Chapter 31

Chapter 31

After Shen Qingyu provided the information, Xue Heting made a trip to Phoenix Town.

The town was shrouded in all manner of Yaoguai miasma, its baleful energy thick and oppressive. There was no possible way living people could have survived in a place like that.

Xue Heting also sensed a lingering trace of sword energy on the Boundary Stele.

That sword energy was truly extraordinary. It had pinned the Yaoguai and wronged spirits inside the town, preventing them from leaving Phoenix Town’s borders to harm people. The only problem was that the sword energy had fallen short of its full power. Clearly, something had happened to the person who left it behind. They had only been able to trap the demons within and could not eradicate them.

This sword energy was identical to the one left in the depths of the Water Yaoguai Lair that day.

Xue Heting grew more and more puzzled.

Since the sword energy had trapped the Yaoguai, its wielder was unlikely to be some criminal villain. And yet the skeleton inside the Water Yaoguai Lair had clearly been deliberately imprisoned until death. If that skeleton belonged to this swordswoman, then why had she been trapped there until she died?

Xue Heting remained in Phoenix Town for several days. The Evil Yaoguai were eliminated by his hand, and the wronged spirits were delivered to rest. With the clues he had found, he hurried back to Fangcun City, only to step into Zhao Manor and find everyone trying to force Mu Yunshu to her death.

Now the biggest problem had eased: Shen Qingyu no longer held any killing intent, and the vicious hostility in Xue Heting’s heart that had been drawn out by the Qingshuang Sword was gradually fading away as well.

He looked at Old Madam, first giving her a respectful salute before saying, “Master’s Wife, whether Miss Mu is a Yaoguai or not can wait until Master and Zhiyi return before a decision is made.”

Old Madam’s expression was terribly grim. “Heting, I watched you grow up. You spent so many years by our side. Are you going to be like outsiders and think I deliberately wronged her too?”

“That isn’t what I mean.” Anxiety colored Xue Heting’s voice, but he was clumsy with words and did not know how to say anything pleasing. All he could manage was, “Master has always taught me that slaying Yaoguai and eliminating demons is our duty. But we must not kill the innocent indiscriminately either. Even if someone is a Yaoguai, they may not necessarily be heinous and wicked.”

Old Madam snapped, “In the end, you simply don’t believe me!”

In Xue Heting’s memory, though Old Madam was proud by nature, she was a good person. She had treated him like another grandson and cared for him attentively, and he had always respected her greatly. This was the first time he had ever seen Old Madam look so overbearing and aggressive, and for a moment, he did not know how to respond.

Ming Caihua hid off to the side, watching the spectacle. He clicked his tongue and said, “He rushed all the way back without even taking a rest, then came straight here to play hero and save the beauty. Isn’t he afraid of getting burned?”

He shook his head again and sighed. “No hero can pass the trial of a beauty.”

Qiao Ying sidled over and asked curiously, “What did you find in Phoenix Town?”

Ming Caihua had not intended to say anything, but when he saw the youthful-looking god of death following behind Qiao Ying, he swallowed and answered anyway, “Phoenix Town was famous for forging divine weapons and peerless blades a hundred years ago. While I was following Xue Heting around slaying Yaoguai and eliminating demons, we found an old artisan workshop. Inside, we discovered a forging catalog.”

Qiao Ying asked, “A catalog?”

“The owner of the workshop recorded every weapon he had forged in his lifetime in that catalog. You’ll never guess what famous sword this craftsman made.”

Qiao Ying became even more interested. “What was it?”

“The Qingshuang Sword. The very treasure sword that became famous throughout the world in Zhao Fanhua’s hands, and has now been passed down to Xue Heting!”

Qiao Ying was genuinely surprised. “What a coincidence.”

Once Ming Caihua opened his mouth, he could not stop talking. “That’s not all. According to the records in that catalog, the Qingshuang Sword was one of a paired set. In other words, there was another longsword forged in the same furnace as the Qingshuang Sword, one that complemented it as yin and yang. That sword was named ‘Bai Xue.'”

“Bai Xue Sword…” Qiao Ying could not help turning back to look at Shen Qingyu. “Many people know about the Qingshuang Sword, and I hear it mentioned often too. But it seems no one has ever brought up the Bai Xue Sword.”

Shen Qingyu was still thinking about what had happened to his face. His fingers lingered against the skin at the side of his cheek, and he had been touching it for quite some time. Hearing this, he smiled faintly.

“It would seem that the world-renowned master of the Qingshuang Sword accidentally lost the other sword.”

What Qiao Ying could stand least was that deliberately cryptic smile of Shen Qingyu’s. It was as if he had already guessed something, yet he refused to say it, like he found it rather amusing to play the riddle-maker.

If outsiders protecting Mu Yunshu only made Old Madam angry, then seeing people on her own side defend Mu Yunshu filled her with a furious sense of betrayal.

“Zhiyi, you, and him as well-why have all of you been bewitched by this monster? I am clearly the one who treats you best and thinks of your interests. What right do you have, one after another, to let yourselves be deceived by her!”

In her rage, Old Madam drew the longsword worn by the person beside her.

Xue Heting stood in front of Mu Yunshu. “Master’s Wife, please calm down!”

Old Madam said, “Move aside, Xue Heting. Don’t force me to attack you!”
Xue Heting heard the laughter of the person behind him.

Mu Yunshu said with a smile, “That’s right. You should step aside. Otherwise, given Young Hero Xue’s temperament, he won’t raise a hand against an elder, so the one whose body gets run through by a sword will be you.”

It sounded like a kindly reminder, yet there was mockery hidden beneath it.

Xue Heting stood his ground, not a trace of fear on his face. “Master’s Wife, I can’t let you keep making the same mistake.”

Ming Caihua said anxiously, “Oh no, oh no. Xue Heting isn’t really planning to throw his life away, is he?”

Qiao Ying glanced at him. “Logically speaking, shouldn’t you be happy? If Young Master Xue gets hurt, you won’t have to be stuck by his side anymore.”

Ming Caihua came to his senses. “Right. I should be happy!”

“Hey, Great Hero Xue!” Ming Caihua waved at Xue Heting. “I’m on your side! You absolutely have to protect the weak and delicate girl!”

The corner of Xue Heting’s eye twitched.

Just as the Old Madam and Xue Heting were locked in a stalemate, a furious shout, full of vigor, changed the situation.

“Song Zhenzhu, how much longer do you intend to make a scene!”

The people watching the excitement instinctively opened a path. The newcomer was none other than Old Master Zhao, his face dark with anger.

Zhao Zhiyi hurried over after him. “Yunshu, are you all right?”

Xue Heting was squeezed aside and took two steps back, looking rather awkward.

Ming Caihua sighed in disappointment. “It’s over. They won’t fight now.”

Qiao Ying, meanwhile, had smoothly fished a handful of peanuts out of Shen Qingyu’s snack pouch. She shook her head and said with great interest, “The family ethics drama is about to begin.”

She had just cracked open one peanut when a pale hand reached toward her.

Qiao Ying glanced at the young man’s warm, gentle smile, then silently placed the peanut kernel in his palm.

She shelled a second one. Before she could put it into her mouth, that hand reached over again.

Qiao Ying pressed her lips together and handed over the round, red-skinned peanut.

Just then, she caught sight of Ah Yuan at the outer edge of the crowd. Qiao Ying was about to greet her, only to see Ah Yuan turn and leave. Sharp-eyed as she was, Qiao Ying vaguely noticed black spots on the back of Ah Yuan’s neck.

Just as Qiao Ying was wondering whether that was a birthmark, the young man’s breath brushed against her ear.

“Qiao Ying, have you ever heard of a Living Corpse?”

Her whole body trembled. She covered her ear and took a step back. “What?”

“A corpse that’s still alive. They don’t know they’ve already died, and they keep moving around just as they did when they were alive.” Shen Qingyu’s lips curved with wicked amusement, his laughter light and bright. “When a Living Corpse loses consciousness, it eats people, you know.”

Qiao Ying said nervously, “Are you saying… there’s a Living Corpse in Zhao Manor?”

But Shen Qingyu no longer seemed to feel like talking to her. He straightened up, the smile at the corners of his lips growing ever more bewitching. “Who knows?”

Qiao Ying suddenly felt an eerie chill in broad daylight. Everyone around her gave rise to an inexplicable fear. Involuntarily, she edged closer to Shen Qingyu and grabbed a fold of his blue robe.

“Shen Qingyu, don’t go too far from me. Otherwise, I’m afraid you won’t be able to take care of yourself.”

He bent down, a strand of white hair slipping loose and falling onto her shoulder again. He whispered softly by her ear, “Why aren’t you afraid that I’m the Living Corpse who eats people?”

Qiao Ying remained calm. “I know you’re not.”

Shen Qingyu asked, “Why?”

“If every Living Corpse were as good-looking and likable as you, everyone would line up to be eaten. The people of this world would have died out long ago.”

Shen Qingyu suddenly let out a low laugh. The sound was as light as wind chimes under the eaves meeting a spring breeze, clear and soft.

His fingers touched the skin of her face, like a lover’s caress.

“Qiao Ying.”

“What?”

“You’re so strange.”

She answered perfunctorily, “Mm.”

He smiled. “I seem to like this pelt of yours more and more. I want to peel it off and keep it, so I can stroke it day and night.”

Qiao Ying said, “Oh.”

Shen Qingyu asked, “Why aren’t you trembling? Why aren’t you afraid? Why aren’t you screaming and cursing me as a monster?”

“If I tremble, if I’m afraid, if I curse you as a monster, would that make you very happy?”

Shen Qingyu nodded. “Perhaps it would.”

Qiao Ying’s expression was wooden. “You already want to peel off my skin. All I want is to make you suffer. If I turned around and made you even happier instead, wouldn’t that mean I was sick?”

Shen Qingyu fell silent.

What she said made so much sense.

Ming Caihua had been standing off to the side, holding his breath and listening for quite a while. He was dumbfounded, looking back and forth between Qiao Ying and Shen Qingyu, utterly unable to understand what kind of relationship these two had.

Qiao Ying turned to comfort him. “Don’t be nervous. Shen Qingyu just has episodes sometimes.”

Ming Caihua’s eyes widened.

Do you not think you’re sick too!?