Bad things happen often

Chapter 78

Xiao Xiao was bewildered for a while before slowly taking a step and following.

...

...This is a scene divider = =+...

In the dimly lit room, on a red lacquered wooden table, lay a scroll of surrender documents.

"Hmph... The Divine Firmament Sect is moving much faster than I expected..." Suddenly, someone spoke. It was Wen Jing, the island lord of the seventy-two islands of the East Sea.

Wen Su looked at the scroll and asked, "Master, what are your plans?"

Wen Jing paced a few steps and said, "On the surface, it's the imperial court's punitive expedition, but to put it bluntly, it's all for the Nine Emperors' Divine Artifacts... Take a look at this letter of surrender."

Wen Su nodded, picked up the scroll, and unfolded it. After only a cursory glance, his expression changed drastically.

Wen Jing slowly said, "She is the only successor of the Ghost Master. Besides the Celestial Master, only she knows the secret of the Nine Emperor Divine Artifacts. Demanding that we hand her over proves that the Celestial Master never returned to court..." Wen Jing glanced at Wen Su, "...to think that those few juniors can take over my East Sea is a joke..."

Wen Su closed the document and remained silent.

Wen Jing walked to Wen Su's side and said, "You did very well this time. I suppose her wariness of you has almost completely disappeared..."

Upon hearing this, Wen Su frowned slightly.

“However, judging from her appearance, she could betray the East Sea at any moment. If she joins the Divine Firmament Sect, all our previous efforts will be in vain…” Wen Jing said, “The matter of the Nine Emperors needs to be addressed as soon as possible…”

Wen Su was silent for a moment before speaking, "Disciple understands..."

Wen Jing nodded slightly. "By the way, I have something I need you to do..." He put his hands behind his back and said, "Send this letter of surrender back, and convey my message while you're at it..."

Wen Su clasped his hands in a fist salute, "Disciple understands." After saying this, he took the document and withdrew.

...

...I'm also a scene divider = =+...

The seventy-two islands of the East China Sea are arranged in a crescent shape, with the main island at the tip of the crescent. A few days ago, government warships sailed into the East China Sea and blockaded the waters outside the main island. The warships were arranged in layers, forming a semi-circle, surrounding the main island.

After the warships were deployed, they remained stationary for a long time. This morning, the envoy delivered a letter of surrender to the island, which can be considered as a gesture of goodwill before resorting to force.

The azure East China Sea was as calm as dusk. A gentle sea breeze blew, soothing and pleasant. Everything was peaceful, yet it was precisely this peace that made one uneasy. The soldiers on guard stood at the bow of the ship, not daring to relax their vigilance for a moment.

Then, a small boat appeared and disappeared in the blue waves, slowly sailing towards us.

The soldiers immediately drew their bows and prepared for battle.

There was only one person on the small boat. He was no more than twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, dressed in a moon-white robe, with an exceptionally refined air. He stood at the bow of the boat, seemingly casual, but the two swords at his waist subtly exuded a murderous aura.

"Who goes there?!" shouted the soldiers on the warship.

The man on the small boat smiled, mustered his strength, and leaped aboard.

Upon seeing this, the soldiers immediately fired arrows, but the man moved with such agility that more than ten arrows failed to harm him in the slightest. In the next instant, he was already standing on the ship's railing.

"I am Wen Su from the East Sea. I have only come to deliver a message." The man clasped his hands in a fist salute, his tone cold.

The soldiers remained fully drawn, without the slightest sign of relaxation.

"It's just a message, why bother Master Wen to come in person..." A smiling voice came from the side.

Upon hearing this, the soldiers laid down their weapons and returned to their positions.

Wen Su stepped off the ship's side, onto the deck, and said, "So it's Young Master Wei."

Wei Qi took a few steps forward and said with a smile, "If I'm not mistaken, Master Wen has come to return the letter of surrender, hasn't he?"

Wen Su smiled. "That's right."

“Why bother…” Wei Qi shook his head. “Those who understand the times are wise. Why go against the court?”

"The affairs of the East Sea are none of Young Master Wei's concern," Wen Su said coldly.

“Master Wen, you are mistaken… I am not speaking from the perspective of the imperial court. The seventy-two islands of the East Sea were originally affiliated with the Shenxiao Sect. Now that Shenxiao has returned to the court, the East Sea should naturally not act independently and oppose our sect…” Wei Qi looked at Wen Su, “Isn’t that right?”

Wen Su took out the letter of surrender from his pocket and tossed it casually. The letter landed squarely at Wei Qi's feet.

“The return of Shenxiao to the court is not up to you, Young Master Wei…” Wen Su said, “If you want my East Sea to submit to our sect, then let the Celestial Master intervene.”

Upon hearing this, Wei Qi's expression turned somewhat cold.

"It seems that Donghai is determined to establish its own independent entity," Wei Qi said.

“I’ve already said, you don’t need to worry about the affairs of the East Sea.” Wen Su lowered his eyes and said with a smile, “Also… the East Sea will not hand her over…”

Wei Qi's eyes were filled with murderous intent.

At that moment, a cry of alarm suddenly came from the warship nearby.

"Someone is scuttling the ship!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Qi frowned. When he turned around, he saw that the two warships were tilted and the decks were in chaos.

“Simply sending back a letter of surrender would make the East Sea seem stingy. This little gift is hardly a token of our respect…” Wen Su said calmly.

Wei Qi smiled, "You're too kind..."

The atmosphere between the two grew increasingly tense. At this moment, several soldiers leaped onto the ship's railing, unlike the guards. These men drew their bows with practiced skill, and their quivers bore the Lian family crest.

The men drew their bows and fired several arrows in quick succession, each one striking the water. Instantly, white waves rippled across the sea, creating a magnificent sight.

Those who were digging the boat underwater were forced to the surface.

Several soldiers immediately drew their bows, ready to shoot.

Seeing this, Wen Su drew his sword. Wei Qi, of course, wouldn't stand idly by. The situation on the ship was tense, on the verge of erupting into conflict.

"Stop." A calm voice rang out, instantly silencing all murderous intent.

Upon hearing that voice, Wen Su frowned. He turned around, looked at the speaker, and said coldly, "Lian Zhao..."

When Lian Zhao walked up to the crowd, Wen Su suddenly felt a strange sensation. Lian Zhao's appearance hadn't changed much, but he exuded a fighting spirit that was so sharp that no one dared to look him in the eye.

Lian Zhao glanced at the surrounding situation, his gaze sweeping lightly over everyone, but not lingering on any one person.

"Now that the message has been delivered, please return," he said.

“Young Master Lian, these people came here to provoke us by scuttling the ship, we must not let them get away with it easily…” Wei Qi said.

Lian Zhao's tone remained humble and polite. "Young Master Wei, if I remember correctly, I am the general here."

Wei Qi sighed and smiled, "I misspoke. Please forgive me for any offense I may have caused, young master."

Lian Zhao nodded slightly and said nothing more. He glanced at Wen Su and said, "Today, we are offering surrender without fighting, so you are free to come and go as you please. Since your sect will not surrender, starting tomorrow, Lian Zhao will not show any mercy."

Wen Su smiled but did not answer. He turned and jumped down, boarded the small boat, and left with his disciples.

Lian Zhao watched the small boat sail away, then looked up at the island ahead. He was silent for a moment, then calmly said, "All troops, deploy your forces. Attack tomorrow."

On the warship, all the generals and soldiers shouted in unison, "We obey!"

...

Nine Palaces Mystic Array [Middle]

At night, Xiaoxiao still went to the beach as usual and played the sanxian (a three-stringed plucked instrument). But this time, she couldn't sing.

She had imagined more than once what it would be like to see Lian Zhao again. What should she do if he wanted to kill her? Kneel and beg for mercy? Would he forgive her...? Fight back? She was probably no match for him... Or... run away? But given the current situation, could she even escape?

These thoughts swirled in her mind, or perhaps she had one last choice: to obediently accept her death.

Thinking of this, her fingers paused, her nails scraping against the strings, leaving a long, piercing echo.

No, perhaps he didn't even know she was here. So, her worries were unnecessary... that must be it. She never said where she was going; he couldn't possibly know...

I let out a small sigh. All those "maybes" are just self-consolation.

She was silent for a moment, then stood up and shouted at the sea, "The East China Sea is so dangerous! I should have gone to Taiping City! I'm forced to practice martial arts every day and I'm even framed! Why am I so unlucky?! I want to be a bad person! I want to be a traitor! I might as well join the South China Sea!"

She had barely finished shouting when she heard a cold, reprimanding voice: "How dare you?"

Xiao Xiao froze, slowly turning her head back, only to see Wen Su walking towards her with a hint of anger.

"Master... Uncle-Master..." Xiao Xiao said timidly, holding the sanxian.

“You’ve got some nerve. It was one thing to make up false confessions before, but now you dare to say you want to join the South China Sea?” Wen Su said. “With a formidable enemy at hand, if you keep spouting nonsense like this, I won’t be able to protect you!”

Xiao Xiao lowered her head and said, "Xiao Xiao knows she was wrong..."

Wen Su looked at her and sighed softly, "If only you truly knew you were wrong..."

She glanced up slightly. Tsk, her mistake was lingering on that face...

There was a brief silence between them.

Wen Su looked at her, pondered for a long time, and then said, "You've heard about Lian Zhao leading the troops, haven't you?"

Xiao Xiao looked at him and nodded.

Wen Su paused for a moment, then said, "...Given the current situation, a confrontation is inevitable. Are you prepared?"

Xiao Xiao smiled and said, "Maybe he doesn't even know I'm here. I'll just avoid him."

“He knows.”

Hearing Wen Su's answer, Xiao Xiao fell silent.

“The surrender document this morning clearly states in black and white that Donghai must hand you over,” Wen Su said slowly.

Xiao Xiao lowered her head and didn't say anything.

"Now that things have come to this, you don't actually think he wants you to go back and become the young mistress of the Lian family, do you?" Wen Su's voice was icy. "He's now a lackey of the imperial court, colluding with the Shenxiao Sect! What he wants isn't you, but the Nine Emperors' Divine Artifact! And yet you still can't forget him... Xiao Xiao, how many times do I have to tell you before you understand that you and he are destined to be enemies!"

Wen Su's words were etched into Xiao Xiao's heart. She couldn't refute them, and could only listen quietly.

“Alright, even if he wasn’t after the Nine Emperors’ Divine Artifacts, you should know that your elder brother has a long-standing feud with the Lian family. Can he truly be sincere towards you?” Wen Su continued.

Hearing this, Xiao Xiao recalled the Lian family's history, and the blind Zhu Chenyan… Yes, how could such a feud be resolved? Suddenly, something occurred to her. Lian Zhao had once said that the Ghost Master's intrusion into the Lian family was a disgrace, something the Lian family had never mentioned to outsiders. Wen Su and the Ghost Master had been separated for many years; they shouldn't have any connection. Yet Wen Su had brought up this grudge more than once…

"Uncle-Master..." Xiao Xiao asked with some doubt, "How did you know that Master had a grudge against the Lian family?"

Wen Su's expression changed slightly, but he quickly replied calmly, "When my elder brother searched for the Nine Emperors' Divine Artifacts, he was acting on orders from the Shenxiao Sect. At that time, the East Sea was also under the Shenxiao Sect, so naturally they knew a little about it. What's so strange about that?"

"Oh...I see..." Xiao Xiao nodded.

"Don't beat around the bush. I'm asking about Lian Zhao..." Wen Su said, "I'll back down, and you won't need to fight him. But when I kill him, you mustn't stop me. Can you do that?"