Chapter 254: Breaking Through with Bajhang
Liu Xiaolou had heard of Fairy Jingzhen’s kindness long ago. His teacher, Master Sanxuan, used to speak highly of her. So, when he later heard that Ah-Zhen had been taken in by Jingzhen to cultivate, he felt both envy and genuine happiness for her good fortune.
So he guessed that Jingzhen would probably give the short thief a scolding and then let him go. Waiting at the foot of Xiushan, he wasn’t disappointed. The thief showed up just as he expected.
Liu Xiaolou followed him quietly for seven or eight li. When the man finally stopped to rest in a small grove, Liu crept closer. And saw him kicking at trees and weeds in frustration. The thief spat on the ground and cursed under his breath: “Damn it! I’ve roamed the world for years; who’s that woman to lecture me on how to live? If I had her luck, eating fine food and living easy every day, I’d be a good man too!”
Mid-rant, he suddenly stiffened, eyes darting left. “Who’s there?!” he barked.
Liu Xiaolou stepped out slowly from the shadows and walked up to the thief, studying him with a small smile.
The thief recognized him at once. The same man who had captured him the day before. He’d been knocked out twice by Ah-Zhen, so he didn’t know Liu Xiaolou’s name, but he remembered clearly how effortlessly the man had subdued him. There was no question. This was someone far beyond his level. Quickly forcing a grin, the thief bowed slightly. “Esteemed master,” he said, “may I ask why you’re following a lowly man like me?”
Liu Xiaolou folded his arms, looked him over again, and didn’t speak for a long moment. The silence made the thief’s heart pound faster. Finally, Liu said slowly, “Fairy Jingzhen is known throughout Jing-Xiang for her kind and compassionate nature. So yes, there are things you can say to deceive her. And even if she sees through you, she’ll probably still let you go.”
The thief forced a laugh, scratching his head nervously. “You jest, master. What could I possibly be hiding? Heh… heh…”
Liu Xiaolou went on. “But there’s one thing I need to make perfectly clear. I’m not as easy to fool as Fairy Jingzhen. When I want to know something, I will know it. So I’ve got a question for you. And you’re going to answer it honestly. If I don’t like your answer, I’m going to lose my temper. And every time I lose my temper… you lose a finger. Understood?”
The thief’s eyes darted nervously, though he kept that forced smile plastered on his face. “Who would dare hide anything from you, master? Whatever you wish to ask, I’ll tell you everything. Nothing will be left out!”
Liu Xiaolou nodded slightly. “Good. Oh, and one more thing. Before we begin… I’m from Wulong Mountain.”
The thief’s face went pale.
Liu Xiaolou repeated himself slowly. “You’ve probably heard of it. Wulong Mountain, in western Xian.”
At once, beads of sweat broke out across the thief’s forehead.
Only then did Liu begin his questioning. “Listen carefully. I’ll only ask once. Starting with your left thumb, let’s see if you can keep it… Why did you steal Fairy Jingzhen’s Sect Leader Token? I’ll count to three. If you haven’t answered by then… well, you’ll find out.”
The thief’s mouth twitched. “I—”
“Three… two… one.”
“Someone offered me five spirit stones!” the thief blurted out, panic flooding his voice. “And he was the one who told me where the token was hidden!”
Seeing Liu Xiaolou frown, the thief hurried to add, “It-it was He Taichang from Miao Feng Mountain! You’ve heard of Miao Feng Mountain, right? Deep in the southwestern Ten-Thousand Great Mountains? It’s been getting quite the reputation these past few years; ask anyone down that way, they’ll tell you.”
But when Liu Xiaolou’s brows only drew tighter, a chill crept up the thief’s spine. He babbled on, “My humble name’s Feng Buji. Folks say I’m rather good at the art of ‘empty-handed thievery.’ Ten years ago, that He Taichang crossed paths with me and learned of my, uh, little talents. That’s why he came knocking on my door! I swear, I’ve no idea what that wooden token’s for, but I was just doing a job for someone else! Please, master, have mercy! Oh-He Taichang’s at my place right now! If you want to see him, I’ll take you there myself!
His cultivation’s at the eighth layer. Not bad, but nowhere near your league, master! I can help you catch him, make him talk, and find out what that wooden token’s really about…”
As he rattled on, spittle flying, a bit of white foam actually began to gather at the corners of his mouth, though he didn’t even notice. “That damned He Taichang,” he gasped, “truth is, I… I’d long… long since had enough of him… not...”
But the next word simply wouldn’t come out.
Liu Xiaolou snapped to attention, leaping back more than twenty feet. When he saw there was no danger around, he darted forward again, grabbed Feng Buji’s wrist, and channeled his own true qi to purge the poison.
Too late. In that brief moment, the toxin had already taken hold. Feng Buji was dead.
Who poisoned him?
A chill ran down Liu Xiaolou’s spine. After a moment’s hesitation, he turned and left without another glance. His pace quickened, faster and faster, until he was almost running. He circled far around the area and didn’t stop until deep into the night, when he reached a nameless mountain peak.
There, standing on the cliff’s edge, he watched the path he’d come from. He waited. Two hours, then another. Only when he was sure no one had followed did he finally return to the cave.
Tan Bajhang and Fang Bu’ai were still breathing evenly in their cultivation. The cave was quiet, nothing seemed out of place.
For days, Liu Xiaolou kept turning the matter over in his mind, but with so little to go on, he couldn’t piece together anything useful. He thought more than once about returning to the grove where Feng Buji had died, yet every time, he just couldn’t summon the courage.
Since he lacked the nerve to go back and face it, he forced himself to stop thinking about it altogether and threw himself back into cultivation.
Two more months passed. He steadily opened four more acupoints -- Qiangu, Houxi, Wangu, and Yanggu. His cultivation continued to progress step by step.
One day, while Liu Xiaolou was working to open the Yanglao acupoint, he suddenly heard a faint gnawing sound from the inner chamber. Jumping up, he went in to check and found Tan Bajhang at the critical moment of breaking through. His molars were grinding uncontrollably, his face slick with sweat.
Two months earlier, Liu Xiaolou had faced this very same trial himself. Knowing all too well the dangers inside, he wasted no time. He pressed a fingertip to the spot between Tan Bajhang’s brows -- the Tianjing acupoint.
A thread of true qi flowed from his finger, running through Tan Bajhang’s meridians, stabilizing his mind and clearing his spirit.
Then, at some moment the following day, the air in the cave suddenly shifted. The atmosphere grew solemn, yet carried an uplifting force that stirred the heart and made one’s blood surge.
Tan Bajhang opened his eyes, let out a long breath of stale air, then burst into hearty laughter. Liu Xiaolou quickly covered his mouth and dragged him out of the cave.
“Hey, if you’re going to laugh, do it outside. Don’t disturb Junior Fang.”
“Hahaha… alright, alright! Your interruption just killed the mood anyway!”
“Congratulations, Brother Bajhang, on breaking through to the late stage!”
“Ah, don’t mention it. Thanks to you for keeping watch while I cultivated! You’ve gotta keep it up too, Xiaolou; catch up to me soon. When it’s your turn to break through, I’ll be there to guard you!”
“No need for that. Brother Zuo already did it for me, two months ago.”
“Ah, Xiaolou, you… you’ve reached the eighth layer too?”
Someone came up the mountain, calling out from afar, “Also at the eighth layer? Congratulations!”
“Brother Zuo,” said Liu Xiaolou, “you’re back! How was your trip to Chicheng Mountain?”
Tan Bajhang looked stunned. “Brother Zuo went to Chicheng Mountain? When did that happen?”
Zuo Gaofeng shook his head. “It’s a long story... the Hidden Market at Chicheng Mountain didn’t have any Foundation Establishment Pills, but I did learn something. Xiaolou, let’s head back first.”
“Has Tianmu Mountain loosened up again?” asked Liu Xiaolou.
Zuo Gaofeng said, “I heard something interesting. They’ve just refined another Foundation Establishment Pill. It was meant for a disciple about to enter the inner sect, but rumor has it someone’s stolen it again!”
“Is that true?” Liu Xiaolou hurriedly asked.
“Yes, it is. This news came from Dai Shenggao!”