Leaving Without a Word

It took Gu Ning'an an entire day to fully integrate the remaining three strands of Worldly Qi into the wooden sword.

During this time, he repeatedly absorbed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to replenish his spiritual energy, to the point that the surrounding spiritual energy was nearly "exhausted" by the time he finished cultivating.

Buzz!

As he casually swung the wooden sword, a clear humming sound suddenly rang out.

The wooden sword, now infused with six strands of Worldly Qi, emitted a faint luminous glow.

Although the sword's edge carried no sharp aura, Gu Ning'an was certain that if the Marquis Lingyou he had encountered before were to face this weapon, he wouldn't stand a chance.

"You hail from the mundane world, crafted by an old friend of mine, and now imbued with Worldly Qi. No name suits you better than 'Hongchen Sword,'" Gu Ning'an declared. [Hongchen means the world of mortals.]

The moment his words fell, the Hongchen Sword radiated a silver glow!

Seeing this, Gu Ning'an smiled and said, "Good. A sword imbued with spirit. From now on, you shall be called the Hongchen Sword."

Sheathing the Hongchen Sword, Gu Ning'an set it aside and turned to look at the three-meter-tall kumquat tree behind him.

When meditating to absorb spiritual energy the day before, Gu Ning'an had deliberately sat near the tree to allow it to benefit from the nourishment of spiritual energy and grow faster.

To his surprise, within just one day, the sapling had grown to over three meters tall, with dense branches spreading outward. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before he could enjoy the kumquats he planted himself.

After watering the kumquat tree as usual, Gu Ning'an washed up and cooked a simple bowl of vegetarian noodles before stepping out of the house.

By his reckoning, there had been no news from Zheng De since he went home the previous day. Feeling concerned, Gu Ning'an used divination to locate the copper coin imbued with his magic power.

To his surprise, the results revealed an omen of "abandonment."

Had Zheng De discarded the copper coin?

...

"Ah, Mr. Gu, what brings you here?" A burly man from the Tiao Lang Clan, holding a broom, greeted him with a smile.

Gu Ning'an cupped his hands in greeting and replied, "I'm looking for Zheng De. This should be his residence, correct?"

Upon hearing this, the man from the Tiao Lang Clan stepped closer and lowered his voice, "Mr. Gu, you've come a bit late. Yesterday morning, I saw Zheng De and his wife packing their belongings and hiring a carriage to leave the city."

"I was sweeping the street at the time and casually asked them where they were heading."

"But that Zheng De dodged the question, and his usually gentle and polite wife, Tan Bing, didn't say a word. Oh, and the strangest thing was that Tan Bing wore a face covering when she left the house. In this heat, isn't she afraid of suffocating?"

Hearing this, Gu Ning'an had a good guess as to why Zheng De had left so suddenly—and why he had left the copper coin imbued with spiritual power behind in their home.

After bidding farewell to the Tiao Lang Clan member, Gu Ning'an changed his position and entered Zheng De's house.

Inside the main hall, the disarray of the furnishings reflected the urgency of the homeowners' departure.

At the center of the hall stood an Eight Immortals table, upon which lay a copper coin weighed down by a piece of yellow hemp paper.

Picking up the coin, Gu Ning'an unfolded the hemp paper and gave it a quick glance. He couldn't help but sigh.

"The handwriting truly leaves much to be desired."

The content on the yellow hemp paper was a letter Zheng De had left for Gu Ning'an:

"Master Gu, my deepest apologies!" [The character for Mister can also mean Master. I'll use the latter in this instance to convey more respect and awe.]

"When I returned home that day, I caught my wife's reflection in the mirror and saw that her face was featureless. At the same time, the copper coin you gave me grew scalding hot... From this, I deduced that my wife must be some form of demonic entity."

"Yet, the Tan clan and I have been married for five years. Even if she has become a fiend or was one all along, I cannot bring myself to harm her."

"Master Gu, as an immortal, your heart is naturally inclined toward eradicating evil. My decision to leave without a word is born of my fear that you would uphold justice and destroy my wife."

"I apologize, Master Gu... I will take my wife deep into the mountains and live in seclusion, away from the world. I can promise you this: if one day she comes down from the mountains to bring harm to others, I will already have walked the road to the underworld to atone to the world."

Reading this, Gu Ning'an suddenly thought of the old tale of "Madame White Snake," feeling as though Zheng De had cast him as the relentless demon-slaying monk Fahai.

In a corner of the hall, a pile of toy drums remained untouched—items Zheng De clearly hadn't taken with him as he prepared to retreat into the wilderness.

Gu Ning'an casually picked up one of the toy drums, calculated a spell with his fingers, and quickly determined the general direction where Zheng De and his wife had gone.

...

On a rugged forest path, the wheels of a carriage creaked and rattled as they rolled over uneven ground.

The curtain of the carriage was lifted slightly, and Tan Bing, wearing a light blue headscarf, extended her hand to signal.

Understanding her intent, Zheng De quickly pulled the carriage to a stop and helped her down.

Tan Bing extended her hand and traced the character "go" (走) into Zheng De's palm.

Zheng De nodded, gently squeezing her hand in acknowledgment.

Clang! A loud noise suddenly came from the carriage wheels. Looking toward the source of the sound, they saw a wooden stick lodged perfectly into the wheel axle.

Realizing something was wrong, Zheng De immediately pulled his wife behind him with one hand and drew a forearm-length boning knife from beneath the driver's seat with the other.

"Stop hiding! I see you!" he shouted.

"If you know what's good for you, make way for Grandpa Zheng…" He brandished the boning knife, his voice turning fierce. "Or I'll bleed you dry!"

The bushes on both sides rustled as footsteps approached.

Suddenly, three masked bandits of varying builds emerged, each wielding a gleaming blade, and began to close in on Zheng De menacingly.

"You've got some nerve, kid. Let's see if you're still so tough after we cut you down!" the lead bandit snarled, his eyes narrowing as he quickened his steps, locking onto Zheng De with a sinister gaze.

"Wait!" Zheng De shouted, pulling out a handful of loose silver coins from his pocket. "You lot are out here for money, right? Why risk a fight to the death?"

"I'll leave the money here. Let us pass, and we'll call it even. Deal?"

The lead bandit stopped and exchanged whispers with his two companions.

After a brief discussion, the lead bandit replied in a low voice, "Fine. Put down the knife, and we'll search your carriage. Once we've taken all the valuables, we'll let you go."

Hearing this, Zheng De's face darkened. If he really put down the knife, he and his wife would become helpless victims. But if he refused and a fight broke out, he risked his wife getting hurt.

"Well? Have you made up your mind?" the lead bandit pressed, taking a step closer.

As Zheng De hesitated, an inexplicable breeze swept through the forest. It carried dust from the ground, lifted the curtain of the carriage, and blew away the veil covering Tan Bing's face...