Chapter 11: CH 11

Black Street, the Great Compassion Temple.

“It’s impossible,” Sang Chi Yu spoke up, “Su Ru Hui is already dead.”

Han Ye glanced at him and said slowly, “Three days ago, the Kun Lun Secret Sect secretly invited the divine physician Huang Zhi Bei from Yu Zhou. One of my capable subordinates infiltrated Huang Zhi Bei’s team. The sect was very cautious and only allowed Huang Zhi Bei to bring one disciple into the mountains. My subordinate replaced his senior disciple and successfully infiltrated the sect. The sect put them to sleep, and they were awakened in the Immortals Cave.”

Hei Guan Yin unfolded a map of the border region. The map showed a snowy mountain range with bustling markets and buildings below.

“Don’t bother looking. The maps circulated on the market won’t have the Immortals Cave marked on them,” Han Ye said, crossing his arms. “According to reliable sources, the Immortals Cave is where the Secret Sect is holding Su Ru Hui captive. It is surrounded by three layers of maze arrays, which even the practitioners of spiritual powers cannot enter. Ordinary people without spiritual powers will also lose their way in the arrays. Five years ago, the Secret Sect announced to the world that Su Ru Hui was seriously ill and had died. However, the last message my subordinate received was ‘Boss Su is still alive. The Secret Sect is crazy. Come and save him.’ After that, he was discovered by the sect and lost contact with us. His situation is probably not good.”

He looked at Sang Chi Yu and said, “Sang Chi Yu, why did you say that Su Ru Hui was dead? Did you see it with your own eyes?”

Sang Chi Yu didn’t respond. His black and deep eyes were as calm as the sea.

Not only did he see it with his own eyes, but he also killed Su Ru Hui with his own hands.

Besides, Su Ru Hui had already been reborn in Jiang Que Xie’s body. How could there be two Su Ru Huis in this world?

“Hey, answer me,” Han Ye called out to him.

“Never mind,” he lied.

“Well, that settles it. You were just guessing. Su Ru Hui is still alive, but to be honest, I only know that he is alive. The Secret Sect secretly invited a divine physician, so Su Ru Hui’s situation is not optimistic. He is poisoned and was already seriously ill when he left Black Street. Even if we save him, he may not live long.” Han Ye rubbed the steel ring on his thumb. “But, the Paradise Pavilion will definitely go to save him.”

Hei Guan Yin sighed. “To make up for your betrayal?”

“I don’t care what you think of it.” Han Ye arrogantly lifted his chin. “Hei Guan Yin, are you in or out?”

Hei Guan Yin laughed hoarsely. “Boss Su has helped Black Street. Who among us has not received his kindness? Now that we are certain that Boss Su is still alive, the Great Compassion Temple will naturally do its best to help him leave Kun Lun. However, the Secret Sect is dangerous, and our journey is fraught with danger. I think it’s not too much to ask for the ‘Mechanical Arsenal.'”

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone whispered about Su Ru Hui’s “Mechanical Arsenal.” Its fame was widespread, and everyone knew about it.

When Su Ru Hui was captured by the Secret Sect, all of his puppets, designs, and formations were obtained by them. This included his beast puppets, flesh puppets, and various unfinished works. The Secret Sect hid these things in one place, which outsiders named the “Mechanical Arsenal.” The puppets were already enough to make people envious, butrt there were even rumors that Su Ru Hui’s Super First-Grade Flesh Puppet was also among them.

Han Ye laughed. “Old fox, your plan sounds good. Okay, if we win, the Mechanical Arsenal is yours. Paradise Pavilion only wants to bring Su Ru Hui home safely.”

Hei Guan Yin thanked him with clasped hands. “The Great Compassion Temple will definitely assist with all its strength. Please give us the instructions.”

Han Ye said, “Last month, Kun Lun Secret Sect’s Frontline Guards returned from mining with heavy losses. Tomorrow, they will post notices in Yun Zhou City to recruit people. Those with excellent physical skills will have priority, and those with spiritual powers will be directly admitted. I have bought a batch of household registration documents, and our people can use these to enlist. The Frontline Guards rarely expand their recruitment, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Even if it’s not for saving Su Ru Hui, it’s a good opportunity to infiltrate the Secret Sect.”

“Thank you for your information.” Hei Guan Yin clasped his hands. “But we don’t need your household registration documents.”

Han Ye sneered. He knew Hei Guan Yin was a crafty old fox. If he used his household registration documents to enlist, Han Ye would be able to obtain a list of undercover agents in the Great Compassion Temple. Hei Guan Yin was wary of this and refused to use Han Ye’s household registration documents. Hei Guan Yin said he had promised to save Su Ru Hui, but in reality, he was plotting something. This old monster’s words were not to be trusted at all. However, regardless of the situation, Han Ye had already achieved his goal. With the Great Compassion Temple causing trouble for the Secret Sect, the probability of Paradise Pavillion rescuing Su Ru Hui would be much greater.

“Those with spiritual powers are qualified to receive official titles, and background checks are very strict. The Secret Sect will also use ‘Lie Detector’ to inspect those who are selected. I suggest you disguise yourselves as ordinary people and apply.” He waved his hand and said, “The message has been delivered. I’m leaving.”

Sang Chi Yu suddenly spoke up, “I’ll join.”

He wanted to investigate what exactly the Secret Sect was hiding in the Immortals Cave.

Han Ye narrowed his eyes and looked at the man sitting in meditation under the Happy Buddha statue. He had been silent all along, like a shadow with no presence, and Han Ye thought he was not listening. After all, he and Su Ru Hui had been archenemies for many years, and even if Sang Chi Yu was not a person who sought revenge for the slightest grievance, he would not lend a helping hand to Su Ru Hui. Sang Chi Yu’s sudden request to join them surprised Han Ye for a moment.

Sang Chi Yu raised his eyes, and the candlelight sank between his eyebrows, with a hint of coldness. He said, “Five years ago, I guarded the Immortals Cave and had a way to break the formation.”

Hei Guan Yin nodded. “With Master Sang’s assistance, we will be like tigers with wings. This time, the Paradise Pavillion and the Great Compassion Temple will join forces to deal a heavy blow to Kun Lun.”

“Hmph, old fox,” Han Ye said to Hei Guan Yin, “Can I speak alone with Master Sang for a while?”

Hei Guan Yin smiled but did not move.

“I won’t try to steal your thunder, it’s just a private matter,” Han Ye said.

Hei Guan Yin tucked in his sleeves and bowed. “Please go ahead.”

After everyone had left, only Han Ye and Sang Chi Yu were left, one standing and the other sitting. The bonfire was burning high, crackling, and the Happy Buddha’s compassionate face was illuminated by the flickering light, occasionally revealing a hint of ferocity.

Han Ye said, “Sang Chi Yu, if I save Su Ru Hui in the future, I will imprison him as my slave. Please don’t interfere.”

The scorching air around them suddenly cooled, and Han Ye felt killing intent from the other side.

Sure enough. He sneered inwardly.

“Sang Chi Yu, people say you are upright and virtuous, but they don’t know that you have ulterior motives. I used to think you were different from those hypocritical officials, but it turns out that you are even worse than them. However…” He smirked. “Black Street welcomes people like you.”

Sang Chi Yu’s expression did not change at all, as if he did not hear Han Ye’s slander. He calmly asked, “The hairpin, did he give it to you?”

“You’re talking about this?” Han Ye took the wooden hairpin from his hair, made of black ebony and carved with a rough little flower on the top. “Yes, it was given to me by him. My mother was a prostitute, and half the people on the Black Street were her customers. One day she died in bed, and I became a street urchin. Su Ru Hui gave me this hairpin, and told me to go to the Paradise Pavilion. He told me not to give up, calling me little brother. At that time, I thought he was a good brother, and for him, I wanted to survive. I worked hard to climb to his side and became his most capable right-hand man. Then I saw him give the same wooden hairpin to another child and told him to report to the Paradise Pavilion. That’s when I realized that most of the orphans in Paradise Pavilion had his carved wooden hairpins. He would carve little trinkets whenever he had time, and they piled up in his room, leaving no place to step.”

Han Ye sneered. “He can casually give something away, and make a child who was crawling in the mud willing to do anything for him. If he did it on purpose, I would admire his cunning. But he’s not like that. He’s just a good-for-nothing person. He wants to take in orphans and save old people. That’s what I hate the most about him. He saves so many people that when I came to him, he had already forgotten who I was. What’s the use of saving so many people? When the Secret Sect attacked, the person who sold him out was someone he had saved before.”

Sang Chi Yu remained silent, with his lips pursed.

“I betrayed him,” Han Ye’s voice was bitter. “I thought he would remember me for the rest of his life because of that.”

Sang Chi Yu lowered his eyelids and said, “You betrayed him because he was terminally ill, and the Black Street had no way to help him, but the Secret Sect could recruit doctors from all over the world. But you didn’t expect that the Secret Sect was equally helpless.”

Han Ye’s expression became desolate for a moment. “Even you can see that, but he couldn’t. When he left, he looked at me with eyes full of disgust, and I still remember it to this day.” He didn’t speak for a while, then put on a malicious smile. “He’s someone who can’t sit still. He likes to tinker with all sorts of things. The Secret Sect has kept him prisoner for so long, and he must have suffered all this time.”

Sang Chi Yu didn’t answer, silently gazing at the jumping campfire beside him.

Han Ye didn’t need to say it. Sang Chi Yu knew what kind of person Su Ru Hui was. Since he was ten years old and met Su Ru Hui, he had never been short of admirers. Why did so many people like Su Ru Hui? It was really strange. He was noisy, shameless, vulgar, and annoying to everyone.

“Oh, and one more thing,” Han Ye continued. “Jiang Que Xie… Did he give you a hairpin too? That’s why you didn’t attack me when you saw this hairpin. I advise you to forget about him. He probably forgot about giving you a hairpin a long time ago.”

Sang Chi Yu lowered his eyebrows and eyelashes. Han Ye was right. Su Ru Hui was always like that. He was good to everyone. His kindness overflowed, and his memory was poor.

Facing Han Ye’s mocking gaze, Sang Chi Yu said, “Leave him alone.”

Han Ye sneered. Sang Chi Yu, a hypocrite who became a villain after entering the Black Street, still wanted to help the needy. It was embarrassing to fight just to win the favor of one man, and Han Ye lost interest. He said, “Forget it then. One last piece of advice for you, Hei Guan Yin is not a good person. You better be careful of him. There are dangerous ingredients in his Wuji Powder. If you can, find a doctor to check it out.”