M49S Vol 1 Chapter 24. Lion Tower

Meng Qiqi obediently got out, while Qing Gu was kept behind by Granny Zhu to keep her company. Left on his own, Meng Qiqi walked off alone. Before long, he slipped away from prying eyes, made his way to Rouge Alley, and knocked on the gate of one of the residences.

With a creak, the door opened, revealing a strikingly pretty face. Upon seeing Meng Qiqi, the woman smiled and said, “Oh, Meng Xiu, my lovely gentleman. You finally came.”

Meng Qiqi slipped inside and shut the door behind him. “Miss Yun, please have some mercy with your words. I can hardly bear being called your gentleman.”

The woman was none other than the missing Miss Yun. But now, her every movement oozed charm, completely unlike the gentle figure Wang Ziling remembered. She covered her mouth and laughed, all seduction and none of the innocence she once wore.

Meng Qiqi got straight to the point. “Where’s Uncle Chai? Did you have him tied up?”

Miss Yun walked further into the house. She turned her head slightly and asked, “Who’s Uncle Chai?”

“Let’s not play games, Miss,” Meng Qiqi said.

She laughed and suddenly leaned in close, her breath warm and fragrant. “Then why do you still call me ‘Miss’?”

Meng Qiqi spread his hands. “I assumed you don’t care to be addressed as ‘Holy Sovereign.’”

“That only applies to others. But you, who’s never once shown me the slightest respect, I might as well make you say it a few more times.”

“You have a point, Holy Sovereign,” Meng Qiqi said, then smoothly turned the topic. “So, might you now tell me, where is Uncle Chai?”

Miss Yun gave Meng Qiqi a cold snort as she took in his feigned compliance. “Don’t worry. He won’t die. Wang Ziling may be a useless brat, but that old servant of his has some sense. If he hadn’t been secretly investigating me, I wouldn’t have detained him.”

“Then I hope the Holy Sovereign will allow him to stay with you a while longer,” Meng Qiqi said, clasping his hands in salute.

“You certainly have it all planned out,” Miss Yun replied. Wang Ziling had turned out the way he did partly because of the Wang family, but Uncle Chai bore some responsibility as well. So long as Uncle Chai shielded him, Wang Ziling would never truly grow.

“You’ve gone to so much trouble for someone like Wang Ziling, even asked me to bring him all the way to you. Is he really worth it?”

Meng Qiqi answered with a question of his own. “Holy Sovereign, do you not recall? Years ago, you too were once a girl no one had faith in.”

Her expression changed slightly. His words seemed to stir up old memories, and she let out a laugh. “Then I shall wait and see. Just don’t forget that you still owe me a favor.”

“Of course. A gentleman’s word is not so easily taken back. Have your people arrived safely in Jinling?”

“That is not your concern,” Miss Yun said flatly. A quiet, commanding pressure rose in her gaze, edged faintly with killing intent. “Meng Qiqi, you would do well to remember. I am no pawn for you to move at will. I came to this Knock upon the Immortal Gate for my own reasons. As long as you complete that task, we will have no quarrel.”

Meng Qiqi put on a look of surprise. “You wrong me, Holy Sovereign. Thus far, I’ve only asked your help with that one minor favor for Wang Ziling. You concealed your identity to bring him to me, and in doing so, arrived safely in Jinling. If I had meant to harm you, I could have shouted that the Holy Sovereign of the Azure Court was here. That would have caused far less trouble.”

Meng Qiqi stood with composure, his gaze calm and sincere. Miss Yun narrowed her eyes slightly and studied him from head to toe. After a moment, her voice turned cold. “I suppose you truly would not dare.”

All at once, her expression changed. She turned to face a direction beyond the courtyard and said in a low voice, “Someone is following you.”

“Following me?” Meng Qiqi frowned. “In that case, I shall take my leave. We shall meet again on the day of the competition.”

He lowered the white veil over his hat and vaulted over the wall. Behind him, Miss Yun tossed an object in his direction.

Meng Qiqi caught it as he landed in the neighboring courtyard. Looking down, he saw that it was the command token Miss Yun always kept on her person. With it, he could temporarily mobilize the forces under her command. The corners of his lips lifted faintly. This was precisely what he had been hoping for.

Had the Gushan Sword not been so rigid in its orthodoxy, with so few people under its banner suitable for use, how would he have dared provoke the Azure Court Sovereign? He had taken great pains to lure her here from beyond the pass for no other reason than the forces at her disposal.

But who, exactly, was following him?

He had been certain that he had shaken off every trail. Yet someone had managed to follow him all the way to this place.

His expression grew solemn. After a pause, his eyes turned, and he swiftly slipped into a narrow alley. He changed directions several times, preparing to circle around and come up behind his pursuer.

He intended to find out just who had been watching him.

However, contrary to his expectations, no matter how he adjusted his route or listened for the faintest movement, he never caught sight of the person trailing him. Yet he could sense that someone was still nearby.

His fingers moved unconsciously to the hilt of his sword. A glint of sharpness flashed in his eyes.

This was growing more and more intriguing.

On the other side, Chen Boyan stood in an alley separated from Meng Qiqi by only a single wall. He raised his eyes to the red apricot blossoms poking over the wall, a faint trace of amusement hidden in the stillness of his gaze.

A small golden-winged beetle flitted in circles in front of him, as if reminding him that the target was just within reach. But Chen Boyan shook his head and touched a finger to its back, halting its flight.

They were too close. With a flashy insect like this flying about so near, Meng Qiqi would immediately turn the situation around. Given his temperament and way of doing things, there was no doubt. If it came to that, Chen Boyan wasn’t certain he could get away in time.

What kind of expression would Meng Qiqi make if he saw him here? Chen Boyan suddenly found himself curious. That erratic, inscrutable Little Martial Uncle of his, what would his reaction be?

He would likely be furious, and then immediately think of countless ways to give him a hard time.

Lost in thought, Chen Boyan was suddenly interrupted by a stone arcing through the air. He dodged on instinct, but even as he moved, he realized something was wrong.

That stone was meant to test the surroundings.

Meng Qiqi’s tracking skill was exceptional. The sound of a single stone landing, if even slightly off, would give him away. Chen Boyan reacted fast enough to pull back before the stone even touched the ground, yet in that final glance toward the alley, he caught sight of Meng Qiqi chasing after him.

Fast.

“Stop right there!” Meng Qiqi shouted, but saw only the edge of a black sleeve. By the time he gave chase, it was already too late. The surroundings were still. A five- or six-year-old child stood below the courtyard wall, holding a pinwheel, staring up at him in a daze.

“Wow… a celestial being.”

Meng Qiqi stood with his hands behind his back. After a moment’s thought, he turned and headed back toward the small courtyard where Miss Yun was staying. If that person had been following him all along, they would definitely take a look at that courtyard too. Whether or not he returned, Meng Qiqi had no intention of letting the opportunity slip by.

Chen Boyan was still there.

He had not drawn too near, keeping a distance as he quietly observed from afar.

He had no intention of interfering with Meng Qiqi’s actions. He was simply curious. In the past, he would never have allowed himself to be drawn into something like this. But this enigmatic Little Martial Uncle had somehow disrupted even his own patterns.

Why? Why did he care so much?

Chen Boyan was lost in thought, so much so that he failed to notice the golden beetle suddenly begin fluttering up and down. By the time he reacted, Meng Qiqi had already appeared at the corner of the courtyard in the northeast.

Meng Qiqi did not recognize him. Chen Boyan had never been one to grow careless. He was dressed in black, his face was fully concealed.

Meng Qiqi was not the type to let such things slide. The moment he saw the figure, he raised his hand and sent several flying swords forward, then drew his own blade and gave chase. Beneath the veil, his expression was cold and ruthless.

Chen Boyan leapt back, using not the techniques of Gushan, but those of the Chen family. With the vast collection of sword arts in the Chen clan’s library, Meng Qiqi could not possibly recognize them.

One advanced, the other retreated. In the blink of an eye, they had swept across several streets.

Meng Qiqi landed lightly on a willow branch, then flipped forward over a tall archway. As he flipped, his sword drew a streak of silver light through the air. Before his feet even touched the ground, the blade shot toward Chen Boyan.

Forced to defend himself, Chen Boyan could not use his sword without giving himself away. He grabbed an oil-paper umbrella left at the corner of a second-story corridor. The moment it opened, the attack landed.

The umbrella spun rapidly in his hands. A faint glow of elemental force rippled across its surface. As Meng Qiqi’s sword strikes rained down, they were deflected one after another, like water against spinning silk, turned aside with minimal force.

After the first wave, Chen Boyan withdrew the umbrella, but the next attack had already arrived.

At the very last moment, he vaulted onto the roof. Meng Qiqi was right behind him.

A dark figure and a pale one shot through the streets like twin arrows, weaving through alleyways like drifting clouds. From time to time came the ring of clashing steel, but in a heartbeat, they had already vanished from sight.

The chase carried them from the quiet cluster of residences into a bustling market district, startling the birds into flight. It happened to be the same street where Tu Youqiong, worn out from three consecutive bouts, had plopped onto the ground with a sigh, gazing up at the sky.

He exhaled sharply. Huh? Did his little martial uncle just fly overhead?

“Wait!” Tu Youqiong slapped the ground and leapt to his feet. Dai Xiaoshan, who had just been about to enter the ring, was startled. He turned and asked, “What now?”

Tu Youqiong jabbed a finger toward the sky, excited. “Little Martial Uncle just flew past!”

“Huh?” Dai Xiaoshan looked up, and so did many others. Some had already noticed Meng Qiqi’s figure earlier and were now animatedly discussing it.

The two central figures of the chase, however, had long since vanished from sight.

The farther Meng Qiqi pursued, the more unease stirred within him. Since taking up the path of cultivation, he had devoted himself to refining his movement techniques. In terms of speed, there were likely only a handful in Jinling who could rival him.

But this man…

No. He had to catch him today.

Just then, a figure suddenly flew out from ahead and crashed into Meng Qiqi’s path, as though flung from a fight. The man screamed as he tumbled straight toward him.

Meng Qiqi flicked his sleeve and stepped back. The figure crashed with a loud bang, shattering rooftop tiles.

Half-lidding his eyes, Meng Qiqi followed the man’s trajectory and gaze to the source. Ahead, a dense crowd had formed outside an elegant two-story tavern. The surrounding rooftops and treetops were also lined with onlookers.

The tavern bore a name plaque. Lion Tower.

As the saying goes: In Jinling, there is Lion Street. On Lion Street stands Lion Tower, where fine guests gather and wine and meat abound. Nothing beats the lion’s head.

At that moment, standing on the second-floor balcony of Lion Tower, drawing the full attention of the crowd, was none other than Lu Yunting of Jingbo Sword, the same swordsman who had battled Jin Man at Hangu Pass.

Meng Qiqi’s eyes darkened. This was trouble.