Chapter 28: How Can I Compete with Him?

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Jingfu Temple, early morning.

“Elder Xu, you had Xiao Juan summon me here. You couldn’t possibly expect me to attend some ridiculous heroes’ gathering, could you?”

The man who called himself Zhao Qian, Sun Li, Zhou Wu, Zheng Wang sat slouched in his chair, his face twisted in utter distaste.

Xu Chongxiao looked far older than he had the day before. Expressionless, he said, “I suspect that Zhang Chengyi, the Khitan dog who abducted me, is in league with Qiao Feng and has been plotting with him.”

To deal with Zhang Chengyi, he needed more people on his side. Raising a great banner was therefore essential.

As luck would have it, everything seemed to form a single chain.

Kang Min had used Ma Dayuan’s death to drive Qiao Feng into a corner, thereby proving that Qiao Feng knew of his true identity and was trying to find the former chief’s secret letter.

Then he had conveniently been abducted by Zhang Chengyi, making it perfectly reasonable to claim that Zhang Chengyi had been searching for and interrogating him about the secret letter Kang Min had delivered into his hands.

In any case, only he, the six members of the Shan family, and his junior had known what happened that night. Shan Zheng hated Zhang Chengyi to the marrow and had already agreed to join him.

Even his escape could be explained away by claiming that he had been exceptionally resourceful and vigorous despite his age. After all, no one knew why he had managed to return alive.

Qiao Feng’s movements over the past few days were further proof that he was the mastermind behind everything.

And Zhang Chengyi was tall, broad-shouldered, and powerfully built. His manner of speaking and moving was strange and uncouth, making him look exactly like a barbaric Khitan.

As for the unclear parts, they could be smoothed over with nothing more than his tongue. Besides, he had spoken with Kang Min in private before dawn that very day, and the two of them had woven the story together perfectly.

At the heroes’ gathering, with Quan Guanqing’s eloquence, the secret letter as material evidence, and those who had witnessed the Yanmen Pass incident serving as witnesses, the Beggar Sect’s brothers would soon all be present. There would also be a host of eminent monks invited by his junior, the Venerable Shenshan, while heroes from every corner of the Central Plains martial world would be in attendance. They could absolutely ruin Qiao Feng’s reputation on the spot.

After that, Zhang Chengyi would be branded a Khitan dog, denounced and cursed by everyone, until someone finally killed him.

The story might be somewhat far-fetched, but aside from Shaolin Temple, which had somehow become involved, Cool Breeze Temple was his own school. At least half of the Beggar Sect could be used for his purposes. As long as Quan Guanqing’s silver tongue performed as expected, that meant nearly seventy percent of those present would stand on his side.

Those so-called heroes of the martial world were nothing but men who repeated whatever they heard. A little provocation would make them obey like hounds.

It could be said that if this were a game of cuju, then every player on both sides—even the one who passed judgment—would be his pawn. What could Zhang Chengyi possibly use to oppose him?

“Elder Xu, you said that the Jinshan Wanderer came for the secret letter.”

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Madam Tan was doubtful, but this was, after all, an internal matter of the Beggar Sect. She had merely come because she was the family member of a witness being contacted, and had no reason to ask too many questions. Thus she said, “Is the secret letter still in your possession?”

“Of course.” A smile squeezed itself onto Xu Chongxiao’s slightly pale face. He bowed and said, “I ask for everyone’s assistance.”

Master Tan and Madam Tan had nothing to say. The Venerable Zhi Guang, hurriedly brought there, let out a sigh and pressed his palms together, silently reciting a Buddhist prayer.

He had opposed Qiao Feng learning martial arts from the very beginning, fearing that they would be “raising a tiger to invite disaster.” Yet he had also felt guilt in his heart, hoping that the Liao infant they had rescued would grow up safely and live out a peaceful life.

Now matters had reached this point. Qiao Feng’s bloodline had already been exposed, and there was still the secret letter from the leading elder as well as the note left by Chief Wang. It was only because Shan Zheng and Elder Xu had jointly invited him that he had emerged from seclusion.

Yet now it seemed there might be some hidden truth. Since matters had come this far, it would be better to lay the truth of the past bare beneath the sun. He spoke slowly.

“I am willing only to recount what happened in the past. I have taken no part in the rights and wrongs of the martial world for many years.”

Zhao Qian Sun gave a hollow chuckle. “Khitan or Han—what does any of that have to do with me? I, Zhao Qian Sun, am merely a walking corpse in this world. Apart from Xiao Juan, the only person I care about, there is nothing worth my concern.”

Xu Chongxiao looked toward Madam Tan.

Master Tan showed his displeasure, yet as in the past, he silently stood to one side without saying a word.

Madam Tan pondered for a long while. The truth was already clear. It was indeed improper to allow a Khitan suspected of murdering Ma Dayuan to continue serving as chief of the Beggar Sect. Besides, she would merely be giving testimony and would not involve herself in their private affairs. There was no harm in that.

Thus she said, “Senior Brother.”

“Heh heh, you heard that! You heard that! Xiao Juan called me!”

Zhao Qian Sun immediately sprang to his feet, waving his arms about like a child.

At that moment, Xu Chongxiao showed none of the delight of a plan succeeding. Instead, his eyes revealed an almost frenzied light, while a faint flush spread across his somewhat pale cheeks.

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The Western Regions, the Xingxiu Sect.

“Qiushui…”

Wuya Zi stood upon a high place, looking down at the scattered former disciples of the Xingxiu Sect as they departed in twos and threes. His expression was somewhat melancholy.

A few days earlier, he had actually been confident that he could kill his traitorous disciple Ding Chunqiu outright. But after striking with one palm, he had sensed traces of the Lesser Formless Skill within the traitor.

The Lesser Formless Skill was an art that even their master had never passed on to him or his senior sister.

In this world, only one person possessed the Lesser Formless Skill: his former lover, Li Qiushui.

His former lover had been willing to teach his traitorous disciple the secret martial art of their school. Did that prove that he had been wrong?

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It was that brief moment of distraction that cost him the opportunity to kill Ding Chunqiu outright. Yet he had not been without a contingency. The palm strike he had delivered contained the ever-changing energy of the Northern Darkness True Qi. For six of the twelve double-hours each day, Ding Chunqiu would feel as though he were trapped in an icy cellar; for the other six, as though he were inside a blazing furnace. When midnight came and yin and yang converged, his internal organs would writhe as if being twisted by knives.

Without a particular method and peerless internal power, it was impossible to dispel that strand of energy.

Given his current level of martial ability, probably only Zhang Chengyi could do so.

He wanted to see whether Ding Chunqiu would seek Li Qiushui’s help—and whether Li Qiushui would come to him in turn.

Once this matter is settled, I can return with peace of mind and help Chengyi fulfill his great ambition of breaking through the limits of martial cultivation, can’t I?

“Grand-Master~”

A fourteen- or fifteen-year-old girl in purple spoke sweetly. “Where are you going? Could you take me with you?”

As she spoke, she lowered her head, her large eyes darting furtively from side to side.

Anyone capable of defeating her master with a single palm and killing her senior brother, Zhaixing Zi, with one strike was an unparalleled expert. Naturally, she had to cling to him and never let go.

“I am not your grand-master,” Wuya Zi said calmly. “You are disciples of Ding Chunqiu. Ding Chunqiu is merely a traitor to my Carefree Sect. I did not kill you because most of you were controlled by that traitor with deadly poison. Now that the poison has been removed, go your separate ways. In the future, simply do not commit evil.”

Had he been younger, he might have slaughtered most of the Xingxiu Sect to vent his anger.

But age had softened his heart. Moreover, he remembered that the Xingxiu Sect had come into being only because of the disciple he himself had once taught so well. Thus he had stayed behind, investigating them one by one to determine whether any had committed grievous evil, imposing different punishments as appropriate and ridding them of the deadly poison in their bodies.

Now, at last, the matter had come to an end. It was time for him to leave and go somewhere Li Qiushui could find him.

A place that he had dreamed of returning to countless times after becoming completely paralyzed.

Mount Wuliang.

With that thought, Wuya Zi’s figure drifted into the distance.

The girl in purple pouted and stamped her foot, yet there was not the slightest trace of discouragement on her face. Gritting her teeth, she chased after him and called out, “Grand-Master! Grand-Master, wait for me!”

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