Chapter Fourteen: Night Battle

At the very moment when the two burly men were at their wits’ end, Sun Fanbai rose from his seat with a gentle smile, bowed to them, and spoke slowly, “I am a disciple of the Yunqing Sect. Please forgive us, fellow cultivators. My junior sister is young and inexperienced in matters of courtesy. Should her words have offended you, I hope you can be generous.”

Seeing this, the two men guessed that this young cultivator was behind the earlier tricks. Upon hearing they were from Yunqing Sect, their expressions eased.

One of the men said, “Since you are friends from Yunqing Sect, we’ll let it pass for your sect’s sake. If it were anyone else, my blade would have separated your head from your shoulders.”

“You!” Shen Ling’er glared in outrage.

“That’s enough, junior sister.” Sun Fanbai tugged her back to her seat, returned the bow to the two men, and then turned to Yuanwu.

“Master, please, sit here. You’ve seen my junior sister’s temper. If you don’t sit, she’ll just cause more trouble.”

Yuanwu pondered for a moment, then said, “Thank you, benefactor. I won’t delay you for long.”

Thus, the minor commotion came to an end. Before long, Yuanwu bowed and headed to the woodshed. Sun Fanbai and Shen Ling’er soon left as well, each returning to their rooms.

That night, as sunlight faded and darkness cloaked the land, two furtive shadows crept onto the second floor of the inn around the first watch of the night. Stealthily, they approached two rooms and blew a soporific smoke inside.

The bell hanging above Sun Fanbai’s bed suddenly rang out.

“Hm?” With a nimble roll, Sun Fanbai leapt from his bed, activated his Heavenly Eye, and immediately noticed the swirling smoke in the room.

“Soporific smoke?” He instantly held his breath, grabbed his sword from the table, and vaulted through the window to the outside.

Just then, he caught sight of a man in black carrying a young woman in a pale pink dress, flying eastward. Another black-clad figure followed, shooting past Sun Fanbai.

“My junior sister? This is bad!”

Greatly alarmed, Sun Fanbai gathered his inner energy and began to chase them with Wind Riding technique.

At the same time, Yuanwu, who was meditating in the woodshed, furrowed his brow and stood up, stepping outside. Facing east, he sighed, crushed a string of prayer beads on his wrist, and began to walk eastward. Though his pace seemed slow, with each step he covered the length of a hundred.

The black-clad men, carrying Shen Ling’er, soared out of Yunzhou City toward the dense eastern forests. Sun Fanbai pursued closely.

One of the black-clad men said, “You go ahead, I’ll cover the retreat.”

The other nodded and disappeared with Shen Ling’er into the forest.

Sun Fanbai was intercepted by the remaining assailant.

He shouted angrily, “Who are you people? Why have you kidnapped my junior sister?!”

“It won’t matter to you, since you’ll soon be dead,” the man in black replied coldly.

Fury surged through Sun Fanbai. He drew his sword, pulled out a Bagua compass from his robe, and prepared to attack.

“Amitabha, benefactor, stay your hand!” A Buddhist invocation echoed suddenly. The two glanced downward to see Yuanwu, the young monk, hurrying over.

“Little master, you—?”

Yuanwu replied, “Benefactor, you pursue the other. I will hold this one here.”

Realizing Yuanwu had come to help, Sun Fanbai quickly saluted and flew toward the eastern forest.

“Did I give you leave to go?!” the man in black bellowed, drawing a broadsword from his back and soaring after Sun Fanbai.

Unfazed, Sun Fanbai kept rushing toward the forest.

As the black-clad man closed in, a flash of golden light burst forth, and Yuanwu suddenly appeared before him. The man did not panic but swung his blade at Yuanwu.

“Amitabha!” Yuanwu invoked, his right hand gleaming with golden light. He raised his hand and caught the descending blade.

The man tried to wrench it free, but the sword remained motionless in Yuanwu’s grip.

Enraged, the man shouted, “Nosy little monk!”

Expressionless, Yuanwu said calmly, “You had best not pursue them, or else…”

“And what will you do?” the black-clad man sneered.

Yuanwu looked up with a faint smile. “Then I’ll see to it by force that you’re in no condition to chase anyone.”

...

Meanwhile, Sun Fanbai sped through the forest, finally catching up.

He lunged to seize Shen Ling’er from the black-clad man’s back.

The assailant, sensing the move, twisted in midair, evading the grab.

Sun Fanbai’s hand brushed only the hem of Shen Ling’er’s dress before the black-clad man dodged away, landing ten feet back, placing Shen Ling’er on the ground. He pressed three fingers, like claws, to her throat and shouted, “Take another step and I’ll end her right now!”

Sun Fanbai landed, not daring to advance.

The man in black laughed wildly. “Cut off your right hand at once, or I’ll do it!”

Sun Fanbai said nothing, only smiled faintly, his right hand moving behind his back to form a secret mudra.

Seeing Sun Fanbai’s lack of response, the black-clad man hesitated a few moments, then made to strike.

But in an instant, Shen Ling’er vanished from beneath his hand and was replaced by Sun Fanbai! Shen Ling’er now stood where Sun Fanbai had been moments before.

With a flying kick, Sun Fanbai sent the black-clad man tumbling several yards away. He spun, ignoring his foe, and instantly appeared beside Shen Ling’er.

Placing three fingers on her pulse, he murmured, “Just ordinary soporific smoke.”

He drew a small medicine bottle from within his robe, shook out a black pill, and placed it in Shen Ling’er’s mouth.

Meanwhile, the black-clad man, though he tried to retaliate, found himself unable to move. He summoned all his inner power, attempting to use Wind Command to flee, but could not budge an inch.

“Don’t waste your strength.” Supporting Shen Ling’er, sensing her gradually regaining consciousness, Sun Fanbai infused her with energy and, without turning his head, spoke to the black-clad man. “That kick just now was anything but random.”

“Wha—what?” The man was shocked to find himself bound by invisible cords of wind, utterly immobilized.

“When did this happen? How did you do it? What secret technique is this?” he demanded.

Sun Fanbai, watching Shen Ling’er slowly awaken, gestured to the ground.

The black-clad man activated his Heavenly Eye and suddenly saw a Bagua formation of pure energy inscribed on the earth, with himself standing at the Xun position.

Xun governs the southeast, where no wind blows!

Xun governs the southeast, its number is five, its element is wind.

“Bagua formation?! What Daoist art is this?!”

Sun Fanbai smiled. “You can guess.”

At that moment, footsteps sounded from the west. Sun Fanbai looked that way to see Yuanwu, the young monk, traversing a hundred paces with each step, carrying the limp body of another black-clad man.

Yuanwu set the man down, bowed slightly to Sun Fanbai, and said softly, “Benefactor, I’ve held him for you.”

Looking at the motionless figure on the ground, Sun Fanbai thought, “He’s done far more than just hold him…”

He returned the bow. “Thank you, little master!”

Shen Ling’er, consciousness restored, took in the scene before her and frowned...