Chapter 77

The sun rose; the moon set; the great river surged on. In the blink of an eye, several days went by, and the aftermath of this great flood— or rather, a man-made disaster, a conspiracy— finally began to settle amid the unceasing roar of the Yushui River.

Just as the river flow rushing to the sea cannot be reversed, this settled matter also became like a submerged iceberg on the ocean floor, smoothed over by time and concealed beneath calm waters, as if a stubborn splinter that would remain stuck down below until one day when the tides receded and the so-called truth saw light again.

But at this moment, it seemed someone had deliberately scrambled the chessboard. Not only were the original moves unrecognizable, but the pieces themselves were scattered everywhere. Whether it was Yun Shen, who hurried to Mijiang Slope to scheme in secret; or Shen Jie, who returned to the capital “laden” with gains; or Chen Shu, who finally caught a clue but was bewildered; even Li Chou and Yan Ji, who were preparing to set off; He Yu, far off in Mengcheng; and that ostentatious Li Mao— all of them seemed to move further away from that untouched truth, step by step.

Regardless of whether Li Mao investigated after finding the dug-up corpses, or if that fool just idled about as before, never noticing that the very dirt pile under his watch had been excavated and refilled without a trace. On the surface, it appeared as if Liu Mao had found nothing out of the ordinary, and this matter seemed to have hit a dead end—

Yet those tributaries flowing from Diancang Pass continued to run day after day, much as they always had.

As expected, Chen Shu used her handwriting to write several Bounty Notices and handed them over to Li Chou, Yan Ji, and later to other willing helpers from the Wulin Community found in the pass— including Ying Wei and a few monks from Xu Tuo Temple, who readily volunteered— requesting that these people take them to nearby towns and hang them up.

The first one given was to Li Chou. He took those two crumpled pages from Chen Shu, glanced at them skeptically, and at first even refused to comply. He looked at Chen Shu but asked her whether the blood jade was still on her or if that scholar had tricked her out of it.

Only then did Chen Shu gasp in surprise, putting on a regretful act and patting herself down all over. Finally, she gave Li Chou a pleadingly ingratiating smile, saying she had forgotten to get it back— so without the jade, wasn’t Li Chou unwilling to help with even this small favor?

Sure enough, this remark hit Li Chou’s weak spot. He had been stewing in anger all night since being sent out by the two to deal with Liu Mao; as soon as Chen Shu pleaded for mercy, he seemed to deflate like a pricked bubble, forgetting that dark scowl of his. Gripping the paper Chen Shu had just handed him, he launched into a lengthy critique.

First, he complained that the handwriting was not neat enough and too small, but his nitpicking attitude was exactly as hard to please as when they had first met.

Just as Chen Shu blinked her eyes and murmured an agreement, he grew even more smug. Though he didn’t show it openly on his face, his condescending tone was unmistakable. Not only did he pick on Chen Shu’s handwriting, he also tutored her on word choice, saying that offering only ordinary silver money on a Bounty Notice would hardly tempt anyone to return the sword. Why not write something like the top prize at the Sword Discussion Tournament or offering to serve the person who returned it? Then, in a moment of impulsiveness spurred by Chen Shu’s encouraging look, Li Chou waved his hand grandly and agreed to rewrite dozens of copies for Chen Shu.

Chen Shu’s ploy succeeded: not only did she hand off the Bounty Notices, she unexpectedly got dozens more in return— all at the cost of listening to Li Chou brag away for a while. What a profitable deal! Joyfully, she praised Li Chou a few more times, growing more convinced of her own half-month “training results,” and skipped off in high spirits, leaving Li Chou alone. Flush from the compliments, he was all puffed up until that evening when it was time to depart; only then did he realise that though the task wasn’t difficult, it was still cumbersome and time-wasting. Yet he held to his precious pride, insisting on perfecting the first copy, ensuring it looked good and clear before writing the next. So he spent a full half-hour writing and only managed to hand them over to Chen Shu just before leaving.

That stack of papers was the fruit of his meticulous effort, but how would Chen Shu know? She took them, looked through with satisfaction, and gave praise again. Just as Li Chou was about to offer some humble words, while he was still choosing them, she turned and handed a few to Yan Ji beside her, excitedly telling Yan Ji to pick any he liked and take them back to Linbo Prefecture.

Thus, Li Chou strode out of the courtyard gate brimming with arrogance, but by the time they reached the city gates, the smug grin that had refused to vanish earlier had already sagged to his chin. His face turned dark again, thoroughly displeased.

When would Chen Shu pay him any heed? After all, Li Chou’s Biyang Valley lay in the Yunan region, while Linbo Prefecture was a thousand miles away. She was so eager to stuff all those Bounty Notices into Yan Ji’s arms she didn’t even notice Li Chou’s foul mood.

After seeing those two off, for several days straight, Chen Shu happily distributed that pile of papers to anyone she met, keeping herself delightfully busy and nearly forgetting the whole affair.

—

Fangcheng, untouched by the tumult, was even quieter.

Yun Shen stayed there for several days. Though he himself wasn’t one to show off, the city had its own air about it; the chief of the Valley of Villains found him interesting and mentioned him consistently over those few days. So in no time at all, word spread across all of Fangcheng that a feeble Scholar who could barely lift a thing had arrived at the Valley of Villains.

It spread even faster than the false rumors Yun Shen had asked the Valley Chief to disseminate.

That Valley Chief of the Valley of Villains was named Xiao Zhong. How he’d clawed his way to this position, like a “king” over “ten thousand” people, probably relied solely on brute force. Though he acted with a childlike cruelty— perhaps misleading one into thinking he was pretending to be dim-witted—it only took a couple of careful days to see that he truly lacked cunning and was surprisingly straightforward.

But this man, so devoid of guile, remained unfathomable because of his inherent cruelty, far beyond ordinary folk.

It was as if he were a child raised by jackals for years, returned to human society but still unable to fit in— unaware of worldly matters or human hearts, cold and heartless, and enjoying killing, burning, stealing for amusement. So not only as such a leader: in the whole idyllic Yubei region centered around Fangcheng, any martial artists who gained standing there seemed raised with the same worldview. Like Xiao Zhong, over time, though the city boomed from afar, stepping inside revealed arguments and conflicts everywhere, elders unsupported, children uncared for— just the most basic, barely human world.

A Scholar arriving in such a city and earning Xiao Zhong’s favor naturally drew all eyes.

Of course, the woman who brought Yun Shen to Fangcheng had played her own role in fueling this entire affair with no small contribution.

Her name was Wei Mian. Long before this, she had already lost Xiao Zhong’s favor and was banished to a forsaken place like Mijiang Slope.

The day Yun Shen visited Mijiang Slope, to her, it initially seemed like a ticket back to the city, a stepping stone to return to the center of power. Thus, although she neither believed Yun Shen’s words nor was swayed by his promises or threats, she had brought him to Fangcheng regardless. Her only aim was to ensure she wouldn’t be sent out again once she returned. Little did she expect Yun Shen truly was a stepping stone – Xiao Zhong took the “stone” and, showing unexpected kindness, even kept it. But almost immediately, he swung that very “stone” and smashed it right against Wei Mian’s forehead.

As anyone could guess, given Xiao Zhong’s temperament, reward was the last thing on his mind. This was precisely the reason Wei Mian had glared at Yun Shen with such venom back in the hall –

Within two days, Yun Shen heard that Wei Mian, while indeed spared a return to Mijiang Slope as she wished, was summoned by Xiao Zhong. Under the pretense of rewarding her, a searingly hot branding iron was pressed directly onto her hand, obliterating the mark that signified respect within the valley.

When Yun Shen later found an opportunity to seek her out, her wound hadn’t fully healed yet, her hand still swathed in bandages. The moment she saw him, naked loathing erupted from her eyes, a hatred sharp enough to rip him apart and flay his skin. Combined with her naturally terrifying visage, it made her even more impossible to look at directly.

Yet Yun Shen acted as if he hadn’t noticed a thing. He strode nonchalantly into her courtyard, paused, and turned back as if only just realizing she was still standing at the gate. He smiled gently then and said, “I only came to discuss a minor matter. There’s no need for such a formal reception.”

Wei Mian’s eyes practically shot poison needles; this was far from a “formal reception.” But since Yun Shen had framed it that way, and given she couldn’t afford to damage Xiao Zhong’s current favorite plaything right under his nose, she merely snorted, a sound of grudging acknowledgment, and slammed the courtyard gate shut with force. She walked down the corridor without a backward glance to see if Yun Shen followed, her voice sharp: “–I wonder what brings you here seeking out this ‘defeated foe’?”

“Not at all,” Yun Shen said coolly, lifting his gaze imperceptibly to scan the empty courtyard, seemingly confirming they were alone before replying smoothly, “I drank every last drop of that poison you put in the bowl. Who is the ‘victor king,’ and who the ‘defeated foe’? The outcome isn’t settled yet.”

Hearing this, Wei Mian faltered mid-stride. Her hand darted out, drawing a dagger from seemingly nowhere. In a flash, she spun around and thrust it right against Yun Shen’s neck –

Yun Shen’s expression remained utterly unchanged, as though merely humoring her. He lowered his eyelids slightly.

“Stinking pedant,” she hissed venomously, “you think you’ll wander this valley freely for long! Coming here just to gloat — do you have any idea what Xiao Zhong is truly like? The most capricious fiend imaginable! The day he feels displeased, he’ll have you hacked to pieces. And when that happens, you won’t even know who to beg for mercy!”

“So, you also feel Xiao Zhong is… unstable? Not the calculating mind who could have devised such a scheme?” Yun Shen interrupted her bluntly.

The dagger lay horizontally below his chin, a bare half-inch away, a cold gleam against his throat, poised as if to slit it the very next instant. Yet Yun Shen showed no fear. Not only was he unafraid, he met Wei Mian’s furious stare squarely. He even lifted his chin slightly, perilously toward the blade’s edge, using this near-suicidal gesture to demand, with chilling calm, that she answer.

Despite spending years in Mijiang Slope and having many souls on her conscience, Wei Mian had likely never encountered such defiance. For a moment, she was speechless. Recovering herself, she pressed the dagger forward again, having momentarily slackened her grip. “I don’t know what you’re talking about—”

“Which part didn’t you grasp? Your poison — I indeed drank it all. Only, I am rather untalented enough to be immune to all toxins. Rest assured, I won’t report your casual poisoning to Xiao Zhong. How could I accuse you when the poison didn’t affect me?” Yun Shen said, raising his hand lightly and, with effortless ease, began pushing the dagger blade slowly aside. “As for my previous question… you know the answer, don’t you? The flooding of Diancang Pass. Perhaps you were unaware initially. But news has arrived from the west these past few days. You should be able to guess some of it by now. Such a meticulous plan? Drowning an entire city to silence one person? That is certainly Xiao Zhong’s style. But to flood an entire city just to conceal one death and erase a single insignia… he doesn’t seem to possess the intellect for that.”

“What the hell do I know?!” Wei Mian snapped back, fury reigniting. “To recklessly doubt our master is a grave crime! Don’t think you can slander him at will and get away with it! I dare—”

“There’s no one else in your courtyard. We needn’t rage like this. Spare ourselves the trouble of broadcasting secrets to the Western Heavens with our own voices, hmm?” Yun Shen chuckled, his tone genuinely placating. “I saw how furious you became that day when I merely mentioned Linbo Prefecture’s hidden operatives. And once in Fangcheng, you were exceptionally careful and obsequious before Xiao Zhong. You seem quite the… status-climber.”

He paused, his gaze locking onto the subtle twitch near Wei Mian’s eye, then continued:

“As someone who climbs, surely you know – at Diancang Pass, wasn’t there someone more powerful than even the hidden operative in the prison? Someone who, since the capture of those Mounted Bandits, took the initiative to send messages all the way to Linbo Prefecture? Their status within your valley should be quite high, no? Such an influential figure, and also a spy… you must have already investigated?”