Chapter 210: Cleaning

~~~

Night falls over Rumbling Thunder City.

The storm still rages. Though less intense than it was hours ago, the rain, wind, and thunder are still enough to keep most of the city inside their houses. Perhaps General Dan will be calm when the morning comes. Perhaps, the storm will go away on its own. It matters not.

Yuan Tao intends to be gone by then.

The rumbling of thunder and the roar of wind provide the perfect cover for him. Dressed in dark clothes and making sure to keep his Qi hidden, Yuan Tao is almost invisible in the storm. He moves silently across the rooftops and climbs over the city walls with cat-like grace.

No one notices him. Not the guards outside his door or the ones around the city.

It is a pity he has to leave like this, but with Duke Lai imprisoned and soon to be put on trial, there is no other way. The duke will inevitably expose him to save his own skin.

What a mess.

Just thinking about how everything has degenerated is enough to make Yuan Tao angry. He was sent to the Storm Dragon Empire to sabotage the efforts of Lord Feng Gui’s delegation. To that end, he cooperated with Duke Lai, an old partner of theirs.

Unfortunately, the man has proven himself to be utterly incapable.

To think he even gave Duke Lai the three disciples from the tournament to help him out! Truly, the epitome of wasting pearls before swine! Those three might have lost the Crimson Cloud Tournament, but each is a more talented cultivator than Duke Lai could ever hope to be. Shi Qingxia and Ye Zheyu will likely surpass him in less than a decade. For Yong Zhunyi, it will take a year or two at most.

And yet, despite having such prodigious cultivators under his command, Duke Lai still got himself exposed and captured.

Yuan Tao sighs.

The rain has made the ground muddy. It makes running hard, and while flying is very tempting, using too much Qi would give away his presence. He will have to deal with it until he has crossed a few more dozen miles.

A few more dozen miles.

A few more dozen miles.

A few more dozen miles.

A few more-

Yuan Tao stops.

“Oh, you noticed. A pity. I was curious to see whether I could keep you like that until the morning. It seems that will not be an option.”

Yuan Tao’s Qi blazes.

His golden eyes shine like suns, and the rain around him evaporates. The ground dries up, and the dirt is burned away from his clothes. His long braid rises like the tail of an angry cat.

“You,” Yuan Tao growls, glaring at the man in front of him. “What are you doing here?”

Mud blinks.

“Should I not be here?” He asks, cocking his head to the side. “Surely, you did not think you could escape without anyone noticing? Or perhaps you are asking how we knew you would run towards General He’s lands? That should also be obvious, though I do not believe you would have managed to escape even if you had chosen a different direction.”

He says it all matter-of-factly. As though Mud were the teacher and Yuan Tao the dull student. It makes Yuan Tao gnash his teeth, but he cannot afford to lash out.

“Escape?” Yuan Tao asks. “What do I have to escape from, Brother Mud? Is it wrong that I seek to stretch my legs after being in the city for so long?”

It is a weak defense, and they both know it. Unfortunately, shamelessness is his only way forward. While Yuan Tao has always been thankful his body is free from the parasites the Death Fashioning Scripture is fond of using, he finds himself wishing he had one at the moment so he could be safely extracted.

Though considering who is in front of him, perhaps even that wouldn’t have helped.

Mud is only in the first level of the Heaven Realm. Yuan Tao is in the third. That difference should be enough to make Yuan Tao his unquestionable superior.

However, Mud is Elder Xun’s one and only disciple.

Yuan Tao knows Mud’s story. A talentless disciple picked up by Elder Xun in what many assumed was a burst of petty sentimentality. A useless lout only good for guarding the old tomes of the Technique Hall. That is what most people thought of Mud for two hundred years.

And in those centuries, Elder Xun created a monster without anyone realizing it.

“Do not embarrass yourself, Brother Yuan,” Mud tells him. “You have conspired with Duke Lai and those beyond the Dead Plains. That cannot be ignored.”

“That’s a bold accusation to make,” Yuan Tao says. “Yes, I have talked with Duke Lai. Why wouldn’t I? Duke Lai has been quite accommodating to our policies in the past. If Duke Lai truly is a traitor, that only means he has fooled me in the same way he fooled everyone. Surely, you will not hold that against me?”

“Interesting,” a new voice says. “Then, how do you explain the letter you sent to Duke Lai the same day we arrived here?”

Somehow Yuan Tao fails to notice Qing Jin standing behind Mud until the younger cultivator speaks. While Qing Jin’s skill at hiding his Qi is no secret, something tells Yuan Tao the actual culprit is Mud.

“Should I read it for you?” Qing Jin asks, holding a letter Yuan Tao immediately recognizes. “You say quite a few things in this. None paint you in a good light. Conspiracy would be putting it mildly.”

Yuan Tao grimaces.

The letter in Qing Jin’s hands is the one where he explains to Duke Lai what their purpose should be in regard to Lord Feng Gui’s new policies. To disrupt them and sabotage them as much as possible. There are even a few suggestions written down. Yuan Tao knew his messenger never reached Duke Lai, but he had not been worried as the letter could only be opened with Duke Lai’s Qi.

Unfortunately, Duke Lai has proven himself far too incompetent.

“Is this who you trust, Brother Mud? A spy of the Divine Frozen Palace?” Yuan Tao asks, pointing at Qing Jin. It is another deflection, yet this one holds truth to it. Yuan Tao has already sent word to Elder Fa about it.

Unfortunately, the information won’t get there in time to be useful to him.

“The matter of Qing Jin’s alliances will be investigated in time.” Feng Zhi is the one who appears this time. “You, however, take priority.”

“Did you think the Patriarch did not know of Elder Fa’s true loyalties?” Mud asks him. “Of course, he did. He merely thought it prudent to ignore it. However, your conspiracy is being far too overt, and so, you have forced our hand.”

“It would reflect poorly on us if, after everything that has happened, we only start acting after Duke Lai’s testimony,” Feng Zhi continues. “By the time Duke Lai testifies, this matter will have already settled itself. Do not think badly of us, Yuan Tao. This is simply how the Eternal Flame Clan keeps itself honest.”

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Arrogant brat.

So confident in the Eternal Flame that he believes he can speak to him as an equal. However, Feng Zhi is not his match. Not even close. Neither is the damnable Qing Jin.

The issue is Mud.

As long as he is here, he cannot win.

“Do you seek to kill me before dawn, then?” Yuan Tao asks, carefully weighing his options. He does not want to reveal his hand, but he might not have a choice.

“That will not be necessary.”

Yet another voice, and one that confirms he has fully lost.

“While I am sure such brute displays are not new to the Eternal Flame Clan, they have reached out to me so that we might encounter a more humane solution,” Bai Wen of the Divine Frozen Palace says.

“Is that what it has come down to?” Yuan Tao shouts in anger. “You accuse me of treason but ally yourself with our rivals?!”

“You are a Heaven Realm cultivator who knows valuable information,” Mud explains. “We do not have time to interrogate you before the trial, and keeping you locked would be too complicated using our skills as you have recently demonstrated. Reaching out for Bai Wen’s help was only natural.”

Imprisonment, then, not death.

Yuan Tao takes a deep breath. There is no other way.

“Very well,” he says, kneeling and offering his hands. “I, Yuan Tao, submit to you and put myself at your mercy.”

He is frozen in seconds.

~~~

Trials are usually held in the courthouse, where the people of Rumbling Thunder City are free to come and watch. That will not be the case this time. Duke Lai’s trial will be held in General Dan’s grand hall, far away from prying eyes.

General Dan does this not because Duke Lai’s betrayal must be kept hidden. It is far too late for that. Already, there are countless rumors floating around the city. No, what must truly be kept secret is something else entirely.

It is the existence of the powers beyond the Dead Plains.