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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 44: The Unusual Partner
"Who did Sister Nine go out with?" Black Eyes asked in a low voice.
The guard replied, "Sister Nine didn't go out with anyone; she went out alone."
Black Eyes was taken aback. "She went out alone? Didn't you see a Courier beside her?"
At that moment, Sister Nine stepped forward and coldly said, "Black Eyes, why would I have a Courier beside me? You don't think I let her go, do you?"
Seeing Sister Nine approach, Black Eyes remained calm and said slowly, "That's not what I meant. I just wanted to clarify."
Feeling the suspicion from Black Eyes, Sister Nine expressed her displeasure. "I've been keeping your accounts for ten years, yet I still can't earn your trust. I don't know that woman at all; why would I secretly let her go?"
Realizing he was in the wrong, Black Eyes replied, "I just wanted to understand. Sister Nine, you don't need to overthink it. But you can't blame me for having such thoughts; after all, you came to Purgatory Palace for money, and that Second Sister is tied to the ruins."
Sister Nine scoffed. "If that's the case, why didn't you send someone to keep watch? Are you afraid of offending your money god? Now that she's escaped, you're trying to pin it on me?"
Not wanting to continue arguing with Sister Nine, Black Eyes said, "Arguing about this is pointless now. The most important thing is to find her."
---
In the dead of night, Lin Chuyu fled aimlessly through Tide Mountain. As dawn broke, she arrived outside Shangyu Village. Two villagers were heading to the fields with hoes when they bumped into Lin Chuyu. Seeing her face covered by a Flame Mask made them uneasy.
The villagers noticed Lin Chuyu staring at them as she stood in the middle of the path. They quickly moved aside. Observing their fear, Lin Chuyu suddenly realized, "They think I'm from Purgatory Palace."
She removed her mask and said generously, "Don't be afraid; I'm not from Purgatory Palace."
The two villagers saw Lin Chuyu remove her mask, revealing no trace of the Demon Beast. Instead, her delicate and beautiful features made them even more wary. One villager chuckled, "So you're not from Purgatory Palace. You really scared us! But why are you dressed like this?"
Lin Chuyu noticed their friendly demeanor and replied honestly, "If I didn't dress like this, I wouldn't have been able to escape from Purgatory Palace."
The villagers were astonished. "You escaped from Purgatory Palace?"
Not wanting to linger on that topic, Lin Chuyu changed the subject and asked, "What is this place?"
"Shangyu Village," one villager answered.
Taking a chance, Lin Chuyu inquired, "Do you have a Brother Ji here?"
"Brother Ji?" one villager laughed. "Miss, you should be clear about what he looks like and what he wears. Otherwise, how would I know if your gentleman is tall or short, fat or thin?"
Lin Chuyu realized they were teasing her and felt her face flush. "He's easy to recognize; he carries a big sword. If you've seen him, you definitely won't forget."
"A big sword?" both villagers exclaimed in unison. "Is he called Ji Zichen?"
Seeing them mention his name made Lin Chuyu's heart soar. She quickly nodded, "Yes! You've seen him? Is he in the village?"
Yesterday, when Ji Zichen faced off against Black Eyes, these two villagers were also present. Black Eyes had mentioned Ji Zichen's name as well, so they recognized him.
One villager immediately became polite. "So you're his friend! Unfortunately, I heard he went to Purgatory Palace with his friend."
That friend must be Xia Zhou, Lin Chuyu thought with surprise. "They went to Purgatory Palace? I just came from there; how come I didn't see them?"
The villager replied, "Ah, you must have missed each other. This is the village entrance; they took the road from Village End."
Lin Chuyu couldn't help but think, "I need to find Brother Ji quickly. I've already escaped, and there's no need for them to venture into Purgatory Palace."
She asked urgently, "Thank you, brothers. Did they leave from Village End?"
One villager replied, "Yes, there's only one road in the village."
Due to her anxiety, Lin Chuyu didn't linger and hurriedly made her way toward Shangyu Village.
At that moment, a villager called out, "Miss, wait!"
Lin Chuyu stopped and asked, "What is it?"
The villager kindly said, "Since you've already escaped, you shouldn't go back up there."
Lin Chuyu replied anxiously, "I can't! They think I'm still in Purgatory Palace."
The two villagers exchanged glances. One of them realized that Lin Chuyu was determined to go. He had initially wanted to persuade her to stay but then thought that they were strangers and it wasn't their place to interfere.
They didn't want to offend anyone from Purgatory Palace over a matter concerning an outsider. One villager sighed and said, "If you're set on going up there, I won't stop you. But how do you expect to catch up with them now? Let me tell you a way; whether you take it or not is up to you."
---
Ji Zichen and Xia Zhou were indeed on their way to Purgatory Palace. If Lin Chuyu had arrived a little earlier, they might have crossed paths in the village. Ji Zichen and Xia Zhou were currently on a Shaded Path.
Xia Zhou asked, "Aren't you going up there to prepare for something?"
Ji Zichen smiled wryly and said, "The other side already knows how many of us there are. What else can we prepare? We have no choice but to pay them a direct visit."
Xia Zhou had no good plans in mind either. He nodded and, seeing that there was still some distance to go, asked, "Your demon lair has existed here for such a long time, and you've been accumulating wealth at Tide Mountain. Why hasn't anyone taken care of this matter?"
"Take care of it?" Ji Zichen replied. "Who would bother? Tide Mountain is not a land of abundance; who would want to meddle in such trivial matters?"
Xia Zhou continued, "Aren't you from The Divine Alliance Under the Covenant, which is dedicated to capturing demons?"
Ji Zichen sighed. "There are far fewer Demon Beasts now than before; they are all hiding deep in the mountains. Even in the past, we only acted when there were bounties. Searching for relics is not easy, and capturing demons requires manpower and resources. Although The Divine Alliance Under the Covenant is a large organization, we do not simply follow the orders of the leader."
"There are different roles within the organization. To put it simply, The Divine Alliance Under the Covenant is like a marketplace. The disciples are like vendors who spend years searching for relics, just as vendors gather fruits and goods from various places. Each magical artifact is obtained at the cost of life in those ruins. If there isn't a greater benefit, who would casually use an artifact that they risked their lives to obtain?"
Xia Zhou was taken aback by this explanation. "Listening to you, it seems you have a point, but..."
Ji Zichen laughed. "You think the people from The Divine Alliance Under the Covenant are too materialistic, right?"
Xia Zhou smiled but remained silent.
Ji Zichen said, "This issue isn't the first time you've brought it up, but no one can change this status quo."
---
In Purgatory Palace, Black Eyes had instructed his subordinates to go down the mountain to search for someone. He looked at Sister Nine and asked, "What's wrong? You don't look too well."
Sister Nine coldly replied, "What? Still doubting me? Do you think I'm worried about your fortune? I just haven't slept all night and am a bit tired."
Black Eyes curiously asked, "Sister Nine, tell me honestly, why did you come to Purgatory Palace? If you want to make money, with your abilities, I believe you could earn more in the big cities than here."
Sister Nine gazed at the pale dawn sky and said, "I am the smartest for coming here because I used to be human; you are not. Though you have human forms, you lack human intelligence and agility. Your minds don't work as quickly as humans do. While I may be somewhat clever, I grew up on Tide Mountain. If I were to go to those big cities to make money, how could my mind outsmart those shrewd merchants there?"
Black Eyes said, "It seems you are quite aware of your own abilities."
Sister Nine glanced at Black Eyes and replied, "Anyway, working for you all is not a loss for me. Why should I go to the city and deal with those merchant scoundrels, scheming against each other?"
Black Eyes pondered and said, "But I don't understand. What do you need all that money for? You've been here for ten years; I estimate you've earned at least several thousand taels by now. Isn't that enough?"
Sister Nine responded, "If it were just me, that would indeed be enough."
"If it were just you?" Black Eyes caught on to something and asked, "Aren't you making money for yourself?"
Sister Nine looked at Black Eyes with deep meaning in her eyes but offered no reply.
At that moment, Old Eight leisurely entered from outside. He stopped the cart in front of Black Eyes, got out, and greeted them both, saying, "What's going on? I saw many people rushing down the mountain."
Seeing Old Eight return, Black Eyes said, "Finally back, Old Eight."
Old Eight was taken aback and replied, "Finally?"
"I've been waiting for you for a long time," Black Eyes said.
Old Eight asked in surprise, "Waiting for me to do what?"
"You know what? You let a Valued Guest go last night," Black Eyes accused.
"Valued Guest?" Old Eight reacted quickly and exclaimed, "Is it that Courier? I thought something was off about that person; they wouldn't answer any questions."
Black Eyes snorted coldly and asked, "Where did you send her?"
"Right at the fork in the mountain," Old Eight said straightforwardly.
Black Eyes looked at Old Eight and replied, "What’s so fun about this place, Old Eight? Have you had enough of your little grocery tricks?"
Old Eight chuckled, "Fun? Who said I was having fun? Don’t you know? I love cooking the most."
Black Eyes retorted, "Then you don’t need to go buy groceries in the middle of the night. Let the servants handle that."
Old Eight insisted, "Black Eyes, what are you talking about? I’m already a member of this household. When it’s my turn, I should be the one to buy the ingredients."
Suddenly, Black Eyes extended a hand, and a surge of energy pushed Old Eight down to the ground. Old Eight let out a cry as he fell, and Sister Nine's expression changed! "Black Eyes! What do you want with Eight Mo Shih?"
Black Eyes provocatively challenged him. Old Eight scrambled to his feet and shouted, "Black Eyes! Do you want to fight?"
Black Eyes scoffed, "Fight? Who has time to fight with you? You’re lucky I’m not killing you. Instead of being a good Eight Mo Shih, you want to be a Partner? You’re just a nuisance. You let someone escape; that’s my punishment! Isn’t there an old saying among humans? A country has its laws, and a family has its rules. If Purgation Emperor finds out about this, do you think he’ll let you off easily?"
Old Eight protested angrily, "Don’t use the Emperor to pressure me! I let them go; I’ll just go find them!"
Black Eyes recalled Ji Zichen and said, "Wait! This is your mess; you were supposed to take responsibility. But now that troublesome thorn is coming, I need you here."
Indeed, Ji Zichen was nearing Purgatory Palace. After yesterday’s encounter, there was no way Ji Zichen wouldn’t come to Purgatory Palace.
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