Beginning with the Ubume Bird - Chapter 141

Chapter 141: Chapter 40: The Disappearance of Yan Capital

Time ebbed away, second by second.

Li Yan took two deep breaths, the chilling eyes of Pei Yunhu behind those gold-rimmed glasses seemed to loom right before him.

“Tonight, at Shisanlingshen Road, I’ll wait for you.”

With the Tiger Head Great Spear resting on his shoulder, Li Yan’s right hand pressed down, the spear shaft ripping through the air with a booming sound.

Crouched beside him, Cha Xiaodao raised his head, as if he heard something, his face changing uncertainly.

Li Yan suddenly realized it was already half-past eleven, but…

He hadn’t heard a thing.

“Where’s the designated place? Is it really the Ming Tomb?”

Cha Xiaodao asked, his expression showing that he had been informed by Earth Endurance about the designated opponent and location for the duel.

Li Yan was just about to speak when the voice finally reached his ears, belatedly.

“The location designated for this duel is: Ming Shisanling.”

“Your opponent’s inheritance is: Kui.”

“Since your opponent is deceased, the designated duel concludes with you unable to acquire any inheritance.”

Cha Xiaodao blinked. Urging, “Are we still keeping secrets here?”

“Pei Yunhu is dead.”

Li Yan’s face darkened.

Cha Xiaodao first froze, then broke into joyful laughter, “Then doesn’t that mean we…”

He unfolded the document about the Yan Fu event.

Still, there was no coming back.

“This…”

Cha Xiaodao’s mind was thrown into disarray.

The feelings in Li Yan’s heart were far more complicated than Cha Xiaodao’s. He had faced Pei Yunhu for no more than two minutes. But that handsome yet fierce face, he couldn’t forget for a long time.

He believed the other must feel the same.

“The following words are for an Esteemed Walker named Li Yan.”

“I won’t let you go.”

“Now, we both are in the most dangerous situation.”

“Let’s see who dies first!”

Heh heh… it seems you died first.

Li Yan was far from relieved, instead feeling a certain heaviness.

It was as if a viscous darkness enveloped him from all sides.

The words of the world were never something one or two people could cover.

Who knew which one would be the deer when the end came?

Those who died were as countless as oxen hair, those who stood out were as rare as orchid grass,

The rabbit dies, the fox grieves, that’s all there is to it.

He steadied his mind and said to Cha Xiaodao, “Since I’ve drawn a bye, the rest is simple. Let’s go to your designated place, when we arrive, you draw them out front, I’ll attack from behind.”

Cha Xiaodao looked at Li Yan oddly.

His first impression of Li Yan was that of a fierce man but upon interaction, he found Li Yan to be extremely pragmatic.

Dangerously pragmatic.

“Say Li Yan, back in our place, are you a swordsmanship instructor?”

Cha Xiaodao probed with a question.

“It’s a family martial art, I’m in the audio-visual business.”

“Selling discs? Doesn’t quite seem like it.”

Li Yan mounted the motorcycle, waving at Cha Xiaodao as a cue, but Cha Xiaodao unexpectedly rejected the offer.

“I can handle it myself; you’re so worried about those two women, you better go back and check on them.”

Li Yan rubbed his palms together, smiling ambiguously, “With Pei Yunhu’s death, I’m actually a bit apprehensive. If you die, where will I find five thousand Yan Fu points to deduct?”

Cha Xiaodao shook his head, the cigarette hanging from his mouth trembling up and down, “Wait for me at the Goddess Temple.”

With those words, he turned and left, the glow at the end of his cigarette flickering intermittently.

Clearly, he too had thought of a pessimistic outcome.

Twenty-seven people, that was the current number of Yan Fu Esteemed Walkers in Yan Capital City.

And after tonight’s designated duels, including Li Yan, only fourteen remained.

The problem was, Pei Yunhu was dead.

The phrase “death do us part” from the Yan Fu Event remained unchanged, without the slightest alteration.

If the Jade Axis Brocade couldn’t be found, then, from this Yan Fu Event, it’s likely that only one or two people could survive.

Li Yan turned, letting the Dodge Tomahawk axe fly across the empty highway.

Earth Endurance, monsters, walking.

The ones who killed Pei Yunhu could only be one of these three possibilities.

First was Earth Endurance.

It was evident that within Earth Endurance, there were different responsibilities.

The Earth Endurance that guided walkers and provided information might not even have a physical form. Their sole ability was to conjure various hints before the ears and eyes of the walkers.

As for the part with a physical form and strong combat abilities, they had been completely exterminated by Pei Yunhu.

Plus, since the Yan Fu Event had not been rectified, the likelihood of Earth Endurance being responsible was very small.

In fact, here, Li Yan had also made a mistake.

The part that Pei Yunhu had annihilated was the Earth Endurance responsible for cleaning up and mobilizing resources. The true combat troops had been eliminated by “Ren Ni”.

Monsters and suppression entities — since Pei Yunhu died during the day, the probability was small.

It could only have been a walker.

Li Yan’s eyes widened, and he slammed on the brakes of the raging Dodge Tomahawk!

“What kind of joke is this?!”

The outer ring road before Li Yan’s eyes, like a pencil drawing lightly erased, was left with nothing but a desolate white, as if wantonly doodled upon.

By the edge of the tire, the asphalt road ahead was an eerie white. Toll booths, railings, and holly trees were all smothered in a deathly white. Li Yan felt as if he were in an unreal painting!

Beside his ear, the voice of Earth Endurance was exceptionally grave.

“Esteemed Walker, you have discovered signs of fruit falling and it has been reported. Please, Esteemed Walker, avoid the area immediately to prevent unnecessary injury.”

“Repeat that once more…”

Fruit… falling?

…

The main hall of the Goddess Temple.

The Nine-Winged Sudu opened her eyes, her arm propping up her chin. Her tone was tinged with sourness, “She Mountain Woman, weren’t you born from the mountain and unable to leave She Mountain for your whole existence? Why are you running around east and west with the Lord Governor?”

Lady Dan looked down at her own fingernails, “The outside world is really fascinating, but I don’t want to mention that matter again.”

Her eyes smiled as she looked toward the Sudu bird sprawled on the cushion.

“I’m curious though, are you afraid to open your eyes because you fear Li Yan will blame you for being ineffective in your duties?”

The Nine-Winged Sudu opened her mouth, looking at Lady Dan’s pure white face, but she couldn’t utter a single word.

Ever since Li Yan left Xiangshan, the Nine-Winged Sudu had regained consciousness.

As she groggily opened her eyes, a faint sweet and fishy scent reached her nose. Li Yan’s hard hair made the Nine-Winged Sudu’s nose itch.

Her own chest was pressed tightly against the broad and sturdy back of the Lord Governor.

Later, as the three of them followed Cha Xiaodao to the restaurant, she was half-asleep and half-awake, vaguely hearing, “She’s passed out and can’t be fed.” “This won’t do; her wound will get worse.”

Such words.

With some inexplicable expectation she couldn’t quite understand herself, every time Li Yan tried to stuff the Yuanmou Jujube into her mouth, the Nine-Winged Sudu firmly clenched her teeth.

“…I’ll crush it and feed her that way,” Li Yan said finally.

It was only when she heard Li Yan say this that the Nine-Winged Sudu begrudgingly swallowed the mashed jujube, still full of resentment.

As her consciousness grew clearer and she realized what had happened, the heart of the Nine-Winged Sudu cooled further.

The Lord Governor had gone through great efforts to summon her. He had given her treasures like the Dragon Skin Lamp, and yet, during their first encounter, she had somehow sustained serious injuries.

Far from being helpful, she had been a burden to the Lord Governor. The Nine-Winged Sudu was so ashamed she wished she could crawl into a crevice and hide.

What if the Lord Governor despised her, what if he sent her away?

What if he was disappointed in her, thinking she was useless?

“Honestly, I think you’re overthinking it,” said Lady Dan as she ruffled her hair, her gaze on the Nine-Winged Sudu holding an indefinable flavor.

She stood up, adding incense to the almost burned-out incense burner, her eyes deep and indistinct.

“Let me say this upfront, I have no interest in playing any games of jealousy with you. I don’t expect the Sudu bird’s stagnant brain to have any progress in a century, let alone in a few words, but don’t try to stir up trouble or test my patience. After leaving the mountain, my temper has gotten much worse.”

“Achoo!”

The main door swung wide open, and Lady Dan’s gaze sharpened.

A man in a suit walked in, sniffling and hugging his shoulders, sneezing mightily. He sniffed his nose and was briefly startled to see Lady Dan and the Nine-Winged Sudu.

“Are there still living people here?”