Chapter 32: Caught in a Crisis

After reaching the opposite bank, the party disembarked again under the watch of the troops stationed there. The local commander brought several subordinate officers forward to pay respects to Shang Chaozong. Guangyi Commandery had not openly rebelled yet. Nominally, they were still officials of the imperial court, while Shang Chaozong remained a prince of that same court. Courtesy and protocol both required them to greet him. Overall, their treatment of Shang Chaozong was polite enough. They also knew he could scarcely be counted as one of the court's people anymore, so there was no reason to treat him as an enemy. The commander originally wanted to host a banquet for him, but Shang Chaozong politely declined and accepted only some supplies.

He had little liking for rebels who held troops for their own ends. Whatever his present situation, he was still a member of the imperial house. The local forces nevertheless remained exceedingly courteous. They even assigned a ten-man cavalry squad to escort Shang Chaozong's party, claiming the men would accompany him until he had left Guangyi Commandery. Shang Chaozong did not refuse. Nor could he.

He knew perfectly well that "escort" meant surveillance.

He had five hundred elite cavalrymen with him. Drawn up for battle, they could charge with terrifying force; even several thousand infantry in formation might not be able to stop them. That force could easily cooperate with an imperial attack. Given the relationship between Guangyi Commandery and the court, the local authorities had no choice but to guard against him. The young officer leading the escort was named Qu Wu. His ten men followed from neither too near nor too far behind, watching the party throughout the journey. Whenever they passed a relay station, Qu Wu would send reports on their movements onward. Once they entered Guangyi Commandery, Little Nanshan was actually already quite close.

The next day, they finally reached its foot. A stretch of low wooded hills beside the official road was the place known as Little Nanshan.

"Brother!" Shang Shuqing called.

Shang Chaozong raised one hand, his expression grave. He looked grave because the few people close to him had already reached the same conclusion: sooner or later, Niu Youdao intended to leave them. The only reason he had remained this long was probably the matter of delivering the letter. Now that Little Nanshan had arrived, this might well be the moment when Niu Youdao said farewell. At Shang Chaozong's signal, the force halted as one. Reins tightened, and horses stopped along the road. Sitting straight in the saddle beneath her gauze-veiled hat, Shang Shuqing leaned slightly forward and looked toward Niu Youdao.

"Cultivator, weren't you supposed to deliver a letter? We've reached Little Nanshan."

"Oh! We're here?" Niu Youdao wore an expression as though he had only just learned it.

Chu Ze, the Hundred-Man Commander responsible for scouting ahead, pointed toward a road leading into the hills. "Nanshan Temple lies along that road."

Niu Youdao looked back and pointed to the bundle hanging from Yuan Gang's horse. "Monkey, the letter's in the pack. Run this errand for me."

Yuan Gang gave a silent nod, flicked his reins aside, and rode out of the column. He turned his horse halfway around on the spot, raised his riding crop, and pointed at one of the personal guards without the slightest ceremony.

"You. Come with me."

The guard's name was Su Jieren. Seeing himself singled out, he froze and looked toward his commander. Shang Chaozong turned back and nodded. Only then did Su Jieren ride out. Yuan Gang snapped his reins and galloped toward the mountain road. Su Jieren followed close behind.

"Stay alert!" Lan Ruoting called, at the same time giving Guan Tie a meaningful look.

Guan Tie understood. He nodded slightly and led a group in one direction to take up watch. Most of the five hundred cavalrymen dispersed on orders and established a defensive perimeter.

Qu Wu, the Guangyi Commandery officer assigned to monitor them, rode over with his men. "Your Highness, what happened?"

Lan Ruoting smiled and answered in Shang Chaozong's place. "Nothing. We sent someone to Nanshan Temple to deliver a letter. We're waiting for him to return. It won't take long."

"Oh." Qu Wu withdrew with his men, though he continued looking around curiously.

"Follow me!"

On the mountain road, Yuan Gang suddenly looked back and shouted. He wheeled his horse away from the path and charged into a dense but relatively level stretch of forest. Su Jieren turned after him. They had not gone far into the woods when Yuan Gang abruptly reined in and silently surveyed the surroundings.

Su Jieren stopped beside him, puzzled. "Brother Yuan, aren't we going to Nanshan Temple to deliver a letter?"

"Get down."

Yuan Gang threw one leg over and jumped from his horse. He removed the bundle from the saddle and pulled out a set of clothes. They were Niu Youdao's. Su Jieren had only just dismounted when Yuan Gang tossed the clothes into his arms, catching him off guard.

Yuan Gang lifted his chin. "Change."

"Why?" Su Jieren asked in confusion.

"Change when I tell you to change. Why so much nonsense?"

Su Jieren looked helpless but did as he was told.

When his movements proved too slow, Yuan Gang barked again, "Faster!"

Within moments, Su Jieren had changed his outer clothes. Yuan Gang stepped forward and reached for his hair, intending to alter the style as well.

This time Su Jieren refused. He covered his topknot and backed away warily. "What exactly are you trying to do?"

Yuan Gang did not force him. "If you don't want to do it, go back. Tell His Highness you refuse to run errands for me and have him send someone willing."

Su Jieren was left speechless. He was equally helpless. In the end, he submitted. Before long, Yuan Gang had changed his hairstyle into Niu Youdao's loose, casual ponytail, tied behind the head. Then he slapped a letter against Su Jieren's chest.

"What you need to do is simple. Pretend you're the cultivator and go to Nanshan Temple to deliver the letter. Say you're Niu Youdao, disciple of the Shangqing Sect, and that you've come on the Sect Leader's orders to deliver a letter and request an audience with the abbot. Delivering the letter is secondary. Your main task is to observe the situation inside the temple. Remember?"

That final instruction existed largely to steady Su Jieren and blur the danger he might be walking into. After giving him several more instructions, the two mounted again and returned to the mountain road. When they reached a point from which Nanshan Temple could dimly be seen atop the mountain, Yuan Gang once more rode alone into the forest. Su Jieren continued by himself toward the summit. Yuan Gang hid his horse in a secluded place among the trees, then quickly continued on foot and began stalking toward the mountaintop. At last, he concealed himself in the crown of a large tree and watched Su Jieren ride through the temple gate.

"Abbot, someone has arrived outside. He says he's Niu Youdao, a disciple of the Shangqing Sect, and that he's been sent by the Sect Leader to deliver a letter to you."

In the reception hall of the rear courtyard, Abbot Yuan Fang was drinking tea with Song Yanqing and the others when a disciple came in to report. Before Yuan Fang could answer, Song Yanqing shot to his feet. His eyes lit up.

"Heh. He really came!"

Then he looked at Yuan Fang. "Bring him in."

With a gesture, he summoned Xu Yitian and Chen Guishuo, then led both into a small side room to hide temporarily. Song Yanqing himself poked several holes through the paper covering the partition window. Yuan Fang looked thoroughly helpless. He wanted no part in disputes between cultivation sects. That was not something a little demon like him could afford to touch. Yet he had no choice. He could only wave at the reporting disciple.

"Invite him in."

Before long, Su Jieren arrived, observing the surroundings carefully all the way. He entered, paid his respects to Yuan Fang, took the letter from his robe, and presented it with both hands. In the side room, Song Yanqing's brow immediately furrowed.

How could he fail to recognize Niu Youdao?

The newcomer had merely dressed himself to resemble Niu Youdao. He was not Niu Youdao at all.

Song Yanqing turned to Xu Yitian and Chen Guishuo. "Go outside and see what's going on."

The two men obeyed and walked straight out of the side room without even bothering to avoid the fake Niu Youdao. They hurried away. Yuan Fang broke the seal, shook out the sheet inside, and stared at it. Up, down, left, right. He turned it over and over. He could not understand what it meant. There was not a single mark of writing anywhere on it. It was plainly a blank sheet of paper. Song Yanqing came out, reached over, and snatched the letter from Yuan Fang's hand. He looked Su Jieren up and down, then glanced at the letter. His expression froze.

What was this?

He too began turning the sheet over and over...

At Nanshan Temple's main gate, Xu Yitian rushed out and ran quickly down the steps, scanning both sides of the road as he descended. Yuan Gang, hidden in the crown of a tree, quietly watched him. Then his gaze flickered. Another figure had appeared from within the temple wall. The man paused for an instant atop the wall, then launched himself into the air and landed lightly on the crown of a tree outside the temple. Using the treetop for leverage, he sprang again, light as a swallow, drifting from crown to crown while searching left and right. The newcomer was Chen Guishuo. He and Xu Yitian were searching in coordination, one high and one low. Yuan Gang cursed inwardly. The coincidence could hardly have been worse.

The direction Chen Guishuo was traveling would bring him directly to the very tree where Yuan Gang was hiding. Yuan Gang did not dare move to another position now. Any movement might expose him. He could only remain perfectly still and hope Chen Guishuo failed to notice. He was not that fortunate. Before Chen Guishuo even landed on Yuan Gang's treetop, his gaze suddenly shifted and locked directly onto him. His pupils contracted sharply.

Clang!

He drew his sword in one smooth motion, flicked the blade into a flowering blur, and hurled himself through the air straight at Yuan Gang. Yuan Gang dropped lower through the branches. His foot found the fork of the trunk. He drove off it, sprinted a step, and launched himself away toward another tree. Branches and leaves exploded behind him in a flurry. Sword light flashed. Chen Guishuo's blade shredded the obstructing crown apart. He kicked off the trunk without pause and shot through the broken canopy like a swallow piercing rain, man and sword continuing after Yuan Gang. Yuan Gang reached the next tree, caught a branch, bent it downward with his weight, and dropped to the ground. Then he sprinted through the forest at full speed. One glance had told him enough.

Chen Guishuo could skim treetops as lightly as a swallow. This was no ordinary warrior. Yuan Gang was in trouble. Behind him, Chen Guishuo never touched the ground. His feet kicked from trunk to trunk through the forest, left and right, rapidly closing the distance. Yuan Gang's running speed could not match him. In moments, Chen Guishuo caught up. Still airborne, he drove one palm forward. The Xuanqing Palm burst out with a shrill rush of force and struck through the air toward Yuan Gang. Yuan Gang sensed the danger but had no time to evade. He arched his back and locked every muscle rigid.

Boom!

The palm force struck him squarely. The impact blasted Yuan Gang forward and actually increased the distance between him and his pursuer. He hit the ground running and continued sprinting.

"Hm?"

Chen Guishuo gave a startled sound. He had not expected the man to take a palm strike and continue running as though nothing had happened. He shot after Yuan Gang again, chasing him through the trees as the latter twisted around trunks to avoid pursuit. This time, Chen Guishuo remembered the lesson. When he closed in again, he thrust his sword from the air. Yuan Gang slipped sideways. One arm brushed around the tree trunk in front of him, and he used the motion to swing his body behind it. He nearly circled the entire tree. Then a fist tore around the opposite side with a roar and smashed straight at Chen Guishuo.

Chen Guishuo's sword had already been thrust close along one side of the trunk. He had not expected Yuan Gang to swing around from the other side, much less counterattack. Hearing the violent wind from the punch and sensing its brutal force, Chen Guishuo had no time for anything elaborate. He struck out with one palm and met the fist head-on.

Boom!

Yuan Gang lost control of his body and went tumbling backward down the slope. Chen Guishuo landed as well and staggered several steps before finally bracing one leg against the incline and steadying himself. Alarm flashed through him.

What monstrous brute strength!

That punch completely ignited Chen Guishuo's killing intent. He launched himself forward again. Within moments he had caught Yuan Gang once more. Sword light descended from above and spread over him. This time, Chen Guishuo had abandoned any thought of taking the man alive for questioning. He meant to kill.

[End of Chapter 32]