Chapter 21: Lin Heng Is Drawing Too Much Attention—He Needs to Be Taken Down a Peg
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In central Lanzhou, where the territories belonging to three righteous martial-arts holy lands met, there stood a kingdom known as the Flying Waterfall Dynasty.
Because it lay at the heart of the continent, the Lan River ran through it, linking every region, and ships, goods, and people passed through in endless streams.
After years of transporting and redistributing cargo, its capital, Flying Waterfall City, gradually developed into the most famous commercial and pleasure city on the entire continent.
In this city, which people called Heaven on Earth, one could find the greatest number of beauties, the most splendid garments, the most delicious food, the most thrilling gambling houses, and the richest array of goods.
Every day, vast amounts of money and treasure flowed through the city.
This provided the Flying Waterfall Dynasty, which governed the region, with enormous tax revenues, while the three righteous martial-arts holy lands that supported the dynasty’s royal family also received handsome profits.
Because of Flying Waterfall City’s nature as a center of commerce and pleasure, it became one of the fastest places on the continent for information to spread.
Apart from disciples of the three martial-arts holy lands stationed there, people from every walk of life also gathered in the city.
In a place known as Flying Waterfall City, the appearance of people from any force or region seemed perfectly ordinary.
It was for this reason that the Pavilion of Parting Sorrow held a meeting there to coordinate a campaign against the Cloud Sword Palace—and against Lin Heng.
As evening approached, pleasure boats began soliciting customers at a special pleasure district wharf outside Flying Waterfall City.
Many finely dressed figures wearing masks arrived there. Lured aboard by the madams’ calls, they entered the flower boats, which soon hoisted their sails and departed.
Among them was a flower boat called the Forget-Sorrow Pavilion. It was thoroughly unremarkable. By the time the lanterns had just begun to glow, it had taken on enough customers and was carrying a varied assortment of passengers upstream along a tributary of the Lan River.
What no one knew was that this boat belonged to the Pavilion of Parting Sorrow, and every attendant working aboard it that night was a core disciple of the organization.
Aside from the senior members of the Pavilion of Parting Sorrow, the guests aboard the boat were all high-ranking figures from various unorthodox and evil sects. Having acted without restraint and slaughtered countless people, they were targets of suppression by the three righteous martial-arts holy lands and the officials of numerous dynasties.
“I will not waste words. The Cloud Sword Palace’s young master, Lin Heng, has been far too prominent lately. We must curb his momentum.”
The speaker was Hao Shuang, an elder of the Pavilion of Parting Sorrow—a woman who appeared to be no more than sixteen, with exquisite features and a brisk, capable bearing.
After the representatives of the various forces had exchanged greetings, they fell silent. Seeing this, she took the initiative and broke the oppressive stillness.
“Curb him? How?”
“Lin Heng never leaves the palace. Are you suggesting that we join forces, storm the Cloud Sword Palace, and kill him?”
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A man seated not far away, quietly drinking tea, mocked her without the slightest courtesy.
If these unorthodox sects possessed the strength to openly oppose the Cloud Sword Palace, a martial-arts holy land, they would not have been driven into hiding like rats in a gutter, afraid even to gather in the open.
In truth, the reason these evil sects had managed to survive under the suppression of the righteous path was that none of them maintained a fixed mountain stronghold.
Their inheritances were passed down in secret and in the shadows. Otherwise, they would have been exterminated long ago.
“Shu Qiu, mind your manners.”
“We summoned your Divine Healer Sect here to solve a problem, not to start an argument.”
“The Grandmaster Ceremony that the Cloud Sword Palace is holding for Lin Heng is not far off. It will be the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the palace. Aren’t you known as an unparalleled poison doctor? You could simply poison them all and bring down everyone in the Cloud Sword Palace.”
Hao Shuang retorted without hesitation.
The Divine Healer Sect was also known throughout the martial world as the Poison Doctor Sect. Its members often seized people at random to test medicines on them, causing countless deaths and earning a dreadful reputation that made people tremble at the name.
At her words, the man named Shu Qiu paused mid-sip.
The Cloud Sword Palace was a martial-arts holy land with a lineage stretching back many years. It guarded its food and water with the utmost vigilance, and every one of its disciples understood medicinal principles. They were all capable of identifying and discerning poisons. How could he possibly poison them with ease?
If it were truly that simple, the Cloud Sword Palace—occupying so many lucrative interests—would have been wiped out long ago by the royal families of its affiliated kingdoms. There would have been no need for these people to act themselves.
“All right, all right. Let us discuss the matter properly.”
“Since Elder Hao summoned us here, you must already have a complete plan in mind, correct?”
An elder of the Mad Blood Gang, Bloodcry, stepped in to smooth things over.
The elder of the Netherworld Palace, Shi Wuzheng, and the elder of the Limitless Hall, Yu Mo, had said nothing thus far. Now they both turned their gazes toward Hao Shuang, waiting to hear her opinion.
“I do have a plan.”
Hao Shuang gave an affirmative answer.
Seeing that everyone’s attention was fixed upon her, she continued, “Because our Grand Elder attempted to assassinate Lin Heng during his disciple-acceptance ceremony, we probably have no chance of infiltrating the Cloud Sword Palace and killing him during the upcoming Grandmaster Ceremony.”
“I summoned everyone here not to strike at Lin Heng during the Grandmaster Ceremony four months from now, but to deal with him in the future, once he leaves the mountain and ventures into the martial world.”
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“If he wishes to become a Celestial-level expert, he will inevitably have to leave the mountain and travel the world. It is impossible for him to remain within the palace gates and continue advancing without interruption. That will be our opportunity to act.”
Hearing this, the representatives of the other four forces nodded in agreement.
If the Pavilion of Parting Sorrow suggested another assassination attempt at the Cloud Sword Palace, it would simply be madness.
First, the palace’s security would certainly be even tighter this time than before. Second, Lin Heng had already reached the Grandmaster realm, and his combat strength was formidable. Though he would be utterly outmatched by a Great Grandmaster, he would not be completely powerless to resist.
As long as he endured a single move, he could summon the continuous support of the many experts nearby.
Under such circumstances, to kill Lin Heng swiftly within the Cloud Sword Palace, where experts abounded, and then retreat unscathed would be utterly impossible—unless they sent a legendary expert of the Celestial realm.
But if they possessed such a legendary expert, would they still have been reduced to their present state?
Did they truly not wish to become a martial-arts holy land renowned throughout the world and revered by countless millions?
“I hope that the five of us will cooperate fully, sharing intelligence and methods without reservation, and keeping constant watch on Lin Heng.”
“Once he leaves the mountain, we will seize an opportunity to kill him in secret. If we wait until he truly matures, I fear there will be no place left in the world for any of us.”
Hao Shuang swept her gaze around the room as she spoke.
Her words won everyone’s approval, and they voiced their agreement one after another.
The group then began discussing how best to deal with Lin Heng.
Every one of them was utterly depraved, evil by nature. Asking them to do good might have been difficult, but when it came to plotting evil, inspiration flowed without end.
One scheme after another was proposed, and the details of many plans were refined.
Everything was now waiting on Lin Heng to leave the mountain.
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