Stranger Danger

Joy Bodhisattva explained slowly, “For the longest time, Xiong Kuohai had plotted to conquer Bei You, which is why he views his greatest competitors—Tower of Cornucopia, Shade of Scents, and my Buddhist Hall of Joy—as the thorns in his side. Long before I became a Grandmaster, Xiong Kuohai had already been scheming to devour us all. To that end, he even colluded with Huang Tianba in secret and enacted multiple crafty plots and machinations, though he hadn’t succeeded so far due to one reason or another.”

“This time, all of the heads in Bei You including Gold Ingot of Tower of Cornucopia and Mistress Ruyi of Shade of Scents are gathered at Blissful Mountain. This is his chance to destroy all of us in one go, and Xiong Kuohai isn’t one to let such an opportunity slip through his grasp.”

Ye Qing nodded in realization. Now he understood what she meant.

Joy Bodhisattva continued, “Therefore, Xiong Kuohai isn’t just plotting to use my guests to eliminate me. He is planning to use me to eliminate the forces of Bei You and especially Gold Ingot and Mistress Ruyi. Assuming that everything went as planned, he could devour the Buddhist Hall of Joy, Tower of Cornucopia and Shade of Scents at once and achieve his dream, all without lifting a finger.”

“Do you think I’m right, scion?”

Ye Qing replied in an impressed tone, “You are. I didn’t think everything through.”

That was what he said, but it wasn’t really his fault. It had only been weeks since he arrived at Bei You, and he hadn’t figured out the complex relationships between the major forces of Bei You yet. It was inevitable that his deductions would have holes in it.

“You are too humble, scion. As an outsider, it is perfectly normal that you aren’t privy to the darkness of our little world.” Joy Bodhisattva consoled him before asking another question, “Since you’ve figured out Xiong Kuohai’s plan, do you have a solution for it?”

Ye Qing thought for a moment before answering, “Well, I can think of three solutions. I’ll start with the bad solution first.”

“The bad solution is to not treat the guests with the Blissful Spring and feign ignorance. Your goal would be to survive this Trueman feast without anymore ‘pleasant surprises’ from Xiong Kuohai.”

“The middle solution is to attack Xiong Kuohai first. While he is still unaware that you are onto him, you can mobilize the full power of the Buddhist Hall of Joy and capture or kill Xiong Kuohai in a blitz attack.”

“And finally, the good solution is to give him a taste of his own medicine. Xiong Kuohai thinks he can use your guests to kill you, and you to kill off your guests. But with the right manipulation, it is not impossible to turn the guests against him instead.”

All three solutions had their strengths and flaws. The bad solution was the safest solution as it completely neutralized the threat represented by the Burning Heart. Neither the guests nor the Buddhist Hall of Joy would be endangered by the conspiracy, and the Trueman feast would reach its conclusion without a hitch.

The problem was that there was nothing they could do against Xiong Kuohai either. After all, the poisoning had never happened, so what justification did they have to arrest or kill Xiong Kuohai? The bastard would be able to walk scot free despite coming so close to ruining everyone at once.

The middle solution treated the ailment at its roots and resolved the threat once and for all, but it was also very risky. On the surface, it looked like Joy Bodhisattva held every advantage since this was her home turf. It would be all too easy for her to mobilize everything she had and slay a single Grandmaster.

However, Xiong Kuohai wasn’t the only person on Blissful Mountain right now. Sword King City, Earthfire Palace of Demons, and the rest of Bei You’s forces were gathered here right now. Would they really allow Joy Bodhisattva to kill Xiong Kuohai? Of course not. An intricate web of interests bound every force in Bei You, and some of them were absolutely against Joy Bodhisattva killing Xiong Kuohai. Be it the fear of a single tyrant ruling all of Bei You with an iron fist, or the outrage of Joy Bodhisattva killing a guest as the host, her guests would surely do everything in their power to stop her.

Sure, Joy Bodhisattva could tell them about the conspiracy and reveal the fact that Xiong Kuohai was planning to poison them all and wipe out all the major forces of Bei You all at once, but would they believe her?

They might, but they most likely wouldn’t. It was because Xiong Kuohai had given Joy Bodhisattva an insanely valuable gift just yesterday. It was such a valuable gift that most people in the room thought that Xiong Kuohai and Joy Bodhisattva shared a deep relationship with each other. What would these people think if Joy Bodhisattva claimed that Xiong Kuohai was plotting to kill her?

They would think that she had gone cuckoo, of course. They might even think that Joy Bodhisattva was a heartless monster who, despite the “deep” relationship she shared with Xiong Kuohai, decided to use this golden opportunity to eliminate her benefactor and claim Endless Sand for herself. In the end, the guests would still be outraged and protective of Xiong Kuohai.

Therefore, the middle solution had clear benefits, but the variables were extremely difficult to control.

Finally, there was the good solution. It had both great risks and great rewards. By manipulating the crowd first and pitting them against Xiong Kuohai, they could give Xiong Kuohai a taste of his own medicine and eliminate his threat once and for all. All Joy Bodhisattva needed to do then was to reap the rewards.

The good solution was good, but the risks were just as great. First things first, how were they going to manipulate the crowd into believing them and acting as their butcher’s knife?

If they could not convince the crowd that Xiong Kuohai was plotting to pit them against each other so he could play the fisherman, then everything would fall into tatters. Not only that, they would be giving Xiong Kuohai the opportunity to convince the people into believing his version of the story. That would turn out very, very badly for Joy Bodhisattva.

All three solutions had their strengths and flaws, and he was sure that Joy Bodhisattva had already thought of them herself. In the end, it was up to her to decide which solution she wanted to deal with this issue.

Joy Bodhisattva looked thoughtful for a moment before she asked, “Do you have a detailed plan for the good solution, scion?”

I thought she might choose the good solution,Ye Qing thought with a mental sigh. Having gotten to know Joy Bodhisattva better, he knew that there was a high chance she would not allow this opportunity to slip through her grasp.

Sure, the good solution was incredibly risky, but the rewards were equally tempting. If they succeeded, then eliminating Xiong Kuohai wouldn’t be the only reward they received. Joy Bodhisattva would be able to enact Xiong Kuohai’s own plan and devour Endless Sand, subdue the major forces of Bei You, and become the strongest faction in Bei You in one go. In short, she would be able to conquer Bei You in one fell swoop.

No leader worth their salt would allow such an opportunity to slip by.

“I don’t have a detailed plan yet. All I have are some unripe, poorly thought out threads that barely constitute an idea. If you don’t mind, then I can tell you about it,” Ye Qing replied.

Since Joy Bodhisattva had chosen to go with the good solution, then it was only right that he did everything in his power to ensure that it would succeed. After all, they were grasshoppers bound by the same rope right now. If Joy Bodhisattva succeeded, then he would benefit from it. But if she failed, then he would suffer.

“Our objective is to give Xiong Kuohai a taste of his own medicine, right? The crux of this puzzle is how we can convince everyone that Xiong Kuohai is planning to use them before tossing them aside like trash.”

“There is a saying called seeing is believing. We can tell everyone Xiong Kuohai’s plan down to the last detail, but it still wouldn’t be as convincing as them seeing it with their own eyes. And what better way there is to do this than to have Xiong Kuohai admit his own plan?”

“It sounds like you already have a core concept for your idea.” Joy Bodhisattva stared at Ye Qing with clear eyes that resembled the celestial bodies of the sky.

“That’s right!” Ye Qing declared with confidence. “The core concept of my idea is… acting!”

“Acting?” Joy Bodhisattva figured out his meaning immediately. “You want me to cooperate with the guests and put on a show for Xiong Kuohai? We would pretend to be afflicted by the Burning Heart and fight each other until Xiong Kuohai decides to step up and claim the spoils?”

“You are wise, Bodhisattva. That is exactly what I’m saying,” Ye Qing answered.

However, Joy Bodhisattva shook her head decisively after mulling over Ye Qing’s idea for a moment.

“What don’t you like about my plan, Bodhisattva?” Ye Qing was caught off guard by her reaction. For the moment, this was the best idea he could think of. “Or are you unwilling to…?”

“Did you think I’m unwilling to accept your idea because I wish to monopolize the rewards for myself?” Joy Bodhisattva asked.

“My apologies, Bodhisattva,” replied Ye Qing while clasping his hands. His apology made it clear that that was exactly what he thought.

For an act to succeed, all the actors must know the script and the truth of the matter. However, this meant that the Buddhist Hall of Joy could no longer monopolize the pie that was Endless Sand. In fact, they could no longer seize the opportunity to subdue the other forces and dominate Bei You in one fell swoop.

Ye Qing thought that Joy Bodhisattva was rejecting his idea because she was unwilling to let go of such a golden opportunity.

“I won’t deny that I am unwilling to allow such an opportunity to slip through my mask. I won’t deny that I wish to monopolize everything either. However, I am not so foolish as to put my self-interests over my own life.”

Joy Bodhisattva did not take offense despite Ye Qing’s doubt. “I am just speaking facts, and the fact is, your idea is too naive, scion.”

[1]

1. Make no mistake, Joy Bodhisattva is one scary woman. In this world it’s perfectly fine to underestimate a man, a child, grandpas and grandmas, but never underestimate a woman. You’ll learn more in the near future. I’m not entirely sure I can do Joy Bodhisattva justice with my translation but I’ll do my best. ☜