Chapter 62

Chapter 62: Arrival at Mount Tianshan

At this point, the letter left by General Yang had come to an end.

Bai Zhengliu carefully read the letter several times, finally, with some reluctance, handing the paper over to Mei Yinghan.

His reasoning was simple. Mei Yinghan knew everything about him and the Yang family, and the paper had been presented by them... The swordsman’s heart skipped slightly, and he grew concerned. “But Mei Brother, now that you have this, what will you use to send a letter to Jun Shidi?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Mei Yinghan glanced at him.

It was an entirely ordinary glance, yet Bai Zhengliu suddenly understood: "You left this last night specifically to give General Yang a chance to communicate with us?"

Mei Yinghan: “... Bai Brother, there’s no need to be so perceptive.”

Bai Zhengliu couldn’t help but smile. His heart was still heavy with sadness, but that didn’t stop him from feeling happy in this moment.

The young man couldn’t resist asking, “Why didn’t you say anything last night?”

Mei Yinghan, still looking at the letter, answered, “I don’t know if it will work.”

Bai Zhengliu: “Right, Mei Brother only does things he’s confident in.”

Mei Yinghan sighed and pressed his lips together, softly saying, “Have I not done things without confidence before?” He paused and finished reading the contents of the letter. It was mostly similar to what Bai Zhengliu had relayed to him before, with one addition. She asked Bai Zhengliu to carefully describe the appearance of "Master," and, if possible, mention any special marks on their body, such as scars or birthmarks. Once she heard that, she would be able to identify the person.

When Mei Yinghan returned the letter to Bai Zhengliu, the young man thought for a moment and said, “My master has a scar on his forehead, around here...” He gestured toward his own head. “It’s about this long.”

The long knife remained still, and the brush and paper on the table didn’t move.

Bai Zhengliu wasn’t discouraged and continued, “He has old scars on his arm here, his shoulder here, and his chest here...” He gestured again. “There are old wounds in these areas.”

Still, General Yang gave no response.

Bai Zhengliu went on, “My master also has some issues with his legs. When walking slowly, it’s fine. But if he walks quickly, something seems off. And whenever it rains, his waist and legs hurt. He can only feel a bit better when sitting by the fire.”

He spoke each sentence with a focused and serious expression.

As he described his master, Mei Yinghan raised his hand and gently, swiftly pressed it against his own chest.

It was hard to describe the feelings that stirred within him as he listened.It was as if a small creature had jumped over his chest, its movements light and swift. It was also like waking up in the morning to find the long-budding flowers outside finally blooming, their fragrance filling the air.

He quietly watched Bai Zhengliu, his eyes never blinking, as he observed the slight fading of joy and excitement on Bai Zhengliu’s face, uncertain of which word had caused the shift, turning it into sorrow and confusion.

Bai Zhengliu said softly, “General Yang hasn’t responded because he doesn’t know where these wounds came from, right?… No matter who my master is, he didn’t have these injuries when General Yang sent him away.”

With these words, an overwhelming sense of emptiness swept over Bai Zhengliu. Mei Yinghan felt it, but he also knew this wasn’t the time to offer words of comfort.

He looked at the young man beside the table, whose eyes were now dim. After thinking for a moment, he left the room and gave some instructions to the innkeeper.

Having spent so much time together, Bai Zhengliu had grown accustomed to Mei Yinghan doing things by his side. Mei Yinghan’s actions made a considerable noise, but Bai Zhengliu didn’t notice.

His mind was entirely preoccupied with thoughts: “What exactly happened to my master back then? What turned him from a young man of a prominent family into the ‘mad old man’ he became? How much suffering and pain did he endure… And how does General Yang feel, knowing that the juniors he sent out with so much difficulty, hoping for their survival, are now facing so much hardship?”

Bai Zhengliu could no longer continue his thoughts.

At that moment, Mei Yinghan returned with what he had prepared, calling out, “Bai Brother.”

Bai Zhengliu snapped back to reality, turning his head to look at the swordsman.

To his surprise, Mei Yinghan had arranged several plates of snacks and fruits in front of him, along with tea. This was clearly not for the two of them to share. Mei Yinghan spoke, “This is just a small token of respect from the younger generation to their elders.”

Bai Zhengliu was first stunned, and then moved.

That morning, General Yang still did not give a further response. Bai Zhengliu guessed it was likely as she had written in the letter — General Yang was still too weak.

He did not press further. Using the items Mei Yinghan had bought, they performed a simple ritual to honor their master. Then, Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan packed up and went to meet the Jun family brothers.

As Mei Yinghan had said earlier, with the current route, it was time for them to part ways. At another time, the Jun family brothers would have invited Mei Yinghan to visit Emei Mountain. But this time was different. The heavy burden of the vengeful spirits weighed on their shoulders, and none of them wanted to waste time. The Jun family brothers, understanding this, simply clasped their hands and said at parting, “Bai Brother, Mei Brother, may we meet again!”

“May the green mountains remain, and the waters flow long. We shall meet again another day!”Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan both cupped their hands and said, "We shall meet again another day."

After a few more words, the four of them parted ways.

The Jun family brothers continued westward, while Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan began their journey north.

They traveled day and night, braving wind and rain. Finally, as the weather grew colder, they arrived at the Tianshan Mountains.

This "colder" was relative to the weather in the Central Plains. The Tianshan Mountains, however, always had snow, with countless disciples in white robes walking among them. From a distance, it seemed as though they, with their dark hair, blended seamlessly with the snowy peaks.

Upon seeing the returning Mei Yinghan, everyone was very happy. However, they quickly noticed that he was not accompanied by Gu Miao, but instead by the swordsman.

Of course, due to their previous dealings with the Demon-Slaying Alliance, the Tianshan masters and disciples were very welcoming and friendly toward Bai Zhengliu. But seeing this scene, some of them couldn’t help but feel suspicious.

Junior Sister Yu Han tugged at Mei Yinghan and whispered, "Why isn't Junior Brother Gu with you?"

Mei Yinghan: "..."

Yu Han looked at the first senior brother's expression and immediately realized something was wrong. Upon closer inspection, she also noticed that his expression didn’t seem to be one of worry, but rather of something more peculiar.

"Junior Brother Gu..." Mei Yinghan said, "He’s with the Ninth Prince now."

Yu Han: "Oh."

Other Tianshan disciples, who had been eavesdropping, muttered, "Hmm."

Everyone else: "Huh??"

Yu Han was the one who exclaimed the loudest.

She stared at Mei Yinghan in disbelief, then glanced at Bai Zhengliu beside him. For a moment, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was still half-asleep.

Yu Han went looking for help. She turned to her junior brother Han Shu, saying, "Quick, pinch me! This must be a dream!"

Han Shu's eye twitched, but he didn’t help her. Instead, he whispered, "Senior Sister, didn’t you hear that when Mei Brother mentioned Gu Junior Brother, his tone was completely different?"

Yu Han froze for a moment. After thinking about it carefully, she realized...She, along with the others who had come to greet the eldest senior brother, were all equally stunned by a single sentence from Mei Yinghan. They spoke in unison, "What exactly happened?"

Mei Yinghan let out a deep sigh.

Bai Zhengliu, standing by, watched the scene. He wanted to laugh but restrained himself.

Mei Yinghan, noticing, glanced at him.

Bai Zhengliu immediately adopted an innocent expression and gave him a sincere and polite smile.

Mei Yinghan helplessly shook his head. When he looked at the younger disciples in front of him, he finally began to speak about his experiences outside and what had transpired between him and Gu Miao, just as they had hoped.

At first, Bai Zhengliu listened with interest.

Until Mei Yinghan glanced at him again.

The swordsman subtly felt something was off. But, someone as clear and calm as Mei Yinghan surely...

Mei Yinghan: "Speaking of which, there is a premise to this matter, involving you, Bai Brother, and the Ninth Prince."

The many disciples were shocked and turned to look at Bai Zhengliu.

Bai Zhengliu's expression froze. He looked at Mei Yinghan, who was still as clear and calm as ever.

The swordsman’s eye twitched. He now realized that he couldn’t remain uninvolved.

He could only nod, "Indeed."

In fact, there was no need to remain uninvolved. He was about to explain that "Fu Ming and Gu Miao weren't just stepping out on their own; they had brought another person along" to fully show their shamelessness.

Of course, when speaking aloud, he couldn’t say it quite like that. Mei Yinghan spoke very subtly, just mentioning that he and Gu Miao had traveled together and met the Ninth Prince and Bai Brother. They had agreed to travel together for a while. After that, Gu Miao gradually became close with the Ninth Prince. Subsequently, the two of them severed their ties with Bai and Mei and went to the capital.

He didn’t mention their actions right in front of the two of them, nor did he mention that they had caught Fu and Gu in bed together. Even so, the Tianshan disciples were already filled with righteous indignation, exclaiming, "How could they do such a thing?"

"How shameless!"

"At the beginning, he clearly said he admired senior brother...""Also, that Ninth Prince," he looked at Bai Zhengliu with sympathy, "I thought he really had some grace. Never expected, he’s actually this kind of person!"

Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan listened to these words but said nothing.

There really wasn’t much to say. Or rather, they had already withheld a lot regarding Fu Ming and Gu Miao’s situation. Not only what was mentioned earlier, but also the fact that Gu Miao had ended up with Fu Ming yet still felt that Mei Yinghan had wronged him. For example, Fu Ming, when he saw Bai Zhengliu trying to sever ties with him, actually came to hate the swordsman.

They had already been very tactful, only hinting at the surface details.

Once the younger disciples had vented their anger, Mei Yinghan changed the subject and asked, "Where is the master?"

Yu Han replied, "In the hall." After a pause, she continued indignantly, "Senior Brother, are you planning to have Master announce to all disciples that Gu Miao should be expelled from the sect?"

"..." Mei Yinghan was momentarily speechless. "No. It's just that Bai Brother and I encountered a major incident outside, and I need to report it to Master."

The Tianshan disciples were first stunned, then became serious.

They didn’t know what was happening outside, but they understood Mei Yinghan’s character. If he was saying this, whatever he was about to report must be something very serious.

Han Shu asked, "How does it compare to the Blood Demon incident?"

Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan answered together, "It’s probably far more dangerous."

Author's note:

It's here!

I mentioned it before, but I’ll say it again. The updates for this story will be: weekdays in the morning (& noon), and on rest days randomly (≈ evening fixed point updates).

So, see you tomorrow night!