Chapter 299 - Honor and Ambition
Chapter 299 Honor and Ambition
The next day.
A stranger came to his door, announcing himself as a servant from the Yan Family, at Yan Wushuang’s behest to invite him to a meal.
Chu Xun went next door to inform the woman, only to discover, much to his astonishment, that she wanted to come along.
The night before did not end on a happy note.
Because Chu Xun has had the night to learn how abysmally inept the woman was in talking.
In the end, he relented to allow the woman to come with him. With a host as affluent as the Yans, having one extra mouth would hardly bore a hole in their ship.
And there was Yan Wushuang already outside expecting them.
Seeing the purple-haired woman beside Chu Xun slightly surprised him, chiefly because of her notoriety for being able to match Zang Fengling in a fight.
“You’ve come, my friend. And this is...”
“She’s my junior in tutelage,” blurted Chu Xun easily.
The woman proffered no objections, taking in everything with placid silence.
Yan Wushuang stared at him. He remembered how Chu Xun had declared himself before the eyes of almost every warrior in the city that he was an independent student of martial skills and magic with no teacher nor school during the meeting yesterday.
But his utmost dedication for Yao Baiyue got the better of him, preventing him from voicing his query. Only she mattered to him, no one else.
He gave the purple-haired woman a polite nod as a gesture of greeting.
“That reminds me, my friend. After so long, I’ve yet to know your name.”
“Liu. Liu Tianhe,” said Chu Xun, using a fake name derived from his parents.
“Liu Tianhe,” Yan Wushuang repeated thoughtfully, “That’s a nice name.”
“You flatter me,” muttered Chu Xun casually. He must remember that he was not Chu Xun, and how cracking jokes and behaving comedically were hardly part of his repertoire, but how necessary they were to maintain his guise.
“Well, Brother Liu, Lady,” said Yan Wushuang, “This way please.”
And so they walked through the entrance together.
“Don’t you feel a sense of familiarity here?” Chu Xun heard the woman teasing him hushedly.
Chu Xun almost jumped. She was reminding him about his intrusion into here last night! Still, he did his best to look unfazed.
The Yans had a history that spanned for thousands of years which had seen them amassing wealth so massive that no overnight nouveau riche could ever possibly imagine.
The white-painted dining room was a warm, peaceful, and elegant environment to eat. Upon the table were several dishes and tureens of delicacies accompanied by a nice jar of wine.
All three of them sat down and Yan Wushuang asked everyone else to leave.
“Come, try this. It’s wine brewed from century-old snow lotuses,” said Yan Wushuang, filling the goblets of his guests.
They each emptied their goblets with Chu Xun offering some words of praises for the exquisiteness of the draught as part of some small talk. He knew that Yan Wushuang must have his purpose for summoning them here.
“I have something to discuss with you, Liu. That is the reason I have invited you to this meal,” Yan Wushuang, knowing Chu Xun’s straightforward proclivities, decided to not beat around the bush and directly cleave on the matter, ”
“I guess you want to talk about the intruder who stole off with the Soul-nourishing Lotus?” asked Chu Xun tentatively, feeling rather guilty.
“Not that – at least for now. It’s something else,” said Yan Wushuang instead, shaking his head.
“What is it then?”
“Kunlun Mountain. The ancient ruins there,” said Yan Wushuang gravely, “I daresay that is also the reason you both came to this city.”
Chu Xun stole a glance at the purple-haired woman. I’m here because of her, he thought quietly.
Still, he nodded.
“What do you know about the ancient ruins atop Kunlun Mountain, Liu?”
“Can’t say I know much. I’ve only been here for just a few days.”
Yan Wushuang must know something, Chu Xun realized. Given the proximity of Yanxue City and Kunlun Mountain, Yan Wushuang, as a native of this city, must know more than the average alien of these parts.
“Truth be told, I did venture once into the ancient ruins when it first appeared. Suffice it to say, I found the desolate necropolis very unusual.”
“Oh? What do you mean?” For Yan Wushuang to feel unusual, something must really be wrong with these ancient ruins, thought Chu Xun, feeling interested.
“The Yan Family sent many exploration parties into several other ancient ruins before and they have managed to triumph over the perilous challenges and obstacles that lurked within these antiquated remains without fail. Therefore, trust me when I say I am positively confident in their extensive experiences and skill to explore ancient ruins – except this one up at the top of Kunlun Mountain. This one is shrouded by a vast storm system.”
“Storm system?” uttered Chu Xun curiously.
“Indeed. Whenever these particular ancient ruins appear, a massive and furious storm system will form around it, keeping everyone away. Only Fifth-grade Human Kings or beyond could weather the storm; anyone with powers weaker could instantly be blasted into bits.”
“Is this a natural phenomenon, Yan? Or do you think someone is behind it?”
Yan Wushuang shook his head. “The deeper I venture, the stronger it is. I could barely past the hundredth-meter mark.”
“Wait, with your powers, Yan, you can’t even get past a hundred meters?!”
“No. I needed to be careful. I felt the presence of some unknown creature lurking within the storm.”
“There is something hiding in the midst of the raging storm system? What is it?” asked Chu Xun, startled.
“I could not see clearly what it was. It was too fast, speeding around like a flash. From the looks of it, it looks like a lion or a leopard.”
“In other words, that would mean that there really is something valuable inside the ruins.”
“Indeed. Therefore, I would like to recruit you, Liu – to join me in this endeavor. We will explore the ruins together and no matter what we find, we’ll each enjoy equal shares,” said Yan Wushuang solemnly.
Chu Xun took several seconds to mull over the suggestion before finally saying, “All right then!”
“Very well then,” Yan Wushuang lifted his goblet, “Here’s to a successful foray!”
They upended their goblets and drank their wine. “According to my observation, I gather that the ancient ruins will reappear again tonight, Liu,” said Yan Wushuang.
What?!
That came as a shock to Chu Xun. To the best of his knowledge, the appearance of the ancient ruins followed no discernible cycle.
“The ancient ruins appear during cloudy days and snowy nights.”
“It’s snowing tonight?” muttered Chu Xun, peering outside.
“It will,” said Yan Wushuang confidently, “I grew up here since a child, so I am very familiar with the climate here.”
“I see,” Chu Xun chuckled, “It would seem that collaborating with you would save me a lot of unnecessary struggles.”
“Meeting you is also an honor of mine, Liu,” Yan Wushuang lifted his goblet and clinked his with Chu Xun before downing its contents.
Chu Xun fiddled with his goblet and gave Yan Wushuang a thoughtful look.
“Why the look, Liu? Why are you looking at me this way?” Yan Wushuang gasped, immediately looking down to check on his robes but yet finding nothing wrong with them – his clothes were clean and tidy.
“Yan, I might look simple-minded, but I’m not stupid,” said Chu Xun, fixing Yan Wushuang in a deep stare, “When you found out about the theft of the Soul-nourishing Lotus, you were so angry that one might think that you actually possessed the ability to kill Zang Fengling.”
A rare hint of uneasiness stirred across Yan Wushuang’s seemingly calm countenance which he quickly masked by sipping at his wine.
Chu Xun decided to say nothing more. He emptied his goblet and got up to say goodbye.
“We’ll meet later then, Yan.”
Yan Wushuang ordered his men to see his guests out the door.
As soon as Chu Xun and the purple-haired woman left, a figure shimmered into sight.
“Can we trust him, Master?”
“I’ve underestimated him. But I still found him trustworthy,” simpered Yan Wushuang lightly.
“His power level is no doubt high, and I failed to discern the strength of the woman.”
“It won’t matter. This is Yanxue City. If he is sincere in helping me, I’ll treat him as a friend. Otherwise, I shall do what needs to be done.”
The usually calm and composed Yan Wushuang betrayed a rare and vicious tone in his voice.
...
Back at Chu Xun’s lodgings.
“He doesn’t fully trust you,” said the purple-haired woman, narrowing her eyes at Chu Xun.
“Don’t you have your doubts about me yourself?”
“I’m serious. There were at least four powerful people hiding around us just now. It would appear that your Master Yan is not as honest as he looks.”
“You know too little about the ways of the people of this world,” commented Chu Xun dryly.
“What do you mean?” snapped the woman crossly, thinking that Chu Xun was belittling her.
“Honest? This is the young scion of the Yan Family we’re talking about – a young prodigy of rare and distinguished pedigree. I’d say he would have long been dead if he trusts people easily. One has to stay alive before he can be honest, no?”
“Aren’t you afraid that he might plot something against you?”
“He won’t. He’s still an honest person,” said Chu Xun, confident in his observation of Yan Wushuang because of the acute spiritual senses accorded by the Evocation of Heavenly Secrets.
“You just implied that he’s nowhere near honest,” muttered the woman, confused.
“I did not say he isn’t honest, but also an ambitious man. The qualities of being honest can give him fame and renown that could last even for ages, while his cunning as an ambitious person keeps him alive, otherwise, there won’t be any fame or renown to begin with.”
“You’re almost describing yourself, Chu the Devil.”
“Nay. We’re different. He’s more a man of honor than I am.”
“All your talk about honor, honesty and ambition befuddles me,” scowled the woman, revealing a girlish side of her heretofore unseen before.
Chu Xun chuckled. He did not mean it as a joke when he described Yan Wushuang as “a man of honor”. In fact, if Yan Wushuang could be a paragon of just and honor, then he would be the very opposite.
Because he never once gave any foes any chance to live. Yan Wushuang was different – he remained a compassionate person who would rather be cautious and careful, especially with his reputation.
“By the way, what were you trying to say in that last sentence you said to Yan Wushuang? He looked strangely odd to me for one moment,” said the woman, sipping at her cup of wine to mask her embarrassment.
“Put it this way, losing the Lotus and the Spirit Flux might be a critical blow to the Yan Family. But that was hardly reason enough for Yan Wushuang to recklessly kill anyone.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s simple. Yan Wushuang was merely taking advantage of the situation. Everything was just a facade he put up; he never wanted to kill Zang Fengling, but only to wound him, and that’s because he knew that the ancient ruins would reappear tonight.”
“So, you mean to say that Yan Wushuang wounded Zang Fengling to eliminate one powerful opposition in conjunction to his exploration of the ruins tonight?”
“You got it at last,” said Chu Xun approvingly.
The woman however glared at him, feeling that not so much a praise as a tease from Chu Xun.
Then something else struck her. But before she could voice out, Chu Xun cut her to the chase, saying, “And you want to ask why did not Yan Wushuang just kill Zang Fengling and be rid of him once and for all?”
The woman’s gorgeous eyes betrayed a hint of surprise before it turned into a glare, “Stop acting smart. Who says I was going to ask anything?”
And before Chu Xun could respond, she got up, opened the door, and stomped away.
“Hey, don’t go! Let’s talk more!” teased Chu Xun.
“Shuddup!”
The woman’s voice drowned by the slamming of the door.
Chu Xun simpered and swiveled around to look out the windows at the majestic peaks of the Kunlun Mountain in the distance.
There was only one easy answer to the woman’s question.
Yan Wushuang cherished his reputation too much that he would never risk endangering his good name by killing Zang Fengling in cold blood.
But what would he do if he was in Yan Wushuang’s shoes, Chu Xun asked himself. The answer came quickly to him – he would just kill him without any hesitation.
Perhaps this was the biggest disparity between Yan Wushuang and himself.
Crack!
The door creaked loudly as it swung on its hinges and the purple-haired woman drifted in. “I’m coming with you tonight.”
Before he could protest nor agree, she slammed the door shut again.
What the hell, Chu Xun stared, dumbfounded.
Back inside her room, the purple-haired woman could not quite explain her own behavior. What was going on? Why was she worried about his safety?
With troubled thoughts buzzing in their minds, they waited for night to fall.