Taiheiki

Chapter 56 Trap
But tonight was an exception. Unlike all the other nights, there was an indescribable, unsettling feeling in the darkness that made his hair stand on end. They had been away from home hunting for seven or eight days. The chill wind blew the shadows of the trees, making them seem like living creatures gazing at him. The thought sent a chill through Guo Kui's body, and he longed to turn his horse around and return to camp. But he couldn't show this to Nie Zheng.

Nie Zheng came from a prominent family in Chaisang. It was said that his ancestry could be traced back to the renowned Warring States assassin Nie Zheng, though Guo Kui felt it was more likely to be Xiang Yu. He was a massive, powerful man, eight feet tall, with broad shoulders and a thick chest. The horn bow he wielded required two adult men to draw, and the arrows he fired were barely more than short spears. At eighteen, he had already been hunting tigers in the mountains and slaying dragons in the marshes. By his early twenties, his fame had spread throughout the Pengli Lake, making him a renowned hero in Yuzhang. His fame also grew for his large bow crafted from the green horn of an ox, earning him the nickname "Da Qu" (a legendary national treasure of the Chu state). After his first wife's death, he married a beautiful woman from the Zhou family of Lujiang. By his early thirties, he was known as "Nie Gong" rather than his given name. How could a man like him possibly empathize with the fears of others?

"Deer! What a big deer!"

"Oh my god, this is not a deer, this is the mountain god!"

"Yes, kneel down quickly! This is the mountain god, don't offend him!"

Hearing exclamations from behind, Guo Kui looked up. It was a truly enormous beast. Guo Kui swore he had never seen such a majestic and handsome animal in his life. Its shoulders were at least two or three feet taller than his own mount's. Its massive antlers crowned its head like a crown. Its sturdy frame and smooth, gorgeous skin were framed in the setting sun, giving the deer a golden rim. It gracefully emerged from the forest, gazing calmly towards him like a king inspecting his territory. Guo Kui had already seen some people, awed by the deer's majesty, kneeling before it in reverent obeisance. Honestly, Guo Kui's own knees were starting to weaken.

"What a beast!"

Guo Kui turned around and saw Nie Zheng draw an arrow and draw his bow, clearly intending to kill the deer. He shouted, "Master, you must not do that!"

"No?" Nie Zheng frowned, glanced at his old subordinate, and then reacted immediately: "Yes, this deer's hide is very fine. If I shoot from such a distance, it will be damaged! Let me get closer and shoot it through the eye!" He kicked the horse's belly fiercely, driving the mount towards the giant deer. The deer immediately turned around and fled into the forest. Guo Kui had no choice but to spur his horse to chase after it, shouting: "Master, forget it, it's getting dark, and this deer is a bit strange. Let's call it a day!"

Nie Zheng turned a deaf ear to his subordinates' advice. His attention was completely attracted by the prey in front of him. He used his best riding skills to closely follow the deer in front of him, and did not notice that the followers behind him were getting farther and farther away, and finally became completely silent.

Suddenly, Nie Zheng felt the horse beneath him lunge forward. The memory ingrained into his muscles from years of hard training caused him to tumble off the horse's back. As soon as he touched the ground, he jumped up and shouted in a deep voice, "Who, which bastard is framing you, Lord?"

clap clap clap!
A few rounds of applause echoed from the darkness, sounding particularly harsh in the quiet forest. A few dozen steps away, a Taoist in green clothes walked out. Her waist was as slender as a willow, her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her eyes were like stars, and there was a touch of red plum blossom makeup between her eyebrows. Her black hair was tied with a white jade crown, making her look even more beautiful. She was a female Taoist. She smiled and said, "Master Nie of Chaisang, you can shoot tigers and kill dragons, but you can remain unscathed in such a situation. Your reputation is well-deserved!"

Nie Zheng snorted coldly. With a hook of his right foot, he hooked Hu Lu from the saddle towards him. Suddenly, he felt a little bolder and sneered, "This tripwire must have been set by one of your people. But what about that deer? How did you let it lead me here?"

"Hahaha!" the Taoist woman laughed. "This deer is already spiritual. I can discuss it with it. What's the difficulty?" She waved her hand, and the deer came closer, lowering its head and leaning against the Taoist. They were so affectionate, as if they were her own pet. Under the shade of the trees, the Taoist woman looked like a legendary mountain ghost. Nie Zheng snorted coldly and drew his bow and arrow. "You demonic Taoist, you're playing tricks. I want to see if your magic can stop my arrows!"

"Your fate is over today. Even sharp bows and arrows can't hurt me!" The female Taoist laughed heartily. Nie Zheng sneered and shot an arrow. The Taoist flicked his outer robe and disappeared, like a shadow, leaving only a green robe fluttering in the air. Nie Zheng's face changed drastically. "Escape? Which of the Celestial Masters are you?"

"Hahaha!" A Taoist's laughter echoed from the forest, but Nie Zheng ignored his questioning. Then, more than twenty men emerged from the forest, all dressed in black robes and yellow scarves. Their faces were grim and cold, clearly enemies, not friends. Behind them was a leopard, a deep roar emanating from the beast's throat. Seeing this, Nie Zheng knew that if he wanted to return alive today, he would have to rely on his archery skills. He hoped he could hold out until his followers caught up.

The battle started with the first arrow shot by Nie Zheng. The powerful arrow pierced the target's chest, but what surprised Nie Zheng was that the person who was shot did not fall down, nor did he show pain on his face. Instead, he continued to move forward with that numb and cold look.

"Yellow Turban Warrior! Who the hell are you?" Nie Zheng was shocked and angry, and for the first time, a wave of regret arose in his heart. He had heard that there was a secret technique in the Tianshi Dao, where one could burn incense and pray on the altar, asking the gods to send down the Yellow Turban Warrior to possess the body of a devout believer. After that, the believer would not only become extremely powerful, but also invulnerable to swords and spears, and fearless of death. He originally thought that this was just a rumor in the martial arts world and should not be taken seriously, but he did not expect to encounter it today. However, the Tianshi Dao's roots were in the land of Bashu, and he had never been there in his life, let alone offend them. The two sides had nothing to do with each other, so how could someone proficient in such a secret technique come to harm him?
In a blink of an eye, the besiegers had rushed to close, and Nie Zheng had already shot four arrows. Except for the first arrow, the other three arrows were aimed at the head, and the person who was shot fell down. Nie Zheng was secretly happy. He drew his sword in one hand and wielded his horn bow in the other, fighting with the enemy. But those enemies seemed to be completely unaware of the pain and life. They didn't know how to dodge or block, but just chopped and stabbed desperately. The leopard even looked for an opportunity to pounce. Even though Nie Zheng was very brave, he couldn't block them all. In a blink of an eye, he had four or five wounds on his body. He was shocked and angry, and shouted: "You Taoist, I, Nie Zheng, have no grudge against you, why are you hurting me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Nie Zheng suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back. He turned his hand and saw a crossbow arrow had hit his back, almost penetrating. He turned around and saw the female Taoist standing more than ten steps away, holding a rather delicate crossbow. It seemed that she had shot the arrow just now.

"Why, why?" Nie Zheng's knees softened and he knelt on the ground. He knew that he would be doomed today, and murmured, "You unkind and ungrateful villain, hiding behind me to harm me! I will not let you go even if I become a ghost!" Before he could finish his words, a knife came from behind and his head and body were separated.

"Benevolence and righteousness?" The Taoist woman laughed as she watched the head roll to her feet. "Haven't you heard that when the great principles are abandoned, benevolence and righteousness prevail; when wisdom emerges, great hypocrisy arises; when family members are at odds, filial piety prevails; when a country is in chaos, loyal ministers prevail. In the eyes of those of us who cultivate the Dao and seek the truth, benevolence, righteousness, filial piety, wisdom, and loyalty are all worthless!"

"Lu Ping, the Daoist ancestor's Daodejing wasn't meant for you to interpret like this!"

The Taoist woman was startled by the noise behind her. She quickly turned around and bowed to the person who came. "I didn't know you were coming, so I didn't come to greet you. Please forgive me!" "Forget it!" The person who came had a refined and noble face. It was Liu Xin. He walked up to the corpse and said, "The Tao Te Ching doesn't accept the behavior of corrupt scholars, but it also doesn't allow us to do whatever we want. You are extremely talented in the way of ghosts. If you don't cultivate your virtues and rely on magic, you will die sooner or later!"

Lu Ping knew the man before her was a peerless master of the Celestial Master Dao. Even the Celestial Master of Shu might not be his match in terms of magic. She didn't dare argue, but simply lowered her head and remained silent. Liu Xin glanced at Lu Ping, realizing she might not have taken his words to heart. However, Lu Ping was not only a rising star within the Celestial Master Dao, but her ancestors had served as shamans for generations within the Chu royal family, giving her a deep foundation. Furthermore, even if a sage wrote a scripture, how it was interpreted was up to one's own family. Strictly speaking, Lu Ping couldn't be said to be wrong; after all, everyone could have their own interpretation. He pulled a silk scroll from his sleeve and handed it over.

Lu Ping was feeling uneasy. She subconsciously took the silk book and saw the five words "Taiping Qinglingshu" on the cover. She couldn't help but feel ecstatic. She quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your generous gift, Immortal!"

"Get up!" Liu Xin sighed. "I'll leave the affairs of Yuzhang to you. This is your reward! However, this technique is meant to spread the teachings of Heaven and save the world. If you harbor any other intentions and use this technique to commit evil, you will surely die!"

"Junior, I'll remember this!" Lu Ping said hurriedly. She had long heard that this senior came from an extremely noble family, once only one step away from the supreme position, but something unexpected happened, forcing him to fake his death and escape into the martial arts world, where he achieved remarkable success in Taoism. Having been recruited by Liu Xin to work for her, she had expected to receive a little guidance, but she hadn't expected him to share his most advanced skills with her. It was truly a pleasant surprise.

"Oh, right, is this booklet genuine?" Lu Ping's heart raced, and she quickly flipped open the scroll. Inside, she saw a dense record of various spells, talismans, prescriptions, witchcraft, and guiding methods. Although she was young, she had been immersed in these techniques since childhood, and she could tell the real from the fake at a glance. Now that she had confirmed that the book in her hand was authentic, her heart was filled with joy. She was about to express her gratitude again, but when she looked up, there was no one in front of her.

"This person is really elusive. My protective spirit beast didn't even notice him when he came just now!" Lu Ping thought to herself: "But why did he pass on all his secret skills to me? Does he think that his life is coming to an end?" Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel worried, and even the ecstasy just now disappeared. For people like them who possess special skills, the greater their abilities, the more they awed the power in the dark.

"Forget it, I won't think so much. Let's get the things and do the work. Once the matter with the Nie family is settled, I will return to Shu to meditate and no longer bother with these trivial matters!" Lu Ping made up her mind. She whistled, and the remaining Yellow Turban warriors lifted up the body of their companion and left. Lu Ping walked to Nie Zheng's body, picked up the horn bow and his head, and disappeared into the dense forest accompanied by Shan Bao.

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A moment later, when Nie Zheng's followers arrived, the battlefield was empty, with only messy footprints, bloodstains, a headless corpse and a horse corpse.

"Master, master!" Guo Kui threw himself beside Nie Zheng's body. He never expected that in just a moment, his brave and invincible master would be beheaded and separated from him.

"What should we do?" The attendants beside him panicked, their eyes subconsciously focused on Guo Kui. Guo Kui suppressed his grief and said, "Search around to see if the thieves left anything behind. Can we use this to track down the mastermind behind this?"

"Yes, sir!" Everyone quickly dispersed and began searching. It was already dark, and they lit torches. After a long search, they found no valuable clues. The only thing they could confirm was that the enemy numbered at least twenty, and that they had set an ambush, tripping Nie Zheng's mount before besieging and killing him. They also determined that the arrow in Nie Zheng's vest had been the fatal wound. Furthermore, the Great Curved Bow he had been carrying was missing, presumably taken by the assassin.

"Let's take our master's body back first!" Guo Kui gritted his teeth. "Since the thief took the bow of Daqu, the murderer must be wherever the bow is. Even if we have to turn the entire Yuzhang County upside down, we will find this bow!"

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Chaisang (now Jiujiang), Woniu Rock.

There was no place to anchor around Woniu Rock, as boats of all sizes surrounded the massive rock jutting into the river. Seeing Huang Ping's brocade boat, some hurriedly hoisted their sails and fled in panic, though most remained. Huang Ping directed the brocade boat toward the gap left by the fleeing men. It was almost dark, so it was best to rest here for the night. Besides, hadn't the Lord told him to maximize his reputation? So how could he miss Chaisang? After all, Yuzhang Nie Gong lived here, a renowned figure on par with Zhang Bohe!

"Let's go visit Nie Zheng of Chaisang first. He's a well-known local tycoon!" Huang Ping said to Diwu Deng, who was traveling with him. "As long as he opens his mouth, few people in Yuzhang County would dare to refuse him a favor!"

　Routine request for subscriptions and rewards, votes.

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(End of this chapter)