Hidden Shadow – CH 174

Chapter One-Hundred-Seventy-Four: The Old Man

An Jiu tucked the manual away. “Not many people practice this Severing Meridian Palm technique. Even if you threw it on the street, probably few would pick it up.”

Mo Sigui looked at her disdainfully. “Do not be so smug! Listen to me; I will reforge your body for you a second time after we get back before you continue.”

“Alright,” An Jiu said.

“The basic third level of the Severing Meridian Palm does not cause much damage to the body, but of course, it is almost useless against experts above the sixth rank,” Mo Sigui reminded her. “Do not rely too much on it this time when you are venturing into Piaomiao Mountain Mansion.”

“Understood.” Since reforging her body, An Jiu’s physical attributes were almost on par with her previous life, and her agility was even better than before. She still had confidence in protecting herself in battle.

Since she could not rely on the Severing Meridian Palm, An Jiu had to think of another way.

Her Dragon-Subduing Bow only had two Killing Feather Arrows, and she still did not know their power. The true power of the Startling the String could only be achieved by Chu Dingjiang channeling his inner energy into her… After careful consideration, An Jiu realized that she could only use her mental power for the Startling the String and the killing skills she had learned before.

For the next few days, An Jiu spent all her time practicing, except for eating, sleeping, and using the bathing room. Her clothes were soaked with sweat, dried, and then soaked again; she was not idle for a moment.

At the dock town.

Chu Dingjiang disguised himself and wandered around the town, using his mental power to filter out places that might be the Piaomiao Mountain Mansion.

For a month, he had circled around this place many times. Places with large crowds were either inns, restaurants, or brothels. He had secretly investigated for a long time but found nothing unusual in a short period.

The Piaomiao Mountain Mansion was deeply hidden. If An Jiu had not accidentally discovered something amiss at this dock, and if Chu Dingjiang had not devised a plan to test it, he might not have found a single clue yet.

Chu Dingjiang was very patient. In the past two days, he had ruled out two restaurants. The two restaurants were bustling with customers during the day, but the number dwindled dramatically at night, dwindling to only about ten people after closing time. These were likely just owners and attendants, not the kind of place that would harbor assassins. Next, he ruled out all the inns. These inns had a very short turnover of customers, and their permanent staff was small.

On the other hand, this privately owned brothel was always busy, day and night.

The brothel was located in a narrow alleyway surrounded by residential houses.

At dusk, Chu Dingjiang sat on the second floor of the restaurant, gazing into the distance, when suddenly he heard an aged voice behind him say, “Young man, could you spare this old man a night’s sweet water?”

When had this old man approached? He had not even noticed!

Chu Dingjiang’s grip on the water glass tightened and then slowly relaxed, instantly causing cracks to appear on the glass.

He composed himself and turned to examine the old man. He paused for a moment, stunned. The old man was thin and frail, his tattered clothes hanging on his body. His appearance was strangely familiar, as if he had seen him somewhere before…

“Please sit down, my lord,” Chu Dingjiang said with a smile.

The attendant, who was about to shoo the man away, hesitated but then heard Chu Dingjiang say, “Attendant, bring me a bowl of sweet water, two bowls of rice, and a few hot dishes.”

The old man did not speak. His eyes were downcast, and his face was weary.

Chu Dingjiang noticed the whip marks on the old man’s neck, visible where his clothes did not cover him. He suddenly remembered helping this old man at the dock!

The dock belonged to Piaomiao Mountain Mansion. This old man was no ordinary person. Was his sudden appearance a coincidence, or…?

In no time, the food and sweet water were served.

The old man picked up the sweet water and drank several mouthfuls.

Chu Dingjiang pushed the rice towards him. “Old man, have some food after you’ve quenched your thirst.”

The old man thanked him gratefully and, without ceremony, took the bowl and began to eat.

After finishing his meal, he rose shakily and knelt before Chu Dingjiang, saying, “I will repay this kindness of a single meal in my next life.”

Chu Dingjiang reached out to help him up, “Please rise, senior.” Through his clothes, Chu Dingjiang could feel the old man’s alarmingly hot body. Looking closer, he saw that in the short time it took to eat, his forehead was covered in a fine layer of sweat.

The old man went downstairs.

Chu Dingjiang then heard the attendant hiss in a low voice, “You old geezer, you sneaked in without me noticing! Luckily, the guest was kind enough not to blame you today, otherwise you’d be in for a world of hurt! Get out of here! Spit!”

Chu Dingjiang followed him downstairs, tossed a sum of money to the attendant, and hurried out.

Along the way, passersby either looked down on the old man or made sarcastic remarks for amusement, but he paid no heed and continued his unsteady trudging towards the outskirts of the city.

“Senior,” Chu Dingjiang called out when they reached a secluded spot.

The old man walked slowly but steadily, his steps never faltering as he wandered through the woods.

Chu Dingjiang hesitated, but after confirming that no one else was around, he continued to follow.

The old man walked to a dilapidated earthen temple and sat down cross-legged. “Since you’ve followed me, show yourself.”

With a flash, Chu Dingjiang was already standing two zhang away from the old man.

“This is what you sought.” The old man pulled an envelope from his robes and placed it on the ground before him. “I am Sang Nu, and I have followed my late master since I was twenty. After his passing, I became the manager of the Earth Branch of Piaomiao Mountain Mansion. I am naturally dull-witted, and only today have I truly understood those two beasts, Wei Chuzhi and Wei Yuzhi! Cough cough!”

The “late master” he spoke of was undoubtedly Wei Yunshan.

Sang Nu’s face flushed red, and he trembled violently. He took several heavy breaths. “That brothel is part of the mansion, but the assassins are not among them. Look at this map, and you will see! If you kill those two beasts, I swear to serve you for all eternity!”

Sang Nu was highly skilled in martial arts but not very bright. People like him were prone to blind loyalty. After Wei Yunshan’s death, he took refuge in Piaomiao Mountain Mansion. He was assigned to the Earth Branch, but refused to kill indiscriminately. After several failed missions, Wei Chuzhi kept him in a position of honor, but he was not actually in charge. Three years ago, Sang Nu discovered a problem with his cultivation. Every time he entered seclusion, his internal energy would inexplicably plummet. Now, all he had left was the mental energy that had reached the Transcendent Realm; his body was completely ruined.

Since then, Wei Yuzhi had abandoned him, even withholding his monthly salary, leaving him to be bullied by the people at the docks.

Only now did he recall the strange occurrences.

Wei Yuzhi had drained his internal energy!

Sang Nu was slow-witted; otherwise, it would not have taken him three years to understand this.

Chu Dingjiang reached out from a distance and grabbed the envelope, which floated into his hand. With his experience in judging people, he could tell that Sang Nu’s emotions were genuine and that Sang Nu was nearing his end; a dying man’s words were often kind.

Opening the envelope, he found a piece of paper inside. Chu Dingjiang held it between two fingers and unfolded it.

The layout on the diagram resembled a Bagua, radiating outwards from the brothel. Each square contained a red dot marked with cinnabar; at first glance, there were hundreds of them! It turned out that the surrounding area was not residential at all, but rather the residence of assassins from Piaomiao Mountain Mansion!