Chapter 506: Wind and Clouds in His Hands

Shao Sansheng understood. He cupped his hands and bowed. “This old servant will make the arrangements immediately.”

“Go.” Shao Pingbo swept his sleeve and remained leaning over the desk with both hands braced against it. His lowered gaze fell on the vivid bloodstain upon his sleeve, and a shadow of sorrow crossed his face.

All these years, cultivators had been beside him helping nurse and regulate his body, yet his old illness had never truly healed.

He himself knew why it had lingered for so long. Without cultivators constantly tending and conditioning him, his body would probably have collapsed long ago.

A while later, he suddenly raised his head again. Fighting spirit returned to his eyes.

He walked around the desk and approached a wall where a complete map of the Seven States hung. His gaze traveled back and forth across it as he thought, finally settling on Beizhou and lingering there.

Then he turned, strode quickly back behind the desk, pulled a sheet of paper toward him, and took up his brush. After a brief moment of consideration, he began writing rapidly and completed six handwritten letters in one continuous burst.

He had just finished sealing and stamping them when Shao Sansheng came back carrying a basin of hot water. He wrung out a warm cloth and offered it to wipe the blood from Shao Pingbo’s mouth.

Shao Pingbo did not take it. Instead, he handed the six letters over. “Have Song Shu and Chen Guishuo each carry three. Song Shu does not dare return to Yan, so let him take my handwritten letters to the State of Han and contact Baichuan Valley, Wushang Palace, and Tiannü Sect. Send Chen Guishuo to Yan to contact Xiaoyao Palace, Zijin Cave, and Lingjian Mountain. Immediately. The sooner the better. Do not delay.”

Only then did he accept the warm cloth and wipe the corner of his mouth.

Shao Sansheng glanced over the letters in his hands and discovered that they were proposals to the six great sects discussing submission. He could not help asking in surprise, “Eldest Young Master, what does this mean?”

He could not understand how Beizhou could negotiate submission to both sides at once.

Shao Pingbo pressed the warm cloth to his mouth and thought as he answered. “Niu Youdao contacted all six sects at once for no reason other than to incite them into settling Beizhou’s disputed status. How could I let him succeed?”

“If I feign willingness to negotiate voluntary submission to Yan, will Yan’s powers still move against me? If they can recover all of Beizhou, why would they settle for only half? The same logic applies to Han.”

“No matter which side receives my letter, they will fear alarming the other side and jeopardizing their chance to recover Beizhou. So they will certainly keep the matter secret.”

Understanding dawned on Shao Sansheng. “Eldest Young Master means to stabilize the six great sects first.”

“Use negotiations to hold the six sects steady. If the six sects make no move, then Yan and Han will remain steady as well, and so will Dachan Mountain. Delay them first and buy time to eliminate Niu Youdao.”

“Once that troublemaker is gone, whether Beizhou falls to one side or the other, or continues balancing between both, can be decided according to circumstances. That Niu cur is playing with fire by stirring interests this large. If necessary, I can use Beizhou’s submission as bait: whichever side kills Niu Youdao, Beizhou will submit to them. Let him burn himself with the fire he started. In any event, I will not let him live comfortably!”

Shao Sansheng grew excited as he listened and nodded repeatedly. “Good. I’ll handle it immediately.”

...

Inside a secret room, Shao Sansheng entered at a brisk pace. Chen Guishuo, who had been waiting inside for some time, immediately stood and cupped his hands. “Mr. Shao.”

Shao Sansheng waved aside the courtesy and took three sealed letters from his sleeve. “Leave secretly at once and deliver these three letters to their destinations.”

Chen Guishuo accepted them and examined the writing on each envelope. One was addressed respectfully to Xiaoyao Palace, one to Zijin Cave, and one to Lingjian Mountain. He looked surprised. “Sir, those sects stand so high above people like us. If I go, will they even see me?”

“Whether they see you is unimportant. If they are willing, fine. If they refuse, that is also fine. What matters is delivering the letters. As long as all three sects read them, there is nothing else you need to do. Understood?”

“Understood.” Chen Guishuo nodded and carefully tucked all three letters inside his clothes. “I’ll bid Martial Uncle Song farewell and leave immediately.”

Shao Sansheng stopped him. “I said leave secretly, immediately. See no one. I will explain things to Song Shu myself. Change your appearance at once. I’ll arrange for you to slip quietly out of the city. Do not alert anyone, and do not alert anyone along the road either. If anything goes wrong, watch your life!”

Chen Guishuo hurriedly agreed. “All right!”

Shao Sansheng then took out one hundred gold notes worth one hundred coins each and handed them over. Ten thousand gold coins in total, ostensibly for travel expenses.

The journey would not require anything close to that much money. Clearly, the excess was payment for the trouble and risk.

“When this is done, there will be another heavy reward.” Shao Sansheng gripped his arm and spoke earnestly...

Roughly half an hour later, Chen Guishuo was already outside the city, galloping along the official road.

Once he had ridden far from the Prefectural Capital, he looked repeatedly in every direction. When he was certain no one was nearby, he suddenly pulled the reins, turned his mount away from the road, and galloped into the mountain forest.

At a secluded rock wall deep among the trees, he dismounted, pulled out the three secret letters, and opened them directly.

He read the first while repeatedly lifting his head to watch the surroundings, then opened the next...

...

Inside and outside the mountain caves, ruins from a thousand years earlier lay everywhere. Weathered Buddhist statues stood throughout the cliffs and grottoes. Many had been worn by wind, rain, and sun until their faces were no longer distinguishable, leaving only vague outlines. Even within the sheltered caves, few statues still retained clear features.

Hidden deep within this spiritually beautiful landscape, the ancient Buddhist remains were the seat of Dachan Mountain.

At the foot of Dachan Mountain, several dozen people mounted their horses and divided into two groups before riding away.

One group headed directly for Beizhou Prefectural Capital. The other was personally led by Sect Leader Huang Lie.

His broad sleeves catching the wind, Huang Lie led his party at a hard gallop toward Myriad Beasts Sect, his expression grave. They did not spare the horses.

After receiving Elder Huang Tong’s report, Dachan Mountain learned that Shao Pingbo had once again drawn Niu Youdao’s retaliation upon them, and that this retaliation appeared anything but ordinary. Niu Youdao had actually established contact with the six great sects of Yan and Han. It was clearly directed at Beizhou, and this time he seemed determined to make the affair enormous.

Dachan Mountain’s upper ranks were shocked and furious. They had warned Shao Pingbo again and again not to provoke Niu Youdao, yet the man repeatedly refused to listen. This time they were determined to teach him a lesson.

With something this serious unfolding, how could Huang Lie possibly sit still? He intended to hurry personally to Myriad Beasts Sect and resolve the matter.

Time was urgent. The entire journey would have to be made day and night without pause.

At the same time, Dachan Mountain sent word to Elder Zhong Yangxu, who was stationed at Beizhou Prefectural Capital, ordering him to interrogate Shao Pingbo and find out exactly what had happened. Another group of elite disciples was dispatched there as well in case of unforeseen trouble...

...

In the rear courtyard of the Nanzhou Provincial Inspector’s Residence, a dark-skinned boy stood bare-chested beneath the blazing sun. He gripped a long spear in each hand, holding one to either side while crouched in a horse stance.

His arms and legs were already trembling. Sweat poured down his body as he endured the strain.

The boy was Luo An’s son, the elder of the two who had followed Meng Shanming. He had remained at Meng Shanming’s side and was the one who pushed his wheelchair.

“Hold it!” Meng Shanming, seated in his wheelchair beneath the shade of a tree, saw that the boy was reaching his limit and called out a warning.

Clang!

The boy still failed to endure. His legs gave way, and he collapsed onto the ground together with both spears.

A moment later he climbed back to his feet, glanced at Meng Shanming’s stern expression, and approached with his head lowered to apologize.

Meng Shanming barked, “Pick up the spears.”

The boy hurried back, retrieved them, then returned with his head still lowered.

Meng Shanming asked, “Have you forgotten what I told you?”

The boy shook his head. “No. For five years, the twin spears are never to leave my hands. Whether I’m eating, drinking, pissing, shitting, or sleeping, I have to keep hold of them. I have to train until the moment the spears enter my hands, they become part of my body. Wherever I point, they strike, without the slightest error, as naturally as moving my own arms and fingers.”

“Heh!” Shang Chaozong’s laughter came from nearby.

Shang Shuqing and Lan Ruoting were with him, along with Luo An’s younger son, who had remained at their side. They had stopped to watch for a while after entering the courtyard and had witnessed the whole scene.

Shang Shuqing’s presence made it somewhat inappropriate for Luo An’s elder son, now already an adolescent, to remain bare-chested in front of her. Meng Shanming said, “Go back and rest for a while.”

“Yes!” The elder boy ran off carrying both spears. Before leaving, he glanced at his younger brother.

The younger boy secretly stuck out his tongue. It was obvious his older brother was having a hard time here.

Shang Chaozong approached with a smile. “Uncle Meng, aren’t you being a little too harsh on Da’an?”

Luo An had given his two sons very simple names: Luo Da’an and Luo Xiao’an. Da’an was now being trained in martial pursuits, while Xiao’an was being educated in letters.

Meng Shanming said, “This is how I trained in my own youth.”

“A strict teacher produces an excellent student.” Lan Ruoting laughed, then turned and rebuked the boy beside him. “You saw your older brother. Do you still think reading and writing are exhausting?”

Luo Xiao’an grinned awkwardly. “Whatever Master says is right.”

“You little sly one. Always trying to be clever.” Lan Ruoting snorted. “Go back and copy yesterday’s material another hundred times.”

“Yes!” Luo Xiao’an answered. Half his spirit seemed to collapse on the spot.

Meng Shanming looked at the visitors. Under normal circumstances, if nothing had happened, they would not all come together. Nanzhou had only recently settled, and there was still an enormous amount to do.

Understanding what he was thinking, Shang Chaozong said, “Master Dao is not in Nanzhou at present. He is staying as a guest at Myriad Beasts Sect in the State of Song. Chen Tingxiu of Tianyu Sect has gone there as well. Our people stationed in Song heard the matter mentioned by locals, but we don’t know the details or what Master Dao is doing there.”

“Keeping himself hidden, leaving Nanzhou...” Meng Shanming murmured. “He has not shown himself in Nanzhou once since the war ended. It seems that for the moment, he no longer possesses enough capital inside Nanzhou to contend with Tianyu Sect.”

Lan Ruoting said meaningfully, “Sooner or later, he’ll return with a vengeance.”

Shang Shuqing said thoughtfully, “We are safe and settled now. I only hope Tianyu Sect has not chased Master Dao all the way there.”

The others understood what she meant. They feared that the struggle between Niu Youdao and Tianyu Sect had shifted from inside Nanzhou to the outside world. If the two sides collided head-on, the disparity in strength was far too great in Tianyu Sect’s favor. It was difficult not to worry.

Meng Shanming saw the concern in her eyes and sighed inwardly. The girl’s marriageable years were slipping farther and farther away. He had intended to find Niu Youdao after the war and have a proper talk with him, but now no one knew when they would see Niu Youdao again.

He comforted her. “This Master Dao is a prodigy of his generation, with wind and clouds in his hands and means to subdue dragons and tame tigers. A hundred evils cannot touch him, and petty villains flee from his path. Nothing will happen to him. When he returns, it will be in triumph!”

...

“Why meet outside?”

There was a visitor in the courtyard. Chen Tingxiu looked at the wooden-faced old man who served Wen Xinzhao and asked in surprise.

The old man said, “It isn’t that Madam lacks the ability to move against that slut. She refrains only because of the Sect Leader. Otherwise, there would be no need for you to stand up for her.”

“If you rashly barged over there, how would Madam explain it to the Sect Leader? Myriad Beasts Sect is full of eyes and ears. It is not a suitable place for this conversation.”

[End of Chapter 506]