Chapter 51: CH 51

When Zhao Surou heard this, she was so angry that she nearly keeled over. She lashed out at Lan Shanyu with her steel whip.

Lan Shanyu raised a hand swiftly and flicked a golden peacock needle at Zhao Surou’s face. The whip changed course abruptly to block that peacock needle, and Lan Shanyu took advantage of that opening to charge at her. 

“Bam!” A solid punch landed on Zhao Surou’s shoulder, causing her to slide back about three feet. She had to use her whip to grab hold of a tree trunk to stabilise herself, and a trickle of blood flowed out the corner of her mouth.

“Shifu!”

“Shibo!”

A group of female disciples immediately moved forward to support her. 

“Go away!” Zhao Surou said, batting away the younger disciples’ hands. She stood up straight, glaring at Lan Shanyu fiercely as she held her wounded shoulder.

Lan Shanyu elegantly retracted his offensive stance, then casually flicked snow off his sleeves. He hadn’t become the Peacock Wing’s leader at this young age simply because of his glib tongue. He had real martial arts prowess.

“I am but a messenger of the Palace Master’s intentions. Why vent your anger on me?” Lan Shanyu said coldly. The smile on his face had completely disappeared. “I would strongly urge you to leave at once. Jade Mountain is not the place for you to behave in this wanton manner!”

With that, he flicked his sleeves, turned and leapt up lightly like a great peacock in flight. He didn’t need a sedan this round, and he led his subordinates away, disappearing into the mountain mists.

A few of the younger female disciples looked mesmerized by this sight. A handsome, powerful young man, floating effortlessly into the wintry clouds – it was truly a sight for sore eyes.

“Shifu, who is he?” Yuquan asked. She had been pushed forward by some of her sister disciples, and had no choice but to lower her head and ask this question in a small voice.

“Hmph,” Zhao Surou said. She thought that her disciples were angry on her behalf and wanted to remember this villain’s name. She ground her teeth, then continued speaking. “The Peacock Wing’s leader, Lan Shanyu. He’s also known as Lan Qingchen.”

“Oh, so it’s Qingchen…” 

“Rain and light dust in the city of Wei… that must be where the courtesy name comes from!”

“It sounds so lovely!”

Zhao Surou unfortunately heard the whispered conversation between her disciples. She turned and slapped one disciple across the face. “He just insulted your Shifu, and you still have the nerve to say his name sounds lovely? Have you no shame?!” she snapped.

“Boohoo…” The girl who got slapped was only about fourteen or fifteen years old. Tears ran down her cheeks as she held her face, but she didn’t dare to make any complaints. She turned to look at the older female disciples who had also praised Lan Shanyu, but they all looked down, refusing to meet her gaze. The injustice rankled. They had all been talking about the same thing; why was she the only one being punished? Just because she was the youngest? 

The Suxin Sect people left, just like that, but Chen Ziqi felt that they wouldn’t let this slide so easily. As expected, three days later, they received news that the Suxin Sect’s highly skilled martial artists had laid waste to the Wind Wing’s building in Lu City.

“The Suxin Sect disciples who attacked the Wind Wing were very powerful – they were from the eldest generation of disciples. Unfortunately, the head of the Wind Wing’s chapter in Lu City was out that day. Two people on our side died, and one was injured. The Lu City chapter has been burned down as well. This subordinate is incompetent and asks Palace Master to punish him,” the Wind Wing Leader said, kneeling before Dan Yi as he reported this.

Each of the twelve Golden Wings had its own special function. The Wind Wing was part of the lower six Wings, and it had the greatest number of chapters throughout the empire. Its purpose was to buy and sell things from martial artists and the commoners, take on odd jobs, such as looking for things in the mountain, and sending messages at high speed. Its members did not engage in combat at all. As such, the Wind Wing’s people were not very skilled at martial arts – one only needed to master the Cyclone Step in order to work for the Wind Wing.

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To the old martial artists who had lived more than a hundred years, a sixteen-year-old Palace Master was but a little child whom they could bully at will.

Chen Ziqi looked at Dan Yi’s hand. The graceful bones of his hand always stood out prominently, but right now green veins could be seen jutting out because he was so angry. Chen Ziqi raised a hand and patted him on the back. “What do you plan to do?” he asked.

Dan Yi lowered his gaze and retracted the hostility in his eyes before turning to look at Chen Ziqi. He saw that Chen Ziqi was actually excited, and he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at this reaction. “Do you have a suggestion?” he said. 

“I’m thinking, it’s freezing cold right now, and it’s not worth it for you to bring a bunch of people to go and hit back physically at the Suxin Sect,” Chen Ziqi said, an evil grin spreading across his face.  He hooked a finger at Dan Yi, beckoning him to come closer, then whispered into his ear. “Since the Cloud Palace knows all the secrets of the empire, why don’t you get your revenge by releasing their most embarrassing secret to the world? Like, if their Abbess Wuyin has a little boy toy somewhere outside the Sect, that sort of thing.”

“… …” The Wind Wing Leader nearly lost his balance when he heard Chen Ziqi say this. The Suxin Sect’s Abbess Wuyin was a nun, and if she really was keeping a boy toy, the Suxin Sect would never live this down. They would probably have to pull out of the martial arts world entirely if that were true!

“The Abbess Wuyin doesn’t have a boy toy,” Dan Yi said, looking slightly amused. His tightly clenched fist had now relaxed as well.

“I was just giving an example. I’m sure you guys have something even better on them,” Chen Ziqi said, showing a line of white teeth as he grinned. He winked at Dan Yi. 

Dan Yi pressed his lips together, then smiled and reached out to ruffle Chen Ziqi’s hair. “Sounds good,” he said softly.

Chen Ziqi hadn’t come of age yet, and so he didn’t wear a guan in his hair, but bound it together with a strip of cloth. His hair was becoming increasingly messy as Dan Yi mussed it. He slapped aside that playful hand, patted down his hair, and went off to do his own thing. Dan Yi would be dealing with official Cloud Palace matters after this, and he didn’t have the patience to sit through it.

After Chen Ziqi ran off, Dan Yi’s expression became serious once again. He looked at the Wind Wing Leader. “Go to the Qingyun Palace and receive your punishment. Also, call the White Cloud Envoy over,” he said.

“Certainly,” the Wind Wing Leader said. He bowed and left. 

The Qingyun Palace functioned as the White Cloud Envoy and the Dark Cloud Envoy’s office. It was also a place where Wing Leaders were disciplined when the need arose. The Wind Wing Leader had a doleful look on his face as he entered the Qingyun Palace to look for the two Cloud Envoys.

“The Wind Wing is a merchant wing to begin with – why didn’t your people run when they couldn’t defeat the Suxin Sect?” Lan Jiangxue said. He stood up and smoothed out the creases in his robes. “They even tried to battle those old Suxin Sect nuns. Did they think they were geese?!”

“This subordinate knows he is at fault. When I return to the Wind Wing, I’ll be sure to make this clear to them,” the Wind Wing Leader said, finally understanding what punishment the Palace Master had asked him to receive today.

“If you know you’re at fault, then come over here,” Diao Lie said, smacking his right fist into his left palm with ominous-sounding thwacks. 

After Lan Jiangxue walked out of the Qingyun Palace, he heard a shrill shriek coming from the building behind him, but he didn’t even bat an eyelid. His face was calm and peaceful as he continued walking toward Danfeng Palace.

Three days later, the Cloud Palace announced that it would make a Tianwen public. This news spread all over the empire like wildfire.

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Not all the Wings in the Twelve Golden Wings had chapters in cities. The Wind Wing had the largest number of chapters, followed by the Crow Wing. The Crow Wing was part of the Upper Six Wings, and they had a chapter in nearly all of the larger cities. They were the voice of the Cloud Palace, responsible for answering questions posed to the Cloud Palace.

On the day before the appointed day, all the chapters of the Crow Wing banged their gongs and beat their drums with great fanfare to advertise that the Tianwen would be broadcast the next day. 

A Tianwen was essentially the answer to a Heaven-class question. A Heaven-class question was one whose answer could not be bought with money, and now, the Cloud Palace was releasing an answer to one such question for free. This was an ultra-rare event, and all the sects that were situated near a Crow Wing sent people to listen to the Tianwen. The commoners were also attracted by the crowd and fanfare, and they gathered around the Crow Wings in the various cities to listen.

Lu City and Jianyang didn’t have a Crow Wing chapter because they were too remote. Lu City was a bit better than Jianyang – it at least had a Wind Wing. Chen Ziqi’s fief, on the other hand, was really a place that birds didn’t care to shit in; it didn’t even have a chapter of the Wind Wing.

The Crow Wing nearest to the Cloud Palace was in Xunyang City, which was a large city under the jurisdiction of the Lushan Sect.

Coincidentally, Chen Ziqi had to go to the Lushan Sect to formally visit the Lushan Sect leader, and so he dragged Dan Yi with him to Xunyang to watch the fun. 

The Crow Wing was surrounded by crowds of people early in the morning. All sorts of people were there – martial artists from famous sects, religious persons, and even hooligans and scammers were all gathered there, looking forward to the juicy news that the Crow Wing was about to release.

Chen Ziqi sat in the teahouse opposite the Crow Wing with Dan Yi. He didn’t know how Dan Yi’s subordinates had managed to wrangle it, but they had been able to get them the best seats in the house, at a table next to a floor-to-ceiling window nearest to the Crow Wing. It looked right into the Crow Wing’s second storey, in fact.

The Crow Wing looked very different from the buildings around it. Its walls and tiles were all black in colour. Even the door and window frames were black.

“Why did they make their entire building black?” Chen Ziqi asked, leaning on the railing and looking around curiously. 

“Wang ye, you’ve never heard of the saying that ‘all the crows in the world are equally black’?” Diao Lie said. He leaned back casually against a pillar, a strand of grass between his teeth, and raised his chin in Wu Bujian’s direction. “Wouldn’t you say that’s why?”

Wu Bujian was from the Crow Wing, and his lips twisted a little in irritation when he heard Diao Lie say this. However, he didn’t dare to argue back, and so could only lower his head and reply reluctantly. “… Yes,” he said, after a pause. The Palace Master came out to play today, leaving the White Cloud Envoy in charge of matters in the palace, so the Dark Cloud Envoy had accompanied them, acting as the Palace Master’s bodyguard. Whenever the Dark Cloud Envoy was around, all the Cloud Palace subordinates became as docile as doves.

“The Crow Wing – does it actually mean the wing of a crow?” Chen Ziqi asked, blinking in confusion. The naming conventions of the Cloud Palace were really unique.

Two cups of tea had made their home in Chen Ziqi’s belly before the black building opposite opened its doors. The door that opened, however, wasn’t the one on the first floor, but the door to the balcony on the second floor. A man in black wide-sleeved robes walked out in an unhurried manner and stood in front of the balcony railings, clasping a fist politely at the people gathered below. “Respected martial artists, ladies and gentlemen, I am the leader of the Crow Wing’s chapter here in Xunyang. Today, I have the honour of announcing a Tianwen…” 

The leader of this chapter had proportionate, pleasant looking facial features, but they were arranged into a permanently dejected look.

“Are your subordinates posted into the different Wings based on their looks?” Chen Ziqi asked. Dan Yi had come over to stand beside him at the window railing, and he scooted over to whisper this question into his ear. Based on his observations thus far, the Wind Wing’s people were short and small-sized, and the Crow Wing’s people all had dejected-looking faces. On the other hand, the Peacock Wing was full of really good-looking people.

Dan Yi coughed lightly into a loosely clenched fist. “Ahem. You could say that,” he said.

“Just tell us, quick! Stop being so long-winded!” 

“What exactly is the question you’re answering today?”

The crowd had zero patience for this verbose preamble. They clamoured for the chapter leader to get to the point immediately.

“Ten years ago, the Cheng family of Lu City was massacred in a single night. Everyone knows that that family had eighty-six members, and that they were killed by the Bloodblade Tower. The Bloodblade Tower is a mercenary group, and they do not kill anyone unless someone paid them to do so. The person or persons who hired the Bloodblade Tower to kill the Cheng family will be made public today.”

After this was said, the crowd went silent; everyone was afraid to make a sound for fear of missing out on the answer. 

The massacre of the Cheng family was a real mystery to the martial arts world. That family was only a small one with no real accomplishments or influence. Its martial arts was not particularly powerful, and it hadn’t made enemies of anyone important. The whole martial arts world was stunned when they had suddenly been wiped out in a single night by the Bloodblade Tower.

The Invincible Duo had investigated this matter for many years but had not been successful in getting an answer. Nobody knew who the person behind the Cheng family massacre was, save the Cloud Palace.

The Suxin Sect had also sent a few young disciples to listen to the news. Their faces all turned white on hearing the topic of the Tianwen. They knew it was highly likely that the publication of the Tianwen was very likely to be aimed at the Suxin Sect, but they hadn’t thought that it would involve digging up the Cheng family murder.

Without further ado, the Crow Wing chapter leader announced the answer to the Tianwen. “The one who hired the Bloodblade Tower, who is the same person that personally killed the head of the Cheng family, is the Sect Leader of the Suxin Sect, the Abbess Wuyin,” he said. 

The crowd broke into an uproar the moment the chapter leader finished speaking. The Cheng family was one of the satellite sects of the Suxin Sect, and it in fact gave tribute to the Suxin Sect every year in exchange for the Suxin Sect’s protection. No one would have guessed that the one who ordered the murder of the Cheng family was the Suxin Sect itself!

“Nonsense!” A few of the Suxin Sect disciples screeched their protests, their faces pale. However, they couldn’t be heard over the racket the crowd was making on hearing this earth-shaking news.

The author has something to say: Mini-theatre

“The Qingyun Palace’s Punishments are Truly Frightening” 

Qiqi: What happened to that Wing Leader? What punishment did he receive?

Birdie Gong: A very scary punishment

Diao Lie: Take off your clothes

Wing Leader: I’ve taken them off 

Diao Lie: Revert to your original form

Wing Leader: Chirp chirp

Diao Lie: Mwahaha, today’s punishment will be: The Old Eagle Catches the Little Bird

Wing Leader: o(>﹏<)o Then what’s tomorrow’s punishment? 

Diao Lie: Tomorrow’s punishment menu will be: The Old Eagle Plucks the Bird’s Feathers

Wing Leader: QAQ Then I pick being punished today

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