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Chapter 231: Black Lotus
Chapter 231: Black Lotus
Chapter 231: Black Lotus
The dark clouds loomed overhead.
A mountain created with a giant skull could be seen.
This was the eerie and terrifying White-Bone Mountain, where diabolical cultivators were cunning and vicious and one wrong step could put one's life in danger.
After waiting outside for a short while, Liu Sen led the three youngsters into the Chamber of Loyalty. The constant calls and greetings along the way indicated that the members of this chamber were rather close with each other.
As they passed through a spacious corridor, they caught sight of General Hei Yu, lounging in a lazy, tilted posture high up in the great hall.
With a youthful appearance, General Hei Yu didn't look old at all. Even as he was draped in a thick black cloak, it was obvious that he was skinny. When one stared at his brows and eyes, they would feel a sinister aura.
Upon seeing the three youngsters brought over by Liu Sen, General Hei Yu smiled and asked, "Are these the new brothers you wanted to introduce? Why are they hiding their faces?"
"Chamber Master, please forgive them. They were part of another diabolical sect, inheritors of a minor cultivation legacy. They heard about General Hei Yu of the White-Bone Sect and joined out of admiration for the renowned General Hei Yu. As they felt embarrassed of their original lineage, they hid their faces." Liu Sen explained with a bow.
A diverse array of cultivation legacies existed within diabolical sects. It wasn't strange for members of smaller sects to leave their sect for a bigger sect.
The words of flattery seemed rather effective as General Hei Yu immediately smirked, appearing rather pleased as he declared, "Very good! We are just in need of capable people. You three came at the perfect time. Bring the bowls!"
With this, a subordinate brought a few big bowls. One of the bowls was filled with liquor.
While Chu Liang and the other two were puzzled about his intentions, General Hei Yu leaped up abruptly and landed before them. Then, with his right hand, he plucked a black feather off his cloak.
The edge of the black feather was as sharp as a saber. He gripped it with his left hand and pulled the feather up with his right hand.
Swoosh!
Blood spurted out and flowed into the bowl. Immediately, the bowl of white liquor took on the color of blood.
"Since you have joined the Chamber of Loyalty today, let's swear brotherhood in blood. From now on, we are brothers for life!" General Hei Yu declared loudly, brimming with enthusiasm.
Great...
No wonder it's called the Chamber of Loyalty. This is an actual mafia gang.
Even if we are swearing blood brotherhood, you don't have to be this rough to yourself. This dude is too honest. He mixed up so much blood with the liquor that it has thickened up. Chu Liang complained internally.
The three exchanged glances and stepped forward. Each of them pricked their fingers and dripped a drop of blood into the bowl.
As Chu Liang had practiced the Blood-Refinement Technique: Divine Light as well as the Secret Dragon Blood Technique, the color of his blood was almost golden. As the drop of blood dripped into the liquor, a faint fragrance emanated.
Fortunately, it was only a drop of blood so its uniqueness wasn't obvious in the mixture of liquor and blood.
The mixture of liquor and blood was portioned into the large bowls. General Hei Yu then lifted the bowl up and announced, "I will drink first as a toast!"
With that, he emptied the bowl in one gulp.
At the sight of his boldness, Chu Liang and the others trembled. They lifted the bowl and lightly grazed the liquor with their lips.
"Hahaha!" General Hei Yu guffawed, not giving a damn about how much these three had drunk. He turned back and wobbled around as he returned to his seat.
He then announced, "A few days ago, the Lord of the White-Bone Hall issued an order, stating that the White-Bone Hall will soon commence a grand conquest. When the time comes, a hundred diabolical soldiers will be called upon to act. This will provide us with a significant opportunity to establish our reputation!"
"We are willing to serve!" They all declared as they nodded in agreement.
With the blood oath concluded, General Hei Yu waved them off, allowing them to disperse. "You can go for now and familiarize yourself with the White-Bone Mountain.
"In the next two days, I will have Cang Ying find a mission for you three. Consider this a test of your abilities and be sure to show your worth when the time comes."
"Yes!"
The process of infiltrating the White-Bone Hall turned out to be simpler than the three had imagined, with the only difficulty being the unsanitary mixture of blood and liquor.
Like what General Hei Yu had mentioned, turbulent changes were happening within the White-Bone Hall and they definitely benefited from this as they did join at a time when the White-Bone Hall was expanding their forces.
"Alright. Now that I have made the necessary arrangements, you three are free to move around," Liu Sen, the one who had recommended them, said. "There are very few restrictions in the Chamber of Loyalty. As long as what you do doesn't interfere with the official matters, you are really free to do whatever," Liu Sen explained. "Just make sure not to enter the inner palace of White-Bone Mountain."
...
The three of them then wandered in the Chamber of Loyalty, appearing to be familiarizing themselves with this new place. In reality, they were really observing and gathering information on the enemy forces.
The atmosphere in the Chamber of Loyalty was quite different from other places in the diabolical sect. The cultivators in this chamber walked around shoulder to shoulder. The people here were boisterous and lively and gave off characteristics of a normal martial community. Clearly, General Hei Yu, the leader of this chamber, held a significant influence on the subordinate members of the chamber.
While they wandered around, Monk Pushan would comment on every single thing he saw without stopping, while Luo Yao remained as taciturn as always. Chu Liang walked casually between them, appearing very carefree, though his body would occasionally tremble.
"What's with the occasional tremors?" Monk Pushan finally couldn't resist the urge to ask.
"It's nothing." Chu Liang could only respond with a smile.
Since they entered the White-Bone Mountain, the Crimson Executioner reached a frenzied state!
It was vibrating so much that it was almost dancing within the White Pagoda. Chu Liang could feel this intense vibration that represented the righteous sword's strong urge to obliterate evil.
The vibration was so intense and frequent that Chu Liang couldn't even figure out the target of the sword.
The Crimson Executioner could distinctly identify the source of the blood-stained aura. However, this place was saturated with an amalgamation of blood-stained auras from different people.
It was like trying to identify one frog call amidst a cacophony of frog calls.
Chu Liang had no choice but to suppress this urge. After all, no matter how powerful the enhancing effect of the Crimson Executioner was, he couldn't possibly rely on this sword to handle everyone in the White-Bone Hall.
At this moment, a sudden commotion outside caught their attention, and they faintly heard someone exclaim, "Enchantress Liu!"
Upon returning to the great hall, a woman dressed in a flaming red dress walked in gracefully.
In the Scarlet-Robe Hall, Enchantress Liu held the rank of second. With the visage of a middle-aged beauty, she appeared much older than Enchantress Yi. Her brows resembled the mountains of spring, her eyes the waters of autumn, and the corners of her eyes and eyebrows exuded countless charms.
Her figure was voluptuous and graceful, clad in a tightly-waisted red long dress with a slit at the waist, revealing large swaths of fair skin. A black lotus was tattooed at her waist, extremely eye-catching.
Upon seeing the tattoo, Chu Liang muttered softly and wondered to himself why this black lotus tattoo looked so familiar.
When General Hei Yu saw the girl, he immediately stood up.
With a loud guffaw, he said, "Enchantress Liu, what an honor to have you grace us with your presence! Why didn't you notify us of your visit beforehand! I missed the chance to host you properly!"
"Heh, I came unannounced, Chamber Master Hei Yu. I hope my sudden visit isn't too rude," Enchantress Liu's voice sounded gentle, soft, and alluring.
"Of course not! The Scarlet-Robe Hall and the White-Bone Hall are like branches of the same tree. You are always welcome at the Chamber of Loyalty," General Hei Yu responded in a straightforward manner.
"Oh, it would be rude of me to simply disturb." Enchantress Liu chuckled and said, "Heh, to be honest, I came here because I need you to help me with something."
"Oh?" General Hei Yu was confused. "Enchantress, what do you need help with?"
It was normal for him to feel surprised. In terms of hierarchy, he was technically at the same level as Enchantress Liu. However, the Scarlet-Robe Hall only had four enchantresses. They were the sole disciples of the Scarlet-Robe Hall's master, who held an exceptionally high status and had reached an extremely advanced level in her journey of cultivation.
The White-Bone Hall was said to have eight hundred chambers, and General Hei Yu was just one of the eight hundred chamber masters working under the Elder of White-Bone Mountain.
His own value in the hall was incomparable with that of the enchantress,
"It's nothing major, just that we're short-handed in the Scarlet-Robe Hall and can't spare any manpower," Enchantress Liu explained. "I met up with the Elder of White-Bone Mountain Elder, and he asked me to seek you for help."
"So it's an order from the hall master! Then of course, I'll comply!" General Hei Yu exclaimed.
He hardly ever saw the hall master throughout the year, so if this task was entrusted to him by the Elder of White-Bone Mountain, he naturally had to take it seriously.
"My sisters and I are hoping to get our hands on a batch of Eternal-Youth Pills but we couldn't figure out where we might find a suitable alchemist. And so, we are hoping that you can help us find one," said Enchantress. Liu
"Alright. Count on me!" General Hei Yu said as he patted himself on the chest.
"In that case, thank you in advance," Enchantress Liu said. She gave a gentle bow and turned back, walking away in the usual alluring manner.
The men of the Chamber of Loyalty watched her swaying figure depart, reluctant to let her leave their sight.
Chu Liang was one of those men.
When Luo Yao noticed his behavior, she humphed coldly and asked, "I thought you said just a glance at women annoys you?"
"Maybe the second glance calmed him down," Monk Pushan added with a sly grin.
"I am not looking at her. I am looking at the tattoo on her waist," Chu Liang explained.
"So that's the style that Young Master Chu likes, huh?" Monk Pushan nodded knowingly.
Luo Yao frowned with disdain revealed in her eyes.
"..." Chu Liang felt so speechless.
He had been staring at the tattoo on Enchantress Liu's waist because the tattoo looked familiar. After a moment's thought, he remembered that he had taken out a dudou[1] from within the Evil Ksitigarbha owned by the Southern-Route Guider.
The exact same black lotus tattooed on Enchantress Liu's waist was embroidered on that dudou[2]!
Could Enchantress Liu be the owner of that dudou?
But the Southern-Route Guider was a subordinate of the Violet Gold Marquess, while Enchantress Liu is a disciple of the Scarlet-Robe Hall's master. Although they are of the same level, the Left and Right Guardians of the Dark King Sect are at odds with the Four Halls of Darkness...
If the two were a couple, it might not be as simple as having an affair...
He was pondering this earlier.
But now, Luo Yao and Monk Pushan misunderstood again. Even if he wanted to explain, he couldn't take the dudou out. If he had done that, it would only further confirm that he was indeed a pervert.
Anyway, to them, he no longer held a positive image. Chu Liang could only shrug and let them be.
Think whatever you want.
Whatever you two say is right then.
1. Previously belly-band. Changed to dudou as this would be the more accurate translation. This is an undergarment used by women in China back in the days ?
2. Refer to Chapter 160 and 161 ?