Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 310: Dumb Luck

Zhao Changhe had always been honest about his fear of Vermillion Bird, and even now, he was still quite afraid of her.

Lady Three might be ranked higher than Vermillion Bird, but Zhao Changhe never felt any fear toward her. However, he continued to fear Vermillion Bird to this day.

Perhaps it was because Vermillion Bird was so fierce while Lady Three was always smiling. Or maybe it was the intense memory of blood-soaked slaughter from when he first entered this world, a memory that lingered and would not fade away. Not to mention that deep down, he subconsciously believed that rankings did not represent everything. Considering their “aura,” he felt that, in a real fight, Lady Three might end up overpowered by Vermillion Bird.

But the more he feared her, the more exhilarating this moment was. It gave him a sense of overcoming fears, making him feel immensely liberated.

Xia Chichi also felt a mixture of fear and excitement. She was far more aware of Vermillion Bird’s ruthlessness than Zhao Changhe, to the point where she did not dare breathe loudly around her. In the past, she could never have imagined passionately kissing a man right in front of Vermillion Bird without her master losing her temper.

To both of them, those few moments felt amazing...

The two of them separated, and each quietly stole glances at Vermillion Bird.

With the mask covering her face, they could not read her expression. They could not tell if she truly did not care or if she was concealing her emotions deep within. Her words, however, were calm. “I had been secretly protecting you, and as it was a secret, I naturally could not let you know in the first place. I did all that so you would not develop a sense of dependency and lose the will to fight for your life. But in the end, I had no choice but to reveal myself because I feared that you would lose yourself in lust. Now that I’ve revealed myself, it’s time for me to truly leave. Don’t assume that I’m always around when you’re facing difficulties. Doing so will only serve to hinder your cultivation. As for whether you indulge yourself in lust after I’m gone, that’s up to you.”

Xia Chichi felt a bit ashamed, realizing that Vermillion Bird truly had her best interest at heart.

She lowered her head and said, “Venerable, about the volcanic eruption...”

“Just because a volcano erupted doesn’t mean anything significant. Don’t bother to exaggerate it into something grand. If you insist on investigating it, then I’ll instruct the Fire Serpent of Yi, the Fire Tiger of Wei[1], or some others to check it out. Matters related to fire have nothing to do with you. Focus on your own path; don’t get distracted.”

“I understand.”

Vermillion Bird gave Zhao Changhe a deep look and said calmly, “Don’t let your desires control you.”

With that, she disappeared in a flash.

Zhao Changhe was actually drenched in cold sweat. Seeing Vermillion Bird take her leave, his shoulders slumped as he exhaled with relief. He turned around and saw that Chichi was just as tense. They exchanged looks, both of them displaying an expression of relief from having just narrowly escaped death.

Xia Chichi, with her shoulders slumped as well, said, “Being in front of the venerable always feels so stressful.”

Zhao Changhe replied, “You say that, yet you dared act all coy earlier.”

“I’m a little witch. What kind of witch would I be without some nerve? What about you, though? Weren’t you afraid?”

“I’m a bandit. What’s a bandit who fears death?”

“Pfft... You’re risking your life for lust.” Xia Chichi smiled and took his hand. They sat on the edge of the bed. With their shoulders against each other, she whispered, “The venerable is already very angry. We better not push it.”

“Hah, do you really think that was the only thing I was after?”

“Wasn’t it?”

“Of course not!” said Zhao Changhe. “I asked Lady Three to pass a message to you, but it seems that you were already on your way to Kunlun by then. Because of that, she might not have had the chance to tell you. At the very least, it seems that she did not have the time to tell you that I learned the Rejuvenation Art.”

“So it really was the Rejuvenation Art...” Xia Chichi muttered. “Your relationship with the four idols is really strange.”

Zhao Changhe grinned and said, “After all, the Azure Dragon Saintess is my wife.”

“Who’s your wife?!” Xia Chichi snapped. “And why do you seem to be so familiar with Venerable Black Tortoise? How come you keep calling her Lady Three?”

Zhao Changhe tilted his head and said in exasperation, “She’s Lady Three.”

“Even I don’t call her that.”

“...Everyone in Huangsha Market calls her that.”

“Okay, okay,” Xia Chichi conceded with a laugh. “She really didn’t have time to tell us anything. Now that you’re here, you can just tell me everything directly. Are you going to teach me the Rejuvenation Art?”

“I don’t know how to teach it to you. I’ll write down what I can later, and then you can try and see if you can get anything from it,” said Zhao Changhe. “But what I really wanted to tell you is that your father isn’t gravely injured as people think. In fact, he’s very much alive and kicking.”

Xia Chichi was stunned.

Zhao Changhe then recounted everything about Xia Longyuan and what his “father” had told him. He then concluded with, “The reason the jade pendant and the Six Harmonies Divine Art would have been passed down to a son but not a daughter is not what we initially thought. He actually cared about you deeply... and he even recognizes me as his son-in-law.”

Xia Chichi remained silent for a long time before saying softly, “Regardless of his original intentions, he still abandoned me. I won’t forgive him.”

“Mm-hm,” Zhao Changhe agreed. He was not going to persuade her otherwise. The facts were clear—Xia Longyuan really had abandoned her in the end. He added, “In any case, his strength far surpasses our original assumptions. Any plans against him must be reevaluated. This rebellion is not something to take lightly. Do not act recklessly.”

“I know.” Xia Chichi’s mood visibly worsened as she sighed. “I don’t want to talk about him anymore. Let’s talk about something else. We can just leave those matters to the venerable and the others to consider.”

When she thought that Xia Longyuan was on the brink of death, Xia Chichi felt a twinge of familial bond and sadness, wanting to visit him. But now that she knew that he was not only alive but extremely well, she felt unhappy toward him again. Now, she was unwilling to talk about him any further.

Such was human nature.

Zhao Changhe did not press the matter. Instead, he asked, “Besides eliminating the traitor, what other important tasks did you come to Kunlun for? Does capturing Yang Qianyun count as one of them?”

“Yes, Yang Qianyuan is indeed one of my missions. Ideally, we want to capture him alive, which would highlight our influence. We could even use him to negotiate with the Yang Clan. Killing him outright serves no purpose; the Yang Clan might not even recognize it if we did that. We are not looking to please them, but rather to take advantage of them,” said Xia Chichi. “I’m planning to investigate that Tian Lingzi from the Yukun Gang tonight.”

“There’s no need for that. Yang Qianquan isn’t with the Yukun Gang. Tian Lingzi must have offended Tarantula at some point. She’s probably just trying to kill him with a borrowed knife.”

Xia Chichi asked curiously, “How do you know? The Earth Deer of Liu has been investigating for a while, but even he has not found anything.”

“In such a large city, finding someone who’s gone into hiding is indeed incredibly difficult.” Zhao Changhe showed a smug grin. “But some people just have fate on their side, such as your big brother Zhao here.”

Xia Chichi rolled her eyes. “Who’s the big brother? Call me senior brother.”

“Senior brother...” Zhao Changhe scooted a bit closer.

For some reason, that term had a bit of a flirtatious undertone between them, sparking a bit of emotion whenever it was mentioned.

Sometimes, Zhao Changhe wondered if there was something wrong with his own sexual orientation. After all, he seemed particularly stimulated by Chichi’s male disguise.

Xia Chichi pushed his face away and scolded, “And you said your mind wasn’t filled with that!”

“Ahem... Anyway, I do know where Yang Qianyuan is, but don’t do anything just yet. I still have some use for him.”

Xia Chichi asked in intrigue, “What use could you possibly have for him?”

“I need to gather some information from him. I’ve just started getting close to him, and I haven’t had the chance to really dig into certain secrets yet.”

“What information do you need that’s so important?”

“I want to find clues about the Thieves Guild and the Dragon Elephant Blood Ginseng.”

Xia Chichi smiled and said, “Are you deliberately trying to avoid owing the Four Idols Cult a favor, or are you just outright stupid? Yang Qianyuan has only been in Kunlun for so long. What could he possibly know? Why not just ask Earth Deer of Liu directly?”

Zhao Changhe scratched his head. “Because when Lady Three sent me here after I told her what I was after, she did not have the specifics, which suggests that Earth Deer of Liu doesn’t have any information on these two things either. After all, he’s primarily focused on investigating matters relevant to you. He might not have extensive knowledge about other things.”

Xia Chichi rolled her eyes. “Lady Three doesn’t even know Earth Deer of Liu is here. Her information probably came from Ying Five’s network. You really are a dummy sometimes.”

She jumped off the bed and dashed out the door. “Wait here, I’ll ask Earth Deer of Liu for you.”

After a moment, she returned with a strange expression, “He has no information about the Dragon Elephant Blood Ginseng, but he does have some information about the Thieves Guild.”

Zhao Changhe asked, “What’s with that look on your face? Is there something wrong with the Thieves Guild?”

“No,” replied Xia Chichi. “Earth Deer of Liu said that, if his guess is correct, Tian Lingzi might be the manager of the Thieves Guild here responsible for fencing stolen goods. He mentioned that the goods sold by the Yukun Gang are just too inexplicably diverse compared to others.”

Zhao Changhe suddenly realized something.

The Thieves Guild was never really supposed to be hard to find. They’ve got to have a direct link on the surface.

Otherwise, Sisi, who had just escaped from the Ancient Spirit Tribe’s secret realm and was completely clueless about the outside world, would not have been able to join the Thieves Guild. If the Thieves Guild is in Kunlun, then there must be a point near the city’s entrance where they would be easy to encounter. Sisi must have stumbled upon them. It makes a lot of sense now.

1. The mansion of Wei is one of the seven mansions under the Azure Dragon. ☜