Why Aren't You Crying?

The Critick before his eyes was an impostor—a high-level Opera Cultivator in disguise. Facing an advanced Opera Cultivator all alone, Li Banfeng genuinely felt a flicker of tension. His expression and tone, however, remained flawlessly in character. Yet what baffled Li Banfeng most was why this Opera Cultivator had lured him all the way to the City of Fools. How did this man know where the City of Fools was located? Could it be that he was... The Opera Cultivator's gaze turned chillingly sharp. Just as he prepared to strike, Li Banfeng said, "Don't be in such a rush. A good show always demands a proper curtain call. Since we've already come this far, let's lay everything on the table. Was that woman who walked into my cabin earlier your accomplice?" "You mean this woman?" The Opera Cultivator wiped a hand across his face, instantly shifting his features into those of the woman who had entered the wooden cabin earlier. The woman had been his disguise, and so was Critick. Li Banfeng offered genuine praise. "Splendid technique. But when I heard Critick's voice, you were standing right in front of me while his voice came from outside the house." "Just a few theatrical tricks. Go to the opera house often enough, and you'll figure it out." As he spoke, the Opera Cultivator's lips didn't move in the slightest, yet his voice sounded as though it came from the distance. "What is your true purpose in coming to Puluo Province? To seize Huangtuqiao? To take Qiqiu City? Or do you just want a piece of territory?" When it came to theatrical craft, the Opera Cultivator was more than happy to elaborate. On other matters, his patience ran thin. "What good will knowing all that do you? Planning to seek revenge in your next life?" Li Banfeng smiled. "The curtain is about to fall on the play. Aren't you even going to let me peek at the script?" The Opera Cultivator shook his head. "In this grand drama, you're merely an insignificant extra. Your stage time has run out; there's no need for you to read the script anymore. Still, if you're willing to tell me the truth, I might just add a little scene for you. First, tell me: who leaked the news that I arrived in Puluo Province?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "Did anyone even need to leak it? The way you handle things is simply beyond outrageous. Violating the child's father right before the mother's eyes—how could you bring yourself to do something like that?" The Opera Cultivator found nothing wrong with it. "Doesn't everyone have their little predilections? Want an extra scene? How about I give you something thrilling?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "I can't take on that scene. Nor am I in any hurry to take my final bow. Until we meet again!" With that, Li Banfeng took off at a dead sprint. The Opera Cultivator laughed heartily. "You won't escape! In this city, you will never get out. And no matter where you run, I will find you!" *** Li Banfeng ran all the way back to Changsan Shuyu. Yanhong was in the middle of practicing her singing. When she saw Li Banfeng arrive, her face lit up with delight. "Sisters, come quickly! Our shopkeeper is back!" The courtesans crowded around, escorting Li Banfeng into the back hall. Yanhong said, "Lord Seventh, where is the rouge you promised to bring me last time?" "I came in a rush and forgot it. I'll definitely make it up to you next time." Yanhong pouted and walked away. Yan Qing'er stepped forward. "Lord Seventh, where is the pearl hairpin flower you promised me last time?" "I forgot that too. I'll make it up to you next time." Yan Qing'er huffed and walked away as well. Yan Cui'er came up next. "Lord Seventh, where is the flesh and blood you promised me last time?" "That, I brought!" Li Banfeng beamed. "Right behind me. It'll be here in a moment." Yan Cui'er was startled. "Be here in a moment... This person is alive?" Li Banfeng nodded. "Alive as can be!" Yan Qing'er rejoiced. "Lord Seventh brought us something fresh?" Yan Cui'er flared up. "Was it brought for you? Lord Seventh brought that for me!" Yanhong snapped furiously, "A full-grown living person—did you actually think you could keep him all to yourself?" Tang Changfa rushed out from an inner room wielding a rolling pin. "What are you all squawking about? Shopkeeper, you're back? Did you go see the City Lord?" Li Banfeng glared at him. "Fool! A living person is about to arrive at our door. How could we possibly tell the City Lord about this?" "A living person..." Tang Changfa looked down at the rolling pin in his hand. "Then are we still having noodles for lunch?" Yanhong poked Tang Changfa with a finger. "Look at your pathetic lack of ambition! Noodles, my foot! The shopkeeper brought meat back for us!" Yan Cui'er still felt wronged. "The meat is mine!" Li Banfeng warned everyone, "This meat won't be easy to handle. You all must tread carefully." Full of confidence, Tang Changfa headed back to the kitchen, swapped his rolling pin for a cleaver, and called out to the crowd: "Yanhong'er, welcome the guest at the door, and put a sweeter smile on your face! "Yan Qing'er, sing inside, and pitch your voice higher! "Yan Cui'er, lead the sisters in dancing, and sway those hips with all your might! "Shopkeeper, sit right here and sip your tea. The first cut of choice meat is yours!" Li Banfeng did not stay to drink tea; he had no leisure for that. Finding an opportunity, he slipped back into the companion dwelling to instruct his wife and Hong Ying to prepare their techniques for battle, and also to consult the Old Master about executing a detour. Tang Changfa waited in the main hall for the meat to arrive. A young woman of about twenty came up to the entrance of the shuyu and asked, "Did a man come by here just now?" Yanhong'er froze. "You came here looking for a man?" The woman scoffed, "Can't one look for a man here?" Yanhong'er frowned. "Do you think that's appropriate?" "I saw that man enter your shuyu with my own eyes!" Yanhong caught a scent in the air and paused in surprise. This visitor carried the smell of blood. Was this the living person the shopkeeper had lured in? She retreated into the hall and said to Yan Cui'er, "Stop dancing! Your peaches are about to shake right off! "Old Tang, the one the shopkeeper brought is a woman! Our usual act won't work on her!" Hearing this, Tang Changfa spat twice into his hands, smoothed his hair, tucked the cleaver into the waistband behind his back, and wore a determined smile. "I'll go." Off he went, leaving the sisters feeling rather uneasy: "With how he is, will he manage?" "I've heard he practices his arts normally. He ought to have some real capability!" "What real capability could he possibly have?" He walked up to the doorway and said to the woman, "You're here looking for a man?" The woman nodded. "You don't have particular requirements regarding duration, do you?" The woman gave a cold laugh. "If you're lacking in both time and stamina, what business do you have running a house like this?" Tang Changfa lowered his head, somewhat ashamed yet stubborn. "If you're going to be that picky, there's nothing I can do. I'm the only man in this shuyu." "Nonsense." The woman stepped forward and hooked a finger under Tang Changfa's chin. "You have another man here—a man from outside the city. I came here looking for him." Tang Changfa stared blankly for a second, then said, "There are no other men here. Truly, just me!" The woman's smile vanished, her expression darkening. "Why are you hiding him? Just after his flesh and blood? "That's easy enough. Hand him over. Once I slaughter him, all the flesh and blood is yours." Tang Changfa offered an innocent smile. "Look at what you're saying. It's not like we run an outlaw inn." Behind the folding screen, Yan Qing'er watched with growing anxiety. "What is he waiting for? Drag her in already!" Yanhong'er lowered her voice. "This person seems to carry quite some background." Yan Cui'er moved to go out and help. "Who cares about her background? One way or another, it's prime meat the shopkeeper delivered to us!" The woman wiped a hand across her face, abruptly morphing from a woman into a man. It was the Opera Cultivator who had been tracking Li Banfeng all along. The moment Yan Cui'er peeked out, she shrank right back in terror. Yanhong asked, "What happened?" Yan Cui'er trembled for a long while before stammering, "It's... it's the Eldest Young Master!" Eldest Young Master Gu Rusong—the personal, prime disciple of the City Lord of the City of Fools, Sun Tiecheng! Yan Qing'er gasped. "Why would the Eldest Young Master come to our place? What do we do now?" Yanhong'er said, "From the sound of it, he's after the shopkeeper!" Yan Qing'er said, "Where did the shopkeeper go? I'll go find him!" Yan Cui'er snapped, "Don't you dare! If you dare sell out the shopkeeper, I'll take your life!" Yan Qing'er flared up as well. "Why take it out on me? I'm not the one who provoked the Eldest Young Master!" Tang Changfa turned his head and bellowed, "Stop your bloody squawking! This is a male customer! Tidy yourselves up and come out to greet him!" Gu Rusong frowned. "Tang Changfa, don't play dumb with me. You don't know who I am?" Tang Changfa shook his head. "The light is so dim, I truly can't make out who your lordship might be." Gu Rusong let out a faint smile. "I'm standing this close, and you still claim you can't see clearly? In that case, you might as well throw away those eyes of yours." "Alright, whatever you say. Away they go." Tang Changfa gouged out his own eyes and tossed them onto the table, leaving behind two deep, hollow sockets on his face. "Honored patron, I truly cannot see now. The eyes have been removed—ironclad evidence," Tang Changfa said with complete calm. "If you think well of our shuyu, pick a girl and stay. If you look down on us, then safe travels; we won't see you off." Gu Rusong sighed. "Why go to such lengths? Don't you feel pain?" Tang Changfa chuckled. "It does hurt quite a bit. But what choice do I have? You said you didn't want me to have them, so I threw them away. Isn't that giving you face?" Losing a pair of eyes was a heavy price for Tang Changfa. His eyes were false, but he himself believed they were real, just as he believed he was still alive. Without those eyes, he was genuinely blind. He had paid such a steep cost purely to force Gu Rusong to retreat through his technique. A wave of dread rippled through Gu Rusong's heart. He knew he had been caught by a technique. Yet he was an Opera Cultivator at the first tier above the clouds. Though dread gripped his heart, not a flaw showed on his face. Wearing a light, easy smile, Gu Rusong said, "You haven't given me enough face. If you have the guts, gouge out your heart and liver for me to see!" "Easy enough!" Tang Changfa seized his knife and plunged it straight into his belly. He plucked out his steaming heart and liver and set them before Gu Rusong. "What else would you like? Just say the word!" "Using techniques on me again! First Ironclad Evidence, and now Plea to Strike and Issue Challenge." Gu Rusong pulled out a handkerchief and covered his nose. "Only, your technique carries a stench. It disgusts me." Tang Changfa stammered, "Wh-what stench?" "The stench of a dead man, what else?" Gu Rusong wafted the air with his handkerchief. "What a revolting stench. How do you endure it day in and day out? Aren't you sickened by your own smell?" Tang Changfa began to tremble all over. Certain things in their realm could never be touched upon. Yanhong'er gasped in horror. "Seizing Shortcomings! Old Tang is about to break!" Holding the handkerchief over his nose, Gu Rusong went on, "Just how many years have you been dead? Don't you feel the least bit disgusted with yourself? Still running a courtesan house, still doing business here—when have you ever had any business? Who would ever willingly come to your place? Looking at that visage of yours, don't you want to vomit? Right now the cold weather helps a bit, but when the days warm up, aren't you afraid of breeding maggots?" Under this barrage of words, Tang Changfa shuddered violently, unable to speak, unable even to move. Earlier, he had employed the Fool pathway's Plea to Strike and Issue Challenge against Eldest Young Master Gu Rusong. The core of this technique lay in self-harm: 'pleading to be struck' meant inviting the opponent to hit you; if they refused, you struck yourself. Tang Changfa had gouged out his own eyes and sliced open his own heart and liver, exerting an enormous psychological shock upon his opponent. Even though Gu Rusong was above the clouds, a Fool technique worked on him all the same. At this moment, both his combat power and fighting will had been drastically suppressed. Yet Gu Rusong knew Fool techniques as well, and he had countered with Seizing Shortcomings. Everything Tang Changfa had done previously was born of endurance and deference, aiming only to ward Gu Rusong off. In principle, having paid such a massive price without displaying the slightest offense, his actions were faultless. Gu Rusong, however, cared nothing for that. The essence of Seizing Shortcomings was to latch onto an opponent's shortcomings and sore spots without letting go. He had seized Tang Changfa's most agonizing vulnerability and ripped the wound open bit by bit. In an instant, Tang Changfa lost all capacity to resist. Gu Rusong took advantage of the opening to stride into the main hall of the shuyu, shoving Tang Changfa aside as he walked straight in. As he advanced, he called out, "Listen up, you living dead! Get the hell out of here right now, and don't make me sick to my stomach! "You know full well who I am. If I catch sight of you again, I'll tear apart those rotten bones of yours and dump them in a latrine, then destroy your souls so that you vanish into ash and smoke!" Behind the folding screen, the three women gritted their silver teeth, clenching their fists tight. Yanhong'er was the first to leap out from behind the screen. Pointing behind the Opera Cultivator, she yelled, "Over there! Eldest Young Master, he's behind you!" Gu Rusong froze. What was behind him? Yan Cui'er walked out. "Don't listen to her nonsense! There's no one behind you!" Yan Qing'er stepped out as well. "Why are you talking about behind? There's nothing back there at all!" Gu Rusong's brow furrowed. What were they playing at? Were they trying to trick him into turning around with such clumsy acting? Did they want to mount a sneak attack the moment he turned his head? Would they dare sneak-attack him? Had they forgotten who he was, forgotten his standing? Could someone truly be behind him? In that split second of indecision, Gu Rusong perceived a sound at his back. He spun around violently, only to see Li Banfeng right behind him. With his capabilities as an Opera Cultivator above the clouds, he could launch an ambush instantly. When striking from a standstill, an Opera Cultivator was exceedingly swift and discreet, not at all inferior to a journey cultivator. His opponent would find it nearly impossible to dodge or parry; not even Li Banfeng's current Benevolent Dwelling Heart technique could withstand it. Yet Gu Rusong was still tangled in hesitation. The three women behind him were chattering incessantly. Should he pour everything into killing Li the Seventh, or split his attention to guard against those living dead behind him? With that hesitation, his strike was visibly delayed. A fraction of a second too slow, and Li Banfeng slipped away. In the blink of an eye, Li Banfeng vanished. Viewing Flowers from Horseback! Gu Rusong's gaze swept around with blinding speed, searching for Li Banfeng's trail. Several women shouted from behind: "Eldest Young Master, he's on the left!" "Eldest Young Master, he's behind you again!" "Eldest Young Master, look up, look quick!" Thousand Deliberations of the Fool! All three women were deploying the technique! *Bang!* Caught in his hesitation and distracted by the chaos, Gu Rusong was struck. The Viewing Flowers from Horseback landed cleanly; his chest cavity ruptured, and blood seeped through his garments. Opera Cultivators possessed no extraordinary defense. Taking a full blow from Viewing Flowers from Horseback left him severely wounded, even if not mortally. Strange. Why were these three women helping Li the Seventh? Why had Tang Changfa shielded Li the Seventh so stubbornly? At first, he had assumed they merely coveted that body of fresh flesh and blood, but now he realized there had to be some other connection between them. He could not fight inside this shuyu—the disadvantage was too great! Gu Rusong took a step toward the entrance, only to hear the three women continuing their endless chatter behind him. Yanhong'er cried out, "You can't go outside, Eldest Young Master! He's a journey cultivator—the moment you step out, you're dead!" Her words made sense. In open terrain, journey cultivators clearly held the upper hand. Yan Cui'er shouted, "You have to go out, Eldest Young Master! Once an Opera Cultivator exposes his identity, he has to run immediately! If you stay here, you're just waiting to die!" Several more courtesans stepped out from behind the screen, calling out loudly: "Eldest Young Master, talk things through with him properly! This is our territory; there's nothing that can't be resolved with words!" "Eldest Young Master, you must be cautious! That man is coming again!" Fool Cultivators—the most infuriating pathway to deal with in the world. Even for an Opera Cultivator above the clouds, dealing with a single ground-crust Fool Cultivator required utmost caution. Now, with a swarm of them meddling all around him, how was he supposed to fight? Ignore their nonsense; head straight out! Gu Rusong took a step forward, only to find the main hall of Changsan Shuyu right in front of him. He had walked out of the hall, yet here he was, back inside it. How could a single threshold separate two identical halls? Li Banfeng had employed Traversing a Thousand Mountains in Mind. He was unfamiliar with the technique and could not shift anything overly complex, but shifting the scenery right before his eyes was well within his power. He had directly replicated the main hall of Changsan Shuyu. Gu Rusong was an experienced Opera Cultivator above the clouds; he knew of Traversing a Thousand Mountains in Mind, but he had never imagined Li Banfeng would deploy it in such a bizarre fashion. A single group of chattering women had abruptly doubled into two swarms besieging him. Buzzing filled Gu Rusong's ears, leaving him unable to tell which were the real Fool Cultivators and which were the mental projections Li Banfeng had conjured. Should he charge out of the phantasm first? Or stand his ground and wait for the technique to expire? Traversing a Thousand Mountains in Mind lasted only a short time; enduring a brief spell would see it through. Yet a journey cultivator struck with lethal speed. Enduring even a brief moment would hardly be easy. As his mind warred with itself, he felt killing intent descending from above. Yanhong'er screamed, "Look up quick, he's coming!" Yan Qing'er shouted, "Don't look up, he's behind you!" This time, Gu Rusong had a response ready. He flicked a pearl hairpin flower from his sleeve, sending it soaring above his head. Opera Cultivators rarely used magical artifacts under ordinary circumstances, for doing so easily left an impression that made concealing one's identity harder next time. This pearl hairpin flower, however, was exceptionally subtle. When Gu Rusong disguised himself as a woman, it served as an ordinary, exquisite piece of jewelry that aroused no suspicion. When combat called, it was equivalent to an extra arm, capable of matching an opponent for several exchanges. The pearl hairpin flower took flight, spotted the Tang dao cleaving downward, shook its pearls, and flew up to meet the blade. Though the Tang dao was vastly larger and heavier, the hairpin flower showed no fear. It had faced plenty of oversized weapons; once engaged, it possessed countless tricks to overcome brawn with finesse. With just that single downward chop, the hairpin flower spotted an opening and darted straight for the hilt. It never expected that this opening had been deliberately offered by the Tang dao. At that very moment, the lens of the projector locked onto the hilt. The moment the hairpin flower entered its frame, the projector flashed, and the hairpin flower vanished without a trace. "All flowers in this world will wither, but a flower captured on film shall blossom forever. Director Seven, this is art—this is my self-created Technique of Withering!" With the hairpin flower gone, the Tang dao came crashing down. Gu Rusong dodged with all his might, yet the blade still sliced into his left shoulder. Traversing a Thousand Mountains in Mind dissipated. Gu Rusong sought to flee the shuyu swiftly, yet under the relentless assault of the Fool Cultivators, he plunged once more into crippling hesitation. "Don't go outside! Out on the street, you'll be even less of a match for him!" "Eldest Young Master, stay here! Deep down, our hearts are with you!" Gu Rusong knew Fool techniques himself, but that did nothing to blunt the damage they dealt him. Forget him—even Sun Tiecheng would be afflicted by Fool techniques. Over a dozen women unleashed Thousand Deliberations of the Fool simultaneously, their barrage never pausing for a single breath. Staggering under the persistent mental trauma of Thousand Deliberations of the Fool, Gu Rusong dragged his feet toward the entrance of Changsan Shuyu. Take one step—struck by Li Banfeng's Viewing Flowers from Horseback. Take another step—hit by Treading Ten Thousand Rivers. Take another step—a sickle hooked into his skull. Take another step—the Tang dao pierced his back, while the liquor gourd's flames scorched half his body black. Despite such horrific wounds, Gu Rusong did not die. The resilience of a cultivator above the clouds was simply that formidable. Reaching the entrance while the three women continued to nag behind him, Gu Rusong quickened his pace, ducking into a deep alley and putting the bevy of courtesans behind him. Shaking them off was easy enough, but shaking off Li the Seventh was impossible. Gu Rusong slowed his steps in the deep alley, waiting for Li the Seventh to draw near so he could mount a surprise attack. The alley was narrow. Although journey cultivators commanded Unimpeded Passage and Severing Paths and Blazing Trails, their mobility in such confined quarters remained somewhat restricted compared to wide-open spaces. That boosted the odds of a successful ambush. As long as the ambush struck true, he was certain he could take Li the Seventh's life. Naturally, he would have to pay a substantial price himself, depending on how ruthlessly Li the Seventh retaliated. A few more injuries didn't matter. As long as he took down Li the Seventh, everything that followed would fall into place. Huangtuqiao would be his for the taking, and Qiqiu City was within reach. So long as he continued impersonating Lu Dongliang and won over the prominent clans of Lüshui City, bringing down the Lüshui Beggar would only be a matter of time. If he offered all three cities to the Inner States, what kind of status would they bestow upon him? What level of cultivation would they grant? Even if he had to sacrifice more than half his life here, Gu Rusong considered it well worth the price! He sensed Li the Seventh drawing near, waiting only for him to close into range before launching his counterattack. Yet while they were still a good distance apart, Li the Seventh suddenly came to a dead halt. What was this supposed to mean? Li the Seventh raised both hands. "I don't want to kill you. See, I'm holding no weapons." Physical evidence. "I had no intention of killing you in the shuyu either; I never used lethal force. The people in the shuyu can testify to that." Witness testimony. Li the Seventh hadn't used lethal force? Absolute nonsense. Gu Rusong was at the first tier above the clouds; he had fallen into a disadvantage only after being bombarded relentlessly by a swarm of Fool Cultivators. How could Li Banfeng dare hold back under such circumstances? Every single strike had been aimed straight at his life. Yet Gu Rusong genuinely found himself believing it just a tiny bit. He suspected Li the Seventh might have an ulterior motive, which meant he could still buy an opportunity for an ambush. Li the Seventh asked, "Tell me one thing: how did you get your hands on my blood? Tell me, and I'll let you go." Gu Rusong said, "This matter can't be overheard by others. Step closer, and I'll tell you." Li the Seventh slowly approached. Gu Rusong braced himself. A band of glowing light suddenly swept beneath his feet. Gu Rusong shuddered violently as his flesh split open across his body, and he collapsed to the ground. What just happened? How was he hurt this badly? What technique had he used? Gu Rusong was thoroughly bewildered. Li the Seventh looked down at him and asked, "Don't feel like telling the truth? I'll give you one more chance. Where on earth did you get my blood?" Gu Rusong did not speak. Li the Seventh took a step back, and the glowing band sliced through Gu Rusong's body once more. Chunk after chunk of flesh fell away. Gu Rusong went completely silent. Dead? Could someone above the clouds be this fragile? Of course not! Gu Rusong had staked a lifetime of acting skills on feigning death, waiting for Li the Seventh to draw near. As long as Li the Seventh stepped forward to examine him, he still possessed the certainty to kill him. The distance between them was less than ten paces. Just two more steps... Li the Seventh stepped forward two paces, and the glowing band swept through Gu Rusong. Li Banfeng stepped back two paces, and the band cut through him once again. Li Banfeng stepped forward two paces... Back and forth it sliced, seven or eight times. Closed Doors and Barred Gates took an immense toll on physical stamina; unable to sustain it any longer, Li Banfeng let the glowing light dissipate. Gu Rusong did not stir. A true actor, performing right unto death. This time, he was genuinely dead. Even so, Li Banfeng wasn't entirely certain and was still pondering how to verify it. A middle-aged man came running from the mouth of the alley, bellowing, "What in the world is going on here?!" Li the Seventh twitched an eyebrow and kept quiet. Sun Tiecheng had arrived. *** Inside Changsan Shuyu, Gu Rusong's corpse lay sprawled across the floor. With a dark face, Sun Tiecheng demanded of Li Banfeng, "The moment you bloody well return, you stir up trouble for me! Tell me clearly: why did you kill your senior brother?" Li the Seventh put on an innocent face. "How was I supposed to know he was my senior brother? You told me yourself that I only had one senior brother." Sun Tiecheng pointed at Gu Rusong. "And wasn't this the only one? Yet you went and butchered him!" Li the Seventh shook his head. "You can't blame me for this. You told me my senior brother was He Jiaqing." "When did I ever say it was He Jiaqing? I don't even know who He Jiaqing is!" Li the Seventh frowned. "Going back on your own words—that's poor form. Back then, right here in the shuyu, you said you had another disciple. I asked if you were referring to He Jiaqing, and you admitted it was him. Didn't that happen?" Sun Tiecheng retorted, "When did I admit it? I asked you back then, 'How did you know it was him?'" Li the Seventh blinked. "Isn't that... isn't that pretty much admitting it..." "How on earth is that admitting it? That's a technique of our pathway called Going with the Slope! Whatever you said, I simply rolled along with it!" Li the Seventh folded his arms and squatted on the ground. "Then you really can't blame me. Who told you to use a technique on me? "Besides, I didn't feel like I'd been hit by any technique at the time. Bringing up 'Going with the Slope' after the fact—isn't that just swindling people?" "Who swindled you? The essence of Going with the Slope lies in 'going with it.' If you could tell it was happening, would the technique still be effective?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "I don't understand. What's this about 'going with' or not?" "How can you still not understand? To go with the slope, you first need a slope. You have to craft this slope so that it's neither too gentle nor too steep. If it's too gentle, things won't flow smoothly; if it's too steep, flaws will show easily." Li the Seventh asked, "Then how do you master the right measure of heat?" "As for this measure of heat..." Sun Tiecheng snatched the knife from Tang Changfa's hand. "You little bastard, you're trying to con techniques out of me! I'll bloody well chop you to pieces!" Everyone hurriedly stepped in to hold Sun Tiecheng back. Tang Changfa, with his eyes gone, clung to Sun Tiecheng. "City Lord, this matter isn't the shopkeeper's fault! The Eldest Young Master was utterly vile—he rubbed salt into our sorest wounds!" Looking at Tang Changfa's pitiful state, Sun Tiecheng softened somewhat. "I know Rusong was usually a bit foul-mouthed, but you didn't have to strike with such cruelty!" Li the Seventh chimed in from the side, "This wasn't just a matter of a foul mouth. He defected to become a dog for the Inner States and wanted to snatch Huangtuqiao from me to present as a tribute to them." "Utter nonsense!" Sun Tiecheng refused to believe it. "Don't think that just because the dead can't speak, you can smear whatever you want onto him." Li Banfeng could produce no evidence, but Sun Tiecheng had his own way of verifying the truth. He patted Gu Rusong's back, muttering softly under his breath, "You're alive, you're alive. You are still alive. You can move, and you can eat. If I say you are alive, then you are alive..." He chanted this more than a dozen times, until a sound stirred in Gu Rusong's throat. Li the Seventh was astonished. Was this bringing the dead back to life? It was not. This was Sun Tiecheng's method: before Gu Rusong's soul had completely detached from the body, he made Gu Rusong firmly believe he was still alive, transforming him into one of the living dead. Gu Rusong gripped Sun Tiecheng's hand, struggling to speak. "Save me, Master... save me..." Sun Tiecheng's face was grim. "Did you defect to the Inner States? Did you intend to hand Huangtuqiao over to them?" Just as Gu Rusong was about to speak, Sun Tiecheng abruptly added, "Tell me the truth!" As he spoke, Sun Tiecheng gripped Gu Rusong's soul through some unknown means. The slightest tremor in the soul would cause Gu Rusong to be annihilated into dust. Gu Rusong dared not lie and could only speak the truth. "I had no choice... My cultivation reached the tenth layer; I inevitably had to go to the Inner States. They ordered me to do things, and I had to..." Sun Tiecheng's palm slowly slid across Gu Rusong's soul. "You are dead. You are dead. Your soul has turned to ash; your corpse has entered the earth. If I say you enter the earth, into the earth you must go!" *Bang!* Gu Rusong's soul, along with his corpse, disintegrated entirely into dust. Watching the scattered dust, Li Banfeng was shocked, while Sun Tiecheng was grief-stricken. His eyes reddened, he snuffled twice, and then he burst into tears. "It's over! My eldest disciple is gone!" After weeping a couple of times, he felt the atmosphere was off. Turning his head, he glared at Li the Seventh. "Why aren't you crying?" Li the Seventh squatted beside Sun Tiecheng, snuffled twice, opened his mouth wide, and wailed, "It's over! Eldest Senior Brother is gone!" The two wept together, alternating long sobs with short whimpers, mourning with immense sorrow. After crying for quite a while, Sun Tiecheng still felt the atmosphere wasn't right. He turned to look at the rest of the room and bellowed, "Why aren't you lot crying?!" Tang Changfa wailed toward the courtesans, "It's over..." Having no eyes, he was facing the wrong direction. "Over there!" Yanhong'er gave Tang Changfa a shove. Tang Changfa turned around and led the courtesans in wailing together, "It's over! The Eldest Young Master is gone!"