Chapter 216 (Part 1): Absolute Trust
Translated by Gumihou
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Some time after he had left, two shadows flitted into the clearing under the cover of darkness. They gave the area a quick look around before warily approaching the grassy area where the body had been abandoned. There was a subtle rustle in the grass, and the two figures reached forward to help the dead ‘Long Pingzhang’ to his feet.
The ‘dead’ man had one hand over his neck, and was hissing unhappily, “Aiyo, my heavens, too swift, ah. F*ck his mother, just what kind of speed is that? Surely he can’t have developed that kind of skill even if he started training from his mother’s womb, ba? It’s faster than lightning, I really thought I died, ah. Aiyo, mother*cker, how scary. He’s not human, ah.”
One of the black figures pulled down his mask to reveal a grin, he laughed, “You think? That’s the Master of the Mingyu House. Without this kind of skill, how could he be the leader of Six Circles of martial arts?”
“The most awful thing is, I’ve clearly died, but he still had to come over and check my breath. I can’t even let my eyelids tremble you know? Do you know how hard it is to control the eyelids? I nearly exposed myself, that beast is too cruel. When I heard him say that line just before I ‘died’, I thought he was going to do the decent thing and bury my body somewhere. To think he would just kick me into a grass pile, ah. Luckily I have a herbal pouch on my person, otherwise I’d have been food for the bloody snakes, rats, ants and other assorted insects.”
This incredible guy whose skill was high enough to fool even Su Dong Lou turned out to be an incredible chatterbox. He busied himself muttering and complaining over Su Dong Lou’s lack of courtesy to bury him after the murder. He was still lamenting over the lack of gentlemanly burial behaviour when one of his comrades said, “Enough, the master is waiting for our report. Just before Su Dong Lou killed you, did he show any hesitation? Was there any sense of unwillingness? Did he say anything?”
“The f*ck, that’s the Lightning Sword, alright? No, not a Lightning Sword, not quite as overbearing. It’s more like Flying Immortal Sword, swift and soundless. That sword nearly took my life, you know? What hesitation or doubt you’re talking about, ah? He was completely swift and merciless, until I get the sense that this was a revenge killing. As though he’s here to kill me because I’ve killed his father or something. We did not even exchange greetings, that mannerless barbarian.”
The fake Long Pingzhang pointed an angry finger at the empty space where Su Dong Lou had stood, muttering as he covered his neck with the other hand. After some thought, he said, “Oh wait, he said something after killing me. Let’s see, ‘When you’re walking down the yellow river, don’t blame me. Blame your own unfortunate fate. You really should never stand between us and our goals’.” His impersonation of Su Dong Lou’s way of speaking was absolutely spot on.
“Enough. Third brother, you go back and rest for a while. A wound from Su Dong Lou’s sword is not something that one could recover from easily. That’s right, why don’t you take that skin and blood sac off your neck now? Aren’t you uncomfortable?”
At this, the one they call third brother eased off the skin mask from his neck. Within the skin were two lines of blood sacs, one of which was already drained of blood.
The moment the skin and blood sacs were taken out, the man’s neck looked oddly thin and concaved. His head looked weirdly large on his spindly neck. When he put on the skin and blood sac on, he looked like a normal person. This was why he was able to avoid arousing Su Dong Lou’s suspicion. Even so, there was a fairly deep scar on his neck. Everyone stepped up to apply medicine and bound his injured neck properly.
Third brother said, “What incredible sword skill. If I hadn’t made the proper preparation, my entire head would have come off my shoulder. To think he’d actually injure me. Luckily he left quickly, otherwise if he’d bother to watch me bleed for over an hour, I might actually have bled to death.”
The little group went into the little bamboo hut and wrote a brief letter explaining the situation with third brother. The little piece of paper was rolled up and inserted into a tiny bamboo tube and attached to the leg of a carrier pigeon. Soon, the pigeon was released and the message sent.
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Su Dong Lou made it back to Hangzhou the very next day.
The moment he stepped into Mingyu Estate, servants came with the news that Lu Feng Yu wished to come and see him. He was a little surprised by this, though the Hangzhou branch of the Mingyu Estate was very close to the palace, Lu Feng Yu had never set foot into this ‘Nest of Thugs’ before. So why would he actually come over this day? Surely this was still too hurried even for an investigation, right?
Though suspicion brewed in his heart, his face remained genial as he personally welcomed Lu Feng Yu in. Once the snacks had been served, tea poured and the servants all sent away, Lu Feng Yu said with a smile, “I had people inform me the moment you entered Hangzhou. I just couldn’t wait for your report. Well? From the cheerful look on your face, may I believe that you are successful in your endeavour?”
“Very successful, didn’t I say that dealing with a feeble scholar who couldn’t even truss up a chicken is nothing? For the likes of him, I don’t need an Ox Cleaver [1], but a high-quality Eastern Short Sword [2].”
In this era, a high-quality Japanese sword, or Eastern Short Sword, could slice through gold and break jade. As a very good sword of the first grade, an Eastern Short Sword was something that only army generals could openly wear.
Lu Feng Yu laughed heartily, “You might not realise this, but the mission is too important to be done by just anyone. Because of this, I sent you over to personally make sure that man is dead beyond doubt.” Suddenly, he lowered his voice, “Before the man died, did he say anything?”
Su Dong Lou said arrogantly, “As you are not a man of Jianghu, you can’t be blamed for not knowing my reputation. When I, Su Dong Lou, wield my sword, even the ghost of the departed will not have time to leave any last words. He died instantly, be at ease.” Suddenly, he frowned and said, “But, before I killed him, I heard him muttering to himself. I think he was looking for something, something that he hasn’t found yet.”
“That should be fine.” Lu Feng Yu breathed a long sigh of relief, muttering half to himself, “If it was found by him, I can neither eat nor rest. Now that this hidden danger is finally dead, well, very good.”
“Just what is hidden at that Immortal’s Range? It’s rare to see you in such a state, don’t tell me it’s a thousand soldiers and ten thousand horses?” Su Dong Lou laughed carelessly.
Lu Feng Yu eyed him for a moment before shaking his head with a smile, “It’s not a thousand soldiers or ten thousand horses, but something even more incredible.”
[Gumihou: As villains go, Lu Feng Yu is refreshingly brilliant! Also, ƪƪ’▿’) (‘▿’ʃʃ]
[1] Ox Cleaver – A cleaver specifically for butchering oxen [2] Eastern Short Sword – the Japanese Kodachi
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Translated by Gumihou from kitchennovel dot com.
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