Chapter 119

Last night was, after all, the day of the “grand wedding” for the daughter of the Alliance Leader. Amidst the festivities in the main hall with his numerous friends, Leader Xu Yuan of the Martial Arts Alliance drank himself into utter oblivion. Today, only after the incident erupted and someone was sent to his chambers to inform him, did he grasp the severity. Hastily making himself presentable, he rushed out to confer with the others.

He, as the orchestrator, certainly knew the Bride’s Blade Challenge was merely a pretense. Yet perhaps precisely because of this, he had dared not scrimp on a single drop the night before. Among the few now deliberating, the heaviest lingering scent of liquor clung distinctly to his clothes.

Others dared not speak of it. Xu Qiong, however, spoke without reservation, advising him to sober up a little before joining the discussion.

The gravity of the affair extended far beyond Chen Shu’s missing sword. Including the Martial World Alliance itself, the treasures lost in that chamber were not merely priceless; some items were truly irreplaceable, priceless beyond market value. These esteemed guests had felt pangs sending the treasures to Chen Shu – now stolen? The sheer infuriating injustice—

And the perpetrator seemed, incredibly, to be one of the Martial World Alliance’s own.

Xu Yuan knew this person as well, and Xu Qiong did too.

It was said that the old man was not as ordinary and worldly as he appeared. Only today did everyone learn that this old fellow self-reported having lived nearly a thousand years, and often boasted of understanding both celestial phenomena and earthly matters, claiming to grasp half of Heaven’s secrets. He mingled within the Martial World Alliance precisely by relying on his skills in “confidence tricks.”

Naturally, it wasn’t that Xu Yuan and Xu Qiong were gullible. Rather, the old man did possess some genuine abilities. Though neither truly believed his grand tales about his age or celestial insights, when he displayed his talent for writing and drawing talismans—when the talismans he created actually proved useful, be it for warding off evil, seeking blessings, finding love or lost objects, or even curing illnesses and rescuing lives…

Even Xu Yuan and Xu Qiong found themselves giving three parts credence.

And this old man’s temperament happened to be both caustic and acquisitive. He remained in the Martial World Alliance solely for the few taels of silver, a mere livelihood.

—Outside the Martial World Alliance, if one spoke frankly to ordinary folk, as Chen Shu had about her sword flying away, out of ten people, eight wouldn’t believe it, one might try to swindle her, and the other might well take her for a fool. As others treated Chen Shu thus, so they treated this old man.

Compared to laboring alone among the populace, scraping by on mere glib talk, relying on the Martial World Alliance was far simpler and more convenient.

Hastily reckoned, he had dwelled within the Martial World Alliance for over a decade. When others thought of him, it felt as though this old trickster had served the Alliance since his very first appearance. No one knew his true origins, and no one had ever probed deeper.

Until this grave incident now.

Xu Yuan, upon tidying himself and learning of the matter, first dispatched men to report it to the authorities, then had to split his focus to host Chen Shu. Thankfully, Chen Shu had already stated she needed no treasures, so he beamed at her. Otherwise, paying double compensation, the Martial World Alliance would truly have gambled away its last underclothes, and likely still couldn’t plug this hole.

But Chen Shu was more impatient than they were.

After only two sentences, she asked Xu Yuan: after reporting it to the officials, how certain was their success? If finally located, would it take many days?

Xu Yuan had indeed lain drunk in his chamber the prior day, unconscious all night. Yet he’d still heard of Chen Shu’s sword quest. Hearing the tune, he knew its intent—at once aware that what Chen Shu fretted over was that borrowed sword. He said the Martial World Alliance naturally would not sit and wait. Chen Shu need only be patient while he gathered his men to pursue.

Thus, the Martial World Alliance and the authorities acting together increased their chances by one-tenth.

“By your words,” Chen Shu sharply seized on his implication and pressed directly, “does the Leader know where this person will try to flee?”

“…Roughly.” Xu Yuan said. He paused and sighed, revealing all he knew of the old man. For years the fellow had worked in the Martial World Alliance, acquiring some property nearby. To Xu Yuan’s knowledge, these assets lay close to the Alliance’s seat—the Xu Manor.

Not elsewhere, but precisely where it all began, where the great flood had submerged—

Diancang Pass.

——

“You wish to go search yourself?” Yun Shen repeated her words. Then he looked up, as if confirming his surroundings, saying, “This matter likely…”

Since the garden was packed with guests needing tending, and a bevy of robbed treasure owners required negotiation, so after the noon meal, the lost items matter was set aside. The Martial Alliance Bailiffs returned to the courtyard, busying themselves as usual.

As for Yun Shen, Chen Shu had tugged him to a somewhat secluded corridor.

“You probably don’t know!” Chen Shu cut him off, gesturing excitedly: “There are Sword Cultivators — naturally Talisman Cultivators, too. But these Talisman Cultivators, unlike us Sword Cultivators who steady mind and cultivate spirit—they’re ever the more worldly-wise. Thus, after years roaming the mundane world, and amid the rivalries of the great sects, few ever survived. Only us Sword Cultivators, sheltered in mountain retreats, endured—”

“That sounds precisely like tales told by your masters and senior brother.” Yun Shen remarked.

“—Anyway, this man is certainly a Talisman Cultivator — and a highly advanced one at that. I should’ve realized earlier! Back at Diancang Pass during the great flood, fighting to stem the tide atop the city walls, close to failing — someone then cast a talisman! That old man was conveniently also at Diancang Pass! He must be the very Cultivator you’d warned might harbor ill will!” Her eyes blazing, she continued unprompted: “To you see, for Cultivators to travel leagues in one step — if they wait for the Alliance Leader to ready carts and beasts in pursuit, then even after ten days or half a moon, it’s more likely the quarry only slips farther!”

Yun Shen silently regarded her before countering: “Then what shall you do?”

“You forget? I’m an all-capable Cultivator too,” Chen Shu winked, her excitement slightly curbed. “Earth-diving I cannot, but soaring skies — that I’ve mastered a little! Once I fly back to Diancang Pass and catch that Talisman Cultivator, not only will my sword be won, but all the Martial World Alliance’s treasures seized in one sweep too! Wouldn’t that bring the happiest outcome?”

Having spilled this torrent, she gazed at Yun Shen expectantly. But his expression wasn’t its usual ease. He dimmed his spirit, quiet for several moments, and said: “Are you certain that upon reaching Diancang Pass, you can capture this aged talisman-user?”

Chen Shu faltered. After two breaths pulled deep, she answered: “What’s impossible?—If truly uneasy, why not bring that Alliance Leader? Surely he knows where the old man lives, where his usual haunts are?”

While they spoke, busy bailiffs rushed past the corridor railings beyond. Now and then, bent-backed attendants could be seen coaxing guests toward the manor’s exit — guests, robbed of treasures, who seldom had kind words.

Still, most poised to rail would glimpse Xu Yuan seeing them off at the threshold, recall old affections, and leave with sleeves flicked in anger.

Yun Shen watched this long before softly sighing: “Only this way remains…Do you know why I went to see the Martial World Alliance stores?”

“…Why?” Chen Shu was startled, as if she had never thought of this question.

“Last night, I saw the thief.” Yun Shen said slowly, lowering his voice, as if afraid that the walls might have ears. “But where I was, originally a corner in the courtyard, couldn’t see the storehouse. That spot of mine, where I chatted with the other servants, faced the loft where you used to change clothes.”

As his words fell, Chen Shu didn’t understand for a moment, just opening her eyes wide and staring at Yun Shen.

“…The clothes you changed out of are all still there, but there’s one thing,” Yun Shen whispered, “your jade pendant… it’s missing too.”

A moment of silence.

These words came too quickly. Perhaps Chen Shu didn’t grasp the complex logic behind them, but Yun Shen had pondered all night—how could he not grasp the core issue?

If it really was that talisman cultivator stealing the treasures gathered by the Leader of the Martial Arts Alliance for his scheme, then why would he come to Chen Shu’s room and steal her heirloom jade pendant? Though this jade pendant had longevity, to steal it, one must first know it was on Chen Shu—not to mention she had disguised herself as a man. That old man managed to recognize her at a single meeting? How did he find out that Chen Shu carried a fine jade passed down from her master?

Moreover, the fact that the old man was a talisman cultivator was true. Yet at Diancang Pass once and Nameless Cliff once, he had subtly saved Chen Shu both times. The second time at Nameless Cliff, even Yun Shen, with his cautious nature, had lowered his guard. If he wanted to covet her wealth, her jade or sword, he could have struck then—why wait until today?

Finally, the most crucial, yet unspeakable, point—

If he truly was a cultivator, how could he not tell the sword was fake? Even if he didn’t know that Chen Shu’s “Han Guang” was the “Admonitory Sword” lost on Tianyu Mountain, with his boasted thousand-year cultivation, how could he fail to see that the sword forged by Valley of Villains was merely a piece of ordinary iron?

Since it was ordinary iron, how was it worth him abandoning all he had gained from years in the world?

Even with those worldly “treasures” added in, for a cultivator, it was far from enough!

Keep in mind that although talisman cultivators weren’t as thunderous as sword cultivators piercing the heavens with one blade, among mortals of flesh and blood, he could have strutted freely. Since he willingly became a brazen “old Taoist priest,” it must be in his nature, and despite what Xu Manor’s people said of his greed, he only ever aimed for petty sums.

Compared to that inexplicably vanished old man, even the full courtyard of guests seemed more suspicious!

Yet these problems were like mud left after rain, or frayed cloth—all tangled and muddy, lacking only the crucial strike to untangle them!

Just look at the group: He Yu was timid and slow, Yun Shen held secrets close and acted with caution, while Yan Ji was even less reliable—more unaccomplished than those spoiled youths. Shen Jie, the best at such matters, was currently in the capital interrogating the county magistrate of Yingqiu Weir.

Such a thorny situation seemed unsolvable; they could only watch Alliance Leader Xu bid the guests farewell one by one. Yun Shen took a deep breath and was about to speak when he heard Chen Shu before him start.

“Whether he stole it or not, we just need to catch him and interrogate him—won’t the truth be revealed?” she asked.

Just like any sword cultivator—direct, decisive, overwhelming ten complexities with sheer force!

Yun Shen paused, not yet replying, when she moved, leaping from the upper floor and soaring across to land atop the roof of the main hall outside the courtyard, then turned back, giving Yun Shen a tender smile.

“Alliance Leader Xu!” Her clear voice rang afar, echoing around the courtyard. “How about this: head out for Diancang Pass today. With me leading, we’ll arrive in just a quarter of an hour—let’s go scout the situation first!”