Chapter 25: and translation of chapter title

Zhou Shuo may have spoken lightly, but he was in fact upholding his Grand Ancestor's teaching: "Despise the enemy in strategy, value them in tactics." He gave himself a pep talk, but in his heart he heightened his vigilance, never daring to relax in the slightest, keeping his head low and on guard as he hurried south along the official road; this approach proved quite correct.

Zhou Shuo still had a stretch of road from Huangliang Town to the southern official route, and on just this segment he suffered several attacks, all by low‑skill fellows drawn by a spurious Marrow‑Refining Secret Manual; but as he relied on his strength to repel the attackers, those lying in wait on the southern official road began to grow stronger, because his strength made that illusory Eight Divisions Divine King Scripture start to feel real.

The Marrow‑Refining Secret Manual grew more genuine, and those attracted by it became ever stronger in martial skill—from bone‑refining martial artists to viscera‑refining innate masters, and even some who had achieved spirit‑flesh unity, each possessing unique techniques; these masters were all man‑eating road‑blocking tigers, yet likewise they were excellent whetstones.

In just a few days Zhou Shuo felt like he had become a different person, for previously he had never felt the sense that "within ten paces, all are enemies," whereas now he possessed the mindset of "a commoner's anger spills blood five paces."

At dawn the dock of Taihu Town bustled with activity; Zhou Shuo, hand on his sword‑in‑scabbard, cautiously entered the market square, gazing at the various fish‑ and grain‑vendors, his eyes scanning the boats by the lake, for the pursuit had come too swiftly, leaving him no time to enter Taiyang Province's Tai Kang City, so he turned here instead.

To the north of Taihu lie tributaries such as the Yanshui, and to the south it leads straight to the sea, making it the water‑transport hub of southern Great Qian Dynasty; Taiyang Province, famed as a land of fish and rice in the south, derives most of its wealth from water, and Zhou Shuo hoped to find a vessel bound for Linhai Province here, yet upon reaching Linhai he faced another difficulty: going to sea was quite troublesome.

"Tsk!" Zhou Shuo, thinking about going to sea, couldn't help but spit; Giant Whale Island is a pirates' lair, no civilian vessel dares to go straight there, I can't afford a ship, and even if I could, where would I get detailed sea charts? Seizing that one‑third of the Present Tathagata Scripture is far harder than I imagined.

"Hn!" Zhou Shuo, vexed in heart, was pondering the matter when he suddenly lifted his eyes and saw a man sneaking up.

"Hehe, sir, are you looking for a boat?" the man, sallow‑faced and gaunt, wore a fawning smile.

"How so?" Zhou Shuo looked at the man, his left thumb on the sword hilt subtly moving to the guard, blade ready to flash out and strike, although he could see the fellow had little martial skill.

"Coming here, it's either trade or seeking a boat; seeing you alone, I guess you want a boat—may I ask where you're headed?" the man said with an ingratiating smile.

"Linhai Province." Zhou Shuo gave the name.

"Hey, then sir, you've found the right man." The man's fawning expression froze, then he put on a show of joy, but before his stock phrases were finished his face felt a sting; he hastily flung up his arms, caught and saw the gold coin landing in his lap, and instantly his face broke into a grin.

"Since you're the right man, let's talk." Zhou Shuo looked at the man who had caught the gold coin, his face breaking into a smile; the money was taken, and it was time to speak.

"Well, alright, sir, you've found the right man. On Taihu Dock over a hundred ships come and go daily—some bound for Shenfeng State, some for Yuyun State, others for the coastal provinces; no one knows which vessel heads where, but I do know that Linhai Province is the garrison of the Jinghai Army, and if you want to know which ships go there often, look—those Smoothwind Hall and Rowing Gang craft are the ones that run these two routes." The man nodded repeatedly, pointing out the ships on the dock to Zhou Shuo.

"What's your name? You really know these dock ships." Zhou Shuo followed the man's gesture and glanced at the dock; he saw that the masts and sails of the warships bore special markings—indeed they were two water‑based shipping groups, no mistake.

"I, I am Jin Buhuan, fond of gathering little bits of gossip." The man's smile was slightly strained.

"Mist‑Soul Bay Giant Whale Island, sir, you're joking—what place is that? It's a pirates' den." Jin Buhuan's expression froze, then he smiled even more strained; who would dislike a long life and go there?

"Forget it, you may go." Zhou Shuo looked at the stunned information vendor, glanced back twice, and saw in the crowd two girls with skin white as cranes standing out from a flock, their faces similar and attire bright, standing there, staring fixedly at him—how quickly they'd come, and how bold they were; this time, what the heck is their background?

"I take my leave, I take my leave." Jin Buhuan, not noticing the woman staring from afar, bowed and scraped his way back, then trotted off; although he didn't know what had happened, his long experience in the jianghu told him this man was not to be provoked—he had already earned a gold coin, and it was unwise to linger further.

Zhou Shuo watched Jin Buhuan trot away, glanced at the twin girls in the distance who had no intention of looking away, took two steps toward the market, and seeing they still followed, he simply ducked into an inn and sat down—but the twin girls had no intention of avoiding him and followed him inside.

In the inn's main hall, Zhou Shuo sat at a wooden table, watching the twin girls stride in through the gate, and he couldn't help but feel astonished: the two girls were very beautiful, their faces like ladies stepping out of a painting, their bearing like morning‑dewed flowers, clad in white martial attire with lustrous jade rings at their waists, walking with a swaying waist, they looked identical, but that wasn't the most striking feature; the most striking was their eyes—amber irises each holding a black pupil, a natural double pupil.

After the two girls entered the inn, they said little, simply asked for a table and sat opposite Zhou Shuo; looking at the pair, he unconsciously stroked his chin, thinking of two people, though he wasn't sure if it was them, and if it were, why would they come after him—surely they wouldn't be interested in the Eight Divisions Divine King Scripture, right?

One man and two women, three persons seated apart by a courtyard‑gate hall, their breath held but not released; the nearby ordinary guests began to sense something off, started leaving in droves, and even if they didn't leave they retreated upstairs; though they couldn't feel the aura, they could perceive a heavy pressure from the strangers' appearance, attire, and bearing—this small inn made it easy to tell that three outsiders of great presence had arrived.

The innkeeper was a bit nervous, the waiter and assistants dared not approach; the ground floor emptied instantly, while the second floor filled with onlookers. As for the three under scrutiny, the twin girls watched Zhou Shuo's qi circulation, while Zhou Shuo sized them up from head to toe: these two girls were quite pretty, and their martial prowess was genuinely not low—from their breathing he could tell the left one, whose presence stood out, was an accomplished viscera‑refining innate martial artist, and the right‑hand girl, with her icy countenance, had a breath like a deep pool, making her likely an eighty percent accomplished Dao arts master.

"May I ask, fair ladies, are you surnamed Yao?" Zhou Shuo looked at the two girls and couldn't help but ask; they reminded him of the novel's Hong Yi, half‑sisters Yao Yueyu and Yao Yue ting, the genius twin sisters of the Yaochi Sect of Yinzhou, one accomplished in Dao arts, the other accomplished in martial arts and possessing natural double pupils—all these points matched.

"Sure." The left‑hand girl, whose viscera‑refining was accomplished, did not glance askance, smiled, and slightly nodded her chin, acknowledging the guess.

"Members of the Yaochi Sect are also taking an interest in the Great Chan Temple's martial canon." Zhou Shuo looked at the nodding girl, then at the other, unmoving, icy‑countenanced girl, and couldn't help but purse his lips—this was a bit of bad luck for him!

"Who isn't interested in the Marrow‑Refining Secret Manual? But we're more interested in… you." The left‑hand girl laughed, showing two extremely cute dimples.

"How so?" Zhou Shuo blinked; the girl's interest in him sounded like a pleasant thing, but the way the two put it made it clear it wasn't that sort of pleasure.

"Because heaven has been kind to me, I have recently completed my training, and someone like you has appeared in the seven southern provinces—truly a heaven‑sent whetstone." The girl's smile flowed like water, very intoxicating, and without waiting for Zhou Shuo's reply she went on to introduce herself.

"Because heaven has been good to me, I have recently made progress in my cultivation, and people like you have appeared in the seven southern provinces—truly a heaven-sent whetstone." The girl's smile was like water, very intoxicating; without waiting for Zhou Shuo to reply, she introduced herself again.

"Two girls, what if I'm not a whetstone but a man‑eating tiger?" Zhou Shuo glanced sideways, unconsciously pursing his lips, wondering whether this was misfortune or fortune—in this world, every plot character he bumps into seems to be a woman.

"If I'm not a man‑eating tiger, how could I properly test my fist law and martial way?" The girl's smile faded, replaced by solemnity.

"I just fear you two little lambs will be devoured down to the bones." Zhou Shuo shifted his gaze, fixing on the twins as they cracked their mouths open, letting their smiles fill with a wicked flavor.

"Then come on!" The girl gave a bewitching smile, then suddenly flipped her right hand up and struck forward, sending the square table flying into the air and hurling it at Zhou Shuo.

"Don't fight here and break things—I can't afford to pay for it." Zhou Shuo dodged to the side, letting the table smash the one he was sitting at, and meanwhile looked at the trembling innkeeper inside, saying, "Everything here belongs to you; don't involve the innocent."

"Today's losses here, the Yaochi Sect will cover." The girl shifted her foot, made no grand motion, and shot like an arrow released from a bow straight to Zhou Shuo's face, her right fist thrusting out as her words arrived, showing the magnanimity of a prestigious sect.

"Why bother with this?" Zhou Shuo chopped his right palm onto the girl's right wrist, while simultaneously raising his left hand with the sword‑in‑scabbard horizontally, using the scabbard to block the straight silver light shooting from her left sleeve—a thin, linked spear, rod‑thick, with a prismatic tip pressing against the scabbard; the rigid spear shaft instantly went limp.

"Why bother again!" Zhou Shuo seized the girl's right wrist with his right palm, and at the same time raised his sheathed sword horizontally with his left hand, using the sheath to block the straight silver light shooting from the girl's left sleeve—a chain-spear as thick as a little finger, made of linked sections, whose faceted tip rested on the sheath, and whose straight shaft instantly went limp.