Chapter 195: A Battle in the Forest
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
As the sun set, the peach trees welcomed another lively night.
Groups of machetemen ran past the two killers and a small swordsman but did not seem to take notice of them. They continued to advance while brandishing their swords.
"What are you doing here?" Someone asked in a quiet voice. His large physique seemed to have blocked the last rays of sunlight.
"I'm here to collect information," Gu Shenwei answered as he recognized that this person was Guan Houlin.
"That's not necessary. Joy Pavilion will turn into ashes immediately. Hope Alley will no longer be a paradise and, from now on, it will have to pay every month."
Guan Houlin still did not forget how he was looked down at in Joy Pavilion. The only person he was jealous of was Immortal Peng. He wanted to use this opportunity to exact revenge.
Gu Shenwei led the way and did not say what was on his mind. If he could place his bets on this ambush, he would stake them on Hope Alley. Joy Pavilion might be divided with only thirty over disciples left. However, every single one of them was a martial arts expert. Those more than 200 machetemen were here only for the money and probably wouldn't be their match.
Guan Houlin couldn't think of these. He only saw one group of customers from the teahouse who were here to die. He never knew that they were learners of martial arts. He was sure that this was a battle that he would win and that he would score a victory for the Ninth Young Master.
"If you want to watch the show, you are welcome. Tuo Nengya couldn 't escape again this time."
Gu Shenwei would not tell the other party that the old macheteman had already left Joy Pavilion. "Congratulations to you for all of your wonderful work. The Ninth Young Master would be relying on you in the future."
"Haha, I'm not bragging. The Ninth Young Master relies on me for many things. Oh yes, how did you manage to kill Immortal Peng?"
"He was terribly old. People couldn't see this. I just took my chance."
"Just as I thought." Guan Houlin did not believe the killer's words entirely. He regretted not being bolder because even he could be capable of killing that elusive old fellow. "What a pity. A killer can't change his master. If not for this, I would have asked the Ninth Young Master to keep all of you. I don't look down on her but, I mean, a woman is still a woman. Kun Society might still be fine without her?"
Gu Shenwei smiled slightly and did not argue with him. Maid Lotus and Chu Nanping did not respond at all. One was indifferent and the other was heartless. They did not care about what others said at all. Chu Nanping did not even care about the safety of Joy Pavilion. He was still considering the killer's suggestion.
As the machetemen had all entered the peach forest, Guan Houlin was preparing for battle. "Hey, we're visiting the lass at Xu family tomorrow. You won't put a dead person in her house again, will you?"
"I won't."
"That's good. A brothel is still a brothel. Don't turn it into a coffin shop."
Guan Houlin treated his killers as his subordinates. He had over 200 machetemen and there was nothing that he was afraid of.
Shangguan Fei's "military counsellor" commanded the offense. Gu Shenwei followed him from afar.
This was a battle that began with a sneak attack. Guan Houlin was not completely ignorant. The 50 machetemen carried their bows and with at the command of the military commander, lit their arrows and fired together.
The arrows left their bows with a whizz and subsequently their sounds became fainter like a group of meteors. They flew high and fell in the direction of Joy Pavilion.
Inside Joy Pavilion, there was a lone burning lamp, as if it knew nothing about the ambush.
"Prepare the ladder."
The burning arrows were still in its trajectory in midair when Guan Houlin issued the second order. It's time to start the massacre and to take care of the mess.
However, things turned out slightly differently from what he'd expected. The 50 burning arrows had just flown over the top of the wall before hitting a large invisible net. They promptly fell onto the ground.
One group of grotesque looking men leapt up onto the top of the wall, carrying all sorts of weapons in their hands. Without hesitation, they moved towards the ladder to kill the machetemen who were ready to attack.
This was indeed a massacre. However, the target seemed to have changed. After a few terrible cries, the machetemen seemed to be thrown into disarray. They were told that this was going to be an easy ambush and so they were not prepared for a difficult fight. Moreover, they did not want to lose their lives for no reason. The battle had only just started when Joy Pavilion showed its teeth and the machetemen began to flee for their lives.
Guan Houlin was stunned by the counter-attack of Joy Pavilion. After a long moment, he roared in anger and pulled out the dagger on his waist. He blocked the machetemen who were attempting to flee in all directions. "Stop, you fools. They're few in numbers, and we're..."
The military counselor's voice was overwhelmed by the terrible screaming that did not end.
In less than the time it took for an incense stick to burn down, the neat formation of machetemen had become disarrayed. It was no longer a competition of machete skills, it was about who could run away the fastest.
Guan Houlin's defeat was so complete that he was dumbfounded. Upon recovering his senses, the first thing he wanted to do was to run away. He took big strides and even threw away the knives in his hands.
This was Joy Pavilion's first killing frenzy in so many years. Its disciples were like alcohol addicts who had not drunk wine for many years. Now, tasting the fragrance of wine again, they seemed to enter into a state of frenzy. This was the real rebirth of Immortal Peng. Even the strongest hypnotism might not be able to stop these people now.
The peach forest became a slaughterhouse. Only the lucky and the quick-footed could escape out of it.
Guan Houlin was obviously not the latter kind of person. However, he was lucky because there were two killers who were watching this ambush that had started spectacularly but ended in failure.
Gu Shenwei and Maid Lotus rushed to Guan Houlin's side. With each one supporting either side of his arms, they dragged him out of the forest.
The machetemen were either slaughtered or had escaped from the forest alone. Not a single one of them followed the military counselor.
The exhuberance of Joy Pavilion's disciples was calmed down at the fringes of the peach forest. They were not killers and did not follow the principle of completely exterminating their enemy.
Guan Houlin kneeled onto the ground, looking at the ink-dark peach trees. This should have been his place of victory. He muttered repeatedly, "How could this be?"
Gu Shenwei did not reveal an expression of glee but he reminded Guan Houlin of a most important matter. "The Ninth Young Master might not be happy."
Guan Houlin was most afraid of hearing this. He had completely forgotten that the killer was his savior. He straightened his back and spoke authoritatively, chastising: "It was all your fault. You knew this would have happened, didn't you? I'm going to tell Ninth Young Master that you caused this."
"Do you take the Ninth Young Master for a fool?" Gu Shenwei's tone turned cold.
Guan Houlin was definitely clear about this. This time, the reason why the attack on Joy Pavilion had failed was because the disciples of Joy Pavilion were all experts. However one looked at it, Gu Shenwei could not be blamed. No one knew this better than the astute Shangguan Fei.
"He'll kill me!" Guan Houlin covered his face and sobbed like a child.
"Someone can protect you." Gu Shenwei had spent all this time observing that battle and waiting for its predetermined outcome, just for the sake of this very opportunity.
Guan Houlin lowered both of his hands and raised his thick eyebrows. He expression appeared to be slightly angry but also confounded at the same time. He seemed to understand things after a while and said, "You want to bribe me? Forget it. I, Guan Houlin, am not a macheteman who will betray his master."
Gu Shenwei had learnt something from Immortal Peng. Everyone would find reasons to persuade themselves and there was no need for too much persuasion. Hence, he did not argue, explain or refute him but only stared coldly at the strong and tall macheteman.
"I won't betray him!" Guan Houlin said with every step that he took backwards. His voice faded and became smaller and grew less confident. There were few loyal machetemen like Tuo Nengya. They were as few as outdated antiques.
"Can the Tenth Young Master really protect me?"
"I didn't mention the Tenth Young Master."
Guan Houlin was shocked. He looked at the killer and then at the female killer beside him and the child behind her who was carrying a long sword. Somehow, he thought of how these three looked ridiculous standing beside each other. His mind immediately focused on himself again. "The Ninth Young Master has treated me with much grace. I'll never turn against him."
"I'm a killer of Stone Castle and I won't ever attack my master. The Tenth Young Master wouldn't do that too. They're biological siblings and twins. Any conflict between them is just a game."
Guan Houlin shifted his eyes. Thinking about the killer's words, his expression turned serious, as if he had understood everything. "I won't betray him. I want to seek forgiveness from the Ninth Young Master. He'll forgive me. I'm different from the rest; he'll forgive me."
Guan Houlin didn't want to stay together with a killer belonging to the Tenth Young Master. He ambled around and ran towards the South City. Not long afterward, he vanished into the dark night.
"He'll complain about you to the Ninth Young Master," Maid Lotus wanted to silence Guan Houlin.
Gu Shenwei had other plans. "The Ninth Young Master isn't a simpleton. I'll meet him personally."
It turned out that the person who gave Shangguan Fei ideas wasn't Guan Houlin but the little master who had once followed behind his sister. That person had truly grown into a sinister Young Master of Golden Roc Fort.
Gu Shenwei couldn't bear to have his weakness fall into the hands of Shangguan Fei. If he wasn't able to kill this person of the Shangguan family immediately, he needed to take countermeasures.
It was too late to go to the North City. On the second day in the afternoon, Gu Shenwei went alone to visit the Ninth Young Master. Maid Lotus returned to Kun Society to report to Shangguan Ru. Chu Nanping decided not to return to Joy Pavilion. He hadn't decided if he should become a "protector" of the killer. Hence, he went to visit his "friend", hoping to get some advice. Gu Shenwei was extremely curious. He wondered if the shocked Xu Xiaoyi would still dare to meet this strange child again.
The defeat of the Horned Dragon Society in the hands of the Joy Pavilion was news that had spread all over Jade City. Many people came to understand that there was actually a martial arts expert in Hope Alley. Immortal Peng instantly became even more "divine" and his death became increasingly mysterious.
Under such circumstances, the white-robed Immortal Peng's "rebirth" gained widespread recognition.
Gu Shenwei entered Hope Alley in the afternoon openly and took part in Immortal Peng's flesh ascension ceremony. The dwarf's corpse was placed on the pile of firewood in front of Joy Pavilion and set alight by fire.
Many residents outside of Hope Alley participated in this ceremony and even joined the ranks of those who were competing for the possessions of the dead Immortal.
The killer and the white-robed Immortal Peng were known to be friends. People who saw this scene swore and assured their close friends that the killer had never killed Immortal Peng. He had only helped the Immortal in his soul-delivery. They then explained the term "soul-delivery" to those who did not understand. "Soul-delivery... hmm... you'd think he was dead but in reality he isn't dead. He has become immortal. Immortal Peng couldn't bear to leave Jade City and so he borrowed a fleshly body. In fact, he hadn't died. He didn't mean to die and he hasn't died."
Joy Pavilion became famous. However, the Horned Dragon Society was unlucky and they became the fools who proved the existence of the immortal. They deserved to die by being the grasshopper that tried to block the horse cart.
Hence, that afternoon when Gu Shenwei went to see Shangguan Fei, he knew that the Ninth Young Master would definitely not be happy. If he had killed the military counselor over this, Gu Shenwei would not be surprised.
The military counselor would definitely push all of the responsibility to someone else, especially the killer Yang Huan who had appeared fortuitously and who persuaded him to rebel.
"You wretched two-faced slave!" Indeed, upon seeing Slave Huan, Shangguan Fei blew up and his face turned red in anger. "I'll let everyone know your true colors. My sister wouldn't kill you but Stone Castle definitely will."
Gu Shenwei knelt down on one knee according to tradition. He wondered if the message that he had received would be able to suppress the Ninth Young Master who looked fierce on the outside but who was actually weak on the inside.
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