The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 61 Clues to the Evil Path

Chapter 61: Chapter 61 Clues to the Evil Path

"Quick, quick!"

"Isn’t that Huwa from the neighboring village?"

"He’s been drugged with a knockout drug; go and brew some licorice root water!"

When Li Yan hurried back to the village with his donkey cart, a large group of villagers immediately surrounded him, and those familiar with the ways of the pugilistic world could tell at a glance that these children had been drugged.

Knockout drugs are not unusual in the pugilistic world; ingredients like Immortal Drunk, Yabulu, and mantraluo can be processed to make them: collect flowers in August, mix with fire hemp flowers in July, dry in the shade, and split into foams.

The method of rescue was even simpler: to brew licorice root tea.

After drinking a bowl, three children soon regained consciousness, looking bewildered as they found themselves surrounded by a crowd of adults, unsure of what had happened.

The missing children’s father held his son and wept with joy.

Around them, there were comfort and cursing, and the scene was chaotic.

Manager Wan’s face was grim; after ensuring the villagers were calmed, he took several disciples and headed to the stable.

The captured woman trafficker was locked up there.

As for the peddler’s corpse, Li Yan had already thrown it into the woods.

Li Yan and his two companions exchanged glances and followed closely behind.

Inside the stable, the woman was tightly bound with ropes in the five-flower style.

People of the pugilistic world often have one or two tricks to escape captivity, such as dislocating joints, hiding blades under their tongues, or inserting needles into their skins.

Thus, even after a search, the craftsmen’s disciples were still uneasy, tying the ropes very tightly and with dead knots that deeply cut into her flesh.

This woman, around thirty years old, had a sallow complexion and triangular eyes that revealed ferocity. Half of her face, which Li Yan had slapped, was bruised and swollen like a steamed bun.

Seemingly aware that her life was at stake, she remained silent, her gaze cold and fierce as she saw everyone enter.

Manager Wan was in no hurry to question her; instead, he sat down on a chair brought by a disciple and silently smoked a few puffs before saying, "Eating Ge Nian’s food, kidnapping children, and ’Embracing the God of Wealth’ (kidnapping for ransom)—these aren’t your usual lines of work. Who ordered you to do this?"

Seeing that the woman remained silent, he snorted coldly, "Tough teeth won’t help you. The roads of Xianyang City are familiar to me, yet I’ve never seen you. You’re from Chang’an, aren’t you?"

"Was it Cai Sangu who contacted you, or Tu Erye..."

"Oh, it was Tu Er, huh? That lad really lacks discipline."

He spoke while observing the woman’s eyes, deducing much without needing her to speak.

Li Yan and Sha Lifei, seeing this, couldn’t help but silently give a thumbs-up.

The woman, realizing that her background had been discerned, became somewhat flustered. She simply closed her eyes and clenched her teeth, "Stop asking. I don’t know the employer. Even if you find Tu Erye, he wouldn’t dare speak. Breaking the rules means more deaths."

"Hmm."

Manager Wan nodded, his tone grave as he said, "I am not intending to break your rules, but I want you to be clear about what you’re involved in."

Then, turning to a disciple, he asked, "Did you find anything out?"

"We did!"

The disciple bowed respectfully, handing over a slip of paper.

Manager Wan frowned as he examined it, then handed it to Wang Daoxuan beside him, speaking solemnly, "Brother Wang, I am not skilled enough in mathematics, please see if anything is amiss here."

Wang Daoxuan, realizing something, looked serious as he read the paper, saying gravely, "Seeing ’Ding’ in January, ’Hai’ in May, ’Yin’ in August—all are Heavenly Spirit noblemen. Someone seeks to rise by drawing on others’ fate!"

Manager Wan sighed, "I sensed something was wrong from the start. If it were just children from Shangyi Village that were taken, I’d assume it was for revenge. But sparing no villages and asking for names—that’s odd."

"It seems someone is dissatisfied, seeking only Heavenly Spirit noblemen, their Dao probably mediocre..."

Seeing Li Yan and Sha Lifei’s confusion, Wang Daoxuan explained gravely, "This is the heretical method of ’Borrowing Fate to Cross Barriers,’ using the lives of extraordinary boys and girls for perverse sacrificial rituals to attempt an ascent in their own Dao."

"The Great Xuan Dynasty has decreed that anyone using this method will be killed without mercy!"

Li Yan pondered, "What should be done in such a case?"

"Obviously, it should be reported to the Taixuan Orthodox Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall."

Manager Wan slowly rose, "Come, take this person with us to the Xianyang City God Temple."

Then, fixing the woman with a cold gaze, he warned, "You don’t need to say anything. Once we get to the City God Temple, there are ways to make you talk, including Chang’an’s Tu Er who won’t escape either!"

"I’ll speak! I’ll speak!"

The woman finally panicked, shrieking, "Tu Er asked me to send people to Menggu Village, tie them in the decrepit temple’s ancestral hall; someone will come to take them. It’s all Tu Er’s doing, I have nothing to do with it..."

She was evidently terrified.

These people, living a life of uncertainty, were ready to face death as an occupational hazard, obtaining at best a name for righteousness.

But offending the Mystical Sect was different—who knew if they would end up used for some despicable practice, unable to rest even in death, let alone reincarnate.

Snap!

At a sign from Manager Wan, a disciple stepped forward and slapped her, then quickly stuffed her mouth with rags and dragged her out like a dead dog.

Manager Wan shook his head slightly and looked towards Li Yan and the two others, clasping his hands and saying, "This time we owe a great deal to young Li Yan, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable."

"Now Xianyang City is rife with chaos, you all best not get involved. I’ll take this to the City God Temple, and no matter who is behind this, they won’t escape."

"You can stay comfortably in the village and food and drink will be taken care of."

"Busy yourself with your duties, elder Manager Wan."

Concerning matters of the Mystical Sect and the demonic path, the three of them asked no further.

Such matters were clearly better handled by Manager Wan.

...

After Manager Wan and his entourage had left, the courtyard became busy once again.

Li Yan saw that there was nothing for him, so he decided to continue searching for Zhao Lvzi.

Wang Daoxuan, having obtained Manager Wan’s permission, had already burrowed into his study to look through his collection of miscellaneous Mystical Sect books, while Sha Lifei was uninterested in trekking up the mountain, thus leaving Li Yan to go alone.

The back mountain was not far, so Li Yan decided not to ride. He took a box of wine and dishes and left from behind the village. Soon enough, he saw a small mountain.

The mountain wasn’t high, but it was densely vegetated, with exposed rocks and yellow soil making it steep and difficult to traverse.

After a busy midday, it was afternoon when he went up the mountain; the setting sun cast slanting shadows. An old Mountain God Temple stood halfway up the mountain hollow.

It felt oddly shadowy and ancient.

Li Yan hadn’t approached yet when he heard voices inside the temple.

"Brother Zhao, this is a big job, won’t you consider it?"

"Our ancestors have rules, we won’t take jobs that involve going underground."

"You truly have a wooden head, it’s..."

The person stopped talking mid-sentence upon hearing the footsteps of Li Yan, abruptly turned around, and said darkly, "Who?!"

Sharp ears...

Pretending not to hear, Li Yan called out loudly, "Brother Zhao, are you there? I’ve come to have a drink with you!"

"It’s Brother Li!"

Zhao Lvzi was initially on alert, but upon hearing Li Yan’s voice, he immediately showed a pleased expression and then turned to say, "Elder Mo, I won’t take the job, please go back. A friend has visited and I must entertain him."

"Oh, well then!"

At the same time, Li Yan also saw the person speaking.

He was a short middle-aged man dressed in coarse black cloth, wearing a small black cap, with a metal club hanging behind his waist. His features were scrunched together, buckteeth protruding, making him resemble a large rat.

Moreover, Li Yan could smell the decay of soil coming from him.

The man’s gaze was sinister; he gave Li Yan a cold look, seemingly unwilling to speak to him, then turned and quickly left. He rounded the mountain ridge and disappeared from sight.

"Brother Li, are you free now?"

Zhao Lvzi, also a young man who lived in the wilderness and was not articulate, had come to truly regard Li Yan as a friend after their previous adventures together.

Seeing Li Yan visiting naturally made him happy.

"Hahaha, even if I’m busy, there’s always time for a drink!"

Li Yan laughed heartily and subtly gestured towards the back.

The rat-faced man indeed was sneaky, pretending to leave but actually still eavesdropping from behind the mountain ridge.

Zhao Lvzi instantly understood and said with a chuckle, "Please come in, Brother Li. Today, we won’t return sober... no, let’s spend the night here."

"That works."

Li Yan laughed heartily and followed him into the Mountain God Temple.

The temple was somewhat like an earthen kiln, half exposed and half dug into the mountain side. It seemed old from the outside, but the inside was clean and tidy. It had both a kitchen and a woodshed, and also sleeping platforms made of earth.

A Divine Statue of an elderly medicine farmer in traditional attire was enshrined in the hall.

Li Yan’s expression turned solemn as he sensed the scent of incense above. He respectfully offered three sticks of incense before he and Zhao Lvzi chatted idly.

The two skirted around serious topics, and after a while, Li Yan finally asked with a smile, "He’s gone now. Who was that man? He seems shady..."

Zhao Lvzi did not hide anything and shook his head, "He’s one of the Hidden Treasure Men from the Xun You lineage, known to my father. He usually looks for large tombs around Guanzhong, and his disciples are all ruthless in their methods."

"Is he causing trouble for you?"

"Not really."

Zhao Lvzi hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Recently, someone in Xianyang City released news about a Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasure. He came looking for me to go treasure-hunting together."

"Oh?"

Li Yan perked up, "What kind of treasure?"

Zhao Lvzi shook his head, "You could call it a treasure, or an ominous object. Its name is ’Mountain Tai Sui’."

"It’s not far, just outside Xianyang City in the Chaotic Burial Mound..."