Chapter 926

But damn it all, how could he claim to be the person behind him?

Thinking of this, Yanagisuto Ma Shou carefully recalled once more.

He realized that the old fellow who called himself Chi Laowen had, from beginning to end, never once claimed to be Zhuge Shenhou's man.

He only said he came from the Central Plains.

Yanagisuto Ma Shou had assumed, because this man's martial skill was so high, that looking across the Central Plains only Zhuge Shenhou alone could command such a person.

Added to that, this man had appeared so abruptly, and so opportunely.

And had treated Duan Tianya in that way.

For a moment, Yanagisuto Ma Shou had simply mistaken him.

"Damnable! That scoundrel has gone too far!"

Yanagisuto Ma Shou was furiously angry, and without caring about this Zhuge Shenhou envoy, he began to roar outright.

Tianhui was also baffled, though in her heart she had already vaguely guessed.

This Yanagisuto Ma Shou had most likely truly been duped by a fake envoy.

But what kind of person would have such nerve?

Not only duping Yanagisuto Ma Shou, a hegemon of You Dongying whose Wu Gong was peerless and whose power and prestige blazed forth,

But also daring to impersonate Zhuge Shenhou's envoy!

In that case, whether in You Dongying or the Central Plains, how could he possibly have any way to live?

After venting his fury for a long while, Yanagisuto Ma Shou fell into another bout of dejection.

If the one who tricked him had been someone else,

Then, just as Tianhui thought, whether in the Central Plains or You Dongying, there would be no way to survive.

Setting everything else aside, when had Yanagisuto Ma Shou ever been an easy man to deceive?

It was only that the one who tricked him had, when Yanagisuto Ma Shou had sprung Snow-Drifting Mortal World plus God-Slaying Single-Sword Slash in a surprise attack,

Still managed to pin him down outright by some unknown method.

Such a method, Yanagisuto Ma Shou truly saw for the first time.

If he wanted revenge, if he wanted to recover the Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom, relying on himself alone, or on the Yanagisuto family's strength, was clearly not enough.

After thinking it over and over, Yanagisuto Ma Shou laid it all bare to Tianhui.

In it he especially mentioned that the old fellow (Chi Laowen) was far too cunning, too cruel, too powerful, and so on.

Even Duan Tianya had been beaten by him until he vomited blood, grievously wounded as if at death's door.

Yanagisuto Yukihime had also died because of him.

The Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom had been forcibly extorted away by him as well.

In truth, these words were almost nothing but barefaced lies told with eyes wide open.

He was only waiting until Duan Tianya returned to the Shanzhuang, and once the two were confronted,

Apart from the Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom, everything else would be exposed.

But Duan Tianya, at the Shanzhuang, was not truly trusted either.

With Zhuge Shenhou's depth of mind, he would Duanranbu Society ask him about this matter.

Duan Tianya himself was still heartbroken over Yanagisuto Yukihime's death — a death he had dealt with his own hands.

How could he possibly bring it up himself?

When neither side asked nor spoke, how could Yanagisuto Ma Shou's lie be exposed?

Moreover, the Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom was indeed what Zhuge Shenhou most urgently needed.

The Thirty-Six Yuan Tiangang, as Zhuge Shenhou's actual confidants, naturally, while carrying out their missions, also kept close watch on the whereabouts of the Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom.

Hearing from Yanagisuto Ma Shou that one had been swindled away, Tianhui's eyes flew wide open and she asked,

"Mr. Yanagisuto, are you truly certain of what you say?"

This matter was simply too shocking — who would have thought that merely coming to You Dongying on a routine inspection, she had Yuchi Jingde such a heavyweight piece of news.

"It is naturally true. How would Yanagisuto dare to deceive the superior officer?"

Yanagisuto Ma Shou wore a look of trembling sincerity, though in his belly he was laughing like a blooming flower.

He himself could not deal with the old fellow, but that did not stop him from borrowing Zhuge Shenhou's strength to teach himself a lesson.

After all, he had nearly died because of the man, and had been swindled out of the extremely important Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom.

"Damnable! How could it have been swindled away?"

A great, heaven-sent merit had slipped right past her very eyes, and Tianhui was furiously indignant.

If Yanagisuto Ma Shou had been a spy of the Shanzhuang, she would long since have given him a tongue-lashing that drenched him in blood.

"Enough, enough — where's that scoundrel? Has he gone far?"

In Tianhui's mind, since it had been done by fraud, then this man's Wu Gong must be ordinary.

At the very least, it could not match Yanagisuto Ma Shou's.

"Well…"

Yanagisuto Ma Shou hesitated for a moment.

In truth, even knowing that Chi Laowen had tricked him, he still did not dare to pursue alone!

After all, he couldn't beat the fellow, could he?

"What's with all this 'well' and 'that'!"

Tianhui was impatient — how important the Heavenly Fragrant Cardamom was, how could a man of You Dongying possibly know?

"It's like this — this man's Wu Gong is simply too high."

Yanagisuto Ma Shou could naturally see what Tianhui was scheming, and at once explained,

"In my opinion, even if you and I joined forces, I'm afraid we'd still struggle to oppose him."

"What? Such skill?"

Tianhui was utterly astonished.

As the Shanzhuang that gathered intelligence from across the realm, the Huanglong Shanzhuang naturally knew the strength of Liusheng Dan Ma Shou.

Moreover, before coming, Zhuge Shenhou had also said that Liusheng Dan Ma Shou was wildly ambitious, his Wu Gong formidable.

Add to that a patient, fox-like cunning nature, and he was truly one of the most troublesome figures in the jianghu.

To receive such an evaluation from Zhuge Shenhou, Liusheng Dan Ma Shou was certainly no weakling.

For him to admit he couldn't win — either he was deliberately hiding his ability, or that swindler truly possessed astonishing skill.

If that were really the case, Tianhui really couldn't hog the credit for this Tian Xiang Doukou all by herself.

"Then Mr. Liusheng, do you know where that thief has gone?"

Since she couldn't claim it all for herself, Tianhui made a swift decision — once she got the details, she'd return to Huanglong Shanzhuang to report.

Although the credit for intelligence couldn't compare to bringing back the Tian Xiang Doukou.

But given how much Zhuge Shenhou valued the Tian Xiang Doukou, this intelligence would surely bring an extremely weighty reward.

Liusheng Dan Ma Shou had long been waiting for her to ask just that, and immediately said,

"He should have gone to the Yunzhou Shaolin Temple in the Central Plains — the target is the Xue Damo Hall."

"Oh?"

Tianhui found it strange — could this fellow actually be a bald donkey from Yunzhou Shaolin Temple?

But since when did these monks who open their Zhang Zui spouting benevolence and morality learn to lie as well?

Doesn't the saying go that those who have left the home do not speak falsehoods?

"It's like this! The other Tian Xiang Doukou might be enshrined before the Buddha in the Xue Damo Hall of Yunzhou Shaolin Temple."

Since she couldn't snatch the Tian Xiang Doukou from Yunzhou Shaolin Temple by force anyway, and going to see Zhuge Shenhou would also be troublesome.

Liusheng Dan Ma Shou thought the same as Tianhui — grabbing credit for the intelligence alone was not bad either.

"What? There's another Tian Xiang Doukou? Right at Yunzhou Shaolin Temple!"

Tianhui was both shocked and delighted.

She had never imagined that coming to You Dongying to complete the simplest of tasks,

she would happen upon the thing Zhuge Shenhou cared about most — and two of them at that.

"No! Mr. Liusheng, this time you must come with me back to the Central Plains."

Tianhui thought it over, then said to Liusheng Dan Ma Shou,