Chapter 184 The Man Who Fulfills the Alliance
The embroiderer was no stranger to this sacred earth palace.
When Tanlang drowned, he was sent to Donglin Temple for treatment and recuperated in the nearby Sanhui Temple.
While her fifth senior sister was out washing her sword at night, the embroiderer pulled the grumpy old Taoist priest out of a water dungeon and brought him here to treat Ouyang Rong.
Because the underground palace was quiet and not suitable for being disturbed by monks, it led to the misunderstanding that the monks, including Xiufa, thought the magistrate had disappeared and were frantic with worry.
For some reason, the grumpy old Taoist priest disliked Ouyang Rong intensely. He only agreed to help out because of the kindness shown to him by Xiu Niang when she used her sword energy to clean his sores.
After curing Ouyang Rong, before leaving, the old Taoist in the crane-cloak pointed to the Jataka mural "King Kuai Mu's Eye" on the west side of the underground palace and said that if there was a next time, he would take the embroiderer's beautiful eyes as the price.
I wonder if this old Taoist priest covered in sores simply can't stand the sight of couples all over the world being so lovey-dovey...
Therefore, the embroiderer was quite familiar with the mad "Master of Ignorance" in the underground palace who had almost misled Ouyang Rong.
Moreover, on that day, when the old Taoist priest in the crane-cloak was playing tricks on Ouyang Rong with the master, the embroiderer, who kept her head down and remained silent, also had her own selfish motives, wanting Ouyang Rong to stay in the underground palace a little longer.
At the time, the embroiderer thought that they would never meet again, so she thought that even just one more glance at him would be enough.
But Tanlang is Tanlang after all. He broke through the illusion and stubbornly climbed out of the underground palace entrance...
Inside the Pure Land Palace, the embroiderer turned her head and glanced at the lotus pedestal in the center of the palace, which had been shrouded in moonlight year after year, day after day... It was also the place where Ouyang Rong had once jumped out after awakening in the underground palace.
Certain images flashed through her eyes. She silently raised her hand and took out something wrapped in a white handkerchief from her bosom, about the size of a fist.
The embroiderer untied her handkerchief, extended her hand forward, and softly said "Ah."
A mung bean cake lay quietly in her palm.
The monk Xiuzhen paused for a moment, then closed his hands instead of clasping them together. He took the mung bean cake from the embroiderer's hand, sat down on the spot, and began to eat it with relish, not minding the mess.
The embroiderer smiled gently, turned around, and a gentle breeze swept by before her figure disappeared from the spot.
The dry well surrounded by stone railings above.
The embroiderer, having gained nothing tonight, turned and left.
At this moment.
Her steps suddenly faltered.
This Beitian Nursing Home is located on a relatively flat area near the mountain peak. From here, one can overlook Longcheng County and Butterfly Creek, which is shaped like a "几" (ji) wing, to the west.
The embroiderer stood still, silently turning her head.
These clear eyes were now clearly reflecting the cluster of buildings in Longcheng below the mountain, and one could even vaguely make out the Luming Street where the Longcheng County Government Office was located, and the densely packed red brick sword furnaces on the west bank of Butterfly Creek.
The scene was the same as when I first arrived: a sparse starry sky, a bright moon half-hidden by dark clouds, and a cluster of dark buildings with scattered lights.
An ordinary night view.
And if an ordinary mortal were here at this moment, the scene would be the same for the naked eye.
However, the same scene was witnessed by the embroiderer.
Her pupils contracted slightly.
At this moment, from a high vantage point, the mute girl observes the atmosphere.
In the field of vision, on the west bank of Butterfly Creek, a small hill, slightly shorter than Dagushan, is surrounded by numerous sword furnaces.
Looking into the distance, she saw a slender red mist rising and swaying halfway up the hillside.
Like a red line, it rises straight into the sky.
It connects a extinguished sword furnace halfway up the mountain with the sparsely starry night sky above.
From the perspective of the embroiderer.
This slender red mist is like a trickle of water flowing down from the Milky Way in the ninth heaven to the human world.
The embroiderer's eyes showed a slight doubt, which then turned to surprise.
This is... sword energy.
"Ah," the embroiderer said softly.
The eldest sister mentioned that the three Qi cultivators who formed an alliance at the Lotus Tower each possessed three items called "Red Lotus Sword Seals".
The embroiderer had seen the one from her senior sister once before.
As originally agreed, the Crimson Lotus Sword Seal was not only a token of the alliance, but also a signal item, similar to a beacon tower, used when one party convened a meeting.
Upon seeing this signal, disciples of Qi cultivation from the three directions within a radius of one hundred miles should naturally attend the appointment.
The crimson sword energy soaring into the sky was exactly the same as the Crimson Lotus Sword Seal described in the senior sister's letter.
There are those who fulfill their promises.
At this moment, on the small lonely mountain on the west bank of Butterfly Creek in the distance, the slender red light that was quite conspicuous in the eyes of the Qi cultivator lasted for less than twenty breaths before disappearing without a trace.
It only appears briefly.
The night was deep and uneventful, as if nothing had ever happened.
However, beside the dry well in the Beitian Sanatorium, the figure of a slender woman had already disappeared.
...
Liu Zian was awakened by his trusted subordinates at the Jia-class sword furnace.
This trusted subordinate was responsible for maintaining his communication with the old swordsmith around the clock.
The old swordsmith is looking for him!
Because of the Zheyi Canal incident, Liu Zian hadn't been sleeping well these past few days, and the moment he heard his subordinates' footsteps, he immediately woke up.
He glanced at the pitch-black night outside the window and at the respectful bowing figures of his subordinates.
Liu Zian frowned, but then rubbed his face and got out of bed, revealing a gentle expression. He comforted his subordinates, dressed himself, and then hurriedly left the courtyard, exiting through the back door to head to the sword shop.
Apart from his communications staff, he did not bring any other subordinates with him, and he didn't even call his third brother, Liu Zilin.
Liu Zian had no choice but to be extremely cautious.
The young magistrate's sensitivity and suspiciousness often made him feel uneasy.
Just thinking about Ouyang Rong's signature smug smile with his hands behind his back made Liu Zian's eyes twitch violently.
These days, he has to pretend to be a lapdog and run to the construction site of the Zheyi Canal every day, representing the Liu family who have surrendered and reformed, to cooperate sincerely with the county government to dredge the water, clear the silt, and renovate the second phase of the Zheyi Canal project.
In addition, they also had to deal with Ouyang Rong's unpredictable surprise inspections from time to time.
Fortunately, the latter returned to Luming Street on time every day, only coming to find fault with Liu Zian and others during the day, without doing anything like working overtime to supervise the project, otherwise Liu Zian would have been tortured to death.
"It will be soon, Ouyang Lianghan. When that day comes, I, Liu, will repay you tenfold."
The pitch-black mountain wind on the dark road obscured the gloomy face of the new head of the Liu family, and his cold murmurs were also blown away by the cold wind.
However, when Liu Zian arrived at the sword furnace halfway up Xiaogushan Mountain and his face was illuminated by the oil lamp inside, he immediately revealed a refined smile.
"Old sir, did you summon me here in the middle of the night because you have something to tell me?"
The old swordsmith ignored him, turning his back to silently pack his things, occasionally turning his head to glance at the night view in a certain direction below the mountain.
Liu Zian looked at the old swordsmith with a rather strange expression.
When he arrived, he saw the old swordsmith bending down, picking up a hard object wrapped in a dirty gray cloth from the lawn outside.
Liu Zian glanced at him curiously.
The hard object, casually wrapped in gray cloth, was angular and square, about the size of a child's fist, and resembled a metal cube.
I don't know what it's for.
Now, after putting the item into his pocket, the old swordsmith's face remained indifferent. He didn't look at Liu Zian and silently walked back to the sword furnace.
Liu Zian had no choice but to dismiss his subordinates and follow alone.
On the table inside the room were stacks of blue papers, many of which had been cut into small Pythagorean-shaped pieces, which were then pieced together to form strange curved surfaces...
Liu Zian glanced at the messy desktop, a sight he was quite familiar with.
The old swordsmith seemed to be obsessed with the blue butterfly flower that Ouyang Lianghan had folded back then. Recently, he had been engrossed in paper art, and he had asked someone to help him find these rare blue papers, just to satisfy the old swordsmith's needs.
However, right now, there is ink on these blue papers on the table, and it seems that there are many neat handwritings written on them.
Liu Zian frowned, then glanced at the two cups of tea on the coffee table next to him.
One cup of tea was more than half drunk, the tea leaves were gone, and the other cup was seven-tenths full, as if no one had drunk from it.
The two cups of tea were only slightly warm.
"Has someone been here?" Liu Zian suddenly asked suspiciously.
The old swordsmith opened the forge beside him, grabbed the papers with delicate handwriting on the table, and casually tossed them into the empty forge.
Just like the day the old swordsmith threw the blue paper butterfly into the furnace, the blue paper has now vanished into thin air, turning to ashes, in the now empty furnace.
"They've arrived," the old swordsmith said casually.
Liu Zian's expression changed, and he couldn't help but exclaim anxiously, "Who's here?!"
"We discussed it this evening."
"Where are the people from Yunmeng Sword Marsh?" Liu Zian looked around anxiously, then glanced at the door that wasn't closed.
The night wind howled outside.
The old swordsmith said calmly, "Clearly, she left without even having a cup of tea."
Liu Zian still looked surprised and suspicious, glancing around.
"Heh, don't be afraid."
The old swordsmith chuckled, a hint of mockery in his laughter.
The old man gave a half-smile:
"That little girl from Jianze has already gone far away, hurrying back to deliver a message to the Queen of the Queen's Palace."
Liu Zian breathed a slight sigh of relief, but his facial muscles remained tense, and he looked solemn and nervous.
He turned and walked away, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.
"Why didn't the old gentleman discuss this with me before calling people over?"
Liu Zian turned around and said with dissatisfaction.
“I told you yesterday, and you agreed.”
The old swordsmith's expression remained unchanged, and he replied in a relaxed tone.
“But…” Liu Zian hesitated, pacing around the room. “But I didn’t expect the old gentleman to act so quickly, calling him here tonight… I was originally planning to discuss some details with him tomorrow.”
"Discuss what?!"
The old swordsmith sneered:
"The Wei family's men are almost here. If we delay any longer, we'll be at a disadvantage, and the sword you've schemed so hard for will be gone forever."
Liu Zian couldn't help but glance at the old swordsmith's expression, and retorted:
"What scheming? I was also helping the old man. Don't forget, we're on the same side..."
"Isn't the old man also dissatisfied with his elder brother? If it weren't for my help, the sword would really have fallen into the hands of your enemy. The old man has spent most of his life forging swords, can he bear the feeling of doing the work for someone else?"
"To make wedding dresses for others..." The old swordsmith chewed on his words, smiled, and said nothing more.
Liu Zian stopped and turned to ask:
"Why did the female cultivators from Yunmeng Sword Marsh arrive so quickly? And what did the old man use to contact them?"
The old swordsmith calmly extended a withered finger and pointed to his bulging chest and bosom.
There was nothing to hide.
Liu Zian followed the direction with a dazed expression. It turned out to be the square, hard object wrapped in gray cloth, probably some Qi Refining artifact left behind by the old swordsmith's sect.
Although the artisans of the Craftsmanship Dao Lineage are not lethal, don't forget that they still belong to one of the nine mythical Dao Lineages and are Qi cultivators.
Having figured out the current situation, Liu Zian's brows remained furrowed, and he frequently glanced at the old swordsmith's expression.
"You doubt me?"
The old swordsmith suddenly smiled and asked, then nodded, as if answering his own question:
"I only want to forge the sword and take revenge. If the latter is fake, why would I help you kill Liu Ziwen? Wouldn't it be better and safer to cooperate directly with Liu Ziwen and the Wei family?"
"Otherwise, why should I help you? Because you're beautiful? Ha, you're dreaming."
"Anyway, I've already told you the secrets of that incident back then. Why I wanted Liu Ziwen dead and why I couldn't let the Wei family get the sword—we share the same goal."
"Liu Zian, you are quite straightforward. You actually killed Liu Ziwen for me. I am quite satisfied with this method of killing someone by destroying their spirit."
The old swordsmith smiled, picked up the jug, tilted his head back, and took a big gulp of yellow wine.
Is there anything more satisfying for an enemy than brothers killing each other?
This was especially true for Liu Ziwen, who placed great importance on clan.
Upon hearing his elder brother's name, Liu Zian silently averted his gaze, remaining silent. He changed the subject, staring at the old swordsmith with a hearty appetite, and asked:
"Then why didn't you inform me earlier when you summoned the female cultivator from Yunmeng? Is there something you're hiding from me, something you're going to send to the Great Queen of Yunmeng Sword Marsh?"
Liu Zian's tone was dissatisfied. The old swordsmith's capricious behavior gave him a vague feeling that things were getting out of his control, which was not good.
"As soon as I saw that girl arrive, I sent someone to summon you, but unfortunately you came too late..."
The old swordsmith pursed his lips, but then paused and shook his head:
"However, I did not expect that the female cultivator from Yunmeng Sword Marsh would arrive so quickly. In just the time it takes for two incense sticks to burn, her sword energy arrived... Originally, I was worried that it would attract the attention of other Qi cultivators, so I planned to use this thing several times every few nights."
"But for some reason, this Yue woman was located near Longcheng County."
Liu Zian glanced sideways, frowned, and asked, "Did you just happen to be passing by, or...did you already have your eye on it?"
The old swordsmith shook his head:
"If we had noticed earlier, that Yue woman wouldn't have left so easily. Don't worry, the letter will be delivered to that Great Queen named Xue Zhongzhu as scheduled. She will... come as scheduled."
The old man took a sip of wine, squinted, and muttered something.
Liu Zian's expression shifted, eventually settling into a look of helplessness.
If it weren't for the immense pressure from the Wei family, he wouldn't have resorted to such a risky move. Now, the agreed-upon day for retrieving the sword from the sword box is drawing ever closer, and unfortunately for him, Liu Ziwen died too late, leaving him no time to make arrangements and no longer able to deceive the Wei family. For now, he has no choice but to invite trouble...
"However, that little girl was quite interesting. She was mute. This Yunmeng Sword Marsh really has all sorts of strange and wonderful women."
The old swordsmith chuckled and shook his head.
"What do you mean? Little mute?"
"It's nothing. We didn't talk much just now, and I don't know what this little girl's status is in Yunmeng Sword Swamp. She doesn't seem like an ordinary Yue woman..."
The old swordsmith gently shook his head.
(End of this chapter)
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