White-Robed Chief

Yue Ru was rather surprised that he had agreed to her suggestion so readily.

She had initially thought that Zhao Dahe would feel offended when he heard her suggestion and that he would see it as a sign of weakness. Yue Ru even expected him to insist on going out there and confront them head-on.

Therefore, she had prepared a long speech to calm him down and convince him to be cautious. She had planned to tell him that a wise person should know when to advance and when to retreat.

However, Yue Ru prepared this long speech for nothing after all and that made her feel somewhat disappointed.

Chu Li noticed her expression and said with a grin, “Miss Yue Ru, I’m not that simple-minded. I was lucky to have managed to kill Tan Jin. Indeed, I was no match for him in terms of cultivation level and skills. In fact, he even wore the treasured clothing!”

A smile appeared on Yue Ru’s face.

Chu Li continued to speak, “This time, the sect has sent over two or more elders to hunt me down and they’ll be wearing the White Tiger Armor. If I were to go out now, I would be seeking my death. I still have a long future ahead of me. I don’t want to die just yet!”

A laugh escaped Yue Ru’s lips and a charming smile appeared on her face.

She found it funny when he said that he had a long future ahead of him. Given his unattractive looks, it was quite comical to hear those words coming from him.

“They’re all elders, so they can’t be away from the sect for too long,” Chu Li said with a grin. “I believe they won’t be staying here for a long span of time.”

“That’s what Master said too,” Yue Ru replied and chuckled. “After getting through this situation, it’s possible that they won’t continue to hunt you down anymore and the whole matter might just blow over.”

“That would be great,” Chu Li responded with a smirk.

Yue Ru continued, “Master has tried to incite disharmony between the White Tiger Sect and the Flaming Sun Sect. If both parties were to really start attacking each other, they won’t have the time to deal with you anymore.”

“Unlikely.” Chu Li shook his head. “I don’t think I can count on that to happen with the Flaming Sun Sect. I’ll go into isolated cultivation for a month first. Let’s see if they can hold out for that long!”

Yue Ru smiled in agreement as she said, “That would be best.”

…

A bright moon hung high in the sky and showered Gale City in its pale white glow.

Gale City was brightly lit and seemed livelier at night than during the day.

There was a courtyard in the Roaring Tiger Clan.

Zhou Ninghe and Fu Yu were sitting at a stone table in the middle of the courtyard. They were each holding a white jade cup as they stared at the bright moon in the night sky with thoughtful looks.

After a while, Fu Yu spoke, “No matter how I think about it, there has to be something wrong with the Tian Luo Sect!”

“The Flaming Sun Sect doesn’t seem to be behind this.” Zhou Ninghe nodded in agreement and took a sip of wine. “Pang Jinshui’s death meant that even if they were the ones originally sheltering Zhao Dahe, they should have had a falling-out by now. Zhao Dahe wouldn’t trust them anymore!”

Fu Yu nodded. “More importantly, that Yue Ru girl should’ve been trying to kill Tan Jin to avenge her father’s death. How could she not have tried to seek revenge?”

“But with Bai Feng there…” A look of hesitation appeared on Zhou Ninghe’s face.

“I have an idea,” Fu Yu said with a sharp sigh. “Let’s invite her here to get her out of the way. Then, get the others to cover their faces and sneak into the Phoenix Goddess Brothel to search through every single room!”

“I’m afraid Bai Feng might see through our plan.” Zhou Ninghe sighed. “She’s extremely intelligent.”

“So what if she sees through it!” Fu Yu laughed coldly. “As long as we refuse to admit it, what can she do to us? Even if Sect Leader Luo were to come, we have nothing to fear since they have no evidence against us. Our sect leader will surely back us up too!”

“Ah… I really don’t want to stand against Bai Feng.” Zhou Ninghe shook his head and laughed bitterly. “She’s basically a lunatic, we can’t use common sense to predict her next moves.”

“No matter how crazy she is, she won’t dare to make a big deal out of it,” Fu Yu said. “In any case, we must kill Zhao Dahe this time!”

“Alright then, let’s do as you say, Brother Fu!” Zhou Ninghe declared as he put down his white jade cup. Under the pale moonlight, his expression seemed as calm as still water.

That night, Yue Ru received an invitation card. Zhou Ninghe and Fu Yu had invited Bai Feng out to enjoy the full moon the following night as well as to further discuss the matter of finding out where Zhao Dahe was.

Yue Ru hurriedly went up to the third floor.

Bai Feng was cultivating on her bed and was dressed in a dark green gown. As she took the invitation card from Yue Ru and glanced at it, she scoffed and said, “They’re inviting me to enjoy the full moon? They must have some other underlying motive in mind!”

Yue Ru said, “They didn’t start a fight with the Flaming Sun Sect.”

“Never mind. I won’t go,” Bai Feng replied in anger.

Yue Ru was taken aback. “Is it okay to not go?”

Bai Feng fell silent as she pondered over it. Her eyes gleamed like the twinkling stars in the night sky.

A few moments later, she took out a thin booklet and a jade pendant from her inner pocket. “Give these to Zhao Dahe.”

“This is the Stupefying Howl?” Yue Ru glanced at the thin booklet and turned to Bai Feng in shock. “Master, can this be given to outsiders?”

“It’s not some earth-shattering antique study anyway,” Bai Feng muttered. “He’s a highly intelligent person. He should be able to learn it very quickly.”

Yue Ru protested, “But if he were to perform it in front of others, won’t it imply that he’s somehow related to us?”

“So what?” Bai Feng huffed. “That’s exactly the outcome I’m hoping for!”

Yue Ru stared at her with a puzzled look.

Bai Feng waved her hand in dismissal. “Never mind. It won’t help even if I continue to explain myself. As for this jade pendant, it can help him conceal his presence for two hours. It will lose its effects after that.”

“Understood.” Yue Ru nodded.

Yue Ru knew that her Master did not have the patience to keep explaining her ideas, so she would have to try to comprehend her Master’s thoughts by herself. However, Bai Feng always had all kinds of wild ideas, so no matter how hard Yue Ru tried, she could never understand her intentions. Thus, she would usually just follow her Master’s order. In any case, Bai Feng would never put her in harm’s way.

Nonetheless, by giving the Stupefying Howl to an outsider, they would be violating Tian Luo Sect’s rules. If the sect leader were to find out about it, Bai Feng would be heavily punished. In fact, since the sect leader was Yue Ru’s Master’s master, her punishment would probably be even more severe.

“In that case, will Master be going to enjoy the full moon with them?”

“Humph, how can I not go? I have to go!”

“Understood.” Yue Ru nodded and gave a curtsy before she left.

She came to Chu Li’s room and quietly opened the door.

Chu Li was just putting away his book. He rose to his feet and smiled as he greeted her. “Miss Yue Ru.”

Yue Ru placed the thin booklet and the jade pendant on the table and said with a smile, “My master has told me to give you these.”

Chu Li picked up the booklet and took a look at it. He had a shocked expression as he asked, “This is a secret manual?”

“The Stupefying Howl is a type of Musical Assassination Technique,” Yue Ru replied with a quick nod. “It’s also one of Tian Luo Sect’s secret skills. It’s not easy to cultivate, but if Young Master Zhao is free, you can try to cultivate it.”

“This is the Wondrous Light Jade Pendant,” Yue Ru continued explaining while pointing at the translucent jade pendant. “It can conceal your presence for two hours. Once two hours have passed, it will lose its effects and disintegrate.”

“Two hours…” Chu Li slowly nodded. “Did something happen?”

Yue Ru frowned and replied, “White Tiger Sect’s Zhou Ninghe and Fu Yu came over just now to deliver an invitation card. They’ve invited Master to go to their place and enjoy the full moon together.”

Chu Li thought about it for a moment and then said, “Senior Bai told you to give these to me after that?”

“Yes.” Yue Ru nodded.

Chu Li muttered, “It seems like the White Tiger Sect is planning to come and search the Phoenix Goddess Brothel then.”

“That can’t be, right?” Yue Ru was taken aback. She knitted her brows together at once as a thoughtful look entered her eyes.

Yue Ru was no fool as well. After hearing what Chu Li had said, she instantly understood what was going on.

Master had guessed that White Tiger Sect was planning to come here and search the Phoenix Goddess Brothel. They could no longer let Young Master Zhao hide here, so her intention was to have him leave the place.

Chu Li said, “The White Tiger Sect would’ve resorted to this method sooner or later… Please tell Senior Bai not to worry. I know what to do.”

“Young Master Zhao…” Yue Ru’s expression became remorseful.

Chu Li burst into laughter. “Miss Yue Ru, it’s not like I’ll be leaving the Phoenix Goddess Brothel forever. Two hours should be enough. Do you think they will take two whole hours just to search through this place? After two hours is up, I’ll come back again!”

A faint smile immediately appeared on Yue Ru’s face as she sighed in relief.

Chu Li continued, “Senior Bai is probably worried that something unexpected might happen. That should be why she has decided to let me cultivate the Stupefying Howl. Well then, I shall accept her kind intentions. Please thank her for me.”

Yue Ru nodded.

She secretly felt relieved as she left the room.

Initially, she had thought that Master was trying to send Zhao Dahe away. It seemed like she had misunderstood her intentions. She was really too slow-witted, especially compared to her Master.

However, this Zhao Dahe was much smarter than she had expected and was almost on the same level of intelligence as Bai Feng. Given his foolish appearance, she wondered how many people he could deceive with his looks!