Martial World Full of Disguises

2: Losing Loved Ones

Old Man Fu looked at them with suspicion and asked, "What is this?"

The weasel faced man stepped forward first to answer. "Brother Fu, we've come to see you off. Also, I need to apologize for what I said this evening. How could I have said such things? I was less than human. After I returned home, I couldn't sleep. I was truly ashamed. I hope Brother Fu can forgive me."

Old Man Fu had always had some friction with this man and knew his character well. That the other would apologize so sincerely surprised him. But Old Six's expression of remorse and shame was convincing enough to fool anyone. In the end, he believed him. "It's fine. I can understand. But there's no need to see us off. We're leaving now. You all should go back."

Seeing them about to leave, Old Six grew anxious. He stepped forward and stretched out his thin, long arm to block Old Man Fu. "That won't do. After this parting, we likely won't meet again in this lifetime. If Brother Fu doesn't mind, you must share a farewell drink with us."

Old Man Fu hesitated for a moment, then accepted the bowl of wine and drank it in one gulp. But Old Six wasn't done. He had someone pour another bowl and handed it to Madam Fu. "Sister Fu, all these years you've been helping my wife. I've seen it all. Great kindness needs no thanks. A thousand words of gratitude are all in this wine."

Old Man Fu had been about to stop her, but Madam Fu held him back. She accepted the wine herself and smiled faintly. "You must treat your wife well in the future."

"Naturally, naturally."

After the two bowls of wine were drunk, Old Six let out a breath of relief. He waved his hand cheerfully. "The world is vast. Take care, Brother and Sister Fu."

Old Man Fu also waved in acknowledgement and turned to leave. But after taking just a few steps, his vision suddenly blurred and his mind became muddled. When he looked at his wife, she showed the same reaction. He instantly understood. He widened his eyes and pointed at the three men. "You! You..." But before he could finish speaking, his body went heavy and he collapsed to the side. Madam Fu's legs also gave way and she fell beside him.

The attack came so suddenly that Fu Peibai's mind went blank. She fell to her knees and shook Old Man Fu. "Dad! Dad! Wake up!" Seeing that Old Man Fu showed no response, she turned to call out to Madam Fu beside him. "Mother! Wake up! Please wake up!"

It was useless. Little Fu Jiaxu had long been scared senseless. He fell into the irrigation ditch and began wailing loudly.

The three men walked over. Old Six, their leader, rubbed his hands together. Though his mouth spoke apologies, a smile hung on his face. "You two, go tie up that boy first. Then bind this girl too."

"Yes."

The two men walked toward Fu Jiaxu. But just as they pulled out rope from behind their waists, they were suddenly bumped from behind. Being sturdy men, they only staggered a step before steadying themselves. When they looked up, they saw the teenage girl standing with arms spread wide in front of the boy, glaring at them viciously as she shouted at the top of her lungs, "What did you give my parents?! What exactly are you trying to do?!"

Her voice was loud but lacked real force. After all, Fu Peibai was just a sixteen year old girl. Three grown men naturally weren't afraid of her.

Old Six stepped forward and explained with a smile, "Don't worry, girl. It's just some sedative powder, that's all. I told you, you can't leave. If you leave, the village will suffer. So for the greater good, you and your parents will stay here for one night. After the soldiers take your brother away tomorrow, I'll release the three of you. After that, you can go wherever you want. I won't stop you."

Fu Peibai immediately spat at him. "Dream on! You want to take my brother? Keep dreaming! Unless I'm dead!"

This mouthful of saliva landed on Old Six's face. The smile on his face gradually disappeared. He narrowed his eyes at the girl before him, who looked like a small beast baring its teeth. His expression shifted unpredictably. After a moment, perhaps some remaining conscience made him choose not to argue with Fu Peibai. He wiped the saliva from his face with a cold expression and ordered the other two men to tie them up quickly.

How could two children with thighs no thicker than a man's arm possibly resist? They were immediately bound hand and foot. Fu Peibai screamed desperately for help. "Help! Help me!" Her cries rang through the night sky. There was no way anyone couldn't hear. Yet every household in the village had their doors tightly shut. Silence reigned.

By the end, Fu Peibai's voice was hoarse. She clenched her fists tight, her fingertips digging painfully into her palms. Then she was thrown into the cellar. The men wrapped cloth strips around her mouth several times, tying them so tightly that she couldn't open it. After checking everywhere to ensure she couldn't escape, they climbed out of the cellar.

The wooden board over the cellar entrance slowly closed, cutting off the last ray of moonlight.

Fu Peibai bit her lower lip, struggling not to let the tears pooling in her eyes fall. She desperately recalled the words her father had told her. Even as a girl, she must be brave and strong. When facing danger, she must stay calm. She repeated these words to herself over and over. Eventually, the tears were forced back, and her eyes gradually adapted to the darkness of the cellar.

She looked around and found the cellar was completely empty, with no tools she could use. Those three men had also been cautious enough to separate her from her parents. Escaping would be harder than reaching the sky.

She slumped to the ground and closed her eyes in despair. Scenes of her and her little brother Fu Jiaxu together flashed through her mind.

When Fu Jiaxu was first born, he was all wrinkled like a monkey. Though Fu Peibai was only seven or eight at the time, her free spirited nature had already begun to form. She had frowned and said he was ugly, making her father jump with anger.

When Fu Jiaxu was five, she had taken him to play by the river. For a moment, she didn't watch him properly, and little Jiaxu fell into the water. She jumped into the rushing current and saved her brother. She thought she would surely get a scolding from her father when they returned. But her father had only asked her seriously if she was alright and told her never to jump into a river to save someone so recklessly again. It was the first time she couldn't hold back her tears.

When Fu Jiaxu was eight, she took him to the county town for an outing. She bought him candied hawthorn and a sugar figurine, and took him to see a shadow puppet show. Fu Jiaxu held up his candied hawthorn and bounced along the road back to the village, shouting, "Big sister is the best! Big sister is the best!"

There were many, many more memories. Memories of growing up with Fu Jiaxu, memories of being with her parents. As she thought about them, her eyelids drooped and she sank into a deep sleep.

A tremendous crash rang out.

Fu Peibai was startled awake by the noise. Her heart pounded like a drum. The sound had come from above ground, but she didn't know what was happening up there. She could only make muffled sounds of frustration.

She stared at the cracks between the wooden boards. Then came another loud crash. The last trace of light was blocked, as if someone had fallen onto the cellar's wooden cover. Accompanied by a heart rending scream, numerous noisy voices erupted from above ground. Men and women alike were all crying out for mercy. Then suddenly, with the sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh, all the voices above ground fell silent.

Fu Peibai stared at the wooden boards in terror. She watched as blood seeped through the cracks, gathering into a stream that flowed down and pooled at her feet. The smell of blood gradually filled the entire cellar.

Above the cellar, a moment later, an enormous commotion erupted. There were men's angry roars, women's screams, infants' wails, and the continuous sound of sharp weapons entering flesh. All these sounds mingled together, constantly assaulting her eardrums.

She stared blankly into the void of the cellar, not daring to move. She could only comfort herself in her heart. She hadn't heard the voices of her parents or Jiaxu. They must have also escaped this disaster by being in the cellar. It had to be true. It had to be...

But her fantasy was completely shattered by a sharp cry of "Fu Ming!" That was her mother's voice. Immediately after, Fu Jiaxu's young, terrified voice rang out.

"Daddy! Mommy!"

Blood rushed to Fu Peibai's head. She shot to her feet. The blood seeping through the boards landed on her forehead, flowing slowly down along her brow bone and cheek.

The sticky blood covered her eyes, making her unable to open them for a moment. She could only blink rapidly and jump up from the ground, trying to push open the wooden boards with her head. But it was all in vain.

Blood droplets fell ceaselessly onto her face, gradually covering it entirely. Only a pair of pitch black eyes remained exposed.

Time passed bit by bit. The noise above gradually diminished. The sound of swords being sheathed felt like knives slashing across Fu Peibai's heart. Though her eyes were open, her gaze was terrifyingly hollow.

Finally, Huailiu Village returned to stillness. The blood from the person on the wooden boards seemed to have drained away completely. No more drops fell.

Fu Peibai's strength gave out and she collapsed to the ground. In her line of sight was that pool of dark red, thick blood.

Her mind grew increasingly muddled, her consciousness slipping away bit by bit. She thought that she should be going to join her parents and little brother soon. That would be fine. The whole family reunited. It would be fine.

......

When she woke again, it was hunger that roused her. Her stomach let out a string of rumbling sounds that seemed abrupt and eerie in the empty cellar. She blinked and forced herself to sit up despite the emptiness in her belly.

Daddy. Mommy. Jiaxu.

The faces of her family members flashed through her mind one by one. She closed her eyes in pain and quietly waited for the King of Hell to come collect her life.

But after a long time like this, the death she imagined did not arrive. Instead, the burning pain in her stomach told her that she was still alive.

Her pupils moved stiffly in a circle, her gaze falling on that pool of blood on the ground. But now, that pool of strangely viscous fresh blood didn't seem terrifying at all to her. Instead, it appeared like sweet spring water, captivating and alluring. In her daze, she felt as if her nose could smell that intense bloody scent. When she opened her eyes, she discovered she was already sprawled on the ground, her face just an inch from that pool of blood. Her pupils contracted. She sat up and began to retch violently. But having had no food or water for dozens of hours, she couldn't bring anything up.

Death. Death was right before her eyes, yet it wouldn't grant her a quick end. She fell backward onto the ground and closed her eyes, her heart as dead as still water.

Just as she was about to lose consciousness again, voices came from above the cellar. She suddenly opened her eyes and silently listened to the conversation on the ground.

"Another entire village. This Demonic Sect has truly lost all conscience, lost all conscience!"

"Peak Master, we've checked everything. No survivors. How should we proceed?"

A cool, clear female voice like a spring rang out. "Bury them on site."

"Yes."

She instantly widened her eyes, scrambled up, and desperately jumped upward, making muffled whimpers from her throat.

She wanted to live. She had to live. Live to take revenge for her family. Revenge!

She would slaughter every evil demon and heretic in this world!

Right now, this was the only thought in her mind. She had to live, take her revenge, and only then go down to reunite with her parents and Jiaxu. Otherwise, she would never rest in peace!

Perhaps heaven was watching. The faint sounds of her jumping were finally detected. That cool female voice rang out again. "There's movement over there. Go check."

Soon someone walked over with heavy steps. The corpse pressing down on the wooden board was moved aside. The instant the board was opened, light flooded back into the cellar. The blinding sunlight made Fu Peibai unable to open her eyes. She frowned and kept her eyes shut, hearing someone above say, "Report to the Peak Master. There's still someone alive here."

She finally adapted to the light and opened her eyes to look up. In her blurry vision, there was a hazy figure of a young woman. The person stood against the light, shadows and radiance overlapping. She couldn't see the face clearly. Only when her vision became completely clear did she finally see what the other person looked like.

That young woman wore simple, pure white clothing. Her brows and eyes were slender, her expression cool and aloof. Those light brown pupils were like a pair of glazed gemstones, crystal clear and translucent.

Fu Peibai felt dazed for a moment. In her first sixteen years of life, she had never seen anyone so beautiful. Comparing her to an immortal descended from heaven would be no exaggeration.

The white robed woman glanced at her face, covered in blood and filth, then finally let her gaze rest on those pitch black, bright pupils.

Their eyes met. The woman fell silent for an instant, then dropped a dagger. Her meaning was clear.

The dagger hit the ground with a sound, pulling Fu Peibai out of her daze. She sat on the ground, picked up the dagger with her bound hands, and nimbly cut the rope. Then she tore off the cloth strips from her mouth. When she looked up again, the woman happened to be reaching down with her hand.

Those hands were extremely beautiful. Fair, slender, with well defined joints.

She swallowed unconsciously, secretly rubbed her palms against her pant legs several times, then placed her hand in the woman's. She was then pulled out of the cellar.

Back on the ground, the bright sunlight made her close her eyes, her facial features scrunching up. It took a while before she could open them again.

Everywhere she looked, blood. Blood covered the ground. On the mud, on the eaves, by the water vats. Blood was splattered everywhere. Her entire field of vision was filled with the color of blood.

And amidst the blood, corpses lay scattered in various positions.

Her mind buzzed. She stumbled forward and flipped over a corpse to look. Not them. She pushed aside another body. Not them. Another one. Not them. Not them. Not them. None of them were...

Finally, her hands froze over her body. Her entire body went rigid. Because she saw, not far away, the bodies of a middle aged couple and a young boy. They were her parents and little brother.

Old Man Fu leaned against the earthen wall, one arm around Madam Fu and one arm around Fu Jiaxu. The three of them huddled together, backs against the wall, their expressions peaceful, as if they were merely sleeping.

Fu Peibai's teeth began to chatter. Then she scrambled and crawled toward her family on hands and knees.

Their bodies were already cold. All three had been killed with a single sword stroke to the throat. Blood had soaked the front of their clothes.

Fu Peibai looked at them. Her mouth opened and closed, closed and opened. She reached out with trembling hands. Just as she was about to touch Old Man Fu's body, she yanked her hand back. Her brows knit together, then relaxed. She looked like she was crying, then like she was laughing. Her expression was extremely strange.

The white robed woman and her subordinates stood several paces away, watching this scene in silence.

Fu Peibai didn't cry. Or rather, she didn't make any sound of crying. Tears streamed down her face, mingling with the blood and filth. But she didn't let a single sound escape her throat. She held back the sobs in her throat, the sour ache in her nose. When she couldn't hold it back anymore, she bit the tip of her tongue, forcing herself to swallow all the pain, despair, and hatred that should have been released freely.

She turned her back to everyone, head lowered, body hunched. Her silhouette looked desolate and frail.

The clear voice that had always been so full of life was now hoarse and dim. "Why?"

Everyone looked at each other, not understanding what this person was babbling about.

Then came another "Why?", much louder than the last.

A young man holding a sword stepped forward and asked, "Why what? What are you talking about?"

In the next moment, Fu Peibai seemed to go mad. She turned around and grabbed the hem of the man's clean robe with a death grip, roaring with bloodshot eyes, "Why?!"

The man was startled by this sudden action and instinctively drew his sword. The sharp blade was little more than an inch from Fu Peibai's neck. But she wasn't afraid in the slightest. She gripped that piece of cloth as if it were her last lifeline.

The man grew somewhat impatient. He sheathed his sword and spoke with irritation. "You brat, if you have something to say, then say it. Keep asking why, why. How am I supposed to know what you're talking about?"

With her face covered in blood and her voice hoarse, Fu Peibai was mistaken for a boy. But she didn't care about that at all. Her gaze shifted as resentment crept across her features.

"Why? Why did you only come now? I know, I know you're from the martial world, from famous sects and noble families. You came here to crusade against the Falling Shadow Sect. But why? Why only come now? Why?!"

The man paused for a moment, then frowned and spoke coldly. "A crusade is a grave matter. Naturally, it requires careful thought and extensive preparation. How could it be accomplished in a day?"

Fu Peibai released her grip. She sat there numbly, alone and isolated, wretched and desolate.

The white robed woman watched all this from a distance. Then she summoned a black robed woman and whispered a few words in her ear. The black robed woman walked over, pulled out a heavy money pouch from her chest, and offered it to Fu Peibai. "What's done is done. Please accept my condolences, young brother. Take this silver. It will help you settle down in the future."

Fu Peibai knocked the pouch away. It fell to the ground with a crisp clatter.

"I don't want it."

The black robed woman was somewhat embarrassed. She picked up the pouch and offered it again. "Please take it."

Fu Peibai raised her head and stared straight at the black robed woman. "I don't want this."

The black robed woman paused, unsure what to do. She looked back at the white robed woman.

The white robed woman's expression was calm. She asked from a distance, "What do you want?"

Fu Peibai's eyes suddenly brightened. Her tone was firm. "I want to learn martial arts!"

"I want to learn martial arts! I want to follow you. Teach me martial arts!"

The man who had spoken to Fu Peibai earlier snorted with laughter. "Little brother, do you know who we are? Have you heard of the Heavenly Pole Sect? The finest sword sect in the world. Countless people flock to our mountain every year to beg for instruction. Among them are princes, nobles, and wealthy landowners. But very few are accepted into our sect each year. You say you want to learn martial arts, but you should measure whether you have the qualifications. Putting aside that your age is far past the best years for beginning training, you couldn't afford even one ten thousandth of the tuition. Listen to me. Take this money and start a new life somewhere else. The Heavenly Pole Sect will avenge you."

Fu Peibai completely ignored the man. Instead, she stubbornly shouted at the white robed woman, "I want to learn martial arts!"

The white robed woman furrowed her brows slightly. She paid her no further attention. After saying something to her subordinates, she walked toward the village outskirts.

Fu Peibai couldn't chase after her, because she hadn't yet buried the bodies of her parents and little brother.

In the end, the Heavenly Pole Sect members buried the bodies of the massacred villagers. But for the three members of the Fu family, Fu Peibai insisted on burying them with her own hands. She alone, supporting her frail body, made trip after trip carrying the bodies of her parents and brother beneath a willow tree outside the village. Then she began silently digging pits. Her fingernails were worn down, her fingertips oozing blood, but she showed no reaction. Her eyes stared dead at the ground, her hands never pausing for a moment.

The Heavenly Pole Sect group had finished packing and was ready to leave. The black robed woman stood by the carriage and said, "Peak Master, we should depart."

Hearing this, the white robed woman withdrew her gaze from beneath the willow tree. She lowered the carriage curtain and spoke without a ripple of emotion.

"Let's go."