Aoyama

Chapter 421 Two Cups of Tea

There is no never-ending feast.

Until next time.

As Chen Ji headed south, Lu looked back at the alley.

The man carrying the lance finally raised his head, revealing his left eye, which was now only the white of his eye.

Hu Junyuan, Third Master Hu.

He glanced back at the pursuers and said calmly, "Don't worry, no one will die today. We'll meet again someday..."

Lu interrupted, "We've been roaming the world for twenty years, what storms haven't we weathered? It's not time for us to be sentimental."

“The boss is still the boss, so my worries seem a bit unnecessary,” Master Hu laughed loudly. “It’s been so many years since I’ve been chased by anyone that I’ve almost forgotten how to live a life of bloodshed in the martial world.”

At this moment, the sound of horses' hooves rang out from both sides, as if spies had already flanked them.

As they passed through a narrow alley, Lu's gaze pierced through the gaps in the alley and he saw spies riding past on horseback from the opposite side of the alley, parallel to them.

The sound of horses' hooves grew closer behind her. She leaned back on her horse and looked back, just in time to see Xuan She leading five mounted spies in pursuit. Xuan She was shrouded in a black cloak, his face sinister.

Dozens of spies were like a pocket, trying to trap the three of them inside.

Master Hu gripped his lance tightly: "Xuan She has finally decided to make a move. How about we give him a good beating later?"

The young man, who was lying on the horse's back pretending to be Liao Zhong, became interested: "That's a great idea!"

“If nothing unexpected happens, Chen Ji has already left the city,” Lu Shi stared at the black snake behind him: “...Be careful, Bai Long, Bao Hou, and Tian Ma have not shown up yet. Bai Long is so intelligent that he is almost demonic, so it is not normal for him not to appear in Changping County.”

Master Hu understood. He could turn back and kill the Black Serpent, but he needed to be careful.

The next moment, Master Hu suddenly turned his horse around and charged straight at the Black Serpent. He lowered his head and tucked his lance under his arm, the tip of the lance, the bridge of his nose, and his eyes all aligned, pointing it at the Black Serpent.

The main road in Changping County is only wide enough for two vehicles; when warhorses charge, there is no way to avoid each other.

The black serpent, draped in a black cloak, sneered, "Lord Chen, are you out of your mind? How dare a mere Innate Official provoke me?"

He said this aloud, but a hint of suspicion remained in his heart. He secretly signaled to the spy beside him to blow the copper whistle.

Magpie, four sounds, kill!

Along the street, the spies on both the left and right flanks abandoned their horses and leaped onto the rooftops, stepping on the tiles to traverse the ridges.

Just as the spies were about to draw their crossbows and fire, Lu suddenly leaped up, lightly touched the saddle with his toes, and floated onto the roof of a building facing the street, striking one of the spies with a palm.

The sound of bones breaking and tendons snapping was crisp and clean. The spy struck by the palm was like a kite with a broken string; he had just flipped over the roof ridge when he flew back down.

This time, the Eight Trigrams illusion did not appear on the edge of Lu's palm; he fought with sheer force, and each palm strike likely weighed over a thousand pounds.

The spy on the roof felt a chill and immediately turned his head to point his crossbow at Lu. Arrows flew in a barrage, but Lu was swift and agile, twisting his body and passing through the gaps between the arrows to stand in front of the spy.

Wherever they went, spies were swept off the rooftops, the battlefield was cleared, leaving only Master Hu and Xuan She to fight each other on horseback.

Master Hu arrived with his lance, which made a sound like thunder and lightning as it rubbed against the air, just like the yellow sand and strong winds that have remained unchanged for hundreds of years outside Guyuan City!
Just when he was only a foot away from the black snake, Master Hu suddenly looked up.

The black serpent was startled: "Who are you?"

It was definitely not an old relic!

He knew Chen Ji was skilled with the horse spear, and he knew Chen Ji was riding alone with Liao Zhong on his back. But when Master Hu turned to attack, Xuan She already had suspicions in his heart.

In the blink of an eye, Master Hu's spear was already in front of the black snake: "Get down!"

Xuan She emerged from his black cloak with both hands, like two dragons emerging from the sea, gripping the tip of the lance. The black gloves on his hands made a screeching sound against the spear tip, as if a rusty iron file had been scraping against it.

However, the immense force that Master Hu brought with him when he charged made it impossible for Xuan She to stay firmly on the saddle. He was thrown backward as if he were hanging on the lance.

With a powerful push from both hands, the black serpent used the force of the lance to tumble backward.

But at that moment, Master Hu shouted in a low voice, "Thirteen, kill!"

Xuan She's expression changed drastically.

Suddenly, the "Liao Zhong" on Hu Sanye's saddle moved, and the young man impersonating Liao Zhong leaped into the air.

He kicked at Master Hu in mid-air, but Master Hu seemed to have anticipated it. He raised his left hand and pressed it against the sole of his boot, sending him flying towards the black snake like a crossbow bolt from a divine crossbow on the walls of the capital!
Xuan She and Thirteen collided in mid-air. Thirteen's hook knife spun in his palm, slashing towards Xuan She's neck. Xuan She barely twisted his body to avoid it, and the hook knife drew a smear of blood on his pale cheek!
The black serpent's eyes flashed with rage: "You're courting death!"

He reached out from under his cloak with his right hand and touched Thirteen's left rib. Thirteen's eyes immediately became cloudy and his mouth was as if it were glued shut, leaving no gap.

The five signs of decay in the lesser celestial beings cause the five senses to close off!

Thirteen flew out and landed on the rammed earth, stirring up dust. When he got up again, he couldn't see the sun and could only grope around on the ground. He couldn't speak.

But in that brief exchange, Master Hu had already ridden his horse back to the front of the Black Serpent.

The black warhorse reared up high, and as it fell, Master Hu's lance, imbued with immense force, pierced Xuan She's chest. Xuan She had no time to dodge; he wrapped his hands around his black cloak, like a bat folding its wings, completely covering himself.

The spear pierced the point where his arms were crossed, and with a crack, both of Xuan She's arms were severed. His body was also pierced by the spear and sent flying more than ten feet away, rolling countless times before finally coming to a stop.

Strangely enough, the black cloak didn't even have a single hole in it!
If it were anyone else, this spear would surely pierce their heart and lungs, pinning them to the ground!
Uncle Hu frowned.

No wonder the Black Serpent wears this black cloak no matter the season; there's more to it than meets the eye!
Just then, Uncle Hu realized he couldn't smell anything anymore. The dust rising from the rammed earth road and the ashes drifting from the distant fire had all disappeared.

The path to the five signs of decay of a minor celestial being is extremely strange; if one is stabbed in the body with a horse spear, one will also lose the sense of taste.

Xuan She struggled to her feet, her arms hanging limply at her sides, her eyes fixed on Master Hu: "Who exactly are you?"

Old Master Hu sneered: "I'm your grandfather!"

He tugged at the reins, ready to give chase again, but then he heard the sound of approaching hooves in the distance. Madam Lu leaped off the roof, grabbed Thirteen from the ground, and ran off, saying, "More people are coming. We shouldn't linger. Let's go!"

Hu Sanye abandoned his spear and warhorse, and followed Lu Shi into a small alley.

Despite his broken arms, Xuan She led his men in pursuit. But he watched as the three members of the Lu family disappeared into a house, only to have the main building suddenly collapse, burying them inside.

The spies instinctively looked at Xuan She, who angrily retorted, "What are you looking at me for? Dig up this house, there must be a tunnel inside!"

The spies sheathed their swords and began to move bricks and rubble by hand. However, there were too many bricks and rubble in the ruins, and a very heavy beam lay across them. It would take at least half an hour to clear them all.

"Dig! Everyone, start digging!" Xuan She's face was gloomy: "These thieves have been operating in Changping County for who knows how many years. They've arrested the county magistrate, the county assistant, and the county clerks and brought them all back to the imperial prison for trial. I don't believe they were completely unaware of this!"

……

……

The tunnel was dimly lit and the air was stuffy.

Lu handed the thirteenth to Master Hu, then fumbled in the dark through the tunnel to find an oil lamp, lit it, and bent over as she carried it forward.

She wasn't lying to Chen Ji; there really was still a mine tunnel in Changping County.

However, this mine tunnel is only a small section of the broken tunnel in the Changping Coal Mine, and its end is still in Changping County, so it was a choice made out of necessity.

Lu said calmly, "We have the time it takes for three incense sticks to burn. They probably don't expect that the secret passage we went through so much trouble to find has an exit that's still in the city."

Third Master Hu looked at Thirteen in his hand: "Is he alright?"

Without turning his head, Madam Lu said, "It's alright. He can't hear, speak, or see right now, but his life is not in danger. Just give him water through his nose, and the Little Celestial's Five Signs of Decay will resolve itself in three days. You probably won't have your sense of taste either, but that's okay, the spell will resolve itself in three days."

Hu Sanye slowly exhaled a breath of stale air: "You've dealt with Chen Ji before, so you should know I'm not lying to you."

After a moment of silence, Madam Lu said, "Hmm."

Suddenly, Uncle Hu said, "...Why don't you recognize each other? He won't reveal this."

Lu said calmly, "Strange, you seem to be more anxious than I am."

Hu Sanye said slowly, "Do you think I didn't see the couplet in front of your main house? Over the years, after you finish dealing with the accounts and sending messages by carrier pigeon, you go back to sit in the courtyard and daydream or meditate, from dusk till late at night, drinking one jar of wine after another. Master, it's not good to keep drinking like this."

Lu paused as she walked forward, her body bent low, before continuing on her way: "Third son, since I haven't helped him or raised him all these years, I have no face to acknowledge him now. Otherwise, if he asks me where I've been all these years, why I haven't seen him, why I didn't save him, I wouldn't know how to answer."

Master Hu knew where Lu's heart lay, and could only sigh, "We'll meet again in the future, can you bear it?"

Madam Lu said softly, "I have lived in Changping County for many years and rarely go to the capital, for fear of accidentally running into him there."

She knew her own nature well; once she saw too much, she couldn't let go.

Before Master Hu could say anything more, Madam Lu changed the subject: "Chen Ji has brought clues about the long whale. This man is now hiding in the Directorate of Ceremonial, holding a high position of power. Once we are freed, we must find him. Whether we can exonerate the general depends on this man."

Old Master Hu perked up: "Really?"

“Really, once this is done, kill one more person, and we will be free.” Madam Lu arrived at the end of the secret passage and pushed open the iron plate covering the passage.

She lightly leaped out of the secret passage, but froze in place as if facing a formidable enemy: "Don't come up yet, there's someone here."

At the end of the secret passage was a small courtyard of a private residence. The courtyard should have been piled with paper figures and gold and silver ingots made by the tomb raiders, waiting to be sent to the Ninghuang Mausoleum for the Ministry of Rites to hold a sacrificial ceremony.

But now, they've all disappeared.

There is a stone table in the courtyard, on which sits a pot of tea and two teacups.

Beside the stone table, Bai Long stood, his white robe spotless.

Behind Bai Long, Bao Hou, wearing a wooden monkey mask, was sitting cross-legged on the ground, making kites with bamboo strips and paper used for making paper figures.

The two Zodiac beings at the Dao Seeking Realm stood guard at the end of the secret passage, and no one knew why they had appeared there.

"Good morning," Bai Long turned his mysteriously dark dragon-patterned mask to look at Madam Lu, and with a smile, pushed the teacup on the table: "This heroine, have a cup of tea, it's still hot."

(End of this chapter)