Chapter 211: Xunzi Says…
Looking at the man in front of her who claimed to be Li Tietou, Luxianbei felt a wave of uncertainty.
Li Tietou might not know that she had actually met Nanling County King before.
Not only had she met him, but she had also seen him in a high war-damaged state with half his body exposed at the Dai Mu Institute.
If the time for Shen Baiwei’s time reversal had been just a bit more subtle, she might even have seen the “18+ version” of His Excellency the County King on Xia Lianqing’s bed.
However, when she first saw Nanling County King in Xia Lianqing’s room, Luxianbei wasn’t 100% certain of his identity.
Although Xia Lianqing referred to him as “General” and there was a dragon-shaped spirit pattern on his back… who knows if Xia Lianqing was helping His Excellency the County King with some greenwashing?
Now, having met Long Bang and become acquainted with him, Luxianbei felt that the man in front of her, Li Tietou, had at least a 90% chance of being the master of Yumen Pass, Nanling County King!
Otherwise, it would be hard to explain why he looked so much like Long Bang.
Especially when he smiled, the clumsy charm of his fair and elegant face made it hard not to think that they might have some bl**d relation.
As for the insignificant 0.1% chance that he wasn’t Nanling County King, it could be entirely ignored.
In this situation, even if Li Tietou had a 99% chance of being Nanling County King, Luxianbei would treat it as a 120% seriousness, fearing to be careless.
She had already met two of the three giants of Yumen Pass; whether it was the Shaman Queen or the monk from Zawen Temple, both had power that she currently could not match, and the third was likely to be even stronger than them.
Moreover, various signs indicated that Nanling County King was also a competent LYB.
“…”
d*mn it, I just wanted to be a quiet observer. Why is it so unwilling to give me that chance?
She thought she had finally escaped from the monk of Zawen Temple, only to be found by Nanling County King. What was she supposed to do now?
However, since he concealed his true identity, perhaps there was still some room for maneuver?
As Luxianbei was pondering, Shen Baiwei, standing beside her, scrutinized “Li Tietou” for a moment and also sensed something unusual, her eyes widening slightly as she quietly exclaimed.
“Hey! Haven’t we seen this person somewhere before?”
She had also seen Long Bang; although she hadn’t interacted much with him, she still felt “Li Tietou” looked familiar.
“Is he… Ugh! Mmm-mmm!”
Before she could finish, Luxianbei covered her mouth.
d*mn, I almost got us killed by a useless teammate! Luxianbei scolded in her heart, giving Shen Baiwei a discreet glare, then said to “Li Tietou,” “My sister seems to be feeling a bit faint from the heat, so I’ll take her inside to rest for a bit and come back out to entertain the military lord!” and dragged Shen Baiwei into the house.
Watching Luxianbei and Shen Baiwei leave, “Li Tietou” smirked.
The mouth-covering and grappling technique was quite skilled; this girl must have done similar things before!
These two girls really are interesting, just as Hong Bian said! “Li Tietou” thought.
————
Moments ago, not far from the small thatched house.
In the empty, narrow alley, a figure in white quietly approached the thatched house.
The many action trajectories left by the two Shen sisters in the city pointing in different directions did not cause him much disturbance; they merely led the monk of Zawen Temple to make three trial errors before he concluded that those action trajectories were all just illusions, not a single one being real.
This brief trial-and-error process made him realize the terrifying nature of the two Shen sisters.
They possessed a quality similar to that of the Shaman Queen.
It was a quality that could bring destruction and chaos to the world!
From the inns where the two sisters had once appeared, one could glimpse some of it, as those girls or men disguised as girls seemed to have lost their minds. Once they came into contact with the monk of Zawen Temple, they would at a certain moment do something that left others in a dilemma, causing the monks sent out to search to return defeated and humiliated.
Some of the mentally weak even exhibited symptoms similar to autism (self-isolation).
Such a terrifying and mesmerizing power, Hong Bian had witnessed once in the Shaman Queen.
Those influenced by the Shaman Queen, without exception, felt an uncontrollable desire for combat and plunder arise within them.
Those bewitched would keep brandishing their weapons even after being drenched in bl**d, with the crimson gushing from their wounds only fueling their excitement.
Until their broken bodies could no longer sustain their slaughter, or they were completely destroyed by the enemy during that slaughter.
Sometimes, the so-called “enemy” might have just moments earlier been their companions…
Hong Bian had seen in his precognitive dream that the Shaman Queen had successfully devoured him, crossing Yumen Pass, spreading her iron hooves throughout the world. At that time, this world would be trapped in ruin and flames, the sky would have no more pure white clouds, and the ocean would turn the color of bl**d.
In the end, this world would be left with only the figure of the Shaman Queen standing atop endless corpses, her delighted and manic laughter echoing throughout the universe.
That voice was filled with mockery towards him, as if saying, “In this world, all living beings, every inch of land and water, will ultimately be ignited by war; no miracle will happen…”
Actually, Hong Bian was not so afraid of the fate of being devoured by the Shaman Queen; what he truly feared was that the visions in the precognitive dream would become reality.
He would never let himself be devoured, nor would he allow the Shaman Queen to cross Yumen Pass, because this might very well be the last line of defense…
And the qualities exhibited by the two Shen sisters that were similar to those of the Shaman Queen made him suspect that they, like the Shaman Queen, were foul pests parasitizing the beautiful world flower, birthed from it.
Now that they had arrived… they would either be imprisoned or perish along with that fiend, Hong Bian thought.
Just as he was pondering, a shadow quickly approached him from behind, silently and swiftly reaching his side and gently tapping his shoulder.
Lost in the terror of that precognitive dream and his gradually intensifying murderous thoughts towards the two Shen sisters, Hong Bian suddenly trembled when someone tapped his shoulder.
However, when he instinctively prepared to strike, he saw the face of the person approaching, and an expression of shock instantly appeared on his face, only to be followed by a hint of resentment.
“Longxiang? Why are you here? Why…”
He had too many questions; he wanted to ask Longxiang why he was here, why he always played these childish tricks, and wanted to know about the situation with the Shaman Queen’s army.
However, before he could ask, Longxiang grinned and said, “It’s a long story, but what about you, rushing around like this, what are you planning to do?”
“Wait! Don’t say, let me guess!”
Hong Bian, “…” Is it really the time for guessing games?
“If I’m not mistaken, you must have discovered two girls with qualities similar to the Shaman Queen, and now you’re rushing to take their lives, right?”
At this, Hong Bian froze for a moment, then steadied himself and said, “If they cooperate, it’s not impossible to spare their lives and just imprison them.”
He had long since become accustomed to Longxiang being able to guess his thoughts.
Although Longxiang did not possess the special ability of precognitive dreams, as a noble prince guarding Yumen Pass for over a decade, the number of spies under him had reached a terrifying level.
“I think you shouldn’t go.” Seeing the expression on Hong Bian’s face, Longxiang smiled, “Let me handle it; whether it’s negotiating or killing, I’m much better at it than you.”
“Besides…”
Longxiang said, looking at the distance where Luxianbei and Shen Baiwei were in the thatched house, narrowing his eyes slightly.
“I believe that even if they share similar qualities with the Shaman Queen, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will do the same things. Bad people can reform and do good deeds! Didn’t Xunzi also say that human nature is fundamentally evil but can be improved through learned behavior? Just like your good disciples…”
“Alright, I’ll listen to what they have to say first. If it’s possible, I will educate them and come right back!”
Without giving Hong Bian a chance to refuse, Longxiang’s figure flashed and disappeared from sight.
————
Once inside, Shen Baiwei finally broke free from Luxianbei’s control. As she moved her slightly sore arm and glared at Luxianbei, she lowered her voice and said, “What are you doing? Didn’t you see that the person outside looks a lot like that guy we met before?”
“I tell you, he is not just passing by; he came specifically to cause trouble! I risked interfering with the past to kindly remind you; why can’t you recognize good intentions?”
“Don’t you fear that he is sent by the monk of Zawen Temple?”
After spending some time coexisting with Calamity, she had mostly ruled out the possibility of Calamity wanting to interfere with the past, and what she wanted to do now was to bring Calamity back in its entirety.
After all, if by some accident they left Calamity here over a thousand years ago, that would be the greatest interference with the past.
Moreover, the monk in Zawen Temple wanted their lives… Shen Baiwei felt they were now barely connected by a rope, like grasshoppers on the same string.
“Of course I know!” Luxianbei rolled her eyes at Shen Baiwei, then peeked outside to confirm that “Li Tietou” was not following. After quickly laying down a few soundproof spells around them, she leaned closer to Shen Baiwei and continued, “I’ve met that person outside before…”
Shen Baiwei tilted her head, looking puzzled.
Seeing this, Luxianbei explained, “I have indeed seen him. Explaining the specifics now is a bit complicated, but anyway, I infer that the person outside is very likely the master of Yumen Pass.”
“You mean, he is the Nan…” Shen Baiwei’s words were halfway through when she worried that the man still in the courtyard might sense something, and quickly shut her mouth.
After a pause, she added, “What should we do now? We need to think of a way to slip away quickly?”
Her thoughts were simple; first, she and Calamity were definitely no match for the master of Yumen Pass. Second, too much contact with the master of Yumen Pass would inevitably affect the past.
So, from any angle, avoiding the master of Yumen Pass was the best choice.
Luxianbei shook her head, denying Shen Baiwei’s idea, and continued explaining, “The current situation is that he likely doesn’t know I’ve seen him before, so I plan to not expose his identity for now, but to probe his intentions first and see what he’s here for.”
Loves this identity play, does he? I’m very familiar with this! If there’s any malice, who tricks whom is still uncertain!
As Luxianbei thought this, she waved her hand to dissolve the spells around them and strode confidently towards the door…
