Yellow Bamboo Town had no curfew. When dealing with the lawless outlaws active on Nianci Mountain, guiding them was always better than blocking them. To that end, the old master had established various money-pits throughout the town, from gambling dens to the bloody Ghost Gate Arena, from the cheap Willow Lane to the expensive brothels. Every primal desire of humanity could be satisfied in Yellow Bamboo Town, which was why after nightfall, the town was even more prosperous than during the day.
At the end of this bustling thoroughfare, in the northernmost bamboo grove, a seven-story tower rose abruptly from the ground. The upturned eaves traced the tranquil moonlight, and the signboard bearing the calligraphy-dancing characters of "Immortal Guest Lodge" looked down from its commanding height, overlooking the entire town.
Behind the tower stretched a bamboo grove covering dozens of acres. A winding corridor paved with bluestone passed through the grove, connecting to the three-courtyard mansion at its end.
Bamboo and cypress shadows scattered at their feet as two figures walked out from the side gate of the tower and stepped onto this winding corridor.
The one walking in front was a middle-aged man dressed in a moon-white scholar's robe made of fine Shu brocade, with faint cloud and crane patterns visible in the dark weaving.
Half a step behind was a long-haired woman of about twenty-five or twenty-six. Her features were ordinary, but she made up for it with an impressive chest. She wore a fitted, narrow-sleeved martial outfit with a cinched waist, the tight fabric hugging her form and accentuating her graceful figure.
Their soft conversation blended into the rustling of bamboo leaves.
Luo Liuyi's brows carried the weary exhaustion of travel, her voice delicate and soft:
"...The Central Plains have started fighting again. When I set out southward, the tide of refugees was already beginning to gather. I estimate the first wave of displaced people will reach us by next spring."
Nie Junyue listened to her report, those slender phoenix eyes holding no worry, only casting a slightly wistful glance at the cold moon overhead:"It's only been ten years and it's starting again, sooner than I expected. But it doesn't matter. We've already begun clearing forests and opening farmland. When the time comes, however many refugees we can take in, we'll take them..."
Luo Liuyi remained heavy-hearted at his words, her tone still troubled:
"Elder Master, this time is a bit different from last time. It's only a matter of time before ancient Shu gets dragged in too."
Nie Junyue pondered for a moment, then turned his head, phoenix eyes narrowing slightly, a reassuring smile curling at the corner of his lips:
"Don't worry too much. The King of ancient Shu has no grand ambitions; he only wants to preserve his corner of peace. Even if those nobles want to meddle in Central Plains affairs, that won't happen for several more years. That gives us plenty of time."
At that, he paused, his steps coming to a halt before a stone lantern, and his tone suddenly turned serious:
"Liuyi, it's been three years since you went to the Central Plains. What have you gained?"
Luo Liuyi was silent for a few breaths, instinctively reaching up to touch the sword hilt at her waist, then replied in a low voice:
"Not much. Business in the Central Plains is basically monopolized by the local gentry and wealthy merchants. Whether in intelligence or trade, in three years I've only managed to barely establish a foothold. It can't even be called development. However, if the war expands, there might be some opportunities... I'm sorry."
Nie Junyue didn't blame her, his smile still warm:
"You also said this war might drag ancient Shu in, so there's no need to rush. By the way, did you find the kind of talent I asked for?"
Luo Liuyi instinctively glanced at the refined, scholarly middle-aged man beside her, her red lips pressing together slightly before she said in a low voice:
"I did find a few internal martial arts masters, but people with innate supernatural strength are far too rare. I..."
"Alright, no matter."
Nie Junyue waved his hand as if he had expected this.
The moonlight stretched his shadow long and lean, cast across the bluestone slabs on both sides of the corridor.
Luo Liuyi opened her mouth, a question she'd been holding for years stuck in her throat.
Why did it have to be the Central Plains?
The Immortal Guest Lodge had poured massive amounts of manpower and resources into the Central Plains, at one point even to the extent of affecting its very foundations.
Nie Junyue seemed to read the confusion in her eyes, his voice gentle:
"Lift your head and look forward. Take the long view. Not every investment in this world bears fruit immediately. Without the past three years of investment, we wouldn't have the opportunity to gain a foothold in the Central Plains through this war, would we?"
"But why?"
Luo Liuyi finally voiced the question buried in her heart, her voice dropping even lower, carrying a kind of earnest plea: "If the Immortal Guest Lodge focused solely on developing in Shu, with you at the helm, using those resources invested in the Central Plains, we might already be..."
Nie Junyue stopped walking and turned back to look at her. The warmth in those narrow, elongated eyes shifted slightly. It wasn't anger. It was something far more unsettling.
Disappointment.
He looked straight at Luo Liuyi and smiled:
"As the steward of Shuyu Studio, you can't come to me for confirmation on everything. You've been in the Central Plains for three years now. There are many things you need to find answers to yourself, aren't there?"
"......"
Luo Liuyi's heart clenched, and she instinctively averted her gaze.
Silence for a few breaths.
Nie Junyue finally let out a light sigh and murmured softly:
"In all the world, most people cannot resist those terrifying monster attacks, so people conjure fantasies of immortals, Taoists, cultivators, even gods to save them, and commit these to writing, picture books, and opera to pass down."
Luo Liuyi's expression turned strange, not understanding:
"Elder Master, why are you bringing up..."
Nie Junyue waved his hand to interrupt, then suddenly asked:
"If I told you that the scenes in those picture books are gradually becoming real, would you believe me?"
"...?"
Luo Liuyi's steps faltered, her chest swaying from the sudden stop.
Nie Junyue suddenly smiled:
"I didn't believe it at first either. I've seen grandmasters who perfected their internal martial arts, but what does it mean to say people can fly in the sky breathing fire?
"But then more and more people started saying it, especially when it came from those in the prefectural capital. I had to reassess the matter..."
At that point, Nie Junyue's words became slow and deliberate, extremely serious:
"Liuyi, great changes are already happening in this world. Perhaps in the future, one against a thousand, even one against ten thousand, might no longer exist only in storybooks. And the center of this upheaval should be in the Central Plains..."
Clatter, clatter, clatter...
The sound of footsteps.
Following the noise, a burly figure ran toward them from the other end of the corridor, wearing the half-body light armor of the Immortal Guest Lodge's night patrol leader, a long saber sheath slapping against his thigh.
Nie Junyue composed his expression, looking at the burly man as he ran up close:
"Peng Jun, what's the matter?"
The burly man dropped heavily to one knee before Nie Junyue, removing the ring-pommel saber and placing it on the ground beside him, his voice breathless and urgent:
"Eld... Elder Master, Ruan Su is in trouble!"
...
Nianci Mountain, a clearing in the woods.
The mountain forest on this moonlit night was eerily quiet. Leaping firelight dispelled the darkness, and masked figures embroidered with Immortal Guest Lodge patterns moved about the clearing, their footsteps making sticky "slap" sounds. In addition, about a dozen or so burly men in fitted martial attire stood guard around the perimeter.
A thick stench of blood permeated the air. Nie Junyue walked amid the masked guards' protection, his gaze constantly sweeping his surroundings.
Moonlight spilled down, its clear radiance combined with the firelight illuminating every detail of this forest clearing with perfect clarity. Human flesh and blood covered nearly the entire open space.
One torso had been torn in half, exposed organs glistening with a dark purple, moist sheen under the moonlight, intestines trailing several feet away, coiled around the base of a broken sapling.
Severed arms and legs were scattered everywhere, some draped over roadside grass, some half-embedded in dense bushes. A shattered skull leaned crookedly against the root of an ancient tree, gray-white brain matter splattered across the ground already beginning to scab over, while the soil underfoot had been soaked through with blood into a dark brown, nearly black swamp of gore.
Passing through the masked men collecting the corpses, Nie Junyue arrived at the old locust tree at the edge of the clearing and stopped.
Before his eyes, a male corpse hung its head low, leaning upright against the tree trunk. A long-handled pudao saber pierced through his chest, pinning him directly to the tree.
Nie Junyue covered his nose and mouth with a silk handkerchief, reached out to grab the man's hair and lift his head up, recognized the face, and raised an eyebrow slightly.
He knew this man. An internal martial arts expert who had once been somewhat famous on Nianci Mountain. Not particularly outstanding, but he'd managed to survive in this chaotic territory for five or six years. Never expected he'd been recruited by that old man surnamed Zhou, and never expected he'd die silently in this very territory.
Releasing his grip, Nie Junyue looked at the masked man beside him and asked in a low voice:
"Have the body count been tallied?"
The masked man gave a slight nod, clasped his fists in salute, and said in a low voice:
"Based on the remains, roughly thirteen or fourteen people. Only one person did the killing, at minimum a master-grade martial artist. However... that person seems to be desperately short of money? They took all the valuables off these people, didn't even leave their blades. If we keep an eye on the black-market merchants in town, finding that person shouldn't be difficult."
Nie Junyue still covered his nose and mouth, silent for a moment, then gave the order in a steady voice:
"No need to investigate deeply. Treat tonight's incident as a monster attack."
The masked man was momentarily stunned, but quickly realized that the truth behind this massacre was not something he was meant to know. He immediately responded:
"Yes, this subordinate will arrange for someone to draft a report for the town warden."
The town warden, also known as the garrison commander, was the Shu court's administrative chief in Yellow Bamboo Town. Though his power had long been hollowed out, public respect still had to be maintained.
After the masked man left, Nie Junyue stepped out of the "pool of blood" in the clearing and went to lean against an ancient tree nearby to rest.
A few breaths later,
A soft, respectful voice came from the shadows behind the tree:
"Elder Master."
Nie Junyue showed no surprise, lowering his voice slightly:
"How is it?"
The voice was silent for a few breaths, then spoke quietly:
"That girl has grown faster than expected. Except for the few who had trained in internal arts, everyone else was killed in a single strike."
Nie Junyue's eyes flickered for a moment, then he asked in return:
"If I asked you to kill her right now, what are your odds?"
"Ten out of ten." The voice answered without any hesitation.
"You're quite confident."
"Just stating facts. I should be close to touching the next martial realm."
"Heh..."
Nie Junyue let out a light laugh, his tone becoming somewhat lighter, and asked: "Where is she now?"
"Went home."
The voice answered, then paused for a moment before continuing: "That little girl thought her idiot brother had died, and her state seemed off. Her five senses were frighteningly sharp, so I didn't dare get too close. By the time I reached the courtyard of her home, I discovered monster traces."
"Oh?"
Nie Junyue's brow furrowed slightly: "Monster traces?"
"Two Shaking Apes, one male, one female."
"........"
Hearing it was only Shaking Apes, Nie Junyue relaxed slightly at heart, saying:
"It seems our large-scale forest clearing and land reclamation has angered that mountain lord."
"Most likely."
"It's been over two years since we last met. I'll pay it a visit one of these days and let it reacquaint itself with reality."
"Indeed."
The voice carried a hint of amusement, but then turned hesitant:
"Aside from that, there's one more thing I think you, Elder Master, would care about."
"What?"
"That girl's little brother isn't dead."
"?"
Nie Junyue's brows instantly twisted into a knot, his heartbeat unconsciously quickening:
"What do you mean?"
The voice replied in a low tone:
"I don't know exactly what happened, but judging from the male ape's death state, Ruan Su must have completely lost her mind. I think it's most likely that when the Shaking Ape tried to kill Qin Yi, Ruan Su happened to return home and caught it in the act."
At this point, the voice paused slightly:
"But the female ape... seems to have died before Ruan Su even got back."
"........."
Nie Junyue didn't respond. He instinctively glanced at the "pool of human flesh" in the clearing, his palm clenching hard.
Until just now, he had held command over everything about tonight. But at this moment, that tightly knit chain of information suddenly snapped. A feeling of losing control spread through his entire body in an instant, sending chills down his spine...
All because of that idiot who should have died.