Chapter 163: The Clumsy Realm

Yang Yan really hadn't expected there to be a place like this where one could squeeze a person inside.

Why was there a landscape of mountains and water inside the building?

He struggled to claw at the stones and squeeze his way out; the coarse rocks ground bloodstains into his skin, but the most painful part was the broken bone in his abdomen, which was practically being ground against the stone.

Just then, a powerful hand reached over, gripped the stone in front of his abdomen, and with a forceful 'Crack!', pried it away.

It immediately felt a bit easier. Yang Yan struggled to squeeze out and looked up to see Seeing Pei Ye's silent face.

Yang Yan panted heavily twice, looking at him without speaking.

If Seeing Pei Ye's face was somewhat like heavy ice, then Yang Yan's face was like fire about to erupt; the frustration on the young man's face was obvious.

"Damn it, that guy surnamed Zhao actually knows that old thief."

"Sorry," Seeing Pei Ye said. "You succeeded, I didn't."

". You're quite polite." Yang Yan spat out a mouthful of blood foam and turned back to retrieve his blade from the rockery. "It has nothing to do with you. I was the one who pointed out that guy surnamed Zhao's location to you, and I agreed to go find him too. You brought the person, we just didn't recognize this son of a bitch."

"Besides, I have to thank you. If we had followed the original plan, I'd be dead by now." Thinking of that old man, the rage on Yang Yan's face was suppressed by heavy clouds, his voice low. "To think he's actually a damn Seventh Life..."

Seeing Pei Ye's method was indeed more effective and had once been close to success, but after failing, and after realizing he could only face it himself, looking at that powerful Seventh Life again, Yang Yan felt a heaviness that made it hard to breathe.

Granted, he had intended to do so from the start, but at the time, he hadn't been clear about the old man's strength, and secondly, he hadn't experienced it personally.

In that brief exchange just now, he had already skirted the line between life and death several times. Delaying the old thief for even this long had exhausted all his wit and luck. Without the court's help, how could he successfully plot against a Seventh Life who was already on guard?

For a moment, he couldn't help but follow Seeing Pei Ye's line of thinking—Commandant Zhao is colluding with this person, does the Prefecture Office know? Who is the higher official?

"I will kill him," a calm and steady voice suddenly said.

"What?" Yang Yan was startled, looking at the young man in front of him. "Kill who? The Seventh Life?"

Their roles seemed to have swapped. Yang Yan frowned: "Don't be impulsive."

"Not impulsive," Seeing Pei Ye said, throwing the stone in his hand back into the water with a clear 'Plop'. "A life for a life. If it doesn't work this time, I'll drag him out and kill him again."

Yang Yan looked at this earnest face and was silent for a while: "Do you really think the two of us can kill him?"

Seeing Pei Ye nodded.

". Good!" Yang Yan replied, a smile even leaking from the corner of his mouth.

Although both calm and violent personalities existed in the young man, the former had always been the fence, while the latter was the beast.

When calm, he was always repressed; when impulsive, he was the one who was truly free.

"Then let's drag that son of a bitch out and slaughter him!" He gritted his teeth and gripped his blade.

Then a clear, ethereal voice rang out.

"Can you stop using foul language all the time?" Li Piaoqing stood behind them, not knowing when she had arrived, and frowned slightly.

She had changed her clothes in the private pavilion, her face was washed clean, and her hair had been re-coiled; she had become a clean and beautiful kingfisher again.

Yang Yan looked back. If it were any other day, he would have had twenty sarcastic sentences to counter this, but at this moment, he just moved his mouth and gave a muffled "Mm."

Once the young lady arrived, the atmosphere relaxed. She smiled at Seeing Pei Ye: "How is this hiding place? Few people know about it."

This rockery ran through from the first floor to the third. Someone might have discovered the hollow space between the first and second floors, but the hole at the top of the third floor that could accommodate a person was truly hidden.

It really didn't look like it could hold a person, and the guests and servants coming and going every day didn't want to climb it.

I'm afraid that in the past five years, besides the childhood Li Piaoqing and today's Seeing Pei Ye, there was only Yang Yan just now.

Yang Yan said: "Even if we relied on this place, we couldn't hide, because the smell was too strong. So I took off two pieces of clothing, gave one to the tall woman to lure the Zhao dog away, and threw one into this pool to cover up the lacquer smell on me."

"Oh, then you're really smart."

Yang Yan nodded proudly.

Li Piaoqing had already turned around and said: "Let's go back to the fourth floor quickly. There will be people here soon."

——

Returning to the Cuiyu private pavilion, Zhang Junxue was still sitting cross-legged with her blade, and Yang Yan went to find clothes to change into.

Seeing Pei Ye didn't know if she had recognized that Li Piaoqing was the one who 'snatched' her Ascension Pill. He looked left and right; the two didn't seem very familiar with each other.

"This is Zhang Junxue from Xu Gu," Seeing Pei Ye said. "A good friend I made on the road."

As he spoke, he observed Li Piaoqing's expression. The young lady smiled and nodded, showing no coldness or alienation. She bowed earnestly: "Miss Zhang, nice to meet you."

Zhang Junxue hurriedly stood up to return the salute.

Seeing Pei Ye breathed a sigh of relief. Because of Zheng Dong and the pill-snatching incident, he was a bit worried about whether there was any unpleasantness between Cuiyu and Xu Gu.

"This is a place to receive guests." After chatting briefly with Zhang Junxue—no one could keep a conversation with this woman going for very long—Li Piaoqing closed the door, turned to Seeing Pei Ye, and said, "The Cuiyu Sect is in the mountains, and transportation is inconvenient. To avoid tiring our distinguished guests, we set up a place to rest in the city."

"Actually, this expense is also very high," the young lady sighed lightly. "But all three sects have such pavilions."

She stopped this topic and asked instead: "Where is that young man from?"

"He said he escaped from Tianshan. I met him here by chance today. He was plotting against that old man, so we worked out this method together."

"He really doesn't look like a local." Li Piaoqing nodded and smiled. "So you two are also new acquaintances. I thought he was your good friend."

"Mm. Yang Yan does seem worth befriending."

Li Piaoqing nodded, finally getting to the point, and asked hesitantly: "I heard you say just now that you want to kill that person by yourself?"

Seeing Pei Ye nodded and looked over, meeting the young lady's slightly furrowed brows.

"I won't let him just walk away like that," the young man said.

"But," Li Piaoqing looked at his expression a bit cautiously and whispered, "you can't even beat me."

"." Seeing Pei Ye pursed his lips. "I wasn't serious with you."

"." Li Piaoqing curled her lips in secret.

"Really, I've thought about this," Seeing Pei Ye said. "I have many methods. If I prepare well, although it's not a sure thing to deal with a Seventh Life, there's still quite a good chance."

"Mm, then you're very impressive." Li Piaoqing pursed her lips and nodded, trying to make the compliment sound sincere, then looked up at him. "But I think... you can wait two more days. After the Cuiyu business is done, perhaps I can help you do this."

"Mm? What is the Cuiyu Sect going to do?" Seeing Pei Ye raised an eyebrow.

"These days, we have our own business," Li Piaoqing said vaguely.

"What business?"

"." The young lady glanced at him and said in a muffled voice, "Young Hero Pei, you are an outsider."

". Oh."

Since it's confidential, why did you bring it up?

Actually, it wasn't sudden for Seeing Pei Ye that Cuiyu was going to take action. When poor, one seeks change. If Cuiyu wants to continue existing, it must fight back. Granted, it's impossible to turn defeat into victory in one fell swoop, but they should at least take a fierce bite.

Seeing Pei Ye was silent for a moment: "I just wanted to say, if you need help—especially if you need to fight—just call me."

"Haha, no need, we're not short of helpers," Li Piaoqing smiled, then turned serious. "But what I said just now, did you hear it—it's too dangerous to rely on just the two of you."

"No need, Cuiyu isn't well-off either, and I've already received many favors from you..." Seeing Pei Ye shook his head, finally revealing a sincere smile. "I'm just an outsider, after all."

The young lady wrinkled her nose and rolled her eyes at him.

Seeing Pei Ye smiled and asked: "How much do you know about Commandant Zhao?"

"Him, I've only had a few contacts with him during my senior brother's case. Do you want to investigate his relationship with that old man?" Li Piaoqing frowned, recalling the 'List of Dignitaries' she had memorized. "He seems to have a lot of prestige in the Prefecture Office. His personality is decisive and firm. I can't say much more."

Seeing Pei Ye nodded: "Then I'll go ask Bai Sibing."

"Alright, he doesn't seem to have left yet."

Yang Yan walked out in casual clothes at this time: "Where are you going?"

"We're going to find an official we're familiar with to ask about the situation. You—"

"You just wait here! I'll arrange for someone to treat your wounds when I get back," Li Piaoqing said.

Yang Yan frowned. He wasn't used to being 'tied' so closely to others, so he bowed and said: "Thank you, no need. I'll handle this myself."

He walked to the window to observe the outside, turned back and said: "I'm leaving first—Seeing Pei Ye, where do you usually stay?"

"I'm at the Changdao Martial Arts Hall," Seeing Pei Ye frowned. "You should stay for two days."

Yang Yan shook his head, hung his blade and tied his sword, bowed to the three of them one by one, and jumped down.

But after only two breaths, he 'whooshed' back up.

The two looked at him in confusion.

Yang Yan touched his head awkwardly: "That... can I borrow two taels of silver?"

These words were truly familiar, but Seeing Pei Ye wasn't refusing to lend it this time; he really had no money left on him.

"Will two hundred coins do?" Seeing Pei Ye felt his pockets.

Yang Yan looked at Li Piaoqing and rubbed his hands.

"I don't have any," the young lady said flatly.

"."

——

"What borrow? Lend it to him, will there be any money coming back?" Walking in the garden, the young lady said, "That's called throwing money into the water."

". It's only two taels," Seeing Pei Ye whispered.

"Only? How many 'onlys' does Hero Pei have on him?" Li Piaoqing glanced at him. "One doesn't know the price of firewood and rice without running a household."

Seeing Pei Ye didn't speak again.

Yang Yan eventually stayed in the Cuiyu private pavilion, re-adjusting his disguise, waiting to leave the garden later, while the two went down to find Bai Sibing.

"Actually, Zhao Fu's departure just now was a bit suspicious," Li Piaoqing said. "I originally planned to wait for him to finish searching before moving Yang Yan to the hiding place in the private pavilion."

Seeing Pei Ye nodded: "It seems like something sudden happened."

The two walked and talked. The young lady suddenly pointed: "Mm? Isn't that Bai Sibing?"

Seeing Pei Ye looked up. Sure enough, the old man he had met once was standing under the pavilion, smiling and asking a green-clad attendant a question. He looked up, saw the two coming, and waved the attendant away.

"I told him that Bowang Garden should be equipped with some soldiers and asked him to tell their manager," Bai Sibing sighed to the two. "Otherwise, the Prefecture Office can't react in time for things like what just happened. And the Prefecture likes to hold political activities in Bowang Garden, so they should be equipped with some public officials."

Seeing Pei Ye nodded repeatedly with bright eyes.

He couldn't think of things like this.

"How did you two get together?" Bai Sibing smiled and sized them up. "Piaoqing, what are you looking for me for again?"

Seeing Pei Ye bowed: "It's me who wants to ask you about something."

"Oh, little Pei. About what just happened? I haven't figured out what's going on yet." Bai Sibing looked at the two, seemingly thinking for a while. "Piaoqing, wait here. I'll walk a few steps with little Pei."

"Alright!" the young lady agreed readily.

The two walked along the lake shore.

"Are you... wanting to ask about Zhao Fu?" Bai Sibing turned his head and said.

Seeing Pei Ye was startled: "Yes."

"Is this your business, or Piaoqing's business?" Bai Sibing said. "Zhao Fu, he doesn't show it much, but he is vaguely biased towards the Seven Serpents."

". It's my business," Seeing Pei Ye looked at the old man. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I see you seem to have gotten mixed up in it," Bai Sibing sighed and looked at him. "I am naturally close to Cuiyu, a friendship of more than ten years. But didn't you just come to participate in the martial arts competition? You'll go to the Divine Capital after it's over. What's the benefit of helping this and that here?"

"."

"I'm afraid you're new to the world, with mist covering your eyes, and haven't seen the road ahead clearly," the old man said. "You should ignore everyone, focus on your cultivation, and set off after the competition."

". No, Bai Sibing," Seeing Pei Ye said. "I've thought this through—it has nothing to do with 'benefits'."

"Good," Bai Sibing smiled and looked at him. "You are the hero of Fenghuai who upholds justice. Then tell me, how did you have a conflict with Zhao Fu?"

Seeing Pei Ye omitted the part about Yang Yan and briefly recounted the events of these days.

Bai Sibing frowned: "I don't know about Zhao Fu colluding with criminals. However, the case you mentioned doesn't seem to be an isolated one. In recent years, there have indeed been some unsolved cases of martial arts practitioners disappearing or being killed."

"Then, no one is investigating?"

"Zhao Fu is the one investigating. Dozens of martial arts world people die in Bowang every year. Two or three of them, neither big nor small, are not conspicuous and can't alarm the Immortal Platform," Officer Bai said. "Zhao Fu actually doesn't have a very close connection with Bowang—he was transferred from Shaolong Prefecture three years ago. After he came, he made drastic changes and modified many regulations, which were indeed very useful. The legal department respects him quite a bit."

He was only transferred three years ago, but from what Seeing Pei Ye saw, all his subordinates obeyed him implicitly, which showed his methods. Seeing Pei Ye thought, suddenly feeling that the time node of 'three years' was somewhat familiar...

He raised an eyebrow—"It changed three years ago, and I have to hand it in every two months."

The shopkeeper's sigh rang in his ears.

What is Zhao Fu doing with the traveler's register... screening?

After screening, hand it over to that white-faced old man?

"Zhao Fu is indeed biased towards the Seven Serpents, but you can't see them as one family," Bai Sibing continued. "Zhao Fu is actually fair in law enforcement and hasn't provided any convenience to the Seven Serpents, so if he really has any filth, it might not be on the Seven Serpents' side."

Seeing Pei Ye nodded slowly.

"I have nothing more to say," the old man sighed. "It's not easy to report this case. First, the Immortal Platform has been cooperating with Zhao Fu for three years, and the relationship is quite harmonious; second, your accusation sounds like it's out of thin air, with no evidence at all—just because you wanted him to chase one criminal, and he went to chase another."

Bai Sibing shook his head: "Since he dared to do it in front of you, he naturally cleaned up everything, and it's not easy to investigate... but if you get any evidence, you can come to me, and I will guarantee you in front of the Inspector."

Seeing Pei Ye bowed and thanked him.

If he wanted evidence, he could only start with that white-faced old man.

(End of chapter)