My Wife Is A Sword Immortal-Chapter 95 - 82 Murder and Arson
Chapter 95: Chapter 82 Murder and Arson
The Lin family manor was still brightly lit tonight, yet it was exceptionally quiet.
Or rather, tonight, the entire Luojing City and its vicinity spanning thousands of miles were exceptionally quiet.
Because everyone knew that change was coming.
It was a night of dark skies and high winds.
Zhao Rong and Lin Wenruo didn’t bring anyone else with them.
The two rode horses, leaving Lanxi and heading towards Luojing.
One didn’t ask the destination, and the other didn’t say.
“When will we leave?”
“The morning after next.”
They rode side by side, the moonlight faint and the night hazy, making it difficult to see each other’s faces. Their voices were somewhat distorted by the oncoming wind.
After that, they were silent for a while.
Suddenly, a slightly hoarse voice mixed with the evening breeze reached them.
“Thank you.”
In the darkness, the young Confucian scholar smiled, looking at the city of Luojing lit up with countless lights, and said nothing.
By the time they reached the North Gate of Luojing, the city had lost its usual hustle and bustle. There was no all-night liveliness, only a solemn atmosphere, and armed soldiers appeared on the streets from time to time.
Zhao Rong looked around and felt a sense of change.
During the day, he returned in triumph, passing through Luojing City with people lining up to greet him on both sides of the streets.
The crowds were so dense they blocked the roads, the excitement reaching the skies.
Zhongnan Country revered its scholars and cultivated an atmosphere of intellectual discourse.
He had suddenly become Luojing’s most adored idol.
Many young girls of spring and women in their prime threw flowers, handkerchiefs, purse sachets, and other boudoir items at him.
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This scene of “gifts filling his carriage” was something he could face with composure, responding with a smile and a bow.
But it was some passionate girl who led the chant “Hail Zhao Lang,” prompting even more women to join in the shouts, and some even threw light and soft silk products his way, which made him blush uncontrollably.
However, later on, Su Xiaoxiao stood up for him, deflecting some of it and collected the sachets and purses with a show of friendship for him to check later… ahem, Zhongnan’s ladies are so enthusiastic, he couldn’t just disregard their kindness without at least seeing what’s inside, well, just a glance.
Thinking of the loyal fox demon warmed Zhao Rong’s heart.
The night was waning, and the city was solemn.
At this time, some parts of the city were faintly echoing with noisy disturbances.
The purge of the Lin family of Lanxi had already begun.
The two rode swiftly on the main road through the city, one in white, the other in green.
The surrounding soldiers all gave way and saluted, watching them with respect.
As they drew closer to the star above the summit of Taibai Mountain, Zhao Rong saw that there were people already waiting at the foot of Taibai Mountain.
Looking up, countless Imperial guards and some mysterious guards he didn’t recognize were surrounding Taibai Mountain, standing quietly in wait.
Everyone was silent, ready for battle.
There was a chilling stillness.
In the air, only the crackling sound of torches and the clanking of armor could be heard.
“How is the situation?”
Lin Wenruo dismounted and tossed the reins to the person who came to meet him, then strode forward.
A black-clad woman with a pendant on her forehead saluted, “Reporting to my lord, some have fled the mountain, including Qing Yuanzi, but Chancellor Chen has already gone after him. As for the others, they are all on the mountain. The Ancestor and Cultivator Liu Yi have been up there for half an hour already.”
“Good, wait here.”
Lin Wenruo nodded and, passing through the crowd, began to ascend the mountain with Zhao Rong, while the crowd at the base remained where they were, awaiting orders.
Walking alongside Lin Wenruo on the broad path he had become exceedingly familiar with over the previous days, Zhao Rong thought how, back then, he had been a welcomed guest, but tonight he was to play the role of an unwelcome one.
Zhao Rong looked up, gazing towards the summit now stirring with commotion.
The terms of the debate between Confucianism and Daoism only stipulated that the losing party would cede interests and no longer meddle in the affairs of Zhongnan Country, aside from Lin Wenruo, it did not involve the lives of anyone else.
However, both parties knew that a loss meant losing everything. The victor would almost certainly seek to annihilate the loser; such were the rules of the game. Any sign of weakness could lead to being labeled as a coward by the onlooking crowd, bringing endless troubles and never-ending problems.
Show one to warn a hundred; while the measure might not be cruel, it had to be thorough and clean, uprooting the weeds entirely.
A victor is king, a loser, an outcast; it was as simple as that.
Zhao Rong sighed softly; many were destined to sleepless this night.
But then he composed himself, his gaze hardening as he stepped onto the staircase, his stride resolute.
The world was no longer as it once was. If one wished to protect what was theirs and the people they cared about, one had to harden their heart. Toleration and retreat would only encourage some to encroach further, until one was completely consumed. Therefore, the person on the mountain had to die tonight.
Lin Wenruo glanced at his friend and began to explain slowly:
“That old ancestor is my great-grandfather, the founder of Yunlin Guard whom I’ve mentioned to you before. He’s been cultivating in seclusion in the deep mountains for years, a Golden Core Realm cultivator at the bottleneck.”
In front of his friend, he lacked reservations, openly laying all the family secrets on the table.
“Eunuch Chen is a Tribute of the Imperial Family and also a Golden Core cultivator. Besides, Scholar Liu Yi has been invited by the Imperial Family to assist, with the monarch offering him an irresistible condition related to his homeland.”
“Are you confident?” Zhao Rong asked softly.
“There’s no escape; all the exit paths have been sealed. Even if they were to somehow flee from Taibai Mountain tonight, they wouldn’t be able to leave Zhongnan Mountain.”
Lin Wenruo paused for a moment, then continued, “A cultivator one step away from Nascent Soul, plus a Golden Core Realm cultivator, as for Qing Yuanzi, just a mid-Golden Core Realm…”
He narrowed his eyes slightly, “Useless. He can’t fly away even if he had wings. Ziyu, a lot of this is your achievement. You stripped him of his Heavenly Immortal Cave Clothes and cut off his last tie with that vast power… in addition to today’s decisive life-and-death third debate.”
Lin Wenruo let out a long sigh, “Ziyu, oh Ziyu, how should our Lanxi Lin family ever thank you?”
Zhao Rong remained silent for a while before abruptly changing the subject, “If the outcome were reversed today, would the monarch use this plan against you?”
If that were the case, then tonight might have presented a completely different scenario, one where Chongxu Temple and the Imperial Family joined forces to hunt down the Lanxi Lin family members.
Lin Wenruo pursed his lips and nodded, “Don’t worry, I’ll be cautious of them.”
Suddenly, an extraordinary change occurred.
One second, Taibai Mountain was just slightly noisy, but otherwise calm.
The next instant, it was as bright as day.
It was as if behind Taibai Mountain, a great sun had risen, its light brilliant and far-reaching.
Grass, rocks, flowers, pavilions, and palaces.
All were clearly illuminated.
“It’s that strange rock on the Daoist Ancestor Hall at the peak of the mountain.”
Lin Wenruo huffed, “I had already guessed that rock was the center of the Mountain Protection Array. Did you really think this could save you?”
Indeed, in less than ten breaths, day turned back into night, and everything on Taibai Mountain seemed to be enveloped by an iron curtain of layered shadows once more.
And the star at the peak of Taibai Mountain, which had shone for countless years, went out.
At the same time, a heart-wrenching scream echoed from the summit.
It was powerful enough to split gold, stone, and deafen the ears.
“Lin Wenruo! Zhu Houcong! Even as a ghost, I won’t let you go!”
But the next moment, the sound was abruptly snuffed out, like a duck being strangled by the throat before being plunged into boiling water, leaving no further sound.
Taibai Mountain once again fell into absolute silence as if the day that just passed had never happened.
Only a faint ringing in the ears lingered, a reminder of the tragic scream that had just occurred.
