Author: 年终 / Nian Zhong

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

---

Chapter 116: Perceive

Hua Jingchun’s goal was simple. She wanted Wu Huai to disappear—whether he was killed or taken away by that inexplicable masked master and disciple, it didn’t matter. As long as she could obtain that fake sword and verify it on the spot, that surname Wu would never approach the Chigou Sect again.

She was missing a leg and couldn’t act as an assassin, and she had limited reliable people around her. Now with the addition of these mysterious figures, the sharpness in her brows faded slightly.

The bandit Ma Shili dutifully played the role of a shield, showing off his might and influence in the surroundings. The merchant caravans that once passed through were almost nonexistent. With Shi Zhongyu watching over the village, there weren’t many disturbances. The dilapidated courtyard had become a temporary base for the Chigou Sect, and in just a few days, the assassination plan was taking shape.

This time, they didn’t need information from the Yueshui Pavilion. The impending arrivals of Qu Duanyun and Xu Jingming could be inferred from the tight security. The officials of Shafu had long been accustomed to dealing with the Chigou Sect and had lost their curiosity about the martial world. However, with the Prince of Rong arriving, they had to put on a good front to keep their positions.

That night.

Shen Zhu packed her clothes under her blankets and left the courtyard alone. Even though members of the Yueshui Pavilion weren’t particularly skilled in martial arts, they were still proficient in qinggong due to their years of wandering. Shen Zhu had a chubby sparrow with her and headed straight for Shafu, carefully scaling the walls to enter the city.

She stepped into the local branch of the Yueshui Pavilion, tidied her clothes, and entered the room reserved for the “Ministry of Heaven”.

“Isn’t this Little Red of the Ministry of Heaven?”

Inside the room sat a few members of the Ministry of Heaven, all of varying ages but with the weathered looks of people who had faced the elements. Shen Zhu smiled sweetly at them and found herself a stool to sit on.

The first speaker clearly didn’t like Shen Zhu’s manner. “The monthly salary of the Yueshui Pavilion isn’t given for nothing. What have you achieved since joining the Ministry of Heaven? I wonder who allowed you to get promoted. You must have gained quite a few benefits.”

He emphasized the word “benefits” sarcastically.

“I’ve read Brother Chen’s investigation into the ‘Mystery of the Disappearance of the Wushu Ore’, which is insightful. Unfortunately, some details are glossed over,” Shen Zhu replied with a poised smile.

Brother Chen hadn’t expected Shen Zhu to be so calm. Pointing out flaws in his research, he immediately lost his sarcastic mood. “What oversight? I traveled through half of Great Yun to investigate!”

“Sun Village, Wang’ankou, and Shenhe Village—all three produced refined wushu ore, yet you only wrote ‘no longer produced’ without explaining why.”

The face of the man surnamed Chen darkened as he was gently pointed out his oversight. After a moment, he retorted, “Such minor details, I can clarify them in three months!”

Shen Zhu intertwined her fingers and smiled even more brightly.

“Who is that lady?” the youngest one whispered. “I’ve never heard of her. I thought the Yueshui Pavilion didn’t admit women. How did she get in?”

“‘The Yueshui Pavilion does not admit women’ is an unwritten rule. Nowadays, there are few women who are literate, so how can they enter the Yueshui Pavilion? But she answered the incomplete question on the Divine Stone, so the Ministry of Heaven had to admit her.”

“Wow, that sounds impressive.”

“It’s nothing special. Since she joined, she hasn’t made any major discoveries. Every puzzle she turns in is mediocre. But they can’t find fault with her. Clearly, she’s just here to coast by. And she has quite an attitude. Did you know? On her first day in the Ministry of Heaven, she took on the ‘Seeking Immortal’ puzzle.”

“I’ve heard about that. If it’s solved, one can become the Minister of the Ministry of Heaven, right? That puzzle has been unsolved for centuries. My seniors told me that it’s not really a question but more of a symbolic decoration to represent the spirit of the Ministry of Heaven… Maybe she just didn’t know.”

The eldest snorted. “She knows what she’s doing. Look at Brother Chen. She’s playing him like a fiddle. That tricky ‘Mystery of the Disappearance of the Wushu Ore’ was something they bet on—”

Shen Zhu placed a book on the table. “I have other urgent matters to attend to. Once the instructions from the word cloth are passed on, I won’t join you for drinks.”

“Tsk, not even accompanying us for a drink,” the senior member snorted.

Shen Zhu flipped through the book, ignoring them.

The meeting concluded quickly, as per usual. After recording the instructions from the Yueshui Pavilion, Shen Zhu stealthily left the city. However, this time, she didn’t return to the village. Instead, she headed to an open space outside the city.

The place was overrun with wild grass, clearly an old graveyard. The atmosphere was dense with an eerie energy. The little sparrow on Shen Zhu’s shoulder shrank into a ball. Shen Zhu adjusted her hairpin and turned around. “Sister, come out. I’m tired of waiting outside for so long.”

A strong wind blew, and Shi Zhongyu landed from a tree. She still wore her coarse and tough attire, and her long hair was tied into a convenient bun. Shi Zhongyu frowned as she looked at Shen Zhu with a slightly stiff expression.

“Being women of the martial world, you shouldn’t be so wary of me,” Shen Zhu said, not with reprimand, but with a hint of teasing in her voice.

“Warriors don’t ask about one’s origins. As for Shi and Yin, I know about them,” Shi Zhongyu said formally, bowing in respect. “But from what I’ve observed over the past few days, you don’t seem to be the loyal servant of Sect Master Shi. If you’re just collaborating with him…”

“You think I might leak information about the Chigou Sect, since we don’t have a direct interest at stake?”

“Yes,” Shi Zhongyu admitted openly. “I saw you sneaking out in the middle of the night, and I was worried.”

Shen Zhu took two steps forward, patting Shi Zhongyu on the shoulder. “I have deep hatred for the Immortal Assembly, and I won’t play into their hands. Don’t worry, with the strength of those two from the Kushan Sect, even if the Heavenly Emperor Laozi himself tried to interfere, they could still forcibly take Wu Huai.”

Shi Zhongyu shrank back. “You don’t seem like someone harboring deep hatred. From the age of six or seven, you were taken in by a family in Qizhou, and they are still doing well today.”

That family had nothing to do with the Immortal Assembly. And how could a child less than six- or seven-years old hold onto such a deep-rooted hatred? Shi Zhongyu had seen those consumed by hatred, and they always looked miserable. But there was no sign of such shadows in Shen Zhu’s eyes.

“It must have been hard for you to investigate,” Shen Zhu said with a playful smile. “The Immortal Assembly probably thought the same as you; that’s why they spared my life back then.”

“If you’re so resentful, why not learn martial arts and take revenge yourself?”

Shen Zhu raised an eyebrow. Although she still appeared playful, there was a growing intensity around her. “What you said makes sense. It’s a pity that I, being a weak woman, can’t kill them all one by one. Maybe it’s better to eliminate their roots and branches.”

Shi Zhongyu took a step back, sensing the genuine and serious tone in Shen Zhu’s words.

“I’m only collaborating with Sect Master Shi out of mutual need. Aren’t you also using us? Didn’t you intentionally bring the Kushan Sect into the courtyard of Hua Jingchun to help Chigou?” Shen Zhu stepped closer to Shi Zhongyu, almost causing the sparrow on her shoulder to fall.

Shi Zhongyu stared at Shen Zhu’s delicately made-up face for a long while, at a loss for words.

“…I was presumptuous tonight,” she finally admitted, bowing her head in seriousness. “I apologize for my offense.”

Inside the village courtyard, the atmosphere had lightened significantly.

With their plans in motion, Hua Jingchun provided them with the woodshed and added some straw meant for feeding cattle. Despite its simplicity, the master and disciple finally had a clean, private room.

“Should we leave the door open?” Shi Jingzhi said cautiously, recalling how Yin Ci had a falling out with the villagers who had taken him in due to being forcibly locked in a woodshed.

He now didn’t want this person to suffer even the slightest bit; his feelings were a mix of bitterness and numbness, which felt very unfamiliar to him.

Yin Ci glanced at Shi Jingzhi, as if seeing right into his heart. “It’s fine. I came in willingly.”

Sect Master Shi finally breathed a sigh of relief. Utilizing his skills in making makeshift shelters, he constructed a relatively clean straw bed in the woodshed. The surrounding air, once tainted with the unpleasant odors of urine and sweat, was now filled only with the scent of the person in his embrace and the fresh aroma of straw. He fell asleep almost instantly.

For the first time in a long while, Shi Jingzhi slept peacefully. However, in the middle of the night, he inadvertently rolled off the bed.

There was a ripping sound.

Shi Jingzhi rolled too leisurely, and not only did his clothes tear, but he was also jabbed awake by the branches stacked against the wall. In pain, he shook his head, ignoring the ripped clothing, and muttered under his breath as he crawled back to the straw bed.

Once on the bed and holding his lover tightly, Sect Master Shi sect realized something was amiss. There used to be a slight touch of a hard object against his chest, but now that spot felt hollow, as if a piece of his heart was missing.

…The protection brocade pouch A’Ci gave him was gone!

It felt as though a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him, and Shi Jingzhi fully woke up. He glanced at the peacefully sleeping Yin Ci, then carefully got out of bed. Without even lighting a fire, he began searching under the moonlight.

The protection brocade pouch was dropped near the bed.

When Shi Jingzhi had rolled into the pile of branches earlier, its strap had gotten caught, leaving it behind. Moonlight shone through the window, casting a faint halo on the pouch. The embroidered peach blossoms seemed even more lifelike. Heartbroken, Shi Jingzhi quickly picked up the pouch, examining it for dirt or tears.

Upon examination, he indeed found something amiss. There was some wet mud in the corner of the woodshed, and a corner of the pouch was damp, giving off a slight earthy smell. Sect Master Shi’s face fell, and he felt deeply saddened.

He decided immediately to clean it outside.

He would get someone to sew an inner pocket in his clothes later. If one day, during a fierce battle, it fell into a deep ravine off a cliff, he wouldn’t even have a place to cry. As Shi Jingzhi carefully cleaned the pouch, his mind wandered. He was so lost in thought that he failed to hold back a mouthful of blood, which he spat out.

Having learned from past mistakes, Shi Jingzhi turned quickly, and all the blood landed on the ground.

However, at that moment, the pouch in his hand suddenly became a tad warmer.

The change in temperature was extremely subtle. As perceptive as Shi Jingzhi was, he only vaguely noticed it because of the contrast with the cold water. He had always kept it close to him and never noticed anything unusual.

Shi Jingzhi furrowed his brows. Closing his eyes, he brought the pouch close to his nose and sniffed carefully. The faint earthy scent mixed with the smell of medicinal ingredients, reminding him of a spider’s web thread that’s about to break, but he managed to discern it.

…The scent was very similar to the materials used by Chen Qianfan for his spells.

Yin Ci said it was a tranquility charm written by Chen Qianfan. However, tranquility charms were usually made with medicinal paper and cinnabar and shouldn’t have the scent of a monster’s corpse.

Shi Jingzhi splashed cold water on his face, took a deep breath, and decisively opened the small pouch.

---

The author has something to say:

Fox: ?

---

<<< || Table of Contents || >>>