Twilight Boundary-Chapter 504 - 496: Honest Officials Find It Difficult to Settle Domestic Affairs
"What was that?"
After waking up, it took Hu Ma quite a while for the inexplicable anger rising in his heart to slowly dissipate. Yet the feeling of annoyance and the strange images from his dream lingered like a ghostly shadow clinging to his soul.
It was a strange sensation. It wasn’t as if someone had harmed him, nor was it a malicious curse or Magic. While it caused no substantial harm, it left him feeling uneasy, his emotions in constant turmoil.
He also realized this didn’t seem like a good dream, but for the moment, he didn’t know whom to consult.
Moreover, upon waking, the visions from his dream grew faint. He forgot what he had dreamt, what he had heard; only a sense of depression remained.
He decided not to dwell on it for now, knowing that recuperating was paramount. Since his entire body had been revitalized, theoretically, even without Blood Food supplements, he could slowly recover his initial Three Column Tao...
...provided he didn’t ingest any detrimental substances, sustain injuries, encounter ghosts, or overexert himself while so weakened.
Currently, he was in the blood food mine, carefully recuperating. Naturally, he avoided anything that might impede his cultivation. He had assumed that within a few days, he would restore his initial Three Column Tao. Unexpectedly, however, from that day on, the strange dreams began to occur intermittently.
Every few days, he would hear that indistinct murmuring. In his dreams, the flickering flames and the white banner constantly wavered before his eyes.
Sometimes, the white banner would still be swaying even after he woke up.
After several days of this, his mind grew increasingly restless, and his spirits weakened. The initial Three Column Tao, which should have been smoothly recovered in three or four days, was still significantly lacking.
Since recovering even the initial Three Column Tao was proving so difficult, replenishing the fourth column of cultivation was even less feasible. This extraneous fate was inherently more challenging to restore than the initial Three Column Tao.
A deep sense of foreboding settled in his heart, prompting him to seek out Calculation. Outside, he found Calculation playing chess with Zhou Datong. Zhou Datong’s left arm was bandaged and slung around his neck; Calculation’s right arm was similarly bound.
It turned out Zhou Datong was in the process of refining life in his left arm; success would mean he could move on to refining life in his Five Organs.
Calculation, on the other hand, had his arm broken by Zhao Zhu. During a game of chess with Zhao Zhu, Calculation had tried to take back a move. As they struggled for the piece, Zhao Zhu—who was naturally reckless and, having recently refined life in both his hands, couldn’t control his strength—saw Calculation secretly moving a piece. He grabbed Calculation’s arm impulsively, breaking it.
For this, Calculation had extorted ten taels of Silver from Zhao Zhu for medical expenses. This so infuriated Zhao Zhu that he swore off chess entirely, dedicating himself solely to practicing his fork technique.
"Old brother, enjoying yourselves?" Hu Ma called out with a smile as he approached Calculation.
Hearing Hu Ma’s voice, Calculation’s expression changed dramatically. He abruptly swept his hand across the chessboard, scattering the pieces. "I just remembered I have something urgent to attend to. No more chess today!"
Zhou Datong was stunned. "But I was about to win..."
"What’s the rush?" Hu Ma blocked Calculation’s path, still smiling. "Old brother, there’s not much going on at the mine. Let me play a game with you."
"No need." Calculation immediately backed away from Hu Ma, firmly refusing. "Playing chess with you is the most pointless exercise imaginable! I dare not win against you, and I can’t afford to lose to you. Either way, I’m the one who suffers!"
Hu Ma looked a bit sheepish but maintained his smile. "If not chess, then how about a chat? You’ve been wanting to try that fine tea from Sun Family’s Seventh Son, haven’t you? I’ll brew a pot for you today!"
"You’ll brew me a pot?" Calculation eyed Hu Ma strangely. "I have perfectly good hands and feet. It’s not as if I can’t sneak some myself..."
Hu Ma’s smile faltered. Seeing the old man was determined to refuse his polite overtures, his expression hardened. "Datong, go into the house and fetch my saber." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
He added coolly, "The wind is high and the moon is dark tonight—perfect for saber practice."
Calculation visibly flinched.
Zhou Datong, still smarting from the two taels of Silver Calculation had won off him, grinned at the old man’s predicament and eagerly jumped up. "I’ll get it right away!"
Calculation’s demeanor instantly softened. "Now, now," he said awkwardly, "must you always bring up the saber...? Wouldn’t it be much nicer to sit down and talk for a bit?"
Hu Ma paused, then a smile returned to his face as he sat down with Calculation. "My thoughts exactly."
"Old brother," Hu Ma began, "you’ve traveled extensively and possess a wealth of experience. I wonder, do you know anything about dream interpretation?"
Calculation paused, then asked, "What kind of dream interpretation are we talking about?"
Hu Ma was surprised. "Are there different kinds?"
"Naturally!" Calculation declared. "There’s the jianghu sort. When I used to tell fortunes, that’s the kind I did. If they paid well, I’d spin it positively. If they dreamt of a dead person, I’d say it signified ’promotion and prosperity’—you know, a coffin leading to riches."
"But if they were stingy, then even if they dreamt of lying naked in bed with their wife, I’d tell them it meant they were impotent, lacking vigor, that sort of thing... Basically, it was a way to make a living. Nothing too shameful, but you had to be quick-witted and smooth-tongued."
Hu Ma was momentarily struck speechless by his frankness. "So, what about genuine dream interpretation? The kind that helps you understand what’s really happening through a dream?"
"That," Calculation stated flatly, "I cannot do."
Hu Ma couldn’t help but grin wryly. "Are all you jianghu types so brazen?"
"I was half-expecting you to ask about that friend of yours again..." Calculation shot Hu Ma a sidelong glance, a flicker of interest appearing on his weathered face, his eyes alight with curiosity. "Interpret or not, what dream is it you want to ask me about?"
"It’s exceptionally strange..." Hu Ma began slowly. "Whenever I close my eyes, I dream of a group of people. They’re holding white banners and chanting, almost like they’re trying to call a soul..."
"Impossible," Calculation interjected. "Your fate is far too strong. Who in this world could possibly summon your soul?"
"It doesn’t feel like a soul-calling," Hu Ma mused, frowning. "There’s no sense of them trying to draw me over, nor is it like the Nightmare Technique, trying to harm me. I don’t even hear my name. It’s just a group of people, casting some sort of spell, chanting strange words..."
He continued his account, clearly troubled. It was the first time he had encountered such a perplexing issue, and he found it difficult to make any clear sense of it.
As Hu Ma spoke, however, Calculation’s expression subtly shifted. He looked intently at Hu Ma and said in a low voice, "I may not be able to interpret dreams, but what you’re experiencing... it might not be a dream at all. Perhaps someone truly is out there, trying to call you with a banner..."
"But this affair," he quickly added, standing up from the nearby table and shaking his head with a sigh, "is not something I can meddle in! No one can. As they say, even an upright official finds it hard to settle family disputes..."
Hu Ma processed this. "An upright official finds it hard to settle family disputes?"
The words struck him, and his brow furrowed deeply. The image of the white banner and the strange fire flashed through his mind again, and Calculation’s odd smile now seemed to resonate with something Young Master Meng had once said.
He was momentarily stunned. Perhaps due to his unsettled Divine Soul, his reactions were slow, and it took him a long while to gather his wits.
Darkness had fallen, and it was time to light the lamps for dinner, yet Hu Ma was still mulling things over. Suddenly, an eerie gust of wind swept into the valley.
Carried on the wind, he faintly heard the sounds of suonas and gongs, a festive band playing. As the chilling wind drew closer, he looked up, somewhat dazed, to see a bridal procession approaching the valley entrance.
The procession was flanked by small, capering little ghosts. Upon reaching the valley mouth, they stopped.
"Eh?"
Inside the valley, workers who were cooking or washing clothes craned their necks to look, intrigued by the novelty.
Hu Ma frowned. This blood food mine was usually susceptible to attracting evil spirits. Had another one been lured here now?
Just then, Zhou Datong excitedly presented him with his saber. Hu Ma took it and strode out of the valley. He felt no fear as he approached the indistinct, ghostly figures.
As he drew nearer, his Punishment Officer’s Great Saber sensed the presence of his small sword. Though still sheathed, it released a faint aura, instantly causing the spirits outside to wail and howl in terror.
These little ghosts, forgetting all about the sedan chair, dropped their gongs and drums and scattered in a panic, abandoning the bridal palanquin on the spot.
Hu Ma was about to stride over and use his saber to lift the curtain, intending to see which clueless little ghost dared cause trouble at his mine.
But before he could touch the curtain, a wail of distress came from inside the palanquin. "I’ve never encountered such an ill-mannered brute!"
"Lord Hu Ma! Which of you is Lord Hu Ma? Please, you must help me!"
Hu Ma was taken aback. He sheathed his saber and asked, "I am Hu Ma. What is the meaning of this?"
The bride inside the palanquin cried, "I’ve come from beyond Old Yin Mountain! A Mountain Lord there entrusted me with a message for a Lord Hu Ma in these parts. He said some uninvited guests have arrived in his mountains and requests you return to lend your support."
"I went out of my way, risking being late for my own wedding, all to deliver this message out of neighborly kindness! And instead of thanking me, you act so fiercely, drawing your saber without a word!"
"You’ve scared off my attendants! Am I now supposed to run to my own wedding on my own two feet?"
Hu Ma was nonplussed. "Ah?"
Hearing her mention the Mountain Lord, he realized his mistake.
Seeing her weeping and speaking with such genuine distress, he quickly shot a glare at his Punishment Officer’s Blade, silently commanding it to retract its oppressive aura.
You’re a Punishment Officer’s Blade; how can you be so menacing to ordinary folk?
Then, he hastily bowed in apology. "It was indeed my rashness. I am most grateful to you, young bride, for delivering the message. Please accept my sincerest apologies."
"Do not worry. I also have some skill in walking ghost techniques. I will help you recall those little ghosts."
He quickly set up a simple altar, performed an incense-burning ritual, and made offerings, compelling the frightened little ghosts to return. He ordered them to lift the palanquin properly and ensure the bride reached her destination on time.
He warned them that if they caused any delays, he would break their legs one by one.
This finally mollified the bride. Her mood improved, and she asked if Hu Ma wished to accompany them to the wedding feast. Hu Ma declined but gave a gift of money for the occasion.
After seeing the bridal procession off, Hu Ma returned to the valley. The message from the Mountain Lord had been delivered. His mind, previously clouded with confusion, now cleared, and the doubts in his heart were resolved.
Upon his return, he announced to Zhou Datong and the others, "It seems I must prepare for a trip back to Mingzhou."
