novel
| ← Ch.011 | Ch.013 → |
It was close to midnight, (?) and not a soul was visible outside the cave entrance. But just when they had waited until the long, long night had almost exhausted itself, from the endless outer darkness, there suddenly came a burst of loud noise. Earsplitting and devious cackles; it was the monkeys laughing again.
His eyebrows drawn together, Xiao Yu'er scolded, "Monkeys, it's the middle of the night, why are you making all this racket?"
Shen Qinghong said heavily: "The monkeys dislike the night. If they are making so much noise now, there must be a reason for it."
He had barely finished speaking, when "ding dong, wa-la" -a stream of clattering noises announced that the monkeys had hurled about ten or so objects into the cave. The cave interior was pitch-black; no one could see what these objects were. The monkeys' laughter gradually faded, as if they had accomplished some obscure mission and had left.
Xiao Yu'er felt around blindly, and grasped an object. He said, "This feels like a sickled(?) sword."
Shen Qinghong said glumly, "A sickled sword? In recent years this type of weapon has become rather rare in wulin, and its strokes have gradually been lost to the common repertoire. Anyone able to use this type of sword, must be a top-notch practitioner."
"Then it seems, once again, that a top-notch practitioner has just lost his life, " Xiao Yu'er quipped.
He again searched with his fingers, and fished up another object. Shen Qinghong asked, "What is that?"
"It is round, smooth, and has a chain attached(?), " Xiao Yu'er noted."Seems like a morningstar, yet not exactly. (1) I can't really tell what it is."
Shen Qinghong repeated, mumbling: "Round? And smooth...ah, perhaps it is the most poisonous weapon of the Five Great Sects(?) of wulin, 'the Pearl of Thunder and Five Poisons'!"
Xiao Yu'er said, "Pearl of Thunder and Five Poisons, this name sounds quite powerful."
"When you use it, " Shen Qinghong explained, "you use the same technique as with ordinary morningstars, but in the copper sphere there lies some hidden projectiles. When an enemy encounters it, the hidden projectiles will fly out. Even a high-level martial arts expert would be hard pressed to avoid injury. In this way, the possessor of this weapon, Yang Lu, became quite feared throughout most of wulin."
Although Shen Qinghong had been gone from wulin for fifteen years, his knowledge of its inner secrets was as detailed as though they were his household heirlooms. (?)
Xiao Yu'er laughed: "Well apparently this Yang fellow didn't get to show off his special technique this time before he was killed. The killer undoubtedly must be an expert of the highest quality."
"Take another look, do you see anything more?" Shen Qinghong prompted."But be careful, since there are experts here from the Five Sects, these objects here must be reeking of poison."
Laughing, Xiao Yu'er reassured him, "Do I look like the type of person who would fall for another's poison? Of course I covered my hands in cloth first. Hmm, there's a sword here that resembles a Nine-Ring sword." He made a thrust with his hand; an ear-numbing noise thundered forth.
"Judging from that sound, " Shen Qinghong observed, "this sword sounds extremely heavy."
"It is indeed, " Xiao Yu'er agreed."About fifty catties, I'm afraid."
Shen Qinghong said, "The noise alone from such a sword would be lethal. Presumably its owner had incredible arm strength and martial arts, definitely not below Golden Blade Tie Yulong. Indeed, it could be 'Evil-Cleansing Sword' Zeng Lun!"
Xiao Yu'er continued searching: "Here we have a Judge's Pen. It's very heavy too. To be able to use this pen to seal acupoints, the user's abilities must also be quite superb."
"Pass it over, let me see it, " Shen Qinghong said.
"See it?" joked Xiao Yu'er."Don't you mean- let me touch it? I don't think you could see anything right now."
Shen Qinghong's finger ran lightly over the cold and strong brush. Where he gripped the brush, he thought he felt many engraved words. He blindly spelled them out with his fingers moving down the brush.
At the top were carved the four words: "Those without righteousness die".
Shen Qinghong cried out: "Indeed, it is the 'Judge of Life and Death' Zhao Gong, he...how did he die as well?"
"All people die, what is so strange about that?" asked Xiao Yu'er.
"But...but the "Judge of Life and Death" was the foremost expert alive in wulin with respect to sealing acupoints. His martial arts were unsurpassed in the central plains. Who killed him? In fact, who could have killed him?!"
Xiao Yu'er hypothesized, "It is possible that he didn't die, but was merely parted from his weapon."
Shen Qinghong disagreed: "All martial arts experts everywhere, without question, view their esteemed weapons as their lives. Since these weapons have fallen into the hands of monkeys, their owners must have lost their lives as well!"
By this time, a faint light had started shining into the cave. Although it was not strong, it was enough for the keen eyes of Shen Qinghong and the others to perceive clearly the state of the lost weapons.
They saw that besides the sickled sword, the Pearl of Five Poisons, and the Nine-Ring sword, there were also two other swords, a spear, a pair of tiger's head hooks(?), three steel projectiles(?) and two bags of stealth projectiles.
Shen Qinghong picked up one of the other swords. It was light and skillfully crafted, its blade thin as paper. He said, "This is from the pair of swords called 'Dragon and Phoenix in Twin Flight, Mandarins' Swords' - it is the 'Skyward Phoenix' sword. Where is its partner 'Divine Dragon"? Perhaps they were forced apart...ai!"
He continued, "The Dragon and Phoenix, what a pair...throughout wulin, they were considered to have wings- they could soar and glide the skies for nine days straight, who could have guessed that in the end, they would be separated by a cruel hand!"
Sighing, he put down the "Skyward Phoenix" sword. His eyes swept from the spear to the tiger's head hooks and across the other weapons. His sighs became heavier, and he muttered: "All of these people died for the same reason, this I could never have dreamed of. Certainly the fierce fighting and violent conditions under which they perished, we will not see again in a hundred years."
Xiao Yu'er said, "These people not only died, but evidently they died at the same time. To be able to kill so many experts simultaneously, this killer's abilities must be unimaginable. Can you guess who it was?"
Shen Qinghong mused, "The people who could slay so many experts at once, are definitely few in number. However, I would say there are about seven or eight. Among them, the ones who have the most skillful martial arts and who use the cruelest tactics, are the two princesses of the Floral Palace!"
The tone of his voice changed somewhat on uttering the final two words. He glanced about in all directions, as if afraid that the two princesses, beautiful as fairies yet monster-like in their brutality, might suddenly appear out of the darkness.
Xiao Yu'er smiled and reassured him, "Don't worry. They would never appear in such an uncouth place."
Shen Qinghong released his held breath, and said, "You're right. Those two are like lofty fairies, why would they kill for such earthly treasures? They are assuredly not the murderers."
"Besides them, who else is there?" Xiao Yu'er pressed.
"Among the "Ten Evils" of old, " Shen Qinghong declared, "the ones with the highest martial arts were "Bloody Hand" Du Sha and "Mad Lion" Tie Shan. I'm afraid they would also be capable of such cruel tactics."
Xiao Yu'er rejected the idea: "Neither of them is a possibility."
Shen Qinghong corrected himself, "That is right. The first one, no one knows his current whereabouts. According to rumour, he has taken shelter in the "Valley of Evil". What about "Mad Lion" Tie Shan? Ai...if these people were killed by him, even their weapons would have been torn to pieces; they would never escape intact like this."
"Who else is there?" Xiao Yu'er repeated.
Shen Qinghong replied, "There are a few, but their names are not worth mentioning."
"Why is that?"
"Because although their martial arts are indeed first-class, they are honourable and righteous, truly the heroes of our generation, and would never stoop so low as this kind of act. For example, the Peerless Celestial Sword, Yan Nantian! Although this esteemed swordsman could easily kill those people, he would not, unless they were evildoers. He would rather endure suffering himself than wrongfully commit a murder."
Xiao Yu'er had been waiting for him to name Yan Nantian; now, upon hearing Shen Qinghong's description, his blood rose in his chest, warm and rushing. He cried: "Well spoken! Truly a man! If a man lives on this earth, he should live like Yan Nantian, so that at the mere mention of his name, one would raise a thumb in admiration."
Shen Qinghong stared at the Lord of Monkeys, and said loudly, "Not only those who have benefited from him, praise him to the skies both openly and behind his back, but even his enemies would not dare speak ill of him outside of his presence."
The Lord of Monkeys sneered coldly: "Ha, you think I wouldn't dare mock him?"
Without warning, Shen Qinghong was on his feet. He shouted: "How dare you?"
The Lord of Monkeys sighed, saying: "Although I do wish to curse him, I don't even know exactly how I should."
Shen Qinghong burst into loud laughter: "Did you hear that? Of course there are people who want to curse him, but they don't even know how. This is because he has never in his life done anything to be ashamed of. Although I haven't seen him in fifteen years, but this kind of man, who has no regrets under heaven or on earth, must still be alive and well, wouldn't you agree?"
Xiao Yu'er echoed, "Definitely, he must be alive and well! He must be living a good life right now..." As he spoke, his eyes moistened. He lowered his head, and hurriedly picked up one of the bags of stealth projectiles, spilling its contents on the floor.
They saw that there were thirteen poison needles, seven clusters of black metal projectiles (?), and also one big pile of poison sand. Shen Qinghong's face changed colour. He said, "The River (?) sect also sent people here!"
Xiao Yu'er said, "The perpetrator could not be in the list of people you just named. Yet the person also could not be from among the few you said weren't worth mentioning. In that case, do you have any idea who it is?"
Shen Qinghong sighed, "I honestly don't think I would be able to guess."
Xiao Yu'er stretched out his cramped waist. He said, "Well, it doesn't matter anyway. He'll definitely come soon, let's just wait and see."
The fear and wariness was apparent in the Lord of Monkeys' wide, round eyes, even though he was indeed confident in his own martial arts, and that they would be able to overpower the killer in the darkness. But the martial arts of the approaching, unfathomable enemy were truly too strong! It was enough to chill one's courage. If he were to miss on the first stroke, he may not have another chance to attack.
A breeze gently stirred. Outside the cave unexpectedly there appeared a hand. It was delicate, beautiful and graceful. Each finger seemed carved from white jade. Even the most critical person alive would not be able to pick out a flaw from this hand.
But here, in this kind of place, to suddenly see such a captivating sight, seemed extremely eerie and strange. To the eyes of Shen Qinghong and the others, this perfect and elegant jade hand, truly seemed to have a sad, mysteriously bewitching air. You could not help but wonder if this could really be a human hand. Right now the Lord of Monkeys appeared to have stopped breathing; he was speechless.
They saw the hand lightly knock on the stone at the cave entrance...the hand had moved, and so had the fingers, this could not be a dead person's hand!
Then a gentle and sweet voice laughed, like a silver bell: "Is anyone home?"
At this moment and in such a place, they could hardly believe such words could be spoken, by such a soft voice. It sounded as if a neighbour's young wife had dropped by on a casual social visit. The hair was raised on their skin as the Lord of Monkeys and Shen Qinghong listened. They looked at each other, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. Neither could find any words to say.
Xiao Yu'er rolled his eyes and replied, laughing: "Oh yes, there certainly are, and quite a few of us!"
The speaker teased, "Well then, if you are home, you should come out and open the door!"
"Unfortunately yesterday I ate somebody's sweets(?) without paying for it, so they came and confiscated my door, " Xiao Yu'er joked back.
He was answered by another silvery peal of laughter: "I have been waiting outside so long that my legs are getting weak, may I come in and sit for a while?"
"Of course you may, " said Xiao Yu'er."But be careful when you enter. The threshold is quite high, you wouldn't want to tear your new dress."
The voice replied, "Many thanks to you."
A young girl, clad in a light blouse and green dress, with a sprig of fresh mountain flowers tucked into her hair, stepped elegantly into the cave. Her steps were delicate, her waist was slender and graceful. Although she had obviously just climbed in out of a steep and dangerous precipice, she truly looked as if she were nothing more than a young woman stepping over a threshold. Even the flowers at her hair were firmly tucked into place, and not crooked a bit.
In the darkness, the Lord of Monkeys flew at her wildly like a forceful wind- straight towards the delicate and tender girl. It appeared she was about to be thrown out, but then, inexplicably, her waist twisted aside slightly, and there she stood still, gracefully, behind the Lord of Monkeys.
The Lord of Monkeys spun around in shock, and was about to strike a second time. The maiden in a green dress threw him an enchanting smile, and said softly, "Sir, if you wish me to leave, I will leave of course, there is no need for you to waste so much energy and get so upset." The smiling face was as beautiful as a living flower, sweet as honey.
The Lord of Monkeys fumed: "You...you..."
Although he feared no-one, and was a cruel and devious creature, when faced with such a gentle, and pretty girl, his heart was moved in spite of itself. He found he could no longer hurl insults at her.
The maiden in a green dress said, "If this kind sir desires it, I will stay here, and cook for you. I will clean for you, mend your clothes..."
During all this time, Xiao Yu'er had stared at her with wide, steady eyes. Now he suddenly gave a happy laugh: "I have a better idea- why don't you be my little wife."
The girl clad in green smiled demurely, "If you really want me to be your wife, that would be my happiest wish. Such a clever and handsome husband like you, I couldn't find in ten years of searching- unfortunately..."
"Unfortunately what?" Xiao Yu'er interrupted.
She continued softly, "It's just that I'm too old for you, when you're thirty, I'll already be an old woman. By then, you would want to cast me aside, yet you wouldn't have the heart to. Wouldn't that be placing a burden on you? How could I bear to do that?"
Xiao Yu'er clearly knew that she spoke not one word of truth, but somehow, when her words sang in his ears, his heart felt very warm and soft. He couldn't help smiling: "Instead of complaining that I was too young, you instead claimed that you yourself were too old. Any girl like you, who has such a way with words, it wouldn't matter if she were a bloodthirsty, murdering pig, I would still like her."
"No matter whether you are sincere or not, these words I will forever keep in my heart, " the maiden in a green dress said tenderly.
"And what if I don't want to stay?" the Lord of Monkeys cut in harshly, changing the subject.
She replied, "If you, sir, find this place too confining, and wish to roam outside, I've already set up a ladder, you may exit at any time."
"Really?" the Lord of Monkeys whispered.
The green-skirted girl reassured him, "Sir, if you are still worried, you may go up first, and then we will follow. Leave this young gentleman to carry the chest with him last. In this way, you may relax, and we will rest assured also."
In his heart were a million voices telling him not to heed her; yet her words did indeed sound reasonable, and were just what he wanted to hear. So the Lord of Monkeys couldn't help but be convinced. Even Shen Qinghong, who was certain that this girl must be a cold-blooded monster, seemed to have fallen under her spell; he nodded as he listened.
The two of them thought hard and searched their minds, and still failed to find any evil intent in her actions. What she said made sense, she had considered others as well as herself.
Xiao Yu'er clapped his hands: "This is indeed the best way. If anyone else climbed up first, my monkey brother would certainly be anxious. Since we're letting him ascend first, he must wait until finally the treasure chest comes up too. This way he won't cut the rope."
The Lord of Monkeys stared hard at the young girl, and couldn't restrain himself from asking: "You...you did this entirely with good intentions?"
The maiden gently protested: "But why would I have any malicious intent?" The Lord of Monkeys cried out: "Are there truly people as good as you in this world?"
"I was born with this nature, " she lightly sighed."I only think of others, and do things for them, without thinking for myself."
The Lord of Monkeys' eyes flashed, and darted back and forth, but he could still not figure out why he should mistrust her. He stamped his foot and declared, "Very well. I don't care if you're good or evil. Let's just get up there first!" His heart long ago had been bursting with impatience. The sunlight, the warm wind, the free world outside, beckoned to him invitingly.
He peeked his head out. As she said, there indeed was a long rope dangling down from above, as thick as an arm. If this rope were somehow rigged to break under a weight, the maiden in a green dress herself would be trapped here with them. So therefore, if the rope were safe, there must be some other trick here. But he'd deal with it after he climbed up first.
The Lord of Monkeys pondered and reflected, but still could not come up with any sound strategy. At last he decided to ignore his suspicions, and sprang forward to grab the rope. Laughing gleefully, he cried, "Shen Qinghong, you follow me..."
His laughter was abruptly cut short as his body twisted and plunged straight down the vertical cliff face, thousands of feet down. All that could be heard now were screams of agony.
Shen Qinghong's face went white. In alarm, his voice cracked: "This, this..."
The maiden in green had also turned pale. She said in a trembling voice, "How... how did this happen?"
Shen Qinghong whipped around to face her. He thundered, "I think we should be asking you this question!"
She said, "Perhaps...perhaps he was too aged and could not grip the rope properly?"
"I want the truth, " Shen Qinghong demanded."Just how did you tamper with the rope?"
She looked at him with eyes clearer than autumn springs, innocent like a child. Softly she insisted, "There is nothing wrong with the rope. It didn't break; didn't I just come down on this rope a short while ago? If you don't believe me, give it a tug."
Accordingly Shen Qinghong reached out his hand, when Xiao Yu'er stopped him dead with a laugh: "Let's say the rope had a few poison needles hidden within it, that wouldn't feel very nice when you tugged it, would it?"
Instantly Shen Qinghong's hand snaked backwards like lightning. In a loud voice he declared, "You are right. This rope must have contained poison needles, otherwise the Lord of Monkeys would not have loosened his grip. What a vicious woman you are- my eyes are indeed opened today!"
The tears shone brightly in the girl's eyes. She said sadly, "If you insist on being suspicious, I can say no more. In that case, I...I can only pull it myself for you to see." Upon those words she began to ascend the rope.
Shen Qinghong watched her go up with wide eyes. Her body, graceful as a dancer's, began to recede upwards into the sky. He began to get anxious, and slightly regretful. He really didn't dare to climb up on the same rope as this possibly evil, potentially blameless young girl. Yet to just helplessly watch this opportunity escape, would be heartbreaking.
He struggled with his doubts, unsure whether to take the chance. At this moment, this enigmatic young girl came lightly sliding back down again. Xiao Yu'er laughed: "Oh, I knew you would come back."
She softly sighed: "Well, I was thinking of leaving you, but really I couldn't bear to. Ai! Why is my heart always so tender, I don't even know myself."
She lightly swept her eyes over to Shen Qinghong, then said to him, "Whether the rope can be trusted or not, you should know by now."
By this time, Shen Qinghong no longer knew whose words to believe. He even began to wonder if the Lord of Monkeys hadn't in fact accidentally lost his grip on the rope and fallen.
The green maiden said leisurely, "If you still have doubts, why not use cloth to cover your hands first?"
Shen Qinghong looked at the rope. Then he gazed outside the cave, at the blue skies and clear heavens. Finally he glanced at the gloomy, dark interior of the cave, and he brooded on the long, hard fifteen years he had spent here.
This kind of chance was not easy to pass up.
He gritted his teeth, and eventually looked at Xiao Yu'er. Xiao Yu'er himself had his eyebrows drawn together tightly, and said, "Don't look at me, I'm also out of ideas. And yet...I think this rope shouldn't break, otherwise she would not have been able to descend on it."
Shen Qinghong expelled a long breath. Then: "At this point, I must give it a try no matter what."
He leapt up, and gripping the rope he started to climb.
Xiao Yu'er's spirits also lifted as he saw him ascend. One foot, now two...he had reached thirty or forty metres. Xiao Yu'er released his held breath. He smiled and teased the young girl: "I still can't figure out whether you're a good or bad person..."
His words were cut short- the rope snapped.
Shen Qinghong screamed, he struggled, and fell past the cave entrance straight down. In the blink of an eye he was out of sight. All that remained of him was the echo of his shocked cries reverberating off the surrounding cliffs.
Xiao Yu'er stood there stunned, eyes wide open. For a moment he was speechless. Finally he mumbled, "You...you...you truly are a monster, tricking these people to their deaths!"
The girl smiled captivatingly: "Oh? Really?"
"You placed venomous needles in the rope to poison the old monkey, " Xiao Yu'er grimly accused her."Then you cut the rope across half its thickness, to trick Shen Qinghong. But with your skill in martial arts, you never needed to use such devious methods to kill them!"
Pleasantly, she explained: "There's not much point in killing them using skills in violence. Never in my life have I lifted so much as a finger to kill a single person. All of them died voluntarily and of their own free will."
"But I still don't understand, " Xiao Yu'er said."Since the rope is now severed, how are you going to get back up?"
The girl in green said, "This place is nice and comfortable, I like it here; I don't intend on leaving."
Xiao Yu'er scratched his head in surprise, then smiled wryly, "A girl saying something that I can't figure out; you are indeed the first."
She gazed at him steadily, then said softly, "Your friends died by my hand, aren't you going to avenge them?"
He sighed: "I can't beat you with my martial arts, and I'm not skilled enough to trick you either, how am I supposed to avenge them? Besides, as you said, you didn't force them, they willingly let themselves be fooled."
"You're not angry or upset at all?" she asked.
Xiao Yu'er said, "Of these two, one of them deserved to die a long time ago. The other one was ready to die fifteen years before. Their deaths today are therefore appropriate, why should I be upset?"
Her eyes darted back and forth, then she said, giggling: "You little kid, I've never met anyone like you."
Joining in her laughter, Xiao Yu'er said, "Right then, you can start tricking me. Go ahead, lure me to my death."
The maiden in green said, "If I did that, I'd be pretty lonely all here by myself..."
Xiao Yu'er said, wide-eyed, "You...you mean you're really not going back up there?"
"I don't have wings, and I can't fly, " she replied.
He was silent for a while. Finally he smiled: "You really are a monster among women!"
She joked back: "If I was a girl monster, you would be a baby monster."
Xiao Yu'er sighed: "That's actually quite right. A girl monster and a little monster, spending their lives in this ghostly cave. Perhaps in the future we'll spawn a whole brood of tiny monster babies..." Before he had finished, she was laughing so hard she was doubled over.
Unexpectedly, a wave of crazed laughter floated over from afar.
A demented voice cackled, "Xiao, you wench, you can't run from me, your old man knows where you're hiding. He's waiting for you here, you can't wait forever down there!" (1)
The voice clearly came from somewhere in the mist and mountains, but it sounded like it was madly screaming right in your ear. Instantly the girl's expression changed; now it was whiter than paper.
Xiao Yu'er asked, "Who is he?"
She answered, "He...he isn't human, he's an old fiend!"
"Are you really that afraid of him?" Xiao Yu'er demanded.
The maiden in a green dress shook her head and sighed, "You don't understand, you don't...the things he does to you, no one could imagine."
They heard the voice cry out again: "Xiao, you're really not coming up?"
She bit her lip and made no reply.
After a pause, the voice called out, "All right then, your old man is going to count to ten. If you don't come up by then, and you wait for me to catch you, I swear I will keep you in a living hell for ten days and ten nights straight. If I let you suffer less a minute, I won't call myself a man!"
Xiao Yu'er blinked his eyes, then sighed, "It appears that he has the ability to torture people beyond the point of being able to die."
The voice howled, "We're counting down now! One!"
The strength seemed to drain from her entire body; the green maiden collapsed onto the floor, unable to move. The flowers that were tucked into her hair shook uncontrollably.
"Two!"
Xiao Yu'er's eyes flickered."Could it be that he is one of the 'Ten Evils'?"
The girl sighed, "The 'Ten Evils', when compared with him, would be obedient little children."
Xiao Yu'er cried out, shocked, "You mean he's worse than the 'Ten Evils'?"
"Three!" the voice shouted.
"What's his name?" Xiao Yu'er asked her after a pause.
She answered, "You wouldn't recognize it."
He said, "Well if he's more vicious than the 'Ten Evils', his name should be exceedingly famous."
The girl in green let out a long sigh: "Don't you know that dogs who give the most vicious bites, are usually the most silent? The nameless ones are the most to be feared. Even if he committed the most unimaginable horrors, no-one would know."
"Four!" the voice hollered."Fine, it appears that you're not coming back up. Would you like to hear how your old man will torture you when he does catch you?" It seemed the speaker was in the throes of a paroxysmal rage. He screamed, "When I get you, I'll poke out one of your eyes, then start filling its socket with salt water. Ten days later, your entire body will be a hunk of salted pork."
Xiao Yu'er chuckled bitterly: "What a demon- such a style of salting meat alive, I don't think even Li Dazhui has tried it."
Abruptly she asked him: "You know Li Dazhui?"
Blinking, he answered her with a question of his own: "Why, do you know him?"
The girl in green paused, then said slowly, "Throughout wulin, who wouldn't know him?"
Now the voice screamed shrilly from above: "Five! You heard it, five! Five more counts, and you're dead. If you think your old man won't be able to catch you, you're making a big mistake!"
Suddenly she stood up and gave a long, despairing sigh: "It's over. Rather than waiting for him to torture me, I may as well kill myself properly first."
Xiao Yu'er asked: "You...what are you scared of? Let's just wait here and not go up, he's not going to come down."
The girl clad in green sighed again: "You don't understand. This person has never made an empty threat. If he claims to be able to capture me, then I don't doubt that he can."
He protested, "You can't die just like that. If you die, then I'll be left all alone here."
She gave a melancholic smile: "Do you still want to live?"
"Why wouldn't I? My life has just started to become interesting."
She shook her head."He won't let you go either..." she said, sighing.
"Six!" the voice threatened."I've counted to six now!"
The girl in green said, "He'll be able to catch you somehow. If I die, he'll vent his anger on you. At that time you'll really be in trouble!"
As she spoke, she slowly stepped toward the cave entrance.
Xiao Yu'er asked, "You're going to jump?"
She replied, "If you ask me, I think you'd be better off coming with me."
His voice cracked in surprise: "You want me to jump with you?"
Unexpectedly she turned back towards him. Gazing at him, she slowly said, "If I die by myself, I would also feel terribly lonely. Would you be willing to come with me?"
Xiao Yu'er rubbed his head. He muttered to himself: "Asking someone to die with her so she won't feel lonely...ha! This is certainly a rare type of request."
Slowly she spoke again: "The only reason I ask is because I am fond of you. Otherwise...I wouldn't care if you lived or died."
"Seven!" the voice cut in from above.
Xiao Yu'er looked back at her. He gazed at her for a long time. Finally he said, "You are fond of me?"
"You are a clever person, couldn't you tell?" she slowly replied.
Still he stared at her for a while. Abruptly he cried: "Fine! I will come with you!"
In shock, the girl said hoarsely, "You will?"
Xiao Yu'er told her, "Not only will we go together, but I will hold you in my arms as well."
Again her eyes were fixed on him. Eventually she said, "Very well. You are very good to me."
"Eight!" the voice interrupted."Still holding out, are you, you little wench? You won't be living much longer!"
Xiao Yu'er did indeed jump up and bound towards her. He held her tightly to him, and even laughed, murmuring: "You smell wonderful...dying with you in my arms, is not bad at all."
She suddenly laughed with him: "You are really an adorable little boy. Dying while being held by you, doesn't feel bad at all."
"Nine!" the voice screeched."Nine! Did you hear me, you wench? Your old man has counted to nine!"
She asked him, "Are you holding on tight? Hang on firmly now, I am going to jump!"
"Go ahead!" he replied. He closed his eyes tightly. He took a few deep breaths, and reflected: "To die, I wonder what it feels like."
She said ironically, "Well, you'll find out shortly." With that, she really did leap into the air, and they began their rapid plunge into the invisible depths of nothingness. (?)
He heard the rapid whistling of the wind by his ears, (?) and his body continued to descend. At this moment, you could have said he felt afraid; yet he was also fascinated, and comfortable at the same time. No matter what, you had to admit that not many people had had the experience of jumping down through a depth of a thousand metres.
Or perhaps it was that the word "frightened" had already been frightened from his thoughts. Or maybe he had never believed that the girl in green would really jump to begin with.
The deeper the fell, the faster they went. He felt as though his lower body would split apart from his upper half. Now he thought to himself: "Am I really clever? Or incredibly stupid?"
Then with a "foong" sound, his body was stunned; their descent began to slow down. He heard the girl clad in green softly laugh in his ear: "How does it feel to die?"
He joked back: "Not bad, not bad at all..."
Xiao Yu'er opened his eyes. He looked left, then right. On both sides, the mountain slopes were covered in forest, giving a peaceful and calm feeling, as if one by one each tree were floating upwards. From this you could tell that the speed of his fall was very slow indeed.
His companion laughed: "You know, you are one very lucky person. You have tasted death without really losing your life."
"How...how is this possible?" Xiao Yu'er asked.
"Lift your head, take a look, " she replied.
Upon raising his head, he saw a bizarre contraption. It looked like an umbrella and yet was not. It was larger than an umbrella by at least ten times.
This odd device had actually burst out from the back of the girl in green. Apparently she had used a lot of thread and rope to make a multi-coloured, giant umbrella. This 'umbrella' caught the wind, therefore their descent naturally slowed down.
Xiao Yu'er felt as if he were riding downwards on a cloud. This feeling was very fun and interesting. He couldn't help but laugh out loud: "This little toy isn't bad, how did you come up with it?"
Unexpectedly another shock hit his body- they had landed on the ground. The huge 'umbrella' began to roll away in the wind, tugging at them.
The girl in green pulled out a small dagger and started cutting the ropes. She smiled sweetly: "Little flirt, you can let go of my hand now."
Instead, Xiao Yu'er squeezed her hand tighter: "No, I won't. You really tricked me good, I almost went mad. Now you should let me hug you for a bit, to make up for it."
"You little flirt, are you really clever, or an idiot?" she asked laughing.
He replied, amused, "I just asked that myself a while ago. Even I couldn't come up with an answer."
"Well, if you ask me, you're just a little bit of an idiot, " she teased.
Xiao Yu'er suddenly sprang to his feet. His eyes flashed; staring at her he said, "You really think that you deceived me?"
She looked back at him with an enchanting smile: "You haven't figured it out?"
He laughed loudly: "Let me tell you, I already knew you wouldn't let yourself die. That's why I agreed to jump with you. You don't seem the sort to kill yourself."
The girl blinked a few times: "Oh? Really?"
Xiao Yu'er drew himself up and declared loudly: "I tell you, no one in this world can fool Jiang Yu."
She looked at him, then softly said, "Indeed then, I find now you are truly a man, no longer a child. I have never met a man like you." Her eyes were warm and kind. Xiao Yu'er puffed out his chest and thought to himself that he agreed with her. He had grown up and was now a man.
The girl clad in green looked around in all directions, then abruptly sighed: "Although I haven't died, but now at this point, I'm really out of ideas. Now...I really have to rely on you, please don't leave me."
Xiao Yu'er thought he had never felt more strong or brave than at this moment. He felt that he must really be quite capable, or this girl would never have wholeheartedly put her faith in him.
He said firmly, "You can rely on me, I won't regret it."
She smiled gratefully: "You are so good, I know I haven't picked the wrong person." He laughed: "Of course you haven't, you've chosen the best."
The girl in green relaxed and said, "Good, now if you could think of a way out of here, we'll be able to leave this godforsaken place."
"Certainly, " agreed Xiao Yu'er. Although the word came readily from his lips, in his heart he felt anxious, because he had already surveyed this 'godforsaken place' and truly could not see a way out.
This place resembled the bottom of a wine bottle. Even with as many legs as a centipede, and the strongest will to live, it was impossible to climb out.
The strangest thing was, the place didn't seem as damp as they might have imagined. There wasn't the slightest bit of humidity, in fact it was warm and rather dry. The dense fog and clouds from above were very far away.
Below his feet, instead of thick and sticky mud, (?) was refreshing grass. It was soft, springy, and green, like a large colourful blanket. Under the bright shards of sunlight, the air was filled with a delightful fragrance.
Everywhere there was thick and dense forest. In between the trees would peek some grass and flowers. Xiao Yu'er felt as though he had landed in a paradise.
The only disturbing part about this paradise was, there was an endless silence and stillness. No breeze, and no sounds. Every blade of grass, each leaf, was motionless. There was no breath of life anywhere.
This terrible stillness was enough to drive a person mad. Such a beautiful paradise was actually a place of death.
The girl in green softly interrupted his thoughts: "Have you thought of a way out yet?"
Xiao Yu'er could no longer force a smile to his lips. He could only keep mumbling, "There must be a way, of course there is."
She said, "All right then, you lead and I'll obey your instructions." She looked at him gently and fell silent.
With his hands behind his back, Xiao Yu'er began to turn in circles. By about the seventeenth or eighteenth circle, he suddenly cried out: "Something's wrong, something's not right here!"
"What's wrong?" the girl asked.
He asked her, "What's missing here?"
"Something's missing? What's missing?" she echoed.
Xiao Yu'er said worriedly, "Where are the old monkey and Shen Qinghong? Flown up to heaven?"
She said, "Didn't...didn't they fall to their deaths?"
He said excitedly, "Right, exactly, they did. But where are the bodies? I've looked everywhere, and I can't find a single bone. Even if they were devoured by wolves, they couldn't have been eaten that fast. Furthermore, there's not even a kitten to be found here, let alone a wolf."
The expression on the girl's face changed. She said anxiously, "You really couldn't find their corpses?"
"No, I didn't, not even a bone, " he repeated.
Even as he said it, Xiao Yu'er still couldn't believe his own words. As he spoke, he continued his search. The girl in green followed along, helping him. The area was not large, and very soon they had already finished two or three complete searches. They had looked in every corner, under every tree, and over all the patches of grass.
Not only were even the bones missing, but not even a single bloodstain was visible. There was no evidence at all of the two others having died here.
Suddenly Xiao Yu'er began to grow afraid. He said, "Maybe there are ghosts here."
The girl shrank back, but forced herself to laugh, "Ghosts, how could there be ghosts?"
Xiao Yu'er said, "If it weren't for ghosts, how could they have disappeared? Even if they weren't killed by the fall, they should still be here. Besides, there is no way they could still be alive."
He added, "There is something weird about this place. I must get to the root of this mystery." As he spoke, he began to search for clues again. But the trees remained just trees, and the grassy patched yielded no further clues.
Firmly he concluded, "There must be someone else in this place."
"How could there be anyone else in this place?" she asked.
Xiao Yu'er explained, "If this were a natural and freely growing patch of grass, how could it be so neat and tidy? Therefore, there must be someone here, someone who regularly tends the grounds."
Her puzzled expression cleared: "Ah, you are right. Not only is your brain clever, but your eyes are observant...since someone lives here, I'm a little more relieved."
She jumped up, her eyes dancing, but then drew her eyebrows in worry and said, "But...where are they then?"
Xiao Yu'er said, "They...they..."
He looked around, but not a soul could be seen, let alone a living human.
A mystery. A puzzling, unsolvable mystery.
The girl in green said, "I can't even bear to think of it, it's too creepy."
Xiao Yu'er said steadfastly: "Don't you worry about it, you can leave the thinking to me."
In reality he couldn't figure it out either, he was starting to get a headache.
The light was beginning to fade, and quickly too. Xiao Yu'er ceaselessly walked, here and there, back and forth. He was so hungry he was sure his stomach would start to leak acid.
He was starting to go crazy.
He always used to say, "There is nothing impossible in this world." At this point, he was beginning to feel that anyone who could say that was either a madman or a simpleton.
He didn't dare look at the girl in green. She had said that she would leave everything up to him. If she had chosen the right person, well, perhaps her eyes were a little blind.
Eventually Xiao Yu'er began to feel faint. He mumbled, "I'll rest for a bit, then we'll see. If only I could sleep and never have to wake up..."
Suddenly the girl cried, "Come over here...come!"
He turned his head in her direction, but had already lost sight of her. He shouted, "Where are you? Have you learned the art of invisibility or something?"
"I'm here, over here!" she called back. Her voice could be heard from behind a tree. The tree was thick in diameter, and large. Its leaves were especially green. Xiao Yu'er had been suspicious of it a long time ago, but had not been able to pinpoint anything specific.
Xiao Yu'er flew over to her side, and found her kneeling on the ground behind the tree, as if praying. (?) She made no move, but her eyes were huge.
He drew his eyebrows together, frowning: "What are you doing? Praying?"
She beckoned him with her hand, urging him: "Come quickly, take a look at this spot."
Accordingly, Xiao Yu'er crouched down beside her and looked. After a while he said, "There's nothing there, only...whoa, wait, there is something!"
He had suddenly noticed that the bark on the lower part of the tree was different from its upper half. It was thick and rough above; below it was shiny and smooth.
The girl pointed out, "Look here, the bark appears to be regularly touched by people. And why should they touch this spot? Clearly there is only one explanation...there must be a door in this tree."
Xiao Yu'er's face lit up. He returned her compliment from before: "Not only is your brain clever, but your eyes are observant."
She teased back, "Thank you, thank you."
He winked at her, then knocked on the tree a few times, laughing: "Is anybody home?"
Xiao Yu'er had an odd habit. He liked to make jokes at any time, and no matter where he was. But this particular joke wasn't exactly purposeless either; he wished to see if the tree was hollow or solid.
Never in his dreams would he have guessed that he would get a response. Indeed, no one answered him, but the piece of bark suddenly moved aside, and in the middle of a live tree, there unexpectedly appeared a doorway!
This was quite a shock to Xiao Yu'er. He was so startled that he flew backwards out of the doorway. The girl in green was also surprised; she fell to her knees, unable to move.
The tree was indeed hollow. Xiao Yu'er stared into the black hole and called loudly, "Is anyone in here? Ghost or human, I want you to come out right now."
Not a sound or reply. He advanced step by step. His fists were clenched so tightly that the knuckles were white. (?) His eyes, already wide, grew even bigger and rounder.
The girl in green said to him in a trembling voice, "Don't go in, we don't know what's in there."
Xiao Yu'er said firmly, "What's there to be scared of? Anything that's sneaking around is nothing to be scared of, otherwise it wouldn't be hiding from us!"
She asked, "You...are you going in?"
His body shrank back a bit. He stuttered, "Go...go in..." But then he coughed and shouted, "Of course I'm going in, this is the only lead we have. How could I not investigate it properly?"
Suddenly, a wonderful fragrance wafted outside from within.
It smelled like chicken cooking in a pot, simmering in sauces and fragrant spices.
Xiao Yu'er's nose twitched. Right now to him this was the best smell in the world. He drooled and swallowed a few times, then cried out: "There must be people inside, ghosts don't eat chicken. Monsters might eat chicken, but they wouldn't cook it...therefore there's nothing to be scared of."
These words appeared to be spoken to reassure the girl in green, or maybe they were for his own sake. Her voice shook: "Please be careful if you insist on going in."
He said loudly, "Of course I'll be careful, I'm careful in all things, otherwise how would I have lived this long?" As he spoke, he scooped up a stone from the bottom of the tree and flung it into the opening.
They heard a "kwa" sound as it hit something. Xiao Yu'er observed, "This hole isn't very big."
The girl in green gently praised him, "You really are the most cautious person I've met."
Xiao Yu'er unconsciously puffed out his chest and said: "You stay here and wait for me. I'm going to take a look."
In a quavering voice she protested, "No...no wait. How could I wait outside all alone? I'd be scared to death. I'm coming with you, with you by my side, I'll feel safe."
Xiao Yu'er looked into her eyes. Finally he said, "Ai, women, women...all right, follow me then. Hold on tight and don't stray."
She murmured, "I wouldn't stray if you beat me with a whip." Xiao Yu'er felt as if he were floating on air as he stepped inside.
The interior of the tree was indeed hollow. Although it was not large, it was quite dark.
The girl in green clung tightly to Xiao Yu'er. Her voice shook: "Strange, there's not a single person here."
"No, there must be someone here, " Xiao Yu'er insisted.
She said, puzzled, "This place can only be so big, where could they be?"
The tree's diameter only spanned five metres. There wasn't a single place to hide in it.
Xiao Yu'er drew his eyebrows together."That's really odd. Where did that chicken smell come from?"
"It seems to be coming from below, " the girl in green realized.
Upon her words, the ground beneath their feet began to sink. The girl in green threw herself into Xiao Yu'er's arms. In a trembling voice she whispered, "What's happening? What are we going to do?"
Xiao Yu'er's eyes were wide. He cried out loudly, "Don't be scared, we may as well go down and take a look."
They continued to descend. They were surrounded by blackness. Apparently they were standing in some sort of tube, one that could go up and down. The girl in green clutched Xiao Yu'er's hand tightly. Her hand was damp and cold. This cold blooded killer, reduced to such a state, was actually quite surprising.
The 'tube' finally stopped. Xiao Yu'er opened his eyes and saw a door. A few rays of light shone from behind it into the tube.
He crouched down, and with a "shhh" he squirmed out. Outside there was a tunnel. On either side the stone walls were intricately carved, and there were bronze torches set into the walls.
Xiao Yu'er muttered, "This bastard sure knows how to treat himself. What a luxurious place. The owner of this place is no monster, but to call him a monster would be quite fitting."
He turned his head to tell the girl in green to come out. Just then she screamed in pain. The door to the metal tube had suddenly shut itself, and the tube was going down. Her cries could be heard coming from the tube as it descended.
Xiao Yu'er heard her scream: "Fire...help me, save me...fire...." He quickly tried to pull, but there was no way he could stop that big metal tube from moving. He decided to jump in after the tube, but at that moment it stopped moving. He could still hear the girl in green shrieking: "Fire...oh I beg you, save me...fire..."
Her yells made Xiao Yu'er break out in a cold sweat. He struck out with his fists and legs, trying to break through the roof of the metal tube, but it was made of well-tempered steel. He exhausted his energy in vain.
Her cries grew weaker and weaker."Please...I'm going to die...help me..." Suddenly the sounds stopped. Then, a deathly silence.
Xiao Yu'er's fists also stopped. He stood there stunned. The girl in green had been burned to death in the metal tube!
Although she had been vicious, and they were not related in any way, she had still fully trusted her life to him. Having ended up like this, one could only say that she picked the wrong hero, she had chosen poorly indeed...
Xiao Yu'er's eyes were damp. He suddenly yelled, "Listen to me, I don't care who you are. You can't scare me, and you won't kill me either. I am going to murder you!"
No answer came from the tunnel. Xiao Yu'er gritted his teeth and boldly advanced.
The tunnel was short. At its end was another door, engraved with a scene of people and flowers and grass. This underground tunnel must have taken a lot of time, effort and money to create. The owner must be a strange person, to want to build such an elaborate structure underground.
The door was unlocked. With one hand he pushed it open.
He didn't know why he was being so bold. Perhaps he felt he was invincible. If he was going to die, he would have been burnt to death just now like the girl in green. He felt somehow that the owner of this place didn't want to kill him. He had no idea why.
He didn't think much more beyond that. This was the secret to his thinking. Just focus on one thought, and don't worry too much about other things. Otherwise you just got mixed up.
A hall lay beyond the door. Since even the tunnel was fancy, the hall was naturally even more lavish. Aside from not having windows, this underground hall was more than comparable with the houses of the gentry above ground. Luxurious though it was, no one was in it.
Xiao Yu'er remarked, "Well the owner might be a monster but he sure knew how to live the life. If he let this place be all dark and cold, it would scare off enemies, but he wouldn't be enjoying it either."
A peal of laughter suddenly sounded: "How well you know the master of this place."
The voice was male, but the slow, gentle tone was very feminine. Xiao Yu'er turned around but still saw no one. He shouted: "Who are you? And where are you?"
The voice answered, "You can't see me, but I can certainly see you."
Although Xiao Yu'er couldn't see anyone, he did see another door. He crossed over in huge strides and pushed it open. Yet another hall.
In the centre of the hall was a long table. The table held a large blue bowl, which was the source of the fragrance that had attracted him here. In the bowl, there was indeed cooked chicken, young and tender.
His eyes grew round. The voice said slowly, "Jiang Yu, this chicken is very nice, it was especially prepared for you."
Xiao Yu'er shook. He cried out: "You...how do you know my name?"
The voice laughed, "The master of this place knows everything."
"Who are you exactly?" Xiao Yu'er asked again.
The voice replied, "How do you know we are human?"
Xiao Yu'er stepped backward in alarm. Finally he said, "What do you want from me?"
The voice said, "Fine, we will show ourselves. Put on the blindfold in front of you first."
Xiao Yu'er did as instructed, then said, "Hmm."
The voice teased, "How do you know you are living and not dead? A person or a ghost? Now, open your eyes and look."
As he spoke, torches flared up everywhere. Suddenly Xiao Yu'er saw that there were seven or eight people in chairs sitting around him.
They were dressed in large, flowing robes. Their ages seemed to be about twenty years old or so. Each person was elegant and refined in appearance.
All of them were men, but somehow they seemed feminine as well. They all lounged on their chairs as if draped across them, and smiled lazily at Xiao Yu'er.
He asked, "You are the masters of this place?"
They shook their heads simultaneously. All of them seemed to be delicate and soft, not a bone in their bodies. Although they were alive, they weren't far off from being dead.
Xiao Yu'er hollered in frustration: "Who is your master? Why won't he come out and see me? If he's like you androgynous freaks, half alive and half dead, I'd rather not meet him."
One of them said, "I wouldn't be mocking us if I were you. In three months time, you'll be just like us."
Xiao Yu'er jeered, "I don't think so."
The speaker smiled and retorted, "You don't think so? You have a strong body, but you can't beat her."
Xiao Yu'er echoed, "Her? Who is she?"
"She is our empress."
He heard a ripple of laughter like a silvery bell: "I am, indeed, the empress of this place!"
That particular laugh was very familiar to Xiao Yu'er. He turned, and saw her. The girl in green, who apparently had been burned alive.
Xiao Yu'er stood there, stunned, his staring eyes larger than a chicken's egg.
The girl in green laughed "ge ge" while gazing at him. She quoted him, "Oh, the most intelligent man in the world, no one can fool you, can they?"
His eyes were still fixed on her in shock."No wonder the two bodies disappeared. No wonder you found the tree entrance so easily. Because you are the master of this place...you...you have really tricked me this time."
"Now do you respect me?" she teased.
He sighed, "I do indeed...like I said before, you can lure people to their deaths. What I didn't know was that you came from the underground."
She spun around in a circle, her arms apart, and laughed, "What do you think of my palace?"
"Not bad, not bad at all, " he complimented her.
Her eyes flickered over to his, and asked, "And what do you think of my concubines?"
Xiao Yu'er's eyes widened at her words.
She giggled sweetly, "If a man can have three wives and four brides, why can't a woman?"
He smiled wryly, then suddenly grasped her meaning, and said with wide eyes, "You mean...you mean that I am also to be one of your concubines?"
The girl in green looked at him, and smiled: "Wrong."
Xiao Yu'er sighed in relief, but stopped short as she said, "I want you to be my queen."
Xiao Yu'er stood there stunned, then broke into laughter. He laughed until he became quite breathless, he had never laughed so hard in his life before.
The girl in green said, "Aren't you happy?"
He laughed even louder, "Oh, I'm happy, I'm thrilled to death! I have imagined all manner of crazy possibilities, but I would never have dreamed that one day I would be a queen."
"Why, you are not willing?" the girl in green teased.
Xiao Yu'er opened his eyes wide and said, "Why wouldn't I be willing? How many men on this earth could be a queen?"
He suddenly leapt up, sat on the table(?), and commanded in a loud voice, "Hey, aren't you all going to come over and bow to your new queen?"
The youths dressed in light robes looked at each other, hesitated, then finally shuffled over. Xiao Yu'er said, "Oh, about three kowtows each should be sufficient, not too many."
The youths all looked over at the girl in green, who just smiled and nodded encouragement. At this point they had no choice but to kowtow.
Xiao Yu'er joked, "Well, now you've finished paying your respects, you may leave. Go on now, I've got to have a few drinks with the king...I hope none of the royal concubines are thinking of competing for his affections, because the queen will get jealous and chop your heads off."
The youths all stared at him as if he were a monster. Without a word they all fled as one and disappeared.
Xiao Yu'er clapped his hands and laughed, "Fantastic, being a queen feels pretty good after all."
Doubled over, the girl in green was laughing so hard that she could not lift her head. Still giggling she said, "Oh, you little flirt, you entertain me. I have been here for over ten years and never have I been more amused."
Laughing with her, Xiao Yu'er said, "Well from now on, every day I'll amuse you, until you die of it. Yes, you are called "the Siren, luring men to death with impunity", and for good reason, but I still intend to charm you to your death."
The laughter died in her throat. Her eyes wide, she looked at him and stammered: "How...how did you know my name?"
"Not only do I know this name of yours, " Xiao Yu'er went on, "I know that you are also called Xiao Mimi, of the 'Ten Evils'. (1) You appear to be graceful and tender, but actually you are already four or five decades old. But don't worry, I won't be repulsed by your age. The older the ginger, the more bite it has; the more mature a woman, the more I appreciate her."
He went on and on like a machine gun, while the girl in green stood motionless in her shock.
"Don't just stand there, " Xiao Yu'er teased her."One moment in a spring evening is worth a thousand pieces of gold, you should come over and show your queen just how intimate you can be."
Still, she stared at him. At last she said slowly, "But you were inaccurate regarding one thing."
"What's that?"
"I am only thirty seven."
Xiao Yu'er replied with amusement in his eyes: "It doesn't matter if you are seventeen. 'Never debate with a woman about her age' - I've understood this since I was young."
The girl in green retorted, "It doesn't matter if you make any other mistake. But if you get a woman's age wrong, she will never forgive you."
Her hands were soft and tender, as was her smile.
Yet somehow a murderous expression shone through her smile. Those soft hands, could, in a flash, cruelly take someone's life. Xiao Yu'er, of course, knew this well.
However, he insisted on playing dumb, and laughing he asked, "I know who you are, but do you know who I am?"
Her eyes darting back and forth, Xiao Mimi realized: "You..."
Xiao Yu'er declared, "If the 'Ten Evils' had one friend, it would be me, Jiang Yu."
She said, "You dare to call yourself a friend of the 'Ten Evils'?"
He laughed, "What, you think I am a person of upstanding and moral character?"
Xiao Mimi smiled sweetly: "Well, that you are certainly not. But you are far too young to be that smart. I think you...you must be sent here by that old monster, are you not? Otherwise how could you know who I am?"
Xiao Yu'er admitted, "Well, I do indeed know quite a few monsters."
"Quite a few?" she echoed.
He winked at her, and then laughing he said: "'Ha ha, this little monk here never follows evil, amitaba. 'Those who follow evil must die. ' 'When you kill, be careful, don't spill too much blood, or the meat will not taste fresh. ' 'Under the gates of hell, there are too many hungry ghosts. The ghosts would eat even unfresh meat. ' 'Oh you, silly, you are definitely a wicked one. '."
As he quoted these phrases, there appeared the impressions of Ha ha'er, "Bloody Hand" Du Sha, "Not eating the head" Li Dazhui, "Half human, half ghost" Yin Jiuyou, "Neither male nor female", Du Qiaoqiao. The tones and articulations were exactly identical to each of the original speakers. It was as if they had appeared and were speaking in person. (?)
Xiao Mimi widened her eyes, then laughed sweetly, "Little flirt, you know all of these people?"
"I grew up in the Valley of Evil, " Xiao Yu'er told her.
| ← Ch. 011 | Ch. 013 → |