Chapter 297: Four Symbols Sect Is Not A Brothel

Chapter 297: The Four Symbols Sect Is Not a Brothel

Zhao Changhe was indeed fooled, his heart brimming with wild joy.

He had always held great fondness for the young lady of Winged Fire Serpent, but her attitude was distant yet intimate, at times hinting at mutual affection, a tantalizing ambiguity, yet upon closer inspection, it felt like a faint aloofness. As if she existed on a higher plane, merely playing a game with him.

Was this one of life’s three great illusions? He couldn’t tell.

He recalled that back in Sword Lake City, when they were like pigs side by side, holding hands as they ran through the misty rain-soaked streets and alleys, the young lady had seemed happy.

But after arriving in the capital, everything felt awkward, as if she had removed one mask only to put on another.

Yet now, the esteemed Xuanwu, with utter seriousness, said she liked him!

Zhao Changhe nearly clenched his fist and shouted “Yes!” as he poured wine for San Niang with a touch of fawning: “But, her identity…”

“Aside from the difficulty of you sneaking into the palace, is anything else really a problem? The one who struck a deal with Huangfu Qing was the fake Xia Longyuan, who took advantage of the real one’s disappearance to settle matters. Huangfu Qing told you about this, didn’t she?”

“Yes, she did. She said the fake wanted to pave a path to become real, so he cooperated with you. At the time, I thought that fake had some guts, truly unafraid of death. Actually, I think you all are also unafraid of death…”

“At the time, we were testing the real one’s reaction—whether he was actually in the palace. If he was, he couldn’t have tolerated a random imperial consort appearing, the Northern Border Army becoming relatives by marriage, and the Wang family thrown into chaos. He would have stopped it, and nothing would have happened. But if he didn’t stop it, it meant either he was extremely weak, having lost control, or he couldn’t spare the attention to intervene. Then our people occupying a key position in the harem would be extremely useful…”

Zhao Changhe said, “I understand what you were thinking! But weren’t you afraid he was only temporarily absent, didn’t stop it, but later returned to find the fake had gone rogue and killed both the fake and Huangfu?”

“Of course we thought about that.” San Niang smiled faintly. “Huangfu didn’t tell you, did she? She wanted to be ‘killed by the tyrant,’ to force Huangfu Yongxian into rebellion. But in reality, we would have secretly taken her away…”

Zhao Changhe rubbed his head in frustration: “Damn…”

In truth, San Niang had nearly let something slip.

Only a sect leader like Vermilion Bird, who roamed the world with confidence in her own strength, believing she could at least escape from a weakened Xia Longyuan, would take such a risk to enter the palace and occupy a central position. If Xia Longyuan didn’t show up, she could indeed reap great benefits from her identity. If he did, she would just flee, and it would also incite her blindly loyal father to rebel—a clever plan.

But such a plan could only be executed by Vermilion Bird. For Winged Fire Serpent, at the “Xuan Pass Nine Layers,” how could she have such confidence? Wouldn’t it be walking to her death?

So these words practically revealed that Huangfu Qing was Vermilion Bird. Huangfu Qing herself hadn’t dared to explain this clearly to Zhao Changhe, fearing that her clever little man would see through everything.

But in truth, Zhao Changhe could hardly spot this flaw, because in his mind, Xia Longyuan was far too powerful. He was ranked first on the Heavenly Ranking only because the ranking had no higher tier; in reality, the chaotic world ranking should have only two levels: Xia Longyuan and everyone else. So whether it was Vermilion Bird or Winged Fire Serpent in the palace, to Zhao Changhe, they were both courting death—no difference—and the lack of reaction was just them watching the show.

Yet he understood the Four Symbols Sect’s reasoning in this matter. Their strategy was logically sound in conventional terms. Just like He Lei, so powerful and ranked high on the Earthly Ranking, after being injured, dared not show his face easily before a bunch of rabble in Sword Lake City. The moment he did, he was beaten even worse. A fallen phoenix is worse than a chicken—that was the conventional wisdom. Given that Xia Longyuan had been in seclusion for so long, letting a fake hold court, it looked like something had gone wrong, nothing to fear.

Who could have imagined Xia Longyuan was so absurd? Everyone was still in the realm of martial arts, at most mid-level martial arts, and he had already gone to high martial arts or even fantasy? It was a completely different dimension, causing all sorts of guesses and schemes to miss the mark.

He couldn’t say this outright; Xia Longyuan hadn’t appeared to let him spread it across the land. So he just waved his hand: “I suggest you stop guessing about Xia Longyuan… Better to pull out early, don’t play this game anymore, really…”

But to San Niang, this sounded like he was afraid to sneak into the palace to steal someone, suggesting she come out instead.

She thought for a moment and shook her head: “The real Xia Longyuan has never appeared. We’ve worked hard to seize a central position; we can’t just withdraw for no reason. How about this: if you don’t dare to enter the palace, I’ll have her come out to meet you secretly?”

Zhao Changhe fumed: “I’m not stealing her! She’s really in danger in the palace, what the hell do you know? A bunch of self-righteous stupid women!”

San Niang was stunned by his outburst, pointing at her own nose in disbelief: “You’re yelling at me…”

“…” Zhao Changhe sighed. “Sorry, I got carried away… Yelling at you is pointless; I should go yell at her.”

San Niang’s face was expressionless. She had been scolded, but somehow it sounded amusing. Go ahead and yell at her, and don’t miss a single word, or you’re not a man!

Zhao Changhe thought for a moment: “By the way, since you’re here, could you pass a message to Chichi for me?”

San Niang said flatly, “Speak.”

“I once went to check on an old friend’s condition for Chichi. Tell her that person is very healthy, full of life.”

San Niang paused, then said thoughtfully, “Have you ever considered that the so-called old friend might just be putting on a brave front?”

Zhao Changhe was taken aback, suddenly understanding others’ logic even more.

Come to think of it… it wasn’t entirely impossible.

“Enough.” San Niang sipped her wine leisurely. “Even though you yelled at me, I can see it’s because you care too much, worried about someone… I won’t hold it against you. But don’t expect me to help you steal her away.”

Zhao Changhe said gloomily, “I’ll steal her myself. If she really likes me, then what do I have to fear?”

Heh… San Niang’s mood instantly improved.

One with a stern face, the other grinning, they drank a few cups in silence. Finally, Zhao Changhe asked, “How is Chichi lately? Can she come out?”

“Hey!” San Niang was incredulous. “Enough! We are the Four Symbols Sect, not a brothel.”

Zhao Changhe: “…”

San Niang said, “But speaking of which… Chichi was with you first, right? Winged Fire Serpent should call her elder sister, right?”

Zhao Changhe said helplessly, “Winged Fire Serpent isn’t even a sure thing yet.”

“I’m just asking, if it happens, would it be like that?”

“…Probably.”

San Niang’s eyes sparkled, barely restraining herself from shouting “Hurry up, I want to see!” But the matter of the Saintess was likely a sect taboo, and even the lawless San Niang didn’t dare to cross that line, her face flushed with suppressed excitement.

Zhao Changhe said, “I get the feeling your Saintess can graduate. Like Vermilion Bird and you, you were both Saintesses before becoming Venerables, right? So when will Chichi become the Azure Dragon or White Tiger Venerable and put an end to all this nonsense?”

“It’s not quite the same.” San Niang said, “We were indeed Saintesses, but it was just a transitional phase, selecting the best to become the Four Symbols’ representatives, the Venerables. But Chichi is special; she embodies two symbols, unprecedented. In our eyes, she’s not being groomed to succeed a Venerable, but to become the Sect Leader. So the strictest standards apply. You can’t imagine someone aiming to become the master of the starry sky going against the sect’s doctrines before even starting. It makes the whole sect seem doomed, doesn’t it? In the eyes of the followers, the faith would scatter, and no one would believe in the doctrines anymore.”

Zhao Changhe: “…”

It did make sense. Anyone would think the sect had no future.

“Another difference is who’s in charge. The previous generation of the Four Symbols Sect wasn’t this strong. It was us, a few geniuses, who built it to its current prosperity. So back then, breaking the rules wasn’t such a big deal. But now there’s a strict manager with a stern face watching over us… The sect’s current state is largely her achievement. I’ve been hands-off most of the time, so I have to respect her decisions.”

“…Vermilion Bird?”

“Yeah.”

Zhao Changhe rubbed his forehead. “I thought you were older than her. In the Four Symbols ranking, she’s the youngest, right?”

“The Four Symbols are equal, no ranking. You’re mistaken… Besides, even if there were a ranking, between someone with real power and someone like me who’s mostly hands-off, it’s obvious who calls the shots.” San Niang began to fake cry. “If she wants to punish me for something, I can only meekly obey, boohoo.”

“Not necessarily…” Zhao Changhe sipped his wine leisurely. “Why does San Niang love money so much, yet dresses plainly without any luxury? It’s because during the sect’s hard times, San Niang was always in charge of raising funds, giving everything to the sect’s development… And even now, it’s become a habit.”

San Niang paused, squinting at him without a word.

“You all are remarkable, truly.” Zhao Changhe said sincerely. “Though I think some of your actions were rash, big gambles are always necessary.”

San Niang said, “Does that tone mean you’re giving up on Chichi?”

“From what you’re saying, there’s no need to rush. Either she becomes the Sect Leader, or…”

“Hmm? If she becomes the Sect Leader, it might be twenty or thirty years from now. Will you still be… functional by then?”

Zhao Changhe: “?”

“Ahem.” San Niang coughed to cover her slip. “I think instead of waiting for her to become the Sect Leader, it’s better to hope you can defeat Vermilion Bird… Then, when you step into the temple and openly demand to marry Chichi, what can she do?”

Zhao Changhe looked at her earnestly: “Turtle, you’re really something. The Four Symbols Sect was lucky to have you…”

“What did you call me?”

“Nothing, nothing, it’s just a saying, an exclamation…”

San Niang snorted. “But I don’t think you can do it either. Do you know what chain reaction the Xuanwu Stone you gave us will trigger?”

“What?”

“Tang Wanzhuang could see through the third secret treasury, but she was too hasty, damaging her lung meridian. Seeing that, we didn’t dare to rush, held steady, and waited for an opportunity. And now, that opportunity has come.”

Zhao Changhe was stunned, then suddenly understood.

Could it be that both the Black Tortoise and the Vermilion Bird are about to step into the true Tianbang level in unison? Is the Four Symbols Sect reaching for the heavens?