Chapter 405: Pretty Rotten at Heart

Guan Qifeng and Zhou Yunhai, two Fourth-Rank Martial Artists and Beggar Sect Outer Elders, had both been brought down and captured by Wangchuan.

Wangchuan’s first move was to issue a gag order to all the Caobang disciples on night watch, forbidding anyone from spreading word of what had happened...

Guan Qifeng was badly wounded and unconscious, so he was handed over to Divine Physician Shen for treatment.

As for Zhou Yunhai, Wangchuan had him tightly bound and taken into the interrogation room.

A chair forged from refined iron restrained Zhou Yunhai’s limbs.

After searching the two men, Chen Ergou came over to report:

“Hall Master!”

“This is everything we found on them.”

Aside from their weapons, there were twelve Gold Notes worth one hundred taels of gold each, along with some loose silver and gold;

two identity tokens;

and one suit of golden silk soft armor.

Wangchuan glanced over them, quietly pocketed the Gold Notes, then bestowed the golden silk soft armor on Chen Ergou.

Holding the Beggar Sect Outer Elder identity token in his hand, Wangchuan carefully examined the solemnly engraved Beggar Sect characters on it, along with the name on the reverse. A faint light flickered in his eyes. Then he looked toward the dejected Zhou Yunhai slumped in the chair and said:

“The truth is... when your Inner Power ran out, I gave you a chance.”

Zhou Yunhai looked up, his eyes full of astonishment and confusion.

Wangchuan drew Autumn Water Sword.

The keen edge of the master-forged blade came close to Zhou Yunhai’s throat.

Wangchuan could sharply perceive the man’s body’s reaction. Zhou Yunhai’s hairs stood on end, and a layer of tiny goosebumps rose along the skin of his neck.

Almost instinctively, Zhou Yunhai shrank back a little, trying to widen the distance between himself and Autumn Water Sword.

“You do not want to die.”

Wangchuan’s tone was calm and matter-of-fact, utterly certain.

Zhou Yunhai opened his mouth, as if to argue, but no sound came out.

“Since you do not want to die, I will give you a chance to live.”

Wangchuan still used that same indifferent tone, not even looking directly into Zhou Yunhai’s eyes. “Hand over a pledge of allegiance weighty enough to earn my trust, and I will either keep you in the Caobang... or let you go free.”

Zhou Yunhai was visibly tempted. His eyes flickered as if heaven and man were battling inside him.

Chen Ergou looked at the Hall Master, then at Zhou Yunhai, but said nothing.

Wangchuan continued, “Your time is limited. The news that you and your companion were captured will be discovered by tomorrow, or the day after at the latest. So if you want to offer a pledge of allegiance, you only have... twelve hours. The later you wait, the more dangerous it becomes.”

The interrogation room fell silent.

Only Zhou Yunhai’s breathing gradually grew rougher and clearer.

After a long while, his chest heaved violently. At last, as though he had made some kind of decision, he lifted his head, stared into Wangchuan’s eyes, and said through gritted teeth:

“If I betray the Beggar Sect, there will be no place left for me anywhere under heaven. My whole family will die as well! What gives you the right to guarantee their safety?”

“I never said I would keep your family safe... If you want me to protect you, that depends on whether you are worth the price.”

Wangchuan spoke plainly.

Zhou Yunhai’s eyes lit up, and he blurted out:

“The life of the Qinghe Commandery Branch Altar Master, the lives of two Beggar Sect Outer Elders, and the thirty-six martial manuals in the Branch Altar Master’s possession! Is that enough weight?”

Wangchuan snorted disdainfully.

“You might as well just tell me to go take your Beggar Sect leader’s head and all the martial manuals in your sect. Would that not make for an even weightier pledge of allegiance?”

Zhou Yunhai said, “Those two Outer Elders are currently disguised and hiding near the Lu Family estate in Qinghe Commandery, waiting for a chance to abduct Lu Ningshuang. There is no one else with them!”

“As for the Qinghe Commandery Branch Altar Master, he has a mistress hidden away in the prefectural city. He goes to see her alone almost once every two days... His martial manual master copies are hidden in that woman’s house. Only I know this.”

The two pieces of information Zhou Yunhai revealed did indeed shake Wangchuan.

But Wangchuan did not immediately show much interest. Instead, he sneered and said:

“What does Qinghe Commandery have to do with me? Sanhe Commandery already gives me more than enough to worry about. I have no desire to invite more trouble onto myself. Besides, those few scraps of cultivation methods from your Beggar Sect Branch Altar are nothing compared to the martial manuals in my Caobang Hall’s armory. Frankly, they do not tempt me at all.”

At that, Zhou Yunhai grew agitated and snapped:

“You people have already killed off every Beggar Sect disciple in Sanhe Commandery with even the slightest bit of importance. What valuable pledge of allegiance could possibly still be found in Sanhe Commandery?” Then something seemed to occur to him. His brows twitched. “No...”

“There is one.”

Zhou Yunhai said, “One of our Beggar Sect Inner Elders announced his retirement years ago. Rumor has it he is hiding somewhere in some obscure place within Sanhe Commandery! His cultivation reached the Fifth Rank, and several of his techniques were cultivated to Perfect Mastery...”

“What value could there be in some old beggar who has already retired from the Jianghu?”

Wangchuan sneered.

Zhou Yunhai shook his head and emphasized his words.

“Before Elder Zheng retired, it is said he intercepted and slaughtered a wealthy household from the north. He supposedly made off with no less than five thousand taels of gold! After that, he also taught martial arts to disciples within the sect each year, so he has built up quite a fortune.”

Wangchuan’s disdain deepened.

“Your Beggar Sect elders really are rotten at heart. Before washing their hands of the Jianghu, they still had to wipe out an entire family and steal away a fortune in gold and silver...”

“Rob the rich to help the poor.”

Zhou Yunhai said it lightly, clearly showing that the Beggar Sect had done this sort of thing often enough.

That said, though, an Inner Elder of the Beggar Sect with a fortune of over five thousand taels of gold...

That did interest Wangchuan.

“You know where he is?”

“I do not know exactly, but we can ask Guan Qifeng! He seems to have learned several martial arts from that elder before and received his guidance.”

Wangchuan asked again, “You are certain he is Fifth Rank?”

Zhou Yunhai nodded very seriously.

“Of course. When he withdrew from the Jianghu, he was already seventy-two years old. Now he is nearly eighty, a man of advanced age. It is entirely possible that his cultivation has fallen back to the Fourth Rank.”

Wangchuan nodded inwardly, but did not make any decision right away. Instead, he changed the subject and brought up Heitu Commandery and Shenyu Commandery:

“What is the Beggar Sect’s current view of those two places? What are your next moves there?”

“Caobang transferred Old Seven and Yin Xingtian there to take charge of Heitu Commandery and Shenyu Commandery, and they also arranged for Caobang Elders to assist them. Six Gates is watching those two places as well, so we do not dare make any rash moves before the end of the year.”

Zhou Yunhai had already resigned himself to his fate. By now, Wangchuan barely needed to ask. He answered almost everything.

To save his own life, he poured out every piece of intelligence he knew.

That included the Beggar Sect’s plan to release a batch of martial manuals for auction before the end of the year. He even talked about the strange tastes and quirks of various elders.

By the time the sky outside was about to brighten, Wangchuan and Chen Ergou stepped out of the interrogation room.

“Ergou, go invite Divine Physician Shen over.”

“Yes.”