Chapter 265: Chasing to the End (Supplemental Chapter 5)

Pan Yun stomped forward, using her lightness skill to fly far before stopping.

Pan Xiaohei nestled comfortably in Miao He's arms, smirking at her.

Pan Yun spun around sharply and glared at it. "If you laugh again, I'll throw you into the ditch."

Pan Xiaohei immediately stopped laughing and mewed: "You're upset outside, but you don't take it out on them—you take it out on me."

Miao He also said: "Exactly, Little Master, don't bully Xiaohei—the one who's annoying is that Old Man Liu."

Miao He patted Pan Xiaohei, hugged it, and swayed it gently to comfort it.

Pan Yun took a deep breath, pulled her lips into a false smile. "You're right. I won't get angry. Come on, let's find the next household!"

Seeing Miao Zhen: "Third Master and Fourth Master..."

"Forget them. The urgent matter is earning enough to complete our merit deeds. Could Third Brother and Fourth Sister possibly be lost?"

The Zheng family lived in Zheng Village, a very large village, nearly the size of a town.

The main road was paved with blue stone slabs, lined with shops and inns; every five days, a major market was held here, so it was called Zheng Village, but in reality, it was about the size of a town.

Unlike the town where the Liu family lived, most villagers here bore the surname Zheng and were mostly of the same clan.

There were drawbacks and advantages.

The drawback was that everything in the village essentially answered to Old Man Zheng—even if mistreated, no one ever thought of rebelling against him, not even speaking ill of him in private;

the advantage was that Old Man Zheng ruled with absolute authority; if he approved something, the entire village approved it.

Pan Yun hadn't originally planned to come to Zheng Village because she thought they didn't need the array she offered.

Even if confronted by Japanese pirates or other bandits, they'd get nowhere in Zheng Village.

Because Zheng Village was highly united.

This clan bond could effectively repel external enemies; if she were a Japanese pirate planning a raid, she'd definitely choose Liu's place, not Zheng's.

Could Old Man Zheng raise his arm and summon a hundred responses? Could Old Man Liu?

But Old Man Liu was so stingy, and Pan Yun wasn't someone who took abuse—she wouldn't tolerate him.

She needed money, but not that desperately.

So she decided to try approaching Old Man Zheng—if he refused, she'd find another way to earn.

After all, there were countless ways to make money in the world; she didn't believe her abilities couldn't earn enough.

But what Pan Yun and the others hadn't expected was that the moment she opened her mouth, Old Man Zheng immediately ordered someone to produce five hundred taels in silver notes and bought the entire array.

Old Man Zheng was a thin, spirited old man; oddly, he too wore a Daoist robe.

Oh, in Great Ming, scholars commonly wore Daoist robes, mostly in plain green or white.

It carried the implication of holding Confucian classics in hand while dwelling in Daoist ways.

Old Man Zheng looked at Pan Yun with gentle eyes and said: "The moment I saw the Daoist, I knew you were a person of great merit and great ability. Indeed, as soon as you gave your Daoist title, I was struck dumb with awe."

"For a Daoist of your ability, these five hundred taels are merely a small sum you kindly take out of compassion for us," Old Man Zheng smiled. "I know that when you help others resolve troubles, you must receive something in return to offer back to Heaven and Earth—otherwise, not only will you be punished, but you'll also bear the Heavenly retribution on our behalf."

Pan Yun looked at Old Man Zheng with even warmer eyes and sincerely said: "There aren't many people in this world like you, Old Man Zheng—someone who understands the ways and is so considerate."

Old Man Zheng burst into laughter. "Daoist Sanzhu, you went to Liu's first, didn't you? I heard you were driven out of Liu's in anger."

Pan Yun smiled faintly. "Your news travels fast. I left Liu's and came straight to Zheng Village, yet you heard of it before I even arrived."

Old Man Zheng chuckled. "One of our clan members went to the town market and saw the spectacle—he returned just as you entered the village."

No wonder he knew who she was the moment she arrived.

Pan Yun said: "This array was specifically prepared for Liu's. What a pity~~"

Old Man Zheng hurriedly asked: "Did Zheng Village offend you in some way? Otherwise, why didn't you consider us?"

"I only wanted to remind Zheng Village of one thing: with your prestige and the village's unity, you don't need the array to repel Japanese pirates."

"But with this miraculous array, casualties could be reduced," Old Man Zheng said. "When comparing people and money, people are always more important."

Pan Yun sighed. "There's only this one set of array flags and array plate left. It's a pity Old Man Liu doesn't have your understanding."

Old Man Zheng smiled faintly—he understood what Pan Yun meant.

If the Japanese pirates attacked both Liu's and Zheng's, Liu's and the town's casualties would far exceed Zheng's and Zheng Village's.

So she wanted to protect Liu's and the townsfolk, but hadn't expected Old Man Liu to be so foolish as to anger her outright.

Old Man Zheng carefully examined the array plate, then pushed the box containing the array flags toward Pan Yun and said solemnly: "Please, Daoist Sanzhu, help us set up the array—this array should extend slightly beyond the village." He added apologetically: "Some families' vegetable plots lie just outside the village gate. If the Japanese pirates linger, we'll still have vegetables to eat."

Pan Yun: "... Alright."

Pan Yun took the array flags, leapt to the highest point in the village, surveyed from above, then carefully selected five spots to bury the flags.

Old Man Zheng watched as she moved like a wisp of smoke—here one moment, there the next—and his heart and eyes filled with awe.

After burying all the array flags, Pan Yun returned to Old Man Zheng's side, formed a hand seal, and reconnected the flags to the array plate.

As soon as the array plate opened, Old Man Zheng saw the small green dots on it.

The sky had darkened; a cold wind blew, and Old Man Zheng felt his vision blur—the vegetable plots before him seemed to drift far away.

"This..."

Pan Yun taught him how to walk the array: "This is the visible path, this is the hidden path. Anyone walking the hidden path can see those on the visible path, but those on the visible path cannot see those on the hidden path."

Under Pan Yun's guidance, Old Man Zheng took a few steps along the array plate, turned around, and found himself standing at the edge of the vegetable plots.

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He exhaled and asked: "This is indeed an excellent ambush array—but everyone in the village must learn it, or won't they get lost themselves?"

Pan Yun said: "The array plate is already linked to the flags. You can use the plate to control whether the array is active. Normally, you won't need it. Practicing is simple."

"This array seems complex at first glance, but it's easy to learn. Mark the steps on the array plate—it's a repeating pattern of five five-step sequences. That means villagers need only learn five five-step sequences; no matter how they walk in the village, they won't get lost."

Old Man Zheng: "Five five-step sequences—that's twenty-five steps total?"

Pan Yun nodded. "Correct."

Old Man Zheng sighed in relief and smiled. "That's manageable. Twenty-five steps—children can learn them."

Pan Yun nodded; she thought the same.

Seeing Miao Zhen held reservations: "There are always people with poor talent in this world."

Pan Yun: "Then let him learn the Three Five-Step Methods. Once he learns them, even if he gets lost, he won't die."

She paused, then said: "If he can't even walk fifteen steps, when the Japanese pirates come, find a place to hide—hide in the hidden lines and wait like a hunter by a tree stump. If you're lucky enough to encounter them, kill them."

Master Zheng agreed, then stared in surprise at the five or six small yellow dots appearing on the formation disc: "Why are there small yellow dots?"

After one glance, Pan Yun said: "Guests have arrived."

Upon hearing this, Master Zheng feared the visitor might get lost, and hurriedly shut off the formation with the disc.

Master Liu, who had entered the village, was startled by the mulberry tree suddenly appearing before him; his horse was frightened, rearing up and neighing. The cart wheels tumbled, the carriage tilted sharply to the right, then crashed with a thud.

Master Liu crawled out of the cart, pounding his chest and stamping his feet: "Oh no, oh no, this is my formation, mine!"

Enraged, he swung his whip at Liu He, shouting: "How dare you drive like this? You got lost coming to Zheng Family Village? You missed the divine artifact—your life isn't enough to pay for it!"

Liu He took five or six lashes on his back without flinching, then growled: "You never told me to come to Zheng Family Village! You told me to chase the Daoist! I couldn't even see the Daoist—how was I supposed to know she was heading here? I naturally followed the main road. Didn't you say nothing when I was chasing her?"

"Bullshit! I already said it— if she won't sell me the artifact, she'll sell it to the Zhengs! Why did you run onto the main road?"

"But you also said she might sell it to the County Magistrate," Liu He replied. "The County Magistrate outranks Master Zheng—I naturally went to the county first."

"Shut up!" Master Liu swung his whip again, striking Liu He's face with a sharp crack, carving a bloody gash. "I say one thing, you retort three. Who's the master, and who's the servant?"

Liu He leapt up, grabbed the whip as it came again, yanked it away, slammed it to the ground, and stomped on it three times: "Liu Tai, I'm not your servant, and you're not my master—you're my nephew!"

"Even if you weren't my uncle, you still can't treat me like this. You're the one who said you were the driver, that you'd follow my orders—and now you blame me for getting lost? You didn't even say we were going to find the County Magistrate!"

"Even if I were your servant, you still can't humiliate me! I took pay for guarding the gate, and I did my duty. Driving for you was a favor—I didn't take your wages. You don't thank me, yet you curse me and beat me! Your grandmother's balls—I quit!"

Master Liu was furious, trembling as he pointed at Liu He: "You—you—you've gone too far—"

Liu He touched his face, spat in Master Liu's face, and said: "You're not the Emperor—you think you can defy heaven? I say it's you who's defied heaven."

Master Zheng and his steward stared, dumbfounded.

But Pan Yun couldn't help admiring Liu He: "Good man, you're the truly clever one."

Master Zheng turned to look at Pan Yun in surprise: "A clever man?"

Isn't this turning heaven upside down?

And why does she call him "Good Man," but not "Good Man" to Old Liu?

Master Liu's party finally noticed Pan Yun and Master Zheng's group standing by the road.

Good night

(End of Chapter)