chaser. It’s a giant joke that people mention the word ‘hero’ and his name in the same sentence.”
Fan Yongda immediately blushed and tried to intervene. “But I heard…”
“What you heard was nothing but nonsense!” Tu Pianpian cut her sect nephew short abruptly.
“So all those tales about Marshal Yang working as a servant for three years and mediating disputes here and there in the martial arts world were lies?”
“Most of them are true. But Marshal Yang did all those things for a different purpose.”
“What purpose?” Dog Butcher was even more curious than the Dragon King.
“Ha, use your brains. Marshal Yang used to be a pirate. How could a man like that suddenly convert from a killer and robber into a good Samaritan? He General Gu’s apprentice, and after he mastered the unique kung fu skills of the Gu Family, he maneuvered his way into joining the Luo Village of He Dong and there, he learned first-rate, sophisticated swordsmanship. That was his true purpose. And with regards to his mediating disputes afterwards, those were nothing but camouflage.”
“That can’t be true. It’s not despicable to bear kung fu skills of two families. He’s a hero, and if he told me to, I would also…” Dog Butcher thought that his sister’s opinions were way too arbitrary.
Fan Yongda also nodded in agreement to his Uncle-Master. As far as he knew, according to the rules of the martial arts world, Marshal Yang’s actions could not have drawn much criticism.
“You don’t know shit!” Tu Pianpian detested being contradicted the most, which was why she swore in her rage. But she quickly continued talking to cover it up. “Imagine that there’s an irreconcilable hostility between the Central Plains and the Norland, and that the two of them are about to fight to death. However, there’s a man who’s working for and taking money from both sides. What would you think of him?”
Dog Butcher and Fan Yongda knew what she was insinuating and both lowered their heads in silence. Neither of them dared to try to defend the Dragon King by arguing that he didn’t count as a Norlander.
“The Gu family and the Luo Village are unfriendly towards each other?” Gu Shenwei was slightly surprised. He had never heard his father or brother mention the relations between the two families. But after thinking carefully, he also realized that his father had never said any good words about the Luo Village either. Even Yang Zheng, who knew all those tales about the martial arts world very well, had always tried to avoid talking about the Luo Village.
“Not just unfriendly. Hostile. It’s said that it was the family members of the Luo Family were the officials in the Imperial Court who had persecuted General Gu to his death. Marshal Yang owed so much to General Gu, but not only did he refuse to avenge General Gu’s death, he also became a servant of the Luo Village for three years. And yet you all still call him a hero?”
Gu Shenwei’s mind was in a mess. He’d always thought that his father Gu Lun had held no grudges against anybody in the Imperial Court. Even Wei Song had said so. But judging by Tu Pianpian’s words, the Gu Family had actually had an irreconcilable enmity with a foe that had a powerful background.
And Marshal Yang’s deeds were also very strange. Three years as a servant sounded somewhat similar to Gu Shenwei’s stint at Golden Roc Castle, but he hadn’t sought revenge. “Marshal Yang didn’t kill anyone of the Luo Family?”
“Of course not. Marshal Yang’s on very good terms with the Luo Family. When he was acting as a hero and mediating disputes here and there, did you think that people would listen to him for his own sake? It’s the Luo Village behind him. They colluded with each other and both were experts of fishing for fame.”
Dog Butcher said in a low voice, “In any case, his heroic deeds are still real.”
Fan Yongda said to the Dragon King in an even lower voice, “Lord Wei’s also an enemy of the Luo Family.”
Gu Shenwei had known about since long ago that the Kongtong Sect was working for Wei Song, so it was natural for them to be involved in the disputes in the Imperial court. Judging by Tu Pianpian’s attitude towards the Luo Village, Wei Song was clearly not a friend of the Luo Village either.
“What are the relations between the Qingcheng Sect and the Luo Village like?” Gu Shenwei put his confusion aside. Their purpose was to find the weakness of Lu Mian, not to rake up old stories of the previous generation.
“Very simple. The Luo Family happenss to be the current leader of the martial arts world, and they have family members who are also high-rank officials. When the Qingcheng Sect failed to mediate between the disputes of the two candidates for the title of Sect Leader, they had no choice but to ask the Luo Family to make the decision. But the Luo Family wasn’t stupid. They used the candidates to work for them by saying that whoever brought the Khan’s head back would gain the Luo Family’s support.”
Dog Butcher hadn’t set foot in the martial arts world for a long time, and also didn’t talk much with his sister, so he was enjoying the stories very much. “Why are there two Sect Leaders of the Qingcheng Sect? Is this Lu Mian a family member of the last Sect Leader Lu Tong?”
Tu Pianpian glared at her younger brother as she replied, “Lu Mian is Lu Tong’s son. How do you not know even this? Lu Tong died early. And back then, Lu Mian and his brother hadn’t achieved much in terms of their swordsmanship, so they didn’t dare challenge Liu Qingpu. Now that they think they’re ready, they started a fight for leadership.”
“And his brother?” Dog Butcher had been paying great attention to the details of the story.
“Lu Mian and Lu Xinghui…”
“Lu Xinghui’s dead,” Gu Shenwei said. He suddenly recalled that swordsman from the Central Plains.
This had taken place before the Tournament of the Royal Court, when Chu Nanping had suddenly comprehended the secret of practicing the Emotionless Swordsmanship. Gu Shenwei had taken him along to the slums in search for a subject to practice their swordsmanship on. The first one was called Gong Ziying, who gave his sword to Chu Nanping as a present before he died and who told him that the name of the other person was “Gong Xinghui”.
Lu Xinghui’s swordsmanship was light and swift. Recalling the scene at that time, Gu Shenwei didn’t think there were any similarities between his swordsmanship and that of Lu Mian.
“Dead?” Tu Pianpian was surprised. “How come? Lu Mian has never mentioned anything that would hint at that.”
“He was using a pseudonym, so Lu Mian probably hasn’t heard of it yet.” But Gu Shenwei was actually thinking that it was more likely that Lu Mian was pretending that he didn’t know.
Having no interest in the two brothers of the Lu Family, Tu Pianpian shrugged. “We’ll put an end to this at noon tomorrow. Either the Dragon King will hand over the Khan’s head, or the people of the Central Plains will give up. I can finally leave this damn place.”
“But if so, wouldn’t the head be taken by the Qingcheng Sect?” Dog Butcher thought that his sister had missed an important part.
“Shut up! The Kongtong Sect’s plans are none of traitors’ business.” Tu Pianpian reprimanded.
After winning the head position, the Qingcheng Sect had to deal with more sect disputes, which was not the part that Gu Shenwei was interested in. “It seems that Lu Mian’s swordsmanship is not from the Qingcheng Sect.”
“Haha!” Tu Pianpian forced out several loud laughs, “I knew that the Dragon King wanted to know the details of Lu Mian’s swordsmanship. Sorry, but I can’t tell you.”
Dog Butcher’s eyes suddenly lit up. He knew his sister so well that he identified the problem immediately, “So you failed to comprehend Lu Mian’s swordsmanship as well, didn’t you?”
“Do you still want to return to Kongdong Mountain? Do you still have the face to kneel in front of the Sect Leader and the Ancestral Master’s tablets?”
Dog Butcher bent slightly at the waist and lowered his head after being rebuked. He had lost his momentum and didn’t dare to speak anymore, neither truth nor lies.
Gu Shenwei walked out of the tent. The rain had just stopped and the sky was very clear, with shining stars and a bright moon.
Tens of disciples of the Kongtong Sect were standing around randomly. Their eyes were not focused on anything in particular, but their weapons were in their hands.
Further away, 5,000 Norland cavalrymen were preparing for a war. They didn’t change their formation because of the heavy rain.
After several miles on their way back, Gu Shenwei said to Long Fanyun, “You return to the camp first. I have something I need to deal with first. Old Man Mu, come with me.”
Although Long Fanyun was very surprised, he wouldn’t question the Dragon King’s order. It was Dog Butcher who spoke up first. “Dragon King, it’s late. The kung fu competition is at noon tomorrow. Don’t you need some rest?”
Old Man Mu had been yearning to go out for several days and immediately replied, “Shut up. The Dragon King has his own plans. Mind your own business.”
“I’ll catch up.”
“Let me and Fan Yongda come. We can help.” Dog Butcher was eager to go out. After several years of closed-door cultivation, he now longed for an adventurous life in the martial arts world very much.
Dog Butcher and Fan Yongda’s kung fu skills were not very compatible with that of the killers of the Western Regions, but the two were familiar enough with the people of the Central Plains and could be helpful, so Gu Shenwei agreed.
Thus, after midnight, the 5,000 Norland cavalrymen returned to camp but the Dragon King and the other three were still in the wilderness.
Fang Wenshi wouldn’t sleep that night. After hearing this news, he was very disappointed. He started complaining to himself that the Dragon King was becoming less and less like a commander in chief, and several hours later, these complaints became public.
It was almost noon, and the people of the martial arts world of the Central Plains came to the camp by invitation. But the Dragon King still hadn’t appeared.
“A king has to be true to his words. Behind the scenes you can make any plans, but in public you have to be true to your word. The time for the competition is at noon, so it has to be at noon. You can’t be even a moment late… Dragon King, where are you?” Fang Wenshi flushed in his anxiety.
Long Fanyun was terrified and held himself accountable for this competition. He straightened up and said, “Let me do it. After all, they never said that Dragon King had to take part in the competition himself.”
Long Fanyun was a valiant general, but he wasn’t good at martial arts competitions. Shangguan Fei was the first to shake his head, but he didn’t want to shoulder such a heavy responsibility. “Mo Lin, your sabersmanship is the best among us, and you’ve also fought them before.”
“I can do this,” Mo Lin said flatly. “Against Liu Qingpu, I think that I have a seventy percent chance of winning. As for Lu Mian, less than thirty percent.”
“What should we do?” Fang Wenshi was scratching his ears and cheeks. “What did I say back then? We shouldn’t have agreed to compete. But now that we did, we mustn’t lose.”
“Let me have a try.”
There were still several kung fu experts in the camp. Han Wuxian and Shangguan Yun didn’t volunteer. Instead, it was Chu Nanping.
Fang Wenshi was greatly confused. Although he knew nothing about kung fu, he had gleaned something from the Dragon King’s remarks: this teenage swordsman’s kung fu skills had greatly deteriorated and was not as good as before.
“Your sword… didn’t it snap?” Fang Wenshi said carefully.
“I have an extra one,” Chu Nanping replied flatly.
Fang Wenshi suddenly noticed that Tie Linglong who had always stood by Chu Nanping’s side was not around. He thought to himself, ‘It seems like this pair of love birds had a quarrel. I hope that he’s not making a joke out of this serious affair of the Dragon King’s.’
