Chapter 38: So, Wang Chu Was the Sect Master All Along!? Fairy Fan Regrets Her Actions

"Oh? He can create artistic conception with an erhu?"

The curve at the corner of Nangong Minghui's mouth deepened.

Fan Shuyun, who had failed to notice this at all, answered truthfully with a solemn expression: "Yes, that person is absolutely the most skilled erhu player I have ever seen with my own eyes."

Nangong Minghui asked with a playful tone: "Compared to the Sect Master, who do you think is more skilled?"

Fan Shuyun replied without hesitation: "Naturally, the Sect Master. When I say he is skilled, it is only in comparison to most of the disciples within the sect."

Nangong Minghui, however, said: "I think his level and the Sect Master's are likely on par."

"Ah!"

Fan Shuyun's bright eyes widened abruptly, first in utter shock: "How is that possible?"

Immediately after, she felt a sense of indignation. Even though it was her highly respected master who had said this, she could not bear to hear Wang Chu being mentioned in the same breath as the Sect Master, whom she revered above all else: "Master, the Sect Master is a peerless genius who created the Dao of Music. How could that mortal's music be anywhere near the Sect Master's level?"

Nangong Minghui chuckled inwardly: "What, do you disagree with your master's opinion?"

Fan Shuyun pursed her lips: "Yes! Master, you have never even heard that man play the erhu, so how can you judge his level to be on par with the Sect Master? You are merely making a joke at the Sect Master's expense; this is a sign of disrespect toward the Sect Master!"

"Oh, my."

Nangong Minghui was finding it increasingly amusing. She feigned anger: "You girl, you are so protective of the Sect Master that you don't even have any respect for me, your master? Let me ask you, who saved you from the deep mountains and wild forests, and who guided you into the Dao of Music?"

This question instantly deflated Fan Shuyun's momentum. She lowered her voice and mumbled, feeling a sense of grievance: "Was it not you, Master, who told me since I was a child that I must respect the Sect Master, and that I must never tolerate those who do not? How can you yourself..."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, so you've learned to talk back to your master, have you?"

Nangong Minghui could not help but laugh, though the tone of her voice transmission remained stern.

Fan Shuyun stubbornly insisted: "It's just the truth."

"Pfft!"

Finally, Nangong Minghui could no longer hold back her laughter. "Hahaha, my silly disciple."

Hearing Nangong Minghui's laughter, Fan Shuyun looked up, completely bewildered, her beautiful eyes filled with pure innocence. "Master, what are you laughing at?"

In Fan Shuyun's memory, her master had never laughed like this before. Usually, she was either full of worry or cold as an iceberg. Why was she... acting so differently today?

"Hehehe, because I find it funny, of course." Nangong Minghui’s smile did not fade.

Fan Shuyun remained deeply confused, unable to fathom it: "What is so funny about this? Is disrespecting the Sect Master something to be laughed at?"

Nangong Minghui slightly reined in her laughter: "Certainly not. I am merely laughing at how silly you are. I have already given you a hint, and you still haven't understood."

Fan Shuyun frowned and tilted her head, like a lost puppy: "What hint?"

Fairy Nangong shook her head: "It seems I have no choice but to be blunt. The reason I believe these two are evenly matched is because they are the same person. Can one even rank the same person against themselves? In any case, I cannot, though perhaps you can."

"The same person!... What do you mean?"

Fan Shuyun opened her mouth slightly, feeling as though her brain could not keep up.

***

The same person...

Could Master mean that Wang Chu, the man running the funeral business in Ling City, is...

"Master, you aren't joking, are you?"

Nangong Minghui smoothed a strand of hair at her temple: "How could I joke about the Sect Master? Do you think I am the type of person to make jokes about him?"

Fan Shuyun’s mouth opened wider: "Is the Sect Master not in seclusion?"

"He is in seclusion," Nangong Minghui said, twirling a lock of her hair with her finger. "It is just that the place where he is in seclusion happens to be the mortal world."

"The mortal world..." Fan Shuyun murmured the words. "So the person I met, the person I spoke to, was the Sect Master..."

As she spoke, images of her encounter with Wang Chu began to surface in her mind.

Owing money.
Thinking he was a dissolute playboy and despising him from the bottom of her heart.
Questioning him in front of others.
...

Fan Shuyun's ears, neck, and cheeks all turned a deep, flushed red.

Social death. It was truly a social death.

She had actually acted so presumptuously in front of the Sect Master she respected most, and toward the very person she had wanted to meet the most...

"Master, why didn't you tell me sooner!" Fan Shuyun was filled with resentment.

Nangong Minghui rested her chin on one hand: "If I had told you earlier, you wouldn't have been able to go to Ling City and wouldn't have met the Sect Master."

"What do you mean?" Fan Shuyun did not understand.

Nangong Minghui explained: "Before entering seclusion, the Sect Master gave instructions that anyone who knows his identity is strictly forbidden from traveling to the place where he is cultivating without his permission, and is not allowed to reveal his identity to others."

"Ah!"

Fan Shuyun's expression crumbled. Did this not mean that without the Sect Master's permission, she would never have the chance to go back to Ling City and apologize?

Wait! Fan Shuyun suddenly realized a problem from Nangong Minghui's words: "Master, then why did you tell me? Didn't you say you couldn't reveal it to others?"

Nangong Minghui looked smug: "Because I am an exception. The Sect Master allowed me to inform those I trust of his identity."

"An exception..." This made Fan Shuyun feel envious. "Then can you go see the Sect Master whenever you want?"

The smile vanished from Nangong Minghui's face, replaced by the look of a disgruntled woman: "No!"

***

Within the borders of the Yun Province of the Great Rui, atop a cliff on Cangyun Mountain.

Dugu Jue, the leader of the Lone Star Gate—one of the three major assassin organizations in the Nine Provinces—stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the clouds not far away.

Just then, a fissure opened in the sky, which had been obscured by clouds, and a ray of sunlight shone through, falling directly onto the cliff where he stood.

Dugu Jue reached out to shield his eyes from the piercing light.

"Has Lone Star Seven not been found yet?"

After Dugu Jue asked this, the shadow behind him suddenly twisted and rose upright. "Found. She is in Ling City."

"Ling City..." Dugu Jue smiled. "She still hasn't given up, trying to defy fate by relying on the old Emperor's son. Have you sent the people responsible for the cleanup?"

"Yes, Lone Star Four and Lone Star Six have both gone. There shouldn't be any issues."

Dugu Jue nodded: "I trust their work. Are there any other matters?"

The shadow was silent for a moment before saying in a low voice: "Lone Star One, Lone Star Two, and Lone Star Three died while executing their mission."

Dugu Jue’s pupils contracted, and the composure on his face vanished instantly. He turned around: "How can that be? Which factions did this?"

One had to know that Lone Star One, Two, and Three were the most powerful people under his command, aside from the Three Shadows. Previously, when going on missions, sending just one of them was enough to easily complete the most difficult nine-star tasks.

Yet now, these three powerful individuals had all died at the same time?

To achieve this, Dugu Jue could only think of one possibility: several top factions had secretly joined forces, laid a trap, and wiped them out with lightning speed.

"It was a single faction that did it." The shadow denied Dugu Jue's guess, its tone laced with apprehension.

"Oh?" Dugu Jue was somewhat surprised. "Which faction?"

His eyes turned cold, filled with murderous intent. No matter which faction it was, he would make them pay! Since the establishment of the Lone Star Gate, they had wiped out dozens, if not hundreds, of factions. He would not mind wiping out one more to let the world know the price of offending the Lone Star Gate.

"It was the Northern Underworld!" the shadow replied.

Upon hearing this, Dugu Jue’s body trembled inexplicably, and the murderous intent he had been building up vanished instantly.

These two words instantly reminded him of the terrifying man he had met in Su Province, the one who kept muttering about "slaughtering pigs"...

If he hadn't been lucky...

Endless fear engulfed Dugu Jue. A tremor originating from the depths of his soul drove him to ask hurriedly: "Their identities weren't exposed, were they?"

The shadow hesitated for a while before answering: "No."

"Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure?" Dugu Jue asked repeatedly, his face deathly pale and filled with extreme nervousness.

The shadow replied again: "No."

"That's good, that's good..." Dugu Jue breathed a sigh of relief.

He felt as though he and his sect had just walked past the gates of hell. If any other sect had killed members of his Lone Star Gate, he would certainly have launched a retaliatory strike, but if that faction was the Northern Underworld...

Dugu Jue only wanted to run as far away as he could!