White-Robed Chief
chapter-198

"Sister He, what is it with him?" Sun Lihua turned her head around and looked at He Binghua. "We aren't monsters or beasts, so why was he so scared of us?!"

He Binghua shook her head and said, "Master Chu did it for our own good."

"What do you mean?"

"Sigh… It's true that we should keep a distance from anyone from the Public House." He Binghua shook her head and said, "Sister Sun, once we're back to the valley, don't mention about this encounter to our master."

"But why?" Sun Lihua shook He Binghua's shoulder with her left hand, seemingly impatient. "Sister He, just tell me already. Don't leave me hanging like this."

He Binghua sighed. "Our master's father was murdered by someone from the Public House."

Sun Lihua scoffed, "But the Public House won't kill somebody for no reason, right?"

"He killed a corrupt official." He Binghua replied.

"Then the corrupt official deserved to die!" Sun Lihua scoffed, "What's the fault in that?"

Sun Lihua's face turned gloomy. She replied faintly, "Did you forget our Tai Hua Valley's rules?"

"You can't hurt an official from the Imperial Court." Sun Lihua pursed her lips and scoffed, "What kind of rule is this?"

She was disgusted by this rule, as she felt that it was an act of oppressing the weak. Just because someone is an official, it did not mean that he could do anything that he wanted and exploit the people!

However, a rule was a rule. If anyone dared to go against it, they would be banished from Tai Hua Valley. Thus, she had no choice but to adhere to it.

He Binghua said to her, "It doesn't matter whether an official is righteous or corrupt. If you kill them, the Public House will do everything they can to apprehend the murderer. That's the price to pay for killing someone. Let's not talk about us, even the people from the Tempest Temple did not dare to kill an Imperial Court official."

"Well that's because monks can't kill people," Sun Lihua replied.

He Binghua said, "If you kill an Imperial Court official and the Public House comes after you, our faction would be held responsible for your wrongdoings as well."

Sun Lihua scoffed, agreeing with her unwillingly. She could not argue with that.

He Binghua said, "Just think about how our master feels. She could not do anything to avenge her father's death, yet she must avoid herself from those corrupt officials. Hence, she would get angry whenever she hears someone mention the Public House. So, please don't upset her!"

"This is so frustrating!" Sun Lihua admitted.

After a long silence, the usually quiet Zhang Feihua finally spoke, "It seems like this Master Chu knew about our master's past."

"Sigh…" He Binghua shook her head and gently exhaled.

"Not everyone in the Public House is evil, right? Just look at Master Chu. He's such a kind man," Sun Lihua said.

"Such a shame that he's with the Public House," Zhang Feihua proclaimed.

Sun Lihua pursed her lips gently, letting out another scoff.

He Binghua looked towards the direction in which Chu Li had left. After a while, she sighed. "Let's go, we should be on our way too."

"Sister He, the Yi Public House is in Chong Ming Town, right?"

"Yes."

"Why don't we head to Chong Li Yuning town as well, so we can catch up with Master Chu and follow him."

"Do you want to infuriate our master?" Zhang Feihua asked.

Sun Lihua rolled her eyes at her. "She doesn't need to know."

He Binghua replied, "From what I see, Master Chu didn't want to have anything to do with us either. Let's not disturb him."

Sun Lihua looked disappointed. She pursed her lips to show her dissatisfaction.

The three of them then left the kiosk and got onto their horses.

The weather in mid-September was volatile. One minute it was scorching, the next minute it was cloudy. Rainclouds started looming above, covering the sun in the sky.

They quickened their pace, but they were unable to avoid the rain anyway. Before long, it was raining cats and dogs.

However, they did not dare to stop halfway because there was a risk that the rain would not stop anytime soon. Stopping would only make it more difficult to continue their journey. They had no choice but to brace the heavy downpour and kept on going. The ordeal made them feel very exhausted, even with the assistance of their martial arts.

After half a day's journey, they finally reached within the vicinity of a small town — Desolate Town. They hurried their way into the town and scrambled for shelter. They found an inn and checked into a room. Inside their room, they changed their clothes, cleaned themselves and dried their hair.

When they were outside again, the sky was already getting dark.

The rain, however, did not stop.

Thus, they went to the main lounge of the inn to look for something to eat. Although the food there was not as good as the ones in the restaurants, they had to make do with it, so long as it could fill their stomachs.

As soon as the three ladies stepped into the lounge, everyone turned their attention towards them.

They were already used to this kind of situation. They swept a glance to the left side of the room and then to the right. Finally, they found what they were looking for. Sat there at one corner of the room was Chu Li.

Sun Lihua pulled He Binghua and Zhang Feihua with her, as she walked towards Chu Li's table with excitement. She smiled at him sweetly. "Master Chu, may we have a seat?"

Chu Li glanced around the room and realized that every other table was fully occupied. Only his table had seats left.

He was wearing an embroidered silk robe, with a treasure sword strapped to his waist. The jade on his waist shined brilliantly like a watery gleam. He gave out an aura of masculinity as he sat there. The patrons of the inn were usually shady people who spent all their lives avoiding attention from people like Chu Li. Thus, most of the people there avoided sitting close to him, staying as far away from him as they could.

"Master Chu—!" Sun Lihua called out to Chu Li. She was unhappy that he was unresponsive towards her presence.

Chu Li smiled at her and nodded. "Please, have a seat."

He Binghua flashed a smile at Chu Li too. "Apologies for disturbing, Master Chu."

Chu Li returned her a smile. "I didn't expect to see you girls again so soon."

"Please, allow us to foot the bill for your meal," He Binghua requested him, "as a token of our appreciation."

Chu Li swiftly nodded. He did not hesitate this time.

Not long after, the table was served with eight scrumptious-looking dishes. It seemed that Chu Li had already pre-ordered those dishes prior to their arrival. Not only that, all eight dishes were the most expensive ones from the menu.

Chu Li was born into a rich family, so it made sense that he ordered the best dishes. He would not pass on the opportunity of giving himself a good treat.

He Binghua and the girls then ordered a few more dishes. The Tai Hua Valley faction was quite well-to-do as well.

…

"Master Chu, we're going to Chong Ming town too," Sun Lihua said as she poured a cup of wine for Chu Li. She smiled and continued, "We share the same destination."

"Sister Sun!" He Binghua creased her eyebrows.

Sun Lihua did not seem bothered at all as she continued on, "Since we're heading towards the same direction, why don't we journey together?"

Chu Li smiled.

"Master Chu, our master is currently in Chong Ming town, so we're on our way to meet with her. If you don't mind, you can join us and travel together."

Chu Li replied hesitantly, "Well… If your master finds out, she'll punish you."

He Binghua explained, "But if she knows that you've saved our lives, I reckon she wouldn't blame us."

"To have the chance of traveling with you three beautiful ladies, it must be the good karma that I've gained from my past life." Chu Li smiled. "But too bad my luck ends here. I still have a couple of things to settle here in town. I'm not sure how much longer that would take me."

"We'll wait for you!" Sun Lihua exclaimed.

"Sister Sun!" He Binghua gave her a mean stare. Then, she turned her head back to Chu Li and smiled. "We can't make our master wait for too long. So, we must get there quick. Apologies, Master Chu."

From the way Chu Li answered them, He Binghua could see that he was trying to decline their invitation in a polite manner. He made it clear that he did not want anything to do with the three of them.

Chu Li smiled and nodded.

Sun Lihua seemed dissatisfied and gave Chu Li a mean stare. She pursed her lips and then lowered her head, resuming her meal.

Chu Li remained silent while he kept his smile.

He knew that he could not get too close to the people from Tai Hua Valley. It was a precaution in case a disciple of Tai Hua Valley commits a crime in the future. If he was sent to kill the wrong-doer, what would he do?

As there were no benefits of befriending them, so he chose not to.

The rain started rapidly, but it stopped quickly too. It was reduced to a slight drizzle around midnight. After that, a huge gust of wind blew and dried the soggy ground, which made them able to continue their journey again the next morning.

After they had breakfast, He Binghua and the girls mounted their horses and resumed their journey at a fast pace.

After traveling for about twenty plus miles, they heard sounds of hush galloping from behind them. In the blink of an eye, the mysterious riders surpassed them before they stopped right in front of them, blocking their way.

He Binghua and the ladies were caught by surprise.

There was a total of four horses in front of them, and all of them were disciples of Green Hill faction. Besides Xu Shixiao and his two men, there was another guy who looked like he was in his late-twenties. His had a slender figure, and his cheeks were hollow. The blade strapped to his waist looked long and narrow. It was unlike anything they had seen before.

"Xu Shixiao, what are you guys doing here again?" Sun Lihua scoffed, "Step aside!"

Xu Shixiao replied faintly, "This is my third senior, Brother He Xingting. He's here to show Sister He that we meant business!"

"What a disgrace! You lost to us and so you called your senior up here as a backup?" Sun Lihua pursed her lips.

He Binghua's pretty face turned stone-cold. He stared at He Xingting.

He Xingting swept a lazy glance across the three ladies. Then he said casually, "The three of you can hit me all at once, so don't accuse me of bullying the weak… If you lose, we won't kill you. We'll only remove your martial arts abilities!"

His voice sounded hoarse as if his throat was burned by charcoal.

After he finished talking, he did not wait for the ladies to respond. He took a giant leap from the back of his horse instead and pulled out his blade in the process. The long blade swung out like a flash of lightning as it lashed towards the direction of He Binghua.

The trio instinctively unsheathed their sword and swung them in the air. In an instant, the light of the swords increased in intensity, blocking He Xingting's strike.

He Xingting frowned. He thought that he had them for good, but he did not expect that, with the powers of those three combined, it would be so powerful. The Tai Hua Valley techniques were the real deal!

"Ding ding ding ding…" The four swords struck each other repeatedly.

He Xingting went with the momentum of their strikes and took a step backward. He twisted around agilely and leaped back to his own horse. "Fine. No wonder Brother Xu had lost, that was indeed very skillful of you three. Let's leave!"

He pulled the horse's lead and turned his horse to the other direction, fleeing the scene. Xu Shixiao and the other two men immediately followed after him.

"Hmph! Fleeing after losing the fight, and they call themselves the Green Hill faction?!" Sun Lihua pursed her lips and giggled. "Sister He, it seems like the people of Green Hill faction are mere weaklings!"

He Binghua shook her head. She frowned as she stared at the escaping lot.

However, they continued their journey for another ten miles before they were stopped again by five men.

This time, besides the previous four, there was another skinny youth. He looked like he was around the same age as He Xingting. He had fine facial features and sunken eyes, which gave him a fierce and murderous look.

Sun Lihua jeered at them angrily, "Xu Shixiao, do you Green Hill fellows know what shame is? A fight after another, will you get your faction leader at the very end of this?"

"This is our eldest senior, Brother Feng Shaohua!" Xu Shixiao pointed at the skinny man beside him, and said in a low voice, "If you girls can beat Senior Hua, I'll forget all the previous resentments once and for all!"

"Alright, you promised us!" Sun Lihua scoffed at him, "Quick, let's get things over and done with then. We still need to continue our journey!"

As soon as she was done speaking, the trio pulled out their swords and leaped forward, aiming their weapons towards Feng Shaohua.

Feng Shaohua sat firmly on top of his horse, waiting for the tip of their swords to reach him. In the spur of the moment, the long sword strapped to his waist was turned into a blaze of silver lightning and it made its way towards the girls' throats.

The three ladies retreated backward in reflex, landing back onto their horses.

Feng Shaohua levitated into the air. Then a stretch of light from his sword hung in mid-air before it made its way towards He Binghua.

The three ladies braced their swords again to block the hit.

"Ding…" All three of their long swords were cast out of their hands.

Feng Shaohua's cultivation was far more superior than the three combined. In this case, they would not be his match even if they worked together.

With their grasps empty, they could only watch as Feng Shaohua's long sword edged closer to their necks.

Feng Shaohua had clearly intended to take their lives. They did not keep their prior promise of just removing their martial arts abilities. With that strike of the sword, it was almost imminent that three heads would be dislodged from their graceful bodies.

"Ding…" Sun Lihua had closed her eyes to embrace death, but there came a clear clang.

She immediately opened her eyes to take a look, but she saw Feng Shaohua sitting dejectedly on his horse with his hands empty. She turned her glance towards the direction where the other men were looking at and there she saw Feng Shaohua's long sword. Its tip was buried deep into the bark of a tree about ten meters away; the grip of the sword vibrated incessantly.

"Who are you? Please show yourself!" Feng Shaohua yelled coldly.

Though there was no response. All they could hear were the howls of the wind.

Feng Shaohua said coldly, "We're from the Green Hill faction. If we've offended you, please forgive us!"

The only reply he got was the sound of the wind.

Feng Shaohua turned his glance to the three ladies, and he smirked coldly. He levitated like a goshawk to about ten meters away, and he retrieved his long sword from the tree. After that, he levitated again and landed back onto his horse. He pulled the lead rope, turned his horse around and left the scene.

His other accomplices hurried off to catch up with him. In less than a minute, all five of them were nowhere to be seen.

He Binghua made a fist salute and proclaimed, "Is it Master Chu there?"

No response.

He Binghua sighed and called out loudly again, "Many thanks, Master Chu. We hope to repay your kindness in the future!"

The three ladies went back to their horses and resumed their journey.

Chu Li emerged from the woods nearby, watching the girls as their silhouette slowly disappeared out of sight. He shook his head and chuckled. He had saved their lives once again. It seemed like they were indeed fated to meet.