Roaring Dragon-Chapter 11: Imminent Danger

Dong——

Dong——

As the morning sun rose in the east, its rays poured into the vast, bustling city that stretched to the horizon. Tens of thousands of residents gradually began to pour out onto the streets. The music and revelry from last night in Wuwei Tower had only just died down, and already the streets and alleys were filled with the sounds of daily commotion.

In Qingquan Alley, morning light fell on a two-courtyard residence. A few chrysanthemums outside the study quietly bloomed, the fine petal patterns converging at the center into tiny, peanut-sized hollows, dewy and vibrant, breathtakingly beautiful.

Xie Jinhuan stepped out in a clean, simple robe, took in a deep breath of fresh air, gave the new place a quick look, then set out with Meiqiu perched on his shoulder.

Qingquan Alley had quite a few tenants, mostly wealthy merchants from outside Taoxian Ward or professors from Danyang Academy. They all left home with carriages and attendants, their attire elegant or opulent. Naturally, they were curious about this new tenant.

Xie Jinhuan had learned everything from a young age, paid attention to posture and speech, and certainly didn’t lack for charisma—but with only twenty-something taels of silver left on him (all of it stolen), he was the definition of “looks don’t match the purse.”

Ye Hongshang was absolutely right. All problems stemmed from one thing—lack of strength.

To improve strength, you needed pills. To get pills, you needed money.

Xie Jinhuan used to rely completely on his °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° father. Whatever methods he used to make money these last three years, he had no memory of. He turned to look at Meiqiu.

“Ballball, what did I do to earn money these past three years?”

“Guji?”

Meiqiu squatted on his shoulder, gave it some thought, then raised a wing and wiped it across Xie Jinhuan’s neck. The message was clear—murder and robbery!

What?

Xie Jinhuan felt like he was a man of justice. Maybe a little vain, sure, but not the type to do anything that morally corrupt. But Meiqiu didn’t look like he was kidding, so he had to ask again:

“Was there any legal way? Without killing people?”

Meiqiu thought for a bit, then slapped Xie Jinhuan in the face with his wing, stretched out a claw—

“Guji!”

The tone was vicious—definitely violent extortion!

Xie Jinhuan opened his mouth, muttering in his heart: Shit, was I really some infamous bandit living incognito these past three years?

No wonder when he ran into those thugs yesterday, his coin pouch-snatching technique was smooth as flowing water...

He was about to ask more when dizziness hit his head, and from behind, a red-robed spirit girl suddenly popped out, giggling teasingly under a little umbrella:

“Oooh~ You really better not ask. Or you'll dig up all the nasty stuff you did and screw up your mental cultivation. Be like me—forget the past and start fresh. Isn’t that better?”

Xie Jinhuan noticed the red-robed specter but realized the ambient sounds hadn’t disappeared. He could still see people walking by in the alley.

Only then did he relax a little—so no one else could see this hallucination.

“Meiqiu doesn’t know any better. I’m sure I was just doing righteous deeds and... confiscating illegal profits.”

He glanced at Meiqiu, whose feathers were puffed up in alarm.

“Have we seen Dad at all these last few years?”

Meiqiu sensed there was something off nearby, but still thought hard about the question—then blinked blankly.

Didn’t know?

Since he couldn’t get a clear answer, Xie Jinhuan didn’t press his foodie sidekick any further. He dismissed the red-robed spirit and walked out of the alley.

At the mouth of the alley was a side street with plenty of food spots. One of them was a lamb soup joint. The banner was so old and yellowed the writing was illegible, but the giant iron pot at the entrance was steaming furiously. Inside, every seat under the eaves was filled, mostly with minor officials and patrolmen in uniform.

And sitting at a small table outside were Yang Dabiao and the county constable Yang Ting. In front of them sat six empty bowls and a basket with three white bread buns. As they devoured their food, they chatted:

“The body was examined all night. Even the old experts from the Dan Prince’s estate couldn’t make sense of it. Another dead end...”

“If finding demons were that easy, they wouldn’t need folks like us.”

“Hey? Jinhuan, you're up?”

“Yeah. Good morning, Uncle Yang.”

This chapt𝓮r is updat𝒆d by ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom.

Xie Jinhuan stepped forward, bowed respectfully to Yang Ting, and sat in the empty seat nearby.

“Big Brother Dabiao, what time did you get back last night? I waited around to say hi but gave up and went to bed.”

“Don’t even ask.”

Yang Dabiao peeled a clove of garlic to cut the grease, looking glum.

“Spent all night staring at a rotting corpse... never mind, not during breakfast. Just as I was about to head back, news came from the Prince’s estate again.”

Xie Jinhuan held Meiqiu down to stop him from diving into the soup pot.

“What news?”

“The Zihui Mountain incident, what else.”

“?”

Xie Jinhuan’s heart tensed. That couldn’t be good.

And sure enough, Yang Ting pulled out a sheet of paper from his sleeve—it had half a shoeprint on it.

“Patrolmen found this suspicious footprint in the mountains. One step spans over ten feet. Definitely someone with solid martial skills. Unfortunately, it was raining too hard to track them, but judging by the direction, they likely came to Danzhou—alone...”

Xie Jinhuan saw the print and felt like the sky was falling.

He’d fled for his life two nights ago, afraid of being hunted down by demons. He hadn’t bothered hiding his tracks, and now this...

“From the footprint, it’s a man—or possibly a demon in male form—roughly six feet one inch tall...”

As Yang Dabiao spoke, he handed the paper to Xie Jinhuan.

“Since this is serious, the Prince is personally overseeing it. Every county, town, and district has been ordered to prioritize this. Any man matching the height who suddenly showed up yesterday or went missing the day before, especially if he seems strong, is to be registered and investigated.”

Based on Daqian's measurement units, that was just over 180cm. The range was wide—but combined with “suddenly appeared or recently missing, and skilled,” it narrowed fast.

Xie Jinhuan looked at the print, cold sweat dripping down his back, and subtly pulled his foot under his robe.

“Danzhou has nine counties and fifty-seven districts. Way too many people. Not easy to find anyone.”

Yang Ting put down his soup bowl and wiped his mouth.

“This concerns the fate of the realm. Hard or not, it has to be done. If the guy isn’t found in three days, it'll be reported to Luojing. Then the Chilin Guard and the Astronomical Bureau will take over.”

“......”

At that, Xie Jinhuan completely gave up hope.

The Chilin Guard was the Emperor’s blade—basically the secret police. The Astronomical Bureau specialized in suppressing supernatural threats. Their head, Lu Wuzhen, held the title of National Preceptor and was the top Grandmaster in Daqian. He could slap the Zihui Mountain sect leader to death with one hand, and beat Danyang Academy’s Grand Dean into the floor with both.

If those two forces teamed up, it was like Daqian dropping a nuke. If that couldn’t solve the problem, then it wasn’t a problem anymore—it was a sign the empire was doomed.

So yeah. He was screwed.

Facing divine retribution, Xie Jinhuan couldn’t even eat.

But he couldn’t act weird either. Seeing that Yang Dabiao could eat seven bowls, he assumed the place didn’t serve filling food—and casually ordered seven bowls and seven buns too.

And nearly burst.

Yang Dabiao, full and content, noticed Xie Jinhuan turning green at the table, and clapped him on the shoulder.

“Young folks gotta eat to fight. Take your time. I’m off to the yamen.”

“Okay. I already paid.”

“Sigh, you’re too polite, Nephew Xie.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Yang Ting bit down on his pipe, gave Xie Jinhuan a pat as well, and left with his son.

Leaving behind one man and one bird, staring down seven bowls of lamb soup and seven fat buns...

—

A little later, beside the Chongming River.

Xie Jinhuan waddled along the riverside, rubbing his bloated stomach. He’d already changed into new shoes.

Meiqiu, unusually full, sat blankly on his shoulder. The bird had entered a sage-like trance, pondering the meaning of bird life.

For a moment earlier, Xie Jinhuan had actually considered fleeing and never looking back.

But escape was meaningless now.

The Dan Prince was clearly going all-out. Alive or dead, they were determined to find this “demon.”

If he disappeared now, he’d be suspect number one. Then every faction would hunt him down. His face, background, and skills were known. He’d be blocked before he even left Danzhou.

Even if he escaped, grave robbing a sealed demon tomb was practically a crime against humanity. He might even trigger a “mass purge” from the major sects. Confucians, Buddhists, Taoists, Mohists, Legalists, and Strategists might all join the hunt. What was he gonna do—fight his way past all of them?

He didn’t even have time to sneak back into the mountains and cover his tracks. That place was crawling with search teams. A round trip took a full day and night. If any expert ran into him, he’d be exposed on the spot.

His only option now was to gamble on hiding in plain sight and think of a way to escape danger.

With that in mind, he and Meiqiu soon arrived at Ning’an Street.

It was still early, so not many carriages were on the white-stone road. Fragrant osmanthus trees lined both sides. A large, three-story medical hall stood at the edge of the street. A golden signboard read “Skilled Hands, Benevolent Heart.”

Xie Jinhuan really didn’t want to deal with a demonic cult witch, but if he didn’t boost his strength soon, never mind re-sealing the demon tomb—he’d be lucky to escape alive. Even if it was poison, he had to pinch his nose and chug it down.

To be cautious, he’d asked around about the Lin Family Medical Hall on the way.

The Lin clan were imperial physicians. Their main branch was in Luojing. The family head was a high-ranking official in the Imperial Medical Bureau. This place was just a branch in Danyang, originally meant to be run by a secondary branch.

But Lin Zisu showed exceptional talent in alchemy, so the main house adopted her back and sent her to Danyang Academy at a young age. Lin Wanyi came along as her guardian and took over managing the family business here.

From what the locals said, Lin Wanyi was a saint. Not only was her medical skill outstanding, she also gave free consultations to the poor and sponsored students training in the Academy and at Zihui Mountain. Her social network was wide—she knew all the noble ladies.

Someone like that couldn’t possibly be tied to corpse refinement or poison cults... right?

Then again, evil cultists did love to hide behind good deeds. The kinder they acted, the more vicious they might be in secret.

Xie Jinhuan hesitated for a moment outside the medical hall, but finally suppressed his doubts and stepped forward.

Halfway to the door, he heard voices from a second-floor window.

“Lin dear, you have to help me. Qingzhi won’t touch me lately, he’s never home at night...”

“Well, it’s common for couples to cool off over time. Maybe Lord Liu is just busy...”

“He’s not busy at home. Help me, will you? I heard you gave Lady Song on Wencheng Street that ‘Yang-Harmony Pill’—seven times in one night! She didn’t leave the house for days, and it’s not even harmful...”

“Sigh, that was because she wanted a child. Her husband was just... really vigorous...”

“My husband’s built like an ox too! But he avoids me now. Last time I even helped him with that ‘flute thing’ and he fell asleep on me...”

“......”

......

Xie Jinhuan blinked and looked up. Yep, that “Lin dear” was definitely the same Lin Wanyi he met at the docks yesterday.

Flute thing...

If he remembered right, that was supposed to be therapeutic.

Yesterday, he’d thought Lin Wanyi was a gentle, scholarly beauty. Who knew she chatted like this in private...

No wonder she’s a witch.

He’d already seen how crazy those noble girls from the Princess Mansion were, so this didn’t even faze him anymore. He entered the hall—and found the two apprentice girls weighing herbs at the medicine counter whispering too:

“The carriage driver said that Young Master Xie is dashing, skilled, and carried both the boss and Zisu off the cart...”

“Neither of them are married yet. What if they both take a liking to him...”

“Don’t worry. Zisu’s head’s full of nonsense. She doesn’t care about marriage. Last time she made that ‘Stuffed-to-Burst Pill,’ it made an old alchemy teacher burp for three days. Almost got our boss chewed out. If that Xie guy dares show up, I give him three days before he runs screaming...”

......

Xie Jinhuan heard the name of that pill and figured both Lin women were not normal.

But he was already here, so he didn’t back down. He approached the counter and knocked gently.

Tap tap~

The girl weighing herbs turned and froze at the sight of a young man with eyes like cold stars.

“Uh... what illness does the young master have?”

“Gu~”

Meiqiu, having observed his master’s odd behavior since yesterday, tilted his head and tapped Xie Jinhuan’s skull—clearly suggesting here’s where the sickness is.

Xie Jinhuan knew he had amnesia, but that wasn’t something the Lin family clinic could treat. He calmly replied:

“Not sick. I’m looking for someone. Is Doctor Lin Wanyi in?”

“Oh, the boss is upstairs seeing patients. You’ll have to wait a bit.”