CHAPTER NINE (PART 1)
September the fifteenth, on the night of the full moon.
With people overcrowding the front of Fei Ying Bao, no matter for what reason they are here for, overall in the Jiang Hu, amongst the three cults and nine schools, the majority has come.
Liu Feng’s party arrives on September the fourteenth, at this time, they too were also preparing to watch the battle in the crowd.
Ji Chui Yu looks around at the situation, speaking with heartfelt words: “No matter whether the rapist is the devil that everyone has disgraced or not, if he really dares to come, you cannot deny that he is worthy of being a Jiang Hu person.”
Qu Qing Yin looks at him, “Is this you appreciating one another?” (She’s referring to them as fellow l.u.s.tful creatures)
Ji Chui Yu stares at her.
Liu Feng grabs hold of her hand, shaking his head, signalling that she should not keep provoking others.
Qu Qing Yin looks on with boredom, no longer saying anything.
Wherever you look, the Jiang Hu people are all whispering to one another, discussing the results of this battle as well as the reason why the two people held grudges since back then.
When the moon rose high into the sky, a shadow comes flying in, descending onto the stage in front of Fei Ying Bao.
The person who came, has dashing eyebrows with a pair of dazzling eyes, appearance is gentle and pretty, causing many who sees the rapist, unable to help but to express their surprise.
A lewd demon to actually have such a charming face, is this the heaven’s cruel joke on the people of earth?
“I have not come to see you.” Mo Zi Qi says as he settles on the stage, his one sentence stopping Shui Mu Yuan from saying his original opening speech.
“No matter who you have come for, as long as you are, we shall settle the scores between us today.”
Mo Zi Qi casts him a dark look, coldly laughing: “The scores between us?”
Shui Mu Yuan hatefully says: “Back then she left me for you, does she regret it now?”
Mo Zi Qi icily speaks: “In order to make her regret it, you were willing to scheme to have your own daughter to be dirtied and shamed?”
Shui Mo Yuan suddenly looks up to the sky, roaring with laughter, “Daughter? Haha……” He glares at Mo Zi Qi’s face which looks the same as back then, gritting his teeth as he speaks: “Shui Su Yu is but the vile sp.a.w.n of the adultery between you two dog-like people. How is she my daughter? It is you who had raped your own biological daughter, not a bad taste now is it?”(Note: dog-like refers to adulterers)
Once those words were out, one rock receives thousands of pounding waves, the on looking Jiang Hu people were instantly rendered restless.
Within the crowd, Liu Feng notices that in that moment, the hand that was holding onto his, suddenly tightens.
Mo Zi Qi continues to coldly look at his opponent, “Shui Mu Yuan, I have never shamed your character. You say we are dog-like people, but back then, why did you make Ah Yu marry you and become your wife? Besides, you clearly knew that I fell in love with her first.”
Shui Mu Yuan sounds a ‘heng’, “But since she had married me, then she should honour the principles of womanhood.”
“Her heart was not with you, marrying you, was because she was pregnant with your child. Why should she, for a man like you, honour those d.a.m.n principles of womanhood?”
“What right do you have to say Shui Su Yun is my daughter? If she is my daughter, back then, would she have wanted to take her away?”
“A person like you, what right do you have to make her believe that you would be a good father?”
“I don’t believe it.”
“So what if you don’t believe it? This is the fact.”
“No……this isn’t true……no……” Not knowing when she had shown up below the stage, Shui Su Yun shakes her head, tears streaming down her face, she looks up at the two men onstage, her footsteps staggering.
Everyone looks at her with eyes filled with sympathy, within all the happenings between them, she is definitely the victim in this mess, through and through.
Shui Mu Yuan points his sword at Mo Zi Qi, “I don’t believe a single word you have said. In order to deny the crime of raping your own daughter, you point the blame elsewhere. I will not believe you.”
Mo Zi Qi sounds an icy laugh, “I am already known to all as the most satanic demon, what crimes do I not dare to admit? As long as it is a crime I committed, then there shall not be anything that I dare not admit.”
“Then why did you still come to this meeting?”
Mo Zi Qi looks around the audience in an inquiring manner, proudly standing there, “I have already said, I have not come here to see you. Right now, you are not even capable of taking on a hundred attacks from my hands, because of you I have made this trip and had no choice but to reveal myself.”
Shui Mu Yuan was angered to the point his face turned pale. “Right now, are you disregarding the fellow Jiang Hu people here? You think that coming here, you can still leave?” He hatefully asks.
Mo Zi Qi conceitedly says: “Since I have come, then I have the capability to leave.”
His words sent the crowd into an uproar, within a moment they were burning with rage. The thing Jiang Hu people holds highest in regard is the word ‘Míng/ 名’ (means name or reputation). With the rapist publicly looking down on these heroes, he has no doubt caused public outrage.
“No matter who it is you have come here for, since you are here, then you shall leave your life here.”
Shui Mu Yuan’s words expresses the voice inside of many others, after all, Mount Zhong Yi Manor’s two hundred thousand liang reward money is for real.
Mo Zi Qi’s one sleeve fends off Shui Mu Yuan’s sword attack, at the same time he works his inner energy, his voice booming in all directions, “I know you are definitely here, you have done so much to scheme against me, could it be you don’t dare to reveal yourself now?”
To many Jiang Hu people with weak inner energy, his voice painfully shook their eardrums to the core, leaving them with no choice but to take desperate measures and put themselves at a safe distance away, at the same time, their hearts shook with horror, realising that the rapist’s inner energy runs so skilfully deep.
Shui Mu Yuan simultaneously attacks nineteen times, but each attack is met with thin air, his heart turns desperate, and he loudly shouts, “Against such a demon, there is no need to keep to the principles of the Jiang Hu, everyone attack together!”
Qu Qing Yin turns her head to look at Ji Chui Yu, “Is this how the highly regarded great leader you speak of do things?”
Ji Chui Yu rubs his nose with disinterest, but still have words to say: “Against someone like the rapist, could it be, we still have to keep to the principles of the Jiang Hu?”
“No need.” Qu Qing Yin changes the topic, “But, since he has been invited here for a battle, then they shouldn’t do this.”
Ji Chui Yu shuts his mouth.
On the stage, Shui Mu Yuan clearly isn’t Mo Zi Qi’s opponent. Some Jiang Hu people standing at the sides was already feeling tempted, but does not want to be the first to charge in. For a moment, no one makes a move.
Qu Qing Yin sounds a barely audible sneer, Liu Feng once again tightens his hold on her hand, giving it a few squeezes.
Qu Qing Yin side glances him.
“Your one word can cast away nerves of steel.” He says.
Qu Qing Yin nods her head, her eyes returning to the stage.
At this time, there was a sudden change, originally responding with ease, Mo Zi Qi, suddenly staggers, his right leg is half kneeling down, his left arm still capable of fending off Shui Mu Yuan’s sword, and for the first time, red can be seen.
“You—“ Mo Zi Qi unable to believe what had happened, leans onto Shui Mu Yuan, “What have you done?”
Right then, Shui Mu Yuan’s face seems to have gone a little crazy, the sword in his hand stabs into the injured Mo Zi Qi, smugly saying: “I’m not your opponent? The moment you dirtied Shui Su Yun’s innocence, you were destined to meet such ending,”
“You actually put poison on your daughter’s body?” From the corner of Mo Zi Qi’s lips, a stream of fresh red blood flows. “That isn’t poison, it is bewitchment, I had bought it from the Master of Miao Jiang to deal with you.”
Qu Qing Yin’s eyes turns icy, she had originally suspected what had happened back then at the inn, but right now, it seems like those Fei Ying Bao guards that are always with Shui Su Yun to protect her, were really people set up by Shui Mu Yuan.
“I had tolerated it for sixteen years, today, I have finally sought redemption.” Shui Mu Yuan pushes his sword into Mo Zi Qi’s chest, piercing it through his body. Blood soaks through his body of moon-white robes, dripping down onto the stage.
When Shui Mu Yuan’s sword hilt draws in close, Mo Zi Qi’s left hand sickly probes on, grabbing hold of the hand holding onto the sword. And within an instant, his right hand pierces through his left shoulder, into his raw flesh and digs out a big, b.l.o.o.d.y hole.
The crowd below the stage could no longer contain themselves, at the same time, many people flew on stage, aiming their attacks at the heavily injured Mo Zi Qi. After all, regarding matters like relentlessly beating the dog in the water, there will never be a shortage of people when it comes to doing it.
But when one wants to cheaply take advantage, there will also be a time when they suffer a great deal. Without any exceptions, Mo Zi Qi knocks down all these people in mid-flight, some dying on the spot, some gravely injured.
But, there are so many Jiang Hu people here, that the heavily injured rapist could not possibly have any chance of escaping, seems like his death here is destined.
After the fellow Jiang Hu people attempted to attack Mo Zi Qi, Shui Mu Yuan clutches his injured left shoulder and withdraws from the battle ring.
Mo Zi Qi repels another round of joint attack, once again channelling his inner energy to release a sound wave of his voice, “At this point, you still refuse to reveal yourself? Any later and you’ll have no chance.”
Some people who hears this, could not help but to look around, wanting to know exactly who it is that the rapist cares so deeply about.
More people chose to continue attacking, in an instant, the handles of several swords and blades were simultaneously cut down, a cold silver gra.s.s-like blade had bolted past, and all that can be heard was the crashing of broken swords and blades falling to the ground.
At the same time, one person gently descends onto the stage.
Liu Feng calmly watches the person who went flying onto stage, he knows that whatever had puzzled him for so long, today, he shall finally get answers.
Mo Zi Qi’s mouth was dripping with blood, he looks at the young girl in apricot-yellow robes standing before him, “Where’s the old man? Why has he not come himself?”
Qu Qing Yin’s pair of hands naturally droops down to her sides, revealing no weapon, but just then it was indeed her who had cut down all those swords and blades.
“Shi Fu has already pa.s.sed away many years ago.” She calmly tells him the answer.
Mo Zi Qi spits out a mouthful of blood, laughing as he speaks: “As expected, he didn’t die back then, heavily injured and deposed of his martial arts, such a tall cliff yet he still fails to fall to his death. That old man really has the luck of devil. Moreover, I never thought that he had even accepted such a beautiful Junior Sister for me.”
Junior sister?!
This girl is actually the rapist’s fellow junior sister! Everyone at the scene were all rendered surprised.
“Shi Fu told me that when you have committed more than a lifetime’s worth of unpardonable sins, to come and retrieve your corpse.”
Mo Zi Qi clutches at his bleeding wounds, laughing to point of coughing up blood, “Could it be you weren’t the one who added fuel to the flames in between, in order to scheme against me?”
Qu Qing Yin frankly nods, “According to the pace Senior Brother you were going in, to have committed more than a lifetime’s worth of unpardonable sins, there still needed some time, but I am already tired of being in the Jiang Hu, before I retire, I want to retrieve Senior Brother’s bones, only then would my heart be at ease.”
Ji Chui Yu reaches out and pats his fellow brother on the shoulder, earnestly saying: “Take care. This lady’s evil nature is no less than that of the rapist.”
Liu Feng throws off his hand, and says nothing.
Mo Zi Qi scrutinises her, suddenly feeling enlightened, “You’re that soulmate of Liu Feng?”
Qu Qing Yin does not admit it, nor deny it.
Mo Zi Qi loudly laughs, “Great, as expected of someone that old man had taught. That Shui missy wanted to plot against you, so you quietly let her reap what she sowed. Even if there was no Shui Mu Yuan there to set it up, Junior Sister would probably have been able to retreat safe and sound.”
“Senior Brother is overpraising.”
“Those so-claimed Jiang Hu’s righteous sect, are still nothing to those of us that they call demon, demoness. Junior Sister, say, is it not funny?”
Qu Qing Yin only looks at him indifferently, saying: “Senior Brother, do you have any unfulfilled wish?”
“I do.” Mo Zi Qi points towards Shui Mu Yuan, “Kill him in my stead.”
Qu Qing Yin does not hesitate to nod in answer, “Okay.” She turns around, step by step, walking towards Shui Mu Yuan.
Shui Mu Yuan moves his sword and points it at her, “You’re his junior sister, like him, walks the same path that defies virtue, someone that everyone within the Jiang Hu has the right to punish.”
Qu Qing Yin coldly looks at him, saying: “If Mo Zi Qi is considered a beast, then you cannot even be considered anything to a beast. Even if missy Shui is not your own flesh and blood, she is still the daughter you have raised for sixteen years, yet you actually have the heart to scheme to have her dirtied and shamed, moreover she is indeed your flesh and blood. To call you a beast is an insult to beasts themselves.”
Such remarks won over the acknowledgment of many people.
“What a load of nonsense, you demoness! You……”
Shui Mu Yuan’s words had yet to finish, when she had already unsheathed her blade.
No one managed to see how that blade had emerged, only able to see the blade light up, possessed with killer instincts, her hand rises, and falls, and things end just like that.
The sword in Shui Mu Yuan’s hand falls to the ground, his entire body stiffly landing back, straight onto the stage, fresh blood from his body spraying out everywhere.
The knife in Qu Qing Yin’s hand disappears, her entire person looking pretty but fragile as she stands aside, like a willow branch trembling in the wind[1]. Compared to the brutality before, she simply appears like a completely different person.
“What kind of blade is that?” Mo Zi Qi asks.
Qu Qing Yin answers, “Ling Long Dao.”(The exquisite knife)
The heroes were once again sent into an uproar.
Ling Long Dao?!
The beautiful girl before their eyes is the rumoured cold blooded and ruthless, hideous and solitary, Ling Long Dao?
They say that Ling Long Dao is the blade of justice, but how could it be that she is under the same Shi Fu as the rapist who committed more than a lifetime’s worth of unpardonable sins?