“Great elder.” The two guards were still in shock, but they bowed when they saw the old man arrive. They couldn’t help but wonder, This is a strange night indeed. First, a man in black appears with a baby at midnight, then the clan master arrives and now the great elder as well.
“This child…” The middle-aged man sighed and shook his head. His smile was a bitter one. Wasn’t this just looking for trouble? He knew that the arrival of that person was not going to be good news, but he wasn’t expecting it to be this bad.
“I’ll explain everything later, great elder.”
The middle-aged man thought for a moment, then turned back to look at the guards. “What happened tonight stays unspoken. Do not speak about it to anyone.”
He knew very well the extent and severity of what the man in black was involved in. The power that those people possessed… he shuddered to think of it.
The Wun clan only had influence within this small town. To go against those people would be like trying to stop a cart as a mantis. It wouldn’t even be a contest. That said, he did owe him his life. So be it. A debt ought to be repaid.
The two guards immediately went on one knee when they heard this and professed their loyalty, “Understood. We will not speak of what happened today.”
“Mm.” The middle-aged man and the old man walked by the guards and patted them on the shoulder. They slowly closed the gates behind them as they entered the mansion. The guards felt their hearts skip a beat.
“Wew.” They both let out a long breath of air at the same time, hoping to feel a little relief. They seem to have been witness to something they should absolutely not have been. Something that would threaten the clan if it got out.
The unease in their minds grew when they thought about this. People who held secrets far greater than their posts, people like themselves, never had happy endings. The idea of leaving for somewhere else far, far away occurred to both of them. After all, even if they were spared today, who knew if they were going to be so lucky the next time?
Who could find them if they just left and went to some remote village in the mountains? They were martial artists anyway. They could make a living wherever they went.
Yet, two seconds later, a wave of soul energy rippled out from behind the gates. A deep voice rang out; a voice that both guards recognised as their clan master’s!
“Lethality: Slashing Swords.”
Woosh.
A dozen blasts of sword energy erupted violently from the gates and engulfed the two guards. They had no time to react nor the means to defend themselves. The sword blasts easily decapitated them and sliced their bodies in dozens of pieces. They were reduced to a pile of revolting blood and flesh on the ground.
The guards were not weak, or they wouldn’t have been assigned to be guards at the main gates. After all, nighttime was the perfect time for assassins to infiltrate. Yet, they had been slain by the middle-aged man with a single move. That man was almost definitely very powerful.
The old man smiled with the baby cradled in his left arm. He looked at the middle-aged man, clearly impressed.
“You’ve improved again, I see.”
“I’m still no match compared to you,” the middle-aged man bowed and replied humbly to the elder. However, the look of pride on his face was apparent.
“Mm, that is true.”
The old man agreed. He then waved his hand. The ripples of energy still reverberating in the air were pacified when he put his hand down.
The middle-aged man put one hand over a fist. “I’ll have to trouble you with the baby from now on, great elder. We will raise him and return the debt I owe.”
“Mm, very well,” the old man replied simply. He had just checked the baby’s body. He was certain this child would grow up to achieve something. It was only natural that he looked so satisfied.
Then the old man’s ear trembled slightly. He looked into the distance as he chuckled. “Someone’s arrived.”
The old man vanished after saying that. Just five seconds later, a troop of guards arrived. The captain had heard the commotion at the gates of the mansion.
The party bowed and greeted the middle-aged man.
“No need for the pleasantries. An assassin attacked earlier. Unfortunately, the guards died in defence of our clan.”
The man spoke with a stern face. The captain waved his hand to indicate for his troops to spare the bowing. Anger simmered in his eyes.
“On my orders, mobilise the Wun Clan’s forces and search every inch within a three-mile radius of the mansion.”
“Do not let those who dared to attack the Wun Clan get away. Notify the second elder. The victims were from his Hall. On my authority as the clan master, he is permitted to use the full force of the Enforcer’s Hall to find the assassin.”
“Understood.” The captain sent one of his troops off as a messenger and led the rest of the party out of the gates. They were prepared to search the entire town.
Tonight was going to be a restless night.
The middle-aged man left the gates and headed for his room to settle down for the night. Just then, he hit himself on the head.
“Why didn’t I ask him for the baby’s name?”714Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpeJbgxWzXR
Deep in the Green Sea Forest.
The man in black’s breathing alternated between heavy and light, like a candle in the wind about to go out at any time. He had another baby on his back. He saw a family crying over a stillborn baby and took it from them without their consent, though he left behind some silver for them.
The man took out a jade bottle containing a pill named Nine Seconds. He tipped the pill out of the bottle and swallowed it. In just nine seconds, his breathing stabilised and energy was starting to flow through his empty meridians. Again. However, before he could recover any further, a thunderous shout cut across the night sky.
“Tung-Fong Sau Man! Hand over the bastard and kill yourself, then I’ll keep your corpse whole.”
The man in black’s name was Tung-Fong Sau Man, written with the characters for ‘east’, ‘study’ and ‘literature’. A very gentle and elegant name, unlike his haggard appearance at the moment. Tung-Fong Sau Man pulled the mask away from his face and smiled politely at the newcomers. He had chiselled features and deep eyes that lived up to the elegance of his name.
He smiled and said, “Even a breeze comes to a stop; even the learned are buried. With a name like mine, what do I have to fear of death?”
He coughed up more blood upon saying that. His horrible physical condition couldn’t be more obvious.
A middle-aged man with blue hair stepped out of the shadows then, a man of tall frame and muscular build. He stood in stark contrast to the slim and slight body of Tung-Fong Sau Man. Arcs of lightning crackled along the man’s body every so often. His fists were gripped so tight his veins were bulging; the anger raging within him manifested physically.
“Father.”
“You are no son-in-law of mine!”
Tung-Fong Sau Man bowed respectfully when he saw this man. The man’s rage was apparent, but he was his son-in-law after all, and he would show his respect. The middle-aged man stared furiously at Tung-Fong Sau Man. If looks could kill, Tung-Fong Sau Man could die eighteen times over and be unable to pacify the man’s fury.
“I love Ching. Because she was always by my side, quiet as her name implies. I can’t help but feel at peace when I look at her.” Tung-Fong Sau Man’s lips curled into a sweet smile at the mention of Lui Ching.
“Silence, you imbecile!”
The man pressed closer to Tung-Fong Sau Man, as if threatening to strike at any moment. His face was contorted in pain.
“I, Lui Yam, lived a reckless life, a dangerous life. That’s why I gave my daughter the name ‘Ching’, written with the character for ‘quiet’. It was my blessing to her, a blessing to live a quiet and peaceful life. ”
Tung-Fong Sau Man was no idiot. He immediately stepped back when he saw Lui Yam approaching. He matched his stride with Lui Yam’s, maintaining a distance of a between them.
Lui Yam grew angrier and angrier as he spoke. His eyes gleamed as he yelled at Tung-Fong Sau Man.
“And yet, at the moment of her labour, she did not even have a bed to rest upon. And you dare call yourself a man?”
Tung-Fong Sau Man did not reply. Guilt was written all over his face. Lui Yam had struck him where it hurt. How could he call himself a man if he couldn’t even find his beloved a bed to peacefully give birth to their child?
“I will say it one last time.”
Lui Yam’s anger had bubbled over into a vicious sneer. He pointed at the baby on Tung-Fong Sau Man’s back.
“Hand the bastard over, then end your own worthless life, or both of you will be buried on this very piece of earth.”
Tung-Fong Sau Man did not answer. He looked quietly at the starry canvas above him and enjoyed the moment of silence.
He silently circulated what soul energy was left in him throughout his body. With the aid of the pill and the time he just bought with the conversation, he had managed to recover approximately three or four-tenths of his strength. However, Tung-Fong Sau Man could still feel the injuries he had sustained. His windpipe and his oesophagus were damaged, not only restricting his breathing but also causing blood to come up with every cough. Even his other organs were hurt in one way or another. He couldn’t possibly take on more than a few of Lui Yam’s moves.714Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡck46tVkv31
