Chapter 16

When Sheng Yuanyao blocked Liu Qingcang, shadowy figures slipped silently over the wall at the back gate of the merchant's compound.

They were the death assassins Xu Bingkun had dispatched separately.

The Heavenly March Sword Sect, the Danxia Gang, and the city lord's death assassins—three forces coordinating from within and without—would turn the earth upside down, even if a band of loyal disciples guarded Shen Tang, the cripple.

Just entering the back courtyard, they saw a little Daoist boy sitting alone by the pond, rubbing his hands over a ground-level bonfire.

The scent of roasted sweet potatoes drifted lazily through the air.

The assassins exchanged glances, yet all saw ruthlessness in each other's eyes.

What bad luck for this brat—why roast sweet potatoes at this hour of night!

"Ssssh!" The assassins darted past the little Daoist; their leader casually slashed his sword across her throat.

As the blade struck, he suddenly exclaimed, "Huh?"—there was no resistance, no feedback from the blade…

He turned in shock—the little Daoist boy who had been roasting sweet potatoes had vanished.

Smoke curled gently through the courtyard; the murky pond seemed to twist, and for a moment, night and water blurred into one.

Even his companions were gone—only endless black remained.

"Damn it, a phantom array!" the assassin leader barked: "Stop advancing! Form a defensive circle!"

No sooner had he spoken than the little Daoist's round face reappeared before him, one hand eating a sweet potato, the other holding a small banner, big dark eyes fixed on him.

The banner bore the words: "Divine Divination."

The assassin leader roared: "Who are you? Playing tricks with ghosts and spirits here!"

"You're not afraid?" A Nu was puzzled. She glanced at her banner, then suddenly understood, and flipped it over.

The other side now faced forward—not "Divine Divination," but "Emperor's Banner."

A Nu grinned, showing her teeth: "Now you're scared, right?"

The assassins did feel a nameless dread—not because of this damn Emperor's Banner, but because the child himself was deeply unnatural. The dread grew thicker until they could no longer bear it; they screamed and lunged with their swords.

The Emperor's Banner stirred lightly.

A wailing cry suddenly pierced the night.

The assassins felt their minds churn violently, their skulls splitting with pain—and then nothing more.

The wailing ceased. The courtyard grew quiet again. Dozens of corpses lay scattered across the ground, eyes wide open, as if they had seen their worst nightmare at the moment of death.

"I knew you couldn't not be afraid—when Master hits me with this rod, I'm terrified too," A Nu said, tucking away the banner and trudging back to the west wing, still munching on her sweet potato.

Lu Xingzhou sat in the center of the courtyard, eyes closed. Now he slowly opened them, watching A Nu bounce back, his gaze tender.

A Nu handed him the banner: "Master, there's demonic aura here."

Lu Xingzhou took the banner, stared at it a moment, then frowned softly: "They aren't demons, but they've been tainted… That means a demon lurks near Xiazhou and has contacted these people. Does Xu Bingkun know?"

…………

The night was cool as water. Du Gu Qingli wheeled Shen Tang to Lu Xingzhou's west wing courtyard.

Lu Xingzhou did not return to rest, nor did he, as usual, endlessly refine pills.

He sat quietly in the courtyard, gazing at the cold, clear moonlight. A Nu brought a small stool and sat beside him, also looking up at the moon.

The adult and child looked like statues.

Shen Tang found it amusing, and whispered to A Nu: "What are you looking at?"

A Nu mumbled: "Master says there's a rabbit and a cassia tree in the moon, and someone chopping the tree—but I can't see any of it. Master just doesn't want me to think the moon looks like a pill, so he lies and says there are people inside, so I won't eat it."

Lu Xingzhou sighed: "If I didn't lie about people being there, you'd eat it?"

A Nu drooled: "But it looks so delicious!"

Lu Xingzhou casually slipped a candy into her mouth: "Finish it, brush your teeth, rinse your mouth, then go to sleep. I have something to discuss with Miss Shen."

A Nu chewed, her cheeks bulging, about to speak but holding back.

"You're going to say you're a cultivator, you won't get cavities, so you don't need to rinse, right? I don't know such a filthy child."

"No…" A Nu sniffled: "Speaking of the moon—you haven't told me a story in ages…"

"Good girl," Lu Xingzhou ruffled her hair: "We'll just talk a moment. Then I'll definitely tell you a story, okay?"

"Alright," A Nu's expression brightened slightly. She glanced at Shen Tang and Du Gu Qingli, then pattered off into the house.

Not long after, she returned with a small tea table, placing teacups and a teapot on it, obediently brewing tea for the guests.

Shen Tang realized A Nu had initially disliked her, thinking she interrupted Master's storytelling—but now, having received the promise of a story later, she was happily playing hostess.

In truth, this little girl was deeply lonely.

She had only her Master.

Silence fell. The soft sound of pouring tea filled the courtyard, deepening the night's quiet.

Lu Xingzhou finally spoke: "Miss Shen, today you purged your sect with unmatched authority. Why not use this chance to promote your allies and cleanse the remnants? Why come to me?"

"You sat here gazing at the moon—weren't you waiting for me to come?"

"Not necessarily," Lu Xingzhou smiled. "Pill masters aren't always hunched over their furnaces. That kind of life isn't livable. Raising a child, enjoying scenery, telling stories—that's life."

"Then I must have misunderstood," Shen Tang laughed plainly. "I came only to thank you. You not only guarded the back courtyard, but pulled Sheng Yuanyao into this—you truly went all out to ensure my safety tonight."

"Since we're helping each other, it should be complete. But afterward, I thought I'd overdone it." Lu Xingzhou glanced at Du Gu Qingli and sighed: "I guessed Miss Qingli was strong, but I didn't expect her to be this strong. Had I known, I'd have let them break in and die. Especially Liu Qingcang—it would've saved me trouble later."

"That wouldn't do. I can't let Qingli's strength become too obvious, nor can I risk being marked as a criminal by the Demon Suppression Office. Handling it like tonight is clearly best."

"Mm." Lu Xingzhou murmured, but said nothing more.

The atmosphere grew cold. Shen Tang hesitated a long while before whispering: "Mr. Lu, what do you think of my ruthlessness?"

Du Gu Qingli couldn't help glancing at her.

Are you serious? You know this man is almost certainly from a demonic sect—why care what he thinks of your little bloodshed?

The child just killed more people in the back courtyard than we did.

Lu Xingzhou smiled: "Miss Shen, you're afraid I'll think your gentleness before was fake, and your brutality tonight is your true nature—and that you've been pretending with me, and will now grow wary and distant."

Shen Tang said nothing.

Miss Qingli was briefly taken aback. So that was how it was.

What a perceptive heart this man had.

Lu Xingzhou raised his teacup in a toast: "The softness in a person's heart is reserved for certain things only. I'm actually quite glad you're not a little sunbeam warm to everyone. Thank you for your special treatment—cheers to you."

Shen Tang let out a breath, her smile blooming anew, and raised her cup to clink his.

The two drained their cups in one go. Lu Xingzhou set his down and added: "But Miss, this mutual aid is now complete—pleasure working together. From here on, we each go our own way. There's no need to think that just because we both happen to sit in wheelchairs, you owe me any special regard."

Shen Tang gazed at him quietly for a long moment, then nodded: "Alright."

The conversation ended there.

Lu Xingzhou stole a few more glances at Miss Qingli. This little Bai Mao still hadn't said a word from start to finish, like a puppet.

Fine, that's how a Bai Mao should be. Lu Xingzhou shrugged: "Anuo, let's head back and tell stories."

Anuo was overjoyed, leaping up in one bound.

Only after pushing Shen Tang a good distance away did Miss Qingli finally say softly: "He was fully aware of every change here—it must be the result of his formation. I was wondering that day how he knew I was spying on him…"

"Mm."

Miss Qingli hesitated, on the verge of speaking.

Being watched long-term, and you actually don't care?

Then what do we do about bathing?

She ultimately didn't ask that, only saying: "You really were just afraid he'd form an opinion of you, so you came specifically to clear things up?"

Shen Tang was somewhat lost in thought, still only giving a soft "Mm."

"What on earth are you thinking?"

Shen Tang finally said: "He's a rare talent… And while he seems to arm himself with cold scheming, in truth, if you're good to him by a foot, he'll repay you by ten."

Miss Qingli considered Lu Xingzhou's conduct throughout this affair and nodded in agreement: "So you simply think this man is worth befriending, and that's all?"

Shen Tang pressed her lips together, then still said: "That's all."

Miss Qingli asked again: "Now that you've already helped each other, and he also believes your special regard for him is genuine, by all reason you should be starting to get closer. So why suddenly pull back even more, saying each goes their own way? And when you clearly intended to befriend him, why end things so cleanly?"

Shen Tang burst out laughing: "Did the National Preceptor send you down the mountain to learn more about human affairs?"

Miss Qingli shook her head: "I don't know what Master was thinking either, and I don't think watching all this holds any meaning for me."

"If it holds no meaning, why do you question everything like a curious little baby?"

"Since I'm to protect your safety, I must have a grasp on everything around you. That man is the most unresolved variable by your side—I should know him inside out."

Shen Tang looked up at the gentle moonlight, and only after a long while said: "I am a crumbling wall, but is he any different? Right now, he doesn't want to drag you and me down. And we've offended the City Lord, outside enemies are still out there, troubles cling to us—why involve him?"

Miss Qingli frowned slightly, finding it hard to fathom, but ultimately asked no more.

Lest she be taken for a curious little baby.

Though she felt this pair of man and woman were both a bit off—what was with all that unspoken, tacit scheming between them.

Anuo was still more normal, and powerful too… If only the one she had to protect were Anuo—none of this hassle.

Then she heard Shen Tang laugh: "Even if it's only to complete the mission better, the fact that you're willing to talk this much with me shows you're not entirely a block of ice. So you could just go ask him directly—I think he'd be quite happy… After all, in that brief exchange just now, he looked at you eight times."

Miss Qingli finally showed a touch of girlish pique: "I'm not a curious little baby, and there's no need to let him look."

————

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(End of Chapter)