The Life of a Necromancer as a Swashbuckler

Chapter 24: Deliberations in the Hall

Nameless, still half-asleep, got up and opened the door. He saw a servant standing outside, who respectfully said to him, “Hero Wu, the sun is already high in the sky. I hope you rested well last night. Sect Leader Shi sent me to ask you to come to the main hall again; he says there is an important matter to discuss.” “All right, lead the way,” Nameless replied readily. “If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be; if it’s not, there’s no escaping it.” Nameless knew full well that since he was already aware of the full story, he had to address the matter head-on. Before long, Nameless found himself back in the banquet hall from the previous day. This time, however, the atmosphere was noticeably different from the cheerful mood of the night before; everyone was tense and solemn, as if facing a formidable enemy. Shi Taifeng was still waiting at the entrance to the hall. As soon as he saw Nameless arrive, he spread his arms wide in welcome. “Master Nameless, you’re up! I’ve been waiting for quite some time. Please, come in.” He was as warm and hospitable as ever—perhaps even more so than yesterday—which left Nameless slightly puzzled. Upon entering the hall, Nameless keenly noticed Lei Ming standing in the second position on the left. When Lei Ming saw Nameless enter, his eyes seemed to light up; he hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but held back. Shi Jingyu stood in third place, looking very haggard. The skin around her eyes appeared slightly red, as if she had been crying the day before. She seemed downcast, and when she saw Nameless enter, she appeared to want to say something but held back, her mind filled with inner conflict. Shi Taifeng invited Nameless to take the seat of honor. “Please sit down, Great Hero Nameless. Did you get a good night’s rest yesterday?” Shi Taifeng asked, seemingly with an ulterior motive. “Not at all, not at all. Just call me Nameless, Senior, or ‘nephew of my master.’ I’m unworthy of the title ‘Great Hero.’ I rested very well last night. Thank you, Master Shi, for your hospitality.” Nameless was skilled at exchanging pleasantries and continued to beat around the bush. Seeing that Nameless wasn’t going to call him out on it, Shi Taifeng couldn’t help but smile, thinking to himself that Nameless was quite shrewd. He then spoke frankly, “Yesterday, my young disciple Lei Ming offended you greatly. Please be magnanimous and don’t hold it against him. I presume my young disciple went to see you last night? Has he explained the situation to you?” Shi Taifeng seemed to be a straightforward man who spoke his mind. “Last night, Brother Lei did indeed come to see Nameless, and mentioned a few things. Nameless doesn’t recall the details very well, so he would appreciate it if the Sect Leader could clarify.” Nameless remained cautious; just in case Lei Ming’s account was incomplete, he couldn’t take it at face value and thought it best to hear the details again. “Very well, then I’ll cut to the chase. Let me recount the full story to my junior disciple once more. About four days ago, a group of outsiders suddenly attacked our Mogan Peak. Leading them was none other than Yechacha, one of the ‘Three Supreme Beauties’ of the Tianmo Sect, along with the Poison Sovereign Xuan Yin and other members of the Tianmo Sect—about twenty people in all. As soon as they arrived, they claimed that my daughter had injured the Tianmo Sect’s Poison Sovereign while on her way to Xiaoyao Valley, and demanded compensation from the Iron Palm Sect. Their demands were twofold: first, to hand over the culprits—my daughter and the Nameless one from Xiaoyao Valley; second, for the Iron Palm Sect to join the Tianmo Sect and form an alliance with them. If we refused, they threatened to slaughter the entire Iron Palm Sect.” So this was the full story—it matched what Lei Ming had said for the most part, though there were some discrepancies. “Normally, we of the Iron Palm Sect would not fear the Tianmo Sect or Poison Sovereign, but the problem is that this time, the Tianmo Sect’s ‘Three Wonders of the Martial Arts World’—Yechacha—has also arrived. Yechacha is renowned as one of the ‘Three Wonders of the Martial Arts World’; she is beautiful yet treacherous, possesses unmatched agility, and her ‘Xuanli Ice-Fire Palm’ is virtually unbeatable. Unfortunately, though our Iron Palm Sect has many disciples, aside from this old man, anyone else facing Yechacha and the Poison Sovereign would be courting certain death. That’s why we had no choice but to agree for the time being—as a delaying tactic. On one hand, I’ve already sent messages to the Shaolin, Wudang, and Xiaoyao Sects, hoping they’ll dispatch experts to assist us. On the other hand, I’ve sent my senior disciple, Shi Lu, down the mountain to meet you, for fear that you might fall into their clutches prematurely—that’s why we’ve come to greet you.” ” Nameless now understood: the Iron Palm Sect had likely never intended to make peace with the Tianmo Sect from the very beginning. Even if they were willing to hand him over, it was unlikely that Shi Taifeng would be willing to give up his own daughter, Shi Jingyu. So why did Lei Ming challenge him to a duel yesterday and then seek him out that night? Nameless still felt something was amiss. “So yesterday, Brother Lei,” Nameless wanted to get to the bottom of it. Shi Taifeng knew what Nameless wanted to ask and gave an awkward smile. “These details were all part of the old man’s own plan. Until yesterday, only Shi Lu knew about them. Lei has always been straightforward and hot-tempered since childhood, and he’s the closest to my daughter. I was afraid he might let the cat out of the bag, so I didn’t explain anything to him, which led to the misunderstanding.” In fact, judging by the outcome, even if Lei Ming hadn’t been told, he would have let the cat out of the bag anyway. “Although Lei’er is reckless, when he fought my junior disciple yesterday, my junior disciple actually subdued him with a single move—which shows just how skilled he is. With such martial arts prowess, combined with my own, even if the Yechacha came, we’d still be able to put up a fight. So, in a way, Lei’er’s actions were a stroke of luck,” Shi Taifeng explained with a smile. So that’s why they had Nameless spar with Lei Ming. That’s why Nameless became even more enthusiastic after winning—they came down the mountain to greet him partly out of fear for his safety, and partly to welcome a skilled fighter to help them face the Poison Sovereign and the Yechacha. That was the Iron Palm Sect’s entire plan. Now that he knew the truth, Nameless’s nerves, which had just begun to relax, tightened once more. He’d been relieved that the Iron Palm Sect wouldn’t harm him—and might even rely on him—but he was even more anxious about the fact that his martial arts were a sham. He’d already risked his life fighting the Poison Sovereign,Now, with the arrival of the “Three Masterpieces” Yechacha, who sounded even more formidable, he was certain he was doomed—and not just himself. If he lost, the entire Iron Palm Sect might face a threat to their very lives. He could not bear such a heavy burden. For the moment, Nameless remained silent, deep in thought. Seeing that Nameless remained silent, Shi Taifeng assumed he was listening intently and spoke with even greater enthusiasm: “Last night, Lei Ming told me he’d spoken with you, and you mentioned having a brilliant plan to deal with the Tianmo Sect. That gave this old man even more confidence, so I invited you here today specifically to discuss strategies for repelling the enemy with you.” At that moment, Shi Taifeng’s eyes sparkled with anticipation; it seemed as though all hope of repelling the enemy rested on Nameless’s shoulders. “There is a way to repel the enemy, but I’d still like to hear the Sect Leader’s plan first.” Nameless looked at the expectant gazes of Shi Taifeng and the others, feeling a wave of uncertainty wash over him. He thought to himself that if he told them the truth, it would likely cause this already highly strung group to collapse on the spot—a defeat before the battle had even begun. He would have to keep up the pretense. Turning his gaze to Shi Jingyu, Nameless now understood why Shi Jingyu looked so haggard, as if he’d been crying. Since only Shi Jingyu knew the truth about his martial arts abilities, he must have heard the entire plan last night—which was why he was even less confident than Nameless himself. “Our plan is simple. The Tianmo Sect has sent word that they’ll come for their people tomorrow, so we’ll be ready. When they arrive, we’ll face them head-on. We of the Iron Palm Sect aren’t afraid of the Tianmo Sect’s followers. The only trouble is the Yechacha and the Poison Sovereign—though I hear the Poison Sovereign is injured. As long as my junior disciple can handle either the Yechacha or the Poison Sovereign tomorrow, and leaves the other one to this old man here, it’s anyone’s guess who’ll come out on top!” Shi Taifeng spoke with boundless bravado, as if he could already almost see the scene of tomorrow’s battle unfolding before his eyes. After listening, Nameless thought to himself that the plan was sound, but the problem was that his martial arts skills weren’t up to handling either the Poison Sovereign or the Yechacha. He suspected it would be just like his fight with the Divine Constable Zhui Feng—over in a single move. Even the “Spirit-Resonance Finger” technique he’d just learned wouldn’t help; his lightness skills were simply too poor. “Didn’t you say you’d already called for reinforcements? When are they arriving?” Nameless felt this plan wouldn’t work and wanted to see if there were other options. “I requested reinforcements three days ago, but it’ll take at least seven days for them to arrive. The earliest they could get here is the day after tomorrow—but even that might be a day too late.” Shi Taifeng was deeply disappointed; with another master by his side, he wouldn’t have feared either the Yechacha or the Poison Sovereign. It seemed the reinforcements wouldn’t arrive in time. What should they do? Nameless couldn’t help but furrow his brow as he pondered a solution. Just as he closed his eyes to think, a sharp, alert female voice rang out clearly in his mind: “I’ve got it!” A scene from the past suddenly materialized before Nameless’s eyes. “So that’s it,” he thought, and a smile involuntarily spread across his face. “Master Shi, let’s surrender!”