Chapter 146: Who’s Holding a Funeral in the Middle of the Night?
Chapter 146: Chapter 146: Who’s Holding a Funeral in the Middle of the Night?
Wang Xi had Liang Tao fetch a leather pouch and stuffed all the valuables inside.
He took the leather pouch and said,
"From now on, you are the Patriarch of the Three Rivers Gang."
"Huh?" Liang Tao was stunned.
But he quickly came to his senses and dropped to his knees with a THUD.
"Thank you for sparing my life, Lord Top Immortal!"
Liang Tao pressed his forehead to the ground, his voice trembling.
"I swear that I will keep the members of the Three Rivers Gang in line. We will turn over a new leaf and do legitimate business from now on!"
"..."
Wang Xi stood silently.
A trace of mockery flashed in his eyes.
’In these chaotic times, expecting a gang like this to go straight? What a fool’s dream.’
He wasn’t some benevolent saint sent to guide people to righteousness.
He’d killed Boss Tian today, but tomorrow a Boss Zhang or Boss Li would just take his place. It was better to keep Liang Tao around—the man was clever enough, and better to control than some idiot.
"Listen up." Wang Xi stood up casually, dusting off his sleeves and the hem of his robe, the leather pouch full of money in his hand. "If that Steward from the Provincial City’s Liu Family sends someone to ask questions, just give them some excuse. And don’t even bother with the Black Eel Army."
He turned and walked toward the door, his final words echoing from the shadows. "I’ll come find you when I need you."
Liang Tao remained prostrated on the ground, agreeing profusely. Only after the footsteps had completely faded at the end of the alley did he dare to look up.
Cold sweat had long since soaked the back of his collar.
...
...
Wang Xi didn’t return directly to the Huo Family Martial Arts Hall. Instead, he made another trip to the Black Eel Army barracks in the northern part of Qingwei Town.
After activating Mud Howling Dark Frog, all sentries, whether in plain sight or hidden, were perfectly clear to him. He silently slipped into the innermost courtyard with ease.
He was standing right outside the study before Mr. Dong, Captain Mao, and the two adjutants inside had any idea he was there.
Wang Xi stood there quietly for a moment.
He raised his hand, turned the doorknob, and pushed the door open.
"Huh?!"
The four men sitting inside snapped their heads around in unison, their expressions changing just as quickly.
Then, they all shot to their feet as one.
"I-it’s you?!"
Mao Xinrong stared, dumbfounded, pointing a finger at the young man.
He opened his mouth, but no words came out.
’Never mind how this guy escaped from the Defense Bureau’s jail—this is the Black Eel Army barracks!’
’There are thirty or forty of our brothers standing guard and patrolling outside. How did this guy get in?!’
"Captain Mao, did you deliver the message I gave you?"
Wang Xi casually closed the door behind him.
Then, completely ignoring the two adjutants who had drawn their guns on him, he walked straight to the sofa and sat down.
Mao Xinrong remained frozen in place, still stunned.
"Put your guns down." Commander Dong Yaojie glanced at Mao Xinrong, his expression unchanged as he gestured with his hand. "Mr. Xizhi means us no harm."
"Oh?"
Wang Xi looked at the young, thirty-seven or thirty-eight-year-old commander with interest and smiled.
Once the adjutants had put away their guns, Dong Yaojie picked up the Zisha teapot from the coffee table, walked over, and poured the young man a cup of tea.
"We were completely unaware of your arrival, sir. If you truly wished me harm, you had your chance just now."
The man had short hair and wore a crisp black military uniform. A gentle smile touched his stubbled face.
"Please," he said, gesturing with his hand. "This is Red Fragrant Snail, a gift from the Liu Family in the Provincial City."
Wang Xi picked up the colorful porcelain tasting cup and took a sip.
Seeing his complete lack of hesitation, the gravity in Dong Yaojie’s eyes deepened.
"It tastes alright." Wang Xi put down the cup, smacking his lips. "Are you on good terms with the Liu Family?"
"I wouldn’t say good."
Dong Yaojie smiled. He didn’t sit, but instead leaned on the arm of the sofa and explained,
"The Liu Family tries to curry favor with all of Mr. Han’s officers, sending all sorts of gifts. But a minor commander like me, stationed way out here in Qingwei Town, isn’t really on their radar."
"Captain Mao delivered your message. I will not interfere in the matter between the Three Rivers Gang and the Huo Family Martial Arts Hall. Please rest assured, sir."
Hearing this, Wang Xi raised an eyebrow.
In fact, while standing outside the door just now, he had heard Mao Xinrong bad-mouthing him, naturally embellishing the story. Mr. Dong, on the other hand, had only occasionally asked for a detail and hadn’t expressed any opinion.
’A very calm and cautious man.’
"Captain Mao," Wang Xi said suddenly, "I told you I’d only give you one chance. It’s a shame you didn’t take it."
At his words, Mao Xinrong’s face drained of color. He only had time to cry out, "Commander!"
Dong Yaojie’s pupils contracted.
He saw the young man raise his hand, dip his index finger lightly into the teacup, and flick it.
The tea water froze into ice, vanishing in an instant.
The next second, Mao Xinrong, who was on the other side of the coffee table, clutched his neck, his eyes wide, and collapsed with a THUD. Blood instantly stained the clean carpet. The two adjutants didn’t even have time to react.
"..."
Dong Yaojie froze.
He took a deep breath.
It was impossible not to be nervous right now.
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed that someone in this world could actually kill a person with a single drop of tea.
Fortunately, Dong Yaojie was a man who had seen his share of intense situations. He quickly composed himself.
"You two, carry the body out. Find a deserted place and dispose of it."
He turned his head and ordered the adjutants in a low voice.
"Tell everyone that Mao Xinrong’s hand injury was too severe for him to hold a gun anymore, so he was given a severance and sent home."
The two adjutants swallowed, exchanged a glance, and answered in unison. They didn’t dare look at the young man in the long black robe on the sofa as they bent down and began to move Mao Xinrong’s body.
「A short while later.」
Only Dong Yaojie and Wang Xi remained in the study.
"Mr. Dong is a smart man."
Wang Xi said with a smile.
Dong Yaojie’s words just now were directed at his adjutants, but also at him—a clear statement of his position: he would not pursue the matter of Mao Xinrong’s life.
"You flatter me, Mr. Xizhi."
Dong Yaojie, appearing completely composed, picked up the pot and refilled his cup.
"It is the honor of a lifetime to befriend a Grandmaster like you, who transcends the mundane. Allow me to toast you with this tea in place of wine."
He raised his own teacup and said in a deep voice,
"From now on, as long as I am stationed in Qingwei Town, please feel free to command me if you need anything, sir."
...
...
「A moment later.」
It was nearly midnight, the third watch of the night.
Dong Yaojie personally escorted Wang Xi to the barracks gate.
The soldiers on patrol and guard duty along the way were secretly astonished to see this. They couldn’t imagine what kind of big shot the young man in the long black robe was, to be personally seen off by Mr. Dong himself.
As they parted, Wang Xi even patted the Black Eel Corps Commander on the shoulder and remarked,
"Little Jie, you’re a good man. You know when to advance and when to retreat, you’ve got a good head on your shoulders. You have a boundless future ahead of you."
"You’re too kind, sir."
Dong Yaojie forced a smile and braced himself to reply.
Wang Xi toyed with an exquisitely crafted revolver, a faint, unreadable smile on his face as he said,
"I like this gift very much. I’ll come find you for tea again when I have the time."
Although for him, firearms were less practical than a single Magic spell, the intimidation factor a gun represented was sometimes more convenient than Magic.
With that, he tucked the revolver away and walked off.
Only when the young man’s figure had vanished into the night did Dong Yaojie let out a secret sigh of relief.
A thoughtful look passed through his eyes. In the end, he made up his mind: it was best not to offend this person if he could help it.
...
...
「The night was deep.」
There were no streetlights in the town, only the faint moonlight, accompanied by the glow of fires seen through the paper windows of a few scattered houses.
The Huo Family Martial Arts Hall was on a main street in the southern part of Qingwei Town. It was about a twenty-minute walk from here.
Wang Xi walked alone along the bluestone road, his footsteps echoing clearly in the silence.
As he walked on, he didn’t see a single Patrol Soldier, nor did he hear the clapper of a Night Watchman. Eerily, even the barking of dogs and chirping of insects had vanished.
The pale moonlight spilled onto the street, making the doors, windows, and alley mouths on both sides look like gaping black maws.
Wang Xi’s shadow trailed lonely behind him. He unconsciously lightened his steps, his brow furrowed.
’Something’s not right.’
The thought flashed through his mind.
It was as if he were suddenly the only living thing in the entire town. An utterly bizarre feeling.
CLACK.
Wang Xi suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Without warning, he caught the acrid smell of burning paper and looked up.
Around the corner, two pale points of lantern light appeared, swaying unsteadily in the darkness.
It was a funeral procession.
Wang Xi narrowed his eyes.
’A funeral in the middle of the night?’
’Something is definitely wrong here!’
He subconsciously retreated into the shadows at the base of a wall to observe them in secret.
He saw eight pallbearers dressed in white paper robes and white hats, working together to carry a coffin as they slowly approached. The night was too dark to see their expressions clearly, but their faces were painted with exaggerated blush, and their lips were drawn with vermilion all the way to their ears.
The eight men’s steps were terrifyingly synchronized; the carrying poles on their shoulders didn’t sway in the slightest. The large character for "Mourn" was written on the pale white lanterns, yet the candlelight within was perfectly still, as if it were painted on.
DING—
The sound of a small bell rang out from the procession.
It was particularly piercing in the dead silence.
Only then did Wang Xi notice that the procession was led by an old woman in sackcloth. Her face was expressionless as she shook a small bell in her hand. Every three steps, she would grab a handful of joss paper and toss it into the air.
RUSTLE RUSTLE RUSTLE.
The joss paper slowly drifted down.
Wang Xi held his breath and focused, trying to look at the old woman and the pallbearers. The next second, however, his pupils contracted.
His Kaos detection showed no reaction.
It was as if he were scanning empty air.
Wang Xi’s breath hitched.
This was the first time he had ever encountered something so strange.
Refusing to believe it, he silently activated "Mud Howling Dark Frog" again, but he couldn’t see a single throbbing red line of a heartbeat in his vision.
’An illusion? A magical art?’
’What the hell is going on?’
Suddenly, a gust of sinister wind threw paper ash in his face. By the time he swatted the ashes away, the entire procession had vanished from the end of the street, leaving only scattered joss paper on the ground.
Wang Xi’s sharp eyes spotted what looked like writing on one of the half-burnt pieces of joss paper.
He picked it up and looked—scrawled crookedly upon it were his name and his birth date and time!
"Interesting," Wang Xi murmured. "So I’ve really seen a ghost, have I..."
His expression turned cold. He dropped the joss paper and turned to chase after the funeral procession.
Ultimately, fear comes from a lack of firepower. With Wang Xi’s current strength, he could do whatever he wanted in Qingwei Town.
He wasn’t afraid of running into something evil.
But when Wang Xi reached the street corner where they had been, it was completely empty in both directions. There was no sign of the funeral procession.
Not even a single piece of joss paper was to be seen.
It was as if everything he had just seen was an illusion.
"..."
Wang Xi stood at the crossroads like a statue.
He had to admit, he had mentally prepared himself before coming to the Profound Mysterious World.
But when faced with such a bizarre event, he still felt a chill run down his spine.