Chapter 193: Sanjiangkou

Afternoon.

A large ferry was moored at the Jingcheng suburbs dock, packed with martial artists from all directions, with even the deck crowded with people from all walks of life.

Xie Jinhuan, wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a long spear, dressed as an ordinary martial artist, arrived at the private room on the third floor of the ship's cabin and put down his miscellaneous belongings.

Although it was a ferry for martial artists, the environment was not poor given its departure from Jingcheng; there were chess tables on the periphery to pass the time, behind beaded curtains were beds for accompanying maids and concubines, and from the window one could overlook the deck and the river scenery on both banks.

"Gurgle..."

Meiqiu, still a bit angry because her snack rack had been confiscated for eating too much the night before, flew straight to the bed upon entering the room and fell asleep, implying—go stand guard yourself.

Xie Jinhuan didn't mind, went to the window to wait, saw that Seeing Bing Tuozi hadn't arrived yet, and asked:

"Wife? Are there any experts around here?"

"No, the highest one currently is you."

Xie Jinhuan looked toward the voice, only to see a red-dressed queen appearing on the chair behind him.

The queen wore golden hair ornaments, propped her cheek with her hand, her wide-open red dress wrapped a Bai Xi flawless figure, she crossed her legs, and at the end of her slender calves hung a black high-heeled shoe with a red sole, half taken off, swaying at her toes...

Such a big vehicle...

Xie Jinhuan felt only Ghost Wife could perfectly master this queenly aura, turned around to examine carefully:

"Walk a few steps for me to see?"

Ye Hongshang was not stingy, her gaze and demeanor like a Bingshan queen; she leaned on the chair to rise and walked out an extremely elegant catwalk:

Tap, tap, tap~

The crisp sound was soul-stealing; long Bai Xi legs appeared and disappeared under the red dress, matching her tall figure and the rhythm of her chest and buttocks trembling slightly, enough to trigger a man's most primal instinctual impulse.

Xie Jinhuan walked to the front, only to find something was wrong.

Ghost Wife was already of astonishing height; now wearing high heels and deliberately enlarging her figure by a few sizes, she stood over two meters tall, paused right in front, supported her waist with one hand, leaned forward, and lightly hooked his chin with her finger:

"Little brat~ Do you want big sister to step on you?"

Xie Jinhuan was flattered, looked left and right:

"Is it okay?"

"As long as you like it, what can't big sister satisfy for you?"

Ye Hongshang raised both hands, helped Xie Jinhuan sit in the Taishi chair, then lifted her slender right leg, and the high heel stepped toward...

"Eh?!"

Xie Jinhuan quickly shrank backward:

"Not there, it would kill someone; lift the leg higher, place it on the chest."

Relying on her astonishing height, Ye Hongshang found this action not difficult at all; she immediately placed the red-soled high heel on his chest; the silky skirt hem, due to the high leg lift, slid down like water ripples along her knee and thigh, revealing her right leg as plump as Bai Yu, and red fabric...

?!

Xie Jinhuan slid down a bit in the chair, tilted his head to look, then glanced at Ghost Wife:

"Ah Piao, do you want me to do something? Why are you so generous today?"

Ye Hongshang performed a 'old shoulder extremely slippery' move; half the collar slid down along her shoulder, and the chubby Meiqiu seemed about to pop out:

"Was big sister not generous before?"

"Uh..."

Xie Jinhuan felt he couldn't hold on much longer, wanted to act, but Ah Piao couldn't really do it, so he could only ask:

"Is there more?"

"Yes~"

Ye Hongshang's gaze looked down from above, carrying a touch of world-weary feeling; her cold and beautiful queenly demeanor was perfectly in place; her left hand lifted the skirt hem, pinched the bow on her waist side, and slowly pulled the thin string...

?

Xie Jinhuan waited with unblinking eyes, only to find that even after pulling the red string for over a meter, the end was still not in sight; his expression grew slightly dazed:

"Uh... Wife, this is a bit torturous."

"Only when desired but unattainable does it make one unable to stop; if you see it so simply, what reward would I give you later?" While Ye Hongshang spoke, she hooked his chin with her high heel...

Xie Jinhuan felt this perspective was somewhat unbearable, wishing he could dig out Ghost Wife's true form right now; just as he was enjoying this, he suddenly noticed:

Creak~

The door was pushed open!

?

A little earlier.

Nangong Ye, wearing a veil hat and carrying a long sword on his back, arrived at the booked ferry, with a small package slung over his shoulder containing a small wooden box carved with 'Zheng Zheng Zheng Xia' and daily necessities.

The reason he didn't travel with Xie Jinhuan was that Mount Zihui also needed to go to Sanjiangkou to monitor martial arts movements; she had returned the sword case and other items, asking Zhang Guan to take them along with the ship for emergencies.

Upon arriving at the third-floor guest room, Nangong Ye took a deep breath; her sharp and beautiful phoenix eyes showed a hint of hesitation, for once inside, she would be at this boy's mercy for the next four or five days, living together day and night...

However, this boy would be in seclusion on the journey, unlikely to cause trouble; the punishment would only begin upon reaching Sanjiangkou...

After suppressing some stray thoughts slightly, Nangong Ye pushed open the door and looked inside.

Creak~

The result was that upon raising her eyes, she saw Meiqiu lying on the bed, life or death unknown!

Xie Jinhuan, dressed as a martial artist, was 'Ge You lying' in the Taishi chair, his eyes empty staring forward, his hand still reaching out in front as if possessed...

"Xie Jinhua?!"

Nangong Ye's face changed suddenly; she flashed close and reached out to check Xie Jinhuan's breath.

Xie Jinhuan directly bounced up to sit properly, looked left and right to adjust his clothes; his eyes first appeared blank, then turned awkward:

"Heroine Mu, you're here?"

"Gugu?"

Meiqiu, not wanting to watch Xie Jinhuan go mad, rolled once on the bedside and looked outward.

?

Nan Nan Gong Ye, carrying a small bundle, bent down to carefully check this child's pulse; the person was fine, but below the waist...

"What are you doing?" Nan Nan Gong Ye's eyes turned cold as she straightened up!

Xie Jinhuan was accepting a reward from the ghost; if one couldn't see the ghost, the posture was indeed a bit awkward, and his mind raced:

"I had nothing to do just now, so I was pondering martial arts moves, hmm... Sleeping Arhat Fist!"

Nan Nan Gong Ye felt that what just happened was hardly a martial arts move; if she had stood before him and offered her leg to Xie Jinhuan, it would have fit perfectly, so her eyes showed slight disgust:

"Is that so?"

"Hehe..."

Xie Jinhuan found it hard to explain properly, so he stood up and looked at the bed:

"Should I enter seclusion now?"

Seeing this child did not intend to trouble her, Nan Nan Gong Ye secretly breathed a sigh of relief, putting down her veil hat and bundle:

"You sleep; I will guard your path. I will call you when we arrive."

Xie Jinhuan could not detoxify while in seclusion, so he wasted no time; with the momentum of a thundering gallop, he kissed the Seeing Bing Tuozi on the face. Pop~

Then he leaped onto the bed, released the medicinal properties sealed in his meridians, and fell asleep immediately!

Thud~

Nan Nan Gong Ye clenched her fists, her eyes cold as frost, but seeing Xie Jinhuan sleeping obediently, she did not go over to trouble this child again; she sat by the table, intending to clear her chaotic thoughts.

But the big Meiqiu on the inner side of the bed flapped her wings, flew over, landed nearby, and tilted her head to inspect:

"Gugu?"

Nan Nan Gong Ye blinked her eyes and raised a hand to stroke her own head.

Meiqiu felt this black-clad heroine looked familiar but couldn't recall where she had seen her, so she shook her head and wobbled, acting cute and opening her mouth to beg for food.

Nan Nan Gong Ye was unsure of Meiqiu's diet, but since pills rich in spiritual energy did no harm to wild spiritual birds, she fed Meiqiu a Grain-Avoiding Pill!

"Gugu?"

Meiqiu tilted her head, saw the tea-green pill, found it somewhat fragrant, immediately swallowed the golden pill into her belly, and then began to ponder the meaning of bird life:

Why am I not hungry?

I don't want to eat anything...

Then what meaning is there in a bird living...

Seeing Meiqiu become very well-behaved, Nan Nan Gong Ye raised a hand to rub her head and also began to practice her art...

—

On the other side, an inn in the suburbs of the capital.

Zhang Chu, dressed as a wandering swordsman, stood in the room with a sword at his waist, his face deathly pale as he stared at the black-clad man by the window; beside him, He Can leaned against a chair in despair, gesturing with open hands to complain:

"If I say your Mingshen Sect is powerful, you get your entire sect wiped out every day; if I say you aren't powerful, capturing your own people is so 'pursuing criminals like gods' that you can even find your way here..."

The black-clad man sat by the tea table and calmly explained:

"Everyone who joins the sect bears a mark on their body, allowing the Ghost Envoys to track and silence them. Blood Third Brother died, so I came to take over the handover."

Clap~

He Can slapped his hands: "Good riddance! Are you the second or the first elder of the Northwest Branch Altar?"

"The first."

He Can tilted his head to inspect the hood, but found no black smoke masking the face; seeing a large bald head, he quickly averted his gaze:

"What merit or virtue do I possess that a Branch Altar Master must personally come to find me?"

"You are the last grandson of the He family. You were once trash, but now that the fine materials are all dead, you trash naturally can rise to power. If the Corpse Ancestor emerges from seclusion, a vessel is needed; your pure-yin body, born as a half-demon, is currently the best embryo."

"You really don't believe in evil omens, do you? How many of your people did Xie Jinhuan wipe out? Can't you see?"

The black-clad man remained calm: "We have already found the location of the Corpse Ancestor's tomb, and since Xie Jinhuan accepted Wei Wu Yi's invitation, when we act, he will be fighting in the tournament at Sanjiangkou; our chance of success is nine out of ten."

He Can indeed did not expect Xie Jinhuan to have left, so he straightened up a bit:

"If Xie Jinhuan is not here, you still have a one-in-ten chance of failure?"

"Man proposes, heaven disposes; but even if we fail, it matters not. The Corpse Ancestor's tomb cannot be moved; this time we are merely testing the tomb's defenses so the Sect Master and others can break into the tomb later."

He Can frowned tightly: "Is your Mingshen Sect all suicide soldiers? If we fail, you will surely be reduced to bones and dust, and you still say it matters not?"

The black-clad man paused briefly, removed his hood, and revealed a large bald head:

"Everyone has their own Dao. I conspired with your demon Dao only out of personal grievance, unwilling to let the Buddhist Sect live, and incidentally causing the Daoist Sect to lose some flesh. Whether I live or die, the result is the same."

?

He Can looked at the benevolent-faced high monk before him, paused briefly, and performed a Buddhist salute:

"The Buddha said, 'Put down the butcher's knife, and you become a Buddha on the spot.' It seems you, benefactor, are blinded by hatred. Why not 'put it down,' or go cause trouble yourself, and don't drag this innocent person into it?"

The black-clad man shook his head: "Zhang Chu is no longer useful; he can seek refuge at another branch altar, but you are still useful and cannot leave."

"Eh?"

He Can quickly raised a hand: "If I cannot leave, how can he? I share life and death with him; we shall never part!"

"You..."

Zhang Chu's face instantly twisted!

Seeing this, the black-clad man said no more, pulled his hood back on, and left the inn...

——

Sanjiangkou.

The Dajiang rushes down from the upper reaches, splitting into two branches outside the Danyun Pass; the greater part flows into the pass to become the main stem of the Huai River, while the tributary transforms into the Qing River, flowing into Daizhou until it enters the sea at Longgu Tan.

The angle where the river channels converge is what the martial world calls Sanjiangkou; it belongs to Jiangan County in Jingzhou. Whether heading south into the Central Plains or north and west, one must pass through here, and the great martial gatherings of successive generations have basically all been held at this spot.

With two days still remaining until the Start of Winter, the troublemakers have already arrived early; ferry boats arrive on the river surface from time to time, and heroes from all sides ride their flying horses here one after another.

The small county town, which originally had only a permanent population of over twenty thousand, instantly surged to more than sixty thousand, and the number continues to increase; even with inns filling every street, they still struggle to accommodate everyone.

Fortunately, Jiangan County has experience hosting such gatherings multiple times; upon hearing the news, merchants from all sides began pitching tents and setting up stalls on the wasteland. Seen from the sky, the county town is directly surrounded by tents, the riverbanks are full of passenger boats, and a large area at the confluence of the three rivers has been left empty for the organizers to use as the venue.

At noon, Jiang'an Town was packed with people; from time to time, horse teams clad in bright clothes and riding spirited steeds galloped past, drawing a burst of clamor:

"Is that the Fengshan Alliance?"

"Yes. The one walking behind is Bao Xiaolin of Jinghua Manor; his son is named Bao Fei. It is said he was beaten up by Xie Jinhuan, who is quite the talk of the town in Jingcheng..."

"Why?"

"Probably because his name deserves a beating. Xie Jinhuan is a rising star of the Righteous Path; hearing such a lousy name and giving him a beating is quite normal..."

Inside an inn in the town, Bu Yuehua changed into a black-blue dress, wore a veil hat on her head, carried a three-foot sword on her back, and had taken off her glasses and medicine bottles. She sat gracefully by the window, gazing at the people coming and going on the street.

Although her figure was graceful and the veil hat could not hide that mature charm, the countless martial artists sitting in the inn did not look at her too closely.

After all, Wei Wu Yi had sent out the Hero's Invitation, and the masters of all the great martial families of Great Qian had come; those of Ranks 1–3 were as numerous as carp crossing the river. Bu Yuehua, a second-rate expert who was merely a treasure to be snatched here, could not be distinguished by ordinary martial artists from the many big shots sitting in the inn; naturally, they had to speak and act cautiously to avoid having their martial arts shattered by the finger of some passing old man.

It was only after arriving at Sanjiangkou that Bu Yuehua realized how deep the foundation of Great Qian's martial arts truly was; however, her current attention was not focused on the martial artists of Great Qian, but rather on a table of drinkers in the restaurant across the way.

There were four drinkers in total; the leader was a man with broad shoulders and a wide back, with a large blade placed beside him. Although his appearance was ordinary and his face was covered in beard, Bu Yuehua could recognize him as Liang Yue, the second-in-command of the Black Yan Gang in the Southern Border.

The Black Yan Gang are smugglers of the Southern Border, mainly smuggling via sea routes to the Northern Zhou of Great Qian; they also engage in ship-jacking. They are not under the jurisdiction of the Wu Alliance and wield considerable power.

However, three years ago, the Black Yan Gang lost a my lord; a merchant ship fully loaded with goods, moored at Phoenix Port, was actually hijacked by a brat. Dozens of gang members chased it out to sea for over a hundred li but still failed to catch up, and they have been mocked by the heroes of the Southern Border ever since...

According to Bu Yuehua's understanding, Liang Yue of the Black Yan Gang should have been negotiating business with Great Qian gangs on the southeast coast; suddenly appearing at Sanjiangkou clearly indicates he is also eyeing the Hu Gu Teng.

The content Liang Yue was discussing at this moment was very special. Bu Yuehua concealed herself nearby and listened carefully; through the noise of the bustling street, she could roughly hear:

"Once this matter is concluded, return immediately to the south. The Gang Leader has found a good place in Huo Feng Valley..."

Huo Feng Valley is a core area of the Southern Border; there are many treasures inside, but they are not easy to find. The greatest opportunity of all is the Phoenix Tomb.

The Phoenix Tomb is similar to the Soldier Sage Mountain; both are top-tier opportunities that exist but are very hard to locate. It is said that every time an object is taken from within, the surrounding landscape changes, and the next time one comes, it will have completely vanished.

Among the ancestors who obtained these opportunities, Wei Wu Yi is merely an inconspicuous one. Bu Yuehua, having unexpectedly found the entrance, naturally desires this great opportunity; she has been investigating for nearly a year and knows that the fire of the Five Elements within the Phoenix Tomb is excessive, so one can only venture deep during winter, and must prepare various magical artifacts.

If the Black Yan Gang has also found some clues, then this matter becomes quite troublesome; when two tigers fight, both will inevitably suffer damage. Bu Yuehua frowned secretly; after probing for a while and finding no other clues, she stood up and returned to her room...

(End of this chapter)