Chapter 1273: I've Never Met Him Before

The palace maids, eunuchs, and imperial guards in the distance who had turned toward the commotion were all stunned.

The cultivators responsible for guarding the imperial palace reacted most strongly. Once they came back to themselves, they flew over one after another and surrounded Yuan Gang.

One of their Elders had just been killed. They could hardly pretend nothing had happened.

Yuan Gang stopped.

With the saber held horizontally in one hand, he swept a cold gaze around the encirclement.

For the moment, the cultivators merely surrounded him. None dared act rashly.

Most did not know who he was or what background he had, but all of them had just seen him cut Bai Shangcheng down with a single slash.

Who would casually test strength like that?

The crowd finally jolted Yucang back to his senses.

He hurried over, pushed through the encircling cultivators, and barked, "What are you doing?"

"It was a martial exchange. One side's skill was inferior. What is there to argue about?"

"All of you, stand down!"

A martial exchange?

The cultivators looked at one another.

They were just going to let it end like this?

And who exactly was that red-faced man?

Dugu Jing followed Yucang in and repeatedly waved both hands, signaling everyone to withdraw.

Only then did the cultivators slowly disperse.

Yuan Gang raised the saber and slid the long blade back into the leather sheath he had later fitted along his back.

Then he walked toward the hall he had come from earlier.

It was as though nothing at all had happened.

Had he been stupid to kill Bai Shangcheng at a time like this?

Had he been stupid to come straight into the other side's own nest and cut down one of their Elders with a single slash?

Not in the slightest.

He knew perfectly well that right now, they did not dare do anything to him.

A man capable of planning certain operations, capable of uncovering internal spies, and capable of receiving Niu Youdao's trust to manage the affairs of Maolu Villa could hardly be a fool.

Not only was Yuan Gang no fool, he possessed considerable ability.

It was merely that some things he insisted upon, and the way he chose to conduct himself in the world, seemed utterly unworthy of such insistence to a clever man like Niu Youdao.

From Niu Youdao's point of view, those things truly were foolish.

Yucang glanced back at Bai Shangcheng's bloody corpse, split into two pieces.

He sighed and waved toward Dugu Jing, then hurried after Yuan Gang.

Dugu Jing immediately called two men over and ordered them to remove Bai Shangcheng's remains.

Leaving such a corpse sprawled there was truly unsightly.

He then hurried after Yucang as well.

Yuan Gang climbed the steps.

Zhuang Hong and Xia Lingpei were waiting there to greet him.

Both bowed.

"Mr. Yuan."

Yuan Gang studied them for a moment and gave a slight nod.

They were old acquaintances, after all.

A trace of admiration flashed in Xia Lingpei's eyes.

Only today had he discovered just how formidable Yuan Gang was.

One slash had killed an Elder of Xiaoyue Pavilion, and judging from the reactions of the pavilion's people, none of them even dared do anything about it.

He had known Yuan Gang for so long and only now realized that even his teacher's brother was no simple man.

Maolu Villa truly had been a place of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

Yuan Gang had killed one of Xiaoyue Pavilion's Elders inside Xia Lingpei's own palace, killed one of the men who nominally belonged to Xia Lingpei's side, yet Xia Lingpei felt not grief but a trace of excitement.

He had been Xiaoyue Pavilion's puppet for far too long.

What truly excited him was precisely this:

Yuan Gang had killed an Elder of Xiaoyue Pavilion, yet Xiaoyue Pavilion still did not dare retaliate.

"Mr. Yuan, I heard about Teacher. Please restrain your grief," Xia Lingpei said with a sigh.

Master Dao was not dead.

What grief was there to restrain?

Yuan Gang had no intention of wasting words with this puppet mother and son.

He said indifferently, "It has nothing to do with you."

Then he walked straight past them and entered the hall.

His unwillingness to speak at length was partly a matter of temperament.

There was another reason as well.

There were certain people with whom he did not want deep ties.

He did not want to owe favors to a random collection of people.

He was the kind of man who would repay any favor he owed, and he also knew that such a personality could easily be exploited by people with ulterior motives.

So with certain people, he deliberately avoided excessive contact.

Mother and son had come warmly to welcome him and show proper hospitality, only to press their warm faces against a cold backside.

Still, they had known Yuan Gang for more than a day or two.

Back at Maolu Villa, they had already learned he was this sort of man, so neither took offense.

Yucang reached the top of the steps.

Seeing the situation, he cupped his hands. "Empress Dowager. Your Majesty."

Zhuang Hong glanced toward the place where Bai Shangcheng's corpse was being collected and asked in puzzlement, "National Preceptor, why did Mr. Yuan kill Elder Bai?"

How was Yucang supposed to explain that?

He sighed. "They had agreed to exchange pointers. There was merely an accident in the heat of the moment."

"Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, Brother Yuan still has some matters to discuss with Xiaoyue Pavilion. Please return for now."

Zhuang Hong said, "An old acquaintance from Maolu Villa has come. This palace wishes to hold a banquet in his honor."

Yucang replied, "In a little while, this old man will ask the Empress Dowager on your behalf and see what he thinks."

Again, he extended a hand, inviting them to return first.

Mother and son nodded slightly and left.

Before going, both cast another glance toward Yuan Gang standing inside the hall.

Yucang and his disciple entered.

The way they looked at Yuan Gang was now somewhat complicated.

Their attitude toward him had risen to an entirely different level.

Strength was often the best way to win respect, and the power contained in that single slash had truly been terrifying.

Before Yucang could speak, Yuan Gang asked directly, "When do we go to the Boundless Desert to test whether sand scorpions can carry men and cargo?"

Yucang forced a smile.

He had no choice but to force it. One of the Elders beneath him had just been killed like that. How could he truly be happy?

"This can be done at any time. But there is one matter this old man does not understand. I hope Brother Yuan can clear up my confusion."

Yuan Gang said, "If it's something I can say, I'll say it. If not, I won't. What is it?"

Yucang worked hard to adapt to this man's temperament.

He asked, "This old man truly cannot understand why Brother Yuan would voluntarily come help Qin. Was this Commandery Prince Yong's intention?"

Yuan Gang said, "I told you already. I came to help Luo Zhao, not Qin."

"Uh..." Yucang did not understand. "Is there a difference?"

Yuan Gang said, "Someone entrusted me with this matter. Is that explanation enough for you?"

Naturally, Yucang was not satisfied.

"May I ask who entrusted you?"

"That is not convenient to say."

"I originally intended to go directly to Luo Zhao, but there are some things he cannot decide on his own, so I had no choice but to come to you."

"If you think this is inappropriate, then pretend I was never here."

"No, no. That isn't what this old man means."

Yucang hurriedly pressed both hands downward to steady him.

"I will have people begin preparing immediately for the test in the Boundless Desert."

Yuan Gang looked back at the sky outside.

"Can we depart early tomorrow morning?"

Yucang agreed at once. "Good. Tomorrow morning, then. This old man will personally accompany Brother Yuan!"

Yuan Gang reminded him, "Do not leak this matter for now."

"No need to remind me," Yucang said. "I understand."

"Brother Yuan, rest assured. Before the army sets out, absolutely no one will know."

"But once the army truly begins crossing the desert, the movement will be too large to conceal. At that point..."

Yuan Gang could not be bothered listening to the rest.

Before Yucang even finished, he simply turned and left.

"Contact me when it's time to depart tomorrow morning."

"..."

Yucang choked on the words still lodged in his throat.

Then he hurriedly waved to Dugu Jing.

"Quick. Go personally arrange somewhere for Brother Yuan to rest."

"Yes!"

Dugu Jing hurried after him.

Once outside, he called, "Mr. Yuan, please come with me."

The hall became quiet.

Only then did Yucang remember that Zhuang Hong had asked him to mention the banquet.

He pushed that matter to the back of his mind for now.

Preparing for tomorrow's journey to the Boundless Desert was more important.

By the time his arrangements were finished, Dugu Jing had returned as well.

"Everything has been arranged. But this man truly is somewhat unreasonable."

Yucang sighed. "As long as he honestly sees the matter through, as long as he didn't come here merely to toy with us, those are all minor details."

Dugu Jing nodded.

Then he lowered his voice. "That Three-Roars Saber..."

"Don't bother thinking about it," Yucang said.

"When Xi Wuxian spent three years forging that saber, the wild claims he made about its three tiger roars merely described the strength of the man wielding it."

"It is indeed an excellent saber, but it is not some priceless treasure."

"What matters is who uses it."

"Even if you obtained it, it would be of little use to you."

"At a time like this, don't create unnecessary trouble."

He sighed.

"Call the Elders together for a discussion. We still need to explain Elder Bai's matter to everyone."

"Yes!"

Dugu Jing accepted the order and left.

That evening, Zhuang Hong still sent someone to invite Yuan Gang to a banquet.

Yuan Gang thanked her verbally.

He did not go.

Early the next morning, Yucang's group and Yuan Gang departed quietly.

The operation was kept secret.

It had to be.

This matter was too important.

If Jin learned of it, Jin would certainly spare no effort to kill Yuan Gang and sever Qin's route through the desert.

And that was exactly what Yucang found so difficult to understand.

Was it truly worth Yuan Gang taking such an enormous risk merely to help this side?

Crossing the desert would not be the end of the matter.

No matter who eventually controlled the western lands, none of them would be able to tolerate the existence of a man like Yuan Gang.

...

In Nanzhou, inside a quiet chamber, Niu Youdao paced back and forth.

Then he suddenly turned in astonishment.

"He killed Xiaoyue Pavilion Elder Bai Shangcheng with one slash?"

Guan Fangyi nodded repeatedly. "That's right. One slash."

"Bai Shangcheng couldn't stop it. Monkey cut him in two on the spot."

"Plenty of people inside Qin's imperial palace witnessed it. It isn't a secret anymore."

"According to our agents, the two of them fought not long after Monkey went in."

"What happened between them?"

Although Niu Youdao had said that once Yuan Gang left, he should never come back, he had still been watching Yuan Gang privately.

As soon as Yuan Gang departed, he ordered their agents in Qin to keep an eye on him.

Niu Youdao said calmly, "Monkey told me before that Su Zhao's real name was Bai Su."

"When she died, it was her paternal uncle who personally led people to hunt her down."

"That uncle was an Elder of Xiaoyue Pavilion."

Guan Fangyi suddenly understood.

"Bai Shangcheng was the uncle who killed Su Zhao?"

"No wonder."

"Tsk, tsk. That red-faced monkey really knows how to hold a grudge."

Niu Youdao clasped his hands behind his back and muttered, "To think he can now kill an Elder of Xiaoyue Pavilion with one slash. His strength has advanced again."

"What kind of damned thing is Chi You Wufang, exactly...?"

In the past, he had often dragged Yuan Gang into sparring sessions.

But after entering the Sacred Realm, there had been no opportunity.

And under the present circumstances, it was no longer suitable for him to pull Yuan Gang into another bout.

The two of them had not crossed hands in a very long time.

Guan Fangyi had no idea what he was muttering about.

...

East of Xiping Pass lay Qin's vast linked army encampment.

A guest arrived at the central command tent.

Dugu Jing had come personally.

He entered without delay and found Luo Zhao standing before a map, frowning over the military situation.

"General."

Luo Zhao turned and looked surprised.

"Mr. Dugu? What brings you here?"

Dugu Jing said, "I carry the National Preceptor's decree."

"The General is to begin making preparations for the army's withdrawal as soon as possible."

"Withdrawal?" Luo Zhao was stunned.

Dugu Jing glanced left and right, then waved for the unrelated men inside the tent to leave.

Luo Zhao raised a hand and ordered them to comply.

Once everyone had gone, Dugu Jing leaned close to Luo Zhao's ear and spoke quietly for a while.

Joy appeared on Luo Zhao's face.

He could hardly believe it.

"Truly?"

"The National Preceptor went to see it personally, and I witnessed it with my own eyes as well," Dugu Jing said.

"There is no mistake."

"This matter is of tremendous importance. The crucial secret cannot leak beforehand, so the National Preceptor personally sent me here."

Luo Zhao struck his palms together in excitement.

"Good!"

"I'll arrange it immediately and begin preparations for withdrawal at once."

"No hurry."

Dugu Jing raised a hand.

Then he leaned close again and lowered his voice.

"The National Preceptor also asked me to question the General about one more matter."

"That Yuan Gang keeps saying he came here to help you."

"The National Preceptor wants to know what connection exists between the two of you."

"Why would he take such an enormous risk to help you?"

"Help me?"

Luo Zhao stared blankly, utterly baffled.

"I've never met him before!"

[End of Chapter 1273]