Chapter Ninety-Two: A Mystery Resolved Once More

When Zhou Yi reached the martial platform and saw Bao Zi, the weight in his heart finally eased. Bao Zi had been gravely wounded more than once, and fortune and misfortune were always entwined. Last time in Zhuolu, after treating his injuries with that mysterious root, he had awakened a miraculous power of self-healing. By then the wounds on Bao Zi's body were already nearly closed. The gunshot wound, being a through-and-through injury with the bullet not remaining inside the body, was also slowly knitting shut. Only the excessive blood loss had left him weak, but before long he would recover.

Bao Zi looked at Zhou Yi, and Zhou Yi looked back at Bao Zi. The two exchanged a smile. Between brothers, what need was there for many words?

Bao Zi lifted an arm slightly, but he was far too weak and could only offer Zhou Yi a wry smile.

Zhou Yi hurried forward, helped Bao Zi up, and carried him on his back toward the guest quarters on Mao Mountain. Xun Feng followed behind Bao Zi, making mournful cries as if lamenting.

After settling Bao Zi, Zhou Yi turned and left the room. No sooner had he stepped outside than sweetness rose in his throat and he spat out another mouthful of blood. The clash with Void Form had left him badly wounded.

Thinking that he still had to face the Japanese ninjas afterward, he could only force his injuries down and wait until the end of the contest to heal.

The martial arena.

Several young Taoist disciples of Mao Mountain had already cleaned the platform, yet the bloodstains and scattered pale flecks on the boards still reminded everyone that a fierce battle had just taken place here. Its outcome was simple: the loser was injured, the winner dead.

The crowd had returned to their seats. Knowing that Bao Zi was safe, Yuan Tingyu's smile grew even broader.

"Disciple Mu Chen, how about you take this round? As your master, I ask no longer for victory or defeat. I only ask that you return safely. If possible..." He did not finish, but secretly made a chopping gesture at his own neck.

Mu Chen smiled and nodded, naturally understanding Yuan Tingyu's meaning. At this point Yuan Tingyu no longer cared if the remaining six matches were all lost. So long as the winner died on the platform, what did a loss matter?

A bloody victory was far less desirable than a defeat that could be greeted with raised cups and celebration.

If that were the case, what would the Japanese side say? I brought the ninjas of Great Japan to Mao Mountain for a contest and defeated them eight to one. And if someone asked how that victory was achieved? Minagawa Koshita would say that several of our ninjas died, one went mad, and the Taoists of Mao Mountain were unharmed.

If matters continued as they were, the result was very likely to become exactly what Yuan Tingyu had foreseen.

By now Mu Chen was already standing on the platform. His eyes swept over the Japanese ninjas as he bowed and said, "I am Mu Chenzi, the chief disciple of Mao Mountain. Which of you will come to teach me first?"

Minagawa Koshita quickly weighed in his mind who would be most suitable to send, and for a moment he could not decide, because of the ninjas accompanying him only six were upper ninjas, while the other three were merely peak middle ninjas. If he sent a middle ninja, defeat was certain, and even if they split the matches two wins and two losses, it would merely end in a draw. If he sent an upper ninja, the outcome would be no better than fifty-fifty.

"Minagawa-kun, allow Miyata to go." Miyata was an upper ninja, with strength on par with Kameda.

Minagawa Koshita thought briefly, and then once again a fervent light burst into his eyes. "Miyata-kun, I leave it to you." With that, he bowed deeply.

Before Minagawa Koshita could rise, Miyata had already leaped up and landed on the platform.

"I am the upper ninja Miyata Yashita. Please instruct me."

"I am the chief disciple of Mao Mountain, Mu Yangzi. Make your move." After speaking, Mu Chen drew the treasured sword Zhou Yi had given him. The instant the blade left its scabbard, spiritual energy within him surged to full force, and the temperature on the platform seemed to rise at once. Even before the battle began, his presence had already reached its peak.

Miyata stood with his saber held at rest, dark green spiritual energy flowing slowly around his body. The two men occupied opposite ends of the platform, north and south. Miyata stood at the northern end, where one could faintly feel a thread of chill. In the height of summer, he could actually lower the temperature within several yards around him by several degrees simply through his own spiritual energy. The method he cultivated was clearly no ordinary one.

Before they had even exchanged blows, they had already tested each other in aura alone. Yet it was the peak of afternoon in midsummer, the sun blazing overhead, and in terms of heaven's timing Miyata was already at a disadvantage.

This was Mao Mountain, where Mu Chen had grown up, training in martial arts and cultivating his energy in this very place. In terms of terrain, Mu Chen had the advantage.

Then, as if by command, they moved at once, blade and sword clashing. They separated, each retreating to his side of the platform once more. In the storm of steel and light, their movements only grew faster, and the fight more fierce.

"These two are evenly matched. It will not be over in a short while. Is Daoist Zhou all right?" Yuan Tingyu could see at a glance that Zhou Yi was badly injured and asked with concern.

Zhou Yi shook his head. "My heart and lungs are both wounded. It is not an injury that can heal in a moment or two. I will wait until the contest is over before treating it."

Seeing that Zhou Yi placed so much importance on this competition, a trace of conflict flashed in Yuan Tingyu's eyes. Just then, as Zhou Yi watched the two men battling on the platform, Yuan Tingyu several times seemed on the verge of speaking, yet held back.

"Daoist Yuan, if you have something to say, just say it. Why be so troubled?"

Zhou Yi smiled as he spoke. In truth, he had already guessed some of it, because the excuse for this duel was far too flimsy. As the head of Mao Mountain, how could Yuan Tingyu so easily agree to this contest just because the Japanese provoked him with a few words?

If it were merely a visit to exchange techniques, the scale of this event would have been far too grand.

As Zhou Yi spoke, his eyes never left the two men on the field, and so he did not see the trace of shame in Yuan Tingyu's expression.

"To be honest, this poor daoist concealed something from Daoist Zhou. Since you ask so plainly, I feel quite ashamed."

Zhou Yi turned and smiled faintly at Yuan Tingyu. "Every word and deed of Daoist Yuan represents the school of Mao Mountain. To conceal something was only proper. If Daoist Yuan wishes to speak, then tell me. If not, I will not take offense."

Hearing this, Yuan Tingyu felt even more embarrassed, though the shame crossed his face only for an instant, and how could it escape Zhou Yi's eyes?

"The Japanese came this time for the sacred treasure that guards my Mao Mountain," Yuan Tingyu said solemnly.

Zhou Yi smiled and nodded, indicating that he understood the key point. "What is this sacred treasure? Why would it draw the covetous gaze of the Japanese?"

Yuan Tingyu thought for a moment. Zhou Yi quickly said, "I was rude. If Daoist Yuan finds it inconvenient to speak, then do not say it."

Yuan Tingyu turned to look at the martial arena. By now sword and saber were colliding again and again, the ringing clash without end. Under the struggle of the two men, the temporary platform had already begun to creak.

"The sacred treasure of Mao Mountain is actually a Sun-and-Moon Cosmos Saber, called Ze Dui." Just as Yuan Tingyu said this, Zhou Yi let out a startled cry. So one of the keys he had been desperately seeking was here on Mao Mountain.

"Daoist Yuan, please look. Are these the kind of ancient seal-script characters?" As he spoke, Zhou Yi drew out Li Huo and handed it before Yuan Tingyu.

Yuan Tingyu took Li Huo and examined it carefully for a moment. "That Sun-and-Moon Cosmos Saber and this Li Huo must have been forged by the same person. The inscriptions are identical."

After looking again for a while, Yuan Tingyu returned Li Huo to Zhou Yi. "There are eight weapons in all, corresponding to the Eight Trigrams of the Book of Changes. Do you know who forged them?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi realized that Yuan Tingyu actually knew the origin of these eight weapons, and his curiosity was immediately piqued. Turning back, he asked, "I do not know. Please speak plainly, Daoist Yuan."

These eight weapons were...