Before he could finish speaking, Hua Yan was already slapping the table and laughing heartily.
In truth, she wasn’t the only one; everyone around was stifling their laughter, though no one dared to laugh out loud.
Hua Yan laughed enough for the entire tea house, not even bothering to look at the face of that white-clad fool turning from pale to green.
He held back again and again, but in the end, it was the young master of the white-clad fools who spoke up.
“Why is the young lady laughing so heartily?” The voice was elegant and gentle, devoid of any arrogance.
Hua Yan wiped away the tears from laughing and casually said, “It’s just funny to see a group of people wearing fur coats in this weather! Don’t you think so?”
The young master of the white-clad fools looked down at himself, then at his fellow companions, and was momentarily stunned.
“The young lady is right. We came from Baiya Peak, where it snows year-round, so we are accustomed to wearing fur coats. With our inner strength, we don’t feel the heat, so we didn’t find anything amiss along the way.”
After speaking, the young master of the white-clad fools took off his fur-lined coat.
“Young master, you mustn’t!”
“Young master, please reconsider!”
His companions’ voices were filled with extreme distress, as if him removing his coat meant he was about to run around naked.
They looked at Hua Yan as if she were a femme fatale.
Hua Yan nonchalantly said, “It’s fine. Wear it if you want. I was just laughing; it’s not like I threw a silver ingot in front of you and asked you to strip.”
Her words caused the atmosphere to instantly chill.
But no one thought she was being reckless, because Lu Chengsha was still sitting by her side.
“You…” The white-clad fool was about to stand up in anger, but the young master held him back and said, “My junior brother was reckless just now. As his senior brother, I apologize on his behalf. Can the young lady forgive him?”
Since he had said so much, Hua Yan didn’t feel like picking a fight anymore.
Although she did want to pick a fight, as she was enjoying herself when they interrupted. How could she be happy about that?
But now she was a good person. Her father said that good people should be tolerant.
“I forgot to introduce myself. I am Bai Yujiang, a disciple of Baiya Peak. May I know the young lady’s name?”
“Zhou Xiaohua.”
“So it’s Miss Zhou.” Bai Yujiang smiled, completely unbothered by the earlier incident. “You must also be heading to the Sword-seeking Tournament. It’s a tiring journey. How about we travel together and look out for each other…”
Before he could finish the word “conveniently,” Lu Chengsha stood up.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Hua Yan hurriedly followed, “Oh, oh, oh.”
“Young Hero Lu.” Bai Yujiang finally addressed Lu Chengsha, as if he had only just noticed him. His tone changed abruptly, becoming both arrogant and cold, “Why the rush? It’s rare to meet here by chance, which is a stroke of fate. You’re also traveling with such a beautiful lady, which makes me very curious. Can we have another drink and chat?”
Lu Chengsha seemed completely oblivious to what he was saying and walked straight out.
So cool!
She liked it!
Hua Yan completely forgot that she had received the same treatment when she first started tagging along with Lu Chengsha. She bounced after him, unable to hold back her laughter.
After they had walked some distance, she smiled and said, “Aren’t you afraid of making him angry?”
Lu Chengsha: “Hmm?”
“You completely ignored him!”
Lu Chengsha calmly replied, “So what?” After a moment, he added, “He can’t beat me anyway.”
Hua Yan pondered this logic, “But I can’t beat you either!”
Lu Chengsha didn’t respond.
***
Lu Chengsha, who had gradually become friendlier, was now becoming enigmatic again.
Hua Yan always felt that he didn’t like this young master from Baiya Peak, but she couldn’t discern any clues. Lu Chengsha always wore a stern expression, responding to no one unless necessary. He preferred not to speak at all, and if he could, he would live in absolute silence except when he was killing people.
But… Hua Yan found him incredibly cool and domineering!
Just walking with him gave her a sense of security.
Indeed, when she and Zhao You were fleeing for their lives, they often encountered bad people with malicious intent. Although they usually backed off upon seeing Zhao You was a disciple of Qingcheng Sect, the threat was still present.
But traveling with Lu Chengsha was different!
People automatically kept their distance, and those they needed to interact with were exceptionally friendly.
During this time, Hua Yan also discovered her value!
That was, speaking on behalf of Lu Chengsha!
He really didn’t like to talk.
Even when staying at an inn or visiting a restaurant, Lu Chengsha was too lazy to talk to the staff, but Hua Yan was different!
She loved chatting with people, especially when it came to uncovering new stories and fresh news from all walks of life. It was even more interesting!
And finally, she didn’t have to worry about making the bed, doing the laundry, or cooking for Lu Chengsha. Hua Yan felt relieved.
They were only three cities away from Dangshan, and even walking there would leave them plenty of time.
Lu Chengsha didn’t seem to be in a hurry, so they ate their way through each town they passed.
Upon entering a city, Hua Yan would inquire about which restaurant had the best food, then she would take Lu Chengsha there to eat. It wasn’t unusual for them to visit three or four eateries in a single day. After eating, Hua Yan would seriously write a review for each place, seal it in an envelope, and send it to Dongfeng Buye Tower—a column in the Jianghu Manual called “Taste of the Jianghu” accepted submissions and published one or two articles each issue.
Lu Chengsha didn’t mind either way. After all, he had to eat, and it didn’t matter where. It was just a matter of walking a bit more.
After eating, Hua Yan would drop by the teahouse to listen to storytelling, buy several newly arrived tales from a bookstore, and attend two good plays at the theater. She even thought about visiting a brothel but decided against it because of Lu Chengsha’s presence—oh, how she envied the lively life of Jianghu people!
When she was bored in the sect, she could only direct a few disciples to perform a play from “Records of Chivalrous Heroes.” They performed poorly and couldn’t even remember their lines properly, sigh…
In her spare time, Hua Yan bought several beautiful dresses to wear at the Sword-seeking Tournament.
***
They leisurely walked and wandered until they reached Lishan City at the foot of Dangshan.
Among the five great sects, Bai Ya Peak was located at the mountain’s summit, the Tingjian Manor halfway up, while Qingcheng Sect and Dangshan Sect were built at the foot of the mountain.
On the east and west sides of Dangshan, there were two large cities, one called Xunshan City and the other Lishan City. This year, the Sword-seeking Tournament was held between these two cities. Such a grand event in the martial world meant that half a month before it started, the number of people traveling to and from the two cities would increase significantly. Martial artists attending the conference were in the minority; more were ordinary people fascinated by the Jianghu, coming to watch the event.
During this month, they could see martial arts celebrities they wouldn’t encounter in years or even decades, and many fascinating tales and events would unfold.
Dongfeng Buye Tower would specifically register the martial artists coming to participate, prepare accommodations, and arrange schedules to ensure they wouldn’t be disturbed during their stay.
In the lobby of Dongfeng Buye Tower, famous heroes or young heroes could be seen at any time. Not only were the five great sects present, but also various renowned lone warriors and reclusive masters who hadn’t been seen in years. First-time attendees, especially young disciples, were often very excited, finding everything fresh and new. Smaller sects typically didn’t expect to win any prizes, but gaining more knowledge and being able to brag to their peers upon returning made the trip worthwhile.
Hua Yan, a demonic sect bumpkin who seemed to have been looking forward to this for several lifetimes, was even more thrilled.
The Zhengyi Sect naturally wouldn’t send an invitation to the Sword-seeking Tournament.
In the elders’ eyes, this conference was just a gathering for hypocrites to flatter each other.
However, they had participated in the event over fifty years ago. The then leader of Tiancan Sect had plotted for a long time, bringing seven elders, over twenty purple-clad hall masters, and more than a hundred green-clad disciples to the conference. Their intention was to make friends, but after being rejected, they became furious and a massive fight broke out.
That battle turned the world upside down, leaving the sun and moon without light.
Both sides suffered heavy casualties and were severely weakened, requiring a long period of recuperation.
Their previous generation sect leader had always wanted to reconcile with the righteous path, but the deep-seated grudges and the large number of disciples on both sides who harbored resentment towards each other made this impossible. He died with considerable regret.
Of course, their last generation sect leader didn’t share this sentiment. His approach was straightforward: fight if you dislike them, and end it if you feel satisfied.
As for the current generation…
Hua Yan didn’t know how to describe it. She hadn’t seen Xie Yingxian for a long time and had no idea what he was up to. He had even lost his position as sect leader! Although Hua Yan wasn’t exactly worried about him, she hoped he would at least take things seriously!
Just as Hua Yan finished her musings, a major piece of news spread through Lishan City.
The demonic sect leader Xie Yingxian had been captured!
He was now imprisoned in the dungeon beneath Dang Mountain!
When Hua Yan learned of this, she was in a private room at Guanshanju, the most famous restaurant in Lishan City, eating their signature dish, white-cut chicken. Guanshanju’s white-cut chicken was exceptionally tender and delicious, with a tempting golden hue. Despite being meat, it was refreshing and savory, enhanced by the fragrance of green onions, making it incredibly appetizing. Then the piece of chicken fell out of her mouth…
She suspected she had misheard.
Hua Yan put down her chopsticks, pushed open the door of the private room, and asked, “Is it true?”
The person spreading the news was very excited and replied, “The news came from Dongfeng Buye Tower. How could it be false? This Sword-seeking Tournament will be quite the spectacle! I wonder how the major sects will execute this great demon!”
Oh my god!
Before leaving, Xie Yingxian had told her he would be back after a casual stroll. How did a casual stroll end up with him being captured?
No way!
He was so skilled in martial arts!
What about Protector Qi? And his two attendants, Ning Yin and Jiang Lan?
Hua Yan’s expression was as if she had seen a ghost.
She turned around and saw Lu Chengsha glancing at her with a meaningful look.
Hua Yan suddenly remembered her persona—her entire family had been killed by the demonic sect, and she was being pursued by them.
She immediately slapped the table in front of her, laughed three times, and said, “Well done! He deserved to be captured and executed by a thousand cuts!”
Anyway, their sect leader couldn’t hear her!
“This young lady is right! Everyone should kill the demon sect leader!”
“That’s right! There’s not a single good person in the demon sect! They all deserve to die!”
“They should capture that demonic sect protector and those enchantresses too, and execute them all together!”
This statement received even more enthusiastic agreement.
Hua Yan felt like crying but had to keep smiling: “…”
What had she done to deserve this?