The Regressor of Mount Hua-Chapter 322. An Ideal Reality (2)

Though legendary, the Valley of Phantoms hadn’t completely faded into obscurity. They were still active, just far less so than three hundred years ago.

Their commissions were outrageously expensive, but their skill and discretion made them worth the cost. That’s why, occasionally, they still received requests.

However, for some years now, news of them had grown sparse—and recently, there had been none at all. No one knew what was going on. The lack of information was simply frustrating.

While I’d like to persuade the other elders in Hefei that we must deal with this matter at all costs, I can’t move freely...

The ranking elders didn’t want any more information about the Black Shadow Division revealed.

They were afraid of the possibility that even Tang Youqi would get kidnapped if he left the Tang Family and various secrets would be leaked.

That was why they forbade him from leaving the Tang Family Estate, let alone Sichuan.

Currently, about three-quarters of the warriors and escorts from the Martial Alliance’s Sichuan branch were staying in the Tang Family Estate.

"Tang Hui, has that kid not said anything important?"

Fortunately, Tang Hui was still in the Martial Alliance. She was still waiting to meet the Sword God, who was returning from Hainan Island.

"No."

"That unfilial brat, why isn’t she bearing the Sword God’s child already..."

As a direct descendant of the Tang Family, she had received the basic education regarding the Black Shadow Division. However, she still wasn't skilled enough to be entrusted with the current situation.

She had only been given the task of observing the atmosphere within the Martial Alliance, reporting updates, while also working toward conceiving Zhou Xuchuan’s child.

"What new trouble is this, stirred up by some ghost of the past?"

***

Hefei, Martial Alliance.

"I will be reading the letter sent by the Juvenile Fist Emperor."

Zhuge Xiang placed the letter on the table and continued.

"In a month, the Martial Alliance leader Namgung Weiwu and the Elders will be punished for being hypocrites, intoxicated by power."

"Hmph!"

Grumbles erupted across the room.

"Moreover, I don't know who you are, but don't waste your energy unnecessarily. You're just becoming a burden to those around you."

"Namu Amitabha. What is he talking about?"

Hui Lu of the Shaolin Temple was puzzled as he chanted.

"What do you mean, what is he talking about? It's obvious even without having to look into it. It seems like someone who finds the Juvenile Fist Emperor annoying sent assassins."

"An assassin in this situation?!"

Boom!

Peng Junping stood up roughly and shouted.

"We're already under fire from the murim because of a shameful incident, and someone still had the nerve to send assassins? Are they out of their mind?!"

"Please hold on, Elder Peng."

The Emei Sect's Jingren Shitai calmed Peng Junping down.

"While it's only a suspicion, it seems like the head of the Tang Family, the Poison King, must have sent them."

"It was clearly him! Isn't assassination the Tang Family's specialty?"

"The problem was that we entrusted the management of the Black Shadow Division to the Tang Family relying on that specialty. We’ve been far too complacent."

The Wudang Sect's Elder Kong Chau frowned.

"The Poison Dragon, no, the traitor, Tang Mingren, knew too much. Had we distributed the work of the Black Shadow Division more evenly, he wouldn’t have had access to so much."

"It's as Elder Kong said. Look at the Black Hand’s Xia Wu Sect. Since it's a point organization, even if their leaders were captured, not much would be exposed."

Doing things cleanly had its own problems.

No one wanted to take on the dirty work, and this was what happened when they were betrayed just once.

"Who would have imagined that the Dark Heavens Association, the dark side of the murim, would appear or that the Tang Family's Little Patriarch would have betrayed us?!" the First Young Master of Diancang, Wu Bai, pointed out.

It wasn't a wrong statement. It was an unprecedented case on both parts.

"Rather than judging who was right or wrong, I think it's important to think about what to do about the current situation," Jingren Shitai said, rolling her prayer beads between her fingers.

"Think, think, think! Just how long do we plan on just thinking?!"

Peng Junping's words also made sense.

A meeting that didn't reach a conclusion was just a waste of time.

"Cough, cough! That will only last until today."

"What the hell do you—wait... is that you, Former Strategist?"

Peng Junping, who had turned red with anger, suddenly made a surprised expression.

The person who opened the door and appeared was the grandfather of the current Strategist Zhuge Xiang and the former Strategist himself, Zhuge Zhonghao.

"What brings you here, Former Strategist?"

"How could I miss this important matter of the Martial Alliance? While I don't have much time left, the Martial Alliance is in such a mess that I have no choice but to lend a hand, even if it's just a little."

The former Strategist, Zhuge Zhonghao's last major strategic contribution had been during the Great War of Good and Blood.

Due to his age and declining health, he had handed over the reins to his grandson and stepped away from the front lines.

His pale complexion and half-closed eyes were proof of his condition—it wouldn't have been surprising if he passed away at any moment.

Originally, he was meant to spend the rest of his life in quiet retirement. But the moment he heard the news about the Juvenile Fist Emperor, he came running.

"The ghost of the past has awakened, so why shouldn't this old man appear as well?"

Zhuge Zhonghao was also one of the main figures who had worked hard to overthrow the hypocrisy and the corruption of the former Martial Alliance and reform it fifty years ago.

His connection with the Juvenile Fist Emperor was as deep as Nangong Weiwu's.

"Do you have a plan?"

"Yes."

The Elders focused on Zhuge Zhonghao's calm gaze.

"However, this time, it's not this old man's plan... It's something the Alliance Leader came up with. I just refined it a bit."

"As the former Strategist isn't in good health, I'll explain it in his place."

Zhuge Xiang stepped forward, lifting a stack of documents as though he had been waiting for the cue.

***

Two weeks later, a nameless mountain.

Snow continued to fall. Each step up the mountain crunched beneath his feet.

The boy sitting cross-legged on a rock slowly opened his closed eyes.

"Even though I sent a letter, it seems you haven't gotten tired yet. Even though I moved, you still came all this way to find me..."

Jing Bai trailed off and closed his mouth.

The detached expression on his face shifted slightly.

"I can't believe it anymore."

Jing Bai looked down the mountain, his eyes half-lidded.

Through the densely packed trees on the steep, treacherous slope—one difficult for both people and animals to climb—a young man could be seen making his way upward.

"I greet the elder of the gangho."

The young man, Zhou Xuchuan, greeted him politely.

"My name is Zhou Xuchuan of the Mount Hua Sect."

"Sword God."

Jing Bai rose from his seat and looked down at Zhou Xuchuan.

"I heard that many things had occurred in the Central Plains murim while I was in seclusion, but... to think this really was true. A child who hasn't even reached thirty has reached the Manifestation of One's Path, I can't believe it."

There was a rule.

A master could recognize a master.

Jing Bai recognized Zhou Xuchuan's realm the moment he saw him.

If he hadn't heard the rumors of the murim, he would have assumed that he was a master who had reached Youth Restoration after seeing him.

"I'm sorry I can’t receive you properly, even though you came all this way. As you can see, there’s not much to offer."

In addition to assassins, there had been other annoying things that had gotten in the way, which was why he had deliberately chosen a remote place to spend his time.

For meals, a little of nature’s bounty was enough. Cold or heat did not trouble an Absolute Master.

His bed was wherever he lay, and the sky served as his blanket.

"Receive me? You're going to get me in trouble."

From Zhou Xuchuan's perspective, Jing Bai was a senior, and an esteemed senior of multiple generations at that.

In terms of age and seniority, the Juvenile Fist Emperor was practically as high as he could be. While it would be different if Zhou Xuchuan was the one receiving the elder, he could never allow himself to be the one to receive such grace.

"Don't be like that and come up here. While I can't afford a cup of tea, I can speak with you about martial arts."

It had been a long time since he had talked to people, let alone a martial artist of the same realm.

The Juvenile Fist Emperor Jing Bai smiled, looking forward to a meaningful conversation with an Absolute Master.

"Then, is it okay if I ask you a few questions?"

"Of course."

"They told me that you know about the Dark Heavens Association. Is that true, elder?"

"Yes."

Jing Bai answered without so much as a twitch.

"Then why are you acting like this?"

"Hmm?"

"You don't plan on fighting with us against the common enemy called the Dark Heavens Association, but you point your fist at your own ally. Don't you think something is wrong here?"

Doing this now was a waste of precious time. Zhou Xuchuan had to prepare for the decisive battle against the Dark Heavens Association.

To be blunt, it felt like swinging at shadows in front of the real enemy.

"There are two reasons for this."

Jing Bai didn't seem to care about his junior's accusations.

He answered with an innocent expression.

"The Dark Heavens Association is, in the end, nothing more than a new force of the Frontier or an extension of the Demonic Path's Two Lineages. Even if the Righteous Faction wavers now, if they join forces, they can stop this new enemy."

His view wasn't completely wrong. Although it had brought about numerous sacrifices, the murim had ultimately stopped the Dark Heavens Association.

"What about the rest?"

"Don't justify evil deeds by saying they were necessary."

Jing Bai's voice grew cold.

"So that was the reasoning."

Just like it said, it was the Righteous Cause.[1]

It was right, and it was pure.

"But don't you think the timing is wrong?"

Zhou Xuchuan's voice was also as cold as ice.

"If the Martial Alliance gets divided now, the situation will spiral out of control. At worst, our alliance with the Evil Valley could collapse, and we might not be able to stop the Dark Heavens Association’s invasion. We could lose everything. I understand how you feel, Elder Quan. But practically speaking, wouldn’t it be dangerous to follow that principle right now?"

"Sword God."

Jing Bai stepped down from the rock and stood beside Zhou Xuchuan.

"I'll say it again. Don’t justify evil deeds in the name of a greater cause or because you felt you had no choice."

"..."

"What's the point of achieving peace in the murim by torturing people, kidnapping their families to threaten them, or sometimes even using unspeakable methods? That's not the Righteous Path, that's called the Evil Path or the Demonic Path."

Zhou Xuchuan held Jing Bai’s gaze without flinching.

"The 'Righteous' of the Righteous Path means to be upright. If one says that there's nothing they could do, that there was no other choice, and use that to change their morals depending on the situation, people would use that as an excuse and end up rotting and deteriorating, and eventually, the path would become something else. I have seen that happen many times."

Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.

Fifty years ago, that was how the corruption of the Martial Alliance’s upper echelons had begun.

They had gradually become corrupt due to greed and selfishness, always insisting there was nothing else they could do.

They claimed that if they didn’t protect their honor, it would harm their sects and lead to decline, using such excuses to justify their evil deeds.

"Kidnapping an innocent family who have done nothing wrong, committing all kinds of evil deeds, and sacrificing them for the sake of the whole is not acceptable."

"I think I understand why you're acting like that, Elder."

Innocence.

Like the snow that covered the mountains, a pure white innocence.

There was no sign of an old man within the boy's eyes.

"Weiwu, no, the Martial Alliance Leader, must take responsibility for tolerating such acts. Moreover, neither of us has much time left. Since we may die at any moment, this must be handled before we return to nature. Isn't this also 'inevitable'?"

"That's right," Zhou Xuchuan answered, drawing his sword.

1. Reasoning can be read as Righteous Cause. ☜