Chapter 785 - 787: The sword is lost, the person falls.
By the afternoon of the second day, Bai Ruozhu bid farewell to Elder Xuan Jizi and the leader of the Huashan Sect, declaring her intention to return home. In reality, her haste to leave was an attempt to avoid the members of the Bihai Sect, particularly since she found Chu Hai to be a troubling individual.
Elder Xuan Jizi, understanding her intentions, along with Xiaosi, quietly escorted them down the mountain.
There’s a saying that descending the mountain is more difficult than ascending due to the steep, dangerous inclines that demand constant vigilance. However, for the elite dark guards, such a task was hardly challenging. In contrast, Bai Ruozhu and her group depart the mountain considerably faster.
In no time, they return to the Sword Washing Pool. The disciple on guard duty had changed. Bai Ruozhu gathered from the conversation between this disciple and Elder Xuan Jizi that the guards at the Sword Washing Pool were on rotation. If any intruder is noticed, the disciple would signal their comrades at the mountain gate who would then dispatch interceptors.
It was rumored that Huashan Sect’s sword formation was formidable. Despite their disciples individually being no match for Jianqi, once assembled in a formation, they represented a significant headache for the likes of Bai Ruozhu.
Everyone at the Sword Washing Pool reclaimed their swords except Jianqi who, after a lengthy search, furrowed his brows in concern.
Noticing his distress, Bai Ruozhu asked, "What’s wrong? Can’t find your sword?"
Pallid-faced, Jianqi responded, "My Black Gold Sword is missing. That sword was left to me by my late master. It has a unique sentimental value."
The loss of a favorite weapon would upset anyone, let alone a cherished heirloom passed down by a deceased master. Some view their weapons as extensions of their lives, treasures not to be coveted by another.
Bai Ruozhu remembered that there were two guards securing the place. She anxiously questioned them, with one saying, "I never left this spot, except for when we rotated shifts at night."
The other guard corroborated the first’s statement, adding that he didn’t notice anything suspicious.
Bai Ruozhu turned to Elder Xuan Jizi with the question: "Elder, has anything like this ever happened at your sect’s Sword Washing Pool before?"
Elder Xuan Jizi, unable to mask his discomfort, was at a loss for how he should explain to Bai Ruozhu that a treasured sword was lost under his watch, just when the Huashan Sect owed her a favor.
"Never before," Xuan Jizi declared.
Knowing well that her dark guards would not steal Jianqi’s Black Gold Sword nor lie about it, Bai Ruozhu’s suspicion turned towards Concealed Clumsy.
Bai Ruozhu suggested, "The other day, Concealed Clumsy was guarding the Sword Washing Pool. Maybe, Elder, you can question him about it?"
"I’ll have someone call him over," admitted Elder Xuan Jizi, visibly embarrassed.
Jianqi stepped forward, his face an icy mask, "No need. I’ll go to him myself. You all stay here and protect the young lady."
Although Bai Ruozhu opened her mouth to object, she ultimately said nothing. The theft of a swordsman’s weapon was a tremendous disgrace, even if the sword wasn’t on their person. This situation was tantamount to inciting anger. It would be like if Bai Ruozhu’s acupuncture needles were stolen. Such a crime would ignite her anger as well.
Bearing in mind that this was the sword bequeathed to Jianqi by his late master added a further dimension to the outrage.
Concerned that Jianqi may instigate a confrontation with the Huashan Sect members, Bai Ruozhu decided to return. Elder Xuan Jizi noticed her apprehension and reassured, "Let me take a look. I’ll definitely help Jianqi find his treasured sword."
"We are in your debt, Elder," Bai Ruozhu respectfully said, bowing to Elder Xuan Jizi.
Xiaosi, reluctant to part with Bai Ruozhu, offered to stay with her for a while longer and return to the mountain later in the evening.
After everyone had left, Bai Ruozhu and Xiaosi sat near the Sword Washing Pool for a chat about the situation at the Huashan Sect.
"The Sect leader is proficient in sword techniques, and the Huashan sword technique is indeed formidable. My master has deep inner strength and is proficient in palm blows. Xuan Kongzi is adept at using a sword, while Xuan Miaozi excels in Array formations," Xiaosi shared.
"So, Xuan Miaozi’s disciple has also learned array techniques?" Bai Ruozhu asked, her eyes widening.
Xiaosi nodded, "Yes, along with sword techniques and inner strength training. Mostly, it’s about learning more needle techniques. I have also learned some basic array knowledge from Xuan Miaozi." Feeling a bit embarrassed, he added, "It’s all very basic knowledge though."
Bai Ruozhu quickly got Xiaosi to his feet, saying, "Let’s take a stroll around and see if you can spot any traces of an array set up."
"So, you suspect Concealed Clumsy?" understood Xiaosi.
"Let’s look around first," Bai Ruozhu replied.
The two began to wander around the Sword Washing Pool. Near the pool, they didn’t notice anything unusual. Just as Bai Ruozhu was about to expand the search perimeter after almost half an hour of looking, Xiaosi cried out, "Look over there!"
He dashed towards the spot, with Bai Ruozhu anxiously following behind, and the dark guards, fearing any danger, close on her heels.
"What’s this?" Bai Ruozhu noticed a small amount of light-yellow powder on the ground.
"It’s sulfur. It’s used in setting up arrays. Sister, indeed, as you guessed, someone set up an array here, and it can’t have been long ago. Otherwise, the wind and rain would have swept away the powder by now," exclaimed an excited Xiaosi, pleased at having been of help and putting to good use his recent knowledge.
"But this doesn’t prove that Concealed Clumsy set up the array, or that he set it up to steal Jianqi’s Black Gold Sword. You said Xuan Miaozi could possibly detect this, right? Is she the type to play favorites?" Bai Ruozhu inquired.
Xiaosi wasn’t sure what to say. He hadn’t been at Mount Hua for very long and had only had a few interactions with Xuan Miaozi, so he couldn’t fully judge her character.
Bai Ruozhu felt she was being too demanding of Xiaosi. As she stood up from the ground, intending to head up the mountain to find Xuan Miaozi, she suddenly felt dizzy and fell.
"Miss!" Muyu and Chenfeng immediately rushed towards her. Muyu caught Bai Ruozhu but recoiled in panic. Fortunately, Chenfeng, quick to react, caught Bai Ruozhu. Frustrated, he glared at Muyu. After all these years, Muyu was still overly skittish.
"Sis, what’s wrong?" A distressed Xiaosi asked loudly.
Bai Ruozhu’s head was spinning, her eyelids growing heavy. She wanted to tell Xiaosi not to worry, that she had just been poisoned, but her mouth wouldn’t open and soon after, she lost consciousness.
"Is this array poisonous?" Chenfeng asked Xiaosi.
Xiaosi, in panic, replied, "It shouldn’t be. I wasn’t poisoned."
"Then it’s the Bihai Sect acting sneaky. Let’s go, we need to rejoin Jianqi on the mountain and pressure the Bihai Sect to hand over the antidote," declared Muyu.
As Chenfeng held an unconscious Bai Ruozhu, it felt akin to holding an ember. He too wished to fling her away, much like Muyu, but with everyone watching, if he dared so much as dropped his mistress to the ground, he was a goner.
Chenfeng was silently praying, hoping their master wouldn’t hold it against him for gripping his mistress.
In his defense, the mere mention of ’mistress’ somehow makes him profoundly uneasy...
The group returned to the mountain, but they didn’t come across Jianqi on the way up. It seemed like Jianqi was delayed by something else.
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As the story wasn’t finished in time for the sixth update, author Mouka decided to forego sleep and post another update. If you can’t wait, check in tomorrow morning. This Chapter is part of the backlog, still owing 24 Chapters... Also, can you guess how Bai Ruozhu got poisoned? I think nobody will see this one coming, hahaha.