Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 188: Fire Serpent of Yi

“V-venerable, that isn’t necessary, is it? She’s just a little girl...”

“What does it matter whether one is a man or a woman, old or young?” Vermillion Bird asked calmly. “If she attends the boring banquet of the Wang Clan and dies halfway, even if the Cui Clan and Wang Clan don’t turn against one another, they won’t be on good terms. Wouldn’t that create a lot of chaos?”

She paused and looked at Xia Chichi with a strange expression. “That girl has unclear relations with your former lover. Shouldn’t you be completely fine with killing her?”

“It...it’s precisely because he’s my former lover. Why should I care about who he’s seeing now?”

Iceheart buzzed and shook in her hand, as if confirming her words.

Vermillion Bird said calmly, “If your relationship with him needs to be hindered by other women, then it seems...”

Xia Chichi’s heart skipped a beat, and she started acting cute, “Master... When Cui Yuanyang goes to the banquet, she will definitely be...”

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly realized that if she said that Cui Yuanyang would be protected by experts, Vermillion Bird might just decide to kill her personally. That would be a disaster. Her mind raced, and she quickly changed her tune. “Ahem, you’re right. I’ve been wanting to beat up that little wench for quite some time anyway. I’ll go right now!”

Although she was able to change her attitude quite quickly, she still clearly gave away what she was actually thinking. However, Vermillion Bird seemed somewhat absent-minded and did not press her any further. She just waved her hand and said, “Go. There are only a few roads from Qinghe, and they’re not sneaking in. Wherever they pass, they will likely be welcomed by the city guards, so they should be fairly easy to find. Bring some extra hands with you.”

“Yes.” Xia Chichi headed off in a hurry, glancing back at Vermillion Bird, who was on the pine hill gazing into the distance at the Taiyi Sect. It seemed like she was lost in thought, but it was difficult to tell exactly what she was thinking about. Could Vermillion Bird actually have an old relationship with the old Daoist? Hmph, we’re both women. Why even pretend to be pure-hearted and devoted to the gods, especially when your voice is so seductive?

This mission is really odd. It isn’t in line with her usual thoughts. She shouldn’t be so fixated on such low-level schemes. Ugh, anyway, I don’t have the time to be thinking about this right now. I should think about how I can get through this mission.

Killing Cui Yuanyang? What a pain. What’s even more annoying is that she’s right, it’s really easy to find out what route that little girl is taking and where she is.

Xia Chichi went down the mountain and entered the city. After her subordinates spent half the night investigating, they easily pinpointed Cui Yuanyang’s whereabouts.

This time, the little girl had clearly learned her lesson. She had an expert on the Ranking of Earth protecting her and brought a convoy of skilled experts with her. Her whereabouts were clear, but who could actually kill her?

Upon receiving the news, Xia Chichi actually felt a lot more relieved. She could not reason that it was not that she had not tried hard enough, but that it was simply impossible to kill her. If she were to inform Vermillion Bird of this, it was unlikely for the latter to handle the matter herself, as it was more troublesome than necessary, so they would probably just abandon the plan.

“Saintess, what should we do?” a subordinate asked.

Xia Chichi rubbed her chin, her eyes shifting around thoughtfully. “Since we can’t overpower her, we’ll have to use strategy. You guys stay hidden. I’ll approach her alone and gain her trust. Once I’ve succeeded, we can look for an opportunity to strike.”

The others sighed. “This is really a strange mission. With Cui Yuanyang having suffered considerably when she ventured alone before, to the point where she nearly lost her life, it would obviously be much harder to kill her when she goes out this time. Do take care of yourself, Saintess. If it’s not possible, then just leave. We can just go talk to the Venerable.”

Xia Chichi smiled and said, “Thanks then!”

With that, Xia Chichi swiftly went to find Cui Yuanyang, but little did she know that Vermillion Bird was still lost in thought long after she had left Mount Tai.

Logically speaking, that saber should be Dragon Bird. It has a striking semblance, and he got the saber when he left the Cui Clan. If it isn’t Dragon Bird, then what else could it be... He even lived through the event at Luoxia Mountain Village... But so many people have told me that it’s likely just a replica made by the Cui Clan. Unfortunately, I’ve never seen Dragon Bird myself so I can’t be certain...

Regardless of whether it’s genuine... Maitreya has begun his revolt, many clans are having a change of heart, and chaos has already befallen the world. The goal of killing the prince has been achieved. It has already gotten to the point where a single person would not have the power to reverse the chaos... Should we change our approach now? Rather than killing, should we...

He still has ties to the Blood God Cult, and he has no enmity with our Four Idols Cult. Moreover, he even has a history with Chichi. The letter from the mansion of Zhen also spoke highly of him... Perhaps we can recruit him into the cult. Regardless of whether he is a prince or not, he deserves a high position. If he really is a prince, then even better...[1]

It’s frustrating that we can’t contact Black Tortoise at such a crucial moment. There’s no one I can talk to when it comes to the future course of action. Just where did that stubborn turtle disappear to? Chichi does have some decent ideas, but unfortunately, it seems her old relationship is clouding her judgment.

It seems that she had deliberately sent Xia Chichi to kill Cui Yuanyang just as an excuse to keep her occupied. She was not concerned about Gui Chen anymore, either. Instead, she was contemplating whether or not to kill Zhao Changhe, and she did not want Xia Chichi to get in the way...

But as she pondered about it further, her heart gradually leaned toward not killing him. After all, times had changed, and the turmoil she sought by killing the prince at that time had already manifested, with various factions beginning to entertain the thought of rising up and standing on their own. Even if a prince were to emerge at this time, it would no longer be possible to prevent the deterioration of the Great Xia Empire. Instead, it would be an opportunity to seize, given the changed circumstances.

If the Four Idols Cult were truly the rebels of this world, then seizing such an opportunity should be unquestionable. The issue was that their goals were more abstract, and the significance of this so-called opportunity remained unclear. In any case, killing was not the only option, using someone to further one’s agenda was also a viable strategy.

Wan Dongliu, as the mansion of Zhen belonging to the southern seven mansions under Vermillion Bird, expressed his great admiration for Zhao Changhe in his letter. This significantly influenced Vermillion Bird’s inclinations.

But this matter is indeed quite important, and it may require changes in our course of action. It really isn’t appropriate to make decisions independently. Hesitation becomes an issue.

After some thought, Vermillion Bird’s gaze stirred, and she actually took off the firebird mask, replacing it with a snake mask. There was no need for her to change her fiery red robe, as she was just acting as the mansion of Yi.

Zhao Changhe stayed in the Taiyi Sect, carrying out his usual practice in the evening.

Ever since killing Fa Sheng, the surge of vicious blood qi during the battle greatly assisted in his breakthrough to the sixth layer of the Vicious Blood Art. If he really wanted to break through rapidly as he did before, he could just forcibly use the Six Harmonies Art to assist in his breakthrough. However, his mentality had changed, and he was no longer as impatient or hurried as before. He planned to wait for a suitable opportunity and let nature take its course.

Killing people to nurture vicious qi was indeed the main way to practice the Vicious Blood Art. It was not inferior to extracting vicious qi from treasures. If a person possesses an evil disposition, they would likely kill people rampantly to advance their cultivation. With this being the case, the Blood God Cult being considered a demonic cult was not entirely baseless

Fortunately, the Blood God Cult was generally not that strong. If they were to become stronger, their destructive power would likely surpass even that of the Maitreya Cult’s killing to achieve enlightenment. After all, the improvement in their cultivation when killing others while practicing the arts of the Blood God Cult was much more straightforward.

While immersed in his own thoughts, Zhao Changhe suddenly opened his eyes. A graceful figure appeared in the room he was meditating in at some point. The snakelike mask on her face was both mysterious and charming.

Facing this uninvited guest, Zhao Changhe took a deep breath. “The Fire Serpent of Yi? Is there something wrong with the Four Idols Cult? I defected from the Blood God Cult, but they have already stopped bothering me. So why does the Four Idols Cult keep appearing? You’re supposed to be their superiors, not their subordinates....”

Vermillion Bird smiled faintly and said, “I just came here to ask you a few questions.”

“Hm?”

“In your opinion, what are the four idols?”

“The four realms of heaven, the four directions of the earth, the four seasons of time—a cornerstone of one of the most orthodox and vast worldviews. I don’t really understand how you’ve come to be considered a demonic cult. This shouldn’t be the case.”

Vermillion Bird’s eyes flashed with an extremely interesting light.

Is this his impression of the four idols?

1. Reminder that the Twenty-Eight Mansions (constellations in Chinese astronomy) are high-ranking members of the Four Idols Cult, and the mansion of Zhen is Wan Dongliu. ☜

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