Stranger Danger

Actor wiped a hand across his face, and his makeup turned bright red in color. That wasn’t the only thing that changed, however. His expression and demeanor suddenly turned courageous and ferocious, and a silver spear appeared into his hand. It was like he was a war general. When he thrust it in Chu Nianjiu’s direction, it was like a thousand pear flowers blooming at the same time.

“Storm Crushed Pear Blossom Spear”

The Storm Crushed Pear Blossom Spear was a military martial art. Simple but not basic, it was fast and ferocious like a storm beating down on a pear blossom. Ideally, its practitioner was expected to kill their opponent in one hit.

In response, Chu Nianjiu waved his palms around and conjured a curtain of palm strikes that were fusing and separating repeatedly. It looked like a sea of winter plums that were blooming and withering over and over again, proud and cold.

The duo clashed fiercely against one another as spear met palm. For a few breaths, it sounded like the collision of force would never end. Then, Actor was thrown back with his silver spear snapped in half, and an icy, hand-shaped mark left on his chest. Over half his body was encased in ice as a result.

“Hooo—”

Actor exhaled and wiped his face once more. The makeup changed from red to white, and once again, his expression and demeanor changed drastically. He went from being courageous and ferocious to cunning and sinister.

Actor produced a sword next, and it was almost as thin as a willow leaf. He then charged toward Chu Nianjiu again. He was now using a completely different martial art and a movement art; one that resembled the spring wind brushing against willow trees. It was light, flexible, and whimsical.

“Willow Wind Dance Sword Art”

The Willow Wind Dance Sword Art was a martial art practiced by the Myriad Willows Sect. It emphasized on being nimble with the sword and running together with the wind. It was best used to pierce bodily points, sever veins, and tie up an enemy.

A short while later, Actor changed his makeup color from white to black. His aura immediately turned tyrannical and bloodthirsty as a pair of massive axes appeared in his hands. He charged toward Chu Nianjiu and swung his axes thirty six times in a row, each one more forceful and violent than the last.

“Thirty Six Hurricane Axes”

The “Thirty Six Hurricane Axes” was a martial art practiced by the Hurricane Bandits. Forceful and unyielding, it was a top-rate do-or-die martial art in the jianghu.

As soon as Actor executed the thirty sixth attack, he changed his makeup from black to yellow. This time, he used a martial art that was grandiose, royal and imposing.

In just a scant few breaths, Actor had assumed four different personalities and executed four completely different martial arts. Despite being weaker than Chu Nianjiu, he actually managed to lock up the Peacemaker in a temporary stalemate.

Neither Chu Nianjiu nor Lin Yuhuai noticed that Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 were hopping, skipping and jumping their way to the troops while they were tied up with Actor and Matchmaker.

The Pacification Sentinels weren’t just going to wait until they got close, of course. They immediately loaded their crossbow bolts, took aim, and fired when the two enemies were about ten meters away from them.

Instead of dodging out of the way, Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 remained where they were as if nothing was happening. When the crossbow bolts were about one meter away from them, it abruptly froze in the air as if caught by some sort of invisible energy.

Xu Banren, Ugly Monk and Amorous Monk were standing in front of the Pacification Sentinels, so they had a front row seat of the duo’s odd behavior. They exchanged puzzled glances with each other while Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 were still “dancing” to their heart’s content.

They didn’t understand what the hell their enemies were doing. Did they have hyperactive child syndrome[1], or was this their way of asking for a truce?

If it was, couldn’t they have chosen a better dance? It looked more like a taunt than anything!

Xu Banren, Ugly Monk and Amorous Monk ordered the men to remain on the defensive since they couldn’t figure out what Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 were doing. They were late-stage Astral Refiners. If the enemy wasn’t going to attack them, then it was better to wait and see what happens.

At first, nothing out of the ordinary happened. Despite Dancer 1 and Dancer 2’s horrible dancing, things were relatively normal. However, some of the weaker Pacification Sentinels suddenly started dancing without warning as if the two dancers had infected them with some sort of dancing syndrome.

As they danced, these people broke their arms, their legs, their waist, and even their neck. Strangely, the victims didn’t notice their odd behavior or feel any pain at all. They continued to dance as if they wouldn’t stop until they died[2].

“An illusion spell?”

Amorous Nun hailed from Temptation Nunnery, and Temptation Nunnery was infamous for their illusion spells and sexual harvesting arts. That was why she was the first one to notice what was really going on here.

“HUM!” Ugly Monk immediately responded with a Buddhist incantation. His voice was loud, clear, and bright, and it repelled the evil spell like a Vajrapani would beat down on a demon.

“Om Mani Padme Hum: Hum” [3]

Hum was one of the six-syllabled Buddhist mantras and possessed the power to repel all ghosts and demons. Ugly Monk’s voice ripped out like a shockwave and revealed many transparent springs in the air. They stretched across the sky and ended in the afflicted Pacification Sentinels’ skulls. It was most likely how she was able to cloud their minds and pilot their bodies.

The strings wobbled for a moment before snapping in half. The afflicted Pacification Sentinels immediately returned to normal.

“Demon Subjugation Formation! Kill!” Xu Banren growled. Those who weren’t injured immediately rushed forward and formed a military formation around Xu Banren, Ugly Monk and Amorous Nun.

They had ignored Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 earlier because their action seemed harmless, as ugly as their dance was. But as it turned out, it was an attempt on their lives. Did they really think that the Pacification Bureau made their name through peace and harmony?

Xu Banren stood at the center of the military formation, and Ugly Monk and Amorous Nun on the left and right wing. When the Lieutenant gave the signal, the left and right wing spread out, and the core charged toward Dancer 1 and Dancer 2.

A hail of bolts streaked across the sky and forced Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 to stop them with their strange martial art. While they were distracted, Xu Banren and his men had already reached the two Fiends, and the left and right wing seized the opportunity to surround them from all sides.

The group formed three tight circles around Dancer 1 and Dancer 2. It would take an incredible amount of effort to punch them.

“KILL!” Xu Banren roared with a wave of his hand. The innermost ring of Pacification Sentinels immediately unsheathed their weapons and attacked the duo.

In response, Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 tossed out a rag doll each. Both dolls were wielding a saber each. The second the dolls left their hands, they immediately slipped between the gaps of the Pacification Sentinels at high speed. A series of metallic clangs resounded throughout the valley as the two dolls blocked all of the attacks aimed at Dancer 1 and Dancer 2. Not only that, every attacker had taken some wounds from the dolls.

“KILL!”

Xu Banren was unmoved, however. The injured personnel backed down, and the second wave rushed forward to engage the enemies in battle. Their formation remained airtight, and not one person panicked.

At first, Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 were able to handle the assault with ease. But over time, they slowly but surely ran out of vigor and stamina.

Complexion pale and breathing out of order, Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 exchanged a glance with each other.

“We can’t keep this up.”

“We need to run.”

The duo leaped into the air and attempted to escape after forcing back another squad of Pacification Sentinels.

“Hmph! Do you think you can escape?” Xu Banren scoffed in disdain when he saw this. Jianghu warriors were deadly, but that was only in a small-scale battle with no order whatsoever. On the other hand, the Pacification Sentinels had been trained to work in groups and obey orders perfectly. Like a tiger surrounded by spearmen from all sides, there was just nothing the duo could possibly do against these numbers.

"A colony of ants can kill an elephant" was never a meaningless saying. Ten soldiers could fight a Vessel Augmentor, a hundred soldiers could fight an Astral Refiner, a thousand soldiers could fight a Spirit Master, ten thousand soldiers could fight a Grandmaster, and a hundred thousand soldiers were invincible in the jianghu.

Plus, not all soldiers were made of the same mettle. Some were formidable warriors who possessed the strength to fight thousands and thousands of enemies alone. This was why a jianghu warrior could be unrivaled in their pond, but never the sea that was the world itself.

History was the proof of this. Many years ago, when Yan and Wei were at war with one another, Wei had employed fifty thousand Blue Wolves [4]to wear out and slay the mighty general protecting the borders of Yan, Duan Murun the “Sword Sage”.

When Chu was still in its inception, the founder of Chu, Chu Qiuyang led a great army and destroyed countless jianghu sects who dared to challenge his authority. Many of these sects had champions who could pluck the stars out of the sky, and yet didn’t even dare to breathe in the wrong direction when Chu Qiuyang destroyed it all.

Were they afraid of the founder and the first emperor of Chu? Of course not.

No, they were afraid of his army of hundreds of thousands.

“Demon Subjugation Slash!” Xu Banren roared, and every Pacification Sentinel swung their sabers at the same time. What should have been a haphazard hail of saber qis actually joined together to form a massive, incredibly potent saber qi because of their formation. Such was its power that it rivaled the strength of a Spirit Purifier.

Boom!

Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 never managed to react in time. The saber qi annihilated them in an instant and scattered their flesh and blood across the valley.

“Come. We need to reinforce Lord Chu and Lord Lin.”

……

Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 are dead!

The blood drained away from Actor’s face when he sensed his colleagues’ deaths. The desire to withdraw immediately expanded in his mind.

He knew from the start that there was no way Dancer 1 and Dancer 2 could defeat several hundred Pacification Sentinels on their own, but he thought that they should be able to escape at the very least. Instead, the two late-stage Astral Refiners had died just like that.

The Pacification Sentinels would soon arrive to support their colleague. When that happened, both him and Matchmaker would be in grave danger.

Their demise wasn’t the true reason he wanted to pull back, however. It was the fact that Chu Nianjiu was even more formidable than he thought.

The greatest merit of his “Four Secrets of Emotions” wasn’t his ability to influence another’s spirit and emotions. Or even his ability to control them. After all, most warriors at the same cultivation level would be able to defend themselves from the mental attacks. Not, it was his ability to change his personality and use a corresponding martial art every time he changed his makeup.

Most people would be caught off guard by his transformations and die as a result. After all, it was like he had transformed into a completely different warrior. But not Chu Nianjiu. He had changed his makeup twelve times and used twelve completely different martial arts at this point, but Chu Nianjiu was able to stop them all. Not only that, he was gradually adapting to his tactics as time passed.

On the other hand, his body was overflowing with icy qi, his internal organs were hurting slightly, and he was having trouble cycling his true qi properly. At this rate, he was going to lose even if the Pacification Sentinels showed up.

More importantly, his sixth sense was telling him that something was off. He physically and mentally couldn’t sense anything amiss, and yet he just couldn’t shake off this sliver of worry. That was why he wanted to withdraw for now.

“Oh? You want to run? As expected of a dog who could only bully those who are weaker than him!” Chu Nianjiu scoffed as if he could read Actor’s mind.

“It’s too late though.”

“Too late?” Actor’s heart skipped a beat, but he still couldn’t figured out what Chu Nianjiu was saying.

Chu Nianjiu reached out to catch a snowflake and answered, “Winter has arrived.”

“Winter has arrived?” Actor instinctively parroted and looked up at the sky. It really was snowing, and he had no idea when it started.

The falling snow looked like goose feathers, big and pretty. However, Actor only felt chilled to the core.

It wasn’t just an expression either. Actor abruptly realized that it wasn’t just a feeling. His arms, his legs, his head, his heart—everything had become as cold as ice.

How did I not notice this sooner?

Realizing that he was in grave danger, Actor split into several images and dashed off in different directions. He wanted to escape this unsettling place as soon as possible even though he still didn’t know where his worry was coming from.

“Winter has arrived, and this place is naught but a world of ice and snow!”

Chu Nianjiu’s eyes abruptly turned indigo. The snow started falling earnestly, and the chill in the air grew colder than ever before. Ice started growing on everything that was touched by the snow, and Actor was, of course, not an exception. It was outright comical how he was encased in ice while still in a running pose. His expression was fraught with shock and resistance.

Snap!

Chu Nianjiu snapped his fingers, and the frozen Actor shattered inch by inch into powder. Just like that, the man was gone like he never was.

……

On another battlefield, Lin Yuhuai asked Matchmaker with a gentle smile dancing on his lips, “Dancer 1 and 2 are dead, and so is Actor. Won’t you join them on the other side?”

Matchmaker was currently standing in the middle of a peachy, flowery world that stretched at least five kilometers in every direction. It would’ve been a most beautiful sight if not for the fact that the ground was covered in Silver Bone Piercing Needles and rot, and the peach flowers and its scent were deadly poisonous.

Matchmaker giggled and waved her somewhat tattered handkerchief. “Haha… I hate crowds, and three is already too much for me.”

She abruptly dashed away and bade Lin Yuhuai goodbye, “Goodbye, handsome! I’ll see you some other time!”

Dancer 1, Dancer 2, and Actor were all dead. She shared a good relationship with them and wanted very much to take revenge for them, but it was just impossible. Lin Yuhuai had proven to be even more formidable than she imagined, and his ability to create runes and talismans practically from thin air was downright scary. If she didn’t leave now, she might really join her friends in the afterlife.

“They’ll be sad if you don’t join them. I’ll do you a favor and reunite you all.”

Lin Yuhuai’s smile grew warmer. “A family should be together, don’t you agree?”

An invisible energy rippled out of the tip of his brush, and he started drawing again as he had done up until this point. But instead of his usual words of power, he only drew a simple cross. One horizontal line to split the sky, and one vertical line to sever the earth.

A massive cross appeared out of nowhere and cut into the fog.

And Matchmaker was at the center of it.

The woman was still running when suddenly, the cross split her body into four even halves. The wounds were perfectly smooth, and not a drop of blood seeped out of them.

“That’s another good deed fulfilled. The deputy chief should be almost done with his battle as well.”

Lin Yuhuai gazed into the fog where a pair of auras were slowly fading with a smile.

1. I would’ve used ADHD, but obviously the term doesn’t exist in this world. ☜

2. Remember, breaking a neck isn’t a death sentence for warriors. ☜

3. Oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ is the six-syllabled Sanskrit mantra particularly associated with the four-armed Shadakshari form of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. ☜

4. cavalry troops. ☜