Chapter 212: A Moth Touches the Web

Wu Tiannan’s heart thudded with fear. “Every word is true. My father is the County Deputy Magistrate of Pingchuan County. All people within the county are under his care. We acted only out of good intentions and did not mean to offend you. Cultivator, please forgive us!”

“County Deputy Magistrate?” Lu Shengzhong sounded doubtful.

“They have official papers to prove it.” Wu Tiannan hurriedly waved to his companions.

One of the men quickly took a document from his bundle. Apart from Wu Tiannan himself, the others were all yamen runners from Pingchuan County. They were on their way to deliver official papers to Beizhou and had merely taken the opportunity to escort Wu Tiannan along the way.

Lu Shengzhong took the document and examined the cover. It really was issued by the county yamen, complete with the official seal. He tossed it back without another word, sheathed his sword, then turned to the young woman.

“Let’s go.”

Wu Tiannan and the others let out their breaths in relief. They watched Lu Shengzhong help the young woman back up the hill.

By the time they climbed over the ridge, the young woman had entered the carriage. The man drove it onto the official road and departed. The others descended the hill and mounted their horses to continue their journey.

As it happened, the carriage ahead was traveling the same road. Before they knew it, the two parties had become companions on the road. Once conversation gradually opened between them, they could be considered acquainted.

Only then did Wu Tiannan learn that the man was called Tao Jun and the woman Tao Yan’er. They were brother and sister.

The siblings had originally been natives of Pingchuan County. When Tao Jun was young, he encountered a cultivator and embarked on the path of cultivation, leaving Pingchuan behind. Their mother later died of illness. The grave where the two siblings had been paying respects was hers. Afterward, war and disorder spread through Pingchuan County, and the Tao family moved away.

Not long ago, before their father passed away, he told them that when Tao Yan’er had still been in the womb, a marriage had been arranged for her with a family back in Pingchuan County. The brother and sister had returned precisely because of that old betrothal.

Only after arriving and making inquiries did they learn that the prospective husband’s family had long since disappeared during the years of war and upheaval.

The carriage jolted along the road. Tao Yan’er was a delicate young woman and could not endure sitting inside for too long. She also did not know how to ride a horse, so now and then she would get down to rest. After learning they were fellow natives of Pingchuan, the siblings became noticeably warmer toward Wu Tiannan and his companions. During one rest, Tao Yan’er even took the initiative to ask Wu Tiannan about the county.

“I remember there used to be a pagoda south of the city. I climbed it to play when I was little. This time I came back and found it gone. Do you know what happened to it?”

Wu Tiannan chuckled. “I remember it. There really was a pagoda south of the city. Little Sister may not know, but it was incredibly old, built before the Wu Dynasty, back when Buddhism flourished. By later years it had already become badly dilapidated. Then one day, during heavy wind and rain, it suddenly collapsed. People nearby needed bricks to repair their homes. One person carried some away, then another, and little by little the whole thing disappeared. The empty ground was naturally occupied later as well.”

“I remember there was a bamboo grove opposite the pagoda, with a wineshop inside. Father took me there when I was small. Why is that gone too?”

“That wineshop caught fire. The flames spread through the bamboo grove and burned several nearby houses as well. It was a tremendous blaze. I still remember it clearly.”

Tao Yan’er sighed softly, her face touched with wistful loss. “The past cannot be recovered. What a pity.”

As though longing for the memories of her childhood, Tao Yan’er continued asking about old places and events in Pingchuan County.

Her soft-spoken questions were perfectly measured and mannered. She carried the gentle refinement of someone educated in books and letters. Her face was delicately made up, clear and lovely; her waist was slender, her figure full and graceful. The sight made Wu Tiannan’s heart burn. Compared with the woman waiting in his own household, this one was simply Heaven and mud.

Especially after learning that Tao Yan’er was unmarried, not a cultivator, and of an age when marriage should be close at hand, his thoughts became increasingly restless. He longed to taste those fragrant lips, yet the presence of her elder brother kept him cautious.

Whatever Tao Yan’er asked, Wu Tiannan answered fully. He maintained the bearing of a courteous gentleman throughout and never once mentioned that he already had a wife. After spending some time together, Wu Tiannan felt as though bathed in a spring breeze, body and spirit equally delighted.

One soft “Brother Wu” from Tao Yan’er was enough to make him feel almost weightless.

Along the road he became extraordinarily attentive to the siblings. Every minor matter found him bustling forward and back to arrange it, all under the fine excuse that they were fellow townspeople and helping one another was only proper. Whether he showed such care toward the rest of Pingchuan County’s people was another question.

He personally escorted the brother and sister all the way to the place where they intended to stay in Beizhou Prefectural Capital before finally leaving with obvious reluctance. After that, however, Wu Tiannan came almost every day to visit the siblings... Having refined another Transmission Protective Talisman, Niu Youdao stepped out from his thatched cottage. Black Peony came forward to meet him. Niu Youdao waved, indicating that she need not follow, and walked alone toward the deeper reaches of the valley.

He followed the stream upstream until he reached a pool. Then he stepped into the water and slowly sat cross-legged, allowing it to rise to his chest. Eyes closed, legs folded, he circulated his spiritual power. Before long, shards of ice appeared around him. A ring of floating ice formed across the water. Gradually, the frozen area spread outward at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Not much later, half the pool had solidified into a disk of ice a zhang across with Niu Youdao sealed within it. Under the bright sun, cold vapor streamed from the ice. After a while, however, waves of heat began rising from the ice around his body. The frozen area rapidly melted outward from the center. At last, the thinning ice could no longer withstand the flowing water.

Crack!

It broke apart, and slabs of ice floated downstream.

Bang!

Niu Youdao suddenly burst from the water, carrying a spray high into the air with him. Suspended amid the flying droplets, he chopped his left palm outward. The broad sheet of water to his left instantly froze into hail and clattered downward. He chopped his right palm outward. The broad sheet of water to his right turned rapidly into mist, drifting away as a cloud of white vapor. Niu Youdao descended and came to rest standing on the surface of the pool.

Hail pattered across the water. Countless round beads of ice bobbed and sank as the current carried them downstream, while pale mist slowly dispersed overhead. Soaked from head to toe, Niu Youdao smiled faintly. He was quite satisfied with the progress of his recent secluded cultivation.

Looking at things now, the Transmission Protective Talismans Dong Guo Haoran had left him had truly been an enormous help. Without them, how could his cultivation have advanced so quickly? The roar of water reached his ears.

He turned toward the waterfall beneath the cliff ahead, then pivoted and moved across the pool with light, wave-skimming steps, neither fast nor slow. White vapor rose from his body as his soaked clothing rapidly dried.

A lone man walking over the water with steam curling from his body made for a somewhat uncanny sight in the quiet valley. Just then, a figure flashed over.

“Master Dao!”

It was Yuan Fang.

Without turning his head, Niu Youdao said, “I told you not to disturb me while I’m cultivating unless something important happens.”

Yuan Fang kept pace along the bank.

“News from Jinzhou.”

Niu Youdao immediately flashed onto shore. He had indeed instructed people not to disturb his cultivation over trivial matters, but there were several fronts he was watching closely. Jinzhou, where he had arranged matters in advance, was one of them. There were some troubles he had to resolve. Otherwise, he would never live freely, much less cultivate with peace of mind.

“What happened?” Niu Youdao asked.

Yuan Fang said, “A famous physician from the State of Song named Pu Yunfang has arrived at a medical clinic in Jinzhou and begun seeing patients. Quite a few commoners heard the news and went for treatment. A long line formed outside the clinic, and the matter drew Hai Ruyue’s attention.”

Niu Youdao immediately asked, “Did Fang Zhe stop her?”

“He did. The moment this happened, Fang Zhe went to see Hai Ruyue. Following Master Dao’s instructions, he told her that this Pu Yunfang was someone you had arranged to enter Jinzhou Prefectural Capital for another purpose, that he cannot cure Xiao Tianzhen’s illness, and he stopped her from summoning the physician into the residence for an examination.”

Yuan Fang continued, “But Hai Ruyue is questioning Fang Zhe as well. She wants to know what game Master Dao is playing and warns you not to stir up trouble on her territory. At the same time, she is asking when the Scarlet Yang Vermilion Fruit you promised her will finally arrive.”

“Good. As long as she was stopped.” Niu Youdao chuckled, paying no attention to Hai Ruyue’s displeasure.

A strange smile touched the corner of his mouth.

“He really can keep his composure. There had been no movement for so long that I was beginning to wonder whether my judgment was wrong. At last, the moth has touched the web. It seems the show is about to begin.”

Whether at the Ice and Snow Pavilion, in Beizhou, or in Jinzhou, Niu Youdao had long since spread hidden nets and waited.

He was like a spider concealed behind its web, fangs drawn in and perfectly still, maintaining enough patience to wait for the moth to touch the strands. Both spider and moth were moving cautiously. The difference was that one stood in the light and the other in darkness. It was a contest between what could be seen and what could not.

“Come. Let’s go see Sect Leader Fei Changliu.”

Niu Youdao waved and took Yuan Fang with him. The temporary headquarters of Liuxian Sect had been established inside a newly opened mountain cave. When the two arrived, Niu Youdao turned his head toward one of the disciples guarding the mountain. It was Cui Yuan. Yuan Fang glanced at Cui Yuan as well and could not help letting out a low, wicked chuckle. There were some things everyone involved understood perfectly well. Cui Yuan shifted his gaze aside. He looked both guilty and irritated.

After their arrival was reported, Niu Youdao and Yuan Fang were soon shown in to see Fei Changliu. These days Liuxian Sect was living under another’s roof. Sect Leader Fei had no reason to refuse the meeting. He invited the two to sit and ordered tea.

Once they were seated, he asked, “Aren’t you in seclusion cultivating and refusing to be disturbed lightly?”

“I came to remind you of something. There should be movement at the Ice and Snow Pavilion soon. Tell your people there to pull themselves together, prick up their ears, and keep their eyes wide open.”

Fei Changliu frowned. “You’re certain?”

The portion of Liuxian Sect’s manpower he had left around the Ice and Snow Pavilion had been waiting for so long that many had long since lost patience. Niu Youdao nodded.

“Certain.”

In truth, he could not be certain whether Shao Pingbo would reveal his hand at the Ice and Snow Pavilion. But with nets cast everywhere, one of them should catch something.

“Understood. I’ll pass down the order.”

Fei Changliu gave a small nod, then added, “I have already received word about Tianyu Sect’s liquor. They are not selling it cheaply. One thousand gold coins per jar. A full thousand. That is true profiteering. They are going to make a fortune this time.”

He looked at Niu Youdao.

“Shouldn’t you give the three of us an answer about what you promised?”

That expensive?

Niu Youdao was somewhat surprised. Still, if Tianyu Sect dared set the price so high, they must have calculated carefully and believed they could sell it. He would need to learn the details later.

“You can rest assured. They come every month to collect the next shipment. I will choose a suitable opportunity to raise the matter.”

The two spoke briefly about a few other things, then took their leave. When Cui Yuan saw them come out, he grew visibly nervous. The reason was simple. They were walking directly toward him. He had no idea what they intended. This was someone else’s territory; even if he wanted to avoid them, where could he go? When they came face-to-face, Niu Youdao smiled.

“Brother Cui. It has been a long time.”

Cui Yuan darted his eyes around and lowered his voice.

“What do you want?”

“Relax. Nothing will happen.” Niu Youdao’s tone was easy. “We knew each other before. There is nothing strange about exchanging a greeting when we meet. If anyone asks, make up any excuse you like and you can muddle through.”

“I am on duty. Forgive me for not accompanying you.”

Cui Yuan was plainly eager to keep his distance. Niu Youdao smiled.

“We were friends once. I assume Brother Cui does not want to see anything happen to me.”

“If anything unusual happens within Liuxian Sect from now on, I hope Brother Cui will warn me in time. If coming directly to me is inconvenient, you may find Yuan Fang, Yuan Gang, or Black Peony. Any of them will do.”

“If you run into difficulties yourself, you may also go to them.”

“Do not worry. I do not mistreat friends.”

“If an opportunity arises, I will help Brother Cui climb higher within Liuxian Sect.”

Yuan Fang gave another low chuckle. Back then, he had not understood why Master Dao had spared this fellow. Now he understood. Master Dao was extremely good at turning other people’s men into his own. Cui Yuan. Yao Youliang. That Lu Shengzhong from before seemed to be another. Quietly, without fuss and without leaving obvious traces, Master Dao had planted his own people inside other sects. That was what one called thinking far ahead. Something worth learning.

And there was still another person Yuan Fang did not know about, one who had already been inserted into Beizhou without leaving a single flaw behind.

[End of Chapter 212]