Plundering the Dao of the Immortal Journey

Pei Zi Yun rode a horse as he charged through the gates, against the assault of wind and snow. The speed of the horse, along with the loud clatter caused by its’ hooves startled many commoners along the streets. Just as he reached a bridge, he realized that something was amiss. There were absolutely no civilians on this bridge.

Pei Zi Yun felt his hair stand on end as he flipped himself off the horse. In that second, he heard the sound of arrows as they whistled through the air. The next moment, dozens of arrows had lodged themselves within the muscular body of the horse.

The horse screamed in pain as it fell to the ground. Even before it could land, Pei Zi Yun had already charged towards his attackers. From the reflection on the ground, a ray of light from Pei Zi Yun’s sword dashed into the group of black robed men.

As Pei Zi Yun closed in on the archers, they knew that it was impossible to nock another arrow and fire it at their target in time. Someone then gave a sharp order before the ten archers split into two groups of five. The first group then took out a lasso and tossed it towards Pei Zi Yun.

This was a rather unexpected and caught Pei Zi Yun by surprise, who got entangled by the lasso. The group who tossed it at him were clearly trained. As soon as he was entangled, the other group of five drew their blades and charged towards him.

"Cloud Form!"

Pei Zi Yun’s form dissolved into a shadow as the lasso loosened its grip around him, and fell to the ground. The next moment, there was a loud "pu" as the nearest man fell to the ground, blood gushed out from the right side of his chest.

The gleams from the blades were unrestrained as slashes were made in all directions. Loud "zhngs" filled the air and reverberated while sparks flew in all directions. Pei Zi Yun’s downward slash was parried by one of the men. A split second later, he pulled away and stabbed the assailant ferociously, which caused the man to spit out blood. Instead of retreating, the rest of the black robed men charged towards him fearlessly.

This wasn’t about killing Pei Zi Yun. It was about preventing Pei Zi Yun from reaching his destination regardless of whatever it took. Three blades were raised in the air, as they stood before Pei ZI Yun in defiance.

"With me, we’re unrivalled!" That was the way soldiers fought.

"Zhng zhng zhng" Shadows entwined with each other as they danced with their blades before pulling apart.

Pei Zi Yun revealed his body once more, an icy glare was etched in his eyes. He looked down and saw that his robes had been torn, his leather armor was revealed. The leather armor had been slashed through as well. Although he wasn’t stabbed, a red line of blood could be seen on his skin.

The wound was a result of a blade as it brushed past him.

"Ah..." The black robed assailant before him fell, as blood splashed like a fountain from his wounds.

His right leg was missing as he struggled on the ground in agony. The left side of his scalp had been split open as well. His white skull along with red blood could be seen.

Pei Zi Yun didn’t give them a moment to recover as he continued the assault. He didn’t wish to give these black robed assailants the chance to regroup or to strategize. His movements as were as fluid as water as he charged unrelentingly.

There was some movement behind the group of men. Someone had drawn his sword and tossed the sheath onto the ground. When Pei Zi Yun saw this, his body vanished from view once again. Except this time, he didn’t disappear. He just moved forward at a frightening speed, his blade was outstretched, giving no mercy to anyone standing in his way.

The next moment, there was a dull thud as the leader of the black robed assailants was struck a forceful blow full on the head. Pei Zi Yun’s sword pierced right through his skull like it was soft cotton. Not much blood flowed out, but the leader groaned once. He raised his hands to touch the spot which had been struck. Even before his fingers could touch his own forehead, he lost all strength and fell to the ground.

Another black robed assailant shouted out in anger, as he stood still, making no move to dodge Pei Zi Yun’s strike. A sword pierced through his chest and exited from his back. He clutched onto the sword which was still lodged in his chest and spoke through gritted teeth, "Kill me…."

Instantly, another pair of black robed soldiers stabbed him in the back, as blood flowed freely from his wounds.

Both these pairs of soldiers shouted as they fulfilled the dying request of their compatriot simultaneously.

"The reason why soldiers are so effective at fighting is that they would give up everything in order to accomplish their mission." Pei Zi Yun could hear the amount of force used by both these black robed soldiers as they killed their ally out of mercy. He could even hear the mans internal organs being ruptured.

The black robed soldier on the ground opened his eyes wide in pain. It was without question that he was going to die. However, at this point, he still hasn’t died. His eyes blinked several times, as if coming to terms with his own death.

Pei Zi Yun gave a shout as he stabbed his sword forward with immense strength. The soldier across from him stared at him defiantly as he extended a hand to block the blow. In that instant, his hand turned to mush from the force exerted. The next blow saw his shoulder as it was severed from his torso, a fountain of blood sprayed out.

Having broken through their formation, he finally relaxed. As soon as he allowed himself some composure, he saw something from the corner of his eyes once more as his sword flew in a frenzy, sending the remaining three soldiers to the ground.

Both sides reacted extremely quickly and moved so swiftly it was difficult to explain. In the blink of an eye the black robed soldiers were completely wiped out. Only the soldier who was clutching onto his severed shoulder was left. Watching all his friends die, he screamed before falling back down to the ground.

Pei Zi Yun took several steps forward as he plunged his blade into every single corpse to ensure that they were indeed dead. The entire scene reeked of rancid blood. He ripped off his outer robes and cleaned himself.

At this point, he didn’t have much time left. The grey clouds hung lower, he also noticed that the drizzling rain had become snow. He thus hurriedly turned into an alley as he ran past a row of shops. All of a sudden, his eyes glimmered.

This was a restaurant which didn’t look very big. There were five stables displayed within. At this point, the weather was cold and gloomy, with only two or three customers dining.

As soon as the serving staff saw Pei Zi Yun, he waved his towel and invited him in, "Guest, please come in. It’s a cold day out. Have some hot food and wine to heat yourself up."

Despite the fact that he was in a rush, Pei Zi Yun nodded his head as he sat down at the table by the corner. He then instructed, "Bring me a jug of wine and several plates of dishes!"

The serving staff smiled and acknowledged. Right at this moment, he saw the Crown Prince’s tile hanging from Pei Zi Yun’s waist and paused momentarily. He then turned around and carried a tray over as he spoke, "The signature dish here would be the roasted chicken along with a tray of five spices nuts. I am certain you will enjoy it."

"What else would you like, please let me know." As he spoke, Pei Zi Yun leaned in closer.

He then spoke in a hushed voice, "I am Pei Zi Yun, Top Scorer of Ying Prefecture. Hurry, inform the people upstairs that the Crown Prince is in danger. I wish to see him when he passes by this place."

"Go. If the Crown Prince gets into trouble because of you, I shall have your head!"

After he finished whispering, Pei Zi Yun then spoke loudly, "I also want a plate of steamed mushrooms!"

The serving boy’s face turned pale as he replied, "Alright, please wait for a little while!"

Pei Zi Yun focused his thoughts as he drank his wine and ate some meat. After some time, the serving boy approached him and gave him a subtle signal. Pei Zi Yun then finished his meal and pretended to leave. Once he reached a dark alley outside, he saw several men approach him.

"Is that Top Scorer Pei?" Someone craned his neck to get a better look before he waved his hand. Immediately, several more people closed in on them to protect him.

Pei Zi Yun frowned as he asked, "Are you the secret guards who’re supposed to protect the Crown Prince? Can I still make it in time to see him? I shall bear all responsibilities from here on."

The leader amongst these guards flexed his cheek muscles as he looked at Pei Zi Yun, "Yes, you can. When the entourage approaches, we can wave our banners at them. They will go through that bend, where you can get close. But if the Crown Prince chooses not to see you, that is his own choice."

Right at this point, sounds could be heard. A pair of carriages with six soldiers in front appeared into view. These soldiers were all armed with crossbows as they eyed their surroundings warily.

There were at least twenty soldiers on each flank of the carriages, with another eight warriors behind. There were six other soldiers on horseback following close behind, in two groups.

Someone signaled the entourage. After a guard saw the signal, he approached the carriage to speak with the Crown Prince before he signaled back. There were no other changes to the entourage as they proceeded onwards.

The sky was dark at this point, as the winds started to blow snow along the way, as it grew heavier. A layer of snow had already formed on the ground. As the entourage made the turn and rounded the bend, a shadow of a man could be seen as he approached the carriage, yet it was so fast it felt almost like a hallucination. None of the guards noticed this.

The entourage continued to cruise slowly down the streets. The Crown Prince within the carriage held up a lamp and smiled, "Dao Master Qi Ning, why do you look so anxious? Did something happen?"

"Come, take a seat, wipe your face with a warm towel to feel better."

There was a serving maid within the carriage who took out a towel. She then took out a silver bottle which was covered with cotton and poured the water onto the towel.

"Although something has happened to the Crown Prince, he’s still able to remain so calm and composed!" Pei Zi Yun smiled. He thought to himself, that indeed this was the Crown Prince. Even though he wasn’t the most talented, it seemed like he’s at least able to keep his emotions in check and remain level headed despite the chaos that is brewing.

Pei Zi Yun’s eyes then jumped to the Crown Prince’s hands and saw that they were trembling. While he laughed within his heart, he smiled and spoke, "Is the Crown Prince on his way to the Imperial Palace to explain to the Emperor about the rumors of an affair?"

The Crown Prince sighed as he retrieved a cup of wine and drank it. He then replied, "This is a small matter. There’s no lack of women in my own residence. Besides, it’s not like this woman was extremely beautiful. How is it possible that I would ever have relations with her?"

"Besides I already understand the entire situation. This woman has certain duties within my palace, but have never gotten the chance to meet me. Besides, there is an activity log tracking my movements whenever I’m in or out of my palace. When the Emperor questions me, all I have to do is to ask the time which the supposed act happened. Then we shall have a clearer picture."

"If Dao Master is here just because of this, as what I’ve said earlier, it’s no big deal."

As he finished speaking he then gritted his teeth, "As for the person who spread this rumor, I know who it is. He had to prostitute himself in order to afford a proper burial for his father. I pitied him and thus took him into my service, and paid him well. It’s unexpected that he would do something like this against me. In spite of my magnanimity, I shall flay him when I’m back!"

Pei Zi Yun listened attentively without speaking as he watched the snow falling slowly in the distance. The scenery was a blur with such weather. He then sighed and smiled as he spoke, "What the Crown Prince is trying to say, is that someone is trying to slander you. That’s something very obvious that everyone knows. The question is, why did this person tell on your secret to the Emperor?"

The Crown Prince paused in shock as he listened attentively to Pei Zi Yun, who continued, "Since there’s already one person trying to frame you and slander you, is it possible for a second to happen? For example, if a love letter from a mistress was found in your clothes, or something else."

"Once you enter the palace, and you’re being searched and such an article was found, do you think the Emperor would still believe you?"

The Crown Prince’s expression fell.

A second later, the carriage stopped as the guard hurriedly asked, "Crown Prince, is something wrong?"

"Nothing’s wrong. I dropped my teacup. Please proceed." The Crown Prince replied.

The carriage started to move again as snowflakes continued descending. The Crown Prince’s face was ashen. At this point, he started searching himself, to find any suspicious items planted on him. Indeed, he took out a bag of medicine, with several large pills within the bag. As soon as he took it out, a strong fragrant smell diffused across the carriage.

"What’s this, drugs? Does the slanderer wish to drug me as well?"

"Who is the guilty person who did this, who risked the death of nine generations of his family. Who planted this on me?"

"It’s not necessarily drugs!" Pei Zi Yun took the pills and examined them. After careful consideration, he then spoke, "I believe this drug has something to do with increasing the sexual libido of the person who consumes it."

When the Crown Prince heard this, his face turned dark. This was an aphrodisiac. If the Crown Prince walked into the palace with this, along with the rumors that he was having an affair outside of his concubines, what would people think?

His lips started to tremble but he didn’t speak.

"There’s another bend nearby, I shall be on my way!" Pei Zi Yun exhaled as he stood up, "Such a ploy relied heavily on the fact that no preparations would be made to thwart it. Once there are adequate precautions taken, nothing can hurt the Crown Prince."

"We’re approaching the palace. I shan’t stay on any longer. Farewell."

The Crown Prince looked at Pei Zi Yun before he spoke, "You’ve done well this time. I shall remember this. Carry on."

After instructing Pei Zi Yun, they waited several seconds for the carriage to make a turn into a bend. Pei Zi Yun then leapt off and vanished. Seeing him depart, the Crown Prince then frowned as his face turned pale. His eyes gleamed before he spoke out harshly, "Those traitors who sold me out!"

Killing intent swelled within his voice as he spoke.