Chapter Fourteen: The Assassin

“The weather is wonderful today! Finally, the gloom of the past two days has lifted. Look over there—see that towering mountain in the distance? Isn’t that the main peak of the Cloud Sky Sect?” Wu Luohua stood at the front of the carriage, his face alight with excitement. “Hey, Shunqing, why aren’t you happy? We’re almost at our destination.”

Shunqing sighed deeply. “Third Uncle, Third Uncle.”

Wu Luohua groaned. “Brother, can’t you say something else? You dream about Third Uncle so much—if we didn’t know better, others might think you’re secretly in love with him.”

Mo Bai chuckled. This eldest son of the Wu family was quite sharp, daring to liken the famed Master Yunfa to his nephew’s secret lover. If the stern, world-renowned Yunfa heard this, would he not be furious enough to cough up blood?

Yet Wu Luohua was unperturbed. He understood that though the Cloud Sky Sect ruled over vast lands, they hadn’t reached that level of power yet. Perhaps when he arrived at Cloud Village, he would restrain himself a bit.

Suddenly, Mo Bai sensed a trace of murderous intent. Pulling Wu Luohua aside, he said, “Luohua, I’m afraid your good mood is about to be interrupted. Before we reach the Cloud Sky Sect, we’ll have to deal with a little trouble.”

Wu Luohua was startled. “Someone’s here to kill Shunqing again? He’s really that popular?”

Mo Bai smiled but did not answer. Instead, he called out loudly, “Friend, since you’re here, why not show yourself?”

With a swift sound, a dark figure leapt from the woods on either side, movements fluid and precise—clearly his agility skills were well-honed.

“I didn’t expect that old Four Venoms Wanderer to be so useless,” the man said coldly. “The employer said he would at least injure you, yet here you are, completely unharmed.”

Mo Bai sat cross-legged on the edge of the carriage. “You’re very young, calling Four Venoms Wanderer an old man is fair.”

The man’s eyes flashed like lightning. “You’re young yourself. But my sword is not young, nor are the people I’ve killed.”

Mo Bai replied, “But you were even younger the first time you became an assassin. I wonder how many you’ve slain, and how many more before you reach a hundred?”

The young man hesitated. “How do you know I haven’t killed a hundred people?”

Mo Bai smiled. “Your hands. They’re long and skilled—perfect for swordplay—but they aren’t steady, because your heart isn’t steady.”

The young man threw his head back and laughed. “Nonsense! How can you know I’m not steady? My steadiness is in my heart, not my hands.”

Mo Bai explained, “If you were truly steady, you wouldn’t come out to talk with me. You’d strike from the shadows, catching me off guard. That’s what a real assassin would do.”

The young man looked at Mo Bai. “That’s what ordinary assassins do. I am not ordinary.”

Mo Bai asked, “Do you think you’re stronger than Four Venoms Wanderer?”

The young man replied, “At least I’m more confident than him.”

Mo Bai said, “Blind confidence isn’t always a good thing.”

With a sharp sound, the young man drew his sword from its sheath and pointed it at Mo Bai. “If I can kill you, that will prove everything.”

Mo Bai shook his head. “If you were a proper assassin, you wouldn’t bother with a fancy sword sheath—it’s unnecessary.”

The young man said coldly, “Draw your weapon. Let me see how extraordinary it is.”

The scar at the corner of Mo Bai’s left eyebrow twitched. “Weapon? I don’t seem to have one.”

The young man said no more, fearing that further talk would sap his courage to attack. His sword flashed like lightning, slashing toward Mo Bai.

Mo Bai soared into the air like a great roc descending, his nimble hand striking out to meet the young man's sword. As their blades crossed, the young man seemed to suffer a tremendous blow. Though his sword tip emitted waves of energy, it could not pierce the vortex in Mo Bai's hand. The blade bent bit by bit, until the young man spat blood and fell from the sky, staggering several steps before he could stand.

Hidden in the woods, a mysterious figure observed the scene, letting out a soft exclamation—he hadn’t expected Mo Bai’s spiritual cultivation to have reached such a level. Sending Zisu Sword to test him was justified; there was no need to watch further. The mysterious figure vanished in a blur of white.

Mo Bai gazed deeply into the woods, unable to find the truth behind the presence. He then turned to Zisu Sword and said, “To channel spiritual energy into sword aura to such a degree is no small feat. I imagine Master Quick Sword Zhang must be pleased to have a disciple like you.”

Zisu Sword was stunned that his identity had been exposed in a single exchange. He forced a bitter smile. “I thought my sword was fast and sharp, but I didn’t expect I couldn’t last even one move against you.”

“You’re still young, and there are plenty of opportunities ahead. But don’t pursue this path of killing—it only breeds hostility, not true progress in spiritual cultivation,” Mo Bai advised.

Zisu Sword asked in confusion, “You mean you’re letting me go?”

Wu Luohua stepped forward. “Don’t you want to live? Living is such a beautiful thing—why are you so eager to die?”

Zisu Sword was stunned, then clasped his hands in disbelief. “I didn’t expect there would be someone like you, Mo Bai, who’d let go of someone sent to kill him.”

Mo Bai smiled. “You’re not like Four Venoms Wanderer.”

Zisu Sword stared blankly for a long moment. When he heard the carriage rolling away, he finally snapped out of it, bowed deeply toward Mo Bai’s departing carriage, and said, “Thank you, Master Mo. Now I understand what it means for the heart to be higher than the sky. The Linglong Continent is not something one can traverse as one pleases. My hands are not steady, because my heart is not steady.”

On the carriage that had already entered the Cloud Sky Sect’s territory, Wu Luohua asked curiously, “Brother Mo, don’t you find it odd that Zisu Sword came? If someone wanted to kill Shunqing, surely they’d send a more formidable expert—why send a novice?”

Mo Bai chuckled softly. “Perhaps that’s precisely the skill of the mastermind. Though I can’t say what’s so clever about it yet.”

Wu Luohua mused, “Could it be a case of using another’s blade to kill? It’s said that Zisu Sword is Master Quick Sword Zhang’s most cherished disciple, and rumor has it he is the illegitimate son of Zhang and Miss Li, the Second Daughter of the Divine Blade Li family. If you had killed Zisu Sword, you’d offend both the Quick Sword Sect and the Divine Blade Li family.”

Mo Bai paused, then laughed. “I never expected the eldest son of the first family in spiritual cultivation to be such a gossip lover.”

Wu Luohua froze, then burst out laughing as well.

Shunqing joined in, and both Mo Bai and Wu Luohua glanced over. Wu Luohua teased, “You find this amusing too?”

Shunqing ignored him, stubbornly chuckling. Wu Luohua grew annoyed. “Mo Bai can joke, but you’re not qualified yet.”

Shunqing laughed again, causing Wu Luohua a headache. Mo Bai pulled him aside. “Let him laugh—he knows if he doesn’t laugh now, he may never get another chance.”

Wu Luohua followed Mo Bai’s gaze, then his mouth dropped open as he muttered, “We’ve arrived at the Cloud Sky Sect. My family may be the foremost in spiritual cultivation, but we cannot compare to the grandeur of a true sect. I suddenly feel as if my body is filled with spiritual energy.”

Mo Bai coughed. “Luohua, your expression is a bit much—you’ve already stepped outside the carriage.”

Only then did Wu Luohua realize he had unconsciously left the carriage, and with a startled cry, he fell to the ground, prompting a round of laughter from those nearby. Unknowingly, the group had arrived at Cloud Village.

Wu Luohua quickly scrambled up, then declared loudly, “What a rich and vibrant culture—this is the bearing of a great spiritual sect!”

Mo Bai said, “If you want to show your bearing, you’d better fill your belly, so it doesn’t keep rumbling.”

“Ah, haha.”