Chapter 507: A Glorious Death

Chen Tingxiu froze for a moment. Thinking it over, he realized the old man was right. With Wen Xinzhao's power, how could she possibly be unable to kill Hongniang? It seemed his abrupt visit to discuss the matter really had been rather presumptuous. So she had driven him away merely to put on a show for Du Yunsang.

He hurriedly explained, "I was rash. At the time, I had no other choice. With my insignificant standing, how could I possibly invite Madam out to meet me? I could only go to her door."

The wooden-faced old man said, "Enough nonsense. Are you going or not?"

Chen Tingxiu quickly smiled. "If Madam summons me, how could I dare refuse? Naturally I'll attend."

"It isn't convenient for us to go together. Make your own way there." The wooden-faced old man left those words and turned away. Chen Tingxiu hurried after him, intending to see him off, only to be stopped by another curt remark. "No need. It would attract attention."

Chen Tingxiu could only halt and cup his hands as he watched the man leave.

When he turned back, it felt as though mountains and rivers had seemed to leave no road, only for dark willows and bright blossoms to reveal another village. A broad smile had already spread across his face, and delight filled his heart.

If Wen Xinzhao personally moved against Niu Youdao, how could Niu Youdao possibly survive? As for Hongniang, once Niu Youdao was dead, would it not be simple for Tianyu Sect to deal with one Hongniang and give Wen Xinzhao an explanation?

One side could not conveniently kill Niu Youdao with its own hands; the other could not conveniently kill Hongniang with its own hands. They truly were a perfect match. Chen Tingxiu was practically impressed by his own cleverness. Shaking his head, he muttered mockingly to himself, "Niu Youdao, oh Niu Youdao. You probably couldn't dream that you'd die because two women were fighting over another man, could you? Of all the subordinates you could have recruited, you had to choose a used-up slut. That taste of yours really leaves something to be desired. Hongniang of the Qi capital... heh. She certainly lives up to her reputation!"

Seeing how pleased he was, several disciples gathered around. Chen Tingxiu immediately ordered, "Two of you come with me. The rest stay here."

A short while later, the three of them left and headed straight for the mountain gate.

The moment Chen Tingxiu stepped outside the gate, he stopped in surprise. Not far away, Wen Xinzhao stood lightly atop a treetop, skirts fluttering in the breeze, apparently waiting for him.

Hadn't she been afraid of being seen? Why was she waiting here?

Though puzzled, he did not dare hesitate. He quickly flew over, landed beneath the tree, and looked up with a face full of smiles as he cupped his hands. "Madam Du!"

High above him, Wen Xinzhao lowered her gaze and looked down with contempt.

From the woods beneath the tree, the wooden-faced old man slowly emerged and walked toward Chen Tingxiu.

Chen Tingxiu cupped his hands again. "I still haven't had the honor of learning your distinguished name..." His voice stopped abruptly.

A flash of cold light shot from the wooden-faced old man's sleeve and pierced straight through Chen Tingxiu's chest, bursting from his back in a spray of blood.

"You..." Chen Tingxiu's eyes widened. Slowly, he lowered his head and stared at his own chest.

The small flying sword curved around through the air and returned in a streak of light. Another burst of blood exploded from Chen Tingxiu's neck, and the force spun his body around before he crashed to the ground. He lay there twitching, eyes wide as he stared at the wooden-faced old man before struggling to turn his gaze toward Wen Xinzhao, who still looked down from the treetop with contempt.

He did not understand. He truly could not understand. Why were they killing him? And they had simply struck him dead right outside Myriad Beasts Sect's gate!

Cold light flashed. The wooden-faced old man swept his sleeve, and the flying sword returned inside. Killing one man had been effortless; Chen Tingxiu had not even been given time to react.

"Master!"

The two disciples who had followed him stood stunned for a moment before crying out. They had watched Chen Tingxiu fall with their own eyes, but under the wooden-faced old man's gaze, neither dared approach.

Wen Xinzhao looked down from the treetop. If she had not needed to give her Senior Brother an explanation, dealing with a thing like this would never have required her to show herself in person.

So what if she dealt with him right outside Myriad Beasts Sect? Was she supposed to accompany Chen Tingxiu on some long journey first?

She had no interest whatsoever in playing games with him. Refraining from killing him inside Myriad Beasts Sect was already giving Myriad Beasts Sect face. As for Tianyu Sect, what did it amount to in her eyes? She had killed a mere Elder of Tianyu Sect. So what? Would Tianyu Sect dare go to Tianxing Sect and demand an accounting?

She flashed away and landed outside Myriad Beasts Sect's mountain gate. Then she strolled back inside openly, concealing nothing, her face expressionless.

The disciples guarding the mountain gate had been stunned by what they had witnessed as well. The two standing on either side slowly turned their heads together and watched Wen Xinzhao walk inside, utterly speechless.

After confirming Chen Tingxiu was dead, the wooden-faced old man flashed over as well and followed her in.

"Master!"

The two Tianyu Sect disciples were already kneeling beside Chen Tingxiu, clutching his corpse and wailing.

The matter was neither truly enormous nor truly small, but at the very least, the disturbance it caused would not be minor.

Wen Xinzhao clearly knew that perfectly well. She returned to Tianxing Sect's guest courtyard and found Du Yunsang sitting cross-legged in meditation on the short couch inside the pavilion.

Du Yunsang knew who had arrived and did not open his eyes.

Wen Xinzhao stood quietly watching him for a while before saying softly, "That man from Tianyu Sect is dead. I had him killed outside Myriad Beasts Sect's mountain gate. Some people saw it, so there may be a little trouble."

Du Yunsang still did not open his eyes. He said slowly, "Your trouble is my trouble. If trouble comes to you, I'll stand in front of it. Go rest."

The corner of Wen Xinzhao's mouth curved slightly upward. Ever since childhood, she had liked hearing Senior Brother say things like that to her. She gave a soft "Mm," then left as lightly and calmly as though nothing had happened...

"What did you say?"

Inside the main hall, Xi Haitang abruptly rose in the middle of receiving guests, barely able to believe what he had heard.

The distinguished guests seated around him rose in astonishment as well and looked at one another.

Chao Jing had come to report the matter. He said with a helpless grimace, "Sect Leader, there can be no mistake. The disciples outside the mountain gate saw it with their own eyes. Tianyu Sect's disciples have already carried the corpse over and are outside crying injustice. They want Myriad Beasts Sect to give them an explanation."

Xi Haitang's face darkened. "What madness has gotten into that woman?"

They had already smoothed over her earlier assault for Tianxing Sect's sake. Now she had openly killed a guest of Myriad Beasts Sect. How was Myriad Beasts Sect supposed to explain that to its guests?

No matter how insignificant Tianyu Sect might be, she could not simply kill one of its people right at Myriad Beasts Sect's front door. What would outsiders say when word spread?

Xi Haitang was only one step short of asking whether she could not have taken the man a little farther away before killing him. Why murder him right at their gate? Had she taken the wrong medicine?

Chao Jing sighed heavily. How was he supposed to know what madness had gotten into her?

"My apologies, everyone. I have a matter to deal with." Xi Haitang cupped his hands to the assembled guests.

They all returned the gesture, some saying they understood, others telling him to attend to his business.

Xi Haitang strode out with a group of people behind him while others remained to see the guests off.

When he reached the edge of the open grounds outside the hall, he looked down the long flight of stairs. On a platform halfway up the mountainside, two rows of Tianyu Sect disciples stood with white mourning cloths tied around their heads. Between them rested a corpse covered in white cloth. Plainly, it was the body of the Tianyu Sect Elder.

Xi Haitang felt a headache coming on. There was no possibility of falling out with Tianxing Sect over a mere Tianyu Sect, but the dead man had still been Myriad Beasts Sect's guest. He had been killed right outside their door, and the killer was still staying inside. Myriad Beasts Sect had to offer some explanation, or what would people beneath Heaven say?

Rumor could be fearsome. For all that sects called themselves upright and honorable, face was something none of them could simply discard.

Naturally, there were plenty of shameless bastards beneath Heaven, but could Myriad Beasts Sect afford to be one of them?

Xi Haitang had originally intended to leave Elder Chen waiting a little longer before seeing him. Instead, a living man had turned into a corpse and was now laid out here waiting for Xi Haitang to see him. He had certainly been left waiting, all right.

The scene left Xi Haitang utterly speechless. If only he had known, he would have seen the man earlier. Perhaps Chen Tingxiu would already have left and none of this would have happened.

Forget it. Xi Haitang decided not to go down and see the Tianyu Sect disciples yet. He turned away and went directly to demand an explanation from the people of Tianxing Sect.

He hurried to Tianxing Sect's guest courtyard without obstruction and found Du Yunsang already waiting among the pavilions with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Du Yunsang, look at the fine thing your wife has done." Xi Haitang had not even reached him before he called out accusingly from a distance, with a group of people following behind.

Du Yunsang turned. When Xi Haitang arrived before him with a dark expression, he asked without haste, "What has made Brother Xi so furious?"

Xi Haitang said, "Are you pretending not to know? Disciples of my sect watched your wife take people outside the mountain gate and kill one of our guests. Don't tell me you don't intend to give me an explanation."

Du Yunsang gave an indifferent "Oh." "A fool who didn't know the height of Heaven or the depth of Earth. He was killed. What is there to make such a fuss about?"

"He was a guest of Myriad Beasts Sect! What exactly is Tianxing Sect trying to do? Shall Myriad Beasts Sect disciples go kill a few people inside Tianxing Sect one day and see how you like it?"

"You had better first understand what actually happened."

"Understand? Fine. Explain it clearly right now. His people are carrying the corpse around demanding an explanation from me!"

"The fool actually came here and used the matter of Hongniang from the Qi capital to humiliate me. Tell me, did he deserve to die? If I hadn't been giving Myriad Beasts Sect face, I would have killed him inside Myriad Beasts Sect itself. Brother Xi, Myriad Beasts Sect truly has no airs at all. You invite absolutely anyone inside. I'm starting to wonder whether Myriad Beasts Sect deliberately arranged for him to come here and make trouble for me."

"You can't say things like that casually..." Xi Haitang's tone shifted. "He truly came here and used the matter of Hongniang from the Qi capital to humiliate you?"

"I don't have time to argue about it. Ask the Tianyu Sect people yourself."

No sooner had Xi Haitang's party been sent away than another group arrived, this time with tremendous momentum.

The Sect Leaders of Xiaoyao Palace, Zijin Cave, and Lingjian Mountain had come together with their people to demand an explanation from Du Yunsang.

Chen Tingxiu was, in the end, a cultivator of the State of Yan. He did not belong directly to any of the three sects, yet in a certain sense he still counted as one of their people. Had he died somewhere else, that would have been one thing; grudges and vendettas were difficult to untangle. But all three Sect Leaders were right here, and a Yan cultivator had been killed under their very eyes. What was that supposed to mean? Was someone slapping them in the face?

One of their own had been killed before them. Remaining completely silent would be unacceptable. They might not wish to offend Tianxing Sect, but they still had to show themselves and demand an explanation. Otherwise, how could they answer to the cultivators serving within Yan's borders?

Chen Tingxiu could at least be said to have died gloriously. It was extraordinarily rare for the death of a cultivator from the State of Yan to personally disturb the Sect Leaders of all three great sects. Since Tianyu Sect's founding, none of its people had ever enjoyed such treatment.

Yet Du Yunsang silenced all three Sect Leaders with the exact same explanation. Chen Tingxiu had gone to his door and used the matter of Hongniang from the Qi capital to humiliate the Sect Leader of Tianxing Sect. Was that not courting death? What status did Du Yunsang hold, and what status had Chen Tingxiu held?

Put in the same position, none of them could have accepted such a thing. In fact, they too might well have killed the man on the spot.

And so, whether Wen Xinzhao was venting some anger or simply being willful, she had deliberately caused Du Yunsang a problem that was neither too large nor too small. Du Yunsang stepped forward to shoulder it for her, blocking the wind and rain so she could indulge herself once.

The Tianyu Sect disciples staying inside Myriad Beasts Sect were the ones who now came under pressure. People from several great sects hauled them back and forth to question them.

Most of the disciples knew nothing. The few who did know naturally did not dare say that Chen Tingxiu had wanted to use Tianxing Sect to deal with Niu Youdao. Would that not be openly inviting trouble for Tianyu Sect? Did they still want to survive once they returned?

With the people of Xiaoyao Palace and the other two great sects present, they had to speak for cultivators from their own State of Yan, but they also did not want to make Yan's cultivators look too disgraceful. At the same time, they hoped Tianyu Sect would simply let the matter end.

Under hints from the three great sects, someone from Tianyu Sect finally loosened his tongue and said only that Chen Tingxiu seemed to have gone to see Wen Xinzhao over Hongniang.

And so the killer was innocent, Tianxing Sect was blameless, and with the three great sects speaking in support, Tianyu Sect was blameless too. All responsibility was dumped onto the dead man. Chen Tingxiu bore it himself.

He had died because he deserved to.

Myriad Beasts Sect, meanwhile, had suffered for nothing. A guest had died on their doorstep, so they did bear some responsibility. For the sake of "reason and propriety," they paid Tianyu Sect one million gold coins as a token apology.

In any case, Tianyu Sect no longer pursued the matter.

[End of Chapter 507]