Chapter 164: Old Friends

No one expected Yan Jing to be so ruthless.

Nor did anyone expect the Old Man to actually make a move.

With a miserable whimper, Mei Yi, leader of the Mei Family Troupe, breathed his last in the Old Man's grip, his eyes staring wide open.

...

After a long silence, the burly man glared at Yan Jing. His Weird Energy surged wildly as hands flailed from the numerous rifts across his body, and he roared, "You actually—"

"I actually what?" Yan Jing chuckled. "You're a bandit cultivator here to rob us. Do you really need to care who I kill?"

"Or could it be that you know Troupe Leader Mei? Are you two in cahoots?"

"Of course we aren't."

The burly man's expression shifted as he immediately denied it.

"Then he's dead, and that's that. What did you want to say?" Yan Jing smiled.

...

The burly man opened his mouth but couldn't find the words.

But he was truly enraged; it was obvious from the hand gripping his saber. His veins bulged, trembling incessantly.

"Well, I'm done killing over here. Go ahead and rob us, if you're so inclined."

Yan Jing laughed. "And the one singing over there, you can come out too. Stop hiding. What a coincidence today—an opera performer, a singer, and a bandit. This combination... I feel like I've seen it somewhere—"

"Shut up!"

The burly man roared, though obvious fear flashed in his eyes. If Yan Jing exposed the truth and rumors spread, the consequences would be disastrous. All their long-standing efforts would be destroyed in an instant.

In the distance, the singing immediately retreated, and a series of miserable screams echoed from the dark alleys.

Yan Jing had already said enough today. Even if he hadn't explicitly pierced the final veil of secrecy, the ambushers absolutely couldn't allow the people hiding in the dark to leave alive.

Yan Jing smiled.

He didn't want the matter to spread either.

But this kind of dirty work naturally had to be handled by the one who dreaded exposure even more.

Besides, everyone knew you could never silence everyone.

You could stop it on the surface, but you could never completely halt the gossip.

"So, are you still going to rob us or not?"

Yan Jing smiled at the burly man.

Beside him, the Old Man and Fei Yu looked up, their gazes simultaneously landing on the burly man.

The burly man looked at Yan Jing, then at the Old Man and Fei Yu, and couldn't help but take a half-step back.

The singer had left, the opera performer was dead, and the situation was now three against one.

"What, lost your nerve?"

Yan Jing chuckled.

"Why are you doing this?"

Seemingly noticing that the screams in the dark alley were gradually subsiding and the singing was approaching once more, the burly man glared fiercely at Yan Jing and said, "Things were never supposed to end up with the fish dying and the net breaking."

"Our enemy is a mutual one, it's Lin—"

"Stop right there!"

Yan Jing held up a finger and laughed. "Is that really your place to say?"

...

The burly man fell silent. Those truly weren't his own words; they were fed to him by the person backing him.

Yan Jing smiled faintly.

"Your young master really does have some tricks up his sleeve. Unlike me—Wanhua Fang has thrown in its lot with someone else, Blessing Road has struck out on its own, and the Thieves Sect has all but disbanded."

"I just can't figure out why you people are still willing to follow him."

"There has to be a reason, right, Master Liu?"

"Indeed!"

The Old Man nodded heavily.

It didn't matter what Yan Jing was saying at the moment; the important thing was not to lose their momentum.

"The young master of the Mei family is said to be better-looking than me, the Young Master of the Luo Family. Could that be the reason?"

"That can't be it."

Yan Jing spoke as if talking to himself, but he was actually aiming his words at the burly man across from him.

"I heard that the Mei family's heirloom went missing when their estate was raided. I wonder where it ended up? Do you know?"

He looked at the burly man.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

The burly man's face darkened.

He felt incredibly stifled at that moment. He wanted to leave, but the agreed-upon signal hadn't sounded yet.

If he didn't leave, he was worried the other side would attack. Furthermore, the psychological pressure was immense.

Yan Jing had guessed far too much correctly. He was gradually beginning to understand how Mei Yi had felt.

The person opposite him was exceptionally skilled at psychological warfare.

"Old Man, have you ever heard of this heirloom?"

Seeing the burly man deny it, Yan Jing looked at Old Master Liu.

"I have."

The Old Man nodded.

"Then... care to elaborate?"

"Alright, I'll elaborate."

The Old Man flicked his long robe. "Bianliu County has a total of four streets and one temple. Landlord Lin on North Street, Boss Bai on East Street, the Two Great Artisans of West Street, and the two family heads on South Street. They are either in the Fourth Tier themselves or have subordinates in the Fourth Tier. But Mei Baitang, the head of the Mei Family, was a bit different."

"How was he different?"

"Mei Baitang wasn't in the Fourth Tier."

"Not in the Fourth Tier?!"

"Nope."

"Then why..."

"Because the Mei family had a treasure!"

The Old Man reached out, rolling his sleeves back to his elbows. "Rumor has it that the Mei family ancestors were quite wealthy. They migrated here from the Lake. There were no steam trains back then, and the only reason they managed to cross the Dahuang River region and travel thousands of miles to Bianliu County was all thanks to an heirloom."

"This treasure allowed a Seventh Trade to fight a Sixth Trade, an Eighth Trade to fight a Seventh Trade, and a Nine Trades to fight an Eighth and a Half Trade."

"Even if a Sixth Trade got their hands on it, while they couldn't fight a Fifth Trade, they'd still be able to hold their ground for a while."

Yan Jing looked astonished.

"It's that powerful?"

"Exactly that powerful."

The two of them played off each other flawlessly. The Old Man nodded firmly. "Back then, who within the surrounding Sixth Domain, aside from the two and a half wastelands, didn't covet this treasure? Unfortunately, no one managed to get it in the end."

"Why didn't they get it?"

"They were divided."

The Old Man sighed, tilting his head back as if he himself were a person from the Sixth Domain. "With a treasure this powerful, it's one thing if you can't get it yourself, but if you let another Sixth Trade obtain it, it would be a real disaster."

"Furthermore, while the treasure is incredible, it is only truly effective for Tailor Cultivators. For other Cultivators, it isn't nearly as potent."

"I see."

Yan Jing nodded in sudden realization. "What a pity. I wonder where such a powerful treasure went."

He looked up at the burly man across from them.

"Are you sure you don't know?"

...

Hearing the agreed-upon signal finally echo in his ear, the burly man's tense face relaxed.

"We will meet again," he dropped a single sentence before leaving in a hurry.

"Young Master, we should have attacked just now," the Old Man said slowly after the man was gone.

Three against two. Even if they couldn't take the enemy down, they could have at least inflicted some injuries.

"Perhaps," Yan Jing smiled.

They had attacked earlier firstly because they held the initiative; with hidden cards up their sleeves, they could catch the enemy off guard. Secondly, because Mei Yi had left the Opera House, he couldn't unleash his full strength.

Building upon those two points was the final and most crucial reason:

Regardless of whether Mei Yi lived or died, they absolutely had to take him down.

Only by taking Mei Yi down would they have the leverage to negotiate what came next—which was their true objective this time:

The person who had actually tried to kill Luo Sheng.

But attacking now would completely reverse the situation.

It seemed like three against two, but the young master of the Mei family was still hiding in the shadows.

If they couldn't kill the opposition outright, merely injuring them was meaningless and would likely just create further complications.

Besides, his objective had been clear from the very beginning.

Thinking of this, he looked toward the leader of the Wang Family Troupe inside the Opera House—who appeared exceptionally panicked even amid the frightened crowd—and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

...

...

In a pitch-black room.

"Young Master, we failed to handle things properly this time."

The burly man and a woman knelt on one knee before a figure.

"It's fine."

Four Hands spoke in a gentle voice, entirely devoid of blame. "Uncle Guang, Aunt Wen, get up. There's no need for such formalities between us."

Hearing Four Hands' words, both of them breathed a sigh of relief and stood up.

"Young Master, what do we do now?"

The burly man asked.

Ever since the Mei Family's downfall, its members had either been purged or sold off as slaves. Only the young master of the Mei family before them had somehow managed to escape with his life.

A few years ago, Young Master Mei—Mei Changfeng, who was now known as Four Hands—found them and demonstrated his abilities.

Only then did they realize that Young Master Mei was still alive.

Thus, in their dire straits, the few of them secretly returned to Young Master Mei's command.

However... apart from Mei Yi, the other two also carried their own burdens and could not show their faces in public.

Therefore, almost all of their expenses fell onto Mei Yi's shoulders alone.

This had made life rather difficult for them over the past few years.

This was especially true for Mei Changfeng. Back then, unlike Luo Sheng, he hadn't sold off his family's assets to buy his way out of disaster. By resisting to the bitter end, he had long since ended up on the blacklists of all the major factions.

Everyone liked loyal and righteous people, but only on the premise that such loyalty was directed at themselves.

Otherwise, seemingly slick individuals like Luo Sheng were actually much more popular.

Nevertheless, Mei Changfeng had treated them genuinely well over the years, and the strength he displayed was more than enough to convince them.

To participate in the county mayoral election, Mei Changfeng had racked his brains and finally concocted a virtually perfect plan. Unexpectedly, something had gone wrong...

"It's alright. At the very least, Uncle Mei's ballot is still with me. Uncle Guang, Aunt Wen, go rest for now."

Four Hands' tone remained gentle. The two exchanged a glance and took their leave.

A silk thread manifested at Four Hands' fingertips, trembling slightly. Only when he sensed that the two had truly left did the gentle expression on his face finally fade, leaving his gaze calm and icy.

"Why, Luo Sheng?"

Four Hands murmured under his breath.

"Why couldn't you just die obediently?"

He truly was old friends with Luo Sheng.

In fact, they had been very good friends.

When he had first met Luo Sheng using this face, having narrowly escaped death to see his old friend again, he had been happy from the bottom of his heart.

Because their circumstances were so similar, he felt that his current self understood this friend even better than before.

But the first time he had felt the urge to kill was when Luo Sheng once subtly hinted that he was Mei Changfeng, the man who was supposed to be dead.

He believed in his friend. He, Mei Changfeng, was one of the few people in Bianliu County who still spoke of morality and loyalty; he was Mei Baitang's son.

Yet he had to admit that, in that brief instant, he really had harbored murderous intent.

Because ever since the Mei Family was destroyed, the only thing keeping him going was vengeance.

If his identity were exposed, his path to revenge would become incomparably arduous.

It was also after that incident, under his deliberate distancing, that their relationship—which had been gradually growing closer—reverted to their previous, guarded interactions.

He chose not to make a move against Luo Sheng because he believed Luo Sheng wouldn't betray him.

Until the county mayoral election.

He had made extensive preparations after learning the news.

It was his only hope to turn the tables. But on that very day, Luo Sheng came knocking on his door.

He told him that he had established a connection with the Wei Faction.

And that was the very connection he had been preparing to establish himself.

To be honest, he had been burning with rage after hearing the news. But he, Mei Changfeng, was ultimately a man who valued morality and loyalty.

Thus, he left a note for Luo Sheng.

He told him to withdraw from the election.

If the Wei Faction couldn't find anyone to support, his own chances would vastly improve.

Unfortunately... Luo Sheng didn't get the message.

So, he couldn't be blamed for what happened next.

Soon, he came up with a new plan.

That was to kill Luo Sheng, and then... create a new Luo Sheng.

This was much better than participating in the election himself. At the very least, he wouldn't have to worry about those factions coveting the treasure he possessed.

This plan wasn't easy to execute, as he knew the maid by Luo Sheng's side possessed extraordinary strength, and Luo Sheng also knew his true background.

If he failed on the first attempt and Luo Sheng discovered he was the one pulling the strings, his secrets would definitely be leaked.

When that time came, even if those people didn't go to war to kill him, he definitely wouldn't be able to keep the treasure in his hands.

Moreover, whenever Luo Sheng went out, he was either accompanied by his maid or surrounded by crowds.

This significantly increased the difficulty.

Originally, he had wanted to kill Luo Sheng at the Opera House, but Luo Sheng hadn't visited the Opera House a single time since that day.

Unable to wait any longer, he came up with another covert method.

That was to kill him in the rickshaw.

This plan was originally supposed to be carried out by Mei Yi. But as the leader of the Mei Family Troupe, it was impossible for Mei Yi to constantly monitor Luo Sheng's whereabouts. Furthermore, they needed someone to observe Luo Sheng's daily routines so they could perfectly mimic him in the end.

Fortunately, he had separated a portion of the Mei Family Troupe's members in advance and disguised them as the newly arrived Wang Family Troupe.

It was the perfect time to play this card.

But unexpectedly...

Luo Sheng hadn't died.

Not only did he survive, but he even traced the clues back to Actor Cultivators and began suspecting him.

Just now, if Luo Sheng had attacked, he had planned to leak all the information here to East Street and North Street, completely muddling the waters. But Luo Sheng held back.

Now, he was essentially half-exposed.

Luo Sheng could leak his secrets at any moment.

Furthermore, Mei Yi was dead.

The Opera House had slipped out of his control.

In an instant, he had been forced into an extremely passive position.