Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Old Man Mu glanced at the four people at the door and said rather gravely, âDragon King, you shouldâve given me the antidote sooner. Now itâs too late. Iâm afraid that Iâll have to ask you to fight all of them once again.â
Though the four people were masked, Gu Shenwei already knew their identities. âWhite Eagle, Red Kite, Sky Condor, Purple Vulture.â
The four surviving wing guards of the Khan removed their masks and stared at the Dragon King vigilantly. At last, it was Red Kite who spoke up as the representative of the group. âWe wonât allow anyone to desecrate the Khanâs remains.â
Gu Shenwei shook his head and replied, âNeither will I.â
Red Kite sneered in response. âSo the Dragon King changed his mind that quickly. Would you like us to see you off?â
âThat was what he said too.â
Old Man Mu suddenly chipped in. âForget about my nonsense. If you come out a short while later, you wouldâve heard the Dragon King refusing my suggestion. Ha-ha, also, Mo Lin is a friend of ours, so you should be our friends tooâ¦â
Red Kite shook his head and replied, âMo Linâs a traitor. Now that youâve come, you have to stay here forever.â
âThat canât be true. You see, the Khan has specially dedicated a room to Silver Condor. Ha-ha, I noticed that you guys donât have one. As for us, the Khan didnât like us at all, so thereâs no need for us to stay here with him.â
âThere are plenty of rooms here, and some of them will stay empty, their residents never returning. These empty rooms, conveniently, can be used to house you.â Red Kite was immune to Old Man Muâs mischief, and was determined to have these intruders remain behind in the mausoleum.
Han Fen chipped in too, saying, âI want to choose my room if we have to stay.â
âSuit yourself,â Red Kite sharply replied.
âIt was you all who stopped the Waning Moon Hall from raiding the mausoleum,â Gu Shenwei suddenly made an irrelevant remark, seeming completely ignoring the threat in front of him.
Red Kite was slightly caught off guard and answered, âThe Master Commander thought that she was the only one who knew about the secrets of the mausoleum. Once she discovered that she was not the only one, she immediately gave up her tomb-raiding efforts. Humph, it turned out she was also afraid that her misdeeds of desecration would be heard by the whole grasslands.â
âThatâs not fair,â Old Man Mu said angrily. âLotus took all the gold and left unharmed, while we just came in by mistake, but we are the ones who have to stay forever?â
âThe Waning Moon Hall was just lucky. Someone will bring back the Master Commanderâs body eventually.â
âI think that Mo Linâs a traitor,â Gu Shenwei speculated, hinting that Mo Lin was the only one who was suitable for this task.
âMo Linâs a traitor but Silver Condor isnât,â Red Kite mysteriously replied, with a hint of a smile on the corner of his mouth and a ghost of sneer smeared across his face.
âThe Wing guards of the Khan also play with words?â Old Man Mu responded to the sneer with contempt. âDoes Mo Lin think that changing his name can change the fact that heâs a traitor? Ridiculous. Are you a bunch of kids?â
Old Man Mu raised his closed fist and aimed at the four people. The hand opened and a small bottle shot forward and exploded in front of Red Kite. The four wing guards all held their breath and whipped out their scimitars in unison. In the face of danger, all of them remained composed.
It was at this very moment that Gu Shenwei made his move. Old Man Mu had attracted part of the enemiesâ attention, and his killerâs instincts refused to give up any tiny advantage.
Gu Shenwei had once been mobbed by the four wing guards and nearly been killed. This time around, Red Kite had replaced Silver Condor, but that didnât weaken their attack one bit.
The target of his first saber attack was not Red Kite, who was the closest to him, but rather the wing guard who was the furthest away. Three scimitars flew at him, yet he didnât switch targets.
Han Fen hadnât quite understood what these people were saying, but she knew what she should do. The moment Old Man Mu made his move, she also bent over and started moving, throwing out various sacks of powder.
In just a brief moment, the room had been filled with colorful smoke. Both sides could barely see the opposing parties.
Gradually, the smoke dispersed. Howver, no one could be seen in the room. The Wing guards and the Dragon King were all kung fu experts, and Old Man Mu was highly experienced, so Han Fenâs knockout powder hadnât knocked anyone down.
Four wing guards were lying in the corridor. Two of them had been stabbed in the chest by a saber, and the other twoâs faces were pale with blood dripping out from the corners of their mouths - clearly, they had been hit by the Dragon Kingâs frosty Qi.
Their main priority had been to evade the knockout powder, but Gu Shenwei had attacked and pursued them with his full strength, which gave him an advantage in their engagement. Even so, wing guards were still surprised by Dragon Kingâs kung fu prowess.
âHa, the Dragon Kingâs made some progress in his sabersmanship again.â White Eagle was the eldest wing guard and he had fought Dragon King before, which was why he could sense the difference between the two fights.
Red Kite had been hit by a palm attack, and he had heard that the frosty Qi would wear off over time as long as the victim protected their heart meridian. But the Dragon Kingâs palm technique seemed to have changed - it now rampaged in his body more ferociously, which meant that he would suffer more severe internal injuries if he didnât control the frosty Qi. âYouâve won again.â
Gu Shenwei put away his saber and placed it on the ground along with his scabbard. âIâm not going to take anything from the Khanâs mausoleum, let alone his remains. Now you can believe me.â
The four wing guards shared a glance with one another - they had lost the battle and were now lambs waiting to be slaughtered, so indeed they could believe him now.
âAnd you wonât tell anybody the secrets of this mausoleum?â White Eagle asked, clamping the wound on his chest.
âI wonât.â
âAnd the other two?â
Old Man Mu puffed out his chest. âThe Dragon King wonât, and I wonât either. As for Han Fen, she will only tell Lotus, but since Lotus already knows, that doesnât count as telling. And one more thing, Dragon King, thereâs absolutely no need to keep it a secret - I mean, the Court Attendants Army already believes that the Khanâs in the heaven anyway, and thereâs so much treasure here⦠Even if we ourselves donât need it, it would be an act of charity to use it to help the poor.â
âDonât you dare do that,â the four wing guards shouted almost simultaneously.
âLotus took the gold and yet nothing happened to her. Isnât that true?â Old Man Mu took a step forward, his hands feeling itchy.
A beseeching look finally appeared on White Eagleâs face. âThere are plenty of treasure in the outside halls. If the Dragon King needs them⦠you can take all of those. There are actually not many precious items in these inside roomsâ¦â
âIâm not changing my mind. I wonât take anything from here.â
Old Man Mu sighed and shook his head repeatedly. Then he took out some jewelry, dropped them onto the ground, raised his head to look at the oil lamps on the wall, and spoke no more.
Han Fen hesitated for a while, then she also took out several items and put them on the ground. But they were all personal belongings - a handkerchief, needle and thread, and so on - she hadnât understood their words at all.
âI trust the Dragon King,â White Eagle said, and then he suddenly grabbed the scimitar on the ground, pointed the blade upwards, and fell down heavily with his neck facing the blade.
Sky Condor, Purple Vulture didnât say a word and killed themselves in the same way.
Red Kite was the only one left. By now, Old Man Mu was completely lost. âHold on. Please explain to me - what are you doing? The Dragon King has already spared your lives. Do you really care so much about your pride? You barely got hurt and you have to commit suicide?â
After glancing at the other three who were dead, Red Kiteâs face turned even paler. âThe wing guards once took an oath. We voluntarily agreed to be buried with the Khan. Yet after the Khanâs death, in order to seek vengeance and guard the mausoleum, we never had the chance to fulfill our commitment. Now itâs Silver Condorâs responsibility to avenge the Khanâs death, and as for the guarding of mausoleum⦠we will entrust the Dragon King with that duty. So itâs about time we met the Khan.â
Old Man Mu couldnât believe it. âYou guys are all smart people. Why do you have to be so stubborn? Silver Condorâs at least got a statue, and yet you four have nothing. Why take it so seriously?â
Red Kite smiled. He couldnât find a reason, and he also didnât intend on answering. âThe exits of the silver and gold halls are all blocked. Only the exit of the emerald hall is left.â
Red Kite didnât kill himself by falling towards a scimitar. Instead, he took the scimitar, aimed at his neck first, then switched to his stomach and finally said, âPlease do me a favor, Dragon King.â
Old Man Mu thought that this was his only chance, so he quickly moved forward with a single step, said âIâll do itâ, and pushed the scimitar into the stomach. The blood flowing out of the corner of Red Kiteâs mouth was as bright as a blooming rose in Old Man Muâs eyes.
The four bodies were left where they were - they hadnât requested a burial, so Gu Shenwei wouldnât bother doing that.
Old Man Muâs power gradually recovered, and now he could walk faster even with Lü Mianâs body pinned to his waist. âThe people of the Central Plains are stubborn, while Norlanders are even more so. Alas, why do people like them even exist?â
Gu Shenwei barely talked along the way back. These people, who in Old Man Muâs eyes were obstinate, were the exact kind of servant that all emperors were in desperate need of and spent much effort in nurturing.
Two perspectives were fighting against each other in Gu Shenweiâs mind. One of them was the same as Old Man Muâs, which was that this kind of loyalty was stupid; the other was Marshal Yangâs. Even though he was already dead, his deed of venturing into Golden Roc Castle alone was the most standard version of âbeing stubborn.â
Gu Shenwei caged them both into a corner of his mind he had never touched before. He preferred choosing strategies that corresponded best to the path beneath his feet rather than committing to any one fixed principle.
Old Man Mu had been nagging for quite a while before he suddenly recalled an issue. âHan Fen, the Dragon King and I are about to leave this place. Youâre not going to play any tricks on us at the last moment, are you? I noticed that you havenât talked in quite a while. It seems that youâve got a problem or something.â
Han Fen pointed at the wound in her side. âIt hurts a little, so I donât want to talk. The Master Commander made it very clear that I should put the Dragon King in the dungeon if heâs powerless; if not, I shouldnât take any risks. Now that youâve regained your power and Iâm no match for you, thereâs nothing I can do anymore.â
The three were now walking through a dark tunnel. Han Fen was leading the way, carrying an oil lamp in each of her hands with an extra one on her head. Old Man Mu was right behind her. He giggled and said, âSo youâre our prisoner now, Han Fen.â
âOkay,â Han Fen agreed without any hesitation as she didnât care at all. âIâd love to be Dragon Kingâs prisoner.â
After walking for an unknown long distance, they finally reached the end, and the valley Han Fen had once mentioned was right outside. Old Man Mu couldnât help but swear, âThat little bastard lied to us. Otherwise we wouldnât have had to walk so far.â
At the end of the tunnel, there was a metal paling blocking the way. It was made of refined steel, and every bar was as thick as a manâs wrist. Even if Old Man Mu had all of his former power and joined his force with that of the Dragon Kingâs, they still wouldnât be able to break it.
They gave it a try, and true to its image, the paling didnât yield even a little bit.
Right outside, the run was rising, but they were stuck here. Old Man Mu became indignant and swore at the wing guardsâ names. Then he asked the Dragon King, âNow what? Shall we try the other exits?â
Gu Shenwei looked into the sky outside, âWait here.â Then he whistled.
âYou can summon the giant bird here? I donât think itâs got enough strength to break this paling.â Old Man Mu was skeptical.
Yet Han Fen became excited. She dropped the lamps and hurried to the paling, looking into the sky together with the Dragon King, âIâve always wanted to see the giant bird. Master Commander says that itâs very cool.â
Gu Shenweiâs whistle gradually grew louder.
Old Man Mu unceremoniously sat on Lü Mianâs body, âYou guys are so tough. Iâm starving. One more minute and Iâm going to start eating human flesh.â
For the next two hours, Gu Shenwei whistled intermittently, yet the giant roc never showed up.
Old Man Mu looked at the dead body and licked his lips. Then he pounced on the paling and shouted, âGod, even a small bird would be nice.â
Puff! In response to his call, something dropped out of the sky. Only, it was not a bird but rather a rope.