Urban Martial Saint

Back at the manor, it was already late at night. Most people in the manor were already asleep, with only a few night guards patrolling.

Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu returned directly to the courtyard where they lived. Throughout the process, their fingers were interlocked tightly, unwilling to part even slightly. Just as they reached the door and were about to enter, the lights inside suddenly turned on.

”Who is it?” Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu simultaneously called in a low voice. This was their courtyard; who else would be in their room at this time?

Slowly, the sound of footsteps approached, and the door was gently opened. A head with a side-parted hairstyle peeked out, it was none other than Old Wang Ba.

Old Wang Ba stuck his head out, looked around, and seeing only Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu outside, seemed to relax a bit. He whispered, ”What were you two up to? I’ve been waiting for you forever. Hurry up and come in, hurry up!”

Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu exchanged a glance, neither expecting that Old Wang Ba would come here and apparently was waiting for them. Old Wang Ba really was a mood killer; coming here now, what was he planning to do?

”Eighth Master, can’t it wait until tomorrow?” Ye Qing walked into the room helplessly and said, ”Aren’t you staying with Old Chen? Why did you come alone, where’s Old Chen?”

”I’m here!” came Old Chen’s indistinct voice from the kitchen. It seemed the guy was still eating.

Ye Qing turned his head to look, seeing Old Chen gnawing on a roast duck from who knows where, this made Ye Qing even more speechless. It’s already eleven o’clock, how can you still eat such greasy stuff?

”Come quickly, come quickly!” Old Wang Ba gestured to Ye Qing, saying, ”If it weren’t for something urgent, why would I come running to you so late at night? Do you think I don’t want to sleep?”

Ye Qing said helplessly, ”What’s so urgent that you need to find me at such a late hour? Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”

”It’s very important!” Old Wang Ba said, ”Enough, no more nonsense. You have nothing else to do tonight, don’t you?”

Ye Qing glanced at Huangfu Ziyu beside him. How could this be called having nothing to do? However, how should he explain this to Old Wang Ba? In this situation, he could only admit to having nothing else to do!

Huangfu Ziyu was similarly helpless, and sat down with Ye Qing by the sofa. Ye Qing took a deep breath, suppressing some of the anger within, and said, ”Go ahead, what do you want to talk to me about!”

Old Wang Ba said, ”According to the agreement with the Nalan Family, tomorrow you are supposed to go to the Sword Saint Sect, preparing to jointly attack the Wanyan Family with them!”

”Not just us, but all of us...” Huangfu Ziyu interjected, ”Eighth Master, you also need to come along!”

”I’m not going!” Old Wang Ba replied straightforwardly.

”Well, it’s not up to you!” Having her good mood spoiled by Old Wang Ba, Huangfu Ziyu spoke bluntly to him, ”If you don’t go tomorrow, we’ll find someone to carry you over. We are going to the Sword Saint Sect, and you must come too!”

”Hey, hey, hey, don’t be so unreasonable!” Old Wang Ba quickly responded, ”I can’t do martial arts, what am I going to the Sword Saint Sect for? This kind of thing, I’d better not meddle in, let those masters handle it themselves!”

”I don’t care if you can do martial arts, you’re going!” Huangfu Ziyu threatened, ”If you don’t go, I’ll break your legs and have you carried there!”

”You woman, do you even know how to chat?” Old Wang Ba retorted.

”What!” Huangfu Ziyu widened her beautiful eyes and immediately frightened Old Wang Ba into trembling. The name ’East State Poisonous Mantis’ wasn’t for nothing, Old Wang Ba dared to act shamelessly in front of others but truly didn’t dare in front of Huangfu Ziyu.

”Don’t be angry, I was just joking, heh heh heh...” Old Wang Ba said with an embarrassed smile, ”Actually, not only am I not going, but neither should you!”

”Who?” Huangfu Ziyu asked curiously.

”You!” Old Wang Ba pointed at Huangfu Ziyu, saying, ”You shouldn’t go to the Sword Saint Sect tomorrow either!”

”Why?” Huangfu Ziyu asked with wide eyes.

”Do you know the current situation at the Sword Saint Sect?” Old Wang Ba took a deep breath and said, ”The Wanyan Family is sending out their elite; even the weaker of the peak masters won’t be going, indicating just how dangerous this battle is. You could say that even a peak master might not be able to protect themselves over at the Sword Saint Sect. Whether you as a top-level master can ensure your own safety is another matter. If you get caught as a hostage, it’ll be even more troublesome. So my suggestion is that anyone below acme level shouldn’t go to the Sword Saint Sect!”

Ye Qing nodded, thinking that Old Wang Ba’s words were indeed correct. Actually, Ye Qing himself was not in favor of going to the Sword Saint Sect, but Nalan Jingwei wanted to take this opportunity to jointly attack the Wanyan Family with the Sword Saint Sect to thoroughly crush them and erase the shame. Therefore, Nalan Jingwei was actively promoting this matter. Moreover, Ye Qing could see that Nalan Jingwei clearly wanted to take this event to establish good relations with the Sword Saint Sect. Nalan Jingwei was also smart, knowing that the Sword Saint Sect has always been reclusive and does not directly rule the world. Hence, he wanted to establish good relations with the Sword Saint Sect to dominate the world on their behalf; this was a clever scheme.

Ye Qing was actually thinking of ways to dissuade Nalan Jingwei from the idea of going to the Sword Saint Sect. While he hadn’t figured out a method yet, Old Wang Ba came first to find Ye Qing and talked about this matter. Old Wang Ba’s proposal was quite good indeed, by not letting those below acme level go to the Sword Saint Sect, it would save many people’s lives.

Seeing Ye Qing nod, Huangfu Ziyu grew anxious and said, ”Anyone below the peak cannot go to the Sword Saint Sect. What about Ye Zi? He doesn’t even have Inner Strength now; are you still going to let him go to the Sword Saint Sect?”

”He’s different!” Old Wang Ba said, ”Given his current situation, even if a Peak Master can’t protect themselves, he has the power to do so.”

”That’s still not okay!” Huangfu Ziyu insisted, ”Going like this is too dangerous. Ye Zi is involved in so many things now, and both the Wanyan Family and the Sword Saint Sect want to capture him. If he’s caught, what then?”

”You don’t need to worry about that. If he were that easy to capture, he wouldn’t have survived until now!” Old Wang Ba shrugged and said to Ye Qing, ”Besides, I’m here because I want to talk to you about this matter. You must not follow the same path as Nalan Jingwei and the others to the Sword Saint Sect!”

”What do you mean?” Ye Qing couldn’t help but be surprised. If he was going to the Sword Saint Sect but couldn’t take the same path as the people there, where was he supposed to go?

Old Wang Ba said, ”I have something more important to entrust to you.”

”What is it?” Ye Qing furrowed his brows. Whenever Old Wang Ba spoke like this, it was always similar to Shijia, making Ye Qing instinctively wary. These two guys were the same—wretched, shameless, and unreliable. The tasks they assigned were never good.

Seeing Ye Qing’s expression, Old Wang Ba immediately said, ”Don’t look at me like that; it’s a good thing!”

”Stop wasting time and just tell me what it is. Whether it’s good, I’ll be the judge!” Ye Qing said.

Old Wang Ba frowned and said, ”Why does your expression suggest you don’t trust me?”

Ye Qing replied, ”No, I trust you. Go ahead, tell me.”

”Really?” Old Wang Ba scratched his head and said, ”Actually, I personally feel that this trip to the Sword Saint Sect isn’t necessary at all. Regardless of whether you can help in any way, the outcome will be the same.”

”Then why are you insisting I go to the Sword Saint Sect?” Ye Qing asked.

”Others don’t have to go, but you must make this journey.” Old Wang Ba replied.

”Why?” Ye Qing was even more surprised, and Huangfu Ziyu also looked at Old Wang Ba, puzzled at why he suddenly made such an absolute statement.

Old Wang Ba said, ”Because I need you to investigate something at the Sword Saint Sect!”

”Investigate what?” Ye Qing asked.

Old Wang Ba took a deep breath and said word by word, ”Find out whether the Knife Saint is dead or alive!”

”What?” Ye Qing was stunned for a moment, and Huangfu Ziyu also opened her eyes wide.

”Which Knife Saint?” Huangfu Ziyu asked in surprise.

”What nonsense, which Knife Saint could it be?” Old Wang Ba glared and said, ”The Sword Saint Sect was established in his name, so which Knife Saint do you think?”

”You’re talking about the founder of the Sword Saint Sect?” Ye Qing took a deep breath and said, ”The same Knife Saint who entered Heaven Earth Man Three Gates back in the day?”

”Yes, that’s him!” Old Wang Ba replied decisively.

Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu exchanged glances, each face filled with shock. Old Wang Ba was actually asking them to check whether the Knife Saint was still alive; how was that possible? Did Old Wang Ba think the Knife Saint was still living? With the Knife Saint’s age, if he were alive, he’d be at least over four hundred years old now! Could it be that the Knife Saint lived even longer than the Corpse Ghost Dragon? But isn’t the lifespan of one beyond the pinnacle supposed to be at most around three hundred years? If someone lived over four hundred years, what level of power would they have reached?

”Isn’t the Knife Saint long dead?” Ye Qing asked in surprise, ”I’ve heard people say the Knife Saint should have died a long time ago; he even has a coffin. Besides, everyone else who entered Heaven Earth Man Three Gates has empty coffins, but the Knife Saint’s isn’t. That’s a sign he’s been dead for a long time, right?”

Old Wang Ba said, ”Since you’ve heard of this, aren’t you curious about what secrets are hidden inside his coffin?”

”Uh...” Ye Qing scratched his head and said, ”Do you know what secrets are inside there?”

Actually, among those known to have entered Heaven Earth Man Three Gates, all other coffins are empty. They all left deathbed messages saying they were going to fulfill an appointment. Only the Knife Saint is different; his coffin isn’t empty, and his corpse is inside. He didn’t go to the appointment, leaving Ye Qing quite curious about what’s really going on.