Chapter 119
Chapter 119
Early the next morning, Wushenzi, his disciple, and Senior Lord Liu looked at one another and fell silent once again.
They had waited all night. They had been certain Liu Ye would come, yet they never saw so much as his shadow.
“Boohoo… I told you our relationship wasn’t that good, but you refused to believe me. Boohoo…” Senior Lord Liu sobbed aggrievedly.
Wushenzi was deeply embarrassed, but he refused to admit he had been wrong.
He needed to preserve the image of an unfathomable master.
“Ahem. My judgment cannot be mistaken. You must be extremely important to him! He was merely delayed by something even more important. Yes. That must be it!”
Senior Lord Liu stared at him.
Do you believe that yourself?
Fortunately, someone arrived to rescue Wushenzi from the awkward moment. A wealthy merchant sought him out, claiming his estate was haunted and begging Wushenzi to intervene.
This was one of Three Hearts Temple’s usual ways of making money. Wushenzi sent the little Fiends he raised to wealthy households to cause trouble, then arrived with great ceremony and pretended to subdue them.
The resulting performance earned him both wealth and fame.
His newest visitor was a well-known local merchant and one of his most important clients. Wushenzi did not delay. He gathered his implements and set out.
The instant he reached the gates, however, his expression changed dramatically. Monstrous yin energy was erupting from inside the estate!
“This…”
Cold sweat ran down Wushenzi’s face. The yin energy was immense, far beyond anything he could handle.
Near Nine Worlds Mountain, only one evil being could release power on this scale.
“That thing has awakened!”
Wushenzi swallowed hard. He knew he could no longer remain here. He needed to leave immediately.
Of course, before he left, he could still make one last profit.
He put on a grave expression.
“Squire Wang, this is no ordinary incident. It was caused by the new magistrate offending the River God.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
Squire Wang was almost in tears. He could not afford to offend the River God, but neither could he afford to offend Liu Ye.
Why did ordinary people like him have to suffer when two mighty figures fought?
“Daoist Master, you’re a living immortal with boundless power. You must save us!” the merchant pleaded.
“Rest assured. Slaying demons and vanquishing evil is this humble Daoist’s sworn duty.”
Wushenzi produced a Talisman and offered it to Squire Wang.
“This is an Evil-Warding Talisman painstakingly refined by this humble Daoist. Keep it on your person, and no evil will be able to touch you.”
Squire Wang eagerly reached for it, but Wushenzi raised his hand out of reach.
“Squire, this Talisman was crafted at tremendous personal cost. As the saying goes, scripture must not be lightly transmitted, nor sacred treasures taken without offering. Therefore…”
“Yes, yes, I understand!”
Squire Wang immediately produced a tray of silver ingots.
“Might these be worthy of the Daoist Master’s notice?”
Wushenzi nodded in satisfaction and motioned for his disciple to accept the silver. Then he handed Squire Wang five Talismans.
“Squire, this matter concerns the whole of Nine Worlds County. Please inform the county’s people.”
Squire Wang nodded. This was no minor affair. Everyone needed to know.
Within a single day, word had spread to every household. Panicked citizens flocked to Three Hearts Temple to beg for Talismans.
The Talismans were ruinously expensive. A single one cost an ordinary family nearly everything they owned.
Once everyone had received theirs, Wushenzi made a special appearance.
“These Talismans will keep you safe. When those two beings begin their battle, remain inside your homes. Do not emerge until the winds have stilled and the clouds have cleared.”
“Thank you, Daoist Master!”
“May the Daoist Master live a hundred years!”
“We’re saved!”
After thanking Wushenzi, the citizens returned home, locked every door and window, and barricaded their entrances with furniture to keep evil spirits out.
Once Wushenzi finished deceiving them, he summoned his disciples and ordered them to pack the gold and silver for departure.
There was no possibility of remaining here. By tonight at the latest, that thing would emerge from the river and devour everyone nearby.
The surrounding towns might be wiped out as well.
Wushenzi intended to use the opportunity to make another fortune in a different town.
Why should he care whether these people lived or died? It would be better if every last peasant perished. Then no one would know where he had gone.
Once they finished packing, they hitched the carriage and left immediately. Before departing, they made a point of returning Senior Lord Liu.
…
“Father! What happened to you? Who beat you like this?”
The sight of Senior Lord Liu’s battered body filled Liu Ye with grief, and tears poured uncontrollably down his face.
Senior Lord Liu was not moved in the slightest. Crocodile tears-every last one of them!
He finally understood. This boy could not wait another moment to kill him.
Very well. If that was how things stood, Liu Ye could not blame his father for becoming ruthless!
“Find something and treat my wounds,” Senior Lord Liu said weakly.
“I’ll fetch Physician Zhou.”
“No. You can do it.”
If Liu Ye fetched Physician Zhou, how was Senior Lord Liu supposed to kill him?
Liu Ye nodded and went to gather supplies. Before long, he returned with a tray and placed it on the chair beside the bed.
Senior Lord Liu secretly felt for the dagger beneath him. The moment Liu Ye lowered his head, he would stab him.
“Father, this may hurt a little. Bear with it.”
Senior Lord Liu sneered. The instant Liu Ye bent down, he thrust the dagger with his right hand.
The tip came within a centimeter of Liu Ye’s neck.
“Aaaah!”
Senior Lord Liu screamed, his arm shaking violently.
“Bear with it, Father.”
“What are you doing?” Senior Lord Liu howled in agony.
“Disinfecting your wounds.”
“What are you using?” Senior Lord Liu’s face turned bright red. This hurt even worse than the torture at Three Hearts Temple!
“Alcohol and salt water.”
That was how wounds were always disinfected on television, wasn’t it? They used some particular concentration of saline, so Liu Ye had gone to the kitchen and thrown a huge handful of salt into water.
Then he noticed the dagger in Senior Lord Liu’s hand and brightened.
“Father, you really do think of everything. You brought this to cut away the rotten flesh, right? Don’t worry. I’m good at that. Back when I carved pork, I could make more than a thousand cuts.”
Senior Lord Liu stared at him.
“No, w-wait-aaaah!”
Liu Ye brought the blade down. Another scream tore from Senior Lord Liu’s throat.
“Father, keep your voice down. If anyone outside hears, they might think I’m doing something terrible to you.”
Liu Ye casually stuffed a filthy rag into Senior Lord Liu’s mouth.
When his father’s limbs continued to thrash, he tied all four down with rope to keep the old man from hurting himself.
Then Liu Ye began the operation in earnest, slicing away rotten flesh while disinfecting the wounds with alcohol and salt water. Eunuch Wu took one look after entering and nearly fainted.
By the time Liu Ye finished stitching the wounds closed, Senior Lord Liu had fallen into a very “peaceful” sleep.