Chapter 162

Why!!

The excellent opportunity he had managed to create after risking his life and racking his brains was easily reduced to nothing under his side-step.

For a moment, Yang Yan just wanted to ignore everything and slash his blade at this person's face.

But two things stopped this desire.

One was the restraint from his calm self-control—he must never fall into a bitter battle with this person at this time and place.

The other thing was the objective helplessness; he curled his fingers, and there was no damn blade in his hand.

Yang Yan didn't even make eye contact with the flying man; without the slightest chance to breathe, he fell into flight again.

The person behind him changed from a Seventh Life to a Sixth Life; in all fairness, the pressure actually decreased sharply, but his situation did not improve; instead, he fell into despair.

Because he still had expectations under the heavy pressure just now, and now that the thing he expected had arrived, the cage he designed for the old man had fallen onto himself without a single error.

Whoever Commandant Zhao fought with, people's eyes were locked on that person; Yang Yan wanted to leave but couldn't; he was so conspicuous, stained with color all over.

He flipped and leaped backward, first going to pull the blade on the roof.

—

Below the Zhuoyue Tower.

Pei Ye, who was the last to enter the garden gate, still didn't understand what had happened.

He first saw a colorful figure appear on the building, but didn't know why this person was in this shape. He originally couldn't distinguish his clothes or see his face, but the movement during the leap and the surprised expression when seeing their group gave Pei Ye support; he waved his hand, and sure enough, that person waved back.

Yang Yan! Did he do it?

Then he saw this person suddenly flash and shrink back, but only for a moment before flying out again, brushing past Commandant Zhao who was flying up.

—No, wrong! Although this person who appeared the second time was also covered in paint, it was clearly not Yang Yan, and the speed was too fast; he was that old man!

Upon realizing this, Pei Ye also understood what had happened on the building at the same time.

Thus, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

Commandant Zhao... went to chase Yang Yan?

He recognized Yang Yan because the two had an agreement; before he even entered the garden, he had already been searching for Yang Yan's figure.

And Commandant Zhao... he should have had no idea Yang Yan was here at all; how was his reaction so fast, as if he had been prepared?

That old man drifted across the garden, and in the blink of an eye, he was already on the courtyard wall.

No matter what was going on, there was no time to care about it now—this person was about to escape!

Pei Ye leaped out toward that old man, but as soon as their speeds were compared, he immediately understood that he definitely couldn't catch up.

His body turned and leaped toward the Zhuoyue Tower.

"Commandant Zhao!" Pei Ye shouted urgently as soon as he leaped to the third floor, "The one who just escaped is the real culprit!"

He looked at a glance; Zhao Fu was forcing Yang Yan with a sword; both were leaping in the air; Yang Yan's state was much more sluggish than when they parted; his body already showed some fatigue, and he seemed to be injured.

Commandant Zhao's sword strike did not hold back at all, coming fiercely, as if all the sword light that had missed in the past few days was condensed here.

Yang Yan's cultivation was not as good to begin with; at this moment, his body's turning was sluggish, and it was absolutely difficult to retreat unscathed.

"Commandant Zhao!!" Pei Ye had no time to explain; he leaped up and attacked Zhao Fu from behind with a sword.

Zhao Fu glanced back coldly and actually ignored him completely, as if he had already determined that he wouldn't really stab him.

Pei Ye indeed had no such intention, only hoping to block him; Zhao Fu's behavior once again highlighted his clear choice in his heart—it was not a temporary suspicion after seeing Yang Yan, but a clear decision from the very beginning.

Pei Ye couldn't catch up; Yang Yan above barely turned sideways and was cut on the back by this sword. Before this sword could cause more damage by changing direction, Yang Yan had already gripped the hilt.

He turned and slashed horizontally; even under fatigue and injury, the level of this blade strike still stood in an extremely high realm. Zhao Fu was indifferent to Pei Ye's attack from behind, but had to temporarily return to defense when facing this frontal blade strike.

Pei Ye looked up; Yang Yan's eyes were covered in bloodshot veins, his face cold, hard, and fierce; his high-and-mighty appearance was like a fierce owl pouncing on food. The paint had molded the youth's disheveled hair and face into a solidified piece, like a god statue that had come to life.

He forced Zhao Fu back with one blade; the fierce desire to attack had already permeated his body; the heavier and more ruthless next blade was gripped in his hand; Pei Ye had already felt that anger that was eager to burst out.

But the youth gritted his teeth, forcefully swallowed this anger back into his stomach, and twisted his body to fall straight down.

Zhao Fu was still expressionless, turning his sword to chase again.

A figure in yellow leaped up from below at the same time, blocking Yang Yan with a sword: "Thief, don't run!"

"Get out of the way!" Yang Yan recognized this girl and slashed out with a blade, leaving some strength.

However, as soon as the blade and sword touched, the sword momentum collapsed instantly; Yang Yan was so clever that he immediately understood. Seeing the girl strike with another palm, he also swung his arm to receive it, using an effortless grappling method to seize the girl's wrist.

Then he threw the girl backward, and at the same time, a soft and abundant force came from his wrist, sending him forward.

"Commandant Zhao, be careful!" Li Piaoqing called out.

Li Piaoqing was flying toward Zhao Fu, her sword intentionally or unintentionally pointing obliquely at his empty gate; Zhao Fu was much more ruthless to this Cuiyu disciple than to the old man just now; he slashed with the wind, and the girl was knocked away with her arm and sword, her wrist nearly losing strength.

Then he folded his body, intending to avoid Li Piaoqing and continue chasing.

But his wrist had already been grabbed by a powerful hand.

Zhao Fu turned back coldly, facing Pei Ye's urgent eyes: "Commandant Zhao, the culprit is about to escape; he is a Seventh Life!"

Pei Ye pointed outside the building; that old man had already crossed the courtyard wall; at this time, only a colorful figure could be seen shuttling through the alley.

Zhao Fu's gaze did not shift in the slightest toward his pointing; he landed his gaze on Pei Ye's hand grabbing his wrist and said indifferently: "Obstructing an arrest is treated as an accomplice."

"..."

Pei Ye looked at Zhao Fu, their eyes meeting.

He didn't believe this official didn't understand his meaning... he was deliberately ignoring it.

"Commandant Zhao." The youth's voice stiffened; he looked directly at Zhao Fu and said seriously and clearly, "The person in front of us has insufficient strength, and the other officials are enough to deal with him. But the person who left is a genuine Seventh Life; if you don't trail him yourself, he will really disappear; by then, even if the prefecture's experts come—Commandant, have you requested reinforcements from the prefecture?"

Zhao Fu's wrist shook, breaking free from the youth's hand; he didn't look at him and said to the attendant following him: "This person is suspected of being an accomplice; take him in for questioning."

Pei Ye also didn't look at him; he turned his head to look outside the building—that colorful figure had merged into the layers of residential houses and disappeared without a trace.

"..."

He turned his head to look at Zhao Fu, the coldness on his face exactly the same as Yang Yan's.

"You deliberately let him go," Pei Ye stated.

Pei Ye had always kept himself very low.

He knew he was short-sighted, knew little, and didn't understand much; upon arriving at the prefecture city, he felt unprecedentedly unfamiliar with how many things operated.

Therefore, he always viewed the outside world with a humble, curious, and slightly inferior mentality. The principles he followed were also very simple and plain—since he didn't understand, he would listen and learn more, and speak and do less.

He knew he possessed a not-so-small power, so when he needed to deploy this power, he would carefully confirm repeatedly whether it was correct, trying hard to avoid impulsiveness and recklessness, fearing that his own momentary pleasure would bring irreparable trouble to others.

Before seeing a thing clearly, he dared not destroy it at will.

Sometimes Pei Ye felt like a sword, best at polishing his own edge, but not yet understanding where to swing.

He needed a wise person to hold him in their hand.

This thought was only fleeting, but this "self-knowledge" remained.

Because he minimized himself, the youth was accustomed to holding awe for things he didn't understand, and when facing these people wearing robes and seals, this mentality reached its peak.

This awe did not come from their power or high status, but also from the fact that they "knew more."

They understood better how this city operated, and when facing things, they knew better how to handle them—Miss Qi's casual talk about Zhuoyue Lake that day had opened a door in his brain that he had never touched before.

Pei Ye would try his best to truthfully inform them of what he knew and saw, and would listen seriously to their words. Pei Ye faced them like an ignorant person facing an expert.

On the other hand, this also came from awe of order. Pei Ye had to truthfully admit that he was afraid to strike at this official uniform; that meant many things could not be recovered.

Until now, he had not given up on this point.

He looked at the face of the man in front of him, a face he didn't like much to begin with, and now it had become a bit more unfamiliar.

The youth lowered his head and sheathed his sword.

But he didn't let the official attendants restrain him either; he took a deep breath and said to Li Piaoqing: "Please go and invite Bai Sibing."

The girl didn't leave as instructed; she strode forward and grabbed Pei Ye's arm. She stood beside Pei Ye, raised her eyebrows, and said coldly: "What great official authority! My Cuiyu Sword Sect's honored guest touched Commandant Zhao's arm, and he's going to be thrown into the dungeon?"

Zhao Fu glanced at her, feeling that the time was about right; he ignored her, turned, and flew down to continue chasing Yang Yan.

Only one attendant remained, but he was in a dilemma when facing this Cuiyu direct disciple.

Li Piaoqing ignored him too, turned to Pei Ye and said: "What do we do?"

She tilted her head to look outside the building: "Should I go chase that person?"

Pei Ye looked again along her gaze; the old man had completely disappeared, but even if he could still see him, Pei Ye wouldn't agree to this.

For one, it was too dangerous; for another, its key lay in Commandant Zhao; if he didn't arrest him, even if he caught up, it would be of no use.

Pei Ye shook his head: "No, I'll go help him."

He leaped down.

Li Piaoqing followed side by side: "What exactly is going on? You left without a word, and then caused such a big incident?"

Pei Ye glanced at her; the girl's yellow shirt, which had been afraid of being splashed by dirty water while walking on the street this morning, was now covered in dust, and her face was a bit dirty.

"I met a person on the Zhuoyue Tower... I told you before, that old man who killed people on the road."

"So it was that dangerous!" Li Piaoqing exclaimed, then thought, "Then your friend is very amazing! —I actually didn't help much."

"It's not your business; what help do you need?" Pei Ye said with a low laugh, scanning her up and down, "Are you injured?"

"Doesn't count."

"I'll block Commandant Zhao; you secretly help Yang Yan cover up, and then let him escape on his own," Pei Ye said.

He couldn't let Li Piaoqing keep making moves, he thought; the Cuiyu Sword Sect was already in a difficult situation, and it wasn't good to have unpleasantness with the prefecture government.

Actually, he had thought of this just now, but the girl's determined look of protection was without hesitation.

He tilted his head to look; Li Piaoqing looked over with a smile: "No need, I had Zhang Junxue take him away."

"... Taken where?"

—

Zhao Fu leaped down and chased in from the door where Yang Yan had disappeared.

He didn't mind being delayed by those two people; for one, more than ten official attendants were surrounding the building, and the youth couldn't fly away; for another, if he gave the Cuiyu Sword Sect time to intervene, it would be killing two birds with one stone.

He chased out the door, followed the paint marks, and people kept pointing the way for him; these people had been shaken off by the youth's skill, but at least remembered the direction.

When passing under the rockery, a heavy paint-stained garment was left in the pool.

The smell was still thick and extended forward; Zhao Fu chased two more steps, looked up—in front was the stairs going up.

Fourth floor.

Zhao Fu hummed lowly and rubbed the sword hilt.

The private pavilion of the Cuiyu Sect was on this floor.

The private pavilions of the three sects were naturally forbidden to trespass.

Zhao Fu leaped up; upon reaching the fourth floor, he didn't run anymore, but walked through the corridor with his sword in hand, toward the independent small pavilion on the east side.

Arriving at the door, he stopped; the smell of lacquer still hadn't dissipated and extended inside, but a tall woman was blocking the door.

"Cui, Cuiyu..." Zhang Junxue gripped her blade and recited her lines; Zhao Fu acted as if he hadn't heard, rushed up, and swung his sword and scabbard together; Zhang Junxue blocked with her blade and was knocked aside directly.

Who could be stopped by a few pale words of "Forbidden to Trespass"?

Zhao Fu pushed open the door and scanned; a paint-stained garment lay in the room, the window was wide open, and the person was nowhere to be seen.

He frowned, walked to the window, and looked down.

The tall dense willows provided cover; leaping downstairs from here was indeed a small blind spot, but if he wanted to run further back, he couldn't hide his form.

He called over an official attendant downstairs to ask; the attendant looked up and shook his head blankly.

At this time, Li Piaoqing and Pei Ye rushed over from behind; Zhao Fu turned and said coldly: "The Cuiyu Sword Sect is harboring a culprit; what is your intention?"

Li Piaoqing turned to look at Zhang Junxue in surprise; Zhang Junxue only then stammered the second half of the sentence: "The Cuiyu Sword Sect... didn't stop the culprit; he rushed in and ran away."

"..."

Zhao Fu searched the room; the sect's private pavilion naturally had some mechanisms.

However, he searched the room several times and ultimately didn't find anything.

Zhao Fu's expressionless face sank, and he left with his sword.

He ordered the building to be sealed and searched carefully; people walked out one by one, but the youth was never seen.

A person couldn't disappear into thin air; he instinctively felt that the youth was still hiding in this building, just needing a more careful search.

Just as he was about to give this order, a public servant ran over and said something in his ear; Zhao Fu frowned, gripped his sword, and walked toward the outside of the garden.

The official attendants actually lifted the blockade just like that.

After a long silence.

Third floor.

The paint-stained garment was still floating in the pool, and from the rockery that was exposed, a shirtless youth squeezed out.

Headache today, late, sorry.

(End of chapter)