Book 15: Chapter 76 |
Before reaching Nine Heavens, Ling Jialan figured out what the situation was based off the conversation between Lian Hua and Elder Fu Dalong. Both of them had legitimate businesses, but they both had a degree of influence in the underworld, too. As a scion of Mount Lu Sword Sanctuary, she knew their kind well.
The Seven Champion White Princes didn’t permit any traces of unorthodox sects in their territories, sparing no unorthodox sect members who dared to cross them. There were only two types who were exceptions. The first type was the type who blended in almost perfectly, such as League of Assassins’ assassins. The second type, which were incredibly rare, were the types that were too powerful for the Seven Champion White Princes to justify spending their time on, such as Divine Moon Cult.
Jiangnan was always a flourishing destination, so anyone who wanted to have a successful career in the pugilistic world inevitably had to set foot in there. Consequently, besides the most commonly seen folks of the pugilistic world, the majority of people striving for an enriched career in the pugilistic world were people who shed their affiliations and blended in with the so-called local vagrants.
Vagrants, oftentimes considered people walking the tightrope between lawful and unlawful, were classified as the grey, whereas the orthodox sects were white and unorthodox sects were black. Vagrants were able to switch to any colour in any place as circumstances necessitated.
Bandits who committed murder in cold blood at night could’ve been the nicest people when the sun was out. One could legitimately say that they took the mantle of being antagonists who taught the newbies and kids of Jiangnan how to be “unorthodox”. Due to them being everywhere and being able to adapt on the go, they also filled the void of criminals who weren’t without any order.
The majority of Jiangnan’s gangs were at the mercy of the Seven Champion White Princes; however, they weren’t limited to just Jiangnan. Whatever criminals did outside of Jiangnan, they virtually did, as well. The only difference was that the criminals in Jiangnan manufactured excusable excuses before they carried out their deeds.
Including the criminals in the capital, the vagrants in Jiangnan had two faces – a legitimate worker earning his keep during the day and a complete contrast at night. Rather than say “pure white”, it was more appropriate to say that it was difficult to distinguish between black and white since even their own kind in the capital were unlikely to be able to accurately identify another. As a matter of fact, they probably had reached a point where they couldn’t tell if the day version or night version of them was the real version of them.
Ling Jialan knew what they were capable of thanks to her background. The fact that they could’ve asserted their influence in the capital proved that they had connections on both sides of the law. If luck was on her side, it was possible to capture Bu Xusan before Feng Jiutian did.
Lian Hua had an abundance of informants in the capital and often used his underground connections, so he immediately set out to search for Bu Xusan as soon as he heard how much Bu Xusan was worth.
Fu Dalong was from another gang that seldom crossed paths with Lian Hua. Fu Dalong was also after the bounty on Bu Xusan’s head. Regrettably, he was a step too late. Luckily, he saw what transpired, which was why he called Lian Hua to the pub for a negotiation. At the same time they met up, Fu Dalong instructed his subordinates to keep tabs on Bu Xusan and to steal Bu Xusan if the meeting went longer than the designated time.
It didn’t take long for the three trained individuals to reach Nine Heavens. They found the place eerily silent. There wasn’t even a footstep in earshot, let alone shouting and fighting. Concerned, Lian Hua leaped inside to find bodies strewn all over the ground. There were his subordinates and Fu Dalong’s, but Bu Xusan was nowhere in sight.
“I’ll make you pay for this!”
When Fu Dalong arrived inside, Lian Hua flew into a fit of rage and swung his blade at the former.
Clang!
“Miss, what is the meaning of this? Are you with this old scumbag?”
Having blocked Lian Hua’s attack for Fu Dalong, Ling Jialan scoffed, “If this was Elder Fu’s work, he must have been in quite some mood.”
“What do you mean?”
“One person is responsible for all the casualties here. If Elder Fu was responsible, why did he attack even his own subordinates?”
Lian Hua checked around and confirmed to himself that Ling Jialan was right. Everyone was dropped using strong palm strikes delivered at an incredible speed. If Fu Dalong’s subordinates were able to take Bu Xusan, then why did Fu Dalong’s men take up almost half of the space?
“Old man, you’re the cause of this. Don’t tell me you don’t know anything. Who did you ask for help?”
Fu Dalong used his internal energy to wake one of his subordinates.
“Big Bro, y-you are finally here!”
Fu Dalong sent his younger brother on the job to ensure the mission’s success, never expecting his brother to be destroyed.
“Cut the crap. What happened? Who hurt you? … We aren’t enemies with Lian Clan anymore. Just tell me.”
After a big inhale, Fu Dalong’s brother answered, “It was Bu Xusan. He… took out everyone here.”
“Cut the crap!” thundered Lian Hua, grabbing Fu Dalong’s brother’s lapel. “Bu Xusan is a weakling. I singlehandedly crushed him when I captured him!”
Fu Dalong pulled Lian Hua’s grip off. “He’s this old one’s biological younger brother. He wouldn’t lie. You shouldn’t vent on someone injured, Boss Lian.”
“Oh, and my brothers aren’t hurt?”
“There really is no cure for stupidity,” slighted Ling Jialan.
“What?”
“I said you’re stupid,” repeated Ling Jialan. “If not, did you hear me say anything else?”
“Shut your hole, lady. How am I…” Lian Hua stopped himself when he realised that asking how he was stupid insinuated he was stupid to begin with.
“How are you stupid?” Ling Jialan shook her head in disappointment. “You’ve been wary of Elder Fu and me, so you want to kick us out to then ask your brothers instead of saving them first. At the same time, you suspect Elder Fu of being responsible for this, so you can’t let him leave. The internal conflict triggered you, so you want to fight him as a means of venting. You can’t beat him without repercussions, though. Even if you did win, you wouldn’t be able to revive your brothers or heal them, let alone re-capture Bu Xusan. Aren’t you stupid if all you’re thinking about in this situation is how to win an unwinnable fight?”
Face beet red, Lian Hua responded, “What do mean I can’t win?”
“Let’s assume you can beat Elder Fu. What if I join in?”
Ling Jialan’s gaze suddenly turning into a piercing gaze sent a chill down Lian Hua’s spine, prompting him to instinctively back off three steps and assume a combat stance with his weapon. Once he settled, he realised that she never drew her sword. Being able to express a threat on par with a sword attack was a sign of being extremely advanced.
Ling Jialan frigidly told Fu Dalong’s brother, “If you told a single lie, I’ll massacre your entire family.”
Ling Jialan learnt to deliver threats so threateningly from other criminals she encountered in the past.
Fu Dalong was furious over the threat, but his brother responded, “When we arrived, there was nobody outside any longer. We thought it was strange, but we heard someone here shout, ‘Men!’. We were worried that somebody had beaten us to the punch, so we stormed in, but there was only Bu Xusan here. I don’t know if he was possessed or something, but he didn’t seem to hear anyone and struck unbelievably fast… I saw him move once, and then several of our brothers wen’t down. Then I… passed out.”
Lian Hua couldn’t say anything after hearing that.
“If you don’t trust him, you can summon a doctor to check them all.”
Ling Jialan sounded bored, and rightfully so, because her original plan to meet Bu Xusan, fight Lian Hua and Fu Dalong, then fight Feng Qizhi had just been ruined. Alas, Bu Xusan was missing, and Lian Hua and Fu Dalong were no longer in any head space to fight optimally. What was there for her to feel motivated about? She was just cold at this point, but her commanding tone that she usually spoke with came out as an order for them.
After thinking it through, Lian Hua realised his brothers’ wellbeing was the priority and went to fetch a doctor.
Realising he underestimated Ling Jialan, Fu Dalong queried, “You want to see Bu Xusan, yet you are not interested in the bounty. What is it that you are after?”
“Simple. I have accepted a commission to kill him.”
***
“Is Zizi gone?” Ming Feizhen went looking for Zizi at Liu Shan Men while Shen Yiren was out during the day.
“Aren’t you the one who told him to train?” grumbled Bai Lian.
“No. I didn’t tell him to run around these next two days. He’s injured, isn’t he?”
“Yes, but he healed unbelievably fast. As soon as he was able to stand, he left again.”
“… Unknown pill really is effective…”
“What are you mumbling about?”
“Nothing. I was going to take him out to expand his horizons, but I guess that’s not happening today. I’m going out for a stroll. Tell him to stay put and wait for me if he comes back.”
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