Chapter 168: Insignia
Translator: Translation Nation Editor: Translation Nation
Hearing this laugh, everything turned white.
"No!" Pei Zi Yun woke up, his entire body was soaked in sweat, and caused his robes to be dripping wet. In his mind, he could still the see the surprise in the Daoist’s face, and his smile.
The sharp painful sensations across his body had receded slightly. When he sat up, he realized that he was lying down on a stone floor. He then shouted, "System!"
A white Plum Blossom appeared before his eyes as it gradually became bigger until it became a transparent white information interface. It bore a faint light perception and words floated on it. All the information which he wanted to find out was present on the screen.
"Yin Master: Level 1"
"Dao Techniques: 39 Varieties (Advanced)"
"Sword Techniques: Master (19.1% Completion)"
"Divine Powers: Stars Transposition Level 1"
"Stars Transposition." Pei Zi Yun could not help but laughed out. He concentrated and thought hard, and a memory floated into vision. His expression then turned abruptly.
'Imperial Qi is extremely powerful and imposing. However at the end of the day, it’s still a form of spiritual energy.'
'When I gazed deep into the abyss, I realized that it was the abyss that was gazing at me. For people who don’t cultivate spiritual energy, killing officials wouldn’t have much consequences. Of course, they would be subjected to the laws and be pursued by the officials. However, they would not face the retribution a Daoist would face.'
'For Daoists or anyone who cultivates spiritual energy, whenever they killed an official, it was akin to damaging the Imperial Qi, and would face a direct retribution. Since Yin Masters have already opened the gates to heaven, their spiritual energy is immense and unmistakable. It is thus much easier to come under attack from the Imperial Qi, and receive direct retribution onto their bodies as a form of retribution.'
'According to rumors heard by the original owner, those monks that didn’t cultivate Buddhism Arts would be rendered immune to attacks from the spiritual realms. Conversely, the monks who had cultivated were subjected to attacks from evil spirits.'
'All the way until they attain enlightenment, they would then gradually be able to block out the spirits from disturbances.'
That was extremely easy to understand. Should a person run into deep waters, he would be attacked by the creatures lurking beneath. Only after a long time, when he’s transformed into a creature of the sea would he no longer be subjected to attacks.
'And it doesn’t have to be very difficult to accomplish. What the Stars Transposition can do is reducing the prominence of the might of a Yin Master, and decrease the traces of his powers, and conceal them as much as possible. Doing so would reduce the reach of the Imperial Qi and thus significantly suppress the effects of the retribution.'
'That’s not all. In theory, this divine ability also has the ability to significantly reduce the effects of attacks by spiritual energies, although the protection is much weaker against Dao arts.'
'At this point, attacking a ninth ranked official wouldn’t incur as much retribution as before. However, it wouldn’t be as effective against an eighth ranked official. This was because the crazy Daoist had only cultivated up to the third level, and was therefore limited in his abilities. Hence, when he went berserk and killed many officials, he still died due to the intense damage dealt upon him by the retribution. According to his memories, he was only thirty when he died.'
'Ji Dan’s ancestor extended a hand to try and save him during his dying moments, and stayed with him until he finally breathed his last. That was why the crazy Daoist decided to give him the jade charm.'
'It was a shame that the owner of the jade charm killed numerous officials, and thus had a certain curse on the charm. Anyone in possession of it could work for the Imperial Court, but must not become an official. Could that be why Ji Dan ultimately died under my hands, in a violent death?'
'That’s just mere superstition actually, and a negligible factor which resulted in his death, as he would’ve died anyway.'
Pei Zi Yun felt both excitement and worry at the same time. Having acquired this divine power, the retribution exerted upon him would be significantly reduced. As long as he wasn’t captured by the military forces, he wouldn’t fall into a predicament in which he would be too weak to defend himself. However, whatever happened from here on would still require his careful planning and execution.
At this point, he suddenly felt like his brain was about to explode. A wave of killing aura swept across his entire body, as though he was standing in front of his most hated enemies, "Kill, kill kill."
A voice reverberated over and over in his head. Pei Zi Yun’s face turned white, ‘This isn’t the retribution from the Imperial Qi. Is this the remaining imprint of the crazed Daoist in my mind?’
‘As the powers of the Legacies absorbed by me grow stronger, the disturbances following absorption grow stronger as well.’
‘This means that the Plum Blossom is hiding more secrets from me. At this point the disturbance is already difficult to tolerate. How did Xie Cheng Dong manage to overcome more powerful disturbances as he absorbed stronger Legacies? He would’ve died while doing so if there wasn’t a solution to this problem.’
"Damn it."
Pei Zi Yun cursed loudly, unsure of who he was actually cursing. His head was hurting so bad that he couldn’t even stand up. He started rolling on the floor, as it became more intense, 'Damn it, the retribution from the Imperial Qi has started again. Combined with the haunting of the crazed Daoist, it could be very dangerous. I have to escape to the mountains.'
'Whoever said that the most dangerous place is the safest place was an idiot.'
With this thought in mind, Pei Zi Yun stepped gingerly over to the window. He could see an ox-cart stationed down below. He instantly transformed into a ray of light and disappeared from the attic, appearing underneath the oxcart. He clutched onto the wooden beam beneath the ox-cart and fell unconscious under it.
The winds started getting stronger. The sounds of soldier’s boots stomping hastily on the ground could be heard as well. Not only were the specially trained group of soldiers present, there was an entire cohort of regular soldiers and constables as well. Such a scene terrified the group of people, and caused them to scurry away into hiding.
"Search this area thoroughly, watch out for traces of blood."
"He couldn’t have gone far, after being subjected to the retribution from the Imperial Qi. Where does he think he’s going? He won’t be able to escape. There has to be traces of blood around. Whoever finds him shall be handsomely rewarded." Eunuch Ding shouted loudly.
"Yes!" Everyone shouted out in acknowledgement.
"Eunuch Ding, I’ve found some blood." A constable rushed over. The minute he heard this good news, the eunuch was clearly overjoyed.
"Official Wu, follow me now." The eunuch turned around and instructed.
"Yes." A Daoist man pushed his way past the soldiers and stepped forward. This Daoist was also an official, and had to be working for the Imperial Court as the Daoist records keeper, and was of the ninth rank.
The both of them walked towards the trail of blood and found it along a road. Seeing the glob of blood on the floor, the eunuch creased his eyebrows and looked at the Daoist, "Official Wu, look at this."
Official Wu then stepped up and examined the blood, as if trying to gain some insights from it. After a long time, Official Wu then spoke out, "This blood seems fresh and was just purged out not too long ago. However, it’s clear that the energy within the blood is very normal. This isn’t the blood of a cultivator."
"Continue searching." Eunuch Ding ordered once more to the group of constables who had gathered around him.
"The blood of a Daoist cultivator would be extremely rich. Even after leaving the body, the blood would seem alive. The blood of a Daoist wouldn’t thin out so easily as well, and would look extremely fresh and red." Official Wu added.
"I understand now." Eunuch Ding looked at the Daoist man before turning to the Lieutenant.
"Search for blood that’s fresh and bright red, hurry search." The Lieutenant beside him hurriedly passed the order to the rest of his men.
"Your excellency, I’ve found some droplets of blood, which looks extremely fresh and bright." A constable stepped forward to report.
"Take us there now." The constable then led them towards a particular direction. When they arrived, they looked down at the floor and saw a droplet the size of a thumb, from which a fresh smell was emitted. The droplet of blood had landed on some dirt and soil, and yet didn’t mix together and remained in a single droplet.
"This blood must belong to Pei Zi Yun. He couldn’t have gone far. Besides, as long as the blood was expelled within seven days from his body, I can use it to trace his approximate location." Official Wu then retrieved a clear vial in which he collected the droplet of blood and laughed out, "As long as he doesn’t cross a hundred kilometers."
"I urge Official Wu to demonstrate his powers and find this man out for me." The eunuch looked at him strangely. It was difficult to tell his true feelings towards him.
Official Wu then continued, "That’s going to be easy. I just have to open up an altar and make the necessary arrangements. I require some time. In the meanwhile, can I urge Eunuch to deploy some horses and men to seal up the city gates, to prevent him from escaping."
Authority meant that a person had the ability to rearrange mountains and empty rivers. Just a short time later, an altar was erected in front of the Daoist. They piled together some soil, added a a particular flag and carved out some symbols. A compass was then placed atop the mound of soil.
Official Wu then stepped forward and spoke to eunuch Ding, "Eunuch, please issue an order within the city walls. I’m a lowly official, and I am not qualified enough to issue an order that would begin the enchantments and thus cannot activate the altar."
"Official Wu Luo hear your order, I command you to demonstrate your abilities and locate Pei Zi Yun’s whereabouts." Eunuch Ding then suddenly recalled something and retrieved a tile from his pocket. This tile had inscriptions of dragons and was gold in color. It contained the words "King Lu" on the tile, and showed it to Official Wu as a measure of authority.
As soon as his words had been spoken, a white and red spirit snake slithered out from the tile and rested upon Official Wu’s body.
When the red and white snake touched his body, it transformed into an official’s robes and draped itself over his body. However, normal people couldn’t see any of this taking place. Official Wu could feel it and could see everything. At this point he then started to conjure his powers.
"I present the authority vested in me, and act accordingly." Official Wu muttered as a loud wind started to brew.
Official Wu then pointed a finger, and the wind started moving. Everyone presented felt a chill ran down their spines as the temperature started to dip drastically. After several seconds, the warmth returned to their bodies.
After sometime, Official Wu stepped forward, "Your excellency, Pei Zi Yun’s whereabouts has been made known to me. He is currently fleeing into the mountains. We should hurry and chase after him, and prevent him from escaping."
"Eunuch Ding, we’ve already erected barriers and stop points all throughout the city." The Lieutenant spoke out.
When Eunuch Ding heard this he laughed, "Do you think the few men you have can restraint him? There’s no need. Deploy all the soldiers, constables and bailiffs now. Everyone should coordinate with my own troops to seek him out and kill him."
When a patrol officer heard this, he hurriedly acknowledged, "Yes."
A constable then stepped forward. He looked very properly dressed, and had a short and stout frame. His face was round and he had extremely chubby cheeks. He carried a blade on his side and looked to be about thirty years old. Fierce killing aura was leaking from this constable. He looked like he was a firm advocate of upholding the just law. He then spoke out, "Eunuch Ding, after receiving your order, I’ve already prepared more than a hundred men. Pei Zi Yun killed his excellency Ji, and thus offended all of us and made an enemy of us. We shall avenge our brother and take Pei Zi Yun’s head off and present it to constable Ji."
Eunuch Ding looked at the men before him, all ready to apprehend Pei Zi Yun. He nodded his head, "You’re Fang Jie? Your barricades at the stop points won’t be able to stop Pei Zi Yun. However, you should order your men to remain in their positions. My troops shall act as a net and encircle his position. We must restrict the breathing space given to him. All the constables with experience should join the search and hunt him down. I shall lead my troops to narrow down the specific area he’s in. Kill this man on sight."
"Set off immediately and start hunting him down. Do not give him the slightest space to move or escape." Eunuch Ding spoke out loudly, and seemed extremely authoritative and in control.
Everyone present responded loudly, "Capture him, and kill him!"
They then started marching off.
Once they crossed the river, they arrived at the foot of the mountain. Although this particular mountain wasn’t very tall, the landscape was extremely dangerous. There were cliffs, rough terrains which included many rocks and boulders, and there were areas which were completely covered in trees and shrubs.
Fortunately for them, the entire area wasn’t very large. When they looked across, they could see hundreds of soldiers scaling the mountains.
"Quick, everyone form up in groups of five and carry a whistle. Blow on your whistle once every thirty seconds. If you don’t hear a reply from the group nearby, it must be that something has happened. Everyone should then move quickly to that area. Once the traitor has been found, sound the gong immediately. With our large numbers, this person should have nowhere to run." Soldiers started shouting advice to one another.
Hearing these words, the soldiers which had been deployed to locate him on the mountains, acknowledged with a loud cry. The rest of the troops stayed at the foot to prevent any escape routes.
These soldiers teamed up with the constables, who were trained in locating a criminal. Several constables held onto the leashes of hunting dogs as they scoured the tall grassy areas.
Pei Zi Yun was indeed within the bushes of a forested area hiding. He was breathing softly and had some grass over him in an attempt to camouflage himself. He was bleeding rather profusely.
When he came across a group of soldiers, he intended to kill them off but had experienced a sudden sharp pain in his head, and was almost killed by them. Fortunately he still managed to kill them, but was injured in the process.
"Woof woof woof!" At this point he could hear the barking of the hunting dogs. The dogs rushed towards him, and Pei Zi Yun could feel his hair burst out on its end. He then drew his sword and stood up.
A wild hare then leapt out from the bushes and dashed across the fields. The hunting dogs couldn’t be restrained any longer and charged onward.
The bailiff then shouted out, "Damn it, what kind of stupid dog is this. It only knows how to chase after hares at the most opportune timings."
Just as the bailiff was about to sprint off to recover his dog, a soldier next to him held him back, "Your excellency, a dog that chases a hare is a good dog. Let it chase after it, we shall have lunch when it catches the hare."
"If it really catches the hare, I shall not do anything. If it doesn’t manage to catch it, I shall kill it and have some dog stew to simmer my anger." The bailiff cursed out.
Just seven steps away from them, Pei Zi Yun was still lying flat, hiding from them. He stuck his head out and looked at them before ducking back down again. Thankfully he managed to use his Dao arts to distract the dog, if not he would’ve been discovered.
Pei Zi Yun wondered who coordinated this effort to kill him, as he observed wave after wave of soldiers searching for him. Such a method was similar to a war tactic called Net Pulling. In fact, it was exactly the same. The point was to lull the victim into a false sense of security. They would then encircle the victim and wait for him to make a mistake and fall into their traps. Pei Zi Yun crawled in the grass as he thought deeply.