Chapter Thirty-Six: Searching for Zilan

Li Chongjun stood up abruptly and said, “Since that’s the case, I cannot assist you further. As for Sister Zi Lan, I am grateful for your kindness, but there’s no need for your trouble; we’ll rescue her ourselves.” With that, he turned to leave.

Lan Wutong grew anxious. “How can you be like this?! We don’t need you to act, only to tell us where she is—we’ll be forever grateful.” Li Chongjun replied, “There’s no difference between revealing her whereabouts and helping to rescue her; both are acts of betrayal against the sect. I cannot do such a thing!”

Lan Wutong wanted to retort further, but the woman stopped her. “Among the Miao people, a promise is sacred. Since we’ve said we’ll help you rescue her, we’ll do so. All we ask is that, when you encounter our people in the future, you show mercy. That’s our only request.”

Li Chongjun sighed. “As long as you don’t harm the people of the Tianshan Sect, I won’t raise my hand against you.” Lan Wutong pressed, “But if we help you rescue your junior sister and end up in conflict with the Tianshan Sect?” Li Chongjun answered, “Then I will show no mercy, and afterward I shall take my own life to atone.” The woman laughed. “Excellent. A true man’s promise is worth a thousand in gold.” Li Chongjun said, “Of course. I am not one to act carelessly. I am Li Chongjun, senior disciple of Mingxin Cave, Tianshan Sect. May I ask your name, miss?”

Lan Wutong quickly interjected, “What do you mean ‘miss’? This is the Poison Madonna, the leader of the Golden Silkworm Sect of Miao!” Li Chongjun had already suspected the woman’s remarkable status, but he hadn’t expected her to be the infamous Poison Madonna, whose name struck terror across the martial world.

The woman said, “The title ‘Poison Madonna’ is merely a leader’s appellation. I came here to Youzhou to seek that person’s whereabouts, and to leverage the power of the Immortal Crane Sect, I had to join them as a Protector.” Li Chongjun asked, “May I ask, Leader, what is this person’s background? What grievance does he have with your sect, that you search so relentlessly?” Lan Wutong interrupted, “What grievance? That person is—” Poison Madonna cut her off. “From now on, we are allies. Don’t call me ‘Leader’ or ‘Poison Madonna’; it sounds too distant. Just call me Feiyan. And I’ll call you Brother Chongjun. This person is named Qu Beiyuan, deeply intertwined with the Golden Silkworm Sect. Everyone in my sect hopes for his return.” She clapped her hands, and hoofbeats sounded outside.

Li Chongjun hurriedly replied, “There is no one named Qu Beiyuan in the Tianshan Sect. Are you sure you’re not mistaken?” Poison Madonna said, “Brother Chongjun, if he is within Tianshan, he must be in a hidden place, not known to ordinary disciples. Please, do your best to search. A month ago, the main hall received a message from White Snake’s flying pigeon, saying they were in Suzhou. Since then, no further news. I have prepared four swift horses for you, take them as you wish. It’s late now, so I won’t keep you further.”

Li Chongjun led the horses back to the inn. Ji Wuce and Du Xin were delighted by the magnificent steeds. Zi Wuzhu pulled him into the room and asked, “What happened on the road? These horses are worth a fortune—you couldn’t possibly afford them. Who gave them to you?” Li Chongjun dared not hide anything, and recounted everything in detail. Zi Wuzhu, who knew of Qu Beiyuan, turned pale at the mention. Li Chongjun understood at once that this person must indeed be at Tianshan. Zi Wuzhu said, “This matter is of great importance. I’ll explain it slowly to you later. Li Chongyuan was sent to guard the tomb at Ascension Peak because of this. Since they’re helping us find someone, we owe them a favor. One day, we’ll repay it when the time comes.”

Before dawn, the four rode straight for Suzhou on the eastern route to Jiangnan. Half a month later, passing through Fuzhou, Zi Wuzhu, Ji Wuce, and Li Chongjun went ahead, while Du Xin turned his horse toward Hengzhou in Jiangnan’s west to seek out Yang Wuji and the others.

Meanwhile, Li Chongyuan and Lin Qingli traveled together into the Central Plains. In half a month, Lin Qingli had made great progress in the Ashura arts under Li Chongyuan’s guidance. Seeing her eagerness, Li Chongyuan realized she was unsuited for the Hunyuan arts, so he advised her to abandon them and focus solely on Ashura techniques. With his instruction and the snow lotus and snow ginseng pills from Lotus Grotto, Lin Qingli, already versed in Kongtong skills, advanced rapidly and grew proficient in Northern martial arts. She also related many martial legends to Li Chongyuan.

Upon reaching Suzhou, Lin Qingli asked, “Brother Chongyuan, where are we going next?” The question stumped Li Chongyuan. He had thought only of saving his junior sister, but now, faced with the vastness of the Central Plains, he didn’t know where to begin. After some thought, he said, “Senior Sister Zi Lan was abducted in Hengyang, so naturally we go there.” Lin Qingli rolled her eyes. “Who kidnaps someone and stays in the same place? There are no such foolish thieves.” Li Chongyuan conceded the point. “If not Hengyang, then let’s go to Youzhou and strike their lair.” Lin Qingli sighed, “You’re stubbornly foolish. If a thief stole something and hid at home, the victim would come knocking first. Hiding at home is the worst idea.”

Li Chongyuan countered, “By your logic, our master and uncle are heading to Hengyang and Youzhou—are they just as foolish?” Lin Qingli smiled, “Actually, they know well that this journey will likely be in vain, but it must be done. If we don’t search openly, White Snake will think Senior Sister Zi Lan is insignificant, perhaps even a burden, putting her in greater danger. But if the Tianshan Sect searches the martial world, White Snake will believe Zi Lan is a valuable hostage, and when facing Tianshan experts, she becomes a shield—so they’ll keep her safe. Moreover, the Tianshan Sect’s mobilization puts pressure on White Snake, making him restless and prone to action. Once he moves, his whereabouts may be exposed to the martial world. This is called ‘stirring the grass to scare the snake’—do you understand?”

Li Chongyuan said, “Fine, then we’ll also stir the grass to scare the snake.” Lin Qingli chided, “There are already plenty doing that, you’re hardly needed.” Li Chongyuan retorted angrily, “By your reasoning, are we to stand by and let our sister suffer?” Lin Qingli said, “Who said you shouldn’t act? I’m telling you to make a show on the surface, but act secretly. Look, you leaving Tianshan privately is likely unknown to our master and uncle, and White Snake and Ghost Sword certainly don’t know. As newcomers to the martial world, they won’t pay us any mind. So, the situation is: we are in the dark; they are in the light. They stir the grass for us, paving the main road. We, as a surprise force, wait for the right moment. Once we learn our sister’s whereabouts, we rescue her swiftly. This is ‘secretly crossing the warehouse under the cover of repairing the road’. Remember, only we can rescue her; others cannot. Everyone else is searching for White Snake, and his people are watching them closely. Only we are ignored, which is our advantage and key to success. Also, we left Tianshan without permission—a grave offense. Only by rescuing our sister can we offset our crimes. If someone else saves her, how will we atone?”

Li Chongyuan was impressed. “According to you, where should we go?” Lin Qingli smiled, “I heard White Snake captured our sister to force Senior Brother Li Jiu to exchange the sacred armor, which is at Shaolin Temple. Since it’s a hostage exchange, there must be a meeting place—not the original site, nor too far from Shaolin. They need to know if Senior Brother Li Jiu acquires the armor, and be able to escape quickly after the deal, ideally in a bustling city where even the Tianshan Sect cannot ignore the authorities. Such places are few—Luoyang is one. Let’s try our luck there.”

“Alright, let’s go to Luoyang. I hope you’re right.”

Eastern Capital Luoyang—Luoyang is a major city in the Central Plains and a counterpart to Chang’an, known as ‘Little Chang’an.’ Its prosperity rivals that of the capital, with crowded streets and rows of splendid buildings—a scene of bustling grandeur.

On East Market Street, at Wang’s Herbal Shop, a manservant bought a large bundle of medicine and hurried away. The shop attendant saw him off with a smile, nodded discreetly when he was gone, and several street ruffians followed at a lazy pace. The attendant hurried to the back hall and bowed to two middle-aged men, who appeared to be managers. “Masters, that man came for medicine again. I packed it for him and he’s left. As you instructed, I had someone follow him.” The man on the left waved him away, and the attendant retreated after bowing.

The man on the left was Wang Cheng; the one on the right, Wang Zhuo. They were descendants of the Wang family, famed swordsmiths from Taiyuan Prefecture. Twenty years ago, their parents were slain overnight by a palm strike, and the family’s treasured Xuanming Sword was stolen. To avenge their parents, the brothers abandoned their smithing heritage, sought martial masters, and wandered the world in pursuit of the killer and the stolen sword. Alas, their search was fruitless, the years wasted. Five years ago, they opened this herbal shop, investigating the murderer under the guise of business.

Wang Zhuo said, “Brother, that man has been buying medicine for knife wounds for a month now. But according to our investigations, the martial world has been calm—no one has been injured. The medicine he buys is very expensive, not something ordinary fighters could afford. We should look into this closely.”

Wang Cheng replied, “You’re right. Our attendants still think this shop is for profit, not realizing our true purpose. Business they know well, but martial matters they ignore. That man bought medicine three times before anyone reported it—infuriating. Judging by the amount, the injured must be badly hurt, but the medicine is excellent. After taking it, he’ll recover, and may not buy again, so we can’t afford any mistakes this time.”

Soon, the attendant returned to report, “Masters, the man went to the western pig market and entered a house. He closed the door tightly. He was very cautious, took several detours, but luckily our people are locals and know the routes well. Still, fearing he’d notice, I hurried back to report.”

Wang Cheng sneered, “The pig market is filled with the poor—ten families there couldn’t muster an ounce of silver. Yet this man’s medicine is worth hundreds of gold; why would he live in such poverty? Something’s amiss. Xiaodongzi, send some men to investigate. Remember, no matter what happens, Wang’s Herbal Shop must not be implicated. Go now.”

Xiaodongzi agreed, went out, whispered to the ruffians at the door, and tossed a pouch of silver into their hands. They grinned and set off.