Chapter 518 (1): Worldly Affairs are Like Games of Go

All of the other horseback figures quickly swiveled around to gather before Chen Ping'an and the woman.

"What's going on, Jingcheng? Did I do something wrong, Uncle Sui?" Cao Fu asked with a dumbstruck expression.

Sui Xinyu was furious, but he fought to maintain his composure as he smiled and said, "Ever since she was a child, Jingcheng has always liked to stay at home and keep to herself, so perhaps she's a little shaken by the events that transpired earlier."

"I see. It makes sense that Jingcheng would feel a little frightened after what happened just now," Cao Fu replied with a smile and a nod.

Sui Wenfa was very surprised to see this, thinking to himself,

Auntie may not go out much, but she's never like this. Whenever something happens back home, she's always the most calm and collected, even when Mother and Father are unable to keep their composure. I heard from Father that Auntie is often the one to provide effective solutions when it comes to problems that he encounters in the officialdom, and she's always really calm and patient about it.

"Can you glean his cultivation base?" Cao Fu asked through his mind's lake.

Xiao Shuye hesitated momentarily, then replied in kind, "No, but he's not to be underestimated, and it's best that we don't make an enemy out of him. Right now, there's a great deal of turmoil all over the Great Seal Script Empire.

“Just as we've left our sect, who knows which other formidable figures may be out and about? For example, if he's an official immortal of the Golden Scale Palace, then our actions could pit your mistress in direct conflict against the Golden Scale Palace."

"Alright, I'll try and settle this amicably unless he wants to take Sui Jingcheng for himself," Cao Fu said.

"That would be best," Xiao Shuye replied with a nod. "From the looks of it, he doesn't seem to be someone who likes to meddle in the affairs of others. Otherwise, he wouldn't have left the pergola on his own earlier."

"What I'm worried about is that he's putting on an act, and that he could've been targeting us all along," Cao Fu said with a wry smile.

"If that's the case, then we'll just have to fight him," Xiao Shuye said with a smile. "Sui Jingcheng is someone that your master is determined to get his hands on. She bears an immense fated opportunity, and she must be captured. In the pursuit of the Great Dao, a fated opportunity will only come around once, and if you miss it, then it will be forever gone. Ultimately, your mistress is doing this for your sake.

“You've always had ties with Sui Jingcheng that are yet to be completely severed, and you were the first one to discover just how precious that Dao robe of hers is, so this fated opportunity should fall to you."

Xiao Shuye took a glance at Chen Ping'an, then continued, "If he's a pure martial artist, then we'll have nothing to worry about as long as he isn't ahead of myself and Wang Dun on the list. If he's a cultivator, then as long as he isn't from the Golden Scale Palace, then once again, we'll have nothing to worry about.

“I only warned you to be careful just now as a safety precaution more than anything else. In reality, there's no need to be overly anxious. At the moment, the vast majority of people that we need to fear are in the capital of the Great Seal Script Empire."

"Let's just take things one step at a time and see how it goes," Cao Fu replied with a nod. "Even after we ascertain his identity, we don't have to be in a hurry to kill him. That Sui Jingcheng seems to have become suspicious of us. I'm genuinely perplexed. How was she able to tell?"

"At the end of the day, she

is

half a cultivator, so her alertness and intuition are bound to be superior to the average person," Xiao Shuye said with a smile. "This plot of ours was a little too crude. It was a bit too much of a coincidence for us to have encountered her here, and perhaps that's what tipped her off. Of course, this could be a test from her as well, and she doesn't actually know that something isn't right.

“As expected of a natural cultivation prodigy to be so meticulous possess such incredible resolve and gambling instincts. She really is a perfect match for you. Once she becomes your Dao partner, she'll surely be a great help to both you and your sect. Allow me to remind you that your mistress only wants her Dao robe and golden hairpins, and you can have her once those things have been claimed."

"I understand," Cao Fu replied. "Mistress treats me better than most mothers treat their sons, so it's only right that I repay her in any way that I can."

Xiao Shuye smiled and offered no response. Some things were better left unsaid as the truth could really be quite harsh at times.

I'm sure you know why your mistress is so good to you. She's a Golden Core Tier cultivator, while you still haven't even reached the Sea Observation Tier yet. If it isn't for the vast disparity in your cultivation bases, perhaps the two of you would've already become Dao partners by now.

Hence, if that Sui Jingcheng really does become your woman, then there's surely going to be a great deal of suffering in store for her. Perhaps after she obtains that Bamboo Robe and those three golden hairpins, your mistress will force you to personally torment her to death.

If Cao Fu really were faced with such a decision someday, Xiao Shuye was confident that he would make the right choice without any hesitation.

There was no room for emotion in the pursuit of immortality. Aside from one's Dao partner, which one was bound to by the Great Dao, all other women were like pieces of clothing that could be easily discarded no matter how resplendent they were.

Right at this moment, Sui Jingcheng rose to her feet, then stood behind Chen Ping'an once again as she said, "I know that you are a true immortal, Young Master Chen, and I can see that you harbor no ill will toward me or the Sui Clan. You were simply disappointed by our inaction earlier and no longer wish to involve yourself in our mess.

"However, Cao Fu clearly has some ulterior motive for setting up this 'chance meeting.' I don't know what his objectives are, but this is clearly a trap. If you save me here, I will become your most loyal servant! Even if I am subjected to maidservant duties like preparing tea for you and carrying your belongings, I will be eternally grateful!"

Chen Ping'an had already turned to face Sui Xinyu and the others, and he gently fanned himself as he admonished, "Quit spouting nonsense. A truly good person does not help others in the pursuit of compensation, so don't go around telling people that you're willing to offer up your body to them if they help you in your time of need.

“If someone is only helping you because they lust after your body, then you won't be any better off going with them than with Cao Fu, and if they truly wish to help you purely out of the kindness of their heart, then your offer will seem like an insult and perhaps turn them away from helping you. By the way, do you think Hu Xinfeng deserves to die?"

Sui Jingcheng considered the question carefully, perhaps regarding this as a test from Chen Ping'an, and she carefully selected her words before replying, "He may be a coward, but he hasn't killed anyone, so he has committed no transgressions deserving of death."

"Is that your final verdict?" Chen Ping'an asked with a smile.

She nodded firmly in response.

Chen Ping'an closed his folding fan, then leaned back slightly as he turned to Hu Xinfeng with a smile and said, "Get out of my sight."

Hu Xinfeng didn't need to be told twice, veering straight off the beaten path as he rushed down the mountain, and within mere moments, he was already completely out of sight.

"Quit being a nuisance, you foolish girl!" Sui Xinyu admonished with an exasperated sigh. "Has Cao Fu not shown enough devotion to you? You are repaying his kindness with ingratitude!"

A furious look appeared on his face as he continued, "Our Sui Clan has always been a righteous and virtuous clan, we can't turn around and spit in the face of our savior! Even if you're unwilling to accept this sudden marriage arrangement, regarding all of this as happening too fast, this is still no way to act!

“Both Cao Fu and I are reasonable people, so speak to us and lay bare your concerns! Why have you instead chosen this course of action? Just to embarrass me and our Sui Clan?!"

Sui Wenfa and his sister were terrified. Never had they seen their grandfather so infuriated.

"I do not wish to embarrass you, Father," Sui Jingcheng said with a wry smile. "If there's one thing I know, then it's that cultivators are the most heartless of people, and they're far more eager to sever and avoid karmic ties than dredge up old entanglements."

A warm and affectionate look surfaced in Cao Fu's eyes as he said in a gentle voice, "Once you become a true cultivator, you'll know that there exists the concept of Dao partners in the cultivation world. It's extremely rare for someone to be able to rekindle a romantic connection from their mortal days after embarking on the path of cultivation, so how could I not cherish this opportunity?

“My master is a Golden Core Tier earth immortal, someone who truly stands on the mountain summit. He's been in seclusion for many years, and upon his recent emergence from seclusion, he observed the rekindling of a past romance in my near future. He specifically asked for our birth dates and eight characters, and after conducting some divination, his conclusion was that we are a match made in heaven, once-in-a-century soulmates."[1]

Sui Jingcheng hesitated momentarily, then pulled a handful of copper coins out of her sleeve, grasping them in her right hand. She then raised her hand up high before dropping the copper coins onto the palm of her left hand.

After observing the copper coins for a moment, she closed her hand tightly around them, then raised her head with a bleak smile as she asked, "Cao Fu, do you know why I put my hair up in a widow's bun after my first failed marriage arrangement and kept it that way even after my father made a second marriage arrangement between you and me? It's because my divination told me that that deceased scholar was the husband appointed to me by fate for this lifetime, not you.

“You were not my destined husband in the past, and that has not changed since. If that tragedy hadn't befallen your clan, I would've gone along with my father's wishes and married you, but after that marriage arrangement fell through, I vowed not to marry anyone for the rest of my life.

“Hence, even if my father tries to force me to marry you, I will abide by my vow of non-marriage till the day I die even if I've misconstrued your intentions and am wrongly accusing you of ulterior motives!"

Immediately thereafter, she hurled the handful of copper coins to the ground, then pulled out a golden hairpin from within her sleeve, piercing it straight through the thin veneer of her veiled hat and into the skin of her own throat, drawing blood in the process.

She cast her gaze toward Sui Xinyu, then snivelled, "Father, please allow me to be the master of my own fate just this once!"

Sui Xinyu was so furious that he was pounding at his own leg, and he spat through gritted teeth. "Preposterous! How did I give birth to a demented wench like you?!"

"It's fine, Uncle Sui. Let's not force Jingcheng to do anything against her will. I don't want to see her suffer like this," Cao Fu said with a wry smile.

Chen Ping'an was beginning to develop a headache, and he sighed in exasperation, "What are all of you trying to pull here? We have a woman threatening to kill herself, an old man trying to force a marriage, a thoughtful and understanding immortal, a clueless boy who wants nothing more than to have his idol become his uncle-in-law, a girl who's wallowing in guilt and internal conflict for developing taboo romantic feelings, and a martial arts master who's brimming with killing intent and hesitating about whether he should cut me down where I stand.

“How does this have anything to do with me? The scuffle at the pergola is already in the past, and this is a domestic affair, so shouldn't all of you be going home to discuss this behind closed doors?"

Xiao Shuye's horse advanced slowly past the steeds of Cao Fu and Sui Xinyu, following which he cupped his fist in a salute and said, "I am Xiao Shuye of the Green Shrine Nation. May I ask your name, Young Master?"

Chen Ping'an casually raised a hand, and the copper coins that had been hurled onto the ground rose up to be suspended in mid-air as he smiled and said, "You don't need to know the name of a nobody like myself. I am just a mere Golden Core Tier swordsman of the Golden Scale Palace.

“I also only came out of seclusion just recently, and I didn't really like the look of you two, so I decided to copy your little charade and swoop in to save the damsel in distress."

He then turned to Sui Jingcheng with a cold sneer as he scoffed, "Who conducts divination by casually tossing out a bunch of coins like that? Who're you trying to fool?"

Sui Jingcheng remained completely still, continuing to hold the golden hairpin against her own throat.

"I heard from Mistress that the chief guest elder of the Golden Scale Palace is a Golden Core Tier swordsman of immense power," Cao Fu said in a grim voice through his mind's lake.

Xiao Shuye nodded as he replied, "This is a matter of the utmost importance. It's very likely that Sui Jingcheng's Dao robe, golden hairpins, and that mantra in particular have strong ties with your mistress's Dao attainment catalyst, so we cannot afford to back down here.

“I'm going to seize the initiative here to test out his powers. If he really is that Golden Core Tier swordsman from the Golden Scale Palace, then I'll hold him off while you get out of here. If he's just bluffing, then we'll just have to kill him and take Sui Jingcheng by force."

Chen Ping'an began fanning himself once again, and the copper coins that were suspended in mid-air began bobbing up and down with his fanning motion as he mused, "That's some very potent killing intent I sense from you, Brother Xiao. I wonder which one is faster, my bonded flying sword or your saber. Would you care to find out with me?"

All of a sudden, a streak of light shot out of Chen Ping'an's glabella at an astonishing speed.

As soon as the miniature flying sword appeared, Xiao Shuye immediately sprang back in retreat while grabbing onto Cao Fu's shoulder, and he flew onto a thick branch, using it as a launching pad to dart away into the distance.

However, in the next instant, Chen Ping'an had already appeared on the very same branch that Xiao Shuye had just trodden upon, and he said, "If the opportunity arises, I'll go to the Green Shrine Nation to visit you and Immortal Cao."

Xiao Shuye immediately hurled a golden talisman at Chen Ping'an, but the talismanic core was instantly pierced through by Chen Ping'an's flying sword, rendering it useless.

1. Cao Fu doesn't specifically use male gender pronouns to refer to his mistress here, but as some of you may know, Chinese is a pretty gender-neutral language, and unless explicit mention is made of someone's gender, it can remain pretty ambiguous during the course of normal conversation. I chose to use male gender pronouns here seeing as Cao Fu is clearly trying to deceive Sui Jingcheng, and further alarm bells could be set off in her mind if he reveals that his "master" is, in fact, female. ☜