Chapter 15: Villain, Die!
Old Qiu said, “Indeed. We’re certain this is a matter of grave importance, yet we know nothing about it. To be frank, our organization is called ‘Dark Thunder.’ Our members are all righteous martial artists who oppose the barbarian court, and our goal is to one day expel the barbarians and restore our Chinese lands.
“But the barbarian court is powerful, and many treacherous martial artists in the Six Gates serve as their accomplices. Although we have some skilled members in Dark Thunder, they are mostly in the central plains. The West Shu Province is relatively remote, and we only have a small number of people here. The situation is urgent, and we couldn’t find more experts in time, so we had to target County Mistress Li Tong.”
Shi Hao nodded and suddenly asked, “Is the female thief the Six Gates have been searching for these past few days also one of yours?”
Lu Tong said, “She’s not one of us. On the contrary, her sudden appearance has alerted the enemy and made things more complicated.”
Shi Hao said, “After your failed attempt yesterday, the Marquis’ residence will undoubtedly strengthen their protection of County Mistress Li Tong.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong both looked helpless.
Shi Hao said solemnly, “I understand County Mistress Li Tong has a senior sister named Du Yuejiao. If we can capture her, perhaps we can also obtain information related to the God-Sealing Experiment?”
Old Qiu hesitated, “That…”
Lu Tong said, “Unlike County Mistress Li Tong, Du Yuejiao is Zhuo Mulan’s direct disciple. Zhuo Mulan is definitely involved in the God-Sealing Experiment at Ming Kun Monastery, and as her disciple, Du Yuejiao must also be aware of it.
“But Du Yuejiao has been cultivating orthodox Chongxian Sect techniques since childhood, and her swordsmanship is exceptional. None of our people in Jin Prefecture are a match for her. Moreover, as a skilled member of the younger generation of the Chongxian Sect, she likely possesses one or two magical weapons.”
Old Qiu sighed helplessly, “Don’t underestimate her just because she’s young, Righteous Hao. Our plan yesterday was based on confirming she wouldn’t be attending the Red Tong Banquet.
“Her strength is likely comparable to the young master of Small Han Mountain City. If she had been there yesterday, no matter how many men we had, we would have had to retreat.”
Shi Hao said, “Don’t worry, you don’t need to do anything. I just need you to do two things for me. First, I need information about the terrain around Ming Kun Monastery and the general routines of its members. Since you were originally targeting Ming Kun Monastery, you must have already investigated.
“Second, I need a place in Jin Prefecture where no one will find us. To be precise… I need a prison.”
He said coldly, “A prison where no one will notice, no matter how I torture her.”
Old Qiu and Lu Tong exchanged glances. Old Qiu gritted his teeth and said, “Rest assured, kind sir. We’ll take care of it.”
Leaving the secluded residence, Shi Hao walked alone through the market.
He came to a blacksmith’s shop and bought a kitchen knife.
There was a time when the barbarian court had decreed that ordinary people were not allowed to purchase kitchen knives individually. Five households were allowed to share only one knife, and purchasing one privately was illegal.
This regulation was still technically in effect, but it was no longer enforced, and no one cared.
After all, in this world of martial arts and supernatural abilities, ordinary people posed no threat to the barbarian court, no matter how many kitchen knives they possessed.
The greatest threat to the barbarian court remained the rogue martial artists who defied the law and operated outside their control.
It was an ordinary kitchen knife, with a wooden handle and a dark blade, reasonably sharp.
The blacksmith assured him it would be perfect for chopping meat and bones.
Shi Hao tucked the knife into his waistband, covering it with his outer robe, and walked through the crowded market.
After passing through a group of people, he subtly changed his appearance and, blending into the crowd, reached another street.
After wandering around for a while, he returned to his residence at noon.
After lunch, he placed the Jade Clarity Stone in the sunlight for half an hour, retrieved it, and then cultivated alone in his room.
In the evening, he left again, changing his appearance with the Evil Shadow Disguise Technique and exiting the city before the gates closed.
He arrived at a dense forest outside the city, where a woman emerged, “Righteous Hao.”
It was Lu Tong.
Shi Hao took a stack of documents from her and then left.
The kitchen knife was still tucked into his waistband.
He used his light-foot skills to reach the outskirts of Ming Kun Monastery.
Ming Kun Monastery, located halfway up the mountain, was a grand and luxurious Daoist temple. It was now evening, the stars shining brightly in the night sky, the moon a crescent.
Shi Hao extended his hand, and with a flash of fire, he burned the documents in a secluded spot.
He had to admit, Dark Thunder’s intelligence gathering was thorough.
Ming Kun Monastery, as a branch of the Chongxian Sect in Jin Prefecture, had many skilled Daoists, making it difficult to infiltrate.
However, even the Chongxian Sect, the self-proclaimed “orthodox leader of all Daoist sects,” needed people to deliver food, clean latrines, and perform other menial tasks.
These tasks were carried out discreetly, away from the eyes of the seemingly otherworldly Daoists.
No one would bother them with such trivial matters, which allowed their cultivation to proceed undisturbed.
Old Qiu and the others had clearly planted people among these insignificant laborers, gradually gaining a clear picture of the inner workings of Ming Kun Monastery.
In the forest, Shi Hao looked up at the cold moon. Tonight, the moon was a thinner crescent than last night.
The next full moon was about twenty days away. Then, he could return to the Primordial Grotto Heaven.
With a flicker, he melted into the darkness, disappearing like a ghost—
Inside Ming Kun Monastery, in an elegant pavilion, incense burned, and the curtains swayed gently.
The night breeze, carrying the fragrance from the flower garden outside, drifted through the window screens, filling the pavilion. The light in the corner wasn’t from a candle but a round crystal sphere.
Inside the sphere was Night Fragrance Grass, a spiritual herb that emitted a soft, even glow in the dark, something even wealthy families couldn’t easily acquire.
The young woman sitting at the table, her bare shoulders glistening with water droplets, wore only a light red skirt that reached her chest. Without a belt or sash, the skirt flowed naturally, leaving much to the imagination.
Recalling the young man’s arrogant and disdainful tone from that morning, Du Yuejiao’s eyes still flashed with anger.
She had never been looked down upon like that in her life.
She remembered his tone when he claimed to have reached the eighth rank in just one year, that arrogant demeanor as if he thought everyone else was a fool. It was incredibly infuriating.
Having cultivated in the Chongxian Sect since childhood, Du Yuejiao knew the hardships of cultivation.
Others saw her as a young genius, having reached the eighth rank at such a young age, full of spirit and vigor, but they didn’t know the effort she had put in.
“Just some unorthodox scum,” Du Yuejiao snorted. “Acting all high and mighty.”
Thinking about it, she found it amusing that she would even care about such a person.
And he was a country bumpkin who didn’t even know that the Chongxian Sect had monopolized the ingredients for refining the Nine Ranks Immortal Formula. He had even gone to a common apothecary like the Chuan Jin Treasure Pavilion to try and buy them.
Du Yuejiao pursed her lips, looked at her reflection in the polished bronze mirror, and thought it was ridiculous that she had almost been angered by a country bumpkin and unorthodox scum.
Now that she thought about it, it was mainly his tone, when he claimed to have reached the eighth rank in just one year, that had irritated her so much.
Why should she even bother with him?
An unorthodox country bumpkin like him couldn’t possibly obtain those immortal ingredients, let alone advance to the seventh rank.
She, on the other hand, had a bright future!
After calming herself, Du Yuejiao put the country bumpkin out of her mind and sat on her bed in the lotus position to cultivate.
The Chongxian Sect not only controlled the spiritual herbs and leaves required for refining the Nine Ranks Immortal Formula, but also possessed numerous Daoist cultivation techniques.
She was currently practicing a technique called the “Divine Orchid Technique.” When circulating the technique, her true energy would seep through her skin, emitting a faint fragrance that filled the room.
She was close to mastering the Divine Orchid Technique. Once she reached its peak, she could request the seventh-rank Immortal Formula from her sect and advance to the seventh rank.
After cultivating until midnight, her meridians felt much smoother, but her mind started to wander. Continuing would yield diminishing returns.
She stopped cultivating and went to sleep.
As dawn broke, she got up, washed up, and changed into a beautiful and elegant Daoist robe with an auspicious cloud pattern.
The “auspicious cloud pattern” was formed by embroidering ruyi scepters and lingzhi mushrooms in the shape of clouds, giving the robe an ethereal and exquisite appearance.
Although it was a Daoist robe, its craftsmanship was exquisite. The wrap-around robe had a pleated skirt.
While it was clearly a Daoist robe, it looked more like an “embroidered cloud-patterned dress resembling a Daoist robe.”
She picked up her three-foot-long sword and, instead of using the main door, leaped from the balcony of her pavilion.
“Junior Sister Yuejiao, practicing your sword so early again?” the Daoist guarding the main gate asked habitually.
Du Yuejiao nodded slightly, polite but unsmiling.
She floated out, heading deep into the back mountains, then into a dense, ancient forest. Passing a cliff face, she arrived at a secluded valley shrouded in mist.
This was where she practiced her swordsmanship daily, a place unknown even to others within Ming Kun Monastery.
Surrounded by mountains, with a stream flowing through it, the valley was always filled with mist, even in this season.
She began practicing her swordsmanship, the blade flashing. Suddenly, she frowned, turned sharply, and shouted, “Who’s there?”
“You’re quite skilled, Miss Du!” A figure emerged from the dense forest, hands clasped behind his back.
It was a young man in a grey tunic, his features sharp and grim, his forehead high, his nose slightly hooked.
His appearance wasn’t handsome, but rather cold and ruthless.
Every step he took radiated a scorching aura.
This aura felt ominous and out of place, as if it didn’t belong in this world.
“A demonic cultivator?” Du Yuejiao quickly assessed.
Only a demonic cultivator would possess such a bizarre and unsettling aura.
“Not only skilled, but also perceptive, Miss Du!” The young man in grey actually smiled.
The shadow on his hooked nose deepened, “Hearing of your presence here, I, though unworthy, came to pay my respects.”
Du Yuejiao raised an eyebrow, her face turning grim. She spun around, her sword pointing at him.
The blade stirred the mist, as if drawing the first rays of dawn from the sky, “Who is this villain seeking death before me?!”
“It seems you’re not only skilled and perceptive, but also confident, Miss Du!” The young man smiled strangely, “In that case, allow me to experience your skills firsthand!”
With a disdainful, mocking smile, he drew the kitchen knife from his waistband.
Seeing the kitchen knife in his hand, Du Yuejiao’s eyes burned with uncontainable rage.
Killing intent radiated from her, her body trembling slightly with anger…
Holding the kitchen knife, despite his provocative words, Shi Hao didn’t dare to be careless.
Using the Soul Chasing Locking Steps and sensing Du Yuejiao’s energy flow, he had been able to follow her undetected to this secluded location.
Otherwise, even if he knew she was in the mountains, he wouldn’t have been able to find this hidden valley.
However, as he tried to approach stealthily, Du Yuejiao had detected him first.
This proved her exceptional skills. His initial plan of a surprise attack seemed overly optimistic now.
Du Yuejiao formed a sword seal with her left hand, her sword gleaming, its intent radiating outwards.
She was like a night-blooming cereus suddenly blossoming in the valley, her sword intent cold and sharp.
Like a north wind sweeping down from an icy mountain in winter, even before she moved, the chilling aura was intense.
The anger in her eyes further fueled this chilling sword intent, letting Shi Hao know that his provocation had been successful… perhaps too successful!
This girl’s arrogance, stemming from being a member of a “renowned and orthodox sect” like the Chongxian Sect, was, in Shi Hao’s view, her greatest weakness.
However, in terms of combat experience, Shi Hao knew he wasn’t much better than her.
So far, he had only experienced two battles, one on Disordered Chess Mountain and one on Red Mountain.
Although he had been outnumbered in both, none of his opponents had been eighth-rank experts.
He let out a disdainful sneer and stepped forward without hesitation, his demeanor arrogant, his heart cold.
He channeled the Mysterious Charm Technique, transforming the Severing Meridian Burning Heart Finger into the Severing Meridian Burning Heart Saber. The black iron kitchen knife in his hand was engulfed in flames.
“Be careful, Miss Du!” He made himself appear even more menacing, like a seasoned thug.
He said in a teasing tone, “Swords and knives have no eyes. Wouldn’t want to scar that pretty face of yours. That would break my heart.”
“Villain, die!” Her furious gaze, like a stone disturbing the surface of a lake, replaced her usual cold demeanor with rage.
Her chilling sword intent erupted, and in the next instant, like a violent storm, it swept towards the young man with the hooked nose—