Chapter 1: Good People Should Kill Bad People
There was a boat in the vast ocean.
This boat had left White Emperor City many days ago. The reason it had not yet reached its destination was that the people on board had still been hoping to receive good news, so they could turn back.
Now, with no news arriving, the people on the boat finally gave up.
As the coastline gradually appeared before their eyes, Mu Jiushi’s haggard face finally showed a hint of relief.
Her uncle the king was dead, and something must have happened on her sister’s side as well. She didn’t know how she should face her imperial brother, but being able to return home was ultimately something worth being happy about.
The Second Prince looked at her and sighed softly, knowing in his heart that from now on, it would probably be hundreds of years before they could set foot in the Central Lands again.
Just then, a sound of tearing air rang out. The drifting clouds in the sky scattered in alarm, the boat swayed slightly, and a person appeared at the bow.
It was an old man with graying hair. His face was very round and large, looking somewhat comical, or rather, extremely cheerful in appearance.
Mu Jiushi and the Second Prince had no idea where this person had come from, but they knew that someone who could suddenly appear from the vast emptiness of the sea and sky must be powerful.
Moreover, this round-faced old man did not hide his aura—a sacred aura that transcended the mundane realm.
Mu Jiushi looked at him warily and asked, “Who are you?”
The round-faced old man scratched his head, seeming unsure how to answer the question. After a long while, he said, “I think my surname is Cao.”
Hearing this surname, Mu Jiushi and the Second Prince were both very surprised.
There were very few powerful figures in the sacred domain of the continent, and only one person had the surname Cao.
That was Cao Yunping.
Cao Yunping was the nephew of the Old Heavenly Master and had once been one of the Eight Winds and Rains.
Over a hundred years ago, for some secret reason, he had fought a battle with Su Li and lost.
After that, he suddenly decided to abandon his original cultivation method and practice a completely new one.
This was naturally an extremely dangerous thing to do, and in anyone’s eyes, it was highly unwise.
But neither the Old Heavenly Master nor the Holy Empress of the Heavenly Sea could change his mind.
Cao Yunping dispersed all the power in his body and started cultivating anew. Just as he was on the verge of succeeding, the starlight within him suddenly erupted in violent flames. Though he barely managed to survive, his sea of consciousness was severely damaged, and his mind became somewhat unclear. In other words, he had become a simpleton.
From then on, the Eight Winds and Rains were one person short, and no one had ever seen his traces again.
Mu Jiushi had never expected that this man would appear on her boat, and it was obvious that his cultivation had fully recovered, perhaps even surpassing his former self.
“Senior… what advice do you have?”
Hearing this question, Cao Yunping once again fell into a dazed mental state. He began to rack his brains, his brows furrowed tightly and with great effort, making his round face even more taut, looking like a pillow stuffed full of new cotton.
But neither Mu Jiushi nor the Second Prince dared to laugh.
Cao Yunping might really have become a simpleton, but his level of power was still terrifying, which meant extreme danger.
Cao Yunping finally remembered. His brows relaxed, and he looked at them with a beaming smile, saying, “I remember now.”
Mu Jiushi asked cautiously, “What did Senior remember?”
Cao Yunping didn’t answer her question directly. Instead, he complained, “Why did you come back so late? I’ve been waiting for you for several days.”
Mu Jiushi suddenly felt uneasy and asked, “What business does Senior have with us?”
Cao Yunping said, “I promised Chen Changsheng that I would kill you.”
Hearing this, Mu Jiushi and the Second Prince’s faces turned somewhat pale.
Cao Yunping remembered something and quickly said to the Second Prince, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. I remembered wrong. It’s not you. Only this little girl has to die.”
Mu Jiushi glanced at the coastline growing closer and forced herself to steady her emotions, asking, “Senior, why do you want to kill me? Could there be some misunderstanding?”
In her mind, Chen Changsheng must have used some means to enlist this reclusive expert, or perhaps deceived him with words. So naturally, she could also try to persuade him or offer enough benefits. The difference would depend on whether this reclusive expert was truly foolish or just pretending.
“I’m stupid now, really. That’s why I’ve been hiding in the mountains, afraid that if I acted recklessly outside, I might kill a good person by mistake.”
Cao Yunping explained very earnestly, “But you’re not a good person, because you colluded with the demon race and killed Bieyanghong’s son. I know Bieyanghong; he’s a good person.”
Mu Jiushi was very nervous, but her expression remained calm as she said, “Senior, how can you be sure I’m not a good person? Just because Chen Changsheng told you so?”
“Yes, I believe Chen Changsheng’s words, because he’s also a good person. Qiushan believes him too, and Qiushan is a good person.”
Cao Yunping said to her patiently, “We are all good people, and you are a bad person, so we have to kill you.”
…
…
After the white crane left the shore, it didn’t fly too far before landing among the mountains.
The four great leaders of the National Religion and three thousand cavalry guards were waiting in the camp.
Linghai Zhiwang said to Chen Changsheng, “A letter came from the Qiushan family. That person should have gone to the Western Sea.”
Chen Changsheng was startled and asked, “Are you sure?”
Linghai Zhiwang replied, “Yes.”
Xu Yourong asked, “Who went to the Western Sea?”
“Cao Yunping.”
Chen Changsheng said, “I met him once in the sky a few days ago.”
Xu Yourong knew that when he came from the Luling Prince’s residence to reinforce White Emperor City, he had been troubled by a peerless expert along the way. Only now did she realize it was Cao Yunping. She knew who Cao Yunping was and his relationship with Qiushan Jun, so she could naturally guess why Cao Yunping had appeared. She gave Chen Changsheng an apologetic look.
Chen Changsheng said, “It’s fine. It should have been the Xiang King who sent the message; it has nothing to do with the Qiushan family.”
Xu Yourong said, “I heard from my senior brother that this senior’s mind really is damaged. Wouldn’t that affect his judgment?”
“It is indeed somewhat impaired. The senior’s intelligence now is probably at the level of a child, but… he’s a good person.”
Chen Changsheng said with emotion, “I didn’t expect that just a casual remark that night would make the senior go to all the trouble of traveling to the Western Sea.”
Linghai Zhiwang took out a piece of paper and handed it to Chen Changsheng.
It was a sheet of yellow paper, with more than ten names written on it in cinnabar.
This had been written on the very first night Linghai Zhiwang and the others arrived at White Emperor City.
Madam Mu’s name was at the top of the paper, and it had already been crossed out with a horizontal line, representing death.
Chen Changsheng took a brush from Siyuan Daoren, dipped it in some dissolved cinnabar, and drew a horizontal line across the name Mu Jiushi on the second line.
This list was a death list.
From Hanqiu City to Wenshui to Fengyang County to Saintess Peak to White Emperor City, the names of those who deserved to die were all on it.
Next to Mu Jiushi’s name was the name Chu Su.
Everyone’s gaze fell on this name.
The camp became somewhat quiet. (To be continued.)