Chapter 983: Dyeing

Chapter 983: Tainted by Malice

Watching the scholar Lu’s back as he refused to turn around, the woman’s voice began to tremble, choked with sobs.

"Go then! You said it yourself! Do you think no one else wants me? I’ll use the grain grown on your fields to feed another man! When you return, I’ll make you regret it until your very guts turn blue!"

The sound of weeping faded away with her footsteps, and Lu sighed deeply, pulling the cart forward once more.

Gazing at the lush green woods surrounding him, Lu gathered his thoughts and raised his voice, singing an opera aria his father had once taught him. "Traveling the long road—seizing the autumn light! This journey to offer birthday wishes—leads to Zhuanzhu Lane!"

Hardly had Lu finished a few lines when a voice behind him joined in with the cadence of an old man. "A true hero—must forge a legacy that shakes the heavens and the earth!"

Hearing that familiar voice, tears welled in Lu’s eyes; he turned to find it was the scholar Lu Zhuangyuan singing.

He remained lost in madness, not truly awake, merely reacting by instinct to the familiar lyrics.

Lu’s lips trembled slightly as he watched, then he continued to sing, "Learning to twist the heavens and earth—to turn back the Milky Way and wash the sun!"

The voices of the old man and the young man began to overlap, indistinguishable from one another, echoing endlessly along the road.

"Heroes and gallants—gathering in the hall, the stars of heaven replaced by the written word!"

"Dragons and snakes in the great marsh—rising from the four corners, marching on the road in high spirits!"

As the singing continued, the night deepened, and before the second watch, Lu steered the cart into a small town.

The night was late, the town deathly quiet, and Lu walked through the pitch-black alleys, searching for an inn or post house that had not yet bolted its doors.

Glancing back at the old and young in the cart, he saw they had huddled together and fallen asleep, so he continued to pull the cart forward.

"Clatter!" The sound of shattered porcelain in a nearby house instantly put Lu on guard, followed by a woman’s furious voice from within. "Chen! I’m going to fight you to the death today! I’m done with this life!"

"You mad woman! Are you cursed? Fine, you think I’m afraid of you? I’ll write the divorce papers right now! I’m casting you out!"

Pausing in his tracks, Lu realized it was just a couple quarreling and let out a sigh of relief, continuing on his way.

But he had barely taken two steps when another voice erupted from a house on the left. "Are you trying to be the death of me? Oh, heavens! You, you plague-bringer! Since you married into our family, have you done a single day’s work?"

"You old hag! Are you blind? Where did you not see me working? My hands are frozen stiff from washing clothes in the river all winter! You’re just upset I haven’t given you a grandson, aren't you? This is my womb! I’ll give birth when I please! If you’re so capable, go have one with your own son!"

Before the two women could finish, a coarse man’s voice roared out. "Damn it! More trouble! Fighting again, can’t you just shut up? I’m trying to sleep!"

Hearing the crashing and banging inside, Lu frowned, thinking to himself, "Why is everyone in this region so volatile? I doubt anyone here cares for opera; I’ll leave as soon as the night is over."

Lu kept walking, but as he heard more and more, he began to sense something was wrong; there were simply too many short-tempered people.

If it were only the awake who were irritable, that would be one thing, but why were even those talking in their sleep cursing and swearing?

As he entered the main street and felt the increasingly thick, foul aura, Lu’s vigilance spiked; he drew the copper-coin sword from his back, preparing to pull the cart out of this bizarre town.

The quiet had vanished entirely; curses, roars, and howls rose and fell in the dark night, gradually waking the entire town.

Under the flickering candlelight, shadows of people fought one another, and here and there, blood spilled; the whole town seemed to have gone mad.

Just as Lu turned a corner, a sky-high wave of malice struck him in the face. Straining to look up, he saw the malice, almost tangible, erupting from a flatbed cart.

On the cart lay a small, black coffin the length of a human forearm. It stood open, spewing the foul aura that had tainted everyone in the surrounding houses!

Just as Lu prepared to charge forward through the malice to slam the lid shut, a dark shadow leaped out, blocking his path.

Seeing an enemy, Lu whipped his copper-coin sword; with a metallic jingle, the red cord and coins lashed out at the figure.

The man suddenly threw open his robe to reveal the reverse side, which was studded with various rusted blades like armor, deflecting the strike of Lu’s sword.

Before Lu could retract his weapon, a woman with copper coins bound over her eyes flipped down from a nearby roof.

With a flick of her long sleeves, Lu’s sword was instantly snatched from his control and tucked away.

"Catch!" A rusted kitchen knife flew toward him, landing in his hand before he could even react.

Lu hesitated for a moment, then flung the rusted blade away and pulled the *Daqian Record* from his robes, spreading it upon the ground.

Before he could risk his life, he heard the other party speak, their tone arrogant and impatient.

"The Aojing Sect? Your elders have already accepted the Taint Decree; does a brat like you dare defy their orders? The Imperial Observatory is at work here, get lost!"

"The Imperial Observatory?" Lu stared at them in disbelief.

He never imagined that those secretly poisoning the land in the dead of night would be the Great Liang’s Imperial Observatory. Weren't they supposed to help the court maintain order?

Glancing at the badges at their waists, Lu asked incredulously, "Why? Do you realize that this malice has tainted everyone in town? What will be the consequences?"

The members of the Observatory looked at each other, then turned to Lu with strange expressions.

"Naturally, we know. Malice enters the body, fear diminishes, grudges are settled, and grievances are avenged. The region will be in chaos for a while; a hundred or so will die, perhaps."

"Retreat at once, or don’t blame me for being heartless. This is the Emperor’s decree; all of Great Liang must be tainted, not a single soul spared!"

"The Emperor’s decree? Gao Zhijian ordered this?"

Recalling the man-eating evil that believed in the White Lotus Sect, Lu truly could not understand why this was happening.

Why had the people he once knew become so cold-blooded and unrecognizable? Why did they not treat human life as life at all!? Did they not know how many would die?

"Wait, you said all of Great Liang must be tainted?"

Lu’s heart skipped a beat. "Does that include Niuxin Village?"

"Niuxin Village? The one further back? Naturally. My senior brother has already gone there with the Blood-Severing Blade."