Chapter 544: Man In The Shadows

“Have you come to a decision, scion?” Joy Bodhisattva asked after dealing with the three traitors and returning to Ye Qing’s side.

Ye Qing saluted her and said, “I appreciate the offer, Bodhisattva, but my answer is still no.”

It wasn’t like Joy Bodhisattva’s offer was unattractive. He didn’t mind living off a woman either, especially one as competent as her. Unfortunately, he had reasons that prevented him from accepting no matter what.

Even if he assumed that Joy Bodhisattva was completely honest and sincere with their deal, he still couldn’t accept her offer. First, he came to Bei You to avoid capture, and to do that, he needed to keep a low profile. Sure, he had shown himself today, but things were still under control. After all, no one would believe that the late-stage Spirit Purifier Ye Qing would gain the power of a late-stage Spirit Master just a little over a month after he was grievously injured by Zhou Hengshan. His pursuers might notice that a new contender had appeared in Bei You, but chances were they wouldn’t think it was him.

It was a completely different story if he married Joy Bodhisattva, however. The woman was the head of the Buddhist Hall of Joy and a famous warrior in this region. Not only that, her recent ascension to the Grandmaster stage guaranteed that all attention would fall on her.

If he and Joy Bodhisattva were to marry, everyone in the jianghu would learn about it at first notice, and he would become famous whether he liked it or not. Privacy did not exist for celebrities, and it was doubly true in this world. No matter how careful he was, it was only a matter of time before his identity was exposed.

Sure, some idiot might say that since the most dangerous place is the safest place, it stands to reason that going high profile is actually the safest way to stay low profile blah blah blah. To those people, he could only say, “Fuck off.”

If he was exposed, Joy Bodhisattva might be the very first person to stab him in the back. Even if she proved to be more loyal than expected, she could never keep him safe.

After all, Fang Muyun wasn’t his only enemy. There was Chu Wangsun, Zhou Hengshan and the Intelligence Department as well. Forget one Joy Bodhisattva, not even five Joy Bodhisattvas would be enough to save his life.

Second, he wasn’t just trying to hide himself from his enemies. He had more important things to do as well. If he agreed to marry Joy Bodhisattva, he would have to interact with her every day, and she would have full purview of his activities. It would be inconvenient to say the least.

His heart ached at the thought of saying no, but in the end, it was his only option.

“If that is your decision, then so it shall be,” Joy Bodhisattva replied calmly. It was impossible to say if she anticipated his rejection from the start, or if she really had reached a state of zero emotion and desire and so could not feel frustration or annoyance at his rejection. One thing for certain, the woman’s facefu was impeccable, and she did not ask him why he rejected her offer either.

“Thank you for understanding, Bodhisattva,” Ye Qing replied with a hint of relief. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t afraid that Joy Bodhisattva would throw caution to the wind and kidnap him by force.

“Since you don’t wish to be wed with me, I assume you wouldn’t want to join my Buddhist Hall of Joy either,” Joy Bodhisattva said indifferently. “In that case, I owe you one.”

Ye Qing replied honestly, “Er, I don’t think so, Bodhisattva. Honestly, you had everything under control with or without my help.”

It was at this moment Joy Bodhisattva said something that caused Ye Qing’s heart to skip a beat. “I do not like owing favors, but I do not like being rejected either. And you, scion Ye, have already rejected me many times today.”

“My deepest apologies, Bodhisattva!” Ye Qing replied in a hurry while chiding himself for his carelessness. Since Joy Bodhisattva had been extremely friendly thus far, he nearly forgot that she was a Grandmaster and a warrior of the Dark Ways. Standing before him was a pitiless woman who could kill without batting an eyelid even before she attained her desireless and emotionless state. “In this case, I see no reason to turn you down. Very well.”

“Good.” Joy Bodhisattva seemed very pleased with Ye Qing’s answer. “Seek me out if you ever change your mind. I won’t wait for you for too long though.”

“Thank you again, Bodhisattva. I promise I will consider it seriously,” Ye Qing said cautiously.

“Good. If there is nothing else, then I will take my leave.”

Joy Bodhisattva glanced at Ye Qing once before slowly dissolving into nothing like a dream.

“Until next time, Bodhisattva,” Ye Qing replied with a salute. It wasn’t until the woman was completely gone that he finally let out a sigh of relief.

Grandmasters were still too strong for him right now. He might be as strong as a body-tempering late-stage Spirit Master, but in the eyes of a Grandmaster, he was still little different from an ant. Just look at Master of Swords, Master of Curses and the Wisdom King of Joy. Master of Swords was the only one who managed to put up a fight against Ouyang De, and in the end, he still ended up dead.

He needed to grow stronger as soon as possible. At the very least, he needed to push his “Chaos Demon Ape Body Tempering Sutra” to the adept level and ascend his body to the Grandmaster stage. Only then could he face off against these Grandmasters and not rely on their mercy to live to see another day.

Meanwhile, Yi Pin finally stopped pretending that he was dead and walked up to Ye Qing with a look of disbelief. “I can’t believe you rejected her, brother! She gave you a flight of stairs that will take you all the way to the heavens, and you actually said no?!”

Ye Qing smiled. “Heh. I won’t deny that, but you know I’m nowhere strong enough to survive the consequences right now. I can easily fall and turn into a smear on the ground if I’m not careful.”

“Sure, but... a shame. A shame.”

Yi Pin shook his head regretfully. He understood Ye Qing’s worries completely, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t regret the missed opportunities. “Why did she choose you instead of me? I would’ve said yes without hesitation!”

“Because you’re ugly as sin, duh,” Ye Qing shot him a look and scoffed with disdain. Your wrinkles are so deep they might as well be mini mountain ranges. Not even a blind woman would choose you to be their partner!

“Fuck you! When I was younger, I too was a handsome, competent, and extraordinarily talented youngster who was loved by thousands and thousands of women. You had no idea how many celestials and demonesses wanted me back then!”

Yi Pin scoffed right back. “The only reason I turned them all down is because I couldn’t give them the loyalty they seek, and because I see no reason to turn down a forest for a tree! Otherwise, I would have great great great great grandchildren who are older than you already!”

“Know this, boy. If I was even a decade younger, then our roles would be reversed, understand?”

Ye Qing raised an incredulous eyebrow. “A decade? Are you kidding me right now? With your face, maaaaaaaaaaaybe you can say that if you’re seventy or eighty years younger. Otherwise? Heh!”

“Who the fuck are you calling eighty? I’m only in my fifties! It’s literally impossible for me to be eighty years younger, and even if I can that would be completely unethical!” Yi Pin rolled his eyes at Ye Qing. “You know what? I don’t need to stand here and take your nonsense. I’m heading home.”

Yi Pin huffed and began walking away.

“Alright, alright! I was just kidding. You’re still a handsome begonia who can seduce a woman with a mere curl of your finger, okay?”

Ye Qing laughed and followed the old man.

......

Inside a big hall, Xiong Kuohai opened his eyes. Tiny bolts of lightning could be seen flickering here and there.

It was at this moment his shadow suddenly writhed like it was alive. Then, a voice came from the shadows asking,

“How did it go?”

Xiong Kuohai hurriedly rose to his feet and faced toward his shadow. He said carefully, “My apologies, Sakyamuni, but there was a small issue.”

The shadow continued to writhe like a glob of insoluble darkness. “A small issue? Are you saying that Joy Bodhisattva is still alive?”

Xiong Kuohai hurriedly explained himself, “Forgive me, Sakyamuni, but Joy Bodhisattva was prepared for us. Not only did she recruit Ouyang De to help her, she ascended to the Grandmaster stage over a month ago. We ultimately failed to kill her because of this.”

“Grandmaster? That is unexpected,” the shadow said. Xiong Kuohai let out a sigh of relief, but then the shadow added, “However, the ascension to Grandmaster stage warps the heaven and earth itself. You should have noticed some signs at the very least, and yet you were completely oblivious. It is your own fault that you aren’t prepared for this. And now, our plans have run aground because of this. Do you admit your guilt?”

“I do,” Xiong Kuohai replied fearfully.

“Since you’re guilty, you must be punished.”

A silver needle flew out of the shadow, and Xiong Kuohai turned as pale as a sheet when he saw it. He didn’t dare to dodge out of the way, however. He remained where he was and allowed it to hit him.

As soon as the needle made contact with his forehead, it started wiggling as if it was alive. Then, it slowly crawled into his flesh.

Crack!

Xiong Kuohai’s molars were crushed at that moment. His face was deathly pale, his whole body was trembling, and cold sweat was pouring off his forehead like crazy. It looked like he was enduring some sort of unimaginable pain.

Every time the silver needle crept an inch deeper into Xiong Kuohai’s forehead, the Grandmaster would shudder violently. His complexion kept growing paler and paler, and his teeth kept breaking from the sheer amount of force he was exerting on them.

The silver needle was only three inches long, but it took about half a teatime to fully sink into Xiong Kuohai’s forehead. By now, the Grandmaster was shaking non-stop like a leaf trying weather a windstorm, his clothes were completely drenched in sweat, his eyes were bloodshot, and veins were bulging all over his face.

This was just the beginning, however. After the silver needle had entered his forehead, it began moving about his face and scalp like an earthworm.