Tang Lici was not at Haoyun Mountain.
He was indeed still outside Bodhi Valley, observing the battle at Piaoleng Mei Manor from the sidelines. Bai Suche’s sudden seizure of power, Yu Konghou’s fall to prisoner status, Chai Xijin’s graceful departure, and Gui Mudan’s expected return that never came—all of this indicated that the battle situation was about to take a sharp turn for the worse. With enemies in the shadows and allies exposed, he was waiting for a decisive variable to emerge.
When he received the message informing him that trouble had erupted at Haoyun Mountain, with both Xue Xianzi and Fu Zhumei having disappeared, the Central Plains Sword Society had already been consumed by flames. He learned that the attackers who stormed the mountain were a group of red-robed figures wielding fire crossbows, who set fires before killing, leaving the remaining disciples of the Central Plains Sword Society unable to resist—some were killed, others forced to flee. As for why Xue Xianzi and Fu Zhumei had disappeared, Tang Lici received several urgent reports, but none could explain the situation clearly.
The spies remaining at the Central Plains Sword Society could only report that three days before Haoyun Mountain was besieged, Miss Zhong Chunji had climbed the mountain alone to find her master, Xue Xianzi.
At that time, Xue Xianzi had already regained consciousness and met with Zhong Chunji. The two conversed happily with nothing seeming amiss.
Three days later, over a hundred red-robed attackers surrounded Haoyun Mountain, mounted on fine horses and wielding fire crossbows. These crossbows were poisoned, igniting the mountain’s trees and buildings while releasing a toxic smoke that induced unconsciousness. The Central Plains Sword Society had originally deployed all their elite forces to besiege Piaoleng Mei Manor, leaving very few defenders behind. With Xue Xianzi and Fu Zhumei suddenly disappearing, this battle ended in complete defeat, with even the sword society’s buildings burned to white ash.
After reading the message, Tang Lici’s face showed no expression.
When Jiang Youyu handed him the carrier pigeon message, he trembled uncontrollably.
But Tang Lici did not become angry. He simply stared at that brief carrier pigeon message, neither speaking nor moving. After a long while, he coughed lightly and said, “Disappeared?”
The over-sixty Jiang Youyu felt a chill down his spine and bowed deeply before Tang Lici, saying, “This old fool is ashamed… I have failed the young master’s trust…”
“Elder Jiang,” Tang Lici said in a low voice, “Human strength has its limits, and not everything can go as one wishes. There’s no need for such formality.” He helped Jiang Youyu to his feet. “I…” he said slowly, “in my youth, I didn’t understand, thinking that any disappointment meant everything was against me, that heaven and earth were unkind…”
Jiang Youyu was startled and looked toward this Young Master Tang whom he had served for several years.
He saw Tang Lici pause for a moment, then say softly, “But…” He ultimately didn’t continue, changing the subject instead. “Disappeared… at least doesn’t mean dead. With both Fu Zhumei and Xue Xianzi disappearing together, perhaps this isn’t the worst outcome.”
Jiang Youyu was stunned. “This old fool believes that if these two hadn’t met with misfortune, the Central Plains Sword Society couldn’t possibly have been burned to white ash. These two possess extremely high martial arts skills, far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.”
“Who in this world could defeat both Fu Zhumei and Xue Xianzi? None other than friends or relatives,” Tang Lici said indifferently. “Xue Xianzi is both lustful and devoted, romantically charming yet righteously dignified, but he has spoiled his daughter rotten.”
“This old fool underestimated Miss Zhong,” Jiang Youyu said. “This little girl appears harmless to man and beast, yet her heart is so vicious that she dares to harm even her own biological father and mentor who taught her martial arts! Today’s young people of the jianghu are truly worse than each previous generation.” He brought Tang Lici a cup of hot tea. “What’s done is done. Young master, please don’t worry. This is new tea from Fushan Hall.”
Tang Lici glanced at the slightly greenish tea. “New tea from Fushan Hall? You went to Tianqing Temple?”
Fushan Hall was the tea garden of Tianqing Temple in the capital. When the temple’s tea garden had a good year, the new tea it produced was of exceptional quality, though few people knew this. Jiang Youyu had old ties with Master Chunhui, the abbot of Tianqing Temple, and Wanqiao Pavilion maintained regular contact with him, so Abbot Chunhui would occasionally present them with new tea as a gift.
“This old fool went to Tianqing Temple not to drink tea with the abbot,” Jiang Youyu said. “Young master, the last time you returned to the capital, you came and left in haste, staying at Wanqiao Pavilion for only three days. During those three days, you didn’t sleep or rest—one day you went to the palace, one day to the Liu residence, and one day you went somewhere unknown, spending ten thousand taels of gold… This old fool dares to speculate after several days of wondering—did young master perhaps visit the Desolate Thirteen Floors?”
Tang Lici smiled slightly. “Your courage is considerable.” But he neither confirmed nor denied it.
Jiang Youyu also smiled. “Young master bought information, but information that Wanqiao Pavilion doesn’t have, even if the Desolate Thirteen Floors has it, may not be complete. I guess young master wanted to cut through the confusion quickly and buy an answer.” He also poured himself tea, though his broken tea bowl wasn’t as exquisite and beautiful as Tang Lici’s jade porcelain cup—this was the tea bowl Jiang Youyu had used for decades, just like his wife, never replaced. “I guess young master had an answer in his heart but lacked corroborating evidence.”
Tang Lici’s eyelashes lowered slightly. “So you went to Tianqing Temple to drink with the abbot not tea, but evidence?” He closed his eyes. “What did you corroborate?”
“I corroborated that… Fushan Hall’s tea garden was built on the same day as Tianqing Temple’s founding, with the tea trees and the temple being the same age,” Jiang Youyu said. “Abbot Chunhui even doubled the size of the tea garden, but doesn’t sell tea. That vast tea garden has pavilions, towers, and buildings constructed for devout men and women to enjoy during festivals and mountain excursions.” He blinked, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes slightly creasing upward. “Emperor Gong once lived in that tea garden, and living there with him were Emperor Gong’s two younger brothers, three sisters, and the servants who attended Emperor Gong.”
“Elder Jiang is my confidant,” Tang Lici said, lifting the new tea and taking a light sip. “I’m thinking… who exactly is the ‘Yin-Yang Gui Mudan’ from the ‘Seven Flower Cloud Wanderers’?” He drank some tea, and the cup slowly took on a layer of blood color. Tang Lici covered the tea bowl with its lid. “When Liren Residence met with disaster and the ‘Seven Flower Cloud Wanderers’ turned against each other, A’Yan used his soul-capturing bowstring technique to claim the position of master of ‘Fengliu Shop.’ Why was it him?” Tang Lici said slowly. “In martial arts achievement, he was inferior to Gui Mudan and even more so to Kuanglan Wuxing; in intelligence and strategy, he was inferior to Yu Konghou; in status and position, he was inferior to Fang Pingzhai… but he must have done something.” He asked softly, “What could that have been?”
When Jiang Youyu first met Tang Lici, Liu Yan had already departed. “This old fool doesn’t know, but it must have been something extremely important.”
“A’Yan’s martial arts and mystical techniques all originated from the ‘往生谱’ (Rebirth Manual),” Tang Lici said slowly. “The day Fang Zhou died transmitting his skills, A’Yan and Zhu Mei took that book away. If… that book was taken by A’Yan, and he didn’t know its power, giving it to someone else…” He slowly raised his head to gaze at Jiang Youyu. “Zhou Di Tower isn’t far from Tianqing Temple. If on that day Fang Zhou transmitted his skills to the three of us, A’Yan seized the ‘Rebirth Manual’ and entered Tianqing Temple… and was subsequently rescued by someone…”
“Then that book would have fallen into the hands of Tianqing Temple,” Jiang Youyu said, knowing his master deeply. “Young master suspects the Seven Flower Cloud Wanderers have close ties with Tianqing Temple?”
“Doesn’t Elder Jiang think so as well?” Tang Lici smiled slightly. “Chai Xijin lived there as a child, many heroes from Baiyun Valley lived there, Emperor Gong died there at the age of only twenty—how did he die? The various figures from Baiyun Valley took Chai Xijin away and revered him as their leader. His identity is so secretive, yet why do both Gui Mudan and Yu Konghou already know about it?” He tapped his finger, producing a “ding” sound as he lightly flicked the tea bowl. “I bought information at the Desolate Thirteen Floors—who exactly is the Yin-Yang Gui Mudan?”
“What was the information that the Thirteen Floors priced at ten thousand taels of gold?” Jiang Youyu asked. “Was it the same as the answer in young master’s heart?”
A strange light appeared in Tang Lici’s eyes. “The Thirteen Floors’ information suggests that the Yin-Yang Gui Mudan is a monk from Tianqing Temple, with the secular surname Xie, called Xie Yaohuang.”
“Xie Yaohuang?” Jiang Youyu was somewhat bewildered. “This old fool has never heard this person’s name. What is his monastic dharma name?”
“Dharma name Qinghe,” Tang Lici said. “But this Master Qinghe, worth ten thousand gold, was already killed by Puzhu’s sword in the battle at Shaolin Temple.” He smiled faintly. “The Thirteen Floors’ information says that the Gui Mudan who stirred up trouble at Shaolin Temple, poisoned Puzhu along with Yu Konghou, and killed Meihua Yishu, Master Dacheng, Miaozhen and Miaozheng, was indeed Xie Yaohuang.” He slowly exhaled. “The battle at Piaoleng Mei Manor isn’t over yet. If Gui Mudan already died at Shaolin Temple, then who is the Gui Mudan at Piaoleng Mei Manor? So the ten thousand taels of gold from the Thirteen Floors wasn’t selling information about Xie Yaohuang, but about Tianqing Temple.” He slowly closed his eyes. “Elder Jiang, Gui Mudan is not just one person, but there must be a leader. Since Tianqing Temple was built by the previous dynasty, and Emperor Gong died there…”
Jiang Youyu understood his implication. If Liu Yan had brought the ‘Rebirth Manual’ into Tianqing Temple, how could such shocking and heretical demonic arts not tempt people’s hearts? And if the ‘Seven Flower Cloud Wanderers’ had close ties with Tianqing Temple, and subsequently the ‘Seven Flower Cloud Wanderers’ turned against each other, with Dieban Chonghua departing, Meihua Yishu and Kuanglan Wuxing being poisoned, and Pocheng Guaike and Yuyue Yingfei dying, it was most likely… because of this ‘Rebirth Manual.’
Later, Liu Yan controlled ‘Fengliu Shop,’ the jianghu suffered endlessly from the poison of ‘Nine Heart Pills,’ Baiyun Valley was massacred, and Chai Xijin was commissioned to restore the country. If Tang Lici hadn’t betrayed his allies in the battle at Haoyun Mountain, suddenly claiming to be the master of Fengliu Shop and placing Miss Hong in charge of Haoyun Mountain, the current jianghu would either see Fengliu Shop destroy the Central Plains Sword Society and control the martial world, or Yu Konghou would hold the banner of the Central Plains Sword Society, eliminate the evil demon Liu Yan of Fengliu Shop, and then control the Central Plains martial world. With Yu Konghou controlling Puzhu and Shaolin Temple becoming Yu Konghou’s vassal, remaining silent about this, those undercurrents lurking behind Yu Konghou and Gui Mudan could thereafter begin using Chai Xijin as a puppet to gradually advance their revenge and restoration.
So Yu Konghou and Gui Mudan were merely two chess pieces on the surface.
Liu Yan was already a discarded piece.
Tang Lici slowly opened his eyes, pressing his five fingers against the jade porcelain tea bowl as if grasping a monster. “Elder Jiang, the matter of Tianqing Temple is of great importance. You’ve been drinking tea with Chunhui for many years. In your opinion, what kind of person is Master Chunhui?”
“Abbot Chunhui is compassionate and dignified, unchanged for decades,” Jiang Youyu replied. “He is well-versed in Buddhist teachings and is truly a renowned monk of this generation.”
“Oh?” Tang Lici’s lips curved slightly. “Was he already the abbot when Emperor Gong died?”
Jiang Youyu nodded. “Indeed.”
“So as long as we capture Chunhui, we’ll have our ‘evidence,'” Tang Lici smiled faintly. “If capturing Chunhui isn’t enough, we’ll bind all the monks of Tianqing Temple, dozens of them… then the ‘evidence’ he’s hidden in that tea garden… will reveal itself.”
Jiang Youyu was stunned. “Ah? Ah… young master is right.” He had gone to find ‘evidence’ merely by drinking tea and probing, but his master planned to find ‘evidence’ by capturing everyone in the entire imperial temple—such a level of thinking was truly beyond Jiang Youyu’s reach. After a slight pause, he couldn’t help saying, “Young master, Tianqing Temple is an imperial temple, I’m afraid…”
Tang Lici applied more force with his five fingers, gripping the tea bowl and channeling his internal energy—the new tea steamed with rising vapor, and in moments, the new tea was evaporated by his internal power. The entire jade porcelain tea bowl was silently crushed to pieces in his five fingers, turning into a handful of fine ceramic fragments.
Jiang Youyu fell silent.
Tang Lici didn’t look at him and changed the subject. “Xue Xianzi and Fu Zhumei are pillars of the Central Plains Sword Society. If they could be captured alive, there’s absolutely no way they would be allowed to die. Where is Zhong Chunji now? She can’t escape responsibility for what happened to Xue Xianzi. Keep an eye on her, and we can find Xue Xianzi.”
“This old fool is incompetent and hasn’t found Miss Zhong’s whereabouts for the moment,” Jiang Youyu said. “But…” Before he could say what “but” was, someone suddenly burst in from outside, crying out in distress, “Young Master Tang! Death battle at Jiang Garden! Fierce fires now rage to the sky, burning for a full day with no one emerging. We don’t know how Young Master Mo and Divine Doctor Shui are faring! Liu… that demon Liu and three hundred disciples seem to have gone down into the secret passages, but no one has been seen emerging! Scouts learned that the underground streams beneath the mountain have been poisoned with lethal toxins! The escape route is cut off…”
Tang Lici suddenly stood up, his sleeve fluttering as he swept away the table and tea set before him, sending them flying and crashing five steps away, shattering into fragments on the ground. He closed his eyes and said in a low voice, “Prepare the horses.”
“Young Master Tang… Niutou Mountain is far away, I’m afraid it’s already… already too late…”
“Prepare the horses!”