Chapter 1352: Keep Playing, Keep Dancing

“I’m going back to check up on my family, warrior. Should you need my help in the future, simply ask, and it shall be done.”

Mountain Water Old Man saluted Ye Qing and said sincerely.

Ye Qing nodded in acknowledgement. “You’re welcome, senior.”

“Goodbye, everyone.”

Mountain Water Old Man also saluted everyone else before finally taking his leave.

With Mountain Water Old Man taking the lead, Old Buddha, Mistress Bai, Iron Maitreya, Adjoined Blue Grandmother and more also bade Ye Qing goodbye.

It only took a short while before the overcrowded White Horse county had returned to its empty, silent state.

One man chose to stay behind though. He was Taoist Tiger.

Ye Qing looked at him curiously. “Why aren’t you leaving?”

Taoist Tiger clasped his hands together as he explained, “This poor Taoist is a lonely man with no one or place to return to. Therefore, I would like to join you. I hope you will allow it, scion.”

Taoist Tiger dropped to one knee as he said this.

“I see. Very well.”

Taoist Tiger wasn’t telling the truth, at least not completely. If he wasn’t mistaken, the guy had probably offended someone powerful in the past. Now that he was back in the human world, he was seeking out Ye Qing’s protection.

Ye Qing did not expose him. Taoist Tiger was just one man, and he did not mind bringing him under his umbrella.

“Thank you, young master,” Taoist Tiger exclaimed in delight. He quickly rose to his feet and stepped aside.

It was at this moment Gu Suitang walked up to him and asked worriedly, “Are you sure they will listen to you, Joyless?”

Intimidated by Ye Qing’s prowess, there was no worry that these people would break their word and commit villainy in the short term. But time washed away everything. It was impossible to say if they would peel off their mask and return to villainy in the future.

Ye Qing had rescued tens of thousands of people, and even the weakest among them was a force to be reckoned with. If they truly returned to their villainous ways, the consequences were positively unimaginable.

The people had suffered enough. He did not want them to suffer more.

“Don’t worry, chief. They won’t,” Ye Qing assured Gu Suitang.

Earlier, Ye Qing had used the Profound Yellow Mother Qi to purify the taint inside their bodies and twisted their personality slightly with his demonic thought. He made them less prone to fall back into darkness and commit slaughter.

Of course, if they refused to change even after all the chances he had given them, then he still had a last resort. He had imprinted all of them in secret, and he needed but one thought to destroy them completely.

“But—”

Gu Suitang was about to say more, but Ye Qing suddenly frowned and unleashed a powerful spiritual shockwave.

“What’s wrong, Joyless?”

Fang Xiaoman and Gu Suitang asked nervously.

“Faceless is gone.”

Ye Qing said with a frown. He could not sense Faceless’ presence anywhere.

He had converted Faceless into his Heavenly Demon Dependent a while ago, so he could detect the Stranger’s exact location within five thousand kilometers of him. Even if Faceless was tens of thousands of kilometers away, he could still sense the Stranger vaguely. But now, he could not detect Faceless at all.

He was sure that Faceless was still alive. He had also ordered Faceless to stay here until he returned. There was no way the Stranger would leave of his own accord—meaning that he hadn’t disappeared out of his own volition.

“Hmm? Someone’s looking at me.”

Suddenly, Ye Qing sensed something and looked in a certain direction. His eyes were deep, dark, and turbulent.

Several hundred kilometers away at Luo Shui, a man was drinking and making merry in Red Sleeve Pavilion.

He was a middle-aged Confucian in his forties. He boasted a handsome face and a hairless chin. He was wearing a white outfit that made him look both refined and elegant.

Rightnow, the Confucian was lying sideways in a beautiful woman’s lap with his shirt partially open and sipping his delicious wine.

Another beauty was kneeling in front of him and plucking a grape from a grape cluster. She fed it to him mouth to mouth as soon as she was done removing its skin.

A third beauty was sitting on the floor and playing her qin, and a fourth beauty was dancing to the melody.

In summary, the Confucian was enjoying the wonderful company of multiple beautiful women, delicious food, fine wine, amazing music, and marvelous dance. Wonderful and relaxing didn’t even begin to describe how good he was having it.

A table with a bronze mirror was set in front of the Confucian. At first glance, the bronze mirror looked no different from the bronze mirror womenfolk commonly used to groom themselves, but the reflection of the mirror showed Ye Qing and his Pacification Bureau buddies instead of the Confucian and the women.

“Sigh. he actually managed to come out alive. What a tough nut he is!” The Confucian drank some more wine and sighed. “This is getting troublesome!”

“Why are you sighing, master? Is something troubling you?”

The beauty kneeling in front of him fed him half an orange and asked in a sweet, honeyed voice, “Why don’t you tell this humble one about it? Perhaps I can offer you some ideas?”

The Confucian gave her a winning smile. “I won’t exactly say I’m troubled. It’s just a bit of a shame is all.”

“What is?” A beauty asked.

The Confucian answered, “It’s a shame that I’m going to be parting ways with you all very soon.”

One beauty held a handkerchief to her eyes like she was about to cry. “Ah! Have you gotten tired of us, master?”

“Of course not. You are all such beautiful and understanding women. How can I ever get tired of you?”

The Confucian stroked the face of the beauty he was lying on gently. “A gentleman must not let down a beauty like a common man would not drop a jade. For as long as I live, I will never be tired of any beauty like you.”

The beauty he was caressing blushed and looked even more gorgeous than before. “Then why are you parting ways with us, master?”

The Confucian sighed. “Because I’m going to die very soon.”

“W-what?”

The four beauties were stunned to say the least. “Master... Please don’t joke like that.”

“I’m not joking. I would never make such a tasteless joke.”

The Confucian comforted them gently. “I’m just stating facts. I really am going to die soon.”

As if on cue, Ye Qing suddenly stared right in the direction of the mirror as if sensing the Confucian’s gaze. His pupils looked deep, black, and lightless.

The next moment, the mirror exploded as if it could not endure Ye Qing’s gaze.

The Confucian waved his hand and blocked the fragments handily. Then, he looked at the terrified women and said smilingly, “See? He found me. He’s coming to kill me right now.”

“Heavens... This...”

The four beauties turned as white as a sheet. “W-what are you waiting for, master? You should escape before it’s too late!”

“I can’t. I am no match for him.”

The Confucian shook his head. Despite the threat of death looming over his head, he did not seem the slightest bit nervous or afraid. “Don’t worry. That young man is a good person. He won’t kill innocents like you.”

“If I die, you don’t need to be sad for me either. Who doesn’t die in this world? It is just a matter of dying earlier or later. There is nothing to be sad about.”

“Now, keep playing, and keep dancing.”

The four beauties exchanged incredulous looks with each other. They were having difficulty telling if the Confucian was speaking the truth or not.

Was he lying? It didn’t feel like it.

Was he telling the truth? But what kind of person would be in the mood to make merry when death was right around the corner?

There could only be two possibilities then. Was he ill, or was he insane?

Or maybe it was both?

Whatever they were thinking, the women continued to play music and dance.

Weren’t they afraid of this seemingly mad customer of theirs? Of course they were. However, they didn’t dare to leave either. What if they angered him? They would simply die, wouldn’t they?

They could only obey.

But of course, the unexpected fright they received made them far more reserved than before. The jovial and lively mood from before were gone, and even the melody and the dance were flawed and stiff.