Chapter 946: A Clear Conscience Is Enough

He was openly defying a sect decision! Even Chun Xinliang could no longer suppress his anger. He snapped, "What important business could possibly be more important than this?"

Niu Youdao casually threw out a sentence. "I've already ordered the forces of Nanzhou to attack the State of Song."

The words left everyone stunned. Even Zhong Guzi, who had been sitting there as though dead, gave the faintest twitch of the cheek.

This joke had gone far beyond reasonable limits. Gong Lince hurriedly said, "Junior Brother Niu, are you joking? Why would you suddenly attack Song for no reason?"

Couldn't you say something else for once? Niu Youdao gave him a sidelong look, but said aloud, "I'm not joking. Sect Leader can send someone to verify it with Shang Chaozong and the others. I've already issued the order. I expect they're making preparations now. A little verification will tell you whether I'm lying. You'll know I'm not joking."

Gong Lince still found it hard to believe. "For something this serious, why haven't I heard even the slightest rumor? As an Elder of Zijin Cave, why didn't you report it?"

Niu Youdao said, "How could Sect Leader have heard nothing? Surely you've heard that the Empress of Song was deposed?"

Gong Lince became angry. "What does the deposition of Song's Empress have to do with you? Is it your place to concern yourself with that? I..." He stopped halfway, as though suddenly remembering something.

Sure enough, Niu Youdao supplied the answer to his doubt. "Hui Qingping, the deposed Empress of Song, is my sworn elder sister. I received word that Wu Gongling originally intended to kill her, but he did not want to bear the reputation of having murdered both his elder brother and his wife. So for now he merely deposed and imprisoned her. Once the storm passes, Hui Qingping is certain to suffer some 'accident' in prison. I cannot stand by and watch her die without helping!"

Mo Lingxue said coldly, "Stop talking nonsense. Everyone knows how that sworn sibling bond of yours came about. There isn't the slightest genuine affection between you. You expect us to believe you'd raise troops and attack Song for her sake?"

Niu Youdao said, "Whether you believe it or not is your business. If you don't believe me... fine. I'll put my words here today: as long as Hui Qingping can be rescued, I'll go to Sacred Realm!"

After dragging the argument this far, he had finally brought out his true objective.

In truth, the moment he heard in the council hall that his name had been added to the list, he knew he would have difficulty escaping this calamity.

If he went, there was at least a thread of survival. Perhaps it would not be as dangerous as everyone feared; after all, no one even knew what this so-called tempering entailed. If he refused to go, no one dared imagine the consequences. Everyone understood the principle of choosing the lesser of two harms. His earlier talk of injuring himself and forcing them to replace him had merely been an argument with the people of Zijin Cave.

This claim that he would sacrifice himself to save another caused the hall to fall quiet for a moment.

But everyone still believed it was an excuse. What sworn sibling affection? In plain terms, they thought he was causing trouble to avoid going to Sacred Realm.

Gong Lince said again, "This isn't someone you can rescue merely by saying you want to. If you can never get her out, doesn't that mean you can keep dragging matters out forever and refuse to go to Sacred Realm?"

Niu Youdao said, "It's not as difficult as Sect Leader makes it sound. Give me sufficient conditions, and I have a certain degree of confidence I can rescue her before the departure date for Sacred Realm."

They could hardly let whatever he said become truth merely because he said it. Gong Lince kept a stern face. "And if you fail?"

Niu Youdao answered without hesitation, "If Sect Leader insists on putting it that way, I can't explain any further. How about this: as long as the sect is willing to give me a certain amount of assistance, then when the time comes, regardless of whether I succeed in rescuing her, I will obediently go to Sacred Realm without the slightest complaint. In front of my master, with the two Martial Uncles here as witnesses, this disciple will absolutely not go back on his word, nor will I be allowed to deny it!"

Everyone looked at one another. Chun Xinliang and Tu Kuai exchanged a glance. The anger in both men's hearts had somehow subsided after this unexpected development entered the discussion. Together they turned toward Zhong Guzi, who still sat there completely unmoved.

Gong Lince tried asking, "How do you want the sect to help you?"

Niu Youdao said, "I want the sect to mobilize every local military force under its control to cooperate with the operation, especially Bozhou, where Elder Qiao personally holds command. Bozhou borders Song. It's exactly where military force can be used to exert pressure. We cannot do without it!"

The moment he heard the scale of the mobilization Niu Youdao wanted, Gong Lince rejected it outright. "No. Impossible! What does one Empress of Song amount to? The sect will not mobilize armies to fight and shed blood for the sake of a single person. We cannot exchange the lives of countless soldiers for one woman."

"Have you considered this? Xiaoyao Palace and Lingjian Mountain would never agree either. You know your own relationship with the imperial court. It won't be easy for Nanzhou's forces to cross territory under their control and fight their way to Song. And Bozhou's troops alone are hardly enough to contend with Song. Even if the Nanzhou army could reach the Dongyu River, how long would that take? By then, the Sacred Realm tempering would already be long over. We might be willing to wait while you rescue someone, but will Sacred Realm wait for you?"

Yan Li said, "Sect Leader is right. This plan is unacceptable!"

Niu Youdao pointed at him. "Petty man!"

"What did you say?" Yan Li's eyes widened.

Niu Youdao ignored him and continued speaking to Gong Lince. "Sect Leader misunderstood me. I don't want countless lives lost merely to save my sworn elder sister. I'm not so muddleheaded that I'd go that far. I don't intend to truly invade Song. I want to pressure Song—create enough military movement and threat to force them to release her. If Song refuses no matter what, then as her sworn younger brother, I can at least say I did everything I could..."

After the two sides discussed the matter in depth, the people of Zijin Cave finally understood what he meant. The earlier argument over whether he would go to Sacred Realm instead became secondary.

Once the matter had been fully reasoned through, the two Supreme Elders and Gong Lince's group departed. Niu Youdao remained in Tortoise-Slumber Pavilion. He knelt before Zhong Guzi and kowtowed. "Thank you for helping me, Master!"

Zhong Guzi slowly opened his eyes. "You are willing to mobilize so many people and stir up so much trouble. Are you truly that close to the Empress of Song?"

Niu Youdao said, "We are not close. But she is still this disciple's sworn elder sister. I cannot stand by and watch her die."

Zhong Guzi said, "For the sake of an empty name, is it worth it?"

Niu Youdao said, "I've ridden the jianghu through wind and rain for so many years that I can no longer tell whether I am black or white. Only loyalty and righteousness endure through the ages. What others think does not matter. Whether I can save her does not matter either. So long as I do everything I can, a clear conscience is enough!"

Zhong Guzi slowly closed his eyes. "Sacred Realm. May fortune be with you!"

The implication was clear: in this matter, I cannot help you.

"Yes!" Niu Youdao kowtowed once more, then rose and departed.

As he left through the gate, Ju An bowed slightly. "Martial Uncle, take care."

Niu Youdao gave a quiet acknowledgment. He had not gone far when he heard the doors close behind him. Looking back, he saw Ju An personally shutting the gates of Tortoise-Slumber Pavilion. Then he turned forward again and continued on.

Guan Fangyi had already been waiting below the steps at the edge of the mountain. When she saw him arrive, she hurried over and asked, "What happened?"

Niu Youdao chuckled. "Nothing good. On the Sacred Realm list, I'm one of the three people Zijin Cave is sending. Damn it. I'd guarded against this possibility every way I could because I was afraid they'd send me, and naturally the one thing I feared is exactly what happened. Looking at it now, the preparations I made in advance really will come in handy." A strong note of self-mockery hung at the corner of his mouth.

"What?" Guan Fangyi was shocked. "How did that happen?"

...

Back in the council hall, the group briefly discussed arrangements concerning Niu Youdao, then dispersed to carry them out.

Yan Li did not leave immediately. Instead he moved close to Gong Lince. "Senior Brother, that bastard Niu Youdao is far too arrogant!"

Gong Lince glanced sideways at him. "What are you trying to say?"

Yan Li said, "We've already agreed that whether or not he rescues the woman, he still has to go to Sacred Realm. And since we've already involved ourselves, it would be easy to make sure he fails. Give Wu Gongling just a little more confidence and Niu Youdao won't succeed."

Gong Lince clasped his hands behind his back, turned to face him directly, and asked, "What else are you trying to do?"

"Uh..." Yan Li looked awkward. "Senior Brother, I don't mean anything else. I just feel Zijin Cave can't let him have everything his own way. Giving him a little lesson would be good. It might cure him of thinking no one else exists."

Gong Lince shook his head and sighed. "Junior Brother, oh Junior Brother. What are you thinking? I seem to remember you telling me more than once that whenever Niu Youdao does something, we must guard against it and be careful. Let me ask you: is Niu Youdao truly so close to Hui Qingping that he would stir up something this large merely to save her? Is it worth it?"

Yan Li froze, then stroked his beard. "It is somewhat strange."

Gong Lince said, "Hui Qingping wasn't deposed only yesterday. He said nothing earlier and nothing later, yet the moment we told him about the list, he suddenly brought up rescuing her. Don't you find that suspicious? Haven't you considered that this might be a trap he deliberately set, with the goal of avoiding Sacred Realm? If that is his scheme, then he would naturally have made preparations as early as possible. If you truly act as you just suggested, wouldn't you be jumping straight into the pit he dug?"

This truly wronged Niu Youdao. He had wanted to ask Zijin Cave for help rescuing Hui Qingping long before this, but he had been considering how to raise the matter because he knew Zijin Cave would never agree to such a thing. Sacred Realm simply happened to land on his head at the same moment, so he took advantage of the circumstances.

Yan Li hesitated. "If he truly doesn't want to go, avoiding his trap may not matter. I'm afraid he'll simply create some other trouble."

Gong Lince said, "That still doesn't mean we should jump into the pit ourselves! If he catches us giving him a handle and then runs to Tortoise-Slumber Pavilion to make another scene, do you think that's entertaining? Junior Brother, stop causing trouble. Put personal grudges aside for now. First make sure he obediently enters Sacred Realm. That's the important matter in front of us. Besides, have you forgotten why we called him to the council hall in the first place?"

At that, Yan Li fell silent.

Gong Lince sighed. "On the list, he is the Elder representing Zijin Cave. Once they enter Sacred Realm, Zijin Cave's people can only take him as their leader. Every sect is in the same situation right now, and no one knows what Sacred Realm intends. That bastard does have some ability. His capacity to adapt is strong. You experienced his methods yourself in the Tiandu Secret Realm. If there is some kind of contest inside Sacred Realm, he is still one of Zijin Cave's people, and for now he relies on Zijin Cave to maintain his position. He will certainly have to stand on Zijin Cave's side."

"We called him to discuss matters not because we had ever considered whether he would agree to go. We wanted to make sure that once he encounters something, he does everything he can to help Zijin Cave and does not let our side suffer a loss. If something happens inside Sacred Realm, Zijin Cave cannot afford the consequences. And what are you thinking about now? Settling a grudge and taking revenge? Is this the time? Have you lost all sense of priority and the larger situation?"

Although Yan Li still felt that this made things far too easy for Niu Youdao, whatever resentment he had could only be suppressed for now. He cupped his hands. "Senior Brother is right. I was muddleheaded."

[End of Chapter 946]