The Disciples’ Search and a Grandmistress’s Tale

The storyteller was merely a brief interlude on his journey.

Ye Di wandered through the bustling market, gathering a collection of snacks, sweets, and storybooks.

His satchel bulging, he mused that Miss Xu should be quiet for a while now.

Glancing up, he saw it was still early, so Ye Di decided to return to the inn for some rest before lunch.

In the bustling common room, he had just settled his belongings and called for a pot of tea when a man and a woman, their faces etched with urgency, stepped across the threshold and entered.

They were clad in flowing white robes, swords at their hips—undoubtedly disciples of a sect.

Initially, Ye Di paid them no mind, but they impatiently dismissed the approaching server. After simply moistening their throats with the pot of clear tea on their table, they began to converse as if utterly alone.

“Senior Sister, we haven’t found any trace of Master along this entire journey. Where do you think she could have gone?”

The woman poured herself another cup of tea, blew gently on it, and slowly shook her head.

“Perhaps we’ve been heading in the wrong direction entirely, like trying to reach Yue by going north. But don’t worry, our other fellow disciples are out there; they’re sure to bring back some good news.”

The man spoke.

“Speaking of which, Master only left a letter detailing some sect matters before departing without a word. What could her intentions possibly be?”

The woman replied.

“Who knows? Since Master took me in as a disciple, I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve actually spoken with her.”

The man seemed to detect the subtle resentment in his Senior Sister’s words, and immediately offered a gentle, comforting tone.

“Master’s temperament has always been this way; she surely wouldn’t intentionally neglect us…”

The woman said.

“Indeed, who can ever truly fathom her thoughts? With the righteous sects gathering soon to form an alliance, vowing to eradicate this cancerous root of the martial world while the Demonic Sect’s interior is vulnerable and his Pavilion Master is missing, yet Master isn’t here to preside over matters within the peak.”

The man stated.

“Regardless, our righteous brethren are now uniting in this grand endeavor, joining forces to attack the Demonic Sect. I daresay that by this time next year, the name ‘Zhaixing Pavilion’ will be erased from the martial world.”

Though their voices weren’t loud, they spoke without any reservation, their every word clearly audible to those nearby.

A diner loudly exclaimed.

“Hey, you two young heroes over there! What was that you were just saying about attacking the Demonic Sect? What’s going on?”

The man turned his head, and upon seeing who had spoken, immediately declared in a clear voice.

“A true man acts with integrity and disdains associating with the conniving members of the Demonic Sect. There’s no harm in telling you. Have you heard about the major incident that recently occurred in the martial world?”

Another diner in the corner chimed in.

“There are major events every day in the martial world; it’s never been peaceful. Youngster, which incident are you referring to? Is it perhaps the noises coming from Widow Liu’s room in the next village late at night?”

The man was momentarily stunned by the crude interruption.

His Senior Sister, traveling with him, subtly furrowed her brow and picked up the thread of conversation.

“Everyone, the Zhaixing Pavilion Master has recently been sighted in the martial world. I presume you’ve all heard about this?”

Throughout the common room, immediate responses echoed from all directions: “Yes!”, “I know!”, “Too bad no one’s actually seen what he looks like!”

Seeing the crowd’s enthusiasm, the woman continued to elaborate.

“Though the Zhaixing Pavilion Master hasn’t appeared in the martial world for many years, his current intentions remain unknown to us. However, one thing is certain: the Zhaixing Demonic Sect is undoubtedly vulnerable from within right now.”

A more quick-witted diner immediately enlightened, realizing.

“So that’s it! This is precisely that… what was it, Grandfather Yue’s… right! That ‘Straight to Huanglong’!”

The woman said.

“Precisely. With the Demonic Sect’s Pavilion Master missing, it’s the perfect opportunity to utterly crush them.”

A diner thumped the table and clapped his stool, loudly cheering.

“Excellent, excellent! May I ask, young heroes, is your journey precisely to ‘strike at Huanglong’?”

The woman shook her head.

“Our Thousand Bamboos Sect’s main force is still behind us, awaiting unified deployment from Alliance Leader Fang.”

A diner with sharp ears and a keen mind caught the implication in her words, and immediately spoke in his somewhat reedy voice.

“Ah, yes. You two just mentioned your Master in your conversation. You’re likely not here to attack the Demonic Sect, but rather to search for your Master, aren’t you?”

The woman froze. She had intentionally revealed the name “Thousand Bamboos Sect” in public to bolster her sect’s prestige, ensuring that people would later know her sect had participated in the epic battle to eradicate the Demonic Sect.

Inns were always a mix of all sorts, and news spread like wildfire. Perhaps this would finally establish her lukewarm sect’s reputation.

Now, with her sect’s internal troubles exposed, the woman’s expression flickered between shades, unsure how to answer the question, or whether to answer it at all.

It was now her Junior Brother’s turn to smooth things over.

“Haha, our esteemed Master has always enjoyed wandering the four seas; we’re quite used to it. It’s just that this incident was so sudden, which makes us appear a bit flustered.”

A diner expressed understanding.

“I understand, I understand! Masterful figures should always have an air of mystery, otherwise, where’s the fun?”

Although someone had offered them a way out, the two young disciples of the Thousand Bamboos Sect still couldn’t quite save face.

How could their sect leader be missing right before a major battle?

They quickly drank some tea to quench their thirst, called the innkeeper to pay their bill, and then rushed out the door as if fleeing.

In moments, they blended into the street’s crowd and vanished.

****

Naturally, Ye Di had heard every word of the conversation in the common room.

He fell into contemplation.

The attire and appearance of the two individuals seemed familiar; he must have seen them somewhere recently.

Ye Di pondered for a moment and then a thought struck him.

Yes, it was precisely how Murong Qihuang had been dressed during the battle in Yicheng.

By this deduction, these two must be her disciples.

They had also mentioned “Master departing without a word.” If they were referring to Murong Qihuang, then was she not currently on Lone Sleeve Peak?

Ye Di knew very little about Murong Qihuang’s current situation. Even details about the Thousand Bamboos Sect and Lone Sleeve Peak were things he had only occasionally picked up in the market after his battle with her.

A century ago, Ye Di had dominated the martial world, accustomed to the flash of blades and the swift settlement of grievances. Now, he simply wished to live a peaceful life, undisturbed by anyone.

He cast aside these stray thoughts, no longer concerning himself with Murong Qihuang’s whereabouts.

After the server brought his meal, he devoured it with the ferocity of a Qin Emperor sweeping across the six states, leaving not a drop or morsel behind.

Too lazy to return to his private room upstairs, he decided to take a nap right there in the common room.

When he awoke, he noticed the sun had begun to set in the west, and plumes of cooking smoke were rising from the eaves of every household.

Ye Di reckoned it was time to pick up the young lady. He grabbed his bulging satchel, filled with all sorts of odds and ends, and leisurely walked out of the inn.

As he neared the entrance of Lei’s Martial Arts Academy, he heard a male disciple’s voice.

“So that’s how it was… Even a great hero like Grandmaster still had quite a bit of trouble pursuing Grandmistress back then…”

Then came that very familiar, delicate voice, which for some reason always felt slightly deserving of a punch.

“Hehe, that’s exactly right. Back then, for me, he didn’t hesitate to hide his identity and become a great bandit. He even fought three hundred rounds against a peerless expert of his time, ending up covered in wounds and on the verge of death. Yet, even then, he didn’t forget to buy delicious food for this young lady…”

Ye Di’s mouth twitched uncontrollably. He fought the urge to push open the door and kick her.

“Wow… what a touching love story! Grandmaster went through all that, and still couldn’t melt Grandmistress, that ice mountain?”

Another female disciple’s voice chimed in.

“You just don’t understand! Grandmaster might be handsome, but pursuing a girl still requires effort! Especially a reserved and dignified beauty like Grandmistress; how could she simply be swayed by Grandmaster’s looks alone? Isn’t that right, Grandmistress!”

“…! Right! You’re absolutely right, of course this young lady wouldn’t!”

Xu Niantang’s voice paused, then she replied in a flustered hurry.

“Strange, why is Grandmistress’s face red?”

“Is it hot recently, or did she sweat from martial arts practice? But Grandmistress has just been sitting here chatting and eating melon seeds with us all afternoon; she hasn’t done anything strenuous…”

“Oh, never mind that! Let’s hear Grandmistress tell us again about the story of Grandmaster pursuing his wife for a thousand *li*, traveling all the way to Quzhou after he angered her and she left!”

“Yes, yes, yes! Grandmistress, I want to hear that one!”

“W-well, alright then… I’ll tell you about it again. At first, I didn’t even know he was following me; I thought it was some shameless, vulgar little thief…”

Xu Niantang felt a bit guilty, yet she braced herself against the martial arts academy disciples’ expectant gazes, cleared her throat, and began to boastfully recount her tale.

Suddenly, a tall, slender silhouette was cast upon the ground before her.

A familiar aura reached her, causing her ceaseless chatter to abruptly halt, her entire body stiffening.

Mechanically, she slowly turned her head back, only to see Ye Di, a candied hawthorn skewer in his mouth, smiling brilliantly.

“Iceberg Miss, your little thief has come to take you home.”